Home Prices & Small Business Key to Recovery

Real Estate
The Ripple Effect
Just as there is a ripple effect in water, there are ripple effects in the economy. Banks have been especially reticent to lend to small business owners without an established name. So small business start ups are having a tough time funding new business. In the past, small business owners have used home equity lines of credit to infuse their new business with capital, but due to the decrease in peoples home equity, small business owners are without cash to inject into their business. This leads to more unemployment, which leads to less people pay taxes, which leads to further government deficit problems. Home price recovery is extermely critical to help not only homeowners, but small business owners, their employees and the government. According to Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist for the National Association of Realtors, “The good news is that the declines {in home prices} appear largely over. However, if we’re going to kick-start the economy, our small businesses will need to find funds to turn their ideas into business growth. That means home price recovery is more critical than ever.”

July Sales

Real Estate

Existing-Home Sales Down in July but Up Strongly From a Year Ago

Washington, DC, August 18, 2011
Existing-home sales declined in July from an upwardly revised June pace but are notably higher than a year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Monthly gains in the Northeast and Midwest were offset by declines in the West and South.
Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, fell 3.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.67 million in July from 4.84 million in June, but are 21.0 percent above the 3.86 million unit pace in July 2010, which was a cyclical low immediately following the expiration of the home buyer tax credit.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said there is a tug and pull on the market. “Affordability conditions this year have been the most favorable on record dating back to 1970, but many buyers are being held back because banks are offering financing to only the most highly qualified borrowers, ignoring a large share of otherwise creditworthy buyers,” he said. “Those potential buyers represent the difference between an uneven recovery and a much more robust housing market that could stimulate additional economic activity and create jobs.”
Courtesy of Realtor.org, Walter Moloney

Charming Older Homes: Things to Investigate

Real Estate
Older homes offer a lot of charm and details that new homes often lack. They also tend to be more centrally located to downtown, offering the opportunity to walk to shops and restaurants. If you love the look and feel of an older home, make sure you have a thorough inspection of the homes systems to determine what repairs are needed.
Click here for the full article are things to investigate when purchasing an older home.

Short Sales

Real Estate

Home Short Sales What They Are, How They Can Help

When you’re looking at an underwater mortgage or are having the kind of financial difficulties that are pretty common in this economy, home short sales are one way out.

In a short sale, your mortgage lender agrees to let you sell your house and agrees to take the amount you get for it-not the full amount of the mortgage.

Short sales help in many ways. For one, during the process of negotiating for and holding the short sale, you can live in your house payment-free. This gives you time to save up for your new life and find yourself a more affordable place to live.

Short sales also help because they can take a long time. Short sales aren’t short!-they take about as much time as any sale does in this lousy real estate market. It can take up to a year or more before you finally have to move out.

In addition, when you have a short sale on your home, you don’t walk away with as big of a black mark on your credit as you do with a foreclosure.

Of course, even if you start out with a short sale, you may only be delaying the time before you end up foreclosing if your house doesn’t sell. You need to be prepared for this-but then, you’re possibly looking at as much as a year before that happens and up to a year or more for the foreclosure. That’s a lot of time to prepare and save!

Now, you can’t just walk into your lenders office and say you want to have a short sale on your house. First, you’re going to need to hire a Realtor to help prove your case for you. You’re going to have to prove financial distress, and you’re going to have to walk in with proof of what your house is actually worth now. You’ll also need to have a proposal, complete with total costs of the sale. Your Realtor will work with you to create these documents.

But even if you qualify, you may have a hard row to hoe with your lender at first. Many lenders are still resisting, even though the sales save them thousands of dollars on foreclosing costs, property maintenance, and sales costs! So be persistent if you have to-someone at your lender may well see reason.

Also, there’s a new federal program that is giving money to both lenders and homeowners to help the process along. This program will also help if you have more than one mortgage on your house. We have more information about the Home Affordable Foreclosures Alternatives program elsewhere on our website-check it out!

So before you get into a panic over your situation, realize that you do have some power here. You can come out of this with your family, your pride, and even some of your finances intact. Just take the lead and start negotiating-home short sales save lenders money, save homeowners heartaches, and save communities from the blight of foreclosed, empty houses!

Don’t worry about finding an educated, certified short sale Realtor to list your home. Just contact us and we’ll be happy to help you locate a Realtor who specializes in these sales in your area.

Article Source: William Bud Gragg Jr

Donna Sanford

THE BALL IS IN YOUR COURT

Real Estate

THE BALL IS IN YOUR COURT

Still waiting to jump off the fence and into homeownership? There are many aspects of today’s market that should make your decision easier. First of all, mortgage rates are still very low, which means you begin building equity even more quickly (by paying less interest), and you can tolerate the ups and downs of the market while values recover.

You’ll still find many assistance programs helping to encourage middle-class families to become homeowners. Get the ball rolling with a discussion with your agent to find out exactly what loan programs are available, and then combine them with the current low interest rates for the greatest benefit.

When you make an offer and apply for financing, you’ll also find that appraisal rules have come more into line with the reality of the market. Appraisers have more flexibility now in determining the value of a home based on comparable properties. This is an important facet of successfully securing realistic financing for your purchase.

And your choices now couldn’t be better, as distressed properties are beginning to clear out of the system, and finer and better-maintained homes are entering the listings. You’ll find that homeowners were investing more in maintenance and improvements while the market was down, which will increase your choice of attractive properties now. Start your search today, while all these factors are in your favor.

Open House August 21

Real Estate
Visit my open house at 18 Orchid Court in Sudden Valley on Sunday, August 21 from 3-5pm.

Stunning Lake Whatcom view from nearly every room! Extra large windows, skylights, high ceilings and multiple decks all contribute to the airy feeling and great space to enjoy the views. Lovely hardwood floors throughout living areas, light and airy interior with large windows, kitchen with island, granite counters and upgraded appliances, main floor master suite with deck access, attached bath & walk in closet. Lower level offers views, 2 bedrooms and bath plus area for office/dark room/storage or ? This is truly a must see home for an amazing value of $387,000!
Click here to view more photos.