New for 2012

• We are overhauling customer/client 24 7 online sites
  • New ability for you to post on your page photos/ texts/ and voice messages from your PC or phone.
  • Skype appointments so you can view our computer in real time from your access device ( pc/ phone/ tablet / pad )
  • Ability for you to more easily set passwords for your site or individual pages – this enables sharing of parts or all of your site with others for realty transactions or family members.
• We have combined our Fenton city location in with our Waterford location
• Fenton area realty appointments are available at any wifi enabled location
• Other Fenton area general (e.g. Annual Reviews ) appointments are available at our residence office. Specific driving directions available thru your new sites and also mailed as a link with appointment confirmations

WHY STAGE YOUR HOME

1.  We want to test the market.  For how long ? Whats the exact plan, 90 days ? And the 91st day?  Price reduction– 90 days worth of potential buyers gone.

2.  It costs too much.  Staging costs virtually always less than the first price reduction…and carrying costs. ?

3.  We can’t, we’re living in it.  .. common misconception..   

4.  We didn’t have to stage any of the other properties we sold .  Once you could generate three offers by 5 p.m. the same day your Realtor put the sign in the yard.  Not now.

5.  Everyone loves our house .   Sellers are often baffled .. amazed that buyers have found things they don’t like about the property.

6. We can clean the carpets and declutter without someone telling us how.  Do you know what separates  “clutter” from “asset”?  And what about traffic flows, highlighting architectural features, updating, and appealing to your target market?

7.  We have no desire to remove/change our ____ (wallpaper/mirrored tile/gold faucets/paneling/dated light fixtures . . .).  neither do buyers.  Be ready to sell at a deep discount. 

8.  The view will sell this place.  Then why many months later are these great view homes/condos still on the market?

9.  We would rather let the buyers makes their own paint/flooring choices.  And that equals a price reduction, double or triple the cost of these items and reflect that in their discounted offer price–which includes inconvenience.

10. Our home is professionally decorated.  … tailored to the owner’s particular needs.  Does it work for the new buyer’s needs?

… consult with a professional home stager before listing your property for sale.

Yes, we can help you out of our local area.

Why I Love Referring People to Others

When I give someone a referral, it says that I trust that the person will do as thorough a job as I would.  I don’t pick names out of a hat.  I research who they are, what markets they work in, what type of personality they have, how conscientious they are, etc.  They know a fellow professional is looking over their shoulder. Then I talk to them over the phone to pick up more cues.  I don’t work for free; I earn a referral fee.  Most of the time, the referral works out great and it beats taking chances with unknown agents.

Make Your Home Safer

Burglars most often enter a place through an unlocked door, says Craig L’Esperance, a detective for a Midwest law enforcement agency. Other times the home owners have a burglar alarm, but forget to set it when leaving the house, even for just a short amount of time.

More

Why Home Prices Won’t Bottom

…

In theory, it should be a good time to buy a home. In the worst-hit areas, properties have lost more than half their value.

Yet as the average 30-year mortgage rate has slipped below 4 percent, the combination of employment insecurity and unusually tight standards for lending are discouraging buyers en masse. Lenders are asking for extensive income verification and tax returns. One lender I contacted for refinancing even wanted me to get an accountant to certify that I wasn’t lying to the IRS…….

How Long is Credit Information Retained on Your File

A Credit Reporting Agency may report negative information for seven years.

exceptions:

• Crminal convictions may be reported without any time limitation.
• Bankruptcy – up to 10 yrs.
• Response to application for a job with a salary > $75,000 – no time limit.
• Information reported re: an application for > $150,000 worth of credit or life insurance -  no time limit.
• Lawsuit or an unpaid judgment – the longer of 7 yrs or until the statute of limitations expires.

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FICO score is as follows:

• 35 percent payment histories
• 30 percent amount of debt (e.g. don’t use over 50% of a credit line).
• 15 percent length of time credit line has been open (a longer history is better if there have always been timely payments).
• 10 percent very recent history including new applications for credit.
• 10 percent type/mix of credit, includes installment loans (like car loans), leases, mortgages, credit cards, and so on.

FHA APPRAISAL REQUIREMENTS

Effective April 1, 2009, FHA appraisers must now provide the following:

• The Market Conditions Addendum (Fannie Form 1004MC/Freddie Form 71)
• At least two comparable sales that occurred within 90 days of appraisal date
• A minimum of two active listings or pending sales in addition to the three closed comparables
• Bracketed listings using both dwelling size and sales price when possible
• Adjusted active listings to reflect the list-to-sales price ratio
• Adjusted pending sales to reflect contract sales price when possible
• The original list price and any revised list prices
• Reconciliation of adjusted values of active or pending sales with adjusted values of closed comparable sales
• Absorption rate analysis
• Known or reported sales concessions on active and pending sales

This update includes this warning: “Direct Endorsement Lenders are reminded that if the appraiser they selected provides a poor or fraudulent appraisal that leads FHA to insure a mortgage at an inflated amount, the lender is held responsible equally with the appraiser for the integrity, accuracy and thoroughness of an appraisal submitted to FHA.”

Exclusion from Taxation of Mortgage Debt Forgiveness

The Mortgage Forgiveness Deb Relief Act lets homeowners pay no taxes for mortgage debt forgiveness. Previously, if a lender forgave all or part of a mortgage, the borrower was considered to have received taxable income Currently, a taxpayer may exclude up to $2 million of income from the debt on a principal residence that is forgiven during the years 2007 through 2012. This includes a mortgage refinance as well as a foreclosure. (CAUTION: DON’T confuse this with future liability for the debt itself vs taxation….you may still find the bank hooking up to the family car in the middle of the night 5 or 10 years out, yes it does happen regularly !) The rule applies only to acquisition indebtedness, which would be funds for the purchase or improvement of the home. Home equity loans not used for improvements do not receive the benefit. The lender who forgives a mortgage must send the taxpayer a Form 1099C or 1099A that should show the fair market value of the home and the amount of the loan. The difference would normally be the income received. If audited, the taxpayer will have to document that funds were spent for the purchase or improvement of the home. More: U.S. Internal Revenue Service (The Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act and Debt Cancellation): www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=179414,00.html

FED INCOME TAXES / Capital Gains Tax on Investment Property

Long-term capital gains (held more than 12 months) are taxed at a maximum rate of 15 % ( 5% for persons in the 15% tax bracket).

CAUTION: When investment property is sold, depreciation taken during the holding period is “recaptured” & taxed at 25 %.

• Assume an apartment bldg. purchased nine years ago for $300,000.
• The building represented 80% of the total.
• The property is sold this year for $510,000 with selling costs of $10,000.
• Depreciation, using a 27½-year life, is approximately $78,545 ($300,000 × 80% ÷ 27.5 = 9 years).

What is the tax liability?

5 Reasons Not Counter

An offer is a sale, you sold it as you wanted to. As soon as you counter, you have rejected the deal, it is legally dead with no obligation from the prospective buyer that made the offer. In essence, you’ve just bought it back at the price and terms it was sold for. If you are in the market for that type of property for that price, fine…if not you just made a costly oops., Paul

Every situation is unique, and the decision of whether to counter an offer should reflect both the current market for your home and the particular offer that is presented. However, I do believe that the decision to counter an offer should not be made lightly. At a minimum, you should think twice.  (click pic for full story)

The 5 Lies All Home Sellers Tell

Before signing a listing agreement, there were five things almost every seller would say that they knew weren’t necessarily true. Regardless, we savvy and experienced agents are on to these sellers. From my years of experience, I knew how to persuade a seller to tell the truth….. full story

5 New Rules of Real Estate

But to be successful in today’s real estate market, you need to understand that the game has changed.

Here’s my list of the biggest shifts:  full story

……But now is an amazing time to buy investment property. Purchase a foreclosure or two (or up to 10, if you can find the financing), and focus on how much income you can get each month. If you buy a foreclosure in the Atlanta area for $75,000 and can get $800 to $1,000 per month in rent, that’s a terrific return on investment.

How to Wreck Your Credit Score

Being 30 days late on a house payment — even if it is an accident —

can knock 100 points off a pristine 780 credit score….

Federal Retreat on Big Loans Rattles Housing

“We’re looking at more price drops, more foreclosures,” said Rick Del Pozzo, a loan broker. “This snowball that’s been rolling downhill is going to pick up some speed.”

For the last three years, federal agencies have backed new mortgages as large as $729,750 in desirable neighborhoods in high-cost states like California, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts. Without the government covering the risk of default, many lenders would have refused to make the loans. With the economy in free fall, Congress broadened its traditionally generous support of housing to a substantial degree.       more

Metro Detroit’s home prices

expired

American Ghost Towns of the 21st Century

Palm Coast, Fla., Las Vegas and Cape Coral, Fla., were all among the former high fliers. Many large counties which have 20% or higher occupancy rates are in these same regions. Lee County, Fla., Yuma County, Ariz., Mohave County, Ariz., and Osceola, Fla., each had a precipitous drop in home prices and increases in vacancy rates as homebuyers disappeared when the economy went south. ………..

Vacant homes and homes which lose double-digit amounts of their value each year irreparably undermine the tax

base. And, as services fall, fewer potential homeowners will consider investing in the area.

again, full story – click photo

1. Lake County, Mich.

Number of homes: 14,966
Vacancy rate: 66%

Turn your house into a billboard, get free mortgage

Housing Market is 3x Worse Than You Think

The states with the most distressed housing inventory are New Jersey, Illinois, Maryland, and Florida,… read more

Improving Your Home for $1,000 or Less

Though the numbers seem a little conservative, here’s a good basic article about what buyer like when looking at your home. In the meantime, these are good bang-for-buck ideas whilst you occupy. Webmaster. ps. Please make sure to pre-wire cable/phone/audio etc to the garage before drywalling…we guys like to watch the game & listen to tunes while tinkering outside.

For real estate, a giant spring clearance sale

Despite record affordability of homes, buyers are still spooked and staying on the sidelines 

..Existing home sales plunged nearly 10 percent in February to their lowest level in nine years. It was the largest drop since July. Forty percent of those sales were on distressed properties. And new home sales are on track to come in at just 250,000 this year, the fewest since the Kennedy administration, when there were 120 million fewer people in the United States….

Nationwide, forecasters expect house prices to drop at least 5 percent more this year.

..A recent study by Capital Economics found that 60 percent of sales are to foreigners and investors, most of them paying cash. In fact, in international real estate circles, the U.S. is viewed as the “new emerging market,”………..