Take My Money!

Readers suggested these weekend topics. “How about a blog topic called ‘Take My Money!’ wherein we tell stories about the crazy behavior we’ve seen at open houses?”

Another, “How about the widespread misrepresentation of housing demand? Demand is at 16 year lows while the excess empty inventory is still… well… empty. And there are millions upon millions of them.”

And finally, “Does anyone else (besides me) have documentary evidence that high-end home prices are falling in your area? Here is an example of a high-end La Jolla home that Zillow claims dropped in value by over $1,000,000 over the last month. Check out the price history at the bottom of this post. There is something mighty strange about the way La Jolla properties are priced!”

The State. “The housing market in South Carolina ended 2012 in surefire recovery mode. Buyers, drawn in by a year of historically low interest rates and an improving economy, snapped up homes in the Columbia area at the fastest pace since 2009, when sales were artificially inflated by an $8,000 federal home buyer’s tax credit. ‘Barring any weird stuff coming out of Washington, it looks like we’ve created (a good environment for a real estate recovery),’ said Nick Kremydas, executive director of the S.C. Realtors trade group.”

“With the steady growth in the housing market in 2012, Kremydas upgraded the recovery from ‘weak’ to ‘fragile.’”

The Norwich Bulletin. “Local foreclosures continued to rise last year amid a statewide surge in home sales that one agency called the biggest turnaround in New England. Statewide foreclosure filings were up 48.44 percent last year to 16,747. Filings in New London County and Windham County last year were 1,323 and 721, respectively, RealtyTrac said. Local foreclosure problems are not expected to subside for another year, Eastern Connecticut Association of Realtors CEO John Bolduc said. But that isn’t preventing the sales surge, he noted.”

“Real estate investors and property ‘flippers’ are active in Connecticut, which helped explain the increase in multi-family prices, said Lou Mira, broker/owner of RE/MAX Premier in West Hartford.”

Oregon Public Broadcasting. “New numbers show that Bend’s housing market just had its best year since the collapse of the housing bubble. It’s not just sales that have gone up. Prices, too, are increasing. Michael Warren, president of Central Oregon Association of Realtors, says right now inventory is tight, meaning buyers don’t have a lot to choose from. ‘It wasn’t that long ago where buyers would see a house and it would be on the market for six months, so they’re not too worried about it,’ says Warren. ‘And now, if it was in their price range you’re telling them, ‘Look, you need to make an offer,’ and by the time they do it they’re either in a multiple offer or they’re already pending.’”

From WQOW TV. “Wisconsin’s housing market is mounting a comeback with encouraging signs from 2012’s Annual Realtors Report. Take Eau Claire County for example, the median price of a home was up more than $2,000. Good news for sellers, but buyers might need to get a move on to move in on a good deal. ‘If they’re going to get in with these low interest rates, now is the time to do it before the prices suddenly go back up again,’ says Economics Lecturer at UW-Stout Richard Postlewaite.”

The Mercury News. “According to a recent survey, California sellers are certainly not as optimistic about future home prices as are the state’s home buyers. Findings from the California Association of Realtors’ 2012 California Home Seller Survey show only one in five sellers believe that home prices will rise in 10 years, while 12 percent say home prices will rise in five years, and only 9 percent believe prices will rise in a year.”

“The home seller survey is quite a contrast to the state group’s survey of home buyers that found nearly three-fourths of buyers think home prices will rise in 10 years. In that survey, findings showed 73 percent of buyers believe prices will rise in 10 years; 41 percent say prices will increase in five years; and 25 percent believe prices will rise in a year.”

“‘Momentum on the seller’s side is not as high as on the buyer’s side,’ says Carolyn Miller, president of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors. ‘Sellers are not yet motivated enough to put their homes on the market.’”

“‘In contrast to record high housing affordability and record low financing rates experienced by home buyers in 2012, the real estate market looked quite different from sellers’ perspectives,’ says Don Faught, the state group president. ‘The last few years have been extremely difficult for many homeowners, which may indicate why more than twice as many sellers (74 percent) considered strategic default in 2012 than last year, reflecting homeowners’ hardships in a difficult economic environment.’”

“Consistent with recent U.S. Census data, sellers moved out of California in record numbers in 2012. Forty-four percent of sellers moved out of state, the highest in the survey’s history. Leading destination states include Florida, Texas and North Carolina. Only 30 percent of transactions closed escrow on time, down from 40 percent in 2011 and the lowest level since 2004, with buyer financing issues as the main reasons for the delay. Homes fell out of escrow an average of nearly three times (2.9) before closing, with 61 percent of sellers reporting their home fell out of escrow at least three times.”

The Miami Herald. “‘Among all US metropolitan areas, Florida had seven areas that were in the top 10 in the country,’ for foreclosures, said Amy Baker, chief economist for the Legislature.”

“The number of foreclosure filings rose by more than 53 percent in Florida last year, giving the Sunshine State the highest foreclosure rate in the nation. On average, it takes about 850 days for a foreclosure to run its course in Florida, according to a report released by Baker’s office A high rate of long-term unemployment, a tight credit market and off-peak home values are contributing to state’s mortgage delinquency problem, Baker said.”

“A ‘faster foreclosures’ bill filed earlier this month aims to speed up the state’s sluggish home-repossession process. Currently, there are more than 300,000 homes in foreclosure and at least 285,000 foreclosure filings are expected in fiscal year 2013-2014, according to the Office of Economic and Demographic Research.”

Go Local Worchester. “Over 17,000 foreclosure petitions, the first step in the foreclosure process in Massachusetts, were filed in 2012, an increase of more than 35 percent from the 12,634 filed in 2011, according to a new report from real estate publisher The Warren Group. Despite the sizable increase in foreclosure starts, however, the number of completed foreclosures decreased by nearly 13 percent last year to 7,424, compared to 8,531 in 2011. The Warren Group said that petition levels were decreased dramatically for much of 2011 as banks slowed down foreclosure processes.”

“‘As the amount of available inventory continues to shrink, watch for a gradual appreciation in median home prices in the second half of 2013 as the market begins to shift from a buyer’s market to a balanced market which favors both the buyer and the seller,’ said Dan Breault, Executive VP of RE/MAX of New England.”

The Vancouver Sun. “There is no real estate bubble in Vancouver and markets will remain stable in 2013 — as long as interest rates remain low, immigration targets are met and Europe’s economy doesn’t melt down, a panel of real estate developers told more than 1,100 real estate professionals, business leaders and B.C. politicians. Colin Bosa, CEO of Bosa Properties, said he believes people — and their money — from China will continue to flow into B.C. because they want to invest outside China and they want their children to grow up in North America.”

“Two things that could stop the flow of people from China in to British Columbia would be a recession or a change to Canadian immigration policy, Bosa said. ‘If you buy good real estate at fair prices, you can’t go wrong,’ Bosa said.”

“‘I think this is the year that the fear factor goes away,’ said Eric Carlson, CEO of Anthem Properties. ‘U.S. unemployment will go down to 6.5 per cent this year, while U.S. gross domestic product will be trending towards three per cent by the end of the year,’ Carlson said, adding that he thinks 2013 is a good time to buy real estate. ‘I don’t think there is a bubble at all.’”

The Standard. “China Vanke chairman Wang Shi said mainland home prices are high and he sees bubbles forming. ‘The bubble must be controlled, or both the real estate market and domestic economy will be jeopardized,’ the boss of the world’s largest developer by turnover warned.”

“He stressed that prices now are a ‘bit extraordinary and high,’ likely due to speculative activities. Vanke set a global record last year, selling new homes worth 141.2 billion yuan (HK$175.9 billion). Mainland new home prices rose for the seventh month in a row in December, according to Soufun. Wang blamed limited investment channels for increased speculative activities in the mainland property market. On whether continued urbanization would prove lucrative for the property sector, a cautious Wang said: ‘There won’t be another investment boom in real estate.’”

View the original article here

Money Mag Shows Us How To ‘Think Like an Appraiser’

Posted by Jonathan Miller - Monday, July 23, 2012, 3:18 PM

The August 2012 issue of Money Magazine on the newsstands now has a nice article penned by Ali Rogers called “Think Like an Appraiser.”

It’s not available online yet but the magazine is always a good read. Although Money Magazine has named me “Best Online Real Estate Expert,” I swear I have offline expertise too.

Ok before you go on with snarky comments about the last appraiser that screwed up your deal, I’ve heard it all before, much of it spoken here on this blog. The article is more about the concept of “contributory value” – how certain modest improvements help provide additional value of your home. In theory, an appraiser is going to walk through your home at time of sale just like your buyer would and place a certain value on things you may have done to improve the property. First impressions are important in building a sense of value for the property.

I’d like to expound on the contract “data” point in the article to provide context (not something I commented on for the article). Appraisers absolutely consider contract data in addition to closed data (and listing data). We can place them in the report but normally are not the sole basis of determining value.

What often happens is that we are told about a home that is under contract nearby but we don’t know the sales price. We will call the listing agent of that “contract” and try to get a sense of the interior condition and the actual price (99% of the time we are NOT successful getting the price) but we sometimes we might get feedback like “sold at list” or “sold very close to ask” etc. This can be a helpful gauge on value but not the key factor in the report presentation, especially since there is a higher probability in today’s market than in year’s past that homes under contract don’t always close.

These bits of info from a little detective work are among the subjective elements to valuation that help “tell the story” of the transaction. It’s not about dropping raw data on a spreadsheet and taking an average.

View the original article here

On the Market: From Luxe to Money Pit, Five of America's Best Starter Homes

× Like us and you'll find top breaking news in your Facebook newsfeed. Sign up for our daily email newsletter and get top stories and breaking news delivered to your inbox. Tuesday, March 27, 2012, by Rob Bear

Here now, a look at some of the best starter homes around the country, taking into consideration relatively affordable properties in neighborhoods appropriate for young families. These picks come from some of the country's most populous urban areas—so don't expect much space to spread out—but all benefit from the cultural bounties at their doorstep. In some cases the perennial love for luxury won out; in others, get ready for a renovation!

South Boston used to be famous as the headquarters for Whitey Bulger and the rest of the Irish mob. Today, it's a thriving and thoroughly gentrified district where first time buyers just might find a deal in the otherwise pricey Boston real estate market. This third-floor penthouse, with two bedrooms and one bath, is one of the most luxurious units on the market in "Southie" and it still comes in at $580K. Panoramic views of Dorchester Bay and the islands can be enjoyed from the private roof deck, a covered porch, and the unit's numerous windows. Additional luxuries include built-in speakers, central air conditioning, a jacuzzi tub, and an updated kitchen with stainless appliances. Short on space at 1,165 square feet, this well-kept condo makes up for it with the finishes and the view.

? Shopping for a home in famously expensive NYC on a first time buyer's budget is no mean feat, but it's certainly possible to find something other than a shoebox if buyers look outside of Manhattan. The Brooklyn neighborhoods of Park Slope, Cobble Hill, and Carroll Gardens have all emerged as cheaper alternatives. That's not to say cheap, as a roster of excellent restaurants, bars, and retail keep these neighborhoods pricey. In the southern section of Carroll Gardens, close to Red Hook and, unfortunately, the elevated expressway, this two-bedroom loft penthouse offers the feel of Tribeca for $775K. Highlights include the high ceilings, expansive private roof deck, open kitchen with marble counters, and a coveted in-unit washer/dryer.

? Compared to the expensive Northeast, there are considerable deals to be found in some of Chicago's lesser-known neighborhoods. Considered an isolated pocket of prosperity on the city's otherwise depressed South Side, Hyde Park is sandwiched between the lake, Washington Park, and the campus of the University of Chicago. The students give the area a youthy vibe and provide a source of potential rental income should the buyers' circumstances change. This six-bedroom townhouse, built in 1895, is rife with historical detail, but gravely in need of some TLC. A buyer willing to rehab the place could get quite the deal considering the interior houses six bedrooms and the place is asking just $229K. Perhaps first time buyers would do well to steer clear of such a daunting challenge, but, then again, they just don't make inlaid floors like that anymore.

? Make it to San Francisco and you'll find real estate prices that rival New York for big price and small space. Still, the City by the Bay has some deals, even in the traditionally upper class neighborhood of Nob Hill—sometimes derisively referred to as "Snob Hill." While this two-bedroom, 1,100-square-foot condo can't rival the billionaires' abodes up on Broadway, the unit is well finished and sits in a charming, nine-unit Spanish-style building that was completed in 1913. Built-ins and bay windows abound, and while the listing photo of a wood paneled room illuminated by a bare bulb gives us pause, the rest of the place is immaculately presented considering the $599K price tag.

? Down in sunny Los Angeles, home to famously expensive areas like Beverly Hills, finding an affordable first home requires venturing off the beaten (or televised) path. The gentrifying neighborhood of Highland Park, in the northeastern section of the city, has experienced a wave of renovations lately, most in an accessible price range. Listed for $380K, this revamped bungalow might be small, with just two beds and a single bathroom in 843 square feet, but it certainly beckons with outdoor space ripe for entertaining and a garage that could be converted into extra interior space. For those that find this too small, a third bedroom in this neighborhood runs roughly $75K more.

· 1774 Columbia Road UNIT 3 [Zillow]
· 529 Court Street #PH4 [Streeteasy]
· 1314 E 52nd St [Zillow]
· 1236 Washington St [Zillow]
· 5611 Meridian [Zillow]

View the original article here

A-Cup Money Woes: According to the City's Controllers Office,...

× Like us and you'll find top breaking news in your Facebook newsfeed. Sign up for our daily email newsletter and get top stories and breaking news delivered to your inbox. Wednesday, February 8, 2012, by Alex Bevk

? Back to top

? Previous: The San Francisco Warriors

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How To Build Your Net Worth; Buying Residential Real Estate with None of Your Own Money - VHS Taking Action Video [VHS]

This course was written and designed like a roadmap by the authors to show the average person exactly what the authors learned in their real estate experience in order to equip anyone with the desire to make real estate investing work for them and build their net worth. This video gives you instructions on getting started and using the course.

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Where The Money Is Being Spent

Readers suggested a topic on trends in construction. “I’d like a thread from readers where the money is being spent/invested in your area. Our public television station just announced they were building a new spread downtown. The state is kicking in $5mm since they are renovating an existing building along w/new construction. Marriott just announced they were taking over some downtown buildings and renovating them w/M&T Bank backing. Our schools are still spending money on windows and grounds improvements. We have two hospitals w/new expansions. We have several new commercial retail building going up in our local villages. One is a center of businesses not just single business center. The money is flowing here from somewhere. And it isn’t just for meds, feds and eds.”

“But when you hear from say Colorado, it seems he’s looking at a totally different reality. I always felt commercial builders/contractors in this area had special ties to Albany and others that make things happen.”

“Is anyone else seeing this much new commercial construction being approved?”

“Maybe Blue Skye was right when he said upstate suffered their bottom in the 90s when everyone else was booming and now we’re on the way up? Not sure that feels right. I still think in the end no area will escape the overall reality when credit freezes up again. Sounds like our leaders are just still spending and lining pockets while it’s flowing.”

A reply, “It’s all public money funneled to private entities through the public/private partnership scams. Look no further than the “Global Foundry” scam in Malta, NY. Taxpayers are on the hook for all this kick the can down the road nonsense. It’s unsustainable.”

One added, “Here in metro Denver the new light-rail line connecting downtown Denver to the Jefferson County municipal complex is nearing completion. The line to the airport is scheduled to open in 2018.”

“The new IKEA opened on Wednesday to much hoo-ha. This is in an area already nearly built-out with retail and commercial office space, near I-25 and C-470. Throughout much of the metro, strip retail is peppered with vacancies.”

Another said, “The widening of I-75 from Cincinnati to Dayton recently started up the next phase (another 6 miles), the rebuild and expansion of the highest bridge in Ohio (on I-71 just north of Cincy) just started and should take a few years. New smaller commercial stores (tire stores, auto dealers, chain restaurants) continue to open up here. Casinos in Ohio’s biggest cities are about ready to break ground following the lifting of ban on such establishments. Cincinnati has a huge project under construction along the river, but it seems to get stalled for political reasons a lot.”

“Expansion in the Cincy/Dayton corridor has slowed from its torrid pace a few years ago, but road projects, commercial buildings, and houses are still going up.”

One observed, “On my stomping grounds, an old warehouse-thing was empty for about 10 years. A local said it had been a sort roller-rink for kids. After a year of renovations, it opened as an Asian supermarket last month.”

“An old Italian restaurant was half-torn down and renovated into a high-end pizza bistro. A store for kids bedrooms just opened next to the futon store. A 1-800 mattress store expanded from a strip mall into its own building. A one-story business building used to hold a Wachovia and a small piano store. When Wells Fargo bought Wachovia, they kicked out the piano store and are expanding into the space. After a little renovation they’ll turn rip down the Wachovia sign and raise the Wells Fargo flag. An old car dealership sat vacant for 5-6 years. There are signs out front that they are hiring and making it into a dealership for Mini.”

‘An old standalone Anthropologie store went down 5 years ago. The local Marlo furniture has a huge store, but they are moving the “tile kitchen bath” portion to the old Anthopologie. A cramped Whole Foods (used to be the old-school granola version) was in a high-end strip shopping center for decades, it seems. They finally moved down the road to larger and more yuppity digs. The old space was snapped up and is being renovated into a Fresh Market, which is almost the same thing.”

This is all private sector.

The Post & Courier. “In a break from the rest of the real estate industry, the apartment business in Charleston is busting out of the doldrums. Not all of the projects will spring from the ground anytime soon, but experts said the most financially feasible deals are likely to get done over the next two to four years. ‘The difference between now and five years ago is that the lenders are really going to control how much is developed,’ said Don Evans of Evans Rivers & Co., a Charleston-based real estate investment advisory firm. ‘It’s going to be lot more conservative.’”

The News Journal. “A vacant 505-acre tract here that had been approved for a large mixed-use, master planned community behind the planned Walmart Supercenter on Old Kings Road is now headed for the foreclosure auction block.”

“It’s a sign of the times, said Don Tobin, owner of GoToby.com Realty in Palm Coast. ‘There were a lot of developers that had big plans five years ago and did not make it,’ he said. ‘This was going to be pretty significant development with lots of homes, shopping centers, a school and fire station.’”

“Officials with JX Properties declined to comment on the loss of the property, which the Flagler County Property Appraiser says has a taxable value of about $2.8 million. The only work done on site was a narrow trail cut into the property’s northwest corner off Old Kings Road for some preliminary engineering work.”

From Financially Fit. “Here’s the dirty little secret about home renovations: Most of them don’t pay off. According to Remodeling Magazine’s annual survey, only steel entry-door replacements can be counted on to boost home value enough to recoup 100 percent of costs.”

“Homeowners can get a lot of value out of renovations before they even put the home on the market. “If you have a dated kitchen or the stove doesn’t work, you can invest money now to glean some enjoyment as well as make the home more appealing when you sell it,” says Kit Hale, general manager of MKB Realtors in Roanoke, Va.”

“That’s what Erin Schaff and her boyfriend did when they decided to upgrade their two-bedroom condo in Victoria, Canada, several years ago. ‘It wasn’t in horrible shape, but we wanted to upgrade,” she says, so they spent about $10,000 replacing the baseboards, window trim, and floors. They also remodeled the bathrooms and upgraded the hardware. In addition, they put new cabinets, appliances, and granite countertops in the kitchen.”

“Schaff and her boyfriend enjoyed all those upgrades before deciding to sell their home earlier this year. She believes the renovations paid off, too. ‘Had we not renovated, we probably would have lost money as we had purchased the condo at the peak of the real estate boom. Instead, we turned a profit and covered most of the costs of purchasing the house we now live in,’ she says.”

From Vail Daily. “Mike Dantas had a big decision to make as the local real estate market started crumbling a couple of years ago: either keep making payments on vacant land or build something. For Dantas, co-owner of Dantas Building Co., the decision was fairly simple — build. ‘We’re builders — that’s what we do,’ he said.”

“But more specifically, Dantas and his brother, Dave, are in the business of building ’spec’ homes — homes built without a specific buyer in mind. What Dantas ended up building in Avon’s Wildwood neighborhood is a foundation and two fairly modest homes. The foundation was sold to another builder — something spec builders don’t usually do. The other two homes will sell for between $550,000 and $649,000. In 2007, those prices would have been much higher.”

“‘We believe we have the right product,’ he said. ‘Right now, our competition is foreclosures, banks sales and duplexes.’”

“Dantas believes he’s taken the right approach with his project in Avon. ‘These days you’re not going to make money on the land, and you’re going to give a lot of the labor away,’ he said. ‘You don’t make a profit like you used to, but we’ve tried to build what the valley doesn’t have right now.’”

View the original article here

A Waiting Game That All Comes Down To Money

It’s desk clearing time for this blogger. “From the Miami River to Midtown, downtown Miami condos are hot commodities among international buyers, brokers say, not least because renters are lining up to lease them. In new condo buildings, many of which still have developer units on offer, ’sales are very good,’ said Jeff Morr, founder and CEO of Majestic Properties. He said HSBC Bank recently took back 532 units at Midtown Miami. ‘They haven’t discussed what they are doing with them,’ Mr. Morr said, ‘but they are occupied by renters, and I imagine they will come to market in two or three years at about $300 a foot and will sell immediately.’”

“While prices are rising in some buildings, he said, they’re still only about half of preconstruction prices, ’so the values are tremendous. Besides South American buyers, we’re also seeing a lot of Europeans. Miami real estate is becoming a commodity like gold and stocks.’”

“While nobody knows how much distressed inventory banks may be holding, Realtors aren’t worried that they will dump large numbers of units on the market at one time. ‘It’s not to their benefit to flood the market, because that would drive prices down,’ said Carlos Villanueva, district sales manager for The Keyes Co.”

“The area has sprung to life thanks to ‘hip restaurants, great restaurants and clubs,’ said Rita Regev, broker associate at Optimar International Realty. Some developers are once again offering incentives to Realtors, she said, as they did pre-recession, she said, ‘and they’re starting to stage elaborate broker parties again.’ The shadow inventory of bank-held units ‘is all conjecture,’ said Regev. ‘The only reality is right now.’”

“The Petrinos are ready to move. There’s just one problem: Their house is still for sale. As many other homeowners in the St. Cloud area have experienced, selling a house is a waiting game that all comes down to money. ‘It’s not going as well as we hoped,’ Petrino said. She and her husband are moving to Montana. ‘It’s frustrating that it hasn’t sold yet.’”

“Before leaving for Montana, they cut the price of their home a second time, lowering the price $10,000 less than what they bought it for two years ago. Petrino said she hopes they won’t have to drop the price of her house again before it sells. ‘I don’t know if we’d go much lower,’ she said. ‘Fingers crossed, I guess.’”

“St. Cloud homeowner Doris Anderson said she doesn’t like the idea of selling her house for less than she bought it for a few years ago. So far, she and her husband have dropped the price 2.5 percent, but their house has been on the market for a year. ‘I’m not giving my house away,’ Anderson said.”

“Overall, said Minnesota Association of Realtors President Russ Portele, St. Cloud is fairly representative of trends across the state and country. ‘We’ll probably never get back to the ’04 and ’05 level of sales because that was a bubble,’ Portele said. ‘This is the market today. This is the real market.’”

“Andy Wiederhorn, the controversial executive whose mercurial business career made him a multimillionaire and landed him in prison, has put his sprawling West Hills mansion on the market. The 2008 recession brought a bitter new reality. Wiederhorn nearly lost the home to foreclosure in 2010 after defaulting on one of the multiple mortgages.”

“Wiederhorn figures he will take a beating on the sale. He’s asking $5.7 million for the property, barely half what he’s invested in the place. ‘The market really is that bad,’ Wiederhorn said. ‘It’s about half what it once was at the high-end.’”

“Mediation has been touted as a key strategy to stop foreclosures. But if Maryland is any indication, the programs are not working. As of May 31, just 56 homeowners have gotten a modification of their loan. Louis Boney lives in a small, white frame house on a quiet, grassy street in Clinton, Md. When his home fell into foreclosure, he thought the mediation process might help. But he hit unexpected pitfalls.”

“‘For me, the mediation process, I think, was a gimmick,’ Boney said. ‘In my opinion, they came there just to go through the formalities. They just want to foreclose.’”

“California cities and regions held seven of the nation’s top 10 slots for foreclosure activity in the first half of 2011, according to RealtyTrac. Norman Cox, a regional manager/broker with Coldwell Bank Town & Country in Covina, figures foreclosures will be around for a while. ‘We’ll continue to see them because there are more properties that have yet to be foreclosed and there is no one to buy them,’ he said. ‘People have to have jobs to support a mortgage. I think we’ll see a larger number of units sold, but at lower prices.’”

“One of the most unusually unique property auctions is coming to Port Townsend this Friday: A million dollar property available for $300,000. ‘We are selling it at the request of the lender but the borrower still owns it, and by doing that we are able to save the lender from taking it back from the borrower,’ said Paul Thomas of Northwest Auctions, who is also president of the Washington Auctioneer’s Association. ‘It reduces the size of their haircut by 18 percent, but they are still going to take a haircut.’ The borrower, meanwhile, gets to walk away from the project ‘done and finished and exhausted,’ but avoiding a protracted foreclosure case.”

“Thomas got into the real estate auction business about six years ago. The marketplace has turned entirely, he said, because now there are so few bidders for the prices some owners still want. ‘These days were are turning down probably 19 out of 20 auction candidates because sellers can’t afford to sell at the auction prices. If the seller is not realistic and not willing to accept a low reserve, it makes no sense going ahead with a sale,’ Thomas noted.”

“Foreclosures have tainted the marketplace, and Thomas does not see any end in sight. ‘We’re seeing a lot of banks basically dumping houses onto the market and getting very, very steep discounts and that affects everyone,’ Thomas said. ‘It is a downward spiral with no end because the more banks foreclose and sell property below market value, the lower everyone’s values are and the more foreclosures happen because more people are under water.’”

“There was a time when putting 20 percent down on a house was the accepted norm for most buyers. A proposal to move back toward that standard in the wake of the housing meltdown, however, has produced an odd-bedfellow coalition of Democrats and Republicans, consumer advocates and bankers who fear that would leave homebuyers unable to afford loans and sellers unable to find buyers. ‘It will put the final nail in the housing market,’ predicted U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga.”

“Others, however, note that 10 to 20 percent down payments and conservative debt-to-income ratios once were widely accepted, and the housing market grew. ‘If we had kept 20 or even 10 percent down as a standard, I don’t think any of this would have happened in the market,’ said Jim Grissett, adjunct real estate professor at Emory University.”

“He admits to being a little old school — expecting as earlier generations did that people who buy a house should save for it, and that banks should retain some of the risk on loans they write. He also noted that falling home prices mean a 20 percent down payment is not as much as it was at the height of the boom. ‘If you can’t come up with that, maybe you shouldn’t be buying to begin with,’ he said.”

“Australian house prices have moved from being affordable to severely unaffordable in the past 10 years - and Sydney is still the least affordable capital city, a new study shows. The study found median house prices in Australia grew 147 per cent between 2001 and 2011 to $417,000, while median after-tax incomes only increased 50 per cent to $57,000.”

“This pushed the price-to-income ratio - the number of years’ worth of income needed to buy a typical dwelling outright - from an affordable 4.7 to a severely unaffordable 7.3. The report considers a dwelling just affordable if it costs no more than five times household income. A typical Sydney home with a price of $510,000 costs about 8.4 times the average annual household income. Even though Sydney experienced the least growth in housing prices through the past decade - a mere 83 per cent compared with 222 per cent in Perth - it is still suffering the effects of the late 1990s boom, the report shows.”

“Mr Phillips said it was no longer just capital cities that faced affordability issues with regional house prices in the Northern Territory, Tasmania, Victoria and NSW outstripping growth in the capital cities. He said home owners had experienced 10 years of increased housing value. ‘They’re sitting pretty. Those renting, or who have recently purchased, face very steep prices. It’s a story of the haves and the have-nots,’ he said.”

“More than 460,000 Arizona units were vacant in 2010, a 61 percent increase over the previous decade, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The vacancy rate — 16.3 percent of all housing in the state — comes after a decade that saw a recession, major job losses and home foreclosures. But the magnitude of the vacancies still caught some experts by surprise.”

“‘That’s staggering,’ said Paul Hickman, president and CEO of the Arizona Bankers Association. ‘It’s stark verification that we cannot emerge from this economic crisis until we move through this inventory.’”

“Maricopa County alone accounted for 49 percent of the vacancies in the state in 2010, according to the Census. Hickman said it’s largely because of ‘the one-dimensional’ housing economy that has dominated the state for the past decade. ‘This recession has hurt us more than the Great Depression,’ he said. ‘Our economy was young back then. We were just barely a state. But being centered on housing really hurt us.’”

View the original article here

More Money For Cable Car Rides: On July 1st, the cost for...

× Like us and you'll find top breaking news in your Facebook newsfeed. Sign up for our daily email newsletter and get top stories and breaking news delivered to your inbox. Tuesday, June 7, 2011, by Sally Kuchar

On July 1st, the cost for a single ride on a San Francisco cable car will be $6, not $5 like it is now. The last time the cable car fare was increased was in 2005, when the city spiked the cost from $3, a 67% increase. "There is no doubt that our recent budget deficits have required us to make tough choices that we do not take lightly," Muni chief Nathaniel Ford said in a prepared statement. "We are working hard to ensure the financial stability of this agency while providing the highest possible quality of service to all our transportation customers." [SF Gate]

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In Vino Veritas: Money can't buy you class, but...

× Like us and you'll find top breaking news in your Facebook newsfeed. Sign up for our daily email newsletter and get top stories and breaking news delivered to your inbox. Tuesday, March 1, 2011, by Sarah Firshein

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Make Money Real Estate How to Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate Investing : How To Make Your Home Sell
Your Practical Guide To Selling Homes In The World Of Real Estate!
Brought to you with the compliments of:
Make Money Real Estate http://realestateuniversityonline.com | How To Make Your Home Sell 1

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

LEGAL NOTICE:
The Publisher has strived to be as accurate and complete as possible in the creation of this report, notwithstanding the fact that he does not warrant or represent at any time that the contents within are accurate due to the rapidly changing nature of the Internet. While all attempts have been made to verify information provided in this publication, the Publisher assumes no responsibility for errors, omissions, or contrary interpretation of the subject matter herein. Any perceived slights of specific persons, peoples, or organizations are unintentional. In practical advice books, like anything else in life, there are no guarantees of income made. Readers are cautioned to reply on their own judgment about their individual circumstances to act accordingly. This book is not intended for use as a source of legal, business, accounting or financial advice. All readers are advised to seek services of competent professionals in legal, business, accounting, and finance field. You are encouraged to print this book for easy reading.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Selling Homes in the World of Real Estate: Introduction............................................ 5 What Keep Homes From Being Sold?........................................................................... 9 Tips on How to Make a "First Good Impression" of Your Home .............................. 12 OUTSIDE .................................................................................................................... 13 INSIDE ........................................................................................................................ 13 Quick and Easy Ways on How to Sell Your Home ..................................................... 16 Recommended Resources ................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Recommended Reading ............................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. All-in-One E-Commerce Solutions ................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

Make Money Real Estate Investing, real estate investing free real estate class, real estate investment class, real estate investing real estate investment business plan,

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

HOW TO MAKE YOUR HOME SELL
Your Practical Guide to Selling Homes in the World of Real Estate!

Make Money Real Estate Investing, real estate investing free real estate class, real estate investment class, real estate investing real estate investment business plan,

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Selling Homes in the World of Real Estate: Introduction

In order to revive the nearly unprofitable real estate market it is important that more and more homes are staged. This is a simple concept that ensures that a particular house that is for sales find appeal with more and more buyers.

Apart from getting a large number of buyers so that the seller can strike a good bargain, it is also equally important for the seller that his house gets sold of quickly.

It is important to increase the demand so that the market can get more lucrative.

This is the primary reason why real estate agents are fast hiring, or themselves turning into ‘staging professionals’. These professionals help in building homes that find maximum appeal to the seller in terms of their tastes and preferences.

And it is a fact that staged homes bring as much as 15 percent more revenue that those that are not. People are constantly looking for a house with more space.

Many look at it as an investment that how much they will gain when they in turn sell it. Keeping all this in mind a professional stages houses.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Therefore, those people who want to sell their houses enlist the services of such staging professionals who, on being hired, help the owners to prepare their houses for sale.

They are specialized to so such a job. And indeed, the sellers see the difference in the demand for their property and the price that is coming in, before and after the staging professional has done his job.

Sellers generally use services of the agents who report to the seller that their house is not getting a good offer. They cannot, however, pinpoint the problem.

They cannot understand the nature of renovation the house needs. Staging professionals, being specialized at these things, have a good idea of what the buyers are looking for and are effectively able to help the seller.

It is true that different buyers have different tastes, but with some things one can never go wrong. And this is precisely the principle that staging professionals follow.

Staging of a house is done on the fundamental belief that a well staged house will cost money. The seller will have to pay for the renovation and the professionals fees.

It will still be more profitable than reducing the selling price of your house. According to a survey, 50 percent of the sellers are willing to spend about $2000 on staging, while 50 percent of them are willing to go up to $5000.

Staging professionals have a clear idea about the kind of colors that sell, the kind of furnishing in the house that makes it more appealing to those who come to have a look at it.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

They also have a clear idea of how the space inside the house must be used for optimum utility, which seems to be a major concern for all buyers.

It is a fact that well showcased houses sell 84 percent faster than those that are not. Staging professionals are not into house building or house designing.

They merely advise the agents or the sellers themselves on the strategy to use while re doing their house.

Here are a few standard tools they use: •

Color: A tried and tested palette that professionals use can never go wrong. Though trends keep changing but there are some basic colors that never go out of vogue. Professionals generally work with neutral colors that have a wide appeal.

•

Furniture: Professionals have just the precise idea of how to furnish and accessorize the house.

•

Space: Optimization of space must be done well and professionals can tell you how.

•

Budget: They also work with economical budgets. And indeed that is what the seller wants to maximize his profit from selling his house.

There are several seminars arranged from time to time from which professionals can take valuable advice. Trends keep changing from time to time and a good professional must necessarily keep himself updated about those recent developments.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

On the basis of such knowledge he can suggest to sellers or their agents what to do with their house while selling.

The professional keeping himself abreast of the latest developments even increases the sellers faith in him and is a sure shot tool of success for the professional. After all, nothing is more valuable than the professional being able to get the house sold faster for a good price.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

What Keep Homes From Being Sold?

Selling houses needs the agent and sellers to have a certain kind of experience. It is a fact that houses cannot always be sold on the spur of the moment. It needs proper planning and there is always a cohesive way to go about it.

One of the other hassles that those who need to sell their house need to go through are the legal and technical formalities that form such an important part of the whole process.

The legal paperwork that selling a house involves is far greater that you can imagine. It needs proper professional aid. If you are capable of doing it yourself, then it is an additional advantage, but you must be very careful. Any small error in any detail that you may have provided can cost you a lot of money.

The following is a basic checklist you must always refer to when you try and show your house to prospective buyers. You need to take care of these things so that you do not put them off, thwarting your chances of actually striking a good bargain: •

De-clutter: Any home with a lot of clutter, that is to say, a house that has not used up its space in a proper manner stands very less chances of getting sold faster for a good price. More and more people these days are looking at optimizing the space within the house. Because of increasing population, the living area for most people is decreasing. So within whatever space they have, they would like to have it done well.

•

Make Beds: In case you are in a habit of leaving home each morning for work without having made your beds, you are in trouble. Your agent may bring

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

prospective buyers to your house and they may find beds not made. This is nothing major but it just gives a very negative impression. If you cannot make your beds in the morning, you can talk with your agent and ask him to avoid bringing in people before a particular time, or bring them only during weekends, the only time you make your bed! •

Clean Closets: Make sure your closets and drawers are neatly arranged. It just gives an impression of order within the household. Cluttered closets symbolize chaos and give a wrong impression of your house to buyers.

•

Light: Make sure that you have your curtains drawn to let in enough natural light. Use natural light as far as possible. Artificial lighting can be used to enhance the interiors of your house, but just relying on artificial lighting gives a gloomy impression.

•

Leave your house: Let the agents do the showing around. If someone has come to view your house that they might buy for a huge sum of money, they want to have a look at it well. In the presence of its current residents, viewers cannot frankly view the house well. They cannot open and inspect each cabinet.

•

Clean yard: Make sure your yard is clean and tidy as well. As with beds and closets, this too plays a major role in forming a good impression.

•

Be Accessible: You may have a very erratic schedule, but you must make sure that you are available for prospective buyers whenever they have to make a phone call to you to ask you things about your house. This is one way in which you can ensure your house gets sold quickly. Untraceable owners lose many a prospect just be being inaccessible. Keep your agent or realtor abreast of the kind of schedule you follow.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

10

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

•

Dogs and pets: If you have strange fascination for weird pets, or even for something as harmless as a dog, make sure you send him for a walk. People who come to view your house may not be very impressed by your animal. On the contrary, if they do not like animals, they may feel uncomfortable, and be unable to inspect your house well.

•

Smell: Make sure your house does not stink under any circumstances. It is a major put off

•

Check Regularly: You must inspect your own house to see everything is in place, especially the above items. Do a regular check up, may be once a week. Arrange the closets, mow the yard. Make sure everything looks vibrant and happy. Never, however, give a false impression. Show your house just as it is, reflecting all the good times you have spent there.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

11

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Tips on How to Make a "First Good Impression" of Your Home

Presentation. Yes, that is the keyword you always need to keep in mind. “First impression is the last impression” is a proverb that not many people are willing to buy into these days.

But in case of homes, especially an old home that you are showcasing to others, this may very well be the case. It is a time tested way to make sure that your house gets liked by whoever comes to view it.

To make sure that you make a good impression on the prospective buyers, you need to make sure certain things in your house are fixed. As someone living in the house, many things might be normal to you because you have gotten used to them.

But to an outsider, these things are not normal. On the contrary they are an anomaly and will immediately be noticed by them.

Any crack in the ceiling, any broken piece of furniture must be fixed before you start showing your house to outsiders. The sure shot way to find out these anomalies is to ask your agent what he finds amiss.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

12

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Here’s what you need to look out for:

OUTSIDE
1. Mow the grass and trim the edges 2. Weed the garden and clean the drive. Remove the leaves. 3. The grass beds must be weeded and cleaned 4. Shrubs must be trimmed so that they do not look untidy 5. Wash the house from the outside 6. Keep the garage in a neat and tidy condition 7. Keep the back door clutter free. You have been used to dumping all extra and unwanted items there. But now you need to pick them and put them in their proper place.

INSIDE
Kitchen
1. Clean taps and fitting well and make them shine. 2. Polish counters, cabinets and other furniture around your kitchen. 3. Clean the floor too. If it is high gloss type flooring, make sure it glosses! Use a good floor polish to make that happen. 4. Cupboard doors must also be cleaned thoroughly. 5. All equipment in your kitchen must look good. Clean the casing of the refrigerator and dishwasher and any other equipment around. 6. Make sure your oven is in a god condition.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

13

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

7. Make the stove top shine. You can use one of the many stove polishes available to do so.

Bathroom and Lavatory
1. Taps and fittings must be taken care of. Polish and clean them. 2. Take care of the vanity unit. If it is made of high gloss material polish it well. 3. Lavatory seats must also be polished and cleaned well.

Laundry
1. Keep the laundry room clutter free. You don’t want it to look as dingy as you have always been used to keeping it to the prospective buyers. 2. Paint it if that needs to be done. 3. Polish the tub. 4. Make sure the washing machine is in a good condition. 5. Clean up all the extra things you have been dumping there without even realizing.

Bedrooms
1. Make beds before leaving your house each day. 2. Keep your closets and drawers tidy. 3. Be open to prospective buyers wanting to inspect them.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

14

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Living Room
1. Keep it tidy. 2. Make sure the curtains and drapes are washed and tidy. 3. Potted plants that have not been taken care off must be removed. 4. Buy new one if required.

Dining Room
1. Keep your table well polished. There are lots of varnishes available in the market. Invest in a good one. 2. If your table is anyway old and rusty, cover it well with a good table cloth. 3. Place flowers and vases over it to make it look decent. 4. Get proper drapes and curtain for the dining room. 5. Keep this area clutter free as well.

General
1. Any doors around the house must look like they are always in use. That is to say, they must be well oiled. Creaking doors give a very wrong impression to those outsiders who come to view your house. They make the viewers feel that the house has not been much in use and taken care of. You must take care of this small aspect.

2. Place potted plants wherever required. It adds glow and vibrancy to your house and also makes it look a prosperous place to live in.

3. Provide the house with good lighting so as not to make it look dull. Let as must natural light come in as possible.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

15

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Quick and Easy Ways on How to Sell Your Home

The omission of a middle man is perfectly justifiable if you can manage to sell your house without enlisting his help. This particular tactic is not very difficult to understand.

You save a great amount of money if you do not have to pay your real estate agent his commissions for getting you buyers for your house.

Moreover, by doing so, that is, removing the middle man you can also afford to lower the price you have quoted for your house, leading to the much faster selling of the house.

However, with this decision to sell your house without the help of a real estate agent means that the work to be done on your part increases. Such work for the agent is part of his daily routine as he has to encounter such formalities with every project he gets.

For you, thought it maybe new, it is not impossible to accomplish, and you will soon find how.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

16

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

The first thing an agent will do when you hire him is he will come and see your house for himself. He will need to know whether your house is in a presentable condition.

Then he will go about telling you what are the things that need fixing and altering. He may even consult a staging professional at this stage.

Therefore, this is the first thing you must find out for yourself too. Is your house is a presentable condition? The following are the areas you need to look out for:

1. Floors and ceiling 2. Bathroom and kitchen fittings 3. Lighting and ventilation 4. Doors and windows 5. Paint, both on the inside and outside 6. Drainage system around the house 7. Condition of driveway and walkway 8. Home Improvements

Besides these general outlines you can take some forward steps to ensure that your house gets sold quickly and without much hassle. •

Cosmetic Improvements: You can alter the design of your house a bit by repainting the wall, re doing the furniture and optimizing the living area. You will have to keep the latest trends in mind while doing so. Taking help of a staging professional can also help here. You can make your house look inviting, as a result of which it may look impressing. You can decorate it with proper lighting and plants, etc. basically, you need to make sure all the furniture, kitchen and bathroom cabinets and equipment, etc are all in good condition.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

17

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

•

Target Buyers: You need to know the kind of people that will be moving into your house. You need to analyze what kind of people will prefer a house in the locality in which you are now living. You can take the example of the neighbors that have just moved in. though people differ, but some traits remain the same. Knowing your target customers will help a great deal in staging your house.

•

Buyers’ Needs: People are very finicky about the kind of house they prefer and they are not wrong in thinking so. Though you cannot guess each of those small details, you can satisfy some of their broader concerns which may pertain to security of the neighborhood, connectivity (with the market place, their work place, their children’s school, etc), and comfort.

•

Pricing: At all costs, keep the pricing very realistic. There is no point just thinking about your own profit, because quoting such a high price would mean that your house does not get sold quickly. Have a good idea about the current real estate market condition and quote your price accordingly. Also decide on how you would like to attract buyers and what kind of advertisement would you like to place and where. Negotiate the price and terms of purchase and sale very carefully. You need to be extra careful while doing so especially because you are not enlisting the services of a real estate agent for whom these clauses are quite normal.

•

Legal Aid: Never refrain from seeking legal aid when in doubt. Rather, it is always better to hire a lawyer even if it means you will have to pay him a portion of your profits earned as fees. There are very complex land and property-related issues that you might not be familiar with. You do not want to get caught unawares in case something untoward may happen.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

18

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Do you want to learn more about how to make money real estate investing in Australia?
At http://realestateuniversityonline.com you can subscribe to the free video training course where Mark Rolton explains how the rich use control in real estate investing.
Mark Rolton exposes never-before-revealed Strategies for: • • • • Launching your own property options business with zero down! Tapping into multi-million dollar deals... No Matter What part of Australia You're in! Avoiding the most common newbie mistakes, Saving you a fortune... The making money DVD will help you make millions (if you apply the strategies)

Visit http://realestateuniversityonline.com now to see the free videos on how to make money real estate investing

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

19

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

This free report is brought to you with the compliments of http://realestateuniversityonline.com

Make Money Real Estate Investing | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

20

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

DISCLAIMER: This information is not presented by a professional advisor and is for educational and informational purposes only. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice. Always seek the advice of your qualified provider with any questions you may have regarding a condition. Never disregard professional advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read. The resources are not intended to be a substitute for therapy or professional advice. While all attempts have been made to verify information provided in this publication, neither the author nor the publisher assumes any responsibility for errors, omissions or contrary interpretation of the subject matter herein. There is no guarantee of validity of accuracy of any content. Any perceived slight of specific people or organizations is unintentional. The book publishers and its creators are not responsible for the content of any sites linked to. The contents are solely the opinion of the author and should not be considered as a form of therapy, advice, direction and/or diagnosis or treatment of any kind: medical, spiritual, mental or other. If expert advice or counselling is needed, services of a competent professional should be sought. The author and the Publisher assume no responsibility or liability and specifically disclaim any warranty, express or implied for any products or services mentioned, or any techniques or practices described. The purchaser or reader of publication assumes responsibility for the use of these materials and information. Neither the author nor the Publisher assumes any responsibility or liability whatsoever on the behalf of any purchaser or reader of these materials.

This Make Money Real Estate free report is brought to you with the compliments of http://realestateuniversityonline.com

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

21

View the original article here

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps has the compelling backdrop of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, features Michael Douglas returning to one of the defining roles of his career, stars two charismatic young actors (Shia LaBeouf, Transformers, and Carey Mulligan, An Education) and some wily old hands (Susan Sarandon, Frank Langella, and Eli Wallach)--so why is the movie such a dud? For one thing, director Oliver Stone doesn't bother to genuinely explore what caused the stock-market crash of 2008; instead, the movie's plot revolves around melodramatic backroom machinations and financial revenge, none of which has any real emotional heft. For another, Stone is possibly the most obvious director of all time. When the characters are talking about financial bubbles, the movie has shots of children in the park blowing bubbles; when the market crashes, the movie cuts to cascading dominoes--Stone beats every metaphor into submission, and if the audience feels bludgeoned at the same time, well, that's just too bad. Add to that portentous dialogue like "He's a monkey dancing on a razorblade," incoherent references to sub-prime mortgages and other financial technobabble, and a woefully mismatched soundtrack by David Byrne and Brian Eno, and the result is muddled, sluggish, and confusing. It's too bad; Douglas is as charmingly reptilian as ever. Also featuring a pointless cameo by Charlie Sheen, star of the original Wall Street. --Bret Fetzer

Price: $29.98

Click here to buy from Amazon

Make Money Real Estate How to Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate Investing : How To Make Your Home Sell
Your Practical Guide To Selling Homes In The World Of Real Estate!
Brought to you with the compliments of:
Make Money Real Estate http://realestateuniversityonline.com | How To Make Your Home Sell 1

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

LEGAL NOTICE:
The Publisher has strived to be as accurate and complete as possible in the creation of this report, notwithstanding the fact that he does not warrant or represent at any time that the contents within are accurate due to the rapidly changing nature of the Internet. While all attempts have been made to verify information provided in this publication, the Publisher assumes no responsibility for errors, omissions, or contrary interpretation of the subject matter herein. Any perceived slights of specific persons, peoples, or organizations are unintentional. In practical advice books, like anything else in life, there are no guarantees of income made. Readers are cautioned to reply on their own judgment about their individual circumstances to act accordingly. This book is not intended for use as a source of legal, business, accounting or financial advice. All readers are advised to seek services of competent professionals in legal, business, accounting, and finance field. You are encouraged to print this book for easy reading.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Selling Homes in the World of Real Estate: Introduction............................................ 5 What Keep Homes From Being Sold?........................................................................... 9 Tips on How to Make a "First Good Impression" of Your Home .............................. 12 OUTSIDE .................................................................................................................... 13 INSIDE ........................................................................................................................ 13 Quick and Easy Ways on How to Sell Your Home ..................................................... 16 Recommended Resources ................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. Recommended Reading ............................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. All-in-One E-Commerce Solutions ................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

Make Money Real Estate Investing, real estate investing free real estate class, real estate investment class, real estate investing real estate investment business plan,

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

HOW TO MAKE YOUR HOME SELL
Your Practical Guide to Selling Homes in the World of Real Estate!

Make Money Real Estate Investing, real estate investing free real estate class, real estate investment class, real estate investing real estate investment business plan,

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Selling Homes in the World of Real Estate: Introduction

In order to revive the nearly unprofitable real estate market it is important that more and more homes are staged. This is a simple concept that ensures that a particular house that is for sales find appeal with more and more buyers.

Apart from getting a large number of buyers so that the seller can strike a good bargain, it is also equally important for the seller that his house gets sold of quickly.

It is important to increase the demand so that the market can get more lucrative.

This is the primary reason why real estate agents are fast hiring, or themselves turning into ‘staging professionals’. These professionals help in building homes that find maximum appeal to the seller in terms of their tastes and preferences.

And it is a fact that staged homes bring as much as 15 percent more revenue that those that are not. People are constantly looking for a house with more space.

Many look at it as an investment that how much they will gain when they in turn sell it. Keeping all this in mind a professional stages houses.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Therefore, those people who want to sell their houses enlist the services of such staging professionals who, on being hired, help the owners to prepare their houses for sale.

They are specialized to so such a job. And indeed, the sellers see the difference in the demand for their property and the price that is coming in, before and after the staging professional has done his job.

Sellers generally use services of the agents who report to the seller that their house is not getting a good offer. They cannot, however, pinpoint the problem.

They cannot understand the nature of renovation the house needs. Staging professionals, being specialized at these things, have a good idea of what the buyers are looking for and are effectively able to help the seller.

It is true that different buyers have different tastes, but with some things one can never go wrong. And this is precisely the principle that staging professionals follow.

Staging of a house is done on the fundamental belief that a well staged house will cost money. The seller will have to pay for the renovation and the professionals fees.

It will still be more profitable than reducing the selling price of your house. According to a survey, 50 percent of the sellers are willing to spend about $2000 on staging, while 50 percent of them are willing to go up to $5000.

Staging professionals have a clear idea about the kind of colors that sell, the kind of furnishing in the house that makes it more appealing to those who come to have a look at it.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

They also have a clear idea of how the space inside the house must be used for optimum utility, which seems to be a major concern for all buyers.

It is a fact that well showcased houses sell 84 percent faster than those that are not. Staging professionals are not into house building or house designing.

They merely advise the agents or the sellers themselves on the strategy to use while re doing their house.

Here are a few standard tools they use: •

Color: A tried and tested palette that professionals use can never go wrong. Though trends keep changing but there are some basic colors that never go out of vogue. Professionals generally work with neutral colors that have a wide appeal.

•

Furniture: Professionals have just the precise idea of how to furnish and accessorize the house.

•

Space: Optimization of space must be done well and professionals can tell you how.

•

Budget: They also work with economical budgets. And indeed that is what the seller wants to maximize his profit from selling his house.

There are several seminars arranged from time to time from which professionals can take valuable advice. Trends keep changing from time to time and a good professional must necessarily keep himself updated about those recent developments.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

On the basis of such knowledge he can suggest to sellers or their agents what to do with their house while selling.

The professional keeping himself abreast of the latest developments even increases the sellers faith in him and is a sure shot tool of success for the professional. After all, nothing is more valuable than the professional being able to get the house sold faster for a good price.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

What Keep Homes From Being Sold?

Selling houses needs the agent and sellers to have a certain kind of experience. It is a fact that houses cannot always be sold on the spur of the moment. It needs proper planning and there is always a cohesive way to go about it.

One of the other hassles that those who need to sell their house need to go through are the legal and technical formalities that form such an important part of the whole process.

The legal paperwork that selling a house involves is far greater that you can imagine. It needs proper professional aid. If you are capable of doing it yourself, then it is an additional advantage, but you must be very careful. Any small error in any detail that you may have provided can cost you a lot of money.

The following is a basic checklist you must always refer to when you try and show your house to prospective buyers. You need to take care of these things so that you do not put them off, thwarting your chances of actually striking a good bargain: •

De-clutter: Any home with a lot of clutter, that is to say, a house that has not used up its space in a proper manner stands very less chances of getting sold faster for a good price. More and more people these days are looking at optimizing the space within the house. Because of increasing population, the living area for most people is decreasing. So within whatever space they have, they would like to have it done well.

•

Make Beds: In case you are in a habit of leaving home each morning for work without having made your beds, you are in trouble. Your agent may bring

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

prospective buyers to your house and they may find beds not made. This is nothing major but it just gives a very negative impression. If you cannot make your beds in the morning, you can talk with your agent and ask him to avoid bringing in people before a particular time, or bring them only during weekends, the only time you make your bed! •

Clean Closets: Make sure your closets and drawers are neatly arranged. It just gives an impression of order within the household. Cluttered closets symbolize chaos and give a wrong impression of your house to buyers.

•

Light: Make sure that you have your curtains drawn to let in enough natural light. Use natural light as far as possible. Artificial lighting can be used to enhance the interiors of your house, but just relying on artificial lighting gives a gloomy impression.

•

Leave your house: Let the agents do the showing around. If someone has come to view your house that they might buy for a huge sum of money, they want to have a look at it well. In the presence of its current residents, viewers cannot frankly view the house well. They cannot open and inspect each cabinet.

•

Clean yard: Make sure your yard is clean and tidy as well. As with beds and closets, this too plays a major role in forming a good impression.

•

Be Accessible: You may have a very erratic schedule, but you must make sure that you are available for prospective buyers whenever they have to make a phone call to you to ask you things about your house. This is one way in which you can ensure your house gets sold quickly. Untraceable owners lose many a prospect just be being inaccessible. Keep your agent or realtor abreast of the kind of schedule you follow.

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Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

•

Dogs and pets: If you have strange fascination for weird pets, or even for something as harmless as a dog, make sure you send him for a walk. People who come to view your house may not be very impressed by your animal. On the contrary, if they do not like animals, they may feel uncomfortable, and be unable to inspect your house well.

•

Smell: Make sure your house does not stink under any circumstances. It is a major put off

•

Check Regularly: You must inspect your own house to see everything is in place, especially the above items. Do a regular check up, may be once a week. Arrange the closets, mow the yard. Make sure everything looks vibrant and happy. Never, however, give a false impression. Show your house just as it is, reflecting all the good times you have spent there.

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Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Tips on How to Make a "First Good Impression" of Your Home

Presentation. Yes, that is the keyword you always need to keep in mind. “First impression is the last impression” is a proverb that not many people are willing to buy into these days.

But in case of homes, especially an old home that you are showcasing to others, this may very well be the case. It is a time tested way to make sure that your house gets liked by whoever comes to view it.

To make sure that you make a good impression on the prospective buyers, you need to make sure certain things in your house are fixed. As someone living in the house, many things might be normal to you because you have gotten used to them.

But to an outsider, these things are not normal. On the contrary they are an anomaly and will immediately be noticed by them.

Any crack in the ceiling, any broken piece of furniture must be fixed before you start showing your house to outsiders. The sure shot way to find out these anomalies is to ask your agent what he finds amiss.

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Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Here’s what you need to look out for:

OUTSIDE
1. Mow the grass and trim the edges 2. Weed the garden and clean the drive. Remove the leaves. 3. The grass beds must be weeded and cleaned 4. Shrubs must be trimmed so that they do not look untidy 5. Wash the house from the outside 6. Keep the garage in a neat and tidy condition 7. Keep the back door clutter free. You have been used to dumping all extra and unwanted items there. But now you need to pick them and put them in their proper place.

INSIDE
Kitchen
1. Clean taps and fitting well and make them shine. 2. Polish counters, cabinets and other furniture around your kitchen. 3. Clean the floor too. If it is high gloss type flooring, make sure it glosses! Use a good floor polish to make that happen. 4. Cupboard doors must also be cleaned thoroughly. 5. All equipment in your kitchen must look good. Clean the casing of the refrigerator and dishwasher and any other equipment around. 6. Make sure your oven is in a god condition.

Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

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Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

7. Make the stove top shine. You can use one of the many stove polishes available to do so.

Bathroom and Lavatory
1. Taps and fittings must be taken care of. Polish and clean them. 2. Take care of the vanity unit. If it is made of high gloss material polish it well. 3. Lavatory seats must also be polished and cleaned well.

Laundry
1. Keep the laundry room clutter free. You don’t want it to look as dingy as you have always been used to keeping it to the prospective buyers. 2. Paint it if that needs to be done. 3. Polish the tub. 4. Make sure the washing machine is in a good condition. 5. Clean up all the extra things you have been dumping there without even realizing.

Bedrooms
1. Make beds before leaving your house each day. 2. Keep your closets and drawers tidy. 3. Be open to prospective buyers wanting to inspect them.

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Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Living Room
1. Keep it tidy. 2. Make sure the curtains and drapes are washed and tidy. 3. Potted plants that have not been taken care off must be removed. 4. Buy new one if required.

Dining Room
1. Keep your table well polished. There are lots of varnishes available in the market. Invest in a good one. 2. If your table is anyway old and rusty, cover it well with a good table cloth. 3. Place flowers and vases over it to make it look decent. 4. Get proper drapes and curtain for the dining room. 5. Keep this area clutter free as well.

General
1. Any doors around the house must look like they are always in use. That is to say, they must be well oiled. Creaking doors give a very wrong impression to those outsiders who come to view your house. They make the viewers feel that the house has not been much in use and taken care of. You must take care of this small aspect.

2. Place potted plants wherever required. It adds glow and vibrancy to your house and also makes it look a prosperous place to live in.

3. Provide the house with good lighting so as not to make it look dull. Let as must natural light come in as possible.

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Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

Quick and Easy Ways on How to Sell Your Home

The omission of a middle man is perfectly justifiable if you can manage to sell your house without enlisting his help. This particular tactic is not very difficult to understand.

You save a great amount of money if you do not have to pay your real estate agent his commissions for getting you buyers for your house.

Moreover, by doing so, that is, removing the middle man you can also afford to lower the price you have quoted for your house, leading to the much faster selling of the house.

However, with this decision to sell your house without the help of a real estate agent means that the work to be done on your part increases. Such work for the agent is part of his daily routine as he has to encounter such formalities with every project he gets.

For you, thought it maybe new, it is not impossible to accomplish, and you will soon find how.

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Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

The first thing an agent will do when you hire him is he will come and see your house for himself. He will need to know whether your house is in a presentable condition.

Then he will go about telling you what are the things that need fixing and altering. He may even consult a staging professional at this stage.

Therefore, this is the first thing you must find out for yourself too. Is your house is a presentable condition? The following are the areas you need to look out for:

1. Floors and ceiling 2. Bathroom and kitchen fittings 3. Lighting and ventilation 4. Doors and windows 5. Paint, both on the inside and outside 6. Drainage system around the house 7. Condition of driveway and walkway 8. Home Improvements

Besides these general outlines you can take some forward steps to ensure that your house gets sold quickly and without much hassle. •

Cosmetic Improvements: You can alter the design of your house a bit by repainting the wall, re doing the furniture and optimizing the living area. You will have to keep the latest trends in mind while doing so. Taking help of a staging professional can also help here. You can make your house look inviting, as a result of which it may look impressing. You can decorate it with proper lighting and plants, etc. basically, you need to make sure all the furniture, kitchen and bathroom cabinets and equipment, etc are all in good condition.

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Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

•

Target Buyers: You need to know the kind of people that will be moving into your house. You need to analyze what kind of people will prefer a house in the locality in which you are now living. You can take the example of the neighbors that have just moved in. though people differ, but some traits remain the same. Knowing your target customers will help a great deal in staging your house.

•

Buyers’ Needs: People are very finicky about the kind of house they prefer and they are not wrong in thinking so. Though you cannot guess each of those small details, you can satisfy some of their broader concerns which may pertain to security of the neighborhood, connectivity (with the market place, their work place, their children’s school, etc), and comfort.

•

Pricing: At all costs, keep the pricing very realistic. There is no point just thinking about your own profit, because quoting such a high price would mean that your house does not get sold quickly. Have a good idea about the current real estate market condition and quote your price accordingly. Also decide on how you would like to attract buyers and what kind of advertisement would you like to place and where. Negotiate the price and terms of purchase and sale very carefully. You need to be extra careful while doing so especially because you are not enlisting the services of a real estate agent for whom these clauses are quite normal.

•

Legal Aid: Never refrain from seeking legal aid when in doubt. Rather, it is always better to hire a lawyer even if it means you will have to pay him a portion of your profits earned as fees. There are very complex land and property-related issues that you might not be familiar with. You do not want to get caught unawares in case something untoward may happen.

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Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

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Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

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Make Money Real Estate Investing | How To Make Your Home Sell

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Make Money Real Estate | How To Make Your Home Sell

DISCLAIMER: This information is not presented by a professional advisor and is for educational and informational purposes only. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice. Always seek the advice of your qualified provider with any questions you may have regarding a condition. Never disregard professional advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read. The resources are not intended to be a substitute for therapy or professional advice. While all attempts have been made to verify information provided in this publication, neither the author nor the publisher assumes any responsibility for errors, omissions or contrary interpretation of the subject matter herein. There is no guarantee of validity of accuracy of any content. Any perceived slight of specific people or organizations is unintentional. The book publishers and its creators are not responsible for the content of any sites linked to. The contents are solely the opinion of the author and should not be considered as a form of therapy, advice, direction and/or diagnosis or treatment of any kind: medical, spiritual, mental or other. If expert advice or counselling is needed, services of a competent professional should be sought. The author and the Publisher assume no responsibility or liability and specifically disclaim any warranty, express or implied for any products or services mentioned, or any techniques or practices described. The purchaser or reader of publication assumes responsibility for the use of these materials and information. Neither the author nor the Publisher assumes any responsibility or liability whatsoever on the behalf of any purchaser or reader of these materials.

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House of the Day: Got $55M in Christmas Money? How's About A Whole Harbor?

Like us and you'll find top breaking news in your Facebook newsfeed. Sign up for our daily email newsletter and get top stories and breaking news delivered to your inbox. Monday, December 27, 2010, by Rob

Have a nomination for a jaw-dropping listing that would make a mighty fine House of the Day? Get thee to the tipline and send us your suggestions. We'd love to see what you've got.

Location: Cohasset, Mass.
Price: $55,000,000
The Skinny: For the sky-high price of $55M, this seaside New England estate had better be hiding some stunning features behind that ivy-covered facade, right? Well rest assured it's got the goods, with highlights including a basement billiards room and pub, master bedroom balcony with hot tub, an expansive roof deck with a second hot tub and sea views, a tennis court, and a deep-water dock. All of this is spread over some 24,000 square feet on almost 9.5 acres. Quite a haul, but we're talking about $55M here! Oh, wait, we forgot to mention a few things, like the 55-room Cohasset Harbor Inn, two waterfront restaurants, and a commercial marina, all included in the sale. Ah, that's more like it. So, who's ready to become the Donald Trump of a sleepy New England village?
· 49 Margin Street [Jonathan Radford]

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