Lakeland Real Estate Information Archive

Buying a home can be overwhelming.  Most people think they are savvy enough to ask the right questions and get a good deal.  Here are a few questions to ask before you purchase a particular home.

What are the monthly utility bills?  This can usually be answered by calling the utilities company and asking them this question for the particular property.  You may think this information is confidential, but usually it is not.  I have seen properties for sale with utility bills in the $500 range because the air conditioning unit was too small for the property.  Wouldn't it be nice to know this before you make your offer?

Is the area known for sink holes or soil movement?  Some areas are known for these issues.  Sometimes a particular property may not be affected, but if the neighborhood is known for these issues, the property of interest may suffer from the stigma of the subdivision.  This would cause a resale dilemma.  I have seen properties that were affected by a sink hole, but the owner was not disclosing it.  

Buyers have been known to knock on the doors of the neighbors to inquire about the reasons for selling.  Imagine the information you could gather by talking to neighbors.  I can tell you that neighbors are usually happy to give you the scoop.  I have a friend who should have asked the neighbors for the seller's motivations to sell.  It turns out the neighbors knew the home was prone to flooding because of the design of the street and street drains.  The buyer found out too late.

I know of a property where a serious crime was committed (I mean serious).  There was no law requiring the realtor or seller to disclose what had recently happened in the property.  The home sold.  I am sure the new owner eventually spoke to the neighbors and was sick.  How would you feel if this happened to you?

These tips are simple ideas that take very little time to address.  Just make sure you know what you are buying to maximize the value of your investment.

 

 

This year has been the year to buy foreclosures.  Banks have been dumping undervalued properties into the market.  Normal non-distressed properties have been far and few between.  Owners have been in shock over what could have been a few years ago had they put their properties on the market then.  How difficult it must be to put a home on the market and compete with bank owned fire sales.  This is exactly what we have been seeing lately.

I have been a little amazed at the non-distressed properties that are entering the market at great prices.  This is going to have an impact on the foreclosures.  There won't be as many multiple offer frenzies on bank owned properties now that buyers understand there is an alternative.  Some of these non-distressed properties are original owners or owners who have occupied for 20 plus years!  Another great thing about these properties is the property taxes.  The taxes are low, homesteaded prices that never jumped in 2005.  It is actually easier for a buyer to qualify for a loan on these non-distressed properties because of the property taxes.

Finally, the more we see this kind of seller making a move, the better it is for the economy.  These sellers are not going to rent.  They are going to reinvest this money again in some type of real estate stimulating the economy wherever they go.  This will mark the beginning of a stabilization in the real estate market and hopefully a turn around in the national economy.

Foreclosure hits over 1.5 million homes in first half of 2009

According to RealtyTrac, foreclosures rose 15% in first half of 2009 compared to a year earlier, impacting over 1.5 million homes. Foreclosure filings increased more than 33% in June compared with the same month last year and rose nearly 5% from May. More than 300,000 households have received foreclosure filings in each of the 4 months till June. About 79,000 homes were repossessed by banks in June, up from 65,000 in May. Analysts say that the $50 billion in subsidies announced by the Obama administration for tackling the foreclosure crisis has not been effective so far. "Despite all the efforts to date, we clearly haven't got a handle on how to address the situation," said Rick Sharga, RealtyTrac's senior vice president for marketing. Nevada saw the highest foreclosure rate in the first half of 2009 with over 6% of the households receiving a filing. Arizona was next to Nevada, followed by Florida, California and Utah. Analysts say the mortgage modification program announced by the government is mired in inefficiency and mortgage companies are not equipped to handle the program. "They need to automate the process, and they need better technology, and they need to do this quickly," said Bill Kelvie, chairman of Overture Technologies.

Lakeland Real Estate

There are many great interview questions to ask a realtor when you are thinking about putting your home on the market.  However, ultimatley you should hope that your agent generates the maximum number of leads possible.  If your home is hard to find, like most "for sale by owner" homes, you will have fewer leads and less chance of a sale.  You are looking for 1 buyer.  If the exposure does not reach that 1 buyer, the time on the market increases and the price comes down with the market.

I believe the best question to ask a realtor is, "How many listings does he/she have actively on the market?"  This is so important because exposing one home to the market is only so effective.  Exposing 50+ homes to the market is going to increase the number of leads in general to your agent and to your property.  (comment)

 

 

I spent the past three days at the Keller Williams Family Reunion, which is our annual convention. Here is what I heard about the future for real estate in Lakeland and the rest of the country. We have been in this shifting real estate market for three years now and can expect uncertainty for another year and a half. This is expected because of the economy and the possibility of more unemployment. The government is spending trillions of dollars in many areas and is doing so to halt the further decline of real estate values around the country. As real estate values decrease, the number of foreclosures increases. This affects banks and thousands of businesses that rely on those banks. This economy and real estate market is an enormous opportunity for millions of people. Since the media is in the business of selling news, they choose bad news because it is the only news that sells. The news on television and radio causes us to hold on to our money in panic. Spending and investing (in real estate) will help get us out of this economy and into a better one. Interest rates and prices are so low, millions of people have the opportunity to make something positive happen during this poor economy, especially first time home buyers. foreclosures are abundantly available and will be a good option for buyers for the next three to 5 years. While I have your attention, you should know the foreclosure market is a seller's market. This means when you find a foreclosure you just cannot pass up, there are probably 5 other buyers thinking the same thing. You may have to pay full price for the good foreclosures because we are seeing multiple offers on the good ones. As I get older, I realize just how clearly I can see in hind sight. It is amazing how smart we will all be in ten years when we look back at this 2009 economy and beyond and wonder what could have been. Are we all treading water in a panic not seeing the current opportunity? Some of us can see clearly now and are working on our futures by investing now. Again, I urge you to find a realtor and ask about the options available to purchase real estate sometime in the next two years. A first time home buyer can purchase a home now and get a 5% interest rate locked for 30 years. That same buyer can rent it out and purchase another home next year. This means he now has his first income property with 3.5% down payment and a 5% interest rate. This country has a poor attitude and it is justified. However, a change in attitude and a new outlook will positively help this country and can positively help you. Please consider looking at this real estate market as an opportunity and see how it affects your attitude. Call someone you know that has never owned a home before and tell them about this opportunity. That person who has never owned a home before is in the right place at the right time. If I can help you or your friends purchase your first home, I would love that opportunity.

This is a topic that Realtors are not suppose to talk about, but it is important for sellers to know that commissions impact the number of showings they will receive.  A typical real estate commission is paid by the seller and split 50/50 between the Listing Agent and the agent for the buyer.

Which Real Estate Market Are You In? 

Seller's Market - If you are selling your property in a seller's market, you feel that selling is easier for the agent since there is less time on the market and advertising costs might be less.  You may feel that agents sell more homes in a seller's market and that the agents may be willing to negotiate since they are so busy.

Buyer's Market - If you are selling your property in a buyer's market, you feel that you cannot afford any commission because you are losing money compared to what you could have sold the property for in the past.  You feel that Realtors will negotiate their commissions since some commission is better than no commission.

Supply and Demand

In a seller's market there are few options for a buyer (ie supply is low).  In a buyer's market, the buyers have many homes to choose from and supply is high.  In a buyer's market, Realtors have more properties to select from to assist their buyers.  In a buyer's market there are more bonuses and increased commissions offered from motivated sellers and more importantly builders.  Builders have the capability of inflating commissions to agents in hopes of taking the few buyers out in the market.  If this is true, Realtors should clearly explain to sellers (prior to listing the property for sale) that the commission they offer to agents showing the property will affect the number of showings.  For example, seller Tom wants to attract more attention to his home than the other 3 homes on his same street.  How could he attract more buyers and Realtors to his house?  Could he actually scare them away?

The Total Commission (In Detail)

Sellers should understand that if they try to negotiate the total commission with a Listing Agent, it could negatively impact what the second agent gets paid.  Why?  Because agents like to share the discount with the other agent.  Rarely will you find an agent that negotiates the commission and takes the entire discount off his/her side half of the commission.  This is not good for the seller because you are back to scaring off potential showings.  If you are determined to negotiate commissions when you list your home for sale, make sure the Listing Agent is not sharing that discount with the other agent.  Ask your Realtor how much the other agent is going to make (commission).  Make sure you are motivating Realtors to promote your property to their buyers.  Don't believe that the buyer's agent will accept a lower commission versus none at all.  There is always an alternative, especially in a buyer's market.