Real Estate blog

Archive for August, 2007

There’s a part of the American psyche dictates that for any event or phenomenon a specific cause has to be identified – and all the better if that cause can be pinned on particular actor. Accountability is a good thing, but unfortunately it often segues into a “who’s to blame?” attitude.

Case in point: as the sub-prime market melts down, housing prices drop and inventory levels creep towards historic highs much of the mainstream media coverage has been devoted to figuring out who is behind all of this. The banks? Builders? The Fed?

Real estate investors (and in some cases, speculators) get an unflattering light shone upon them in this environment; witness today’s Money.com article with the musically alliterative title

There’s a part of the American psyche dictates that for any event or phenomenon a specific cause has to be identified – and all the better if that cause can be pinned on particular actor. Accountability is a good thing, but unfortunately it often segues into a “who’s to blame?” attitude.

Case in point: as the sub-prime market melts down, housing prices drop and inventory levels creep towards historic highs much of the mainstream media coverage has been devoted to figuring out who is behind all of this. The banks? Builders? The Fed?

Real estate investors (and in some cases, speculators) get an unflattering light shone upon them in this environment; witness today’s Money.com article with the musically alliterative title

“What do you think of buying at a real estate auction?”

***ANSWER:
There are different kinds of real estate auctions, including foreclosure sale auctions, probate ╤В╨Р╨мauctions╤В╨Р╨н (called overbids), and auctions put on by private auction firms.

We╤В╨Р╨йre actually involved in one of the latter that╤В╨Р╨йs happening tomorrow.

Here are six things you should know in general about auctions:

#1: Most or all by private firms have a ╤В╨Р╨мbuyer premium╤В╨Р╨н, often 5%. So if your price is $500,000, add 5% to make it $525,000.

#2: Some have a reserve price. That means the seller may advertise starting bids at temptingly low prices. The only catch is you can╤В╨Р╨йt actually by them at those prices. It╤В╨Р╨йs a generally accepted practice. I think it╤В╨Р╨йs misleading.

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I’m not an electronic gadget guy (I didn’t run out and get an iPhone) but I am a fan of well made mechanical things. I’ll probably be the last guy shooting film while the world around me goes digital; I love my Leica rangefinder - the feel of those hand-assembled German gears pulling the film though the camera’s perfectly engineered sprockets.

But things like this are expensive, so they’re an occasional indulgence. When I glance down at my wrist I see my daily watch: the venerable Casio W-201. Date, time, alarm, stopwatch, water resistant to 50 meters. Accurate to fifteen seconds per month, and the battery lasts ten years without changing.

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The more IтХитЦУтХи╨Т╤В╨Ф╨▓ve been travelling & investing, the need for quick money has been evident more than just once…In case you have this need tooтХитЦУтХи╨ТтФм╨╢you may find this interesting…

There are many uses for cash advances and most of them entail financial burdens that have urgent need.

The ability to stretch payments makes the payday loan a versatile financial tool, yet one to use only responsibly and in a dire time of need, especially when you think about the loan fees and interest rates.

However, the payday loan can be used in otherwise non-emergency roles, for instance, in the purchase of a new home. There are many unforeseen expenses when buying a home and the availability of a payday loan can really help out in a pinch.

(more…)

The more IтХитЦУтХи╨Т╤В╨Ф╨▓ve been travelling & investing, the need for quick money has been evident more than just once…In case you have this need tooтХитЦУтХи╨ТтФм╨╢you may find this interesting…

There are many uses for cash advances and most of them entail financial burdens that have urgent need.

The ability to stretch payments makes the payday loan a versatile financial tool, yet one to use only responsibly and in a dire time of need, especially when you think about the loan fees and interest rates.

However, the payday loan can be used in otherwise non-emergency roles, for instance, in the purchase of a new home. There are many unforeseen expenses when buying a home and the availability of a payday loan can really help out in a pinch.

(more…)

The more I╤В╨Р╨йve been travelling & investing, the need for quick money has been evident more than just once…In case you have this need too╤В╨Р╨╢you may find this interesting…

There are many uses for cash advances and most of them entail financial burdens that have urgent need.

The ability to stretch payments makes the payday loan a versatile financial tool, yet one to use only responsibly and in a dire time of need, especially when you think about the loan fees and interest rates.

However, the payday loan can be used in otherwise non-emergency roles, for instance, in the purchase of a new home. There are many unforeseen expenses when buying a home and the availability of a payday loan can really help out in a pinch.

(more…)

I’m not an electronic gadget guy (I didn’t run out and get an iPhone) but I am a fan of well made mechanical things. I’ll probably be the last guy shooting film while the world around me goes digital; I love my Leica rangefinder - the feel of those hand-assembled German gears pulling the film though the camera’s perfectly engineered sprockets.

But things like this are expensive, so they’re an occasional indulgence. When I glance down at my wrist I see my daily watch: the venerable Casio W-201. Date, time, alarm, stopwatch, water resistant to 50 meters. Accurate to fifteen seconds per month, and the battery lasts ten years without changing.

(more…)

“Last year I had a plumbing leak that led to mold in my laundry room. A mold remediation company handled everything and the mold test came out 100% clear. Do I still need to disclose it when I sell my home?╤В╨Р╨н

***ANSWER:
Definitely.

The law says you must disclose anything that could ╤В╨Р╨мmaterially affect the value or desirability of the property.╤В╨Р╨н

It╤В╨Р╨йs possible that even the fact that you HAD mold meets that standard. But there╤В╨Р╨йs a bigger reason.

If the remediation company didn╤В╨Р╨йt get all the mold or fix the cause and the buyer later has mold problems, you╤В╨Р╨йd likely be liable for damages due to non-disclosure.

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I’d written here before about how there has never been a national correction in the history of the U.S. real estate market. Well what we’re facing now is not exactly a national correction, but it is a notable occurrence nonetheless: we’re about to mark the first year-on-year decline in national median home prices since federal housing agencies started collecting statistics on pricing.

The reason that this doesn’t represent a national correction is the fact that even though the national median is down, there are still some regional markets that are flat or rising. Investors know this and we’re watching our local markets.

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