Realities in Real Estate

Last January we reported in our blog that there was a housing boom in Maricopa County in single-family homes priced under $150,000. Well that boom is continuing and in fact has expanded to include single family homes in higher price ranges, condos and even new homes. The tax incentives for those buying their first or next home and investors getting off the fence are driving this boom for properties under $250,000.

In that blog we also reminded readers of a little known fact. That is possible for your 401K, SEP, or IRA to purchase investment properties. No mortal knows the future but indicators are that whether you are looking to fix & flip, or purchase-rent-and hold, housing under $250,000 will likely out perform the stock market for the foreseable future. We have added a new tool to help investors purchase foreclosure properties. There’s more information available about financing and how you can bid on foreclosure properties online at www.MoveUpAZ.com .

We are conducting FREE investor workshops soon. Contact us if you’d like to attend our next event.

Michael & Shannon Collins

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I don’t recall where or when I first read or heard this quote, but I heard it often enough that I still remember it many years later. ”If you do a new activity consistently for 21 days, it will become a habit”.

Just last week a radio personality stated a statistic, that most people give up on their new years resolutions after only 18 days. Wow, many of them gave up only 3 days away from success!

Of course this relates to something you need to do almost daily. Setting a goal to climb Camelback Mountain once a month obviously just doesn’t work.

I know from personal experience that when I have had success making a postive change in my life, it’s because I:

1) Wrote down my goals (the easiest part) and reviewed them often later (more difficult).

2) Made sure I did not have conflicting goals. An analogy I always think of as a conflicting goal is a woman who loves the feel of the  wind in her hair while riding in her convertible, but is depressed when she looks in the mirror at the end of the trip. Another is the workaholic that sets a goal to triple his income next year and also spend much more time with his family.

3) Told someone else about my goals so I was more committed and to get leverage on myself. If I was really committed, I’d invite someone to monitor my success.

4) Stick with the new activity until it becomes a part of my lifestyle.

My goals for 2010 are to; write a new blog at least once a week, 2) keep our website content current. OK now I’ve told you so you can keep me accountable.

We have considerable new content on our web site regarding home financing, tax credits, how to buy foreclosed properties, how you can support our troops, and much more.  Please visit www.MoveUpAZ.com often and check out our blog each week.

Happy New Year

Michael Collins

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As we have been reporting for over a year, low property prices and interest rates have homebuyers and investors buying homes again.  Sales are particularly brisk in homes priced under $300,000. Earlier this year it was mostly single family homes, but condos and townhouses are heating up as well. The Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009, just signed into law by President Obama, has extended the tax credit of up to $8,000 for qualified first-time home buyers purchasing a principal residence. It also authorized a tax credit of up to $6,500 for qualified repeat home buyers. Here’s some details regarding both programs:

First time homebuyers http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/faq1.php 

Repeat homebuyers http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/faq2.php

Interested in investing in real estate? We now offer online bidding for foreclosure properties.

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Loan modification - Should you try it yourself, use a non-profit organization, or hire a professional?

We are not experts on this subject, but we talk with the experts a lot.  So here’s some important information we want to pass on to you.  

Anyone can work directly with their lender(s) and it costs you nothing. However, most of the people we know who have tried have been unsuccessful. Some have actually spent months talking with their lender only to have their home foreclosed upon anyway. This dispite the claim by the lender’s negotiator that the “modification proccess will put the foreclosure on hold”.

But as we said previously, lenders seem to be improving the process and their communication. So should you try it yourself or hire an expert negotiator to represent you?

First, gather all the paperwork you will need (most lenders web sites will help you with this information). If you are adept and successful at buying your own stocks, doing your own taxes (long form), etc., you might want to try it yourself. On the other hand, if you hire a professional to do these tasks then we recommend doing the same thing here. Trying to save some money here can cost you your home.

You can choose from; 1) non-profits and not-for-profits, 2) attorneys, 3) financial advisors. Be careful as this has become quite a fast growing cottage industry, so be sure you check with the BBB and attorney generals office web site, even if (especially if) they advertise they’re a non-profit.

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For the housing recovery to move forward at a more rapid pace, we need to dramatically reduce the number of new foreclosures. So this will be the subject of the next few posts.

Loan modification is where a lender agrees to restructure a homeowner’s loan to reduce their payments so they can afford to stay in their home. The borrower has to prove hardship and meet several other conditions.  Here is some important information from HUD (note this information changes nearly daily and you should check your lender’s web site too):

http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/modification_eligibility.html

 http://www.nls.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/nsc/faqlm.cfm

It’s imperative to note that your lenders first goal is to keep you making the current payments. Their second goal is to collect as much current information about your financial status to assist them in their collection process, in case you default. 

Until recently, most people we have talked to who called their lender for help, did not get the kind of apathetic treatment they anticipated. I cannot tell you how many times people have told us that when they called their lender they said ” You are current in your mortgage. We can’t help you until you are behind at least two payments.” This is not the progressive, kind assistance our government outlined when they passed the stimulus plan. Frankly it creates more stress and frustration with homeowners just trying to do the right thing, and they wonder “Why are these lenders getting my tax dollars for their support?”.  Under these conditions, even the most rational people make some irrational decisions that can have an adverse affect on their lives. However, due to pressure and incentives from the government, as well as some time to absorb the constant stream of changes affecting the banking industry, things seem to improving in this area. Lenders seemed to be wising up to the fact that in many cases loan modification is far less costly to the lender than foreclosure. We are hearing success stories where homeowners have received a lower payment plan.

Be sure to check out our next post about loan modification, “Should you try it yourself, use a non-profit organization, or hire a professional”?

Michael & Shannon Collins

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Usually we talk about real estate. However, at times we talk about our community our our country. This is one of those times.

One of the great things about American capitalism, is that the consumer often has an opportunity to purchase an item that in some way benefits those less fortunate. Well here’s a a chance to feed the hungry, just by pledging to lose weight, and it costs you nothing but time and maybe a little sweat.

Yes I am talking about NBC’s Biggest Loser, Pound for Pound Challenge. All you have to do is pledge to loose weight and General Mills will donate an equal amount of food to a local food bank. No purchase necessary. And I doubt that Jillian or Bob will stop by with a scale (but that would be cool too).

Just click on http://pfpchallenge.com and register the weight you want to lose. In a few months you look better in your swimsuit and others don’t starve. Truly a different type of sweat equity.

It only takes a few minutes. Be sure to use the above link as the web site address is difficult to find.

Michael & Shannon Collins

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Click here for an invite to our Home Buying Clinic on May 9th. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VauZxLuyW3Q 

Here’s a map to the location:

 http://www.mapquest.com/maps?name=Creative+Touch+Interiors&city=Mesa&state=AZ&address=525+W+Baseline+Rd&zipcode=85210&country=US&latitude=33.378709&longitude=-111.844448&geocode=ADDRESS

Michael & Shannon Collins

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We decided that there’s so much new information and misinformation out there about the housing market that we are going to conduct a series of real estate workshops, clinics and forums. We will start with a clinic for first-time homebuyers (and those who haven’t owned a home in the last three years), as there’s an $8000 tax credit waiting for you when you buy a house.

We will provide updated information about:

We recently received our GREEN designation from the National Asscoaition of REALTORS. The next few posts will be concerning how we can all live more environmentally responsible.

If you or someone you know are considering building your next home, you might be thinking you have to build small to be energy efficient. Custom home builder Tom Norris has been building GREEN custom homes for a decade. Here are two examples:

The Gladding Residence - On Jan 16, 2009 we received certification from D.R. Wastchak, L.L.C. that the Gladding Residence energy usage is Net Zero eliminating 21,647.4 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year.

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The perception - Politicians and the main stream media paint a picture that the Housing Recovery is like one huge ship on the wrong course that cannot be easily turned around.

The reality - The Housing Recovery is more like a flotilla of smaller ships, some of which have been heading on the right course for some time (i.e. sales of single family homes under $200,000 are booming across the country)

Sales of SF Homes from $70,000 - $150,000 in Maricopa County are up over 1200% for 2008 vs. 2007
 

And the trend continues in 2009, up 490% YTD over 2008
 

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