Time Can Cost You

Click on the title to link. This is an interesting article about the potential money lost if you wait for the market to "bottom" before buying. The money lost here would be in the form of a higher down payment because of an increased home price. The bottom line (no pun intended) is don't get greedy. The market is so down that now is the time to buy a house. And with rates as low as they are, it is the perfect storm (as we have said before).

If you need a Realtor then you need to call us first. Do not use somebody unless they are referred by someone you trust.

How Realtors Sell Their Own Homes

Click on the title to link. This is an interesting article about whether Realtors sell their own homes for more than their clients, and, if so, what they do to do so.

The article says:

Most people have heard of the well-publicized statistical evidence that that when real estate agents sell their own homes, they tend to keep them on the market longer (by about 10 days) and get a higher sale price (by about 3%) than when they sell homes for their clients.

The article does point out the fact that the folks who wrote a book about this conclude that it must be greed on the Realtors part (in essence) because the additional commission is so little that they figure why bother getting a little higher price for a client. That's quite the leap, don't you think? That reminds me of this time I saw an elephant at the zoo, and, of all things, a pink crayon on the ground by their cage. I naturally concluded that there must be pink elephants then. Oh, wait...

That's the same stupid logic that the author of the book has taken. Let's take the facts instead of jumping to ridiculous conclusions.

1. Whose the seller the Realtor is dealing with when they sell their own house? That's right, themselves. I think they now best their own tolerance for risk, and what they will or will not take. When dealing with clients, all you can do is present the facts and let the sellers make an educated decision. One of those facts will be that they could turn down offer X in the hopes for another 3% (let's just use the same percentage the book says Realtors make more of when selling their home). I don't know many people who would jump at that offer unless they were hell bent on a certain price.

2. With knowledge comes power (or so they say). The job our any Realtor (or lender, for that matter) is to educate people so they can make the best possible decision for them. However, that is not always easy. People hear what they want to hear. So I could tell you that you should probably reject this offer and wait for a better one. But that does not mean you are going to listen to me.

Anyways, there are more that we could go on with. The bottom line is this...I have no doubt that Realtors make more on their homes than their clients when they sell. But that because they know the seller better than anybody else (themselves), and they know exactly what to do because they do it for a living (hence the fact that their homes are also on the market 10 days longer; they trust what they know). I'm not saying you need a Realtor to sell your home. But if you use one, then make sure you work with one you trust 100%. Get referrals, do not work with those you run into at an open house.

We work with phenomenal Realtors. If you need their services than the place to start is here with us so we can get you with one that we know will treat you like you should be treated. So give us a call.

10 Ways to Boost Your Homes Sales Price by Spring

Click on the title to link. For any of you thinking about selling this spring, this has some great ideas to help you boost the sales price of your home. We are always here to answer any questions for you regarding the process. If you need a referral to a good Realtor then we have those also.

Foreclosures At Rock Bottom Prices

Click on the title to link. This is another article on purchasing foreclosures. If you are in the market to buy a house then you will be hard pressed to not at least look at some foreclosures (or short sales). Be educated and read this article.

Foreclosures Spread

Click on the title to link. I cannot imagine that anybody reading this blog would be surprised by this, but an interesting article about how foreclosures have "spread" into areas there were previously not as affected. Of course there is probably no area unaffected, per se. But interesting to read about, none the less. This kind of news will continue throughout the year.

Housing Market Holding Back Economy

Click on the title to link. Not sure we completely agree with this. There are plenty of things holding the economy back (unemployment, inflation, socialism, etc.). But this certainly is not helping, no doubt.

Foreclosure Record in 2010

Click on the title to link. We cannot imagine this would be surprising to anybody, especially if you read this blog, but 2010 was a record year for foreclosures. What may be surprising to you is 2011 will be worse.

The article says 5 million people are currently two months behind on their mortgage payment. It could get more ugly real quick. The thing is people will lose their will to fight it. Why bother holding on when your house is upside down anyways? Not that we are for that mind set, but it is tough to get past it if you are in that situation and struggling.

8 Keys to the Mortgage Market in 2011

Click on the title to link.

We find it quite funny how the government seems to think that more and more regulation is the answer (see Keys #1 and #2). This has proven so far to help some, yet make doing and getting mortgages extremely difficult. At times it has prevented folks from getting a mortgage that would be very helpful to them, or has punished folks by making it more expensive for the customer or us. It's not right. Does the government honestly think that "mortgage disclosure reform" is the answer? Are you kidding me? Yeah, that was the reason for the real estate/mortage mess. If they honestly think that then we are in big trouble.

Numbers 3-8 are so "pie in the sky" right now that it is almost laughable. Basically they are saying everything needs to get back to what it was and then it will be alright. Wow, that really insightful "keys" you all came up with. Not going to happen, folks.

There is one primary key to the mortgage market this year and that is the Federal Reserve (Key #8). Their "Quantitative Easing" plan is so full of holes that it could not hold water if it wanted to. Frankly, we are relatively convinced that the Reserve does not know what exactly to do because they are running out of options. Flooding the economy with Billions of dollars is not going to lower rates. It is, in fact, going to raise rates (as it has quickly done). Then when inflation kicks in what is going to happen? Rates will go higher, faster. Why the Feds do not seem to get this is utterly beyond us. But it's simple economics.

More See Walking Away As An Option

Click on the title to link. Although we are not suprised at all to read this, it is a very interesting article about the tough decision many are faced with. We found two things to be most profound:

1. "$300 billion worth of adjustable rate mortgages are expected to reset upward over the next 12 to 15 months, adding on average $1,000 to monthly mortgage payments on homes that already are worth 30 percent to 50 percent less than their original sale price."

2. "Roughly 23.2 percent of all single-family homeowners who have a mortgage are underwater on their property, according to third-quarter data from Zillow."

Staggering numbers when you think about it. As we have said many times before, we are far from being out of the woods on all of this.

Home Values Down $9 Trillion Since 2006

Click on the title to link. This is an interesting article. Sucks to read about it, frankly, but you should also keep in mind that home values were inflated due to the bubble. The people this really stinks for are those who bought their homes at the peak of the bubble, or those who refinanced at that same time.

Hidden Victims of the Mortgage Mess

Click on the title to link. I am not sure how "hidden" these folks are, but the article is referencing those who are underwater on their house and are not in foreclosure. This certainly is a huge problem since it may take years for those homes to get back to what they were (depending on many things).

Why Your First Home Shouldn't Be Your Dream Home

Click on the title to link. I am not sure that many people would really ever say they are buying their "dream" home when they are buying their first home. But this is an interesting article with some good points. The funniest thing about this to me...the picture. How many first homes look like that?

Is Mortgage Shopping Safer?

Click on the title to link. This article says that mortgage shopping is getting "safer". Is that true? Well, maybe a little bit if you gauge "safe" as less junk fees. But for those of us who have always operated in an honest, trustworthy manner it is no different than before. Regulations are through the roof, which has actually made things worse for you, the borrower. But it has shored up scrupulous fees.

But keep this in mind, government regulation is not going to dictate that people serve you well. It completely ignores the fact that there are still a lot of people in this business who could not serve people to save their life. So is having a miserable process less likely now? No, because there are still people in this industry who do not care about you. They are in it to make a living.

Bottom line...be very careful to think that increased regulations means you are going to have a smooth experience. What ensures that? Working with people you know and trust, or at least working with a company that was highly recommend by those you know and trust. The only way for any company, including us, to ensure a smooth loan is with internal, defined systems. Anything short of that will only ensure either failure or mediocrity. That is not acceptable (at least not here).

More Barriers to Mortgages

Click on the title to link. I know we just posted something about this yesterday, but it still holds true the things they are mentioning in this article. At the same time, don't think it is impossible to get a mortgage. Many, many people are still obtaining them. It's just not exactly how it used to be, so be prepared to be patient.

10 First Time Buyer

Click on the title to link. This is a good article about first time homebuyer mistakes that can really affect your search for a house. Read through it and share any questions you may have with us.

Thinking of Renting Out Your Home?

Click on the title to link. This is a good article to read if you are considering renting your home because it will not sell, or for vary other reasons. It should not be viewed as discouraging, "just the facts, Mam."

Should You Buy New?

Click on the title to link to this article. Relating Albuquerque to this article, I would say it is not as clear cut as they may present it. There are certainly benefits to buying a new house, just like there are benefits to buying a new car. But there are just as many benefits to buying used. Especially in Albuquerque, do you want to be on the west or east side? If you buy new you will, most likely, be way on the west side. Values are much slower to increase on new construction on the west side, and you get the lovely landscaping of dirt!

All that said, I am not pushing for one to buy used and not new. Just remember there are always two sides to every story.

Albuquerque Foreclosures Surge

Not sure if you saw it or not, but there was an interesting article in the Albuquerque Journal on Sunday about how foreclosures in the metro area have doubled from where they were at this time last year. Again, the sound our broken record, this should be expected by anybody reading this blog regularly. It could get worse because 2011 is supposed to be the peak of foreclosures nationally. Here are some interesting points:

* There were 4,970 foreclosures in Albuquerque in 2009.
* There have been 4,574 foreclosures in Albuquerque between Jan and June of 2010.
* There were 2,688 in all of 2008.
* The unemployment rate in Albuquerque has doubled to 9.2% since 2008 (22,000 jobs).
* Albuquerque is one of 154 metros nationwide to see foreclosures increase this year.
* One out of every 80 households is in foreclosure in Albuquerque.

Mark Boitano , who has been instrumental in fighting against tax lightning, said Albuquerque has seen the "perfect storm" leading to our current economic problems. We totally agree; it is more than just foreclosures. Many of those foreclosures are a result of the other contributing factors. They are home depreciation, a stupid appraisal law that has brought in values lower than reality (at times), unrealistic lending guidelines, a dysfunctional federal hom loan modification system (to say the least), and tax lightning.

All of this then contributes to folks hunkering down, which depresses the real estate market even more, which drepresses the economy even more, and so on. It's a vicious cycle. And all signs point to the fact that it is going to loom for the foreseeable future. As Boitano said in the article, "We're not even at half-time yet."

Dream of Home Ownership Fading?

Click on the title to link. Here is a sad article about how many folks are thinking they will never be able to own a house. We think most of this is because people do not understand their options. When you here nothing but bad news about real estate in the news then it is going to ware on you. However, many of those who think it is unreachable just do not understand the process and what they can do.

If you are in that boat, or know somebody who is, then let us know because we can sit down and at least show you options. You have to window shop before you can buy. The first step to that is to see what stores are even open for your business. Make sense? We are here for you and anybody you may know.

New Home Sales Slide Further

Click on the title to link. The housing market news just keeps gettin' worse. Now new home sales hit an all time low. More signs of our fledgling economy.