| |  | "Welcome to Coldwell Banker Horizons Realty"
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| CBHorizons, your perfect partner in real estate
3300 Chambers Road
Suite 5233, Arnot Mall
Horseheads, NY 14845
(607) 739-4000 Office
Email: cbhorizonsh@stny.rr.com
40 West Market Street
Corning NY 14830
(607) 936-2844 Office
Email: cbhorizonsc@stny.rr.com
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We'd love to show you inside!
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| You don't have to sell but you do have to buy
Quick clarification - two people have asked in as many days, so it must not be clear... to receive the $6500 tax credit for existing homeowners, you DON'T have to sell your current home, but you do have to be buying (that's how the economy receives a "stimulus") and it does have to be your primary residence. It's not for vacation homes or the like, and of course, there are various other requirements. But again, once we hear a question twice, we figure lots of people are wondering!
January stats
Well, the economic stimulus money appears to be helping stimulate the real estate market! This was a fabulous January here in the Southern Tier - 87 homes went under contract in the "reported-on" school districts of Corning, Elmira, Horseheads, Addison, Elmira Heights and Campbell. That is a great figure for a winter month and up significantly from last year at this time! The number of available homes in this same named territory: 491 - not many when you break it down into the various price ranges and areas! Closings were up too (reflective of sales contracts written in the past 1-3 months) so all is well. BUT if you are thinking of taking advantage of either first home buyer or existing homeowner credits, you'd better get moving. As reported below, FHA program changes may make you want to move the clock back a full month before the deadline of 4/30, and in general, closings are taking longer and being delayed at the bank level in some cases WAY beyond the typical 45-60 day time period. You will be sorry if some technical out-of-your-control-issue takes $8000 out of your pocket. So don't wait till the last minute! Call us, stop in or e-mail us today and let us help YOU take advantage of this amazing, limited time program offered by Uncle Sam!
Timing is everything!
Changes to the popular FHA financing program have been announced that could really influence the timing of your purchase, especially if you're trying to take advantage of the tax stimulus plan!
Beginning April 5, FHA will only allow sellers to pay 3% vs the current 6% in closing costs on behalf of the buyer. We see a HUGE number of offers in which the 6% is requested and we expect this to hit first home buyers HARD. So if you thought the deadline for "buying" was April 30, and FHA with 6% back from the sellers was in your plans, you need to get moving about a month sooner!
While we're at it - the lawyers and Realtors agree: DON'T WAIT TILL THE DEADLINE! Let's say you go under contract on a home on April 20th. The structural gets done sometime in the next 10 days and you are the seller are unable to agree upon needed repairs or credits. Your chances of getting back under contract before the April 30th deadline are SLIM. In addition, we have MANY contracts taking far longer to close for various reasons - title issues, bank delays, plain old scheduling... it is not going to be a pretty picture!
Here are some reminders about the basic tax incentive details:
First Home Buyer Credit: $8000 remains the "up to" amount and the definition of first home buyer remains the same: May not have had an interest in a principal residence for 3 years prior to purchase.
NEW: existing homeowners are now being incented to buy, with a $6500 credit ($3250 if married and filing separately.) Definition of current homeowner: Must have used the home sold or being sold as a principal residence consecutively for 5 of the previous 8 years.*****
The new DEADLINE is April 30, 2010. AND so long as a written binding contract to purchase is in on effect April 30, the purchaser will have until July 1, 2010 to close.
Income limits: have been raised from $75,000 single, $150,000 married, additional $20,000 phase out to $125,000 single, $225,000 married, additional $20,000 phase out.
Limit on purchase price: There was no limit in the old stimulus package, but the new one limits it to $800,000 as of the date of enactment.
Two additional comments: program does not apply to a purchase by a dependent (parent selling to child), and now, to prevent fraud, Purchaser must attach documentation of purchase to tax return.
Q&A: I am an exisiting homeower, currently under contract on a home and I meet the requirements for the tax credit. If President Obama signs the bill by the time I go to settlement, will I receive the $6500?
A: YES! Merry Christmas! Is that cool or WHAT?!?!!
Q&A: I am a first home buyer but did not qualify under the old program due to income; I do qualify under the new program's higher income limits. If I close after the new bill is signed, will I receve the credit? YES!
Have more questions? Get more answers- call or e-mail us! We're happy to help spread the good news!
*****Although this information was provided by NAR right after the extension of the tax credit in November of 09, the actual tax code does not appear to require the SALE of the old property.
It does require that the new property be used as the principal residence. As always, we're the real estate experts and on this tax question, we would recommend you take the advice of a tax expert. There is some confusion on this issue!
December stats!<b/>
The local board just experienced the best December we've had in years - hurray! We suspect that the tax incentive has helped; the mild weather we had through most of December didn't hurt, and in general, there seems to be a confidence as to jobs, the economy, etc. that wasn't there a year ago and the market is benefiting. More details coming... along with the year end recap. Can't wait? E-mail cathy.weil@coldwellbanker.com with your request - December, year end, or any other questions!
November stats!
I should start by saying that it wouldn't take much for this year's stats to beat last year's... you may remember November of 08 as the time that the banks starting failing, the car companies were admittng trouble and when huge employment cuts were making the nightly news. Consumer confidence was LOW and there was talk of re and de pression. We only had 45 pending contracts last year in November - not good for a board of about 300 agents! This year, it's almost double - 85 sales, and it's pretty evenly spaced, too, with 30 sales in the Corning area, 29 in Elmira and 26 in Horseheads. From a low price of $9,900 to a high of $389,900, we had sales in almost all areas and price ranges! Hurray! With continued low rates and the tax credits for qualified first home buyers and move-up buyers, we saw only slightly seasonality and we look forward to a great end of year AND 2010!
The Coldwell Banker Story
The Coldwell Banker Tradition
The story of Coldwell Banker® is a story of leadership and success. From its beginnings in San Francisco in 1906, Coldwell Banker has grown to become one of the premier residential real estate organizations in the world. Coldwell Banker was founded on a commitment to professionalism and customer service that continues to be the core of its business philosophy today. Coldwell Banker provides its sales associates with the strongest support in the real estate industry so they in turn can deliver the support their buyers and sellers need. That's the Coldwell Banker tradition.
The Coldwell Banker Heritage
After the devastating earthquake and fire in San Francisco in 1906, young real estate agent Colbert Coldwell saw the need for honest, knowledgeable and professional real estate services to help the city rebuild. Coldwell disapproved of the common practice of that day where real estate agents acquired properties for themselves, often from uninformed sellers at ridiculously low prices, and then resold them for huge profits.
With two partners, on August 27, 1906, he formed the real estate company of Tucker, Lynch and Coldwell, dedicated to the principal that they would work only for their customers and not trade for their own account, the beginning of a tradition of integrity and customer support that continues to this day.
In 1913, Benjamin Arthur Banker joined the firm as a salesman, and he and Colbert Coldwell quickly discovered they held similar views and ethics. Banker became a partner in 1914, and the two remained active in the company throughout their lives.
The Company Grows
The early years of the growing, successful Coldwell Banker were devoted primarily to commercial real estate brokerage firm's first residential real estate office opened in San Francisco in 1925, and a full fledged residential real estate department was formed in 1937. The company's geographic expansion began in the 1920s with the opening of offices in Southern California, followed by Phoenix in the early 1950s and Seattle in 1969. In the 1970s, Coldwell Banker acquired prestigious residential real estate firms in Atlanta, Chicago, and Washington, DC.
By 1980, Coldwell Banker had also acquired a national referral service (now Coldwell Banker Referral Network), and Previews Inc., an international luxury real estate marketing organization (which has evolved into the present-day Coldwell Banker Previews International®).
In 1981, Coldwell Banker was acquired by Sears, Roebuck and Co., joining Dean Witter Financial Services Group and Allstate Insurance group as a member of the Sears Financial Network. Sears provided the resources and impetus for even more rapid expansion, development of products, and integration of services. Another landmark in 1981 was the launch of Coldwell Banker Residential Affiliates, Inc. for the franchising of the highest quality residential brokerage companies. Through the acquisition of companies in major metropolitan areas across the United States, as well as the dramatic expansion of Residential Affiliates, the growth of Coldwell Banker during the 1980s was phenomenal. The company's share of the residential real estate market grew from 1.3 in 1981 to over 10% by the end of the decade.
1987 saw Coldwell Banker affiliates become the first in the industry to offer comprehensive guarantees to sellers. A similar buyers program was established five years later.
By 1990, Coldwell Banker had locations in all fifty states, and had begun international expansion with offices in Canada and Puerto Rico. The company's focus on residential real estate was strengthened with the sale of Coldwell Banker Commercial Group (now known as CB Commercial).
Coldwell Banker continued to set the standard for the real estate industry. In 1992, Coldwell Banker affiliates became the first to advocate and practice Seller Disclosure well before it was required by law in some states. By incorporating this consumer-focused issue, Coldwell Banker helped change the practice of real estate in many markets.
Coldwell Banker began a new phase of it's growth in 1993 when it was purchased from Sears by the Fremont Group (a private investment company formerly known as Bechtel Investments, Inc.) and company senior management. Another milestone in 1993 was the substantial increase of Coldwell Banker® presence in Canada. Coldwell Banker Affiliates of Canada, a joint venture of Coldwell Banker and Canada Trust, builds on heritage of more than 40 years of Canadian real estate brokerage experience. It is one of Canada's largest real estate operations with more than 200 offices and thousands of sales representatives coast to coast.
In 1995, Coldwell Banker became the first national, first-service real estate brand to have a presence online with the launch of www.coldwellbanker.com.
1996 proved to be another banner year for the Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation. In January, Coldwell Banker once again obtained the rights to sell commercial real estate. The Coldwell Banker Commercial® program allows affiliates to produce a wide array of services including market research, acquisitions and dispositions, leasing, asset and property management, investment property sales, corporate consulting and advisory services.
In May, Coldwell Banker was acquired by HFS Incorporated, then world's largest franchisor of hotels and residential real estate brokerage offices, ushering in a new and exciting era in the history of the brand. The unsurpassed franchising experience of HFS, together with its assertive approach to increasing brand awareness, positioned Coldwell Banker for accelerated expansion in both existing and new markets.
1997 saw parent company HFS merge with CUC International, forming the new Cendant Corporation. This was also the year that Coldwell Banker became the first national real estate brand to maximize cross-marketing promotions with such other well-known brands as Cadillac and Ethan Allen. The program led to more than 200,000 leads generated across the United States.
Coldwell Banker started 1998 by continuing to provide unparalleled service to its affiliates, with added benefits and expanded preferred alliances. In February, the company introduced "Personal Retriever", the revolutionary Web site enhancement that 'fetches and retrieves' home listings via e-mail to the consumer according to their specific home buying criteria.
That year, Coldwell Banker also became the first full-service real estate brand to unveil a concierge program, named Coldwell Banker Concierge® Service Program, a unique system for its broker affiliates to offer home buyers and sellers centralized access to various real estate related services. This true one-stop-shopping concept helps consumers by centrally coordinating the details of their move and home set up through local Coldwell Banker real estate offices. In 2002, Coldwell Banker became the first national real estate company selected by the National Concierge Association to receive prestigious membership affiliation for Coldwell Banker Concierge.
In 2005, Coldwell Banker became the first full-service national real estate brand to launch a stand-alone Web site for upscale properties with www.coldwellbankerpreviews.com.
Later that year, it was announced that Cendant would spin off its four divisions – real estate, hotel, car rental and hospitality services. Coldwell Banker would now be part of a stand-alone real estate company named Realogy in late 2006. Realogy’s brands – Coldwell Banker, Coldwell Banker Commercial, Century 21®, ERA® and Sothebys International Realty® (Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate was added in 2007) - combine to participate in one-of-every-four residential real estate transactions in the United States.
At the start of 2006, Coldwell Banker began celebrating its 100th anniversary. San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom declared February 13-19 “Coldwell Banker Week” in recognition of the anniversary and United States President George Bush sent a congratulatory letter commemorating the milestone. Jim Gillespie, president and chief executive officer of Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation, led a Coldwell Banker contingent in ringing the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange on August 21, 2006 to commemorate the brand’s 100th anniversary.
2006 also saw the brand reach a major milestone in its community involvement with the conclusion of its “100 Homes” initiative. Coldwell Banker affiliated companies around the nation raised more than $6 million to sponsor more than 100 local Habitat for Humanity home builds, making Coldwell Banker the second largest Habitat for Humanity fundraiser in the nation for the year. It was cited as the greatest community give back in real estate history.
Coldwell Banker also continued to set industry standards in 2006. In February, www.coldwellbanker.com began offering streaming video to educate, inform and entertain consumers. It marked the first time a full-service national real estate company unveiled such technology. In September, the new Coldwell Banker Personal Retriever® was unveiled. Utilizing Real Simple Syndication (RSS) technology, the online Personal Retriever now has a downloadable “widget” application that automatically delivers daily, personalized real estate listings directly to a computer desktop. A month later, the Web site unleashed satellite mapping functionality to enhance listings.
Coldwell Banker also advanced its platform of innovation by becoming the first national real estate company to join the popular virtual world in www.secondlife.com in March 2007. Four months later, the brand extended its presence in Second Life by unveiling a 3-D exact replica of a $3.1 million real home for sale in Mercer Island, Wash. Coldwell Banker was the first national real estate brand to make a real home available for 3-D home tours in the virtual world.
Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC was named the 2007 Inman Innovator Award winner in the brokerage/franchisor category. Coldwell Banker was honored for its use of such Web 2.0 resources as streaming video, Personal Retriever widget, HomeTracker and AgentSpace.
Awards continued to flow to Coldwell Banker in early 2008. In February, the brand’s intranet site, www.coldwellbankerworks.com, was named one of the world’s best according to the Nielsen Norman Group’s “Intranet Design Annual 2008: The Year’s 10 Best Intranets” report.
The Coldwell Banker “100 Homes for Habitat” campaign was named as one of five finalists for the prestigious PRNews Corporate Social Responsibility award in the “Stakeholder Engagement Category. The Coldwell Banker initiative raised more than $6 million for local Habitat for Humanity builds. Coldwell Banker also unveiled a new Habitat for Humanity initiative which is expected to raise an additional $4 million by 2011.
In May, Coldwell Banker Home Tracker was named one of five finalists by the American Business Awards in the Software Programming/Design category. Coldwell Banker, which already syndicates its listings to Yahoo, Google, Trulia, Frontdoor, Zillow, Openhouse, Homescape and others, then became the first national real estate company to offer its listings on a mobile GPS device through an arrangement with Dash Navigation.
A month later, Coldwell Banker unveiled its “Housetrology” quiz on the Facebook.com becoming the first full-service real estate company to develop an application for the popular social networking site. More than 10,000 took the quiz through the end of 2008.
October saw the U.S. economy come to a halt due to a historic credit crisis. But just days after, Coldwell Banker affiliated companies sent a message to the nation that proper pricing remained a critical factor in getting homes sold. The brand ran an industry-first 10-Day Sales Event that saw more than 36,000 sellers participate by lowering their listing prices by roughly 10 percent. The results were staggering. Along with unmatched media coverage, the 10-Day Sales Event saw approximately six percent of those homes sold during or soon after the event with another 70% deciding to leave their listings at the adjusted price.
That same month, following a “Listings Anytime, Anywhere” mantra, Coldwell Banker became the first national real estate brand to configure its Web site for use by mobile users on Blackberry and iPhones. In the first four months of availability, more than 100,000 home searches were conducted via these smart phones. In December the brand made international listings from 28 countries available too.
The Coldwell Banker brand continued on its path of innovating in the real estate industry in March 2009 with the debut of an application for MicroSoft Surface. This coffee-table like computer has a screen on top that essentially serves as a giant iPhone where hand movements dictate what the users sees and interacts with. The Surface units act as the ultimate engager and makes its public debut at Las Vegas’ Fashion Mall in June.
Two months later, Coldwell Banker debuted a true “game changer” with the launch of Coldwell Banker On Location (www.youtube.com/coldwellbanker). The channel was created to more fully tap into the power of video for real estate search and discovery, and to drill deeper into the local insights that consumers want. Coldwell Banker Real Estate closely collaborated with both YouTube, a Google subsidiary, and Google to develop a customized framework and user experience – offering what is arguably one of the most comprehensive and immersive brand channels on the YouTube platform. On Location is the first branded YouTube channel to use dynamic IP lookup to search for videos, which automatically serves up local results when visitors first hit the site.
The attention to mobile technology returned in August 2009 with Coldwell Banker becoming the first brand with international listings on an iPhone, Blackberry and Google Android application.
Locations:
Today, the Coldwell Banker® brand has a global reach, with approximately 100,000 sales associates offices in more than 3,500 offices in 47 countries and territories. There are more than 500 Coldwell Banker offices outside of the United States. Coldwell Banker has a presence in the following countries:
Aruba
Australia
Bahamas
Belize
Bermuda
Canada
Cayman Islands (Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, Little Cayman)
China
Colombia
Costa Rica
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
France
Guatemala
Honduras
India (Mumbai only)
Indonesia
Ireland
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Kuwait
Lebanon
Malta
Mexico
Netherlands
Netherlands Antilles (Curacao, Bonaire, Saint Eustatius, Saba and St. Maarten)
Nicaragua
Panama
Peru
Puerto Rico
Romania
Singapore
South Korea
Spain
St. Kitts/Nevis
St. Martin
Turkey
Turks & Caicos
United Arab Emirates
United States
Venezuela
Vietnam
Virgin Islands (British: Anegada, Jost Van Dyke, Tortola, Virgin Gorda, along with smaller cays
and private islands)
Virgin Islands (U.S.: St. Croix, St. John, St. Thomas, Water Island, several smaller islands)
Coldwell Banker Horizons Realty has been a member of the Coldwell Banker family since its inception in 2000 and we are proud to offer the unparalelled Coldwell Banker programs and services to the Corning, Elmira, Horseheads, and surrounding areas of upstate New York. For information on selling, buying or being an agent at our firm, please contact Cathy Weil at 607-936-2844.
Recent, local market stats
The National Association of Realtors has been trying for a few years to help people understand that real estate, like the weather, is a local phenomenon. So don't base your perceptions or your actions on the national news- look into what's happening locally and become informed. We'll try to help!
For these statistics, we've combined our two biggest markets, Steuben and Chemung Counties. Would you care to guess how many homes have sold as of the end of September? 710. How many have been listed during that same time frame? 1633. NOW - a word of explanation. If a property came on the market in January and didn't sell, and was relisted by another company in August, that counts as 2 listings, because our system can't tell the difference. So that figure is not actually that high, but it does point out that not all homes sell. (I'm preparing you for the staging comments coming below!)
Average days on market? 148. But some price ranges are significantly higher than that - especially some upper price ranges where we simply don't have that many buyers each year - and some are lower. The $30,000 range was actually the lowest, at 103 days on market, average. Which price range had the most sales? The $80s, with 67 sales, but the $70s were just behind that with 66.
A surprising number of sales were cash - 148! And a large number were FHA - 158. There is no delineation by price range though, which would be interesting. Average sold price: $117, 468. Now, if you'd like details broken down by County, or specifics for your price range, ask your agent or email me, cathy.weil@coldwellbanker.com, and we'll help you make sense of the numbers as they relate to your real estate goals.
Staging on TV and in YOUR living room
I guess everyone has seen, by now, the large number of shows on HGTV that show the before and after photos of houses being prepared for market. We have had an accredited stager on our team for a few years now, and frankly, I'm surprised at how long it has taken to get this idea from the TV screen to "Main St." I have some ideas about why.
Our homes are the most personal inanimate object we own. We LOVE fixing our homes to reflect our style. Look at the HUGE do-it-yourself- home improvement industry - wow! It is a national past-time, for sure. And we are also a country of well trained consumers - translation- we buy stuff. We value stuff. Everybody has a different idea of WHAT stuff they like and value and pay for and display but almost everybody does it.
So when it's time to sell, even though it's fun to watch on TV, there is a real resistance to the idea of someone coming in your home, YOUR home, your reflection of you, and suggesting changes. It's hard not to take things personally. It's hard to live in your home for a while (while you're selling it) and NOT have it exactly the way you like it.
But more and more, as some brave souls do it and we see our local before and afters, we know that it's the best thing to do to accomplish the age-old seller's dream: sell quickly, sell for the most amount of money possible and sell with the least amount of inconvenience.
We've said for years that one of the best investments a seller can make is a pre-sale inspection. We now say that the other best investment is a staging consultation. Even the homes that show up in House Beautiful, even MILLION dollar homes that are going to be photograped, are staged before the photographers begin. We do prepare a home differently to show and sell than to live in. If a sale is in your future, give us a call and put this simple and easy concept to work for you.
Going somewhere? May we help?
Because of a series of webinars that I had to attend this week, I was reminded of something that I take for granted - our ability, within the Coldwell Banker family, to get help for buyers and sellers, whether it's here in town or across the country. Despite the fact that it's EASY to look up information online, it's still difficult to put that in perspective sometimes. For instance, online, a house can look fabulous. But when you drive to that house, it can be at the end of a treacherous driveway, or surrounded by less well cared for homes, or be at the foot of a garbage dump. Really! Perspective and help from someone you can trust is one reason that we don't see real estate ever being done completey on line or without people.
So you can look online at houses. You can also look online on agents. How do you choose, if you're moving out of town, your agent in the new location? By their photo? Their motto? Their online "billboard" website? We have a better idea. Call us and let us help. When your request goes through our referral system, we can make sure you get an experienced agent who has what you need to learn a new area, learn values in a hurry and make a decision, and then to get settled in successfully. We belong to the largest Relocation Company Network in the country (with many foreign countries covered as well), and we know how to use it. :-) So, if you're going somewhere, take some guesswork out of it - give us a call and let us help you!
The character of a company
Are all restaurants alike? Are all physicians alike? Are all real estate companies alike? Ah - fooled ya on that last one, huh? After 32 years in the real estate business, the thing that still surprises me is that many consumers still see all agents as the same, all companies as identical. And after 32 years in the business, I can tell you that THAT is not true. What is most important to a company? Look and see what they advertise for a pretty good clue. Is it being the biggest? Being classifed at #!? (Though that's as tricky as a restaurant being named #1 - think about it - does that mean that each and every dish they serve is best in class or that each and every server is spectacular and that each and every dining experience is the ultimate for the consumer. Doubt it!) Just like when you eat out, the only meal/real estate transaction that REALLY matters is YOURS!
Want to be biggest? That's really quite easy. Hire the most agents. Want to have the most sales? Again, hire the most agents - each of them, during the two years of their original license, will probably sell to several friends or relatives, and even though they won't renew their licenses, the company will have the multiplier effect of 20 or more agents times 4 or 5 deals - not bad! Want to advertise that you're #1? Everybody is #1 at something, so go ahead, with the assumption that the public won't really stop to think about what that means. Think money is all that matters to agents? Move the risk and reward components of real estate around so that you can offer agents a higher reward (commission split) to attract more of them. It bothers me tremendously that even with tons of information available online, most consumers are still starved for real information on how to choose an agent and agency because our advertising messages are so convoluted and murky.
At Coldwell Banker, most of our messages are directed at the consumer and what we offer them in the real estate experience. Our website has been developed to be user friendly, we support tech applications for the iphone and blackberry, we have a fabulous after-sale online service called hometracker, we offer unique help-you-sell-or-buy concierge services, and in general, we feel that by helping the consumer, our agents and therefore our company, will be successful. We'd like to think of that as a simple, honest and true measure of character. We'd like to think that that matters. Character is sometimes defined as what you do when people aren't watching. We hope you DO watch us at Coldwell Banker, (home to a lot of characters, haha), and that you like what you see and reward us with your real estate business!
Rental scams
I don't know if it's happened here or not, but after being notified by one of our relocation companies and then seeing it on the news, I thought it was worth a little space here to talk about the newest version of real estate scams - rental scams! Apparently, some opportunists are finding vacant properties and advertising them for rent on places such as craigslist. They never show the properties - they just deal online or on the phone, and have money sent to them for the rental. Often the rates are VERY reasonable of course! Vacant houses have been rented by NON-owners! Vacant, OCCUPIED houses have been too! The normal rules apply: if it seems too good to be true, it is! I don't know who thinks this stuff up, and maybe it's not likely to happen here, but be aware! It's a crazy world!
Can't everyone be happy?
Sellers want to sell, buyers want to buy, agents make this happen all the time... this is the fulfillment of the American Dream! So can't everyone just be happy? Lately it seems that sellers feel that buyers drag them through the mud, if not with prices, with the STRUCTURAL report findings. Buyers often want everything to be fixed - almost to be like new - and sellers, who have maybe given closing costs and other concessions, feel pushed to the limit. What should be a happy and exciting experience can end with the parties in separate rooms at closings - NOT GOOD! We don't have any way to control the decisions and the emotions of the parties involved in a real estate transaction, but we think that there is lots to be said for encouraging REASONABLENESS. Instead of pushing for "one side" to get their way, it's good to say, "if you were the seller, would you think this was a reasonable request?" and visa versa to the seller. It is a highly emotional time, this house-buying thing, and the best we can do is set reasonable expectations, encourage people to apply the "reasonable" test, and try to help both parties focus on their goal - to sell or to buy that home!
Real estate commissions - isn't there a better way?
There's been an article and a bunch of comments about this topic on Inman News lately, and it's something that I think about often. We are perhaps the only PROFESSION (something requiring education and a license) that works on commission, and the fact that we do often leads people to view us as commission driven - like all we care about in the entire world is making a buck. That's an insult to the majority of agents who have worked for years to develop a reputation for doing the right thing and serving their clients' best interests first and foremost, and of course (like everybody ELSE in the world) getting paid for working. I don't know if there is a better way at present. Certainly lawyers work by the hour or on commission - only getting paid when they are successful. Of course, that fee is around 30%, quite a bit more than a real estate commission! Hourly fees would make it difficult for homebuyers, especially first home buyers, to use the services of an agent. And for sellers, often the lower priced homes require the most time to sell (and work through structural items and such), and those are the people least able to afford it. Percentage wise, it could be prohibitive. So I don't know - I don't think that anyone has figured out anything better than the current setup, but if you think you have, I am truly all ears! Write me: cbhorizonsc@stny.rr.com and I'll listen!
Are We Over-Protecting Home Buyers?
Found this article, written by Peter G Miller/July 2004, while cleaning and just had to share.
Have you been to any kind of a doctor or dentist lately? It's remarkable to see how technology and research have changed medical care. But now arises a medical question which - as we shall soon see - relates to real estate: Has medical testing reached the point where it has spawned an industry dedicated to more tests - even if healthcare is not improved? We spend SO much money on health and diagnostics - more than any other country in the world - and yet we are 42nd in terms of overall health.
We have a parallel dilemma in real estate. We have lots of tests, and few people who will admit that homes are imperfect - or that testing is a business. (Peter Miller says:) I have very much favored home inspections because I thought they were good for sellers (to head off future claims of concealed damage) and buyers (to better understand a property and its condition). I also think checks for wood-boring insects should be made, in part because they're quick and cheap.
But there's no doubt that more tests will discover more "problems" - and things which would have been perfectly acceptable 10 years ago are suddenly matters of great concern. Visit any historic home used as a residence and you will inevitably find lead paint and mold. Any yet, magically, people occupy such properties, sometimes generations within the same family, and usually without producing tree-dwelling, 12-toed mutant off-spring.
The argument here is three-fold:
First, we need to weigh costs and benefits. Think of radon. Is radon a problem if you're not a chain-smoking, basement dweller who has a day job in a uranium mine? How will you know? One study the EPA found that 49.9 percent all positive tests were false.
Second, all homes are imperfect simply because home are complex. Buyers must understand that they should be legitimately concerned with major problems, but that they are buying homes in substantially the condition that existed as the day of purchase.
Third, a home inspection should not be seen as a club designed to force concessions from sellers; it is not a tool to reopen negotiations. It is, or should be, simply a way to better understand a property and its faults - and there will be faults.
Professional home inspections should be routine, and most other tests should be required only on a case-by-case basis. The public must be told in writing of the accuracy of all tests offered and the fact that such tests can be wrong.
It's time to put testing in perspective.
MORE banking changes!
Well, let's see if I can summarize without my notes in front of me... As a result of some of the abuses of the OLD days - when mortgages flowed like rivers - some additional consumer protections are going into effect at the end of July, and the possible result of THIS will be longer closing times and higher costs. Apparently many people were charged application fees at "first point of contact," only to find, upon receiving the summary in writing, that all fees and charges were not disclosed on the phone or the internet. So now, fees cannot be charged (or the process begun) until a consumer has estimates in hand, meaning overnight mail (and fees) needs to be utilized or several days have to be allowed to be sure mail to be received. This makes sense of course, but was not a problem with reputable banks and fund sources - just the fly by nights that are MOSTLY out of business now. In addition, if costs change (for example attorney fees or title insurance or the various charges that are included in the figuring of the APR, which is different than the interest rate), and the result is that the APR is more than an 1/8% higher, everything must be redone at the bank, and then a new cost estimate reissued, with time frame requirements as outlined above. Another improvement: consumers must receive a copy of the appraisal at least 3 days before closing. And in general, banks and funders will require closing estimates (a preliminary HUD statement) many days in advance of closing; this wouldn't get done sometimes until a day or two before, so only time will tell exactly how all of this plays out. We are certainly all for consumer protection, but it seems that this is another reaction to a problem that hardly exists anymore. The main thing going forward, of course, is to remember that closing dates written on the contract are not set in stone; they are targets and these targets are frequently not hit on the dot. Flexibility and plan Bs are really important in a real estate transaction and this change adds to that advice!
Do it yourself.
Ohmygosh, we had the funniest thing happen the other day. An agent couldn't figure out how to turn off the automatic date stamp on her digital camera. I looked it over, and found the time and date settings, but couldn't find a place to turn off the adding of that item to the actual photo image. I suggested words for a google search, and told the agent to go there. And she did something else - something that really and truly never occurred to me, and caused a real "aha" moment when she reported back: she CALLED customer service to talk to a PERSON and ASK her question of the best source. Oh. My. Gosh. Generation gap? Information gap? I don't know but it got me to thinking about our do it yourself world. The ability to look up ANYTHING on the internet has not necessarily simplified our lives. There is a TON of info to sort through, it is very difficult to judge good versus bad advice, and in the end, it probably takes longer than what we USED to do in the days before google. That of course, was to CALL (or maybe stop in to see) an expert. On occasion, I watch someone - a buyer or seller - get extremely stressed out because they are trying to do it themself - research everything online, become an expert to "protect" themselves, try to decipher info that in many cases isn't even applicable in our state, as real estate is a very local phenomenon. And then, once they find an expert whom they can trust - a real estate agent with whom they meet, "click" and do business, they realize that it's a lot easier to lean on an expert and hire it done, so to speak, than to do it themselves! Of course, I know that it isn't totally easy - there is a great difference in skill levels and in work ethic among agents, but I still advise you to call/meet/interview/get a sense for an agent whom you can relate to and trust and who has experience and ability... and then turn the PROCESS over to them, while you still make the DECISIONS that affect your pocketbook! Give it a try - give us a call or stop in!
What do you want to know?
Every week OR SO, we add to this column. Every month, we write a letter to our sellers with a general update to complement the contacts they have with their agent. Every day, we get tons of real estate e-mail newsletters with info, opinions, more. Every month we get national and state Realtor magazines. So there's lots to choose from, for stuff that we think you OUGHT to know. But what would you LIKE to know? I would WELCOME questions, comments, suggestions as to what you'd like to read here. Write me: cbhorizonsc@stny.rr.com and I WILL answer you, privately or in this medium. Happy sales to you -
Cathy
Time is running out
Planning on using the up-to $8000 first home buyer credit? Let me help you think through the timing – because I’m worrying about the last minute log jam that may occur!
A really general rule of thumb is that it takes about 2 months from the time you have your purchase offer accepted to the time it closes. I’ve seen this happen as quickly as 3-4 weeks and I’ve seen it take longer. How busy banks are has a lot to do with it. How busy structural inspectors are does as well. And it gets right down to the schedules of attorneys, as it takes two or occasionally three, to close… and surveyors, water testers, etc. all have to be available too. In other words, muc of the timing is out of your control (and definitely out of ours) after the offer is made and accepted.
Let’s say that you wait until October 1st to buy a home, using this 60 day time frame. I suppose the first thing that could go wrong is that the sellers won’t accept your offer or that you are in a multiple offer situation and have to find another home that suits you. Tick tock. If the offer does get accepted, the next thing you’d probably do is have the structural done. What if there are issues that you and the seller can’t agree on and you don’t buy this house and have to start all over? Tick tock. If this deal does remain in force, you’ll be applying at the bank and will be in the pipeline with a lot of other people who have waited till nearly the last minute. The bank staff can only work so many hours in a day. Appraisers – I forgot to mention that we have a shortage of appraisers, and they can only perform so many appraisals in a day. After application and processing, the loan goes to underwriting. Tick tock. After the mortgage commitment is in, the attorney orders the abstract to be updated. Occasionally there are issues that need to be solved – boundary line agreements, death certificates that weren’t filed, that sort of thing. Tick tock. Water tests have to be run and there are only 2 or 3 vendors in our area who do this. Same for septic pumpers and testers. Tick tock. And now, with everything else in place, the lawyers’ offices have to schedule. This requires a final ok from the banks, who will now be in overdrive trying to process loans quickly, and mutual time between attorneys to close the deal. I would NOT wait till the last minute this year, because this is $8000 we’re talking about here.
Plan ahead – look now! Time really is running out – this is July this week! Call us today to get started.
Full disclosure
This is a different kind of disclosure we’re talking about today. Since we just ended a segment on the $8000, it wouldn’t be fair to not mention that there is another incentive in the works. The problem is – WHO KNOWS if it will come through or not? Right now there are 3 different bills in front of Congress to enact a $15,000, yes $15,000, credit. This one would be different in that it would not apply just to first home buyers and it would not have income caps as the current program does. It would still be UP TO 10% of the purchase price of the home and would expire, presumably, a year after it is enacted. So the question is, are you a gambler? If you wait, you may see a better credit. But if you wait, you may see no credit at all. And if you wait too long, you may not get your loan closed in time for what we already know is out there. But we thought you should know!
Are you a gambler?
Well, not only does this apply to the above topic, but it’s a favorite for us when we’re talking to sellers who have an offer on the table. There just is no crystal ball for us to use when helping a seller look at offers. Sometimes, buyers just “have” to come in low, and when there is a counter that is more in line with market values, the buyers accept that they aren’t stealing that house and they come up. Sometimes they don’t. Sometimes buyers make very reasonable offers, but if it’s too soon after the house goes on the market, it’s tempting to think that time will bring even better offers, and that is not always the case. Often, we tell sellers that the first offer is the best offer – that the buyers who are looking now have considered all that is out there, any maybe even lost out on a house or too, so often make the best offers. When a seller wants to turn down an offer that is within the range of value that the market analysis has indicated, we often use the gambling analogy. In effect, they have just “won,” the amount on the table. By countering, which allows a buyer to walk away if they choose, it’s like putting that money back on the roulette wheel in the hopes of winning usually a few thousand more. It’s a gamble. What usually determines things like this is the motivation of the seller or buyer – how badly they need to sell or buy, how comfortable they are being on the market (or looking for homes) and that sort of thing. As agents, we advise our clients as to alternatives and help them think through the consequences, but we don’t make the decisions for them. Your agent’s skill in negotiating is a very important aspect of their competence and their ability to represent you.
Best Buy or Best House?
Does it bother you to think of paying full price for a house? This is a hard concept in real estate, but let me elaborate. Asking prices on houses aren't a pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey kind of thing - that is, there is no exact price for real estate. Based on recent sales and on the supply and demand at the time that a house goes on the market, there usually is a sensible RANGE of value - one in which buyers will recognize a fair value and which banks will be able to support value on when the appraisal is done. Based on seller motivation, an asking price is established, usually within or just above that range. HOWEVER, and it's a BIG HOWEVER, sometimes sellers will set an unrealistically high asking price based on such things as "we NEED it" (to pay off the mortgage and perhaps a second mortgage, to get money out that was put in, to move to a higher priced area, and so on and so forth, with issues that don't really impress a buyer. This requires an agent to TAKE the listing at that price, and many will - in hopes that a buyer will pay it or that the seller will be convinced to reduce the price. So back to the title - there may be times that the best HOUSE is also extremely well priced and in order to get it, you'll pay full price - and occasionally, even OVER the ask price. On other occasions, you might get several thousand dollars off the asking price (because the seller needs to sell, the agent convinces them the price is right or the like) but it isn't really a great deal - even thought it's way off the ask price, it's just the right price. The best house for you may NOT be one that you can get for a bargain - so in markets like ours (fewer homes than buyers), you may have to decide whether you want the best house or the best buy.
The Perfect House
Many years ago, we learned to help prepare buyers for the fact that there IS no perfect house. Even those who build brand new homes often wish they'd made a different decision here and there - so we like to say that if you find a house in the location that is right for you, with a floor plan that works for you, and that is structurally sound - THAT is the perfect house. The idea that all colors would work for you is asking a little much - and those cosmetic things can be changed over time. The structurally sound part needs a little more detail though. Structural inspections are a fairly recent phenomenon in real estate sales. When I personally bought, most recent about 25 years ago (I know - people like me are bad for business :-) ) we didn't do structurals. And at first, structurals were just what they sound like - a look at the structure, to make sure that the house wasn't going to slide down a hill, fall in on itself, have the roof cave in, etc. Then structurals began to include mechanicals - plumbing, heating, electrical... and the idea was to make sure that there weren't unsafe features - furnaces leaking carbon monoxide, dangerous electrical features, etc. Now, frankly, I don't know how a house EVER passes the standards we're looking at now - if we applied the same thing to prospective marriage partners (PERFECTION), marriage would be a thing of the past! Buyers have gone beyond expecting defects to be fixed - now they often ask for NEW things even when they knew they were buying (and paying for) OLD things - furnaces and the like. Tree roots, sidewalks with bumps ?, and lots and lots of things that are really meant for future preventative maintenance vs defects... you name it, we've seen it, and we constantly see transactions fall apart because buyer and seller can't come to agreements on "structural" issues. Our advice? Of course, get a structural. But add in some reason - and keep in mind the litmus test of reason - would YOU do this for someone buying YOUR home? Remember, there IS no perfect house!
More on multiple offers
We got a call the other day from someone who was in a multiple offer situation with another company and wanted to check out some facts. And we recently had a local attorney who was interested in the changes in the Realtor Code of Ethics that took place a few years ago. One of the most misunderstood experiences in real estate and one that causes a lot of frustration IS the multiple offer situation. Some reminders: first doesn't mean anything. A seller decides whether or not to tell other prospective buyers (through their agents) that they have another offer. Sellers can accept, reject or counter offers, and if they receive multiple offers, they can work with any one of them - there is no requirement to go back to all with a "highest and best offer" response. Even if you are in negotiations with a seller, if another offer comes in and they like the terms better, they are free to accept it without giving you "a last chance." (There are some more specifics on this based on whether or not you or the seller made the last counter of course.) We share the NAR policies with our buyers and sellers, and we developed a form to have sellers sign to show that an offer was presented to them, to help buyers who don't "get the house" and who sometimes wonder if their offer was even presented. The whole multiple offer thing is VERY tricky and we have spent a lot of time in our company making sure that our agents really understand this. It doesn't guarantee buyers (ours, or buyers of our listings) are always HAPPY, but it does guarantee that they were treated as our Code of Ethics requires. I am happy to answer any specific questions on this subject - call me at either office, or e-me
at cbhorizonsc@stny.rr.com
Local Market Stats
First: hurray – we’re BAAACK to almost-normal! In the month of May, there were 113 and in April, 123 pendings in the areas that we continuously track; these figures are slightly off of last year’s: 119 in May of 08 and 137 in April of 08. But they are FAR better than March (105), Feb (65), Jan (65), Dec (56), November (45) and Oct (89) pending figures. To us, this represents a fair rise in consumer confidence as well as the fact that we are less impacted by all of the factors influencing housing and employment in other areas.
Our overall supply remains low: 538 homes on the market in Corning-Painted Post, Addison, Campbell, Elmira, Elmira Heights and Horseheads school districts. That’s about half of the inventory that we carried for many, many years. This causes there to be great interest as new listings come on the market, and buyers recognize a good value when they see it - thus, we have many multiple offer situations.
Financing issues have started to surprise us; we’ve been hearing about the difficulty in getting loans in other areas, and lately, we’ve had all sorts of appraisal and financing issues stalling our transactions as well. Buyers must have very good credit, some money of their own, steady employment – the “normal” basics of old, but all sorts of little known technicalities or changes in mortgage monies are cropping up, often at the last moment, and it’s complicating or stopping transactions close to closing. The pendulum often swings too far in response to problems like the mortgage industry has suffered, and we’re seeing more and more of that.
All in all, we remain very happy with our local market, recognizing that many areas have too many homes on the market, severe unemployment problems that keep demand low, and falling home prices as a result. We have escaped this predicament, and while our market is small, it is stable.
Learning every day
One thing real estate is NOT is BORING! This is a profession of constant learning, because things in our business change constantly. This week, we discussed such things as: water supply. Did you know that shared wells are perfectly OK for any bank financing as long as there's an agreement in the deed? HOWEVER if the loan is FHA, they require a FOUR HOUR flow test. Ohmygoodness! What a waste of water, AND possibility of trouble and running the well dry, not to mention that it is not at all how water is used by residents of a home - oh well, that's the rule! Also, private wells do not have to meet the rigorous standards of municipal wells, BUT if you do any testing, results have to be disclosed. On another note, and tied into the comments in the market stat section above... if a bank appraiser comments that house condition is fair or poor, at least one local bank will not finance it. So an older home with great bones, priced to reflect that, and being purchased by someone with enough money to make those required improvements, is impossible to sell in the traditional, conventional loan requirement. Makes it hard to keep our housing inventory moving! Interest rates - more learning - you may have heard that they are moving up. We don't get any advance notice on this, so if your affordability is greatly affected by the rate, don't sit on that fence - make a move. If you are also using the $8000 first home buyer credit, remember that you must close by November 30 and we expect there to be a "traffic jam" at the end of that month with banks and attorneys scrambling to get things done. Don't wait till the last minute - an unknown boundary line agreement or structural issue could keep you from being able to take advantage of this amazing offer! There's LOTS more, of course, that we learned in the course of the week - come back and read some more next week!
Changes in the $8000 first home buyer tax credit!
HUD Secretary Announces Monetization of Tax Credit at NAR Real Estate Summit
WASHINGTON, May 12, 2009
Shaun Donovan, secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, said that the
Federal Housing Administration is going to permit its lenders to allow homeowners to use the $8,000 tax credit as a down payment.
Donovan’s remarks came in an address to several thousand Realtors® gathered this morning at The Real Estate Summit: Advancing the U.S. Economy, a special daylong session at the Realtors® Midyear Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo here.
Secretary Donovan said that important changes, which the National Association of Realtors® has been calling for, will help consumers purchase a home. “We all want to enable FHA consumers to access the home buyer tax credit funds when they close on their home loans so that the cash can be used as a down payment,” Donovan said. According to Donovan, the FHA’s approved lenders will be permitted to “monetize” the tax credit through short-term bridge loans. This will allow eligible home buyers to access the funds immediately at the closing table.
I haven't had a chance to check with our local lenders who offer FHA, so call first, but this could definitely open up the market to a bunch of additional people - if you're one, give us a call to get looking!
YIKES - update, Tuesday 5/19 - one of our agents learned that New York State is NOT participating in this program. HOWEVER, at least one local bank is looking at the concept to see if they might offer the same "bridge loan" to make this work. Stay tuned.
No news is good news, but no credit is NOT!
I guess it's been so long since I have heard of anyone without a credit history that I forgot it can happen. But recently one of our agents was working with a buyer who had actually saved money for down payment, had good employment history, BUT was missing one piece of the puzzle - a good credit history. They didn't have a BAD credit history... they had just chosen to do things the old fashioned way and save before buying, pay in cash, etc. And guess what? It will be months before they can buy a home due to the lack of credit! So if home buying is in your future, here's another thing to add to your to-do list. Check with a lender first to get the most up to date details, because things have changed drastically in the past couple of years and they continue to change, and then get started doing what they tell you to do to build your credit history!
HOW HORSEHEADS GOT ITS' NAME
Gen. John Sullivan left no intentional monuments behind him when his Continental Army ravaged the Indians of the Southern Tier in 1779 -- but he left one unintentional reminder of his passage. On Sept 24, 1779, Gen. Sullivan's army came down from the foot of Seneca Lake en route to a base camp near modern Elmira. They had to struggle through a vast swamp for hours and when they got to the site of present-day Horseheads, they had to kill several of their weary pack horses and leave their bones to bleach in the forest air. After they left, Indians set the skulls of the horses up along the side of the trail and from those bones left behind by his army; the community of Horseheads got its name.
FLATS HISTORY
A farmer moved his wife and seven children onto a plot of land claimed by the Indians in 1787 and the result was the modern Town of Big Flats. The town's first settler was Christian Myneer, also spelled Minier, and an ancestor of the family which today operates the hamlet's largest retail store, Minier's Market. (The store itself dates back to 1873, according to "Chemung County: it's History.")
The first school was built in Big Flats in 1814 --- a one-room log structure.
For many years, Big Flats was the center of the area's tobacco growing business. Tobacco seed was brought there in 1850 by Sanford Elmore, a Connecticut native. Tobacco flourished in the broad valley and at its peak, between 1908 and 1918, 2,000 acres were under cultivation.
But the rise of popularity of the cigarette after World War 1 doomed the tobacco business, oriented toward leaves used for cigars. The last tobacco was cultiivated there in 1957.
The world’s a stage.
Ah, technology. I happen to be 5 hours away from home right now, ready to watch my daughter on stage in a college play, but that’s not why I chose this title… It’s because we had a great discussion in our weekly meeting about STAGING and I thought I’d share some of that.
It began because of an exterior picture that one of our agents had taken, of a lovely home. But the picture had some “evidence of life” in it that in 3D, probably wasn’t a problem. In the one-dimensional picture, it looked BAD.
Here’s the upshot: a good real estate picture should have no toys in the yard, no cars in the driveway, no rugs or towels drying on the deck railings, etc. etc. etc. – it makes it look like a rummage sale is about to happen. And on the inside: the less stuff the better! Take the pictures off the fridge (I know, I know – everybody hates to hear this, but you’re going to do it when you move, so just do it now. It makes the kitchen look MUCH bigger.) Get stuff off counters. Get stuff off closet floors and shelves. Get stuff out, period. And THEN, the staging can begin. Everyone has seen the TV shows that demonstrate the effectiveness of staging, but it remains hard to get it done in our market. I don’t know why.
Many lovely homes with great furniture and décor STILL benefit from staging. One of our associates had a relative whose home was photographed for a national magazine because it was such a showplace; guess what they did? Came in and staged it BEFORE photographing! Imagine! One of our training phrases from about 20 years ago was “we prepare a home differently to show and to sell than to live in.”
So, please, talk with your agent about the value of staging, or if they bring it up, don’t think it’s an insult to your taste or your way of living. Making your home look almost unlived in and model perfect, removing personal stuff (STUFF IN GENERAL) and then arranging furniture so that rooms look their biggest and cheeriest is simply good advice that helps you achieve your goal of a good, quick, top-dollar sale!
Life is good – and so is the market!
On Thursday, I was talking to another Realtor after a board meeting. I learned that a well respected builder in our community had just died, at a too-young age, AND we were discussing the health problems of another well-respected Realtor. I think of myself as a basically cheerful and optimistic person, but after that conversation, I felt especially grateful for good health, a great family, a fine industry in which to make a living, and just the overall state of the world in MY little world. Life IS good.
Our talk then turned to the market. And now that it’s much improved, I’ll let you in on a little secret. Last November, the market was NOT so good. While rates were good (and still are), while there was a $7500 incentive for first home buyers to buy (now improved to an $8000 no-payback credit), and while our inventory remained low (unlike many areas in the country), the bottom just dropped out. I think it was the uncertainty over the election, then the collapse of several banks, the tanking of Wall St. – the number of sales in our local market dropped in HALF!
Sales were up (though not “normal,”) in December and remained at that pace in January and February. But in March, sales hit the level we were used to seeing – slightly over 100 for t | |
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