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Are you Thinking Of Short Sale your home?  Now you can do it without fear of lenders coming after you. Please read the following article  for more details of this new law:

Short Sale Without Fear.

Interested in this topic?  Please visit a new, upcoming website, www.thinkingofshortsale.com, with a collection of all sorts of Short Sale related information, comments of homeowner’s experiences, documents and reports. Estimated launch date: August 1st, 2011.

Related articles

• New California law could protect short sellers (fresnobeehive.com)
• Short sales, long waits: Buyers and sellers find process frustrating (usatoday.com)

http://realtytimes.com/145/EvaBradley

This Newsletter is full of interesting and useful information that I think you will enjoy whether you are a buyer, seller, homeowner, or renter.

This month’s issue includes topics such as:

“Why Buy a Home?”;
“Disclosure: Safest Way To Sell A Home”;
“Should I Take My Home Off the Market During the Holidays?”;
“Tips for an Eco-Friendly Holiday”;
“Value in Homeownership”;

Plus a roundup of November real estate activity in Tracy as well as much more advice and information.

I hope you enjoy this monthly newsletter. If you have any comments, please e-mail them to me. Or, if you would like to see a certain topic covered in future months, let me know that too!

Please contact me if you would like this monthly Newsletter sent directly to your inbox.

To see how the market in Tracy was in the first 10 months of 2010, please take a minute to study the the following charts:

News You Can Use

This Newsletter is full of interesting and useful information that I think you will enjoy whether you are a buyer, seller, homeowner, or renter.

This month’s issue includes topics such as:

“Priced to Sell”;
“Most Homebuyers Have No Regrets”;
“Staging a Photo Ready Home”;
“Handling Neighborly Disputes”;
“Social Benefits of Housing”;

Plus a roundup of August real estate activity as well as much more advice and information.

I hope you enjoy this monthly newsletter. If you have any comments, please e-mail them to me. Or, if you would like to see a certain topic covered in future months, let me know that too!

Listing Commissions

Discount commissions
It wasn’t to long ago that commissions below the “going rate” for an area were all but unheard of.  These days though, there are many brokers and agents willing to list your home for considerably less than the 7% that might be typical for the area.  You need to be aware though, that lower commissions are nearly always tied to lower levels of service.  Most agents willing to list your home for a bargain commission rate aren’t going to do any advertising or marketing of your home.  They will probably just list it with the local MLS and put a sign in your yard, and that’s about it.  Meanwhile, a full service, full rate agent will probably spend considerable time and money to advertise and market your home – particularly to other agents in the area.  So, when considering a low commission, be sure you know exactly what you’ll be getting, and what you’ll be giving up.

Often, lower commissions will be part of a package deal where you agree to use a particular mortgage broker or you agree to buy your next home through the same agent that sells your present one.  There are some good bargains to be had with these package deals.  But again, it pays to examine the details closely, and make sure the whole package fits your needs.

Paying commissions
It’s important to understand how commissions are earned, and when they are paid.  Your specific listing agreement will spell out the details.  In general, a broker is considered to have held up his end of the bargain when he brings you a “ready, willing and able” buyer.  If the broker finds such a buyer, and you change your mind and back out of the deal at the last minute, the broker is probably going to expect you to pay the commission anyway, since he did his job.

Buyers Commission:  Buyers do not have to pay a commission when purchasing a home! …unless the buyer hires an agent to find a suitable home and is willing to pay for the agent’s work and time. In this senario there should be a specific, written contract to  make sure both parties agree and understand the terms.

In general when a home has been entered on the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for sale, the listing agent points out how the commission will be shared in case another agent brings in a willing and able buyer.  Common practice is that the listing agent and the buyer’s agent share the total commission in a 50/50 split.

Many of you bought your home in 2008 and 2009 using the $8,000 tax credit.   

Here are some usefull links directly from the IRS to help you file the tax credit properly:

• Basic Information
• Claiming the credit on your tax return
• Homes purchased in 2008
• Homes purchased in 2009
• Scenarios

In case you do file your tax return your self  and need help you can visit the official IRS website by clicking here.

Following are the statistics for the month of January, 2010: 

• Actively listed properties: 207

             Almost the same as it was in December 2009 (208) 

• Homes that went “Pending Sale” for the last week of January:  34

             This is just a bit lower than it was for the same period in December (27)

• Number of homes “Sold” in the month of December: 92

              This is a significant drop compared to the previous month when

              the number of sold home was 148 

• The Average Days on the market of the Sold Properties: 46

             In December last year this number was 62.  

• Average Listing Price: $296,75 
• Average Sale Price: $244,573

 The charts below reflecting these numbers as well:

If you would like to have detailed statistics for other areas of the Central Valley, please feel free to call or email me – I would be glad to provide it for you.

Tracy is a sleeper town, which means a big portion of its population, my husband included, is commuting to work to the San Francisco bay area day after day.  With affordable home prices and close proximity to the Silicon Valley many are attracted to move to Tracy and Mountain House area.

There is only one thing that is not so desirable about living in Tracy: the commute. Prospecting homebuyers beware; you are strongly advised to keep in mind that you will be spending a lot of your time on the road traveling to and from work.  If you are fortunate and able to use the ACE Train or carpool you are set.  But if you need to use your own vehicle and commute back and forth, sooner or later it is going to take a toll not only on you but also on your vehicle.  Commuting is not for everyone; it is stressful and while some can handle it, others can’t. Although the widening of Hwy 205 last year gave us a bit of a relief, the roads are still congested, especially during peak commute.

My suggestion is that if you are thinking of buying a property in Tracy or surroundings, do some traveling during the peak commute time to check out just how much time you would need to spend on the road.  Home prices are a lot lower here than in the Bay Area and interest rates are still in your favor; living in Tracy is well worth it.  It is good to live here!

Realty World Corral Hollow agents have always been actively involved in helping the community throughout the years and I am proud to be one of them.  We care about our clients and we care about the community.

In these troubling times, Corral Hollow agents are available for you to educate you and to give you directions as to what would be the best option for your individual situation. A confidential, personal consultation does not cost any money and if you get nothing else out of it, just knowing that there is someone you can trust and talk to, will make you feel better and it will be well worth it.

Being agents at Realty World Corral Hollow, our ongoing education allows us to stay informed of the newest laws, rules and regulations that would affect your situation as a homeowner.

For most of us, our biggest investment in our lives is our home.  And it is worth every effort to fight for it.  As your realtor, I would stand and fight with you, until we can reach a reasonable solution.  Even if you are one day away from foreclosure, there is still time to act. 

I urge you to pick up the phone and call me or any Corral Hollow agent to find out about your options. 

Image via Wikipedia

Bi-Weekly Mortgage

Did You Know? Making one extra mortgage payment a year will knock years off your mortgage and save you thousands of dollars. Click here to learn more.

If you search for “bi-weekly mortgage” with an Internet search engine, you will be overwhelmed by the number of companies offering “Bi-weekly Mortgage Reduction Services” or “Bi-weekly Savings Programs.” Beware, you are entering dangerous waters.

Beware of Bi-Weekly Mortgage Reduction Services and Savings Programs

These “Reduction Services” and “Savings Programs” are charging you fees to “make a bi-weekly mortgage payment” for you. The enticement is that they will save you an impressive amount of money on your mortgage and reduce the number of years you pay on your mortgage.

The enticement is that they will make bi-weekly mortgage payments for you.

The real story is that they are not actually making bi-weekly payments on your mortgage. They are making bi-weekly deductions from your bank account. These funds are placed into an account from which your monthly mortgage payment is made (which only takes 24 deductions – but during the course of a year 26 deductions will be made from your account). With the extra 2 deductions, the “Service” makes an additional mortgage payment. In other words rather than making 12 mortgage payments, 13 payments are made.

The enticement is that they are providing a special service to you that would either not be possible for you to get on your own or that you won’t have the time or discipline to make it happen.

The real story is that you can easily make an additional mortgage payment each year. An easy way to do this is to have your mortgage payment automatically deducted from your account each month with an additional 1/12 payment to be applied to the principal amount. At the end of 12 months, you will have made an additional payment. And you won’t have to pay any fees to a “Service”.

Remember: when you have questions, you can always turn to a local Realtor® and he or she will be glad to assist you. 

In today’s increasingly automated society, it should come as no surprise that when you apply for a mortgage, your ability to pay can be reduced to a single number. All the years you’ve been paying your mortgage, car payments, and credit card bills can be analyzed, sliced, diced, spindled and mutilated into a single indicator of whether you’re likely to meet your future obligations.

All three of the major credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) use a slightly different system to arrive at a score. The best known is called the FICO score, based on a model developed by Fair Isaac and Company (hence the name) and used by Experian. Equifax’s model is called BEACON, while TransUnion uses EMPIRICA. While eac

h of the models considers a range of data available in your credit report, the primary factors are:

Each of these, and other items, are assigned a value and a weight. The results are added up and distilled into a single number. FICO scores range from 300 to 850, with higher being better. Typical home buyers likely find their scores falling between 600 and 850.

FICO scores are used for more than just determining whether or not you qualify for a mortgage. Higher scores indicate you are a better credit risk, and thus may qualify for a better mortgage rate.  That is why lenders won’t quote you a set interest rate for a home loan before they were able to check your credit scores.

What can you do about your FICO score? Unfortunately, not much. Since the score is based on a lifetime of credit history, it is difficult to make a significant change in the number with quick fixes. The most important thing is to know your FICO score and to ensure that your credit history is correct. Conveniently, Fair Isaac has created a web site (http://www.myfico.com/) that let’s you do just that. For a reasonable fee, you can quickly get your FICO score from all three reporting agencies, along with your credit report. Also available is some helpful information and tools that help you analyze what actions might have the greatest impact on your FICO score. Each of the credit services offers similar services on their web sites: http://www.equifax.com/, www.experian.com, and www.transunion.com.

Armed with this information, you will be a more informed consumer and better positioned to obtain the most favorable mortgage available to you.

Should you be in need of assistance to correct your credit issues, the best advise I can give you is to turn to any reputable loan officer, or consultant who is willing to hold your hand and help you every step of the way.  If you do not know where to turn, please contact me and I will supply you with a list of names and contact information.

Should you feel you are able to make credit score corrections on your own, attached here is a complete Credit Repair Kit that could be a great help to you.  

I would like add one more thing, if I may:  If you are thinking of purchasing a home and need to apply for a home loan, please stay away from spending on big puchases, like buying a car, furniture or pay for a cruise because this will influense your buying power in a negative way.