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How to Fight a Low Appraisal

When it comes to selling a home or refinancing a mortgage, the appraisal process can make or break the deal.

“The appraisal is pretty much the lynchpin of any transaction in real estate these days,” says Michael Corbett, Trulia’s real estate expert and author. “Over the years there’s been so much acceleration in pricing and a huge drop in pricing that knowing the value is almost an art form.”

Read more at How to Fight a Low Appraisal.

5 Low-Cost Kitchen Updates to Attract Home Buyers

It’s a tool used by house flippers all across the nation. Stagers know its power. Real estate agents push its importance. What is this not-so-well-kept secret of real estate? A kitchen can sell a house.

A kitchen is the heart of a home. This is true all across the globe. The old saying that the “stomach is the way to the heart” carries a lot of truth. Kitchens are where we spend much of our time and most of that is with our families.

Read more at Kitchens Sell a House.

As Prices Sink, Home Ownership Heads To New Lows

USATODAY.COM – Home prices across the nation are right back where they were at the beginning of 2003. All that was gained is largely now lost, and the effect on home ownership could continue for decades.

“Consumer attitudes have gotten a lot more negative about long-term commitment,” said Standard and Poors’ David Blitzer, after reporting home prices through September had fallen a deeper-than-expected 3.9%, compared with the third quarter of 2010. “They dropped to new lows. This takes them below the point we saw in 2009, where briefly we all thought this thing was about to turn around.”

And that’s the problem.

Read more at As Prices Sink, Home Ownership Heads To New Lows.

Are the Holidays a Good Time to Sell Your Home?

Sixty percent of real estate professionals advise their sellers to list a home during the holidays because it’s a good time to sell, according to a new survey conducted by Realtor.com.

Why are the holidays such a good time to sell? Seventy-nine percent of the agents surveyed said that more serious buyers come out during the holidays, and 61 percent say less competition from other properties make it a great time to sell. Plus, 17 percent of agents say the cold weather is actually a benefit, making homes feel more cozy.

Read more at Most Real Estate Professionals Recommend Clients List Their Homes During the Holidays.

Mass. Home Sales Up for 4th Straight Month

BOSTON — Sales of single-family homes were up in Massachusetts last month when compared to the same period a year ago, yet the market remained slow.

The Warren Group reported Tuesday that October was the fourth consecutive month of year-over-year sales increases, but the last two Octobers have been worst since 1990.

The Massachusetts Association of Realtors said a roughly 3 percent increase in sales last month was driven by …

Read more at Mass. home sales up for 4th straight month.

Housing in 2012: Things Are Looking Up
The outlook: Most of the country will see the housing market stabilize, just don’t bet on a big increase in prices

A smaller house will make a big difference

(MONEY Magazine) — Last year the economic forecasting firm Fiserv predicted that home values would sink around 5% in 2011, and that prices in three-quarters of the nation’s major metro areas would fall. The bad news is, the firm wasn’t that far off the mark. The good news: In the coming year, Fiserv thinks 95% of the 384 metro areas it tracks will see prices rise.

Read more at A smaller house will make a big difference.

Tips for Selling a Home in the Winter

Traditionally, the time from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day can be some of the slowest time of the year for home buying due to the holidays and the often less-than-perfect weather. But that doesn’t mean sellers can’t sell during the winter months. In fact, with decreased inventories, sellers may have a better chance to standout and face a buyer pool with more urgency to settle down.

Experts offer some of the following tips for selling a home in the winter:

Read more at Tips for Selling a Home in the Winter.

FHA Rules for Condo Buys Cause Big Headaches for Buyers, Sellers

Is a little-publicized switch in federal mortgage policy causing huge problems for condominium sellers, buyers and homeowner association boards across the country — even depressing prices and blocking refinancings?

Condo industry leaders, from the 30,000-member Community Associations Institute to individual unit owners and realty agents, are emphatic that the answer is …

Read more at FHA rules for condo buys cause big headaches for buyers, sellers.

What’s the Best Day to List a Home?

List a home on Friday and you’ll have a greater chance of success when selling it, according to Redfin, which analyzed 1.2 million listings in 16 markets over 21 months to determine the best day of the week for selling a home.

In every market analyzed, Redfin found that homes listed on Friday were 12 percent more likely to sell within 90 days. What’s more, the company found that homes listed on a Thursday or Friday sold

Read more at What’s the Best Day to List a Home?

Home Short Sales Rise in ‘Dramatic Shift’ That May Boost U.S. House Prices

U.S. home prices may get a boost from an unlikely source: a pickup in sales of properties in default before they reach the stage where they are repossessed by the bank and sold.

There has been a “dramatic shift” in banks’ willingness to sell a property for less than the mortgage balance to avoid foreclosing

Read more at Home Short Sales Rise in ‘Dramatic Shift’ That May Boost U.S. House Prices.

Home Sales Trending Up

Sales of single-family homes and condominiums in the Bay State posted their third consecutive month of gains in September amid growing signs that the worst of the housing collapse may be over.

“We’re starting to stabilize and seeing small measurable upticks,” said Nicolas Retsinas, a senior lecturer in real estate at Harvard Business School.

Rising rents and mortgage interest rates in the low 4 percent range helped spur 3,112 single-family sales last month, up from 2,788 in September 2010, a nearly 12 percent increase, according to the MLS Property Information Network.

Read more at Home sales trending up.

We’re Shifting From Buyer’s to Seller’s Market

A Hub real estate mogul who owns more than 5,000 units in Greater Boston said the recession in the Bay State’s housing market is over.

“The residential market is making a comeback” Harold Brown, the 86-year-old chairman of the Allston-based Hamilton Co., told the Herald. “We hit the bottom and we’re digging our way out and we’re headed up.”

Brown cited apartment home sales data, apartment vacancy rates in the single digits and rising rents as indicators that the residential market is rebounding.

Read more at Brown: We’re shifting from buyer’s to seller’s market.

Do Buyers Want a Deal – Or a Steal?

Buyers are still looking for homes, but they won’t settle for anything less than a great deal, say real estate professionals.

“All the buyers across the board want everything in a house,” says Karin Batterton, a Coldwell Banker real estate agent in Baltimore. “They want it …”

Read more at Buyers Want a Deal – Or a Steal.

Ownership Ranks High, But No Buyer Urgency

More than 68 percent of home owners and renters in a recent survey say now is a good time to buy a home. In fact, one-third of renters and one in five home owners say they want to buy a home within the next two years.

“We thought people would be soured after watching home values fall, but instead we found the typical American still places high value on home ownership,” says Frank Anton, chief executive officer of Hanley Wood, which conducted the survey of 3,000 home owners and renters.

So where’s the buying rush?

Read more at Home Ownership Ranks High, But No Buyer Urgency.

Open Houses vs. Virtual Tours

While open houses benefit real estate agents in terms of advertising, training new agents, and finding buyers for other properties, sellers reap fewer benefits.  They have to tidy the house and leave it for the afternoon, and the likelihood of the home actually selling as a result of the open house is small.

Experts say agents should consider the security risks posed by an open house.

Read more at Open houses: Weighing risks versus rewards.

Sellers – To Gain an Edge over Foreclosures, Do the Little Things

Home sellers today are competing with foreclosures and their low prices. So how can sellers set themselves apart? Go that extra step when banks won’t. It seems like a no brainer but …

Read more at Sellers – To Gain an Edge over Foreclosures, Do the Little Things.

Sell Your House Faster in a Tough Market

(Money magazine) — It’s an extreme buyer’s market — and home values could fall another 5% by year-end. Here’s how to meet the challenge faster, cheaper and better.

Faster

Underprice the place by 10%. Doing so will be painful, no question. But with cheap foreclosures still flooding real estate markets around the country …

Read more at Sell your house faster in a Tough Market.

 

Yes, You Can Still Sell Your Home

The home next door is in foreclosure. The neighbors down the street just put their house up for sale at a ridiculous discount. And “For Sale” signs litter lawns all over town.

Welcome to the toughest selling conditions in years.

The bright side of selling a home in a down market is …

Read more at Yes, you can still sell your home.

No spring in home sales

The housing market’s key spring selling season is ending with a whimper, not a bang.

Real estate’s busiest season of the year wraps up this weekend, but industry figures and interviews with experts show that …

Read more at No spring in home sales.

Contracts to buy homes fall to a 7-month low

WASHINGTON — The number of people who signed contracts to buy homes fell sharply in April, hitting its lowest point since fall and renewing fears that a recovery in the housing market is far off.

The National Association of Realtors says its index of sales agreements for previously occupied homes

Read more at Contracts to buy homes fall to a 7-month low.


Lew Corcoran
Licensed Real Estate Agent
- REO Asset Professional
- Certified Short Sale Guide

Best Choice Real Estate
133 Turnpike St.
PO Box 3
South Easton, MA 02375

Phone: (800) 984-3341

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