Atlanta Housing Source

Over the past month I have put up multiple videos blogs on what to do to make your home more sellable. I offered many tips fron the outside to the inside from the prospect of a buyer. The article below from RISMEDIA restates many of my tips and offers some new. Check out the article and check out my video blogs on Selling Your Home.

For Your Clients: 10 Low-Cost Tips to Improve Your Home’s Appeal
By Paige Tepping

RISMEDIA, August 10, 2010–When selling your home, the goal is to sell it quickly for the highest price while investing as little as possible in renovations. With a limited budget and a little effort, you can greatly increase your home’s appeal by focusing on what prospective buyers can see on their first visit. The experts at BuyOwner.com offer the following recommendations for preparing a house for sale and staging it for showings.

Tip #1: Refresh the exterior
First impressions count when it comes to selling a home. Most buyers won’t even leave their car if they don’t find the exterior appealing. The best ways to improve your home’s exterior include:
-Repairing and/or replacing trims, shutters, gutters, shingles, mailboxes, window screens, walkways and the driveway.
-Painting siding, trim and shutters and lamp and mailbox posts.
-Pressure washing vinyl siding, roofs, walkways and the driveway.
-Washing windows.

Tip #2: Spruce up the lawn and landscape
Home buyers associate the condition of your lawn and landscaping with the condition of your home’s interior. By improving the outside, you affect buyers’ impression of the entire property. The best ways to enhance the yard include:
-Mowing and edging the lawn.
-Seeding, fertilizing and weeding the lawn.
-Keeping up with regular lawn maintenance by frequent watering.
-Trimming and/or removing overgrown trees, shrubs and hedges.
-Weeding and mulching plant beds.
-Planting colorful seasonal flowers in existing plant beds.
-Removing trash, especially along fences and underneath hedges.
-Sweeping and weeding the street curb along your property.

Tip #3: Create an inviting entrance
The front door to your home should invite buyers to enter. The best ways to improve your entry include:
-Painting the front door in a glossy, cheerful color that complements the exterior.
-Cleaning, polishing and/or replacing the door knocker, locks and handles.
-Repairing and/or replacing the screen door, the doorbell, porch lights and house numbers.
-Placing a new welcome mat and a group of seasonal potted plants and flowers by the entry.

Tip #4: Reduce clutter and furniture
A buyer cannot envision living in your home without seeing it. A home filled with clutter or even too much furniture distracts buyers from seeing how they can utilize the space your home offers. If you have limited storage space, you may want to consider renting a temporary storage unit to place items you wish to keep. The best ways to declutter your home include:
-Holding a garage sale to prepare for your move, getting rid of unnecessary items.
-Removing clutter such as books, magazines, toys, tools, supplies and unused items from counter tops, open shelves, storage closets, the garage and basements.
-Storing out-of-season clothing and shoes out of sight to make bedroom closets seem roomier.
-Removing any visibly damaged furniture.
-Organizing bookshelves, closets, cabinets and pantries. Buyers will inspect everything.
-Putting away your personal photographs, unless they showcase the home. Let buyers see themselves in your home.
-De-personalize rooms as much as you can.

Tip #5: Clean, clean, clean
The cleanliness of your home also influences a buyer’s perception of its condition. The appearance of the kitchen and bathrooms will play a considerable role in a buyer’s decision process, so pay particular attention to these areas. The best ways to improve these areas include:
-Cleaning windows, fixtures, hardware, ceiling fans, vent covers and appliances.
-Cleaning carpets, area rugs and draperies.
-Cleaning inside the refrigerator, the stove and all cabinets.
-Removing stains from carpets, floors, counters, sinks, baths, tile, walls and grout.
-Eliminating house odors, especially if you have pets.
-Considering air fresheners or potpourri.

Tip #6: Make minor repairs
The small stuff does count, especially with first-time home buyers. Without dismissing the importance of repairing major items such as a leaky roof or plumbing, you do not need to spend money on replacing these items. Instead, focus on the minor repairs that will make your home visually appealing. The best ways to improve your home include:
-Repairing ceilings and wall cracks.
-Repairing faucets, banisters, handrails, cabinets, drawers, doors, floors and tile.
-Caulking and grouting tubs, showers, sinks and tile.
-Adding fresh paint to ceilings, walls, trim, doors and cabinets.
-Tightening door handles, drawer pulls, light switches and electrical plates.
-Lubricating door hinges and locks.

Tip #7: Showcase the kitchen
The heart of any home is the kitchen. If you are going to spend any money on renovations, this is the one area where you will see the greatest return. Even with a modest budget, focusing on a few key areas can make a great difference in getting the asking price for your property. The best ways to showcase the kitchen include:
-Replacing cabinet doors and hardware.
-Installing under-cabinet lighting.
-Replacing light fixtures.
-Replacing outdated shelving with pantry and cabinet organizers to maximize space.
-Baking cookies or cupcakes for a showing, to create a homey smell.

Tip #8: Stage furniture
Furniture placement can enhance the space of your home while giving buyers an idea of how to best utilize the space with their own belongings. Take some time to rethink how different areas in your house could be used. Some ideas to think about include:
-Moving couches and chairs away from walls in your sitting and family rooms to create cozy conversational groups.
-Creating a reading corner in the master bedroom.
-Clearing an empty room to set up a reading space.
-Turning an awkward space into a home office.
-Setting the dining room table with your best china.
-Set wine glasses in front of the fireplace or next to a Jacuzzi tub.

Tip #9: Light up the house
Create a sense of openness and cheerfulness in your home through its lighting. To improve the lighting try:
-Opening shades and drapes to let the sunshine warm and brighten rooms.
-Installing brighter light bulbs in rooms that tend to be dark.
-Adding additional lamps for ambient lighting.
-Turning on all the lights for a showing.

Tip #10: Add fresh touches
You can easily add color and style to your home by adding fresh touches throughout. Some ideas to consider include:
-Placing fresh floral arrangements in the entry and master bedroom.
-Placing bowls of bright-colored fruit in the family room and the kitchen.
-Filling an empty corner with a potted leafy plant.
-Setting new hand soap in the bathrooms.
-Displaying fresh towels near sinks.

The article by Reuters reports on the National Association of Realtors Survey. The South is the only region where pending sales are up. I am doing my part to help.  We  sold 4 homes in June to help the cause.

Pending Home Sales Sink 2.6 Percent in June
Published: Tuesday, 3 Aug 2010 | 11:05 AM ET

By: Reuters
Contracts for pending sales of previously owned U.S. homes fell to a record low in June as buyers sat on the sidelines, a survey from the National Association of Realtors showed on Tuesday.

The Realtors said its Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed in June, fell to a record low 75.7 from a revised 77.7 in May. Economists polled by Reuters had expected a rise of 0.6 percent.
“We really need to see stronger job creation to have a meaningful recovery in the housing markets,” said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun, adding “there could be a couple of additional months of slow home-sales activity before picking up later in the year” if the job market improves.
The June decline followed a 30 percent drop in May after a popular tax credit expired at the end of April.
The index was 18.6 percent lower than in June 2009 and fell in three of four regions compared to the prior month.
Contracts rose 3.7 percent in the South, the country’s largest region, but dropped by 0.2 percent in the West, by 12.2 percent in the Northeast and by 9.5 percent in the Midwest.
Copyright 2010 Reuters.

The production of 1 ton of cardboard requires:

•17 trees for the use of pulp
•7000 gallons of water
•462 gallons of oil
•1 ton of cardboard uses 9 cubic yards of landfill space and dumping paper products in landfills adds methane to the atmosphere as it decomposes, with 20 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide.
•In 2003, paper and paperboard accounted for 35 percent of the total materials discarded in the United States. Just imagine the impact we could make by reducing the need for so much cardboard.
•In the U.S. we have lost 95 percent of our old growth forests.
•The U.S. pulp and paper industry is the second largest consumer of energy and uses more water to produce a ton of product than any other industry.
•According to the American Forest and Paper Association in 2008 the average person in the US added 220 lbs of paper waste to our landfills.

Go through these shocking truths about the environment of our planet and share them with your friends.
•80% of the world’s forests are gone.
•Over 40% of all tropical forests have been destroyed and another acre is lost each second.
•The US has less than 4% of its forests left.
•The U.S. burns 10,000 gallons of gasoline a second. Burning one gallon of gas creates 22 lbs of carbon dioxide. Now that’s 220,000 lbs of Co2 per second.
•An average American creates 4.5 lbs. garbage a day — an amount doubled from 30 years ago.
•Every year we throw away 24 million tons of leaves and grass. Leaves alone account for 75% of our solid waste in the fall.
•Over 100 pesticide ingredients are suspected to cause birth defects, cancer, and gene mutations.
•99% of all those things we buy are not in use after 6 months.
•Every ton of recycled office paper saves 380 gallons of oil.
•About 1% of U.S. landfill space is full of disposable diapers, which take 500 years to decompose.
•40% of our waterways are undrinkable.
•The US has 5% of the world’s population and 30% of the waste.
•Energy saved from one recycled aluminum can will operate a TV set for 3 hours, and is the equivalent to half a can of gasoline.
•As per an estimation by The University of California, 30,000 deaths occur a year because of gasoline or diesel fuel use.
•Approximately, 70,000 people in the U.S die prematurely from heart and lung disease aggravated by particulate air pollution.
•Glass produced from recycled glass instead of raw materials reduces related air pollution by 20%, and water pollution by 50%.
•Americans annually use 50 million tons of paper. This equals the consumption of more than 850 million trees.
•Homeowners use up to 10 times more toxic chemicals per acre than farmers.
•Turning down your central heating thermostat by one degree can cut fuel consumption by as much as 10%.
•Insulating your attic reduces the amount of energy loss in most houses by up to 20%.
•The amount of glass disposed of in 1990 was enough to fill the Twin Towers (1,350 feet high) of New York’s World Trade Center every two weeks.
•Using energy efficient bulbs in place of every 75 watt light bulbs can prevent 1 ton of carbon dioxide from being released in the air.
•Many banks lent large sums of money to developing nations. In order to pay those debts plus interest many nations have turned to the mining of their natural resources as a source of financial aid.
•40,000 children in the world die every year from preventable diseases.
•The human population of the world is expected to rise by nearly three times by the year 2100.
•A 3% annual population growth will result in the doubling of consumption and production of food and other products within 2033.
•The number of automobiles is expected to increase by 15 million per year until at least 2010.
•The world’s per capita grain production has been on the downfall since 1985 despite the use of fertilizers and pesticides. Already a train system has been developed (back in 1987) which is based on magnetic levitation and causes minimal pollution. These versions of a train are already in use in several countries.
•Fibre optics, made of glass, are being used to replace copper cables throughout the world.
•Uncontrolled fishing has resulted in the reduction of the population of many commercial species; some upto one-tenth of their original population.
•Every day 50 to 100 species of plants and animals become extinct as their habitat and human activities destroy them.

Whether you live in a condominium or a single-family house, landscaping can certainly make your home easier to sell. But will attractive landscaping add value? It depends.

Potted plants, freshly edged green lawn, and weed-free garden areas will make your home more attractive and appealing. The more appealing the home or condo, the more marketable it is and the faster it will sell.

Well-manicured landscaping helps frame other elements of curb appeal. It is considered a value-added feature because it helps create a positive first impression. Most buyers, however, will not pay extra for trees and lawn, flowers and shrubs.

But you can almost always get a return on your investment in decks and patios. As decks have become more desirable, their resale value has continued to increase.

In the yard and garden of your single-family home or in pots on your condo deck or patio, use plants, trees, and other landscaping elements freely to make your home more appealing and help you sell it more quickly when the time is right.

If you have any real estate–related questions, please call or email me. I am always happy to help.

The article below from REI Bulletin makes a good case for what has happened with home sales since the tax credit expired. It is a great time for buyers with low home prices and low interest rates.

Existing Home Sales Drop In June But Hint At Support For Higher Price Tiers

Consistent with most post-home buyer tax credit housing news, the National Association of Realtors® says Existing Home sales eased lower last month.

An “existing home” is a home that cannot be considered new construction.

The 5 percent drop in sales from May to June was expected, but a closer look at the month’s data reveals some interesting trends.

First, repeat buyers accounted for 44 percent of home resales in June, up from 40 percent in May. That’s a healthy increase for just 4 weeks’ time and the tax credit is a likely catalyst. First-timer buyers bought starter homes owned by former first-timers, who were then free to “move up” to larger, more expensive property.

Housing markets can be trickle-up and, not coincidentally, the jumbo/luxury housing market is now in the midst of rebound.

Second, June’s “distressed sales” accounted for 32 percent of all home resales, up from 31 percent in May.

A figure like this hints at the large role foreclosures continue to play in a home buyer’s home search strategy. And why not? The National Association of Realtors® suggests that distressed homes are sold at a 15 percent discount.

Lastly, take note that home inventories are rising. June’s 8.9 months of supply is the highest in 10 months. Excess supply leads home prices lower, all things equal.

Overall, the Existing Home Sales data from June is a mixed bag. There’s support for the middle- and upper-price tiers, but a growing overhang of supply. The market looks favorable for buyers given low mortgage rates and strong negotiation leverage.

The REIBulletin Editors

Funds are now available for a VERY SHORT TIME!

If you have buyers interested in purchasing foreclosed properties now is the time. The Tax Credit rush is over and underwriting turn time has been reduced to five days.

* There must be a HQS Inspection on the property

* Buyer must receive 8 hours of face to face Home Buyer Education Counseling from a HUD approved counselor

* NSP Funds CANNOT be used for closing costs – so seller will need to contribute to closing costs for the buyer

* The home must be in an eligible area

* The property must be foreclosed and a REO owned by an eligible entity

* Borrower needs some “Skin in the Game” – at least $1500

* Repairs can be done after closing

NSP Loans must be approved by underwriting and an approval letter stating “Firm Commitment” issued no later than September 3, 2010.

Thanks you from: Amy Wilemon

What is going on with rates?

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan wrote an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal titled

We had a great week for rates – I locked my clients. And good thing because rates are a little higher today.

Big evening on Capitol Hill last night… First, the Financial Reform Bill was finally reconciled between the House and Senate. The final draft includes a Consumer Financial Protection Agency, which will have the authority to police banks for mortgage lending and credit-card abuses. As you have probably been reading in our member benefit from IMMAAG, the Bill also proposes to end – or severely limit – the use of mortgage loans without documentation of income and assets.

There are also many new reforms put in place to reduce risks taken by large banks through derivatives and proprietary trading. The Bill is intended to avoid a repeat of the financial disaster that occurred during 2008 – 2009, but whether the Bill actually achieves this is not unanimous. The next step in the process is to have both the Senate and House vote on the final form of the Bill, then get it sent to the President for his signature. Stay tuned on this front.

Additionally – the extension of the Home Buyer Tax Credit through Sept 30th did not get passed last night. It was part of the larger Jobs Bill, which included State aid and an extension of unemployment benefits for people out of work more than six months – and would have added $33B to the deficit. The White House said that the President will continue to try and move the Bill through Congress, but should this Bill ultimately not get passed, around 200,000 people will fall off the Emergency Claims Benefit each week, rejoining the formal workforce, and therefore the ranks of the unemployed. Additionally, without the State aid, many already financially strapped states – who are required to balance their budget each year – will be forced to remove many government jobs.

As always, be on guard in this volatile trading environment.

Thank you for this contribution by:
Amy Wilemon
Mortgage Loan Officer
America Home Key
Phone: 404-601-4177
Cell: 404-368-4031
MLO#: 226390
awilemon@americahomekey.com

The US Open National Playoffs Southern Sectional Qualifying Tournament is being hosted right by the Peachtree Forest Subdivision at the Racquet Club of the South on June 12 through June 16. If you enjoy tennis, this is your chance to see the “up and coming” of United States tennis.

Raquet Club of the South is on off Peachtree Corners Circle just south of Jay Bird Alley in Gwinnett, Peachtree Corners at 6350 Courtside Dr, Gwinnett, Norcross, GA (770) 449-6060.

See www.rcstennis.com for more details.

What if I told you that in 2011 your taxes could more than DOUBLE?

Roger Herring has been referring to this as the S Corp nightmare for about 2 years now. Before it was an educated prediction, now it is approaching reality. The bill containing the changes to the S Corporation just PASSED the US House of Representatives and is currently in the Senate. It is expected to pass before summer is over and will be in affect for 2011.

This bill will force most S corps and LLCs taxed as S corps to pay the 15.3% self employment tax on ALL the company’s profits. Who is affected? What can you do to reorganize and avoid it?

These are just some of the topics we will be covering on Saturday, June 12, 2010 in our continuing series, Structuring and Taxation for Small Business. Admission is only $19.99 if you register by 6/7/10.

Topics to be covered:

1. The S Corp Nightmare-Who is affected, what will happen, what to do about it

2. Tax Law Update for 2010, 2011 and beyond

3. Tax Implications of the new Health Care Law

4. Structuring your business for maximum protection and tax advantage

What: Structuring and Taxation for Small Business

When: Saturday, June 12, 2010 8:30 AM

Where: 1770 Indian Trail-Lilburn Rd., Ste 200, Norcross, GA 30093

Cost: $19.99 if registered by 6/7/10, after that, $29.99.

Our seminars fill up quickly and seating is limited. Lock in your seat now. Call 678-287-8503 and speak with Janice to register.

I have seen far more activity as the credit come to an end as I did when the last credit came to an end in November 2009.  At that point last November we had 5 pending closing and as of today we have 10 pending closings.

Has the credit made a difference?  Yes.  Would those individuals have purchased anyway, most likely.  What the credit has done was created a since of urgency and lowered the inventory levels quickly.

I have had a few buyers that have not gotten under contract to qualify for the credit and the clock is ticking.  Most of them early on made the choice to find a home that they love no matter how long it takes to find it rather than rush just to get the $8,000 credit.  These are the wise buyers.

The buyers trying to get under contract have been involved in multiple offer deals where there has been intense competition.  Banks and individuals have been holding firm on their offer price.  The ones that have won the bids have offered full list price or more.

Think about it, just months ago you could get a bank or individual to negotiate, and now they are holding strong.  I think this will continue until April 30, when demand will drop off.  At that point, then they will be more agreeable to negotiate.

Is the $8,000 credit held prices artificially high? I believe that sellers felt that could get $8,000 more for their home with the credit. Those who didn’t sell will see the reduced demand equate into price reductions.

I am glad that the credit was not considered for another extension so the market can get around to self correcting.  Selfishly I want a normal market, not artificially stimulated.   Myself and many of my colleagues agree that letting the free market find its balance will be the quickest way to get back to normal.

New buyers after April 30 will be in short supply, but we will be busy getting all the homes to closing by June 30.  During this time we will have to work hard since any issues found during inspections that could kill the deal may cost the buyer $8,000. Expect sellers to be tough about making repairs or concessions since they know every issue after April 30 is a $8,000 issue.

Keep focused on keeping the relationship of protecting your clients during the next two challenging months.  Remember, our partners are getting ready to get real busy. Our inspectors, lender, appraisers and closing attorneys all need our support and patience.