4 Surprises to Avoid at Closing

This is from a recent Trulia blog. Always good things to be aware of when buying a home!

I used to pass a mortgage company billboard on the freeway every day that read: “Surprises are for birthday parties.” (Implied: surprises are usually unpleasant when they arise in the context of real estate transactions.)  The worst case scenario that looms large in the minds of buyers, refinancers and sellers alike is that they’ll get to the close of escrow and some big glitch will arise, coming between you and your home – or your cash.

Here are 4 key need-to-knows to help you avoid getting a nasty surprise at the closing table…

Google Yourself…6 Reasons Why!

With virtually any type of information imaginable online, it makes sense to do regular internet searches for your home’s address. There are at least six compelling reasons it makes sense to
do so, especially if it’s an address you’re thinking of renting, buying or selling. Smart homeowners would do well to search for their addresses, too, and here’s why:

1. To See If Megan’s Law Registrants Live Nearby

There is plenty of information available to the public regarding registered sex offenders in their neighborhoods. Nearly every state that has a Megan’s law-­type sex offender registry has an online version that serves up the names, addresses, sex-­offense history,
and even photos in many cases, of convicted sex offenders.
Googling your address and “Megan’s law”-­-­ or even your city or ZIP code and “Megan’s law” -­-­ will turn up a quick list of nearby registrants.

2. To Find Crime Reports and Data For Your Home and Environs

City, county and state law enforcement agencies all post crime data online, but a Google search for your address or city and “crime reports” is most likely to turn up your local police office’s crime map. Or, you can check
out Trulia Crime Maps for a crime map of recent incident reports for the whole city, ZIP code or neighborhood. The map is color-­coded to represent the intensity of crimes in each area.

3. To Detect Scammers Trying to Rent or Sell Your House

Internet scammers have taken to ripping off home information and putting together fake listings offering other people’s homes for rent or lease-­to-­own. They often list the
home on extremely cheap and easy terms, then ask the would-­be-­buyer or tenant to please wire or send the deposit money overseas. These scams often come to light only after the homeowner or current resident notices bargain-­hunters checking out the place. If you start getting an inordinate amount of foot traffic to your home, or someone knocking on your door asking if they can see the place, you may want to Google your address. If you find a fraudulent listing, identify yourself as the home’s rightful owner and ask the offending site to take the scam posting down -­ stat!

4. To See What Your Neighbor’s Place Sold For and Possibly Lower Your Property Taxes
In real estate, the value of your home is largely driven by
what is similar or how much nearby homes have sold for. If
you search your address, Trulia will first surface some sort
of image of your home, a map, the basic property details
from the public records (see No. 5, below), and recent sales data for your own home before listing out the comps -­
homes with similar numbers of beds, baths and square feet near yours, and what they recently sold for. If you see a pattern of homes selling for lower than your home’s assessed value, you can use those comps to petition your county to

lower your own property taxes!

5. To See Your Home’s Property Records

Your home’s records online are populated from the public records about your home, which are either so old they don’t include upgrades and additions, or they’re just flat out wrong. If you Google your address, or search for it on Trulia, and find that your home’s description is riddled with errors, contact your county public record agency to correct them and edit your home facts on Trulia. This is particularly important if you’re planning to sell your home anytime soon.

6. To See Your Home’s Google Street View

When you’re selling your home, it’s especially critical to see everything that prospective home buyers will see. That
means checking out how your home’s listing looks on all the online real estate sites (yes, even on Trulia), checking out the flyer -­ even stopping by to check out any staging your broker or agent did if you’ve already moved out. One thing even the most savvy sellers don’t check out is the way Google Street View depicts your home. If you’re about to sell your home, and you notice that the street view is outdated, mention it to your agent, and ask them to make a note of that fact in the listing information

5 Real Estate Headlines You’ll See in the Next Six Months

•  Interest Rates Rise
•  Some Loan Requirements Tighten but More Can Now Get a Loan
•  Housing Sales Increase
•  Distressed Properties Increase Markedly
•  Prices Continue to Soften in Most Markets

Find out more about these latest predictions

Good intentions…

For any of you who actually read Corinne and my posts, you might recall that at the beginning of the year I blogged that this was going to be a new year with lots of changes. WELL, I had very good intentions but unfortunately the only changes that have occurred is that we actually have posted less than we did last year. Not exactly what I was going for!

Well, yesterday I read an interesting article that I thought some of you might appreciate. It isn’t the best market but the sky is not falling …

Everybody Calm Down. Armageddon Is NOT Upon Us!

by STEVE HARNEY on AUGUST 26, 2010

The new housing numbers have definitely been a major news story over the last 48 hours. The Dow dropped over 100 points on the announcement of July’s existing sales numbers. The cries of a double-dip sound like the screams of Chicken Little: ‘The sky is falling! The sky is falling!’ Pundits are claiming real estate will never be looked at the same again. We asked Steve Harney to comment on what the report actual means to the housing recovery. As always, he was more than willing to share his insights. – The KCM Crew

I want to start by saying that Armageddon is not upon us. Was NAR’s Existing Home Sales Report tough to read? Yes. Were there any surprises in the report? Just one: the fact that prices have remained stable. And that was good news.

All the panic and gut-wrenching revolves around two numbers:

The lack of sales in July

The months’ supply of inventory now available

Neither number was a surprise to anyone truly following the real estate market. Right here in this blog, the KCM Crew has been claiming for the last nine months that sales in 2010 will be approximately what they were in 2009. The tax credit moved many purchases forward as buyers wanted to be in contract before the April 30 deadline. That push forward of demand created a false sense of hope that a major market comeback was taking place in the spring. It also created this current vacuum of demand during the summer.

Just as we should have realized that the great market of the spring could not be sustained, we must now realize that plummeting sales numbers will not continue. It may take one or two months for the impact of the tax credit to fully dissipate. After that, we will see a more normal buyer demand throughout the fall and winter. We must not forget that people decide to move every day. Prices are great, interest rates are at historic lows and the assortment of properties for sale is fabulous. Buyers will buy!!

In regard to the months’ supply of homes for sale, we must remember one basic principle: prices will come down if demand is constant and inventory increases. Houses will sell over the next twelve months, approximately 5 million of them. There may be more than double that amount trying to sell however. Which ones will sell? Those that are priced correctly for the current market. Your price must be compelling in order to make your home attractive to today’s buyers who have a tremendous selection of homes from which to choose.

As the year moves forward, it is my belief that months’ inventory will remain in double digit numbers. That means that prices will continue to soften.

What does this mean to you?

You definitely will be able to sell your home and move on with your life. If that’s the goal, you will do better financially if you do it sooner rather than later.

When to appeal property taxes in Evanston/Cook County

Evanston Township Property Assessment Appeal Seminar July 19 Posted on Monday Jul 12, 2010.

 There will be an Evanston Township Property Assessment Appeal Seminar sponsored by Cook County Commissioner Larry Suffredin, Cook County Assessor James Houlihan and Evanston Township Assessor Bonnie Wilson. The seminar will be held on Monday, July 19 at 7 p.m at the Fleetwood Jourdain Community Center, 1655 Foster Ave.

The seminar will include general information on the assessment process, avenues for assessment appeals, resources available for verifying an assessed value is fair and accurate and important property tax exemptions that are available to Cook County residents.

The deadline for Evanston Township property owners to submit appeals to the Cook County Assessor’s office is 30 days after reassessment notices are mailed. Taxpayers are encouraged to bring their assessment notices with them to the seminar. Staff from Assessor Houlihan, Township Assessor Wilson and Commissioner Suffredin’s offices will be present to answer individual questions regarding assessment appeals and exemptions. In addition, Commissioner Sufferdin’s district office, 820 Davis Street, Evanston, is open to assist taxpayers in person by appointment, Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

To schedule an appointment or if you have any questions about the seminar, call 847/864-1209. Appointments can also be made at the Evanston Township Assessor’s office, 846 Dodge Avenue, Evanston, by calling 847/332-2465. Questions about the reassessment notice and appeal process can also be directed to Assessor Houlihan’s office at 312/603-5300

Senate Extends Deadline Tax Credit to Sept 30!

The Senate has amended a bill to give homebuyers who were under contract on a home purchase by April 30 an additional three months to close the deal and claim the federal homebuyer tax credit.

Extending the deadline for closing from June 30 to Sept. 30 would allow lenders more time to clear a backlog of 180,000 homebuyers nationwide, said amendment sponsor Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev

read more on Tax Credit Deadline Extended

 This is great news especially for any short sale buyers who have a signed contract but the bank is slow in responding!

My Wells Fargo processing center in the Chicago/Evanston area has prioritized all loans that were eligible for the tax credit so we don’t have that “backlog” but it certainly can help those contracts that are a little sticky!

If you have a short sale contract that could still come together and was signed by the seller prior to April 30th, contact me on how they still might be able to get their $8K credit.

How important is it to have an experienced Realtor?

I got a call yesterday from a homeowner who is the prime example of why it’s important to hire an experienced realtor, attorney and mortgage consultant when you purchase a home.

He purchased his home a few years ago at the height of the market with very little down payment and an interest rate above 6.5%. It’s no surprise that he now owes more than his home is worth in today’s market but that’s really the least of his problems with the home. He came to me looking for an option to refinance his mortgage to lower his payments (which can be done through a few government programs if he were eligible), but it really wasn’t his mortgage payments that were the proplem, it was his taxes and insurance.

When he purchased the home, he hired an inexperienced realtor who didn’t notice that the property taxes on the homewere much lower than he would pay because the current owner was receiving a senior discount. When he received his first tax bill (without a senior discount) his property taxes went up significantly.

Now, even though his realtor didn’t catch this upfront, his attorney should have. Unfortunately, his attorney did not

10 simple questions after being Pre-approved

Okay, it’s unbelievable that I still meet with buyers who have been “pre-approved” but were given no useful information from the lender. If you are buyer, especially a First-time homebuyer who has been pre-approved and you can’t answer these questions, you may not be ready to buy just yet…

1. Did you have a consultation with the lender?
2. Are you pre-approved for a Conventional or FHA mortgage and do you understand the difference?
3. What will your monthly payments be?
4. Does that amount include taxes and assessments (or insurance for a house)?
5. How much do you need to bring to closing?
6. Did the lender provide you with a written estimate of your payments and closing costs?
7. What are your origination charges?
8. What are the credit charges or points?
9. Did they explain how to finance a short sale or foreclosure?
10. Did they offer renovation financing to you?

Also, did they explain how to shop for the best rate and when you can lock it in? If you plan to shop lenders, shop on the same day because rates change daily and make sure you shop not just the rate but these 3 things:

Time flies!

So it’s been pretty busy and, of course, I have completely neglected posting anything in ions! I know…I said I was going to be creative and good and, well, that was maybe in January!

Inventory throughout the Chicagoland area is vast with amazing deals still to be found and record low interest rates prevailing. Below is one of my new listings. It is a fabulous, solid brick ranch on a gorgeous street in a wonderful Evanston location.

3 bedroom/2 baths up plus 2 bedrooms and office down. Clean and contemporary with hardwood throughout, two woodburning fireplaces, marble bath, granite eat-in kitchen and a beautiful landscaped yard. List price: $599,000 Taxes: $7220

Last Day for Homebuyer Tax Credit

Well, buyers had to be under contract today even though they don’t have to close until June 30th to take advantage of the $8,000 or $6,500 tax credit.

I had several buyers that were able to get under contract but I have met with many buyers in the past few months who were not pressured by the money.  It seems that the people who are really interested in buying a home will do it, credit or no credit so I don’t expect the market to slow down much, if any.

HUD was heavily advertising the extension of the tax credit this week and it seemed to confuse some people into thinking it had been extended again but all I know at this point is that the lobbyists are pushing for another extension. I guess time will tell.