The Housing Market - Buy? Sell? Wait?

According to many experts in the housing industry, there may be a long road to recovery as far as the housing market goes. Defaults on mortgages and the number of homes repossessed because of foreclosures are expected to increase 42 percent this year. We are not even halfway through the Hundreds of Billions of dollars worth of risky mortgages that are set to go through adjustments that will impact the borrowers.

Keep in mind this group of people in trouble were in a group of high risk borrowers and most should have never been given these loans in the first place. In reality, besides a well needed correction, the housing industry is still strong.

The federal government is trying to ease the pain of these risky loans, by developing a plan called HOPE NOW which could bring aid to 1.2 million homeowners.

The HOPE NOW plan is designed to help subprime borrowers who can at least afford the current, starter rate on a subprime loan, but will not be able to make the higher payments once the interest rate goes up. Hope Now has a toll free hotline 1-888-995-HOPE, which is available 24-hours a day to provide mortgage counseling in multiple languages.

So what does all this mean if you have been waiting to sell your home in this less than perfect market? Believe it or not there is still hope. The National Association Of Realtors report that in the 3rd quarter of 2007, home prices were stable, while others markets actually saw a slight gain. In fact, despite a slow down in December, 2007 ended as the fifth highest in sales on record!

But before getting too carried away with the idea that now is the right time to sell, step back and appraise the overall strength of the current home market in your area. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the market is experiencing uncharacteristic weakness.

"Home sales remain weak despite improved affordability conditions in many parts of the country, but we could get a quick boost to the market if loan limits are raised in combination with the bold cut in the Fed funds rate," he said. "Home prices are lower, mortgage interest rates continue to decline and incomes are higher, but many potential buyers are delaying a purchase."

With that in mind you should evaluate how many similar houses are on the market in your area. How long have they been on the market? What offers if any have been made? If some have sold and others have not, what made the listing that sold a commodity?

Even if housing prices fall further, potential buyers should not try to time the market bottom. Even if you could figure out the best time to buy, right when prices have bottomed out and begin to rise, by the time you find the house you want, set up the financing and close the deal the best time to buy may have already passed.

A better bet is to go ahead and look for the house and location you like and would be happy with for the next few years. Negotiate if you must, just don't get too carried away. If you overplay the haggling game, you could very well end up losing that perfect house for the sake of a few thousand bucks.

I've seen good deals fall through time and time again haggling over that last little detail. Don't do it! In the long run it's not worth losing that perfect home for less than what it would cost to furnish the place.

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5 Tips for the First Time Home Buyer

Buying a home is a big step in your life and should be a very exciting time. Unfortunately, many individuals rush into buying a home with out considering the implications is has on their future. If you're considering making the move to own it's important you weigh all the options, and consider what if anything will affect the feasibility of you're purchase. If this is you're first time in the housing market consider the following before you make your big move.

1. Get Your Finances in Order

   Have a lot of debt racked up? If thats the case, you may want to play catch up before you even think about buying a home. Bad credit is bad news for those who want a buy a new home. In most cases you will need to get a mortgage before you buy and this means your credit will be under scrutiny. Start getting acquainted with your credit score and begin fix the problems well before you apply for a mortgage.

2. Think about the Future

   If you have a job or other obligation that may require you to move or travel for extended periods of time you want to think twice about rushing into the housing market. Buying a house is a commitment that will tie you down to a particular location for at least a few years. It's not easy or economically feasible to pack up and sell your home at the drop of a hat.

3. Educate Your Self

   As a first time home buyer one of the worst thing you can do is go into the market unprepared. Familiarizing your self with words and phrases that are used will allow you to better comprehend the market. A better understanding of the home buying process will enable you to make a well educated decision when it comes to you're final purchase. Entering the market blindly can turn you're home buying dreams into a nightmare.

4. Be Rational

   We all want to live in the home of our dreams. Unfortunately, like most things in life, the housing market must be approached from the bottom up? Renting is the start of the home owners journey. With your dream home serving as the final destination you will most likely need to take a few stops on the way there. The logical step is to buy a house you can afford not one that lands you in economic turmoil. Consider your first home an investment that you can improve upon over time. Once the home is improved you can sell it and bring yourself one step closer to your dream home. Buying out of your league can be a huge problem so set a budget and find a home within your means.

5. Ask For Help

   Don't be determined to have a go at it alone. Buying a home is a complicated process and sometimes it really helps to have someone walk you through it step by step. Agents are more than willing to help you look through home listing, find what your looking for, and ultimately take you from start to finish.

Countrywide Credit offers credit tools and calculators, mortgage refinancing, consolidation loan, and a comprehensive credit learning center to help educate consumers on credit-related topics.

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How to Sell Your Mortgage Note to a Real Estate Investor

If you own rental property, you might want to consider selling your mortgage note to an investor. Doing so can help you obtain a lump sum of cash to pay off debt, medical expenses, college tuition or other expenses. The amount of money you can receive will depend on various factors such as the type and location of property, interest rate and credit worthiness. If you have never sold a real estate note to an investor, you would be wise to conduct research or work with a professional, in order to fully understand the process.

The first step involves providing information about your note. Potential investors will want to know the face value of the note, balance due, interest rate, how many payments have been made, if the note is current or delinquent, and the asking price. Prior to speaking to investors, be certain to organize your paperwork and have everything ready when you meet.

Typically, investors will require a few days to review your proposal and provide you with an initial offer. If you accept the offer, additional documentation will be required before the deal can be settled. You'll need to provide a current tax return, documentation of income, title insurance and amortization schedule.

Next, an appraisal of the property is required. Some mortgage note investors will require the services of a professional appraiser. The investor may or may not cover this expense. It will depend on the terms of your negotiation. A few investors only require a "drive-by" inspection; however, it's wise to be prepared to hire a professional real estate appraiser if one is required.

Once the appraisal has been conducted, it's time to close the deal. Depending on the situation, closing can take place in person or by mail. Original copies of security documents including the Deed of Trust, mortgage note, and contract for deed of the property you are selling will be required. Therefore, if you close the deal via mail, make certain to make a minimum of two original copies and send the documents via registered mail with a required signature.

The primary document you will sign at closing is the Assignment of Mortgage. This form needs to be recorded at the local courthouse. This document transfers all or part of future payments to the mortgage note investor. Upon approval, the investor will either issue a check or transfer funds directly into your bank account.

Keep in mind the original security instruments will remain in your name. The Assignment of Mortgage agreement outlines the number of future payments which have been sold. If you are selling only a portion of your mortgage note, a Partial Purchase Agreement will be required. Once the terms of the partial agreement have been met, the mortgage balance or agreed-upon amount reverts back to you.

Simon Volkov is a professional Real Estate Note Investor helping individuals who need to liquidate their real estate. Simon offers numerous investment opportunities for serious investors via RSS feed and email subscription. His website, SimonVolkov.com provides resources and articles on today's real estate and financial market. Learn more about real estate and financial services offered by visiting http://www.SimonVolkov.com

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To Sell Or Not To Sell!

Your first thought when you read that headline maybe....

What do you mean? "Everyone who puts their house on the market wants to sell it!"

Well my friend that has not always the case .... You see from 2004 to 2006 the market made your decision really easy.

All you had to do was hire a real estate agent with a heart beat, find out the price of the last house that sold in your neighborhood add 20% to your price, stick a sign in your yard and have the agent post it on the local MLS (multiple listing service) and wait for your phone to ring.....

It was much more like fishing than selling real estate!

Heck, in some markets the biggest problem for the agent was how were they going to handle a multiple offer situation.

I can recall when those where referred to as a real pain in the rear end!

My how times have changed!

I don't need to tell anyone times have changed.... all you have to do is pick up a newspaper or turn on the nightly news and they will remind you of that real quick....

Gone are the days of the " If it sells or not its no big deal." or "We're not in a hurry" or my favorite...."If someone wants to give us our price... we'll sell."

See there are a bunch of circumstances that have happened outside of our economy (the largest factor) that I feel added to the current problem... I could start telling you about how this is really a lending crunch and its the Banks that have gotten us in this tough market or I could tell you that there are all these people who bought on spec and they are the real problem here.... I could even try and convince you that it has something to do with gas prices. Doesn't everything?

But I feel that the underlying problem is pricing..... yep pricing!

Incorrect pricing has allowed housing inventory to climb to an all time high.... There are more houses on the market right now than ever before....

Heck, if the builders stopped building houses tomorrow morning it would still take many market 2-3 years to eat away at the large inventory that has been produced over the last couple years.

Here is a simple fact...

Well priced homes sell. Period!

Some of you maybe saying "well we have our house listed for almost what we paid for it and it has not sold" well if that's the case I have some real bad news for you.....

You paid too much!

See because of the information age and the access of information that is at your finger tips (the computer you are staring at right now) The home buying crowd has become a knowledgeable group of people... there are way to many choices out there for them to make right now.... and they also know value when they see it.

A COMMITTED SELLER (yes those two words are in all caps for a reason) must first start with price.... and once a real "value based price" is set then they must really commit... If they say things like this......... "lets just price it at X and see if we get an offer"

They are not committed...

"we don't want a for sale sign in our yard" They are not committed....

"we need 24 hour notice to show the house" They are not committed...

"please don't put it on the MLS" or "we don't want our neighbors to find out" They are not committed...

So if you are an agent that is reading this I challenge you to make sure that your sellers are committed to selling.... Have the tough conversation with them early.... Instead of having to deal with an expired listing in 6 months because the price was never right and your seller was not committed to sell in the first place.

If you are a seller reading this who is considering putting your house on the market.

PLEASE decide right now if you really want or need to sell and first establish a good price.

A good price is not always what you think your house is worth... its most likely much less. A good price is what you would spend your hard earned money on to buy the house again....

The last thing any market needs right now is more overpriced inventory.... First decide(commit) if you are going sell your house..... Then price it right...... (if that takes getting an appraisal...do it)

That is all I have for you today. In the coming weeks I will be giving you tons of other tips that will help you sell your house in 45 days or less in any market!

Go to http://www.rapidrealestatesales.com to learn "how to sell any house in any market in 44 days"

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