Real Estate Information

New Castle County DE Real Estate Market Watch for July 2015.

Information courtesy of New Castle County DE Realtor Tucker Robbins.

According to a DexOne Corporation survey, as reported by CT Power Team, “42% of Americans say that their mortgage is the debt they most want to eliminate.” That is a completely understandable goal when you consider the savings. The important question is "How can I do it?” Here are some examples…

• Increase your monthly mortgage payments simply by adding a fixed amount to your required payments. The easiest way to do this is to use an increase in your income from time to time to increase the amount of your mortgage payment. Doing that does two things for you...

1. It decreases the amount of principal owed by a larger amount each month.
2. The following month, after making an increased payment, you pay less interest because of the larger decrease in the principle.
   
   The combination of the above two changes results in paying off the mortgage in less time than originally scheduled and you will pay significantly less total interest.

• Make additional payments on the principle at any time if you can’t increase your regular monthly payment. You can do this anytime you have a little left over at the end of the month, or you get a bonus at the end of the year, or you receive a gift. No matter how much, or how little, you pay extra it will decrease the time it takes to pay off the mortgage. That means you will save interest.
   
• Refinance with a shorter-term mortgage if you see the interest rates come down. Just keep in mind that refinancing means spending money on loan closing costs. Only consider this if the interest rates are lowered enough to justify paying closing costs. Otherwise, you can always choose to keep your original mortgage, but increase the monthly payment as outlined above.

Here’s just one example of how paying off early works…

Let’s assume you are paying on a 30-year mortgage for $200,000 at a 5% interest rate. If you pay off the mortgage in 30 years, you will pay $186,512 in interest. If you pay off that same mortgage with even payments over 20 years, you will pay as little as $116,779 in interest. That’s $70,000 that stays in you pocket!

Visit bankrate.com for more in-depth information. Also, use their online mortgage calculator. You will never regret paying off your mortgage sooner then planned.

Information courtesy of Wilmington DE Realtor Tucker Robbins.

 A new paint color in your home  can do wonders for your mood and it can also do wonders for helping to sell your home.  Paint colors can change your mood from happy to sad to relaxed or even make you angry.  Why not do your part to make selling your home as easy as you possibly can by choosing the right paint colors.  Below are some color ideas to get you started in the right direction.

• Blue is a nice color for a home if you are looking for a peaceful feeling.  Many people choose to paint the walls in their bedroom blue so that they will be more able to get a good night’s sleep.  Some people like to paint a spa blue in their bathrooms to make it have a spa like feel.  You can’t go wrong with blue paint when it comes to getting your home ready to sell. 
   
• Another color that gives a good tranquil feeling to everyone who enters your home is green.  Green is associated with nature and nature is typically peaceful.  You can use green in almost any room of your house where you want to feel calm and peaceful.  Some folks use light green paint in their bathrooms while others use darker earth tone greens in their family rooms. 
   
• Yellow is a good color to paint in your home if you are interested in selling it because it makes folks feel happy and joyful.  What better feeling would you want your prospective buyers to feel than joy and happiness as they enter your home.  Typically yellows are used in hallways or large foyer areas.  It is best however to stick with soft yellow colors and not get too carried away by attempting such as a mustard yellow color.  Yellow paint done in the right way will appeal to most people. 
   
• Be careful with painting grey in your home if you are trying to sell it because sometimes although you may be going for a warm inviting feel you may end up with a cold harsh feel and that is not something you want your buyers to pick up on.  Grey done right can be very relaxing and inviting.  Perhaps talking with a paint expert at your local hardware store might be a good idea before using grey.
   
• Brown is a typical staple color in a lot of homes.  If you choose to paint beige which is a light form of brown in your home, you will likely find that it can be very warm and inviting to guests or potential buyers. 

I would suggest not using orange or red in your home as a new paint color if you are going to be putting your house on the market anytime soon.  These colors tend to make people feel anxious and or angry.  Painting your home in a few new colors is a perfect way to get it ready for a great showing!  Happy selling!

Information courtesy of New Castle County DE Realtor Tucker Robbins.

New Castle County DE Real Estate Market Watch for July 2015.

Information courtesy of New Castle County DE Realtor Tucker Robbins.

If you have recently begun looking for a new home to purchase, you already know that it is very competitive out there.  It is important for you to realize going in that there are many other families searching for their dream home also.  If what you think is your dream home slips through your fingers because you are outbid, don’t take it personally; take it as a sign that the particular house you were bidding on is simply not the one for you.  There are ways to be competitive however. Here are a few tips for competing in a buyer’s market. 

• The most important tip is to keep your feelings in check when making an offer on a house.  Of course you face the possibility of being out bid, but don’t let that come back to bite you with your next offer.  Be sure to keep your mind open and realize that the house for you and your family is out there and that you will find it eventually.  Try not to let your feelings get in the way and cause a bidding war.  Don’t bid higher than you can actually afford to pay or you may end up with a budget you cannot afford. 
   
• Get a pre approval from a bank or Mortgage Company  BEFORE you go out looking with a Realtor for your new home.  Since it is a buyer’s market you are going to want to do all you can to make your offer stand out above all others.  Also when you do find the home of your dreams you will be able to make an offer right away and won’t have to worry about someone bidding before you get your approval. 
   
• Be sure to have enough money set aside for a down payment on the home you want to purchase.  If your loan type does not require you to have a down payment such as a USDA loan, you need to still be sure to have enough cash set aside to cover the difference between the appraised value of the home and the price you have agreed to pay.  Sometimes the appraised value of the home can be less than the price agreed upon by you and the seller. 
   
• Try not to get into a bidding war with investors if you can help it.  You don’t want to end up with a house that needs repairs that you cannot afford because you paid too much for the house in the beginning.  If you DO bid against investors, try not to let your heart get set on that one particular house. 

Selling your home can sometimes be a daunting task; however we are going to talk about a few ideas of how to make selling your home a little bit easier.    

1. One way to make your home stand out when you put in on the market is to stage it.  By this I mean make it look like a model home by taking down your family photos and adding a few decorations to match whatever season it may be at the time.
     
2. While your Realtor is showing your house, be sure to have a few candles lit and some relaxing music playing in the back ground for the potential buyer to enjoy.   Little things such as this will help to make a buyer much more at ease and to feel at home. 
    
3. Be sure to have the yard looking nice and neat when you have a potential buyer coming to tour your home.  If you have kids and they have toys or bikes in and around the yard, be sure to put them up where they will not be seen.  Keep in mind you want the potential buyer to be able to envision themselves living in the home and if there are too many reminders of you and your family they may have a hard time doing this. 
    
4. If you really want to make your potential buyer feel at home, leave a plate of warm cookies out for the showing.  Leave a little note out offering for the people touring your home to take one or two cookies and to enjoy them.  Your Realtor may have other ideas of what types of snacks you can leave out. 
    
5. Be sure to clean from top to bottom and to put away anything that may be lying around.  Do not leave laundry lying around.  Even clean laundry laying on the floor or bed can make a home look messy and uninviting.  Remember you want your potential buyer to feel calm and at ease when touring your home and we all know that laundry usually makes us feel anything but calm and at ease. 

Hopefully these tips will get you started in the right direction for selling your home without much hassle.  A good Realtor can go a long way towards selling your home but you can do your part to help out and make sure your home stands out above all the others.  You want your buyer to remember your house and it’s my guess if you make them feel comfortable and relaxed while there, they WILL be back!

Moving to the country may sound appealing to you however there are a few things you need to think about before doing so.  Living in the country can be rewarding if you are willing to take a few things into consideration before moving there.  Getting away from the hustle and bustle of the city may be just what you are in need of.  In this blog post we are going to give you a few tips for making your move to the country a peaceful one.

• Realize that most homes out in the country require that you have a well.   Well water although great tasting may need a bit of work in order to get it ready to drink.  Sometimes well’s can be costly if you are moving to a rural area that has hard water.  Just be sure to keep this little fact in mind before you move out to the country and you won’t be surprised by it if you end up needing to purchase some sort of water softener. 
• Realize that your commute to work may be a bit longer if you work in the city and choose to purchase land or a home in the country.  If living in the country is important to you and your family then making the sacrifice of driving a little bit further to work may be worth it to all of you.
• Buying land or a home out in the country is also going to mean a more difficult time driving anywhere in the event of inclement weather.   You and your family may have to settle in for a few days and just enjoy one another when bad weather comes once you move out to the country.  This can be a blessing or a curse, depending on the way you look at it.  It is just good to be aware that rural roads typically do not get cleared as fast as roads in the big cities when bad weather sets in.  You may want to consider buying a four wheel drive if you purchase a home in the country so that you can more easily maneuver around the snow covered country roads.
• The cost of trash removal can get quite expensive in the country.  Many folks that live in the country take their trash to the local dump because they can save quite a bit of money that way. 
• If you are considering buying a home in the country to get away from loud neighbors, be aware that you may have to deal with gun shots and folks hunting within walking distance of your home once you move out on a bigger piece of land. 

If moving to the country sounds appealing to you and none of these items we have listed for you to think about bother you, then you are likely going to enjoy living in the peace and tranquility the country life has to offer you. 

Information courtesy of New Castle County DE Realtor Tucker Robbins.

New Castle Market Watch for June 2015

Information courtesy of New Castle County DE Realtor Tucker Robbins.

Buying a property through a short sale can be financially beneficial. But, as a real estate buyer, you need to go into the process understanding your market! That means having a knowledgeable realtor and attorney.

A homeowner is “underwater” with their mortgage when they owe more than the value of their home. The term “short sale” comes from the situation where the proceeds from a sale are less than, or “short” of, the amount of debt.

Lenders are motivated to allow a short sale when they perceive it will create more net income than a foreclosure. Sellers are motivated because it puts them in more control of timing, and causes less damage to their credit than foreclosure.

For the buyer, a short sale means a purchase price that is discounted from the normal sale price. However, the market situation with short sales is very specific to your state and your market. Here are some trends across the country…

25% of US homeowners with a mortgage are underwater. That is 10.7 million homes! That percentage is down from 28% in September 2012. It is important to note that 8.3 million of those homes are on the edge of being underwater with a LTV ratio of 90%-110%. The other 2.4 million have an average LTV ratio of 125%.

A primary factor helping that downward trend is a decline in investors’ interest in short sales. A decline in investors buying at discount means prices are moving upward. Increasing prices means increases in value, which means increases in equity for the homeowners.

However, according to RealtyTrac.com it will take years, not months, for the 125% LTV owners to recover enough equity to allow them to sell. That means the short sale opportunities for buyers will be available for a while.

As a buyer of a short sale, be aware the process takes time. All parties have many more documents to review and approve. Your due diligence will take longer. And the process leading to a closing will take longer.

Make sure you are working with a Realtor and an attorney who have experience with short sales in your market.

At least, make sure your Realtor and attorney have actual experience with short sales. Go into the process with a lot of patience.

Information provided by Wilmington De Realtor Tucker Robbins.

If you’re a homebuyer searching for real estate chances are you have found a low inventory of properties.

A low inventory of properties also tends to cause bidding wars to come back. That means homebuyers have to get more creative. Paul Bishop, VP of NAR suggests going beyond the usual market tactics to help you be the first to find homes. Simply getting pre-qualified for a mortgage is not enough anymore.

Here are some tips for creative strategies…

1. Head off the competition by finding “pocket listings.” These are listings that have been contracted for, but haven’t reached the market or been posted on the MLS. There are various reasons for this to happen, many times at the seller’s request. However, the listing broker knows the property is for sale. Tell your agent you want to know immediately of any new properties for sale.
    
2. Get real-time information. Most potential homebuyers depend on the normal flow of information from MLS sites or other sources like Realtor.com. Ask your agent about real-time MLS alerts – emails that go out immediately when a listing goes live. This avoids waiting hours or days before you know about new home for sale.
    
3. Tell your Realtor you want to be notified immediately when the inventory of properties changes – and make sure he or she knows exactly what you are looking for! That does three things for you: it forces you to be very specific about what you want; it tells your Realtor valuable information about your wants; and, it signals just how serious you are about moving on a purchase quickly.
    
4. Don’t be too quick to reject what you think are bad listings! Look past the need for paint, or bad lighting, or unflattering photos. Make sure not to superficially reject any listing that could be a treasure that is just packaged poorly.
    
5. Set your search criteria a bit higher than your actual target price. You are then looking for real estate that is over-priced so you can keep an eye on them to come down.
    
6. Look out for would-be sellers. Tell your Realtor to check property listings that expired weeks or months ago. Get him to contact the sellers to see if they are considering coming back on the market. They may jump at someone like you who is ready to buy!

Develop a strong relationship with your Realtor, get pre-qualified for a mortgage, make sure your credit is clean, and then let your agent know that you are ready to move quickly when the right property comes along. Read here for more general buying tips.

Information courtesy of New Castle County DE Realtor Tucker Robbins.