Monday, December 07, 2009

Lender enlightenment

A recent report came out of the Office of Thrift Supervision and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, according to Bloomberg.

It said short sales tripled to 40,000 the first six months of this year compared to last year, the report said.

It appears the lenders are starting to grasp the concept of short selling as opposed to foreclosing.

The process has been a long learning curve for lenders, and the short sale procedures in many cases are still taking months and months.

We may yet get out of the woods as everyone learns we need to clean up the distress home mess before we can move forward.

Greg Owens P.A.
Realtor
Keller Williams On The water
941.932.6343
greg@teamworksfla.com
www.teamworksfla.com

Wednesday, December 02, 2009

Go for it

To all the buyers out there thinking about buying that dream home, go for it!

Take our small part of the real estate world in Palmetto and Ellenton. Want a waterfront home on the Manatee River say around 200k?

Yep. There are some.

The homes are not in the best of shape but the locations are dynamite. Whenever you can fish out of your backyard for that price you jump.

These types of foreclosures do come on the market. But they are not for the faint of heart.

First, you need to be ready willing and able to buy.

Second, you are more than likely going to be in a multiple offer situation and need to make up your mind in minutes not days.

Thirdly, the house is completely secondary to the location.

All the best
Greg Owens P.A.
Keller Williams On The Water
941.932.6343
greg@teamworksfla.com
www.teamworksfla.com

Looking for the right advice

When you go to sell your home you need to have an agent who is your consultant not just your cheerleader.

A listing agent will tell you the good, the bad and the ugly.

As a seller you need to look at the numbers. If you see that compared to other homes you have to list yours for far more than your competition you probably need to stay out of the market.

It is still all about price for the most part so if you need to sell higher than the current market will bear you are in for disappointment.

Listen to your consultant. If after that you know you can sell your home competitively by all means jump in the water. There are buyers out there.

All the best
Greg Owens P.A.
Keller Williams On The Water
941.932.6343
greg@teamworksfla.com
www.teamworksfla.com

Merry Ho Ho

There is a lot of bright news in the real estate market in Manatee County.

Last month almost half the homes were distress and half were not.

The balance in a way is a good sign. Equity sellers are still out there and they are still able to sell their homes.

Homes sales are climbing and prices are not dropping like a rock.

It appears we are moving quickly towards the New Year with a lot more positive signs then we have had in the past several years.

All the best
Greg Owens P.A.
Keller Williams On The Water
941.932.6343
greg@teamworksfla.com
www.teamworksfla.com

Short sale help possible

The federal government is saying they are going to help streamline the process for short sales.

If this is true it is much needed.

At this time buyers and sellers can end up waiting months for an answer from a lender about a short sale.

Even after that the lender can counter or ask for the seller to sign a note. Both items can quickly end any deal.

Short sales are going to be around a very long time particularly in Florida where a large number of homes are worth far less than what owners paid for them.

Anything anyone can do to quicken what is often a very frustrating process is welcome news.

All the best
Greg Owens P.A.
Keller Williams On The Water
941.932.6343
greg@teamworksfla.com
www.teamworksfla.com