By Mark Walters

If you’ve owned real estate for the last two or three years chances are you feel like a financial genius. In many areas real estate values have climbed to dizzying heights.

I hope you have resisted the temptation of easy money home equity loans. If so, you’re now sitting on a big, fat profit. It may have entered your mind that the big run up in real estate prices could be nearing a peak and those values could come barreling down. Oh no! That would mean your big, fat profit could become thin as a rail in a New York minute. That kind of financial weight loss you just don’t need.

This article is not meant to promote the idea that we’ve all experienced the effects of a real estate bubble and that inevitably that bubble must burst. That could be the case, but honestly, who really knows? But if a reversal is ahead, what can you do to avoid watching the value of your home plunge and your equity profit vanish?

Across the country, in the real estate markets that have been the hottest, some homeowners are selling and temporarily moving into apartments. They feel that they are selling at the peak of the real estate cycle and it could be years before they ever have a chance to sell for as much profit as they can get now. They just could not tolerate doing nothing and then watch a major decline in their net worth.

Their thinking is that over the next 24 months or so, interest rates will go up. If interest rates go up one or two percent many people will be priced out of the home buying market. That means less demand for homes and less demand means lower prices. That and other factors could result in falling home values. They want to pull their big profit out now, bank it and wait for prices to fall.

As real estate prices move to the lower end of the cycle, these sellers will then buy another home. In a way this will allow them to have their cake and eat it too. One of their choices will be to buy a home equivalent to the one they sold, but at a lower price. In this case they can allocate the remaining portion of their profit to other investments.

Another option will be to use all of the cash they received from the sale of their original home to buy a more expensive house.

Still another choice would be to sell and take their money to another area where real estate prices have not skyrocketed and buy a much nicer home. Family and employment obligations prevent most people from doing that.

What could go wrong with any of these plans? Home prices could just continue to climb. Then these sellers would be left sitting on the side lines, unable to even afford the house they just sold. Even if home prices just stayed flat without declining, they would still be stuck. The cost of an equivalent home, plus buying expenses would exceed the profit they earned from the sale of their original home.

The other challenge to their plan is what to do with that big, fat profit once they had it hand? Can they find a safe investment that could earn more than real estate? Due to the effect of inflation the buying power of the cash would diminish every day if they just sat on it.

Finally, you can do as most home owners certainly will. Nothing! That’s fine as long as you have not refinanced all of your equity out of the property. Then if values drop you will be “up side down”. That means you will owe more on your mortgage than the home is worth. That thought may scare some home owners into selling just to get out even.

Now that you’ve come to the end of part one of this article you are ready for the perfect solution to this potential situation, right? You certainly are an optimist. Sorry, not enough room here for solutions.

About the Author:
To read more on this author Mark Walters invites you to Click Here for Part Two.

By Jeanette Joy Fisher

New concepts in Interior Design Psychology are helping home sellers net more money in today’s competitive real estate market. Therefore, it’s worthwhile to spend time planning the changes that will help your home sell for the highest price.

Develop a general design plan, keeping your target market and budget in mind. Your overall design plan really depends on supply and demand. How many houses are for sale in your area? How many houses sell each week? Is the selling season cold, warm, or hot? Is it a seller’s or buyer’s market?

If the market is moving fast and buyers are lining up to make offers for homes in your neighborhood, you can do less. But whatever your answers to the above questions, you’ll still need to do a few things to make your home stand out from the competition.

Know Your Target Buyers

Think about your neighborhood and the buyers purchasing homes near yours. Are they purchasing their first home or moving up? This will be important to your marketing and design plan, since the psychological needs of the two types of buyers differ considerably.

First-time homebuyers seek to control their own environment by owning, rather than renting. Their psychological needs include:

Safety and security
Sense of place or connection
Comfort
Self-control

Move-up buyers often enjoy those benefits, too, but they’re generally more interested in finding a larger home with more amenities for their comfort, self-esteem, and feelings of prestige.

Once you’ve determine your potential buyers, you can begin making improvements to your home that will attract them.

Budget Concerns

Spend money only on items that will make a difference in your sales price. Of all repairs, fresh paint is the best investment you can make. New kitchen appliances, upgraded bathroom features, and updated lighting fixtures will usually give a good return for your money, as well.

Sometimes, hiring professional help is worth the extra expense. Professional painters work faster and will often cost less than day laborers. Tile installers, carpet layers, and electricians also know their trades and will do a better job than most day laborers.

Contractors should have their own disability and liability insurance — ask for a copy with your contract. Get everything in writing — including work to be completed, costs, lists of specific materials to be used, time for completion, and payment schedule.

Exterior Design Psychology

Choosing the right colors to paint your home will make a huge difference in your paycheck at closing. Look at the other homes near yours and choose complementary colors.

Did you know that the exterior color of houses selling the most quickly is yellow, but the wrong tone or shade of yellow can kill a potential home sale? Avoid yellows with green undertones and bright yellows, and choose pale yellows with creamy or beige shades instead. Warning: colors look darker on huge exterior expanses than they do on the little
paint chips you see in the store.

Color Combinations

Paint stores offer many brochures, showing various combinations of exterior paint colors, but most of them also feature combinations include three colors. Limiting your paint selection to only two colors will limit your income potential.

Think fun colors for a fast sale. Think “Disneyland Main Street,” where every shop is painted in glorious multi-color. Using a third or fourth color on the exterior can add definition to your home’s details. Use gloss or semi-gloss paint on wood trim.

Psychology of Exterior Paint Colors

Take the ultimate sales price of your remodeled home into account. Certain colors, especially muted, complex shades, will attract wealthy or highly-educated buyers, whereas buyers with less income or less education will generally prefer simple colors.

A complex color contains tints of gray or brown, and usually requires more than one word to describe, such as sage green or forest brown, while simple colors are straightforward and pure. Generally, houses in the lower price range will sell faster and for more money when painted in simple tones like yellow and tan with white, blue, or green trim.

Interior Design Plans and Secrets

Create a list of work and materials you’ll need for each room and then estimate the time you think it will take for each task. The more planning you do before you begin, the more time and money you’ll save.

Psychology of Interior Paint Colors

Daring to use color instead of bland white walls will increase your profit potential. Did you know that Lynette Jennings tested people’s perception of room size and color? A room that was painted white appeared larger to only a few people in the survey, compared to an identical room painted with a color, and the perceived difference was only about six inches! Because most people look better surrounded by color, a colored wall also makes them feel happier, and buyers will choose to buy the house that makes them feel happiest.

Entryways should bring the exterior colors of the home inside. Repeat variations of the exterior shades all the way through your home, which will make the entire home seem to be in harmony. As an added bonus, if buyers love the exterior colors, they’re going to like the interior colors, as well.

Spending time planning your home’s sale, rather than just listing it and then taking your chances, will net you more money, and faster!

Best wishes for a profitable, quick sale.

About the Author:
Professor Jeanette Fisher, author of Doghouse to Dollhouse for Dollars, Joy to the Home, and other books teaches Real Estate Investing and Design Psychology. For more articles, tips, reports, newsletters, and sales flyer template, see http://www.doghousetodollhousefordollars.com/pages/5/index.htm

By Bill Wehr

With mortgage rates still low, and a number of flexible loan programs available, it has never been easier to buy your first home. You have some money saved, and being pre-qualified by a lender, you feel you are ready to find that dream home. But you need to set time aside to review your household budget to see the real financial impact of home ownership before you shop. By doing this you will have a much easier transition to home ownership and at the same time get a handle on the amount it costs you to live each month.

When you are pre-qualified for a mortgage loan by a lender there are key debt to income factors that are taken into account. First your gross qualifying income is calculated. This is your paycheck before anything is taken out for federal tax, state tax, and SSI. You may have additional deductions for group health or retirement contribution. What you have left over is what is generally termed as “take home pay.” This is the amount that needs to be looked at closely to get a realistic consideration as to how much you are willing to pay each month for a house payment.

The second factor that the lender takes into consideration is your monthly debt. But the debt that is counted is mostly restricted to what the new mortgage payment will be which includes property taxes and homeowners insurance, installment loans, revolving charge cards and child support or alimony that currently appear on the credit bureau. This gives the lender a debt to income ratio in which to determine if the buyer qualifies for a particular loan program. There are other aspects that will decide whether the loan is ultimately granted. What we are looking at here is the debt to income consideration only.

So this leaves it up to you to take the extra step in really figuring what it will mean to you to own a home with the take home pay you have. What you are looking at is not only the increase from rent payment to mortgage payment, but also the increase in such things as utilities, cable and garbage service. These may be included in your rent and completely overlooked.

You can make your own personal list and break it down as follows:

· House payment- it is the full amount of principle, interest, taxes, homeowner’s insurance & if any mortgage insurance. If you were given the choice of paying your own taxes & insurance instead of the lender collecting the payment then plan to put 1/12 of the amounts away each month to meet the billings when they are due.
· Utilities- Gas, electric, water, garbage and cable. Several of these can have wide swings month-to-month depending on seasonal usage. The utility companies have plans where you can pay a level monthly payment thereby having control of these particular expenses.
· Household expenses- Food, household items, clothes are ongoing outlays. Look at your checks and receipts for the last 12 months and come up with an average monthly amount spent for each of these items.
· Charge cards, car loans, other installment loans, medical & dental bills- make sure that if you are only paying the minimum it is only for the purpose of budgeting for a home otherwise eliminate as much as possible.
· Car expense- Average the gas & repairs on the vehicles for the last 12 months. Car insurance is another expense that can be prorated over 12 months rather than a large lump sum each year.
· Other expenses- these are the ones you may totally eliminate, but do you really want to? These are the fun things to do like eating out, movies, recreation, hobbies and vacations that round out your life. You want to feel good about owning your home and not feel trapped in it watching television as your only source of entertainment.

It is very likely that as a first time homebuyer that your housing expense will go up noticeably from what you were used to with renting. Don’t let it overwhelm you. By taking the time to see where your money goes you get a realistic perspective on what you can afford. If homeownership appears out of range then perhaps cutting back some expenses, or if possible totally eliminating some, will get you into that first home.

About the Author:
Bill Wehr publishes mortgage articles at http://www.mortgagejourney.com. Bill has an MBA and is the owner of Great Pacific Northwest Mortgage http://www.billwehr.com serving Oregon and Washington. For loans please complete a secure on-line application at http://www.portlandoregonmortgages.com.

By Mark Nash

Many home buyers judge a book by its cover, a sometimes costly mistake. It’s easy to be infatuated with a cutting-edge kitchen or drop-dead views in home that you want to buy. Don’t skip having a property inspection on your dream home. Most home inspectors are licensed or certified today, but they can only report what they see. Sometimes materials defects or red flags are hidden behind walls, soil surrounding foundations or buried in sewer lines. Know what the red flags are and what they mean in additional costs or if they are not easily corrected. Mark Nash author of 1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home offers homebuyers tips on real estate red flags for homebuyers.

-In homes more than twenty years old have the sewer line inspected from the house to the street. The latest in technology offers you the piece of mind that you won’t be digging up the front yard to replace the main sewer line because of mature tree roots invading and clogging or breaking it up. Sewer or plumbing companies can send a camera through the sewer line and provide you with a video tape of what they discover. If it’s clean you can relax and if there is a problem, you can show the property owner.

-Cracked heat exchangers on furnaces indicate that it’s a health issue and time for a new furnace. Home builders, owners and developers can put in lower-quality and under-sized furnaces that can have prematurely cracked or damaged heat exchangers. If your home inspector finds one, you better plan on replacing the furnace. From a safety standpoint cracked heat exchangers emit dangerous gases into a home.

-Under-sized or antiquated electrical systems. Many homebuyers need to learn about home electrical systems and what composes an adequate one. If a home you look at has knob and tube wiring, forget about getting homeowners insurance, move on. Look for circuit beakers in electric panels and if you see fuses in a home electrical box, plan on updating the panel. Depending on the size of a home and power requirements the electrical service should be at least 100 or 200 amps. If a property advertises a new electric service verify that in addition to the main electrical panel being updated that the electric service from the house to the transformer has also been upgraded, a common oversight.

-Fogged or non-operative windows. I’ve seen many defective windows in homes that have built in the last ten years. Many people skimp on windows and these are easy to spot. Water condensation fogs the space between double-layered windows. Newer inexpensive windows sometimes don’t operate properly after minimal use. Metal framed windows transfer more heat and cold than wood frame windows. Many defective or obsolete windows can be cumbersome and expensive to replace. Older homes might have single-paned double hung windows that are painted shut, have warped closed or have faulty counter-weight systems.

-Leaky or end-of-useful-life roofs. If a home you are interested in has three layers of shingles and needs to be replaced, you will first have to have all the existing shingles torn off before a new roof can be installed. Leaky roofs are caused by faulty flashing around chimneys, sky-lights and roof ridges or valleys. Many newer homes have roof issues from inexpensive shingles have are only rated for fifteen years. Ask the year life-time rating on existing shingles on any home your want to buy. Slate, tile and wood shingle roofs are attractive but be forewarned that repairs to them can be costly.

-Cracked and bulging foundations. If you see a bulging basement wall from the inside, you have a costly problem. Hire a structural engineer to inspect a bulging basement wall . These can be material defects and should be disclosed by property sellers. Cracked foundation walls can allow ground water into crawl spaces and basements. Cracks should be professionally repaired and monitored. I’ve seen major cracks in homes less than five years old.

-Basement water damage. Water stains on basement walls and popped floor tiles can indicate prior flooding. If a home your looking at has a flood control system it’s a sure sign that the area floods. Check for sump pumps and verify they they have battery back-up systems.

-Structural walls or floors removed. Open floor plans are the rage today and many homeowners have created them in older properties. The problem is unless the openings were framed properly and included appropriate load-bearing trusses, these ex-load bearing walls could shift supporting loads to other areas that can impact the structural integrity of the entire house. Have a qualified structural engineer inspect any questionable alterations that omitted original load bearing walls.

-Mold in attics, basements and living spaces. Depending where you live in the country mold can be minor or can impact your families health. Newer homes aren’t immune to mold, in fact because they are so effectively sealed for energy savings, this can contribute to mold, especially between the walls where it is hard to spot. Hire a professional that specializes in mold to inspect for problems, offer remedies and project associated costs.

-Insects and pests. Carpenter ants, termites and other pests can rack havoc on a home. Have a qualified pest inspector evaluate your potential new home. I’ve seen my fair share of squirrel damage in attics over the years, so have your pest inspector check for this too.

-Buried oil tanks. You would be surprised how many oil and gas tanks are still buried and abandoned around the country, in urban, suburban and rural areas. Most states and the federal government have strict laws pertain to their removal and disclosure to buyers. If you have one on a property you want to buy, gather estimates for removal costs before you move forward.

About the Author:
Mark Nash’s fourth real estate book, “1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home” (2005), and working as a real estate broker in Chicago are the foundation for his consumer-centric real estate perspective which has been featured on ABC-TV, CBS The Early Show, Bloomberg TV, CNN-TV, Chicago Sun Times & Tribune, Fidelity Investor’s Weekly, Dow Jones Market Watch, MSNBC.com, The New York Times, Realty Times, Universal Press Syndicate and USA Today.

By Jeanette Joy Fisher

Do you need to sell your home quickly? If so, don’t be tempted by the ads you see that say “We Buy Houses” or “Sell Your Ugly House in 9 days for Cash.” Those types of ads are placed by real estate investors who are looking for sellers under duress, and they’ll only pay up to 70% of the low end market value for your home.

But you don’t have to be at the mercy of those scavengers. Selling your home is stressful enough without worrying about getting a fair price, so even if you have no money for repairs, here are a few tips for getting fair market value for your home in the shortest period of time:

Outside:

- Clean up all the weeds on your property

- Remove dead plants and trim overgrown limbs

- Plant brown spots with cuttings of ground cover from friends

- Either remove empty pots and containers or fill them with cuttings

- Wash all the windows

Inside:

- Take town any tattered window coverings

- Open all curtains and let the sunshine in

- Air our your home

- Pack up your personal effects, such as family photos, memorabilia, piles of magazines, and other clutter

- Get rid of excess furniture, especially pieces that are tired and worn

You don’t have to give your home away to real estate vultures. A little elbow grease, sweat, soap, and water can help your home put on its best face for potential buyers, even if you have no money for repairs.

About the Author:
Professor Jeanette Fisher, author of Doghouse to Dollhouse for Dollars, Joy to the Home, and other books teaches Real Estate Investing and Design Psychology. For more articles, tips, reports, newsletters, and sales flyer template, see http://www.doghousetodollhousefordollars.com/pages/5/index.htm

You’re getting ready to sell your home and preparing for your potential buyers. You have a beautiful painting that you purchased some time ago that you thought would look wonderful in the living room. So you bought, brought it home and hammered a nail into the wall above the couch and hooked the painting over it.

Pleased with your purchase you stood back. You tipped your head to one side and then the other. Then you squinted at the picture. Something was definitely not right but you could’t put your finger on it. You said, “oh well,” and it’s been there ever since.

Now that it’s time to prep your home to get the most money you can out of it’s sale, it may be time for you to go back and figure out how to make your picutures look right. If you’re finding that you’re dissatisfied with the appearance of the art or family photos on your walls you’re not alone. Many people make the same common mistakes that the eye can read as awkward but the individual does not know how to fix. Here are some guidelines to keep in mind when arranging art on a wall:

LARGE ART:

Large artwork will be a focal point so you should be careful to place it in an appropriate area. Where does large artwork look best? Try over a couch, behind the dining set, over a fireplace or on a feature wall. A feature wall is where the placement of furniture or the layout of the home naturally guides the eye to a wall - a great place to feature art.

SMALL ART:

Try to group small pieces if possible. Using similar or matching frames and matting make this look more pleasing. Otherwise anchor the small piece visually by hanging it low and close to furnishings so it doesn’t appear to be floating on the wall.

GROUPING ART:

Whether you’re creating a grid of equal sized frames or composing a collection of various sizes the rule of spacing is the same. Try to have them spaced approximately 3 inches apart. Try positioning them on the floor or a table to get a pleasing arrangement before placing the nails and measure carefully before making any holes.

HEIGHT:

Artwork should be hung with the center of the picture at eye level. That means the center should be about 60 to 66 inches from the floor. If you’ve visited a gallery you will see that the frames are not lined up by their top or bottom edges but that the pictures are all centered at the same height.

If the artwork is usually going to be viewed sitting down (as at a dining table or when viewed beside a couch) you would hang them at the sitter’s eye level instead.

Artwork behind a couch should be no more than 8 to 10 inches above the back of the couch.

With these easy tips you should have no problem creating wonderful arrangements that will have designer appeal.

When you’re getting ready to sell your home, you want to invest as little as possible to making improvements, especially if you have a lot of repairs that need to be done. Major improvements such as new flooring or a deck can require a significant amount of money. However, you don’t have to go to those measures to give your home the facelift that will make it sell. There are three key areas of your home that can make the most difference in the appearance of your home - the entrance, kitchen and bathroom. Just doing one of the ideas listed below can make a huge difference in the perceived value of your home. But why not do all three when it can be done for less than $100?

Entrance

The old saying that, “First impressions are usually the last”, can easily apply to the way people react when they enter your home. Has your welcome mat lost its welcome appeal? It’s time to spice up your entrance so what you hear are “oohs” and “ahhs” when people cross your threshold. If you have a spacious porch, a potted plant in a metal planter can create a pleasant atmosphere. Contemporary planters are about $10.

If you’re really adventurous, a coat of brightly-colored paint on your front door can create a splash. If you take on this challenge, it’s a good idea to make sure that the paint complements your home. For example, if your home is mostly red brick, a red door would make a dynamic look. A gallon of interior/exterior gloss enamel in red or any other bright color will set you back no more than $20.

Kitchen

When you look in your kitchen, what catches your eye first? Probably all those nifty cabinets that discreetly tuck away your dishes, right? After a number of years you might crave a different look. For starters, you might want to give them a good cleaning. This one step alone can make a difference. You would be surprised the amount of dust and grease that can accumulate on cabinets. Depending on the material that your cabinets are made of, simply removing the cabinets from their hinges and wiping them down with the damp cloth is sufficient. There are chemicals on the market, but you need to make sure that the chemicals are made for your cabinet material.

Once your cabinets are shining again, you can then add or replace knobs. Knobs range from simple unfinished versions that cost as little as $.50 to decorative insert pulls that costs around $3. With the average kitchen containing about 12 cabinets, your cost won’t go over $36.

Bathroom

Guest bathrooms are usually confined to a small space. Why not give this room a lift? What you can add is artwork and color. You can go as conservative and as creative as you want. To complement the color of the walls, you can add artwork. You don’t have to go out and purchase expensive artwork. You can use your imagination to come up with some ideas. For example, a few seashells, colorful fabric, and an empty picture frame are all you need to become your own favorite artist.

If you have any leftover paint from your door, you can use this to paint a wall in your bathroom, as long as the color doesn’t clash with the other elements of your bathroom.

By: Barry M. Milteer

In today’s real estate market, a home-grown website, ad in the local paper and yard sign with directional signs on the corner, are just not enough. For most for sale by owners (FSBO), little incentive exists to invest the time and effort in building a meaningful web presence and the long-term upfront costs of running local newspaper ads to promote your property is impractical.

Unless you get lucky, illogical strategies like “I’ll try it on my own for a month or two and then turn it over to a realtor”, are doomed to failure. Such strategies illustrate a lack of confidence as well as a coherent plan for effectively marketing your property. It takes both to be successful and unfortunately, far too many for sale by owners (FSBO) start out with strategies like these.

Whether you’re a first time for sale by owner (FSBO) or seasoned real estate professional, buying, selling or renting a property requires commitment and hard work. If you don’t have the time, don’t kid yourself. Hire a real estate professional. Trying to market your property on the ‘cheap’ usually offers little reward. In most cases, you’ll end up wasting valuable time and money. But if you’re serious about going it alone, do some research to understand what you’re up against and how to avoid common pitfalls.

Fortunately, most of the information you will need is readily available. You only need to avail yourself of the numerous for sale by owner (FSBO) resources currently available on the web. Since much of this information is written by real estate professionals, it’s fairly comprehensive. These resources cover every aspect of the for sale by owner process, including property preparation, determining and setting the selling price, the advertising process, buyer/seller negotiation, as well as understanding the closing process. Even the contracts and forms required to close a property are available and best of all, many of these services are free!

About the Author:
Barry M. Milteer
President Home Advancement, LLC - An Atlanta Real Estate Advertising & For Sale by Owner Company.

Whether it’s your first time buying a home or not, you should familiarize yourself with the whole mortgage process. Numerous mortgage lenders will assist you in the process of acquiring a pre-qualified and pre-approved home buying application. Of course, your mortgage qualifications will be required by your agent to strengthen your deal in finding and buying a home.

Here are some things to consider when buying a home.

- Money

Before buying a home, consider your financial status. Check your credit situation by getting hold of your most recent credit report at the credit center. You should know exactly how much money you have and how much you can afford to spend on a home.

- Time

Don’t expect to find a great home tomorrow if you’ve only begun your search today. Buying a home is like working on a school project. It needs ample time. If you think you’ve gathered enough information and resources within your time table, so be it.

- The Right Agent

If you believe in the comfort and rewards of buying a home, you will need to trust the agent who will do the work for you. In finding a reliable agent you will need to look at many sources of information to determine “who represents what”. It is always best to compare experiences, backgrounds and referrals of reputable people.

- Needs vs. Wants

Why confuse yourself between needs and wants when you can have both? Upon gathering information in buying a home, take into consideration the different types of houses available and decide what you want from what is offered.

- Word Confusion

Needless to say, when you buy a home you should familiarize yourself with the terms and words used during the dealing and negotiating with your agent and contractor. Also, try to keep a list of the questions you have that need further clarification.

- Cue Cards

You don’t want to forget even a single detail about the home you’ve selected, right? Why not keep little cue cards where the ‘plus & minus’ on each home or property you’ve seen is listed and recorded.

- Points and Plus

Learn how to bargain and get the best possible deal.

- Safety and Security

Be sure to get homeowner’s insurance. It may seem like a lifetime expense, but it will get you continued savings in the long run.

- Final Check

Do a final inspection or walk-through of the house before settlement and before the contract is processed.

Consider the above points as helpful factors when you to decide to buy a home. Plan ahead and avoid the common mistakes that most home buyers make.

By: Jim Hart

How much do you know about home financing? If you are planning on buying a home for the first time, you probably have a lot to learn before you are ready to plunge into home ownership. Home financing is one of the single most important and typically least understood elements of the home purchasing process.

Why is home financing so important? Two primary reasons:

1)Without financing you can’t buy a home (unless you are cash rich) and…
2) you will live with your home loan for a long-long time, well after the thrill of home ownership has subsided.

There are a wide variety of financial products (home loans) on the market today besides the traditional 15 year and 30 year fixed rate and adjustable rate mortgages (ARM’s). Other loan types include government loans like VA loans, FHA loans and community development assistance loans/grants available in some areas. Lets not forget the Jumbo loans, bridge loans, negative amortization loans, balloon loans and interest only loans to name a few. Then you have to consider whether you will borrow your home loan from a bank or a mortgage company and does the lender service the loan or is the loan sold on the secondary market? It’s’ important to know this information because home buyers (and home owners) can be surprised to discover they are sending payments to different lenders over time as their loans are sold on the market. The good old days when the S&L’s made portfolio loans are over.

And then there is the financial speak. Terms like amortization, discount points, closing costs, doc prep fees, appraisals, zoning, good faith estimates, dowry rights, truth in lending, APR, HUD, originators, brokers, secondary market, hybrids, MIP, balloons, second mortgages, carry back mortgages, etc. Even seasoned homeowners who are selling and planning to buy a home may be taken back by all the financial terminology and buzzwords associated with the lending industry as a whole. The best strategy for wading through all this technical mumbo jumbo is start gathering information well in advance of a home purchase (or refi) because nothing is worse then having to learn all this information during the heat of a real estate transaction. There can be brisk movement during a real estate deal once your offer is accepted. You don’t want to get hit with a tidal wave of information requiring your critical decision making (and your legally bound signature) when you are going to school on every issue, detail and term associated with home financing.

For most first time buyers this can be overwhelming as they are forced to rely on real estate agents, bankers and mortgage brokers for advice. Keep in mind that when you are buying real estate you are SURROUNDED by sales people with an economic incentive called commissions! Do you really want to fly by the seat of your pants and trust commission driven sales people to give you advice? This is why I constantly advise all home buyers and sellers to have an attorney BEFORE they talk to a real estate agent-or at least a source of information to guide you through the process–we are talking about a BIG business deal right?

About the Author:
Jim Hart - My E-Report: 101 Tips For Homebuyers, Sellers And Money Borrowers will help you with more information regarding this article- go to smart Books website, fill out the form requesting a copy and we’ll send it to your email address within 24 hours-absolutely free this week! Another Ezine Article Exclusive! Smart People Read Smart Books!

Jim Hart, CEO-Smart Books Publishing - http://www.smart67.com FREE PRODUCT: Article offer-per request. If you don’t like our products, send them back. Have you ever tried to send a house back?

By: Jim Hart

Thinking about buying a home? You may want to read this article. It blows me away when I think of all the homebuyers that give real estate agents large sums of money as a “good faith deposit” when they sign a purchase offer on a home. I have had clients that have given agents thousands of dollars when they make an offer on a home and it is one of the dumbest mistakes a home buyer can make! Why? Well, you have to have a very basic understanding of contract law (this is explained in detail in my report) but the quick answer goes like this: Every purchase offer is half a contract-it becomes a contract when it is accepted by the seller.

Every contract must have consideration and consideration is anything of value. Money is consideration. So when a homebuyer writes an offer and gives a good faith deposit, the good faith deposit IS the “consideration” which makes the offer a contract when accepted by the seller. In other words, the money IS what makes the purchase offer binding on a buyer when the offer is accepted by the seller and becomes a contract. And agents LOVE the fact that people put down large sums of money when they write an offer!

Why? Well, for starters it shows a serious buyer. Secondly, when a buyer gives an agent a large amount of money like this, the buyer loses temporary control of the cash and the real estate agency holds it in escrow. That gives agents control.

What most people don’t know is that one-dollar ($1.00) is consideration and can make a purchase offer a contract just as well as $10,000.00. And, when it comes to financing, large good faith deposits don’t really do anything to improve the chances of a buyer getting a home loan. You see, that large good faith deposit can be kept in YOUR pocket until you take an application on a loan. In this case, a buyer who wanted to put a large down payment on a home can pay it to the LENDER instead! Inevitably, that’s where the good faith deposit gets applied anyway…as part of the down payment on a home which is ultimately goes toward the purchase. So why give it to the real estate agent? Yet everyday people do it-they lose the control over the money with no gain whatsoever. Either you are financially qualified to borrow a home loan or not. While a large down payment can help over come funding objections, the agent plays little or no role in the financing end of a real estate transaction. If a borrower is unqualified to borrow a home loan, a very large good faith deposit won’t change that fact (.)

And buyers better stop and think about the purchase offer! Agents tend to do all the writing on the face of an offer and (seeing how it’s half a contract) that can be d.a.n.g.e.r.o.u.s! You want your attorney to review that offer before you submit it to a seller (.) Now, one of the angles you may hear is “we have to move fast on this deal before the other person buys it”. Well, that may be true BUT anytime you find yourself “moving fast” on a real estate deal (or any business deal) you are WIDE OPEN for mistakes in judgement. If you like the potential for financial pain, do it their way. If you want to protect legal and financial interests, do it my way.

Get My FREE E-Report: 101 Tips For Homebuyers, Sellers And Money Borrowers will help you with more information regarding this article-go to smart Books website and follow the simple instructions to request a copy and we’ll send it to your email address within 24 hours-absolutely free. Another Ezine Articles Exclusive!

Want some advice? If you are planning on buying a home go to my EBay Store SMART Books and More and order the book “Everything A Real Estate Agent Doesn’t Want You to Know” for $14.95. I am not trying to hype the book but You WILL save thousands of dollars and protect your legal and financial interests–guaranteed. If you don’t like the book, send it back. Ever tried to send a house back?

buy a home, and especially first time home buyers, start by looking through newspapers ads and real estate magazines before calling a real estate company and talking to a real estate agent. And that’s where the problems tend to begin. As a homebuyer you must understand that real estate agents represent sellers (they have a legal duty to represent sellers) and not buyers (.) The only exception to this rule is in the case of “buyer broker representation” which I STRONGLY advise against using because it’s basically a scam designed to squeeze money out of both ends of a real estate deal, money from buyers and money from sellers. You see, the term “caveat Emptor” means “buyer beware”. That means the duty to protect your legal and financial interests in a real estate deal falls squarely on YOUR shoulders. If you make wrong decisions, sign stupid contracts and do less than an intelligent deal-it is your fault. In my mind, the term “buyer beware” is a fancy way of saying “cheating is okay”.

It all boils down to knowledge. Real estate agents are trained in real estate principles, practices, some real estate law and some (and I mean some) financing. How much training have you had? How much do you know about real estate law? How much do you know about real estate financing? What are your financial options? Are the loans being sold to you in your best short, medium and long-range interest? These are key questions you need answered. So here’s a few tips on getting your bearings in the right direction before you do anything.

Number 1-Get the home financing together first! This is the singular most important element of a real estate deal. Why? Because after the whirlwind of emotion of your new home passes (and it will) you will have a “mortgage monkey” strapped to your back for 15 or 30 years. You want the best interest rate you can get but you also want the best loan program to meet your personal needs. There are a ton of home loans on the market; 15 and 30-year conventional loans, adjustable rate mortgages (ARMS), Government loans like FHA, VA loans and there are gimmick loans like negative amortization loans, nothing down loans, etc. The point is that lenders are in the business of selling loans- that’s right they are selling you a loan and you are paying for it in the form of closing costs and interest rates. Nobody can get this information together for you except you (.) You are the one that will live with the loan and that is why you need to get your financing together first! My report gives you the steps you need to take to seek out the right loan for YOU.

Number 2-Get an attorney specialized in real estate transactions (.) People tend to see a lawyer AFTER they have a legal problem. Be smarter than that-see an attorney first and get representation, buying a home is a big business deal right? I cannot emphasize enough the importance of having a lawyer to review your legal documents before you sign anything (.) Not to hype the report but it has some tips on this issue.

Number 3-Avoid real estate agents until you are strategically ready to talk to them. Remember; agents are trying to sell you a property-and they are not your agent-they are salespeople on a commission and they have a legal duty to not only represent the seller but to get the highest possible price on behalf of the seller. People get hurt everyday in real estate deals and don’t even know they are bleeding. Why? Lack of information.

About the Author:
Jim Hart - My E-Report: 101 Tips For Homebuyers, Sellers And Money Borrowers will help you with more information regarding this article- go to smart Books website, fill out the form requesting a copy and we’ll send it to your email address within 24 hours-absolutely free this week! Another Ezine Article Exclusive! Smart People Read Smart Books!

Jim Hart, CEO-Smart Books Publishing - http://www.smart67.com FREE PRODUCT: Article offer-per request. If you don’t like our products, send them back. Have you ever tried to send a house back?

By: Jim Hart

So you are thinking about buying a home? Typically, people who are planning to buy a home, and especially first time home buyers, start by looking through newspapers ads and real estate magazines before calling a real estate company and talking to a real estate agent. And that’s where the problems tend to begin. As a homebuyer you must understand that real estate agents represent sellers (they have a legal duty to represent sellers) and not buyers (.) The only exception to this rule is in the case of “buyer broker representation” which I STRONGLY advise against using because it’s basically a scam designed to squeeze money out of both ends of a real estate deal, money from buyers and money from sellers. You see, the term “caveat Emptor” means “buyer beware”. That means the duty to protect your legal and financial interests in a real estate deal falls squarely on YOUR shoulders. If you make wrong decisions, sign stupid contracts and do less than an intelligent deal-it is your fault. In my mind, the term “buyer beware” is a fancy way of saying “cheating is okay”.

It all boils down to knowledge. Real estate agents are trained in real estate principles, practices, some real estate law and some (and I mean some) financing. How much training have you had? How much do you know about real estate law? How much do you know about real estate financing? What are your financial options? Are the loans being sold to you in your best short, medium and long-range interest? These are key questions you need answered. So here’s a few tips on getting your bearings in the right direction before you do anything.

Number 1-Get the home financing together first! This is the singular most important element of a real estate deal. Why? Because after the whirlwind of emotion of your new home passes (and it will) you will have a “mortgage monkey” strapped to your back for 15 or 30 years. You want the best interest rate you can get but you also want the best loan program to meet your personal needs. There are a ton of home loans on the market; 15 and 30-year conventional loans, adjustable rate mortgages (ARMS), Government loans like FHA, VA loans and there are gimmick loans like negative amortization loans, nothing down loans, etc. The point is that lenders are in the business of selling loans- that’s right they are selling you a loan and you are paying for it in the form of closing costs and interest rates. Nobody can get this information together for you except you (.) You are the one that will live with the loan and that is why you need to get your financing together first! My report gives you the steps you need to take to seek out the right loan for YOU.

Number 2-Get an attorney specialized in real estate transactions (.) People tend to see a lawyer AFTER they have a legal problem. Be smarter than that-see an attorney first and get representation, buying a home is a big business deal right? I cannot emphasize enough the importance of having a lawyer to review your legal documents before you sign anything (.) Not to hype the report but it has some tips on this issue.

Number 3-Avoid real estate agents until you are strategically ready to talk to them. Remember; agents are trying to sell you a property-and they are not your agent-they are salespeople on a commission and they have a legal duty to not only represent the seller but to get the highest possible price on behalf of the seller. People get hurt everyday in real estate deals and don’t even know they are bleeding. Why? Lack of information.

About the Author:
Jim Hart - My E-Report: 101 Tips For Homebuyers, Sellers And Money Borrowers will help you with more information regarding this article- go to smart Books website, fill out the form requesting a copy and we’ll send it to your email address within 24 hours-absolutely free this week! Another Ezine Article Exclusive! Smart People Read Smart Books!

Jim Hart, CEO-Smart Books Publishing - http://www.smart67.com FREE PRODUCT: Article offer-per request. If you don’t like our products, send them back. Have you ever tried to send a house back?

By: Jim Hart

For the next four days I’m going to run a series of articles by Jim Hart called “Everything A Real Estate Agent Doesn’t Want You To Know!”. Jim Hart is a business consulant and is the author of a column called, “Money Matters”.

Enjoy!

Everything A Real Estate Agent Doesn’t Want You To Know-Part 1
By: Jim Hart

Are you planning on buying or selling a home? Maybe refinancing? Perhaps you’d just like to pick up a few tips on home buying, selling and mortgage borrowing-if so you may want keep track of Money Matters in the months ahead as I will be giving out all kinds of tips and insights as we approach the home buying-selling season. I will be discussing a wide variety of real estate and mortgage financing issues you should know (Things real estate agents don’t want you to know). Well, good agents won’t have a problem with you knowing this information but the part-timers and less ethical operators would certainly prefer you not know what I am going to share with you!

You see, buying or selling a home is the largest investment of a lifetime for most people and it is a BIG business deal…a transaction composed people, emotions, contracts and cash…all the ingredients for legal and financial pain if you don’t know what you are doing. Real estate agents earn a commission when a home is sold whether they are the listing agent, the selling agent or both. Real estate agents typically (and legally) represent sellers in a real estate transaction and not buyers. Yet, every day, homebuyers refer to the real estate agent as “my real estate agent”…they are not your real estate agent…they are the home seller’s agent and agents have a legal duty to get the best selling price for the seller. Further, anything you tell them can and probably will be used against you to extract a higher selling price out of the deal. Sellers on the other hand are often manipulated into signing long term listing contracts for up to a year by an agent who will simply throw the listing into the multiple listing service (MLS) and hope another agent sells the property for them.

For agents, the name of the game is to get listing contracts…a common slogan amongst real estate agents is: “if you don’t list, you don’t last”. Once an agent gets a listing contract from a home seller, they will get the bulk of the commission when the house is sold whether they sell it or another agent sells the home. Not many sellers know this fact and many are swooned into long term listing agreements with hopeful promise of selling their homes at the highest possible price only to find out they don’t. Agents will say and do most anything to get a listing contract shy of breaking the law. And the big question for home sellers is are you working with a part time or full time agent? What is their background in marketing and sales? Do you really want to sign a long term listing agreement with a part timer that has one toe in the tub and no business background? Were talking about a business deal right?

Whether you are buying a home or selling a home you should be clearly aware that you will enter into legally binding contracts and relying on mortgage lenders to provide financing for the project. The question then becomes; how much do you know about contract law and mortgage financing? What are the most important elements of a contract and how does that impact you as a buyer or seller? This series of articles is generally drawn from my E-Report (101 Real Estate Tips for homebuyers, sellers and money borrowers). The report is designed as a crash course to provide you the information you need to know to protect your legal and financial interests whether you are a homebuyer or seller. This series of articles will touch upon the information you should know to keep from making blatantly stupid mistakes that could hurt you legally and financially and we’ll try to have some fun in the process…

About the Author:
Jim Hart - If you would like to receive a FREE copy of my E-Report: 101 Tips For Homebuyers, Sellers And Money Borrowers, go to smart Books website, send us an email and requesting a copy and we’ll send it to your email address within 24 hours-absolutely free-Another Ezine Articles Exclusive! Don’t forget to say you saw it at Ezine! Stay tuned!

SMART BOOKS WEBSITE: http://www.smart67.com
FREE PRODUCT: Article offer-free per email request for one week.

If you are in dire need of money and don’t have the financial means for a large cash transaction to buy a house, then opting for a home mortgage is worth consideration.

Basically, a mortgage refers to a long-standing credit that a debtor obtains from a financial institution or from a property seller.

In most cases, the house is the usual collateral for the mortgage, thus the term “home mortgage”. In turn, the mortgage lender will be entitled to some legal rights upon the property as long as the mortgage is in full force or until the debtor pays back the loan.

A home mortgage serves as security for loans, thus giving the lender the power to acquire the property through foreclosure in the event that the borrower fails to pay the loan on time.

Generally, a home mortgage is comprised of a large loan. That’s why in most cases a home mortgage can take 15 to 30 years before the borrower can pay back the due amount.

In a home mortgage, the due amount to be paid by the borrower stipulates the principal amount of the mortgage and the interest owed relative to the outstanding balance. The real estate taxes and property insurance are also factored into the total mortgage balance.

Some home owners who find it difficult to make their mortgage payments may opt for refinancing of their mortgage. But for those who wish to pay off a home mortgage quickly, there are things to be considered…

First, make sure you have a stable source of income. Organize your overall financial assets to ensure that paying off your mortgage will not over-extend your cash flow. There are many such considerations that should be carefully planned and organized before resorting to pay-off your home mortgage.

It’s also important to your financial security to have a ready reserve of cash just in case of emergencies. This can be in the form of stocks and bonds, a bank savings account, or any other readily available form of cash.

Paying off your home mortgage can be a rewarding experience, but be sure to consider your overall financial status before making the decision to do so. The wrong decision can put you at great financial risk.

If you think that you are ready for the mortgage “experience” and that you have your finances securely organized, then by all means, go for it. After all, nothing beats a worry-free, mortgage-free financial status.

By: Raynor James

Many communities have associations for homeowners, property owners, condo owners, or similar associations. The presence of a homeowners association, also known as “HOA”, introduces another layer of rules and regulations to consider when buying a home. Some people love these associations and some hate them.

Homeowners’ Associations

Some associations have very simple rules such as no abandoned, non-working motor vehicles and no grass above ten inches tall are allowed. Others have architectural review boards that must approve your paint scheme before you can repaint your house. I’m serious.

I was once looking at a townhouse with a potential buyer, and a neighbor knocked on the door to hand deliver a notice that the door had been painted without permission (it was a deep, wine red). The notice went on to state that the door would have to be returned to its original dark green color or an exception applied for within ten days. Although she liked the townhouse, the potential buyer decided she did not want to live with this sort of micromanagement.

Some associations add a significant amount of cost to the home purchase via high monthly, quarterly or annual dues payments. An aggressive association may also attempt to issue levies on homeowners for improvement projects. My husband and I once looked at a penthouse condo on the outer banks of North Carolina. I was reviewing the annual budget for the condo association, and noticed a twelve thousand dollar per unit levy made during the prior year. I asked about it and was told that it “depends upon the ‘beach push’ situation.” Further questioning elicited the information that when hurricanes or severe storms eroded the beach, fresh sand had to be brought in. Not only did it have to be brought in, it had to be pushed up into dunes and the dunes planted with sea oats and grasses! I am all for preserving the environment, but the twelve thousand dollar levy certainly made me nervous.

If you are considering a property controlled by an association, watch out for the following:

1. Sometimes associations limit what pets owners may have

2. If the association allows pets, it may limit the hours they can be outside.

3. Parking places may be assigned coupled with an aggressive towing policy.

Some associations maintain pools, tennis courts, elevators, trash collection, snow removal, grounds maintenance, provide bus or limo service, concierge service, and in general make life pleasant and trouble free. While these are nice benefits, make sure you are comfortable with the costs associated with them.

Look Before You Leap

So, as you can see, whether your concern is protecting the value of your investment (no junk cars), maintaining your freedom to choose (you want an eggplant door, a place to park the company truck, and/or to build an addition with a family room and a new kitchen), it’s very wise to check out those things which can limit your control and increase the cost of home ownership before you buy.

About the Author:
Raynor James is with the FSBO site - http://www.fsboamerica.org - FSBO homes for sale by owner. Visit our “sell my home” page - http://www.fsboamerica.org/seller.cfm - to sell your house yourself with a free 1 month listing.