Open House from Creators Syndicate

Area Real Estate MLS Systems will move to Nationwide Databases for 08/25/2008

Mon, 25 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Multiple Listing Service (MLS) organizations may soon change, dramatically. These local and regional groups, where information about currently available properties are cooperatively pooled into one source, have productively served consumers and real estate professionals since the late 1800s.

Most MLS groups are owned and operated by local Boards of Realtors, affiliated with the National ...

Updated: Mon Aug 25, 2008

Home Buyers Return to Real Estate Market with Lower Prices for 09/01/2008

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Sales of existing single-family homes are on the rise in an increasingly large proportion of the country. During July, sales rose to the highest level in five months, surprising many analysts.

The primary reason for the increasing sales volume is pegged to lower prices.

This was revealed in a recent survey and report from the National Association of Realtors. Only about one-quarte ...

Updated: Mon Sep 01, 2008

Inflated Home Appraisals Add to Current Housing Market Issues for 09/08/2008

Mon, 08 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Inflated appraisals of residential properties have contributed to our recent housing problems. Appraisers who report unlikely high home values must carry much of the blame for today's mortgage and housing woes.

Only too often, appraisers feel they must "hit a value" given to them in order to make a mortgage application approval. The targeted worth is sometimes substantially mor ...

Updated: Mon Sep 08, 2008

Tiny Condos Provide First-Time Buyers with Affordable, Downtown Residences for 09/15/2008

Mon, 15 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Mini-condos are becoming hot properties in today's market.

Small condominium units, usually located in downtown areas, are being offered and planned at projects throughout the country. Some are as tiny as 250 square feet — that's about as small as a residence can be.

The demand for these tiny condos is tied to economics. The unit prices allow more renters to enjoy the benefi ...

Updated: Mon Sep 15, 2008

FHA Home Mortgages are making a Comeback for 09/22/2008

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

At the risk of revealing my age, I'll share that the first home my bride and I owned was purchased for $10,700. It was new and nice, but a modest two-bedroom home located in my hometown of Des Moines, Iowa. We financed it with an FHA home loan.

In those days, a majority of home financing was done with mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). But later the popularity ...

Updated: Mon Sep 22, 2008

New Auction Course Helps Auctioneers and Realtors Join Forces for 09/29/2008

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Selling homes via auctions is the most rapidly growing technique for marketing residential real estate. For the first time, the nation's top real estate brokerage association is teaming with the top auctioning organization to launch a new auctioning online course for Realtors.

It wasn't too long ago when Realtors viewed auctioneers as their competitors. A broker earned his commission by ...

Updated: Mon Sep 29, 2008

Sluggish Economy May Serve as an Advantage to Some Home Buyers for 10/06/2008

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

These are uncertain times for home buyers and sellers, to say the least, but tough periods sometimes bring exceptional opportunities. That applies to today's buyers.

The economy is teetering ominously on a precipice. Home prices, sales volume and mortgage interest rates are all exhibiting volatile behavior. In recent months, existing home sales showed a healthy gain in July, but declined ...

Updated: Mon Oct 06, 2008

Senior Homeowners May Want to Reconsider Reverse Mortgages for 10/13/2008

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

More senior homeowners are becoming actively interested in reverse mortgages, especially since the maximum loan amount was recently raised to $417,000 for the most popular plan — those backed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

However, there are certain downsides to signing for a reverse mortgage that seniors should consider.

Reverse mortgage loans are ...

Updated: Mon Oct 13, 2008

Housing Expenses Going Through the Roof for 10/20/2008

Mon, 20 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Housing costs for homeowners and renters are increasing at a rate substantially more than incomes are rising. If the current trend continues, we might revert back to cave homes as the next evolutionary step in housing.

Mortgage payments are just one element of rising costs, although they are the largest. A variety of other expenses also are rising, impacting all homeowners and renters. T ...

Updated: Mon Oct 20, 2008

Condos Still Prove to be Valuable in Sluggish Market for 10/27/2008

Mon, 27 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Condominiums are holding their own — price wise and in sales volume — in most markets throughout the country. They are becoming the residence-of-choice for increasing numbers of buyers.

Condo values have been notably resilient, while other housing types have seen considerable drops in prices nationwide, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR). In ...

Updated: Mon Oct 27, 2008

Cohousing Gains More Popularity as Way to Share Ownership for 11/03/2008

Mon, 03 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

More consumers are expressing interest in shared housing and cohousing concepts.

Considering the tightening economic squeeze affecting most families and the difficulty in qualifying for mortgage financing, the trend is not surprising. One solution: Share a housing facility with other like-minded and like-motivated people.

Shared housing is simply when two or more family groups &md ...

Updated: Mon Nov 03, 2008

Realtors Give Their Vote to High-Tech Marketing for 11/10/2008

Mon, 10 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

A fascinating array of dynamic, high-tech graphics was piped into our televisions and personal computers on Election Day. Even if we didn't fully understand the data being displayed, many of us marveled at the complexity of the sophisticated technology.

Virtual tours of homes for sale have the same impact. In fact, virtual-tour websites were the pioneers of the expanded use of dynamic gr ...

Updated: Mon Nov 10, 2008

Government Urged to Focus Bailout on Housing Industry for 11/17/2008

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Real estate organizations are putting more pressure on federal lawmakers to take stronger and decisive action to ease problems in the housing industry soon, even during the transition period between the outgoing administration of President George W. Bush and that of president-elect Barack Obama. Several leading groups are making proposals and pressing legislators to take action, including the N ...

Updated: Mon Nov 17, 2008

California Trend Gaining Popularity Elsewhere for 11/24/2008

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Home warranty contracts are growing in popularity with buyers. Even though they are an added expense when closing a sale, they the reduce risk of incurring a much greater expense during the buyer's first year of ownership.

The older the home the greater the risk of failure in one of the operating systems or appliances, which makes warranty protection more viable. This particularly applie ...

Updated: Mon Nov 24, 2008

Some Savvy Investors Still Flipping Homes for 12/01/2008

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

House flipping is still alive. The number of flippers is much smaller than it was a couple of years ago, but some determined investors are still active at the practice — and making money.

Buying bargain-priced residential properties and quickly reselling them at a profit was a huge segment of real estate market activity in the past. Some investors added cosmetic improvements to the ...

Updated: Mon Dec 01, 2008

Baby Boom Generation Follows Wanderlust Into Retirment for 12/08/2008

Mon, 08 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Retiring baby boomers are a restless lot. At least one in four individuals and couples from the baby boom generation expect to move to a more age-appropriate home in their retirement years, according to an AARP-commissioned study by Opinion Research Corp.

Most boomers say they would like to stay in their current home for as long as possible, but many feel they will most likely move to a ...

Updated: Mon Dec 08, 2008

First-Time Buyers Moving Back Into the Market for 12/15/2008

Mon, 15 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

First-time home buyers comprise a growing share of today's home selling market. That reflects the strong determination of today's young families to own their own home, even when faced with financial difficulties and a tough real estate market.

During the past year, first-time buyers accounted for 41 percent of all home sales, says a study by the National Association of Realtors. That's u ...

Updated: Mon Dec 15, 2008

More Singles Taking Advantage of Declining Market for 12/22/2008

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

An increasing number of home buyers are single adults who have decided to take advantage of today's lower prices and very low mortgage interest rates.

Singles, many of whom are recently divorced or never married, usually look for different types of homes than do their married counterparts. They look for homes that are smaller in size, and because there will be only one owner to do the ch ...

Updated: Mon Dec 22, 2008

Today's Growing Trend: Smaller Homes for 12/29/2008

Mon, 29 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

As we move into a new year, a new trend in housing is the demand for smaller homes.

Since 1970, the size of the average new home has been steadily increasing recently. Over the past 38 years, the average size has grown by about 50 percent. The average size of new homes is now 2,521 square feet, according to Steve Melman, director of economic services for the National Association of Home ...

Updated: Mon Dec 29, 2008

Home Sales Moving Into Digital Age for 01/05/2009

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0800

The next high-tech development related to real estate sales will be truly paperless transactions, including the acceptance of digitized and encrypted signatures.

Closing of a home sale could be accomplished in less than 15 minutes when the entire processing is handled electronically, according to a report carried on the National Association of Realtors' website.

“Paperless transac ...

Updated: Mon Jan 05, 2009