The Best Time Of Year To Sell A Home

Saturday, January 09, 2010

by Victoria Brink & Associates

The Best Time Of Year To Sell A Home

Francesca Levy, 12.24.09, 04:00 PM EST

Homeowners should buck the conventional wisdom about selling in the spring.

The Best Time Of Year To Sell A Home

Putting a home on the market in this grim real-estate climate might seem like lunacy considering how heavily the market favors buyers. Home prices are down 28% from their national peak in the second quarter of 2006, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index, which tracks sales in 20 major housing markets. Still, listing a home during certain months can improve a seller's odds.

Late spring and summer are usually thought of as the best times to put a home on the market because buyer demand builds steadily through spring. Sales then peak during the warmest months, when it's easiest for families to move without uprooting their children from school. But this year, experts predict that the selling boom, which normally starts in spring, will hit at a different time than it has in the past. Sellers with flexibility should market their homes earlier in the year.

In Depth: Home-Selling Tips For 2010

According to data from Zillow.com, an online real-estate database, the volume of home sales was highest in June, July or August every year since 2000. This year, however, an $8,000 credit for those buying their first home--that expires on June 30, 2010 and requires buyers to have closed on a home by April 30, 2010--will force buyers to speed up their decisions. Historically low interest rates also suggest that sellers will face a busier market as early as February.

“This year, we're anticipating sales will peak earlier,” says Nicole Hall, editor in chief of Lendingtree.com, an online mortgage comparison service. “The best time to get your house on the market will be February or early March, and maybe even earlier if you want to avoid competition.”

The Economy Upsets Seasonal Trends
House hunting may have traditionally sped up after March, but nothing about the last few years in real estate has been traditional. In 2008, sales failed to pick up with their usual gusto in late winter because the financial crisis cast a shadow of fear over buyers, and lending seized up.

“Between the fall of 2008 and March of 2009, there was a long dead period in real estate,” says Ken Shuman, spokesman for the real estate Web site Trulia.com. “You don't want to buy a house if you don't have job security, and a lot of people had jobs but didn't feel too secure about them.”

2009 didn't follow typical trends, either. Fall, when sales usually plummet, saw more sales activity than usual this year because of the introduction of the government's tax credit, which was initially set to expire on Nov. 30, 2009.

Improving the Odds
Granted, some sellers have no choice but to sell at a slow time of year. Job relocation and the need to free up assets are facts of life that can deprive families of the luxury of waiting until the peonies bloom to put their homes on the market.

But Hall says that there are ways to improve your chances of a sale if you have to list your home late in the year, like playing up holiday decorations and shoveling walkways to maximize curb appeal. She adds that selling at this point in the cycle isn't always the worst fate.

“Look at how you can turn it to your advantage. Maybe because you're forced to sell at a different time, there will be less competition,” she says. “Also, be realistic about your price. If you know you're selling at a tough time, it can be a tough call, but you might have to drop that price a little.”

Shuman and Hall agree that the season shouldn't be the only factor homeowners consider when getting ready to sell. Paying attention to the vagaries of the local real-estate market, where inventory and prices can fluctuate week to week, will offer more guidance to sellers than simple seasonal trends.

“Check out your local inventory,” says Hall. “Read the housing-market blogs, follow the local market really carefully, and look at the unemployment rate. That will make a big difference.”

For smart sellers, Shuman and Hall agree, taking a chance and starting the sale process earlier will reap distinct benefits in 2010.

“The beginning of the year is going to be make-it-or-break-it,” says Shuman. “If you're a seller, get your property listed as early in the year as you can.”

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Anchorage Real Estate

New Listing 20544 Driftwood Bay

Saturday, January 09, 2010

by Victoria Brink & Associates

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Anchorage Alaska Real Estate

Last Chance to sign up and win of of two giveaways!

Friday, January 08, 2010

by Victoria Brink & Associates

Click Here To Enter

It is time for our Annual Brink And Associates Giveaway!!

Winners to be annonced tonight on January 8th 2010, This giveaway is open to anyone who wants to enter as long as you are over 18. This year we are doing the following for two Lucky winners!!!

1. We will donate 100.00 to the charity of your choice in your name.

Or you could win.....

2. A one hour massage to help remove the stress of winter.

Click Here To Enter

Brought to you by Victoria and Ron Brink with Keller Williams Realty Alaska Group

www.akbrinkteam.com

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Anchorage Real Estate

Last Day to Sign Up For A Chance To Win!

Friday, January 08, 2010

by Victoria Brink & Associates

Click Here To Enter

It is time for our Annual Brink And Associates Giveaway!!

Winners to be annonced tonight on January 8th 2010, This giveaway is open to anyone who wants to enter as long as you are over 18. This year we are doing the following for two Lucky winners!!!

1. We will donate 100.00 to the charity of your choice in your name.

Or you could win.....

2. A one hour massage to help remove the stress of winter.

Click Here To Enter

Brought to you by Victoria and Ron Brink with Keller Williams Realty Alaska Group

www.akbrinkteam.com

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Anchorage Alaska Real Estate

REOs are risky business

Monday, January 04, 2010

by Victoria Brink & Associates

REOs are risky business

Part 1: Pitfalls of bank-owned listings

By Bernice Ross, Monday, January 4, 2010.

Inman News

Editor's note: This is Part 1 of a two-part series.

Bank-owned, foreclosed properties -- also known as REOs -- represent a huge opportunity for real estate agents and buyers alike, but can also pose a huge risk for your business.

Chances are you have seen an REO training ad proclaiming: "I just received over 100 listings from XYZ lender." Before you decide to devote time and money to working with REOs, carefully consider the dark side of listing and selling REO properties.

1. You can get paid for doing a "BPO"
Many trainers suggest that a good way to begin building an REO business is to provide a lender with "BPOs" (broker price opinions). BPOs are more complex than normal CMAs (competitive market analyses) and require agents to follow very specific guidelines. Lenders typically pay $50 to $80 for a BPO.

Money pit: There are several issues you must address before providing a BPO to a lender. A number of states allow only licensed appraisers to complete BPOs. In other states, only licensed brokers may complete BPOs. Check with your broker as well as your state's department of real estate to determine what is legal in your state. If not, you could put your license at risk.

Even if it is legal for you to do BPOs in your state, a thorough BPO can easily take three hours to complete. Are you willing to work for $17 an hour until an asset manager finally decides to hire you? Or would your time be better spent in some other lead-generation activity?

2. The lender just listed a new REO with you and wants a written report detailing the condition of the property before setting the final price.
This sounds like a perfectly reasonable request, especially if the lender is outside your area. What harm could come from that?

Money pit: The moment you put any statement in writing about the condition of an REO property, you have placed yourself in a very precarious position. Are you really qualified to say that the brown stain on the ceiling is due to a roof leak and not from a beehive in the attic? Are you qualified to say that the foundation is sound?

The way to address this issue is to hire an inspector to check out the property in detail. The challenge, however, is the lender may expect you to pay for it. Once you have an inspection report, most states require that you disclose items on the report to potential buyers

In the past, I had lenders who paid for inspection reports and then refused to disclose the report to the buyers. They also instructed me not to reveal any items on the report. Their reasoning? They were exempt from filling out a disclosure statement. This is the kind of mess that results in litigation.

Because I was obligated to disclose any "material facts" pertaining to the condition of the property, my only choice was to make the disclosures in the report or to give the listing back to the lender. Failure to make the appropriate disclosures can result in costly litigation and possibly loss of your real estate license.

3. The utility reimbursement trap
When many agents take an REO listing they agree to switch on the utilities in their name. If you are listing multiple REO properties, you need a strong accounting system to track utilities and other expenses.

Because most agents lack an accounting background, they are unfamiliar with how to set up this type of system. If you're not already running on QuickBooks or some other robust accounting system, you will either have to set up the system yourself or hire someone to handle it for you. You will also have to determine how to organize payment tracking.

One approach is to set up each property as a separate category. You can then create subcategories for various types of expenses such as utilities, rekeying, cleanup, etc. You must also track reimbursable expenses separately from your normal marketing expenses.

Money pit: The real issue is having your expenses reimbursed. Many lenders have a 30- to 60-day window in which to submit for reimbursement. If you miss the window, you don't get paid. To circumvent this issue, submit your bills the day you receive them. Some lenders, however, require that you wait until you have incurred $250 in bills before they will accept a reimbursement request.

There are numerous online complaints from agents who were never reimbursed for REO expenses they incurred. Their expense statement was "lost," "never received," "wasn't properly documented," or "didn't make the deadline." Even if you make the deadline, the lender may not reimburse you until the end of its billing cycle, which is usually at least 30 days and can often be longer.

Making matters even worse, you may not get reimbursed at all if the lender is taken over by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) or purchased by another bank. Needless to say, if you make errors in the accounting, you also risk having issues with both the bank and the IRS.

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Anchorage Foreclosures

Lower home appraisals appear to be up

Monday, January 04, 2010

by Victoria Brink & Associates

Lower home appraisals appear to be up

Deals get killed as foreclosures, short sales make valuing property difficult

	Appraisers like Katherine Scheri set the value of a home — and can torpedo a deal if that value is too low. View related photos
Reed Saxon / AP

updated 1:26 p.m. HT, Sun., Jan. 3, 2010

LOS ANGELES - It wasn't the first time that Katherine Scheri ruined a real estate agent's day with a low property appraisal.

Scheri, a real estate appraiser, had sized up a three-bedroom, two-bath house in Santa Ana, Calif., for $30,000 less than what the buyers offered to pay. A typical deal-killer for a seller.

The agent urged the lender to force Scheri to consider several other properties that could back up the original $310,000 sale price. Then he tried good old-fashioned guilt, telling Scheri her appraisal was going to ruin the buyers' shot at the American Dream.

"That's what he laid on me," Scheri recalled. "And I said, 'Don't you care they could be potentially spending $30,000 too much for a house?"

Across the country, agents and homebuilders are complaining too many appraisals are coming in low, scuttling deals.

The National Association of Realtors says nearly one in four of its members has reported clients losing a sale due to botched appraisals. The National Association of Home Builders, meanwhile, said low appraisals were sinking a quarter of all new home sales and argues it's not fair to compare distressed properties to brand-new homes.

And that gets to the heart of the problem.

Roughly 40 percent of all home sales this year were foreclosures or short sales, meaning the property sold for less than the mortgage. In some markets, like Las Vegas and Phoenix, they've hit more than 50 percent.

Appraisers determine the value of a property by looking at recent sales of comparable homes. They take an apples-to-apples approach, excluding or making adjustments for certain features, such as a swimming pool or finished basement. And generally, a foreclosure isn't used as a comparison for a standard sale.

But in some areas, appraisers like Scheri contend they are only sizing up homes according to the reality of the market, though they concede its becoming increasingly harder pinpoint what a home is worth.

Home prices in many large metro areas, including Los Angeles and San Diego, hit bottom earlier this year and are recovering, data last week showed. Yet there are many neighborhoods across the country where foreclosures and other financially distressed sales are still rising.

"It used to be a very infrequent thing that you did an appraisal and the value wasn't supported," says Scheri, who is based in San Diego. "Now, it's more common than not."

So, if you're trying to sell your home in a neighborhood where foreclosures and short sales are predominant, an appraiser could determine your home is actually worth less than what some buyers may be willing to pay.

Part of the problem, critics contend, is that many real estate appraisers are now hired under new industry rules. Designed to limit conflicts of interest that can bias an appraisal, the rules bar mortgage brokers from ordering appraisals themselves, forcing them to do so through a mortgage lender.

Lenders may order appraisals through in-house staff or appraisers hired by outside firms known as appraisal-management companies. But neither may talk to the appraisers about the value of the property they're evaluating.

The result, however, can mean that low-cost appraisers are hired from outside the area and don't have the local knowledge to find homes that can be a better benchmark for regular homes.

Chris Heller, agent-owner of Keller Williams Realty in northern San Diego, recently had the sale of a home nearly botched for the second time because of a low appraisal.

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Anchorage Real Estate

Housing allowance drops for most ranks of Military

Saturday, January 02, 2010

by Victoria Brink & Associates

Housing allowance drops for most ranks

MILITARY: Rate won't decrease for those who already live here.

By MEGAN HOLLAND
mholland@adn.com

Published: January 2nd, 2010 09:22 PM
Last Modified: January 2nd, 2010 09:23 PM

Senior Airman Tinese Jackson has come to rely on her housing allowance to pay for more than just her East Anchorage apartment. She and her husband, also stationed at Elmendorf Air Force Base, use the money to pay for day care for their daughter, credit card bills, car payments and whatever other expenses come their way. Some months, they put a little aside for savings.

Click to enlarge

"It's good to have that supplemental income, it's helpful," she said.

If Jackson and her husband were to move to Anchorage in 2010, though, things would be tighter.

Most military personnel in the country are seeing a slight increase to their housing allowances, the Defense Department says. But in Anchorage, most ranks are seeing a decrease for 2010.

The allowances won't fall for service members already in Anchorage because they are protected by a grandfather clause that locks in the higher allowance. But most moving to Elmendorf or the Fort Richardson Army post will see less money per month than their predecessors, according to the new Defense Department schedule released recently.

For example, a midlevel enlisted soldier or airman ranked an E-6 was allotted $1,961 a month in 2009 to pay for housing him and his family in Anchorage. But if he were to move to the city in 2010, he would pull in $1,836, a drop of $125 a month. A junior officer without dependents now gets $1,486 a month; those assigned to Anchorage next year will get $1,428.

The housing allowance is not decreasing for all ranks, however. A senior officer, such as a lieutenant colonel with a family, will see a 15 percent increase from $2,567 to $2,958 per month.

How much someone gets depends on his rank and whether he has dependents, with every location in the United States calculated differently depending on the real estate market. Anchorage, generally, has the lowest housing allowance of the Alaska locations. The Anchorage rate is much higher than the allowance in Fayetteville, Ark., but much lower than the San Francisco allowance.

On average, the department is raising housing allowances by about 2.5 percent across the country.

THOUSANDS LIVE OFF BASE

By the Defense Department's analysis, the Anchorage rental market is both up and down. It says rental costs on some properties, like four-bedroom houses, are up, while others, like two-bedroom apartments, are down.

Thousands of military members live off base. There are 6,000 airmen assigned to Elmendorf and 2,800 housing units. For Fort Richardson, there are about 6,400 soldiers and 4,200 housing units.

Service members compose a noticeable portion of the Anchorage real estate market, especially in East Anchorage and Eagle River, real estate experts say. Landlords like renting to military members because they get a steady paycheck, tend to look after the property, are generally well-behaved and pay their rent on time -- if they don't landlords can call their commanding officers, said real estate agent Eva Loken, with Prudential Jack White Vista Real Estate.

Many service members come to rely on the tax-free housing allowance as a boost to their pay.

PINCHED BY UTILITIES

Why the Defense Department has trimmed some of the housing allowances is confusing to some, like Suzanne Cool, who manages rental properties in Eagle River for Prudential Jack White Vista Real Estate.

"We really depend on the military for rentals. The bulk of my tenants are military tenants," she said. But while she says rents have stayed relatively static over the past few years, the cost of living, mostly the cost of utilities, has stretched some military families too thin. For many, she said, the housing allowance doesn't cover the costs.

"It's really hard to make those house payments and pay the utilities," she said.

Economist Caroline Schultz, who follows the Anchorage rental market for the state Department of Labor, said that since 2000, Anchorage rents have not dropped. And it is unlikely they will drop in 2010.

"Rent prices rarely fall without some kind of economic calamity, especially in large markets like Anchorage," Schultz wrote in an e-mail.

"If the economy really deteriorates, it is possible that housing costs could fall in Anchorage, but the stars would really have to align."

She also said that after looking at the Defense Department's data, it looks as if its housing allowance made big increases from 2008 to 2009 and it is "scaling those down a little."

As for Jackson, she's looking forward to her next assignment, which she'll hear about in February. She and her husband are requesting an Air Force base in Georgia.

She knows the housing allowance will probably be significantly less than in Anchorage, but she is looking forward to a cheaper cost of living.

The housing allowance will be the first thing she looks at once she gets that assignment, she said. It will make all the difference to her and her husband on whether they live on base or off base, and whether they can afford to buy their own home.

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Anchorage military elmendorf

State senator calls for gas price regulation

Thursday, December 31, 2009

by Victoria Brink & Associates

State senator calls for gas price regulation

A state senator says Alaska oil refineries have been gouging Alaskans at the gas pump for more than a year, reaping profit margins unparalleled to ones in the Lower 48, and he is once again calling for government to step in.

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Alaska Anchorage Oil

State senator calls for gas price regulation

Thursday, December 31, 2009

by Victoria Brink & Associates

State senator calls for gas price regulation

A state senator says Alaska oil refineries have been gouging Alaskans at the gas pump for more than a year, reaping profit margins unparalleled to ones in the Lower 48, and he is once again calling for government to step in.

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Alaska Anchorage Oil

Buy a Home NOW or Wait ?

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

by Victoria Brink & Associates

Buy a Home NOW or Wait ?

That really is the million dollar question. Should I buy a house now, or should I wait and see if prices fall ? But what if interest rates go up (per Bernanke's 60 Minutes interview in March, 09) then where do I stand ? This chart REALLY shows the benefits of buying a home now vs waiting.