The Heart of the Home

Kitchens are not what they used to be when I was growing up. Back then kitchens were utilitarian spaces. We had our slide in electric ranges, a refrigerator, generally with the freezer on top and Formica counter tops. No one thought about industrial type appliances, granite counters and multiple refrigerators. How the times have changed. Our kitchens have become focal points of the house, rooms to entertain in and show off the latest gadgets. We linger around the island (if we are fortunate enough to have an island). And now with the prevalence of granite we are seeing more modest price ranges include granite as a selling point to attract those elusive buyers. So when choosing granite for this dynamic space what are some ground rules. I learned this from a decorator and substantiated by a kitchen re-modeler that the drama in the kitchen can be either on the top or in the back splash BUT don't do both. If you have a more dramatic granite selection with rich veins choose a more modest back splash design and same goes with the back splash.

What about granite tiles? I think the buyer's opinion on this issue speaks volumes. Depending on the price range granite tiles are non-starters. For a modest price range this will work, but if your home is north of $300,000 and you decide to do granite tiles as a quick update, this does not go over well with the buyer. The last thing you want, as a seller, is the buyer walking out of your home mocking your hard work and investment.

Kitchens offer more than a room to prepare a meal, they tell a whole new story!

A Kitchen Facelift

We made some great changes to this beautiful kitchen with the help of Laurie Flatt from Casa La Bella. The subtle changes added value and pop to this great space. Here was a surprise hint from Laurie:" Don't be afraid to paint the oak cabinets." The island went from stained oak to a rich mushroom color that makes the room. The new counters added the flair that the island needed.

Rain nor sleet nor Relocation??

No wonder stamps cost so much! The US postal service lost big bucks on relocating employees homes even the real big ones...over $1M!! Ouch...

Rainy Christmas Eve in Waukesha County

The Squirrels Never Had a Chance

My wife and I bought this squirrel feeder from Wild Birds Unlimited in Delafield for my parents back yard this Christmas. As you can see the Blue Jay is hogging all the peanuts. The squirrels never had a chance to get their little paws on the goods--poor guys. Dad said that the Blue Jays were lined up to take their respective turns on the wreath. As soon as one left the next flew in for some goodies. In less than 2 hours they had consumed half of this wreath. I hope you had a good Christmas and just enjoyed the fun with family or friends.

This is not Real Estate Related

From time to time it is nice to depart from all things Real Estate. A friend of mine recommended this book, "Stumbling on Happiness" by Daniel Gilbert. I checked our local bookstore Books & Company to obtain my copy. They are not paying me for this endorsement, but I prefer to shop locally, if I can and I really like brick and mortar business'. Besides I figured that if I had waited 3 months to get around to the purchase I could easily wait another day for the book to come in, so I placed my order. I know that is a bunch of useless information but oh well. The book has an interesting premise--What really makes us happy? Or conversely what makes us unhappy? The first chapter is engaging and I will report what I think about this book, not that anyone is really interested. Blogging is a fascinating thing. More Later...

One of the worries of professionals in my industry is that rates will go up forcing some potential home buyers from the market. The 30 year fixed rates averaged 4.81% as of December 10, 2009 up from last weeks average of 4.71%. While the rate is still low, compared to last year, the fear is that banks will have to raise rates since the Fed indicated that they will reduce the amount of mortgage paper they are buying by March 2010. This shift to the private sector has some worried that rates could climb at least 1% perhaps even 2% over the current low rates. That combined with tightening credit is giving everyone the jitters. Please see the Wall Street Journal Article.

Oconomowoc School District Links

As a parent I am very proud of our school system in Lake Country. I thought a few web-links would be helpful for those parents who have not found the OASD (Oconomowoc Area School District) site or for those of you who are thinking about moving into our area. Oconomowoc Schools Media presentation is a colorful look at the School District.

OAC Box Office is a great site to save to your favorites on your computer. From this site you can purchase tickets for events at the OAC (Oconomowoc Arts Center). Having attended quite a few of the "non-professional" presentations I honestly don't know why they are called non-professional, because the kids rock. The signing, dancing, choreography, set design are all professional! It is truly amazing to watch.

If your child desires to go beyond spanish as a language and comes home one day and says, "nǐ hǎo" or Good Morning in Mandarin Chinese, they can learn this exotic language right here at the Oconomowoc High School. Scroll down on the page and you will find more information about the International Baccalaureate program or IB for short.

Do you want to know a little more about your child's teacher? Well there is a link for that as well on the staff page . Here you can quickly save the email address for easy contact.

All the athletic information from schedules to opportunites are located on the easy-to-use site. As a parent you are connected to everything your child may want to involve themselves in.

Are you moving into the area and you would like to know what Elementary or Middle School area your new home is located in? The easy to locate district map will provide you with all the information you will need.

Here's hoping this helps!

In Real Estate

Headlines for Monday December 7, 2009

House Flippers Are Back!

House Of The Day

Fed NY Pres: "The recession now appears to be over"

Baltimore Lender gets boot from FHA

Naked Santa Causes Stir

Buying a Short Sale

In today's ever changing Real Estate market, as a buyer you will undoubtedly come across a "short sale". A short sale is a process that the seller's market value of the house will no longer satisfy the current indebtedness. The banks in some cases will forgive the debt. This process is called a short sale. As a buyer there are a few factors that you should be aware of before putting in an offer on a short sale. Here is a brief list of questions to consider:

1. How many mortgages are on the property? If the seller has more than two mortgages against this property then chances of you obtaining the property in a relatively short period of time are almost nill.
2. Are there any unpaid HOA (Home Owners Association) dues? If there are the listing agent should try and work with the seller to get those paid ASAP.
3. Has the seller sent in ALL of the information that the lender has requested? If the seller has not done this and included their hardship letter then move on to the next house. This is not going anywhere. You can determine much about the sellers cooperation if they have not submitted a complete packet. Partial packets to lenders are deal killers.
4. Find out who the lender or servicer is. Some lenders/servicers are slower than others. Your Realtor should be able to assist you with this.

Just because the property is in the short sale process does not mean you shouldn't think about submitting an offer, but a little extra information before the offer can make the process easier.

Good luck in your search for the perfect home. Feel free to check out my other blog at Lake Country Blog where I regularly comment on life in Lake Country.

In Real Estate

Wells Fargo to Lay of 26 in the Falls

Foreclosure Scams in AG sights

From Versace to Chainsaws

AM Trust Shut

Partents Give Downpayment money to kids

Rates pushed lower by low housing demand

Consumers on the hunt for personal loans

Short sales made easier

What Difference Do It Make?

I recently blogged about a book I had read "Same Kind of Different as Me" by Ron Hall and Denver Moore, and how much I enjoyed the book. It is a moving story of friendship, redemption and healing. I was greatly moved by the book. The publisher saw my brief review and asked if I would be willing to read the new book that the authors penned, "What Difference Do It Make?"  I said yes. Well the book arrived today so now I need to do my part. Hopefully I can get through the book in the next few days and will post my review here. From the brief introduction it looks like it will be as good as the first book.  Developing...

Snow is Coming...Are you Ready for the Slush?

It snowed last night, not much but just enough to remind us that winter is on the way. With the snow comes slush and wet shoes. I always have a pack of shoe covers handy for each listing. Most home-owners appreciate the gesture. When buying the covers I generally like to get the universal shoe size, or one-size fits all type. These shoe covers I found to work great for the "snow season" . Most

30 Year Low for Mortgage Rates

With interest rates at a 30 year low down to 4.71% lower than last weeks reported low of 4.78% some buyers will sit on the sidelines and wonder if they will get even lower before they jump into the market. But before you hit the "snooze button" and check out remember that the market is changing quickly. If you are serious about buying your dream home, now is the time. Spring will bring other pressures to the market

Big Homes Still Hope For Buyers

I thought this was an interesting article. Click on the title to link to the MSNBC article. The Mega-Mansions those 9 figure homes, yeah you read it right, $150,000,000 asking price for Aaron Spelling's home-these big priced tag homes are feeling the pinch too in the real estate market.

You Want to Wait?

This article from the Washington Times on-line paper today states that soon the government will have to end its near total purchase of mortgages that have been generated so far this year. The extension of the first time home buyer credit will stabilize the already shaky real estate market, but only as long as the credit is available. With the eventual withdrawal from the market banks will have to pick up the slack with the mortgages. In a nutshell this means that rates will go up sometime in spring of 2010. Banks are in the business to make money and at 4.78% for a 30 year fixed note, banks generally are not too excited about these low rates. Many experts agree that rates will increase at least one percent to 6%. While this is still historically low, the increase in interest rate has a negative consequence to a buyers purchasing ability. This is what concerns most real estate experts and should most definitely concern soon-to-be home sellers. The old adage that "Spring" is the time to sell is gone in this market. If you are serious about selling NOW is the time to put your home on the market. Waiting could cost you thousands of dollars. If you would like to know more feel free to call me and we can talk, no strings attached, as to why this is the case. You can always reach me toll free at 1-888-HEY GLEN.

Q: My bank wants a hardship letter for my short sale. Can you give me some tips on what to write?

A: A hardship letter is almost always required by every lender. This letter should be brief and to the point AND it should be no longer than one page. There are three elements to this letter too. First you should apologize to the lender for being in this situation. Second your letter must state what your situation is and why you are having trouble making your payments and finally the letter must indicate that you have exhausted all other efforts to resolve the situation. It goes without saying, but this should be all true. Don't make the mistake of writing more than one page. You will be submitting a lot of information along with the hardship letter and you want the loss mitigation department to actually read this letter. Keep it simple and direct.

Q: Someone at work mentioned that if I was behind in my mortgage payments I could do a short sale. What is this?

A. A short sale is an agreement between you, the homeowner, and the bank to forgive a portion of your loan balance. For instance, if your mortgage is for $300,000 and the best price you can obtain for the sale of your home is $275,000, the bank may be willing to agree to forgive the $25,000 on your note. There are conditions to this. If you find yourself in this situation it is always a good idea to get good counsel from an attorney. Each lender has different requirements for a short sale, but if you are contemplating this route you will need to contact your lender and ask for a short sale package. The package will have requirements of what you need to submit to the bank before they will consider a short sale. Here is an important point. Whatever the bank asks for give it to them. This is not the time to argue with the lenders requirements. Short sales are growing in popularity and can be good options for homeowners in trouble who want to avoid foreclosure.

Beware of the Foreclosure Scam

How could it possibly get worse? If you are in pre-foreclosure or foreclosure please be aware that there are scam artists out there who will prey on you in your distress. They will send you correspondence that looks like it came from your bank asking you to send your payment, partial payment or fee to this "specific department" at the bank. All sorts of promises will be made to you about the process and your ability to stay in your home. Meanwhile the real lender is not receiving the payments pushing you into further trouble. When in doubt call your bank or your attorney, but don't fall for these sick scams. Watch this blog for more tips on the foreclosure process.

3 Common Mistakes a Seller Makes

There are three typical mistakes a seller makes when hiring a Realtor to list their home for sale. Avoiding these can save you money and lots of hassle.

First and foremost, sellers often think they know more than the agent they are hiring. Here is a good tip; If this IS the case then find a true expert. The real pro's in real estate are highly engaged in the business and are watching trends daily if not hourly. Unless, as a seller, you are in real estate, chances are you are not as up to speed as you think.

Second, and this really goes with the first rule, if you don't trust your agent you are probably in for a rough selling season and have a greater chance of leaving money on the table. The really good agents, the pros, will not list your home for what you want. They will suggest a listing price that will work in the market and will be perfectly willing to NOT take the listing if you want more than it is really worth. The sellers who get trapped by the "this is what my house is worth" notion generally loose out big time.

Third, and this is the big one, listen to your agent. The selling process is complicated and there are other factors besides price that can cost you big bucks. Just focusing on price is short sighted and you may miss other variables in the contract.

In this market some buyers give a seller only one shot at the offer. You need to make the most of every opportunity you have and the pro's know how to make the best of every opportunity.