Appraisal Scoop

Selling Your Home Yourself – Pricing It Appropriately

When you’re selling your own property, whether it’s a house, townhouse, condo, apartment, a finished lot, raw land, a farm, a ranch, or whatever, the first thing to get right is the price you ask for it. If you work with a broker, the legwork is done for you. When you work as a FSBO (for sale by owner), you need to figure it out yourself. Let’s look at how to do just that.

Setting a Price: First, don’t make the mistake of looking only at what you need to get out of it. It’s important to know that, of course, but that number may, or may not, have any relationship whatsoever to market price. It may be lower or higher than market price. The first is situation is great. The latter may require you to rethink whether you want to sell your property at this time.

If you price your property below market price, it’ll be snapped up quickly. The problem, of course, is you’ll leave a lot of money on the table. This will lead to a lot of seller’s remorse.

If you price your property above market price, it may sit there unsold until the cows come home. If it’s priced very much above market price, people won’t even come and look at it. The market place talks and it talks loudly.

So What’s Your Goal? Click below for the rest of the story . . .

Hold My Calls, I’m Too Busy Blogging

“Hold My Calls, I’m Too Busy Blogging”, is what blogoholics say. Sounds familiar. Hmmm? If you love the Office, you’ll love PhilTube. Check out this great YouTube video over on the Sellsius Real Estate blog - Click here.

Broker Asks - How Much Are Values Going UP In Your Area?

That's a question that I get posed frequently when I answer "Comp Check" calls from out-of-town loan brokers that are working from a borrower's old appraisal.   I hear the question and wonder: "Do you even READ the newspapers or watch TV?!"

According RealEstateABC: Nationally, the median average sales price dropped 2.22% from the same period last year. The smallest drop occurred in the South with prices down 1.6%. Prices were down 2.31% in the Midwest, down 4.32% in the West, and down 5.13% in the Northeast.

The median price is that price where half the homes sold for a higher price and half sold for a lower price.  Data Source: National Association of Realtors

And if the "numbers" don't tell the story, maybe the graphs will? . . . .

Cash Back at Closing Strictly Illegal!

Ralph R. Roberts writes in his article: Cash Back at Closing? Strictly Illegal! - Cash-back deals are stitched into the fabric of the U.S. economy. manufacturers promote products with cash rebates. Credit card companies offer cash back on purchases. Even banks dangle cash-back deals to attract new customers. Now real estate con artists have jumped on the cash-back bandwagon, and plenty of home buyers--and even some real estate professionals--are falling for these schemes. Click here for an example.

On first glance, cash back at closing looks like a win-win situation. The buyer pays a little more for a property than it’s worth, and the seller agrees to return the surplus cash to the buyer, who can then use it to pay off outstanding debt or renovate the property. The seller gets close to or better than the asking price, the real estate agent gets a bigger commission, the loan officer chalks up another successful loan, and the lender scores a larger loan and stands to earn more interest over the life of the loan.

Unfortunately, cash back at closing schemes are illegal and potentially damaging to the lender, who is fooled into making a risky loan. “And lenders aren't the only losers,” warns real estate and mortgage fraud expert Ralph R. Roberts. “Buyers can be tricked into buying more house than they can afford. Click below to read on . . .

Sales of 14 upscale homes at well-above-market prices raise suspicions of flipping in Ohio

Geoff Dutton of The Columburs Dispatch reports:  "The peculiar but tempting offers sometimes came a year or more after homeowners planted for-sale signs in their front yards."

"Interested buyers suddenly appeared, proposing to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars more than the asking price for houses in some of central Ohio’s elite neighborhoods, including Muirfield Village and Tartan Fields."

"The catch: the sellers must agree to immediately refund the difference between the asking price and the sale price. "  Click here for the complete article.

Additionl Resource: Are kickbacks at closing illegal?  Read Ralph R. Robert's article - click here.

Time Management and Multi-Tasking For Appraisers

Ninety-five percent of the problems you and I have in the area of time management are not really about managing time at all. What most of us call time management is really about managing our attitude.

According to Darryl Davis' article for Realty Times:

" . . .time management is really an attitude issue, not a technique issue. By attitude, I'm talking about being truly focused on and enthusiastic about your goals."

"When you're really passionate about your goals, your vision, your next level, etc., you'll automatically do the most productive things to achieve those goals. Without the proper attitude, the best techniques in the world won't have much impact."

Click here for more on the Fundamental Concepts of Time Management

Appraising Log Homes 101

  According to American Log Mortgage, "One of the most misunderstood parts of the financing process for log homes is the appraisal. Many borrowers do not understand the appraisal process, therefore they do not ask any questions of their prospective lender when they are shopping. Often people will only learn the impact of the appraisal after their chosen lender wastes weeks or months and ultimately cannot complete the financing."

American Log Mortgage has prepared the following tips (click below) to help you better understand the appraisal process and possibly avoid some of the common roadblocks. . . .

FSI: Fraud Scheme Investigation

Interthinx™ and leading mortgage professionals have teamed up across competitive boundaries to develop a fraud prevention training video that will help the industry thwart the expansion of mortgage fraud schemes nationwide.

Frederick Cabanes aka "Appraiser Dennis Outlaw" (pictured above) is just one of the characters in the FSI: Fraud Scheme Investigation project sponsored by Interthinx™

Click below for more information on ordering a free DVD . . .

Entering the Collateral Era: A Perspective on Where the Industry is Headed

Volumes have been written about real estate speculation, especially in residential real estate—with good reason. Residential real estate has become the major asset for many Americans. Yet the popular media characterizes the market as over priced, highly leveraged, and ready for a decline. Many market commentators have termed the market “frothy” at best and a “bubble” at worst.

Given these issues and widespread discussion about too much leverage in residential real estate, one important question is “What’s a lender to do to thrive in today’s market?”

According to FNC CEO Bill Rayburn's article (click here)

The answer is simple. Lenders must continue what they do best: making loans. It continues to be the major income generator for them. Interest income from loans accounts for most of a lenders income. Residential mortgage lending has grown into a significant portion of most lenders’ businesses.

Click here for the full article.

Your Business Needs Someone To Be the Boss

If you're married to your business, it's time to get a divorce.

Being a sole proprietor means you're in charge and the buck stops at your door — and no one else's. If you're married to your business, take my advice: Get a divorce. Your business doesn't need a husband; it needs someone to be the boss.

Marriages are for partners; businesses are for bosses. (I'm talking about sole owners here — partnerships are a different matter.) Being in a marriage means making decisions together with a partner; owning a business by yourself means you're in charge. No one takes the same risks, no one has equal responsibility. The buck stops at your door and no one else's. An employee who can't listen to the boss can't be part of the business.

Source: REMODELING Magazine - Click here for the full article.