What a great time to BUY!

If you have been thinking about buying a house or condo, now just might be the right time to act. Prices have declined over the last year and now interest rates are hovering around 5.5%. What a great combination. Everyday, more properties are coming on the market so there is plenty to choose from. To make sure you get the one you want, work with your agent so he understands your wants and needs and can identify them as they come on the market. I make a point of understanding exactly what my clients want and love to make the phone call....we need to see this property right away, this just might be THE ONE. If you are waiting for the market to hit the bottom before you make a move, you might miss out on the great interest rates and lose money in the long run. Great rates will save you more over time than you might save from one or two more price reductions on the property. If you would like help, please contact me.

Winter Home Maintenance

It is important at this time of year to think about winter home preparation and maintenance. As the temperatures drop, your home has needs to keep it in great shape through the winter.
You should seal off your house during the colder months. Use weather stripping around doors to prevent cold air from entering and caulk around windows. Replace any cracked glass in windows or doors. If your home has a basement, invest in plastic covers for protection of the window wells. All these steps will seal off your home from the cold and help keep the cost of heating your home low. Next check the furnace. Call your heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) professional to inspect and clean your furnace. You should change your furnace filter monthly. Because the furnace will be running during the winter months, make sure all flammable materials are away from the area around the furnace. Check the fireplace to make sure that the "cap" or "screen" on the top of the chimney is closed to keep out rodents and birds. If your chimney has not been cleaned since last winter, make sure you call a chimney sweep to remove soot and creosote. Then you are ready to strike up a fire. Checking roofs, gutters and downspouts will protect your home from winter damage. Make sure to check for worn roof shingles or tiles and replace them to prevent leaks. Clean the gutters of leaves and debris, and install leaf guards onto the gutter so that water is directed away from the house. You should also trim tree branches away from the house or any electrical wires. It is also a good ideat to have working fire and carbon monoxide detectors. Test each of them to ensure they are working properly. You want to make sure that you have both detectors next to the furnace and water heater. You might consider buying a fire extinguisher or replace one that is older than 10 years, in case of emergencies. With the cold weather, freezing pipes is a homeowner's worst nightmare. To prevent pipes from freezing this winter, make sure you drain the water out of all garden hoses and air conditioner pipes. If your AC has a water shut-off valve make sure to turn it off, and remember to leave the heat on when if you are going away for the holidays. You should leave it set at 55 degrees to prevent freezing pipes. By maintaining your home you can enjoy the winter months and the holidays without the added stress of home repairs.

Short Sales

In these times, when people are faced with forclosure caused by job/income losses, a weak economy, divorce, rising adjustable mortgage rates, and illness it is helpful to know the steps the homeowner should follow to pursue a Short Sale instead of going into forclosure. A short sale occurs when the owners/sellers do not net enough money and equity from the sale of the property to pay off all mortgages, fees, liens, and closing costs. They are "short" when they go to the closing table. A short sales does not impact the owners credit rating as dramatically as a foreclosure. There are factors to consider, such as the potential that the owner could still owe the difference shorted in the sale or the amount, if forgiven, could be considered taxable income. An owner/seller should follow these steps to engage in a short sale.
-Obtain name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address of their lender's loss mitigation contact person, and the best time to reach him/her.
-Get specific directions as to what requirements need to be met from the lender's loss mitigation contact.
-Ask the lender to send a short sale packet, so the paperwork can be started.
-Complete paperwork and/or write a letter giving your consent for the lender to release short sale information to specified people who will need it. Also, the owner may be asked to write a letter describing what caused the current hardship situation.
-Owners will be required to complete a current financial statement.
-Owners may be asked to submit pay stubs, a copy of their listing agreement (if the property is listed) and bank statements.
-If there are other known lien holders against the owners, besides the mortgage company, the owners must make contact with these lien holders. All parties must be contacted and made aware of the short sale.
-If the lenders refuse to release for "no consideration," see what other options are available
-Secondary lien holders have few options and need to cooperate. The homeowner will be responsible for maintaining the property until it is sold and the property closes. The short sale process usually takes a minimum of 6 to 8 weeks. Once the short sale is approved by the lender, the homeowner will execute all documents that are necessary for selling the property, including listing agreements, purchase agreements, and closing documents, even though all sales proceeds will be going to the lender/lien holders.

Green Lifestyle

Here are some things you can do to live a green lifestyle

Invest in a water filter. It’s a much greener (and cheaper!) choice than buying and discarding plastic water bottles. Just think about this next time you’re in the bottled water aisle: it takes approximately 1,000 years for water bottles to biodegrade. Bring your own bag to the store instead of using their provided plastic bags. If you must use a plastic bag, think of a way to reuse it as a trash bag for your bathroom waste can or for collecting pet droppings from the yard.
Wash and reuse plastic plates and cups instead of buying and throwing away paper or Styrofoam every time you have a barbeque, picnic or party. Bring your own mug every time you go get coffee. Being green is even trendier than toting around that branded cardboard cup.
Pay bills and bank online. Just think how much paper you’ll save, not to mention the money you’ll save on stamps. Start a compost pile in your backyard. Alternate layers of garden waste and food scraps with thin layers of soil and stir every one to three weeks. One the pile turns dark and crumbly, work into your garden or lawn as a conditioner. Carpool or use public transportation whether you’re traveling to work, school or shopping. Utilize the sun when you want to light your home during the day. Open blinds and let the sun shine in instead of flipping on the light switch in every room of the house.. Get involved in a local club that promotes green awareness, sets up community recycling programs and interacts with government officials when it comes to environmental legislation. Not only will you do your part for the environment, but you’ll also meet new and interesting people!

Housing near the NEW Dublin Methodist Hospital

A new hospital will open in January 2008 in Dublin and will add many new jobs in the City of Dublin. If you or someone you know is looking for a new home to buy or lease in the area, I can help. I have listings in varying price ranges conveniently located to the new hospital. Examples are: 5718 Ennishannon, a luxury patio home, price at $498,000; 5804 Haddingtonshire, a 1 story home, priced at $198,000; 6982 Parnell Ct, a 2 story, priced at $274,500; or a 9+ wood acre retreat, with 5 or 6 bedrooms, located at 9362 Brock Rd and priced at $859,750 - this home can be leased for $4900/month. I also have a large 1 bedroom condo for rent for $800/month very close to the hospital, located at 6011 Craughwell Lane. There are many other properties that could suit your needs - call me and I will help you find the perfect one for you.

Why OhioHealth is expanding in Dublin is that Dublin and the surrounding northwest communities are growing fast, with a continued increase in the need for quality, close-to-home healthcare services. With its healing environment, world-class service, emphasis on patient safety, and links to other OhioHealth facilities, it is our goal to make Dublin Methodist Hospital the community healthcare resource of first choice in the suburban northwest.

Representation

Understanding Agents
You may already know that you want an agent-but what's left is understanding how the relationship works. By definition, your agent is someone who will represent your interests. And a handful of laws governing agency relationships have been designed to help you feel safe with your decision. Just understand that these laws differ from state to state, and agency policies differ among real estate companies. Here are a few basics you should know:
When a real estate agent/broker represents a buyer or seller, the agent/broker owes the buyer or seller certain fiduciary duties, which means they're charged with requirements of confidentiality, obedience, fidelity, loyalty, accounting, and reasonable skill and care.
When a real estate agent/broker does not represent a buyer or seller, no fiduciary duties exist. However, even when there are no official duties, real estate professionals still have an obligation of honesty to all parties with whom they interact.
In many states, real estate agents may choose whether they practice single agency or dual agency. Here are the differences:
Single agency - representing either the buyer or the seller. Single agency agents must:
Be loyal and act in your best interests;
Obey your lawful instructions;
Protect your confidences;
Exercise reasonable skill and diligence when answering your questions;
Be accountable for handling funds and paperwork;
Present all offers in a timely fashion; and,
Execute other duties as outlined in your listing agreement or buyer's agency contract.
Dual agency - representing both the buyer and seller, with disclosure to both parties.Among other tasks, dual agents must:
Treat all parties to the transaction fairly;
Disclose any material defects in the property;
Facilitate the sale of the property following contract acceptance; and,
Disclose the party, whether seller or buyer, in whose interest she/he is working. This disclosure is usually made in writing via an "Agency Disclosure Form" and/or broker document.

Columbus Ranks 3rd !

Columbus is ranked 3rd behind Seattle and Pittsburgh by Forbes to have the most stable real estate market into 2008.
From the Forbes Magazine article:
Forbes ranked the country's 10 most stable markets. All are projected to have median home sale price increases next year, thanks to a combination of factors including lower-than-average inventory levels, little price volatility and high job growth. To arrive at our list, we teamed with Moody's Economy.com to develop three prediction models based on a range of factors that affect how prices move. These include, among other things, the state of local economies, new construction contracts, foreclosure rates, local credit markets, sales rates, affordability and inventory. Each of America's 40 biggest cities was ranked on all three models, with price appreciation counting one half and sales rates and credit models accounting for the other
half. Data were drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau, National Association of Realtors, Equifax, a
credit-market tracking firm and Moody's Economy.com.
Behind The Numbers
The first model looks at projected median existing home price growth from fourth-quarter 2007 to fourthquarter 2008. Factors influencing this data include the market's inventory of unsold homes and the amount of new construction underway, both of which have obvious effects on supply. Housing affordability and local construction costs also play a role, acting as indicators of the market's ability to accommodate first-time buyers and new construction. Next is job growth, which attracts people to the area and increases their ability to buy a home. Expensive markets like Seattle and San Francisco, which have low housing inventories and low construction
costs, do well by this measure. Most of the top performers, however, are affordable, high-job growth markets like Dallas and San Antonio. "It largely reflects that these markets never went through the boom and aren't going through the severe bust," says Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Economy.com. "Price growth is not great, but [these markets] are not having house price declines. [All markets] are experiencing pricing problems, but in these markets it's less of a problem." Moody's second predictive model examined market activity by calculating sales rate, which measures how quickly unsold inventory is expected to sell, and turnover, which measures how much of the overall housing stock those sales represent. For example, the projected volume of home sales in San Francisco for the coming year represents a low 1.1% of the market's overall housing stock. In a market like Los Angeles, hamstrung by foreclosures and inventory glut, a 1% to 2% sales rate is potentially devastating--but given San Francisco's supply-side fundamentals and low foreclosure rates, prices are expected to modestly climb.