Susan Rauth » Real Estate http://www.susanrauth.com Welcome to The Best Way to do Real Estate in Omaha Thu, 09 Apr 2015 01:25:18 +0000 en-US hourly 1 Open Houses: How to Gauge the Market on a Home Tour http://www.susanrauth.com/2012/10/15/open-houses-how-to-gauge-the-market-on-a-home-tour/ http://www.susanrauth.com/2012/10/15/open-houses-how-to-gauge-the-market-on-a-home-tour/#comments Mon, 15 Oct 2012 13:47:52 +0000 http://www.susanrauth.com/?p=928 As the housing market slowly improves, more consumers are finding themselves in the market for a new home, or at least one worth dreaming about. One place they start their search is an open house tour, though they can forget these are helpful for more than just checking out the kitchen's color scheme. Open houses are a smart way to gauge whether a listing's catching heat and if it's worth seeing again in a private showing.
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By Jill Krasny

As the housing market slowly improves, more consumers are finding themselves in the market for a new home, or at least one worth dreaming about.

One place they start their search is an open house tour, though they can forget these are helpful for more than just checking out the kitchen’s color scheme.

Open houses are a smart way to gauge whether a listing’s catching heat and if it’s worth seeing again in a private showing.

“If you’re just getting started with the process, an open house tour is like a get-out-of-jail-free card,” says Zillow.com real estate expert Brendon DeSimone. “It’s free, you can go because there aren’t restrictions and it’s a great way to learn the market.”

To his mind, the primary thing that home shoppers overlook tends to be the most obvious: the crowd. Observing other shoppers is key, he says, as that’s the best way to gauge the market’s response to the home.

“If you like the house, watch the people. Is it packed? Are they hovering around the agent?,” he says. If so and if they’re asking pointed questions as well, you can bet that there’s serious interest and the listing is going to go fast.

Another strategy is to observe the agent, he adds.

“If you go to a house and you like it but no one’s there, maybe there are issues there,” says DeSimone. “You should watch the listing agent’s reactions because he wants to see the response to the house and how crowded it is.”

And don’t miss the opportunity to ask the agent about the seller.

“You should ask why he’s selling, nothing rude, just what’s the story,” DeSimone says. “What’s their motivation to sell?” That should give you a feel for the pricing and whether the listing is gathering dust.

Questions like, how many days has the home been on the market?, or Have you lived here for a long time? should get the conversation going. Perhaps there’s a looming job transfer, or the seller is just moving down the street.

“If they’re not motivated you won’t want to waste your time,” says DeSimone. But at least you’ll know where they stand.

Source: “Open Houses: How to Gauge the Market on a Home Tour” Business Insider (Oct. 11, 2012)

]]> http://www.susanrauth.com/2012/10/15/open-houses-how-to-gauge-the-market-on-a-home-tour/feed/ 0 Optimistic signs for real estate http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/06/11/optimistic-signs-for-real-estate/ http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/06/11/optimistic-signs-for-real-estate/#comments Sat, 11 Jun 2011 17:58:25 +0000 http://www.susanrauth.com/?p=651 Part of the optimism shared by those in real estate is the relative steadiness of the local economy and the area's low unemployment rate compared with the rest of the nation. “We don't see the boom and we don't see the bust,” said Valenti. “We always fall somewhere in between.”
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WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Original Article –>

Julie and Kevin Grady spent a lot of years in the big house that hugs Champions golf course.

They built it in 1997, raised two kids and honed careers there, and only recently decided to downsize, knowing also that they spend winters in Arizona.

Once the couple mentally made that lifestyle switch, the rest of the story went much quicker.

Less than 24 hours after going on the market, the Gradys’ four-bedroom home sold to a Des Moines family that once lived in the neighborhood and wanted to return to Omaha.

Although the housing market remains far short of its pre-recession heyday, the Grady case and other recent home sales have made local real estate agents optimistic that the recovery continues.

“We’re cautiously optimistic,” said Joe Valenti, president of CBSHome Real Estate. “It’s a lot better than it could be if Omaha was following national trends.”

New statistics from the Omaha Area Board of Realtors show that 943 homes went under contract last month — not quite the 1,000-to-1,200 range that Mike Riedmann, president of residential sales for NP Dodge, would like to see. But the level was fairly consistent with the previous two months.

The May tally does represent a huge 60 percent jump from May 2010, but last May’s number was artificially low because it was the first month after the expiration of the federal stimulus effort that sparked a homebuyer rush.

In May 2009, the number of signed contracts was reported to be 1,129; in 2008, 993.

Vince Leisey, president of both the Omaha Realtors board and Prudential Ambassador Real Estate, views the latest sales report as “good,” especially considering the showing in the second half of last year.

Historically, he said, March through June are peak home sales months. Leisey expects June to suffer “a pinch” with the all-out focus on the first College World Series at the new downtown stadium. But he sees this year’s trend as steady.

“We’re not going to have that roller coaster this year like we had last year,” said Leisey.

Riedmann suspects that eye-popping gas prices magnified insecurity of would-be homebuyers and dampened activity in early May. As gas prices fell back, he said, interest has picked up. He saw a bright spot in last weekend’s traffic at the NP Dodge 285-home super open house.

“Good activity in open houses usually means there is going to be good activity in the market,” he said. “That bodes well for us.”

Still, overall, it is not what might be expected given that home prices and interest rates are down. Riedmann said one cannot underestimate the shakiness of consumer confidence as the nation tries to rebound from a recession.

Part of the optimism shared by those in real estate is the relative steadiness of the local economy and the area’s low unemployment rate compared with the rest of the nation. “We don’t see the boom and we don’t see the bust,” said Valenti. “We always fall somewhere in between.”

A new report from CoreLogic, which analyzes real estate trends, shows both Nebraska and Iowa in better shape than the nation in terms of borrowers who are “underwater” — meaning that they owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth.

Nebraska and Iowa, for the first quarter of this year, each had about 9 percent of their homes underwater. The national average, by comparison, had nearly 23 percent.

Such drowning, or negative equity, can occur because of a decline in value, an increase in mortgage debt or a combination of the two. Whatever the reason, said Mark Fleming, chief economist at CoreLogic, “negative equity for the foreseeable future will weigh on the housing market recovery by holding back sale and refinance activity.”

Teresa Elliott, the Prudential representative who sold the Grady house, said her business has stayed above any national fray in part by pricing competitively and beefing up marketing strategies.

To the Gradys, Elliott’s team suggested certain changes — including replacing flowery wallpaper and window coverings with a more neutral theme — to increase appeal.

When Laura Doll went to the open house, she was sold.

Doll had been scoping out the familiar subdivision for two months and actually had been inside the property before its official placement on the market. Her family missed Omaha, she said, and her daughters had been accepted in a nearby Catholic school that they had attended before. They’re all eager to pick up where they left off.

Meanwhile, the Gradys, whose two kids attend out-of-state universities, plan to be settled in their new Midtown Crossing condo in time to watch Jazz on the Green concerts from their balcony that looks toward downtown.

Once they made that mental leap from suburban to urban, Kevin said, it was full speed ahead.

“It’s time for that change to happen.”

Contact the writer:

402-444-1224, cindy.gonzalez@owh.com

]]> http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/06/11/optimistic-signs-for-real-estate/feed/ 0 Simple Tips for Better Home Showings http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/05/08/simple-tips-for-better-home-showings/ http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/05/08/simple-tips-for-better-home-showings/#comments Sun, 08 May 2011 15:11:11 +0000 http://www.susanrauth.com/?p=630 18 Helpful tips to showing a better home.
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1. Remove clutter and clear off counters. Throw out stacks of newspapers and magazines and stow away most of your small decorative items. Put excess furniture in storage, and remove out-of-season clothing items that are cramping closet space. Don’t forget to clean out the garage, too.

2. Wash your windows and screens. This will help get more light into the interior of the home.

3. Keep everything extra clean. A clean house will make a strong first impression and send a message to buyers that the home has been well-cared for. Wash fingerprints from light switch plates, mop and wax floors, and clean the stove and refrigerator. Polish your doorknobs and address numbers. It’s worth hiring a cleaning service if you can afford it.

4. Get rid of smells. Clean carpeting and drapes to eliminate cooking odors, smoke, and pet smells. Open the windows to air out the house. Potpourri or scented candles will help.

5. Brighten your rooms. Put higher wattage bulbs in light fixtures to brighten up rooms and basements. Replace any burned-out bulbs in closets. Clean the walls, or better yet, brush on a fresh coat of neutral color paint.

6. Don’t disregard minor repairs. Small problems such as sticky doors, torn screens, cracked caulking, or a dripping faucet may seem trivial, but they’ll give buyers the impression that the house isn’t well-maintained.

7. Tidy your yard. Cut the grass, rake the leaves, add new mulch, trim the bushes, edge the walkways, and clean the gutters. For added curb appeal, place a pot of bright flowers near the entryway.

8. Patch holes. Repair any holes in your driveway and reapply sealant, if applicable.

9. Add a touch of color in the living room. A colored afghan or throw on the couch will jazz up a dull room. Buy new accent pillows for the sofa.

10. Buy a flowering plant and put it near a window you pass by frequently.

11. Make centerpieces for your tables. Use brightly colored fruit or flowers.

12. Set the scene. Set the table with fancy dishes and candles, and create other vignettes throughout the home to help buyers picture living there. For example, in the basement you might display a chess game in progress.

13. Replace heavy curtains with sheer ones that let in more light. Show off the view if you have one.

14. Accentuate the fireplace. Lay fresh logs in the fireplace or put a basket of flowers there if it’s not in use.

15. Make the bathrooms feel luxurious. Put away those old towels and toothbrushes. When buyers enter your bathroom, they should feel pampered. Add a new shower curtain, new towels, and fancy guest soaps. Make sure your personal toiletry items are out of sight.

16. Send your pets to a neighbor or take them outside. If that’s not possible, crate them or confine them to one room (ideally in the basement), and let the real estate practitioner know where they’ll be to eliminate surprises.

17. Lock up valuables, jewelry, and money. While a real estate salesperson will be on site during the showing or open house, it’s impossible to watch everyone all the time.

18. Leave the home. It’s usually best if the sellers are not at home. It’s awkward for prospective buyers to look in your closets and express their opinions of your home with you there.

 

For more information, visit www.realtor.org.

]]> http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/05/08/simple-tips-for-better-home-showings/feed/ 0 Existing-Home Sales Rise in March 2011 http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/04/24/existing-home-sales-rise-in-march-2011/ http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/04/24/existing-home-sales-rise-in-march-2011/#comments Sun, 24 Apr 2011 15:34:39 +0000 http://www.susanrauth.com/?p=568 Sales of existing-home sales rose in March 2011, continuing an uneven recovery that began after sales bottomed last July, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, increased 3.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.10 million in March from an upwardly revised 4.92 million in February, but are 6.3% below the 5.44 million pace in March 2010. Sales were at elevated levels from March through June of 2010 in response to the home buyer tax credit.
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Designed by Steven Ginn Architects

RISMEDIA, April 21, 2011—Sales of existing-home sales rose in March 2011, continuing an uneven recovery that began after sales bottomed last July, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, increased 3.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.10 million in March from an upwardly revised 4.92 million in February, but are 6.3% below the 5.44 million pace in March 2010. Sales were at elevated levels from March through June of 2010 in response to the home buyer tax credit.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, expects the improving sales pattern to continue. “Existing-home sales have risen in six of the past eight months, so we’re clearly on a recovery path,” he said. “With rising jobs and excellent affordability conditions, we project moderate improvements into 2012, but not every month will show a gain—primarily because some buyers are finding it too difficult to obtain a mortgage. For those fortunate enough to qualify for financing, monthly mortgage payments as a percent of income have been at record lows.”

NAR’s housing affordability index shows the typical monthly mortgage principal and interest payment for the purchase of a median-priced existing home is only 13% of gross household income, the lowest since records began in 1970.

According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage was 4.84% in March, down from 4.95% in February; the rate was 4.97% in March 2010.

Data from Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae show requirements to obtain conventional mortgages have been tightened, with the average credit score rising to about 760 in the current market from nearly 720 in 2007; for FHA loans the average credit score is around 700, up from just over 630 in 2007.

“Although home sales are coming back without a federal stimulus, sales would be notably stronger if mortgage lending would return to the normal, safe standards that were in place a decade ago—before the loose lending practices that created the unprecedented boom and bust cycle,” Yun explained.

“Given that FHA and VA government-backed loan programs turned a modest profit over to the U.S. Treasury last year, and have never required a taxpayer bailout, we believe low-downpayment loans should continue to be available for those consumers who have demonstrated financial responsibility and are willing to stay well within their budget. Raising the downpayment requirement would unnecessarily deny credit to many worthy middle-class families and veterans,” Yun said.

A parallel NAR practitioner survey shows first-time buyers purchased 33% of homes in March, compared with 34% of homes in February; they were 44% in March 2010.

All-cash sales were at a record market share of 35% in March, up from 33% in February; they were 27% in March 2010. Investors accounted for 22% of sales activity in March, up from 19% in February; they were 19% in March 2010. The balance of sales were to repeat buyers.

The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $159,600 in March, down 5.9% from March 2010. Distressed homes—typically sold at discounts in the vicinity of 20%—accounted for a 40% marketshare in March, up from 39% in February and 35% in March 2010.

NAR President Ron Phipps, broker-president of Phipps Realty in Warwick, R.I., said some renters are looking to homeownership as a hedge against inflation. “The typical buyer today plans to stay in a home for 10 years, while rents are projected to rise at faster rates over the next few years,” he said. “As buyers gain more financial security, the advantages of homeownership become more obvious. Rents will continue to trend up, especially in comparison with a fixed-rate loan which provides financial stability and gradual accumulation of equity over time.”

Total housing inventory at the end of March rose 1.5% to 3.55 million existing homes available for sale, which represents an 8.4-month supply at the current sales pace, compared with a 8.5-month supply in February.

Single-family home sales rose 4.0% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.45 million in March from 4.28 million in February, but are 6.5% below the 4.76 million level in March 2010. The median existing single-family home price was $160,500 in March, down 5.3% from a year ago.

Existing condominium and co-op sales increased 1.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 650,000 in March from 640,000 in February, but are 4.1% below the 678,000-unit pace one year ago. The median existing condo price was $153,100 in March, which is 10.1% below March 2010.

Regionally, existing-home sales in the Northeast rose 3.9% to an annual level of 800,000 in March, but are 12.1% below March 2010. The median price in the Northeast was $232,900, down 3.0% from a year ago.

Existing-home sales in the Midwest increased 1.0% in March to a pace of 1.06 million, but are 13.1% lower than a year ago. The median price in the Midwest was $126,100, which is 7.1% below March 2010.

In the South, existing-home sales rose 8.2% to an annual level of 1.99 million in March, but are 1.0% below March 2010. The median price in the South was $138,200, down 6.6% from a year ago.

Existing-home sales in the West slipped 0.8% to an annual pace of 1.25 million in March and are 3.1% below a year ago. The median price in the West was $192,100, which is 11.2% lower than March 2010.

For more information, visit www.realtor.org.

 

]]> http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/04/24/existing-home-sales-rise-in-march-2011/feed/ 0 Confidence in value of homeownership persists through bust, survey shows http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/04/20/confidence-in-value-of-homeownership-persists-through-bust-survey-shows/ http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/04/20/confidence-in-value-of-homeownership-persists-through-bust-survey-shows/#comments Wed, 20 Apr 2011 15:01:41 +0000 http://www.susanrauth.com/?p=555 An unexpected 81% of U.S. adults surveyed by the Pew Research Center say buying a home is the best long-term investment. "Owning a home is really a part of the American dream, and that is just part of the American psyche and something that people aspire to," said Kim Parker, associate director for the center and one of the study's authors.
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By Alejandro Lazo, Los Angeles Times

 

The real estate bust appears to have done little to alter Americans’ confidence in the investment value of homeownership.

A robust 81% of adults said buying a home is the best long-term investment a person can make, according to a national survey by the Pew Research Center in Washington.

“Owning a home is really a part of the American dream, and that is just part of the American psyche and something that people aspire to,” said Kim Parker, associate director for the center and one of the study’s authors.

The study’s results were unexpected, given the deep plunge in home prices and the fallout from the mortgage crisis, she said. Homeownership topped the list of long-term financial goals for Americans, according to the study; respondents rated homeownership, as well as living comfortably in retirement, more important than sending children to college or leaving offspring an inheritance.

The public’s faith in real estate has been bruised since the last time a comparable survey asked people about the wisdom of investing in real estate. A total of 37% of respondents said they “strongly agree” that homeownership is the best investment a person can make while 44% said they “somewhat agree.” The same question was asked by a CBS News/New York Times survey in 1991, and at that time 49% “strongly agreed” and 35% “somewhat agreed.”

“The study results are surprising in that so many households still believe that homeownership is a good investment, even after the plunge in home values that has occurred over the past couple of years,” said Celia Chen, a housing economist for Moody’s Economy.com. “The preference for homeownership has deep roots in the history of this nation, and apparently even a severe correction in house prices can shake American’s belief in homeownership only slightly.”

The telephone survey was comprised of a nationally representative sample of 2,142 adults conducted from March 15 to March 29 by Princeton Survey Research Associates International. Interviews were done in English and Spanish. The margin of sampling error for the data is plus or minus 2.7%.

While home prices have entered a renewed decline after showing some improvements last year, many economists believe that the worst of the housing crisis is probably over. That sentiment could help to explain the resiliency in Americans’ optimism.

“People may have the feeling that the worst is behind us,” Parker said.

Though other investments such as stocks tend to produce a better return, the housing market has generally avoided the wild swings that the stock market has over time, potentially helping to explain real estate’s lasting allure, Parker added.

Homeowners in the surveywere more positive about the financial wisdom of owning a home than were renters. But even among renters, the desire for homeownership remains strong, according to the survey’s findings. Just 24% of renters surveyed said they rent out of choice and 81% said they would like to buy.

The decline in values has struck a wide swath of Americans. About half, or 47%, of homeowners said their property is now worth less than when the recession began, and 31% said the value of their home has not improved. Just 17% said their home is worth more than before the recession.

Of those who said their properties have lost value, 86% said they expect it to take at least three years for values to recover, 42% said at least six years and 10% said they expect a recovery in 10 years or more.

Despite those sentiments, 82% of homeowners who indicated their home is worth less than before the recession said homeownership is the best long-term investment a person can make.

 

]]> http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/04/20/confidence-in-value-of-homeownership-persists-through-bust-survey-shows/feed/ 0 Can you claim home buyer tax credit? http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/02/16/can-you-claim-home-buyer-tax-credit/ http://www.susanrauth.com/2011/02/16/can-you-claim-home-buyer-tax-credit/#comments Wed, 16 Feb 2011 21:50:17 +0000 http://www.susanrauth.com/?p=239 If you bought a home last year, you may be eligible for a tax credit of up to $8,000 when you file your 2010 tax return. But before you start shopping for hardwood floors, make sure you qualify. And even if you're eligible, you'll need to take extra steps to prove that your claim is legitimate.
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Original Article –>
By Sandra Block, USA Today

If you bought a home last year, you may be eligible for a tax credit of up to $8,000 when you file your 2010 tax return. But before you start shopping for hardwood floors, make sure you qualify. And even if you’re eligible, you’ll need to take extra steps to prove that your claim is legitimate.

Congress first enacted a home buyer’s tax credit in 2008 in an effort to revitalize the housing market. Since then, the credit has been revised and extended several times. Here are the factors that will determine your eligibility for the credit:

•When you signed the contract to buy your home.To claim the credit on your 2010 tax return, you must have signed a contract to purchase your primary residence before May 1, 2010.

•When you closed. Home buyers who closed as late as Sept. 30, 2010, qualify for the credit, as long as their original contract called for the purchase to be completed by June 30. Congress added the extension because many of last year’s home purchases involved short sales or homes in foreclosure, and banks have been slow to process those transactions, says John W. Roth, analyst for tax publisher CCH.

•Where you lived before you bought the home. For homes purchased Nov. 7, 2009, to April 30, 2010, there are two tax credits: a first-time home buyer credit and a repeat home buyer credit.

The first-time home buyer credit is worth 10% of the purchase price of the home, up to a maximum of $8,000. The law defines a first-time home buyer as someone who hasn’t owned a principal residence in the three years before the purchase.

The repeat home buyer credit is worth up to 10% of the purchase price, up to a maximum of $6,500. The law defines a repeat buyer as someone who has owned and lived in the same home for at least five consecutive years of the eight years. If you’re married, both spouses must meet the residency test.

•How much you paid for the home. The first-time and repeat home buyer credits are limited to homes purchased for less than $800,000.

•Your income. The full credit is available to taxpayers with a modified adjusted gross income of up to $125,000, or $225,000 for joint filers. (Those limits apply to homes purchased after Nov. 6, 2009; there are lower cutoffs for homes purchased before that date.) A reduced credit is available for home buyers with MAGI of up to $145,000, or $245,000 for married homeowners.

Payback time

Now comes the bad news for taxpayers who claimed the home buyer’s credit in 2008. Starting this year, they’ll have to pay it back.

That’s because the original first-time home buyer’s tax “credit” was in fact an interest-free loan that had to be paid in equal installments over 15 years. The law gave home buyers who claimed the credit a two-year grace period, which means the first installment is due this year. H&R Block estimates that more than 950,000 taxpayers claimed the credit in 2008.

The maximum 2008 “credit” was $7,500, so if you claimed the full amount, you’ll have to pay $500 when you file your 2010 tax return, Roth says. “A lot of people will end up owing a fair amount of taxes this year because of the additional $500 they’ll have to repay,” he says.

If you bought a house in 2008 then sold it, you could owe even more, because in that instance, you’re required to repay the entire amount of the credit all at once.

Tax credits claimed for homes purchased in 2009 and 2010 don’t have to be repaid, as long as the home remains your primary residence for three years. If you sell the home within 36 months after the purchase, you’ll have to repay the credit. The repayment can’t exceed the gain on the sale, so if you didn’t make any profit on the sale, you may not owe anything.

However, your “basis” for purposes of calculating the loss or gain on the sale is the amount you paid for the home minus your tax credit, says Kathy Pickering, executive director of H&R Block’s Tax Institute. For example, if you bought your house for $100,000 and claimed an $8,000 first-time home buyer’s credit, your basis is $92,000.

Be prepared to wait

The IRS is requiring taxpayers who claim the home buyer’s tax break to provide documents proving that they purchased a home within the required time frame. To meet that requirement, you must file your tax return by mail.

The IRS imposed the requirement to deter fraud. The Treasury Department’s inspector general reported last year that thousands of individuals, including nearly 1,300 prison inmates, had fraudulently claimed the tax credit.

Documents you may need to include:

•A copy of your settlement statement. For most home buyers, that’s the HUD-1 provided at closing. Sign the settlement statement, even if the document doesn’t have a line for your signature.

•For newly constructed homes, a dated copy of the certificate of occupancy that shows your name and the address of the home.

•For repeat buyers, copies of documents showing that you lived in your previous residence for five consecutive years during the past eight years. Acceptable documents include mortgage interest statements, property tax records or homeowners insurance statements. You don’t need to provide five years of the same documents, the IRS says. You can use a combination of documents to verify the years you were in the home.

Paper-filed returns take the IRS up to six weeks to process, vs. less than two weeks for e-filed returns. Returns that claim the credit may get extra scrutiny from the IRS, which could also delay your refund. “It’s worth it to get the credit,” Pickering says, “but people need to be patient.”

Original Article –>

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