Archive for the ‘current news’ Category
HomeBuyers Dislike Wall to Wall Carpeting
Today’s homebuyers are not at all impressed by wall-to-wall carpeting. In fact, homebuyers list it among their top list of things they hate when looking at pre-owned homes. (Most hated item…Popcorn ceilings. Click to read about getting rid of popcorn or covering it up.)
Today’s Buyers expect hardwood floors, even in starter homes. If your home has hardwood under the carpet, immediately remove it, even if your floors aren’t in great shape. If you don’t have hardwood, consider installing it in the main living area of the home, especially if the room is visable from the entry.
If you don’t have hardwood floors or you can not remove the carpeting, at least make sure it is squeeky clean and smells great. At a minimum, hire a professional carpet cleaner and ask that they pay close attention to the traffic patterns. If the carpet can not be cleaned, satisfactorily, or if it is worn, torn, faded a bad color or it smells….don’t attempt to clean it….REPLACE IT.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. We can assist you in advertising your home on the MLS or Realtor.com. Save thousands and reach millions of homebuyers everyday!! Call us at 1-800-381-9496 or visit why6percent.com for details.
50 Cities with Bed Bug Infestation Problems
Okay, sure… not ALL of the beds in these cities are infested. But if you’re planning on hotel stays in any of these destinations, you might want to do an inspection around the headboards before you lay your body down.
Pest control corporation Rollins (which owns seven companies - including Orkin) reports a 34% rise in bed bug biz from 2010 to 2011.
Here’s the list, including the change from the previous year’s ranking:
1. Cincinnati
2. Chicago
3. Detroit (+1)
4. Denver (+2)
5. Los Angeles (+20)
6. Columbus, Ohio (-3)
7. Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas (+43)
8. Washington, D.C. (-3)
9. New York (-2)
10. Richmond/Petersburg, Va. (+6)
11. Houston (-1)
12. San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose, Calif. (+35)
13. Cleveland/Akron/Canton, Ohio (+1)
14. Boston (+4)
15. Dayton, Ohio (-7)
16. Las Vegas (-1)
17. Honolulu (+55)
18. Baltimore (-6)
19. Raleigh/Durham/Fayetteville, N.C. (+9)
20. Philadelphia (-9)
21. Atlanta (+24)
22. Lexington, Ky. (-13)
23. Syracuse, N.Y. (+25)
24. Miami/Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (+27)
25. Colorado Springs/Pueblo, Colo. (+19)
26. San Diego (+13)
27. Seattle/Tacoma, Wash. (-3)
28. Omaha, Neb. (-11)
29. Buffalo, N.Y. (-16)
30. Pittsburgh (-3)
31. Indianapolis (-12)
32. Milwaukee (+6)
33. Charlotte, N.C. (+13)
34. Phoenix (+19)
35. Louisville, Ky. (-3)
36. Hartford/New Haven, Conn. (-16)
37. Grand Junction/Montrose, Colo. (+30)
38. Knoxville, Tenn. (+4)
39. Grand Rapids/Kalamazoo/Battle Creek, Mich. (-17)
40. Nashville, Tenn. (+15)
41. Sacramento/Stockton/Modesto, Calif. (+24)
42. Des Moines/Ames, Iowa (-13)
43. Salisbury, Md. (+46)
44. Albany/Schenectady/Troy, N.Y. (-23)
45. Cedar Rapids/Waterloo, Iowa (-22)
46. Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn. (-20)
47. Lincoln/Hastings/Kearney, Neb. (-17)
48. Salt Lake City (-8)
49. Charleston/Huntington, W.Va. (-13)
50. West Palm Beach/Ft. Pierce, Fla. (+6)Read more: http://www.wwnc.com/pages/petekaliner.html#ixzz1pIaC7Ynm
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. Place a free home listing on our site…buy an InfoTube or InfoBox…search for great deals in complete privacy…or reach millions of home buyers every day by placing your property listing on the MLS or Realtor.com. If you have a home to sell..we can help!
Obama Helps Homeowners and Veterans. Congress Can’t Stop Him.
President Obama just announced a plan to help US families. And, miraculously, he doesn’t need the approval of Congress to help us.
- Obama promised relief to homeowners who are trapped in high rate loans by banks. If a homeowner is current on their current high interest loan payment, they can not be turned down for a lower interest rate loan that reduces their monthly payment.
- Obama will cut closing costs for loan refinancing on FHA loans to make refinancing affordable. The average borrower will save at least $1000 a year in fee’s and charges, in addition to saving about half of the closing costs on the new loan.
- Obama waives appraisal value as a criteria for refinancing a high rate loan. In other words, your bank can no longer use an appraisal against you…no matter how much you owe on your current loan.
- Obama promises to compensate all US Servicemen and Veterans who were foreclosed upon during their tour of duty. All Veterans who attempted to refinance their home to avoid foreclosure, and were turned away by their lender…are entitled to full compensation for all penalites, fee’s and losses.
We applaude this action and feel that it is long overdue. This is exactly the type of change that Americans, and the housing market, need to avoid further personal and financial losses. There is no legimate reason for a bank, who received taxpayer handouts, to turn down a borrower who wants to benefit from low Fed bank rates. If a borrower is able to afford a $1500 house payments at a 10% interest rate, then why would a lender turn them down for a loan payment of a $1000 per month at 4.5%? The only answer is a unfortunately a common one…GREED. Banks are closing ranks to protect their 10% rate of return from dropping to 4.5%, even though the Fed’s (ie:taxpayers) are giving them the money for nothing.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. If you are in a position to refinance a high rate loan and save your home, please do so TODAY. If you have been turned down for a refinanced loan…please reapply today. Help is Here!!
How to Get a Home Loan After Short Sale
Short sales are not uncommon in today’s real estate market. Currently, they make up more than 10 percent of home sales and that number is rising.
If you have been forced to sell your previous home short, there is a way to get another mortgage. Banks are starting to lend money to people who have worked hard to scrub up their tarnished credit history and other financing options are available.
- If you kept your mortgage paid until the closing of your short sale…you may qualify for an FHA loan right now. If you were in loan default, you will have to wait 3 years to apply…however, if you had extenuating circumstances that led to your default, the 3 year waiting period may be waived.
- If you qualify for a VA loan (veterans) you can apply for a loan within 2 years after a short sale.
- If you are applying for a Fannie Mae loan you will have a 2 year wait with a 20% down payment….10% if you have qualifiying extenuating circumstances. Otherwise, Fannie requires a 4 year waiting period for down payments between 10%-20%…and, a 7 year waiting period if your down payment is less than 10%.
- Freddie Mac requires a 4 year wait, or two years if you can prove extenuating circumstances.
- Banks and credit unions may give you a loan within 2 years with a 30% down payment. If you have extenuating circumstances, they may waive the waiting period entirely.
- Two other options to consider are seller financing or a lease-purchase. You may have to settle for less than your dream home since sellers who agree to these type of arrangements often have less desireable property that they haven’t been able to unload using normal methods.
Everyone deserves a second chance. If you have been forced to sell a home short, if you have worked hard to rebuild your credit and if you have steady employment, selling your home short won’t keep you from owning your own home, again very soon.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. Our network of brokers can list your property on the MLS and all the major real estate websites for one, low flat fee…and let you sell your home yourself. Save time and money, yet reach all the buyers in the marketplace. It’s a win – win!! Call us today at 1-800-381-9496 or visit our Why6Percent.com for details.
8 Signs that the Housing Market is Improving
We finally have a reason to celebrate!! There is an avalanche of positive news regarding an upturn in the real estate and housing market in 2012.
- Foreclosure activity in 2011 is down more than 50% lower in several states, including New Jersey, Maryland and Florida. Realty Trac
- The much feared “shadow inventory” of foreclosures declined dramatically in 2011. In December 2012, 2.2 million properties were in some stage of foreclosure. In September 2011, that number dropped to 1.5 million units…or a whopping 32% in nine months. Realtytrac
- Realtors in some hard hit area’s, such as Michigan and southern California, are reporting a shortage of housing inventory and a return to bidding wars in tight markets.
- Wall Street thinks the worst is over. Stocks of the nation’s five largest, publicly traded, home builders are at 52 week highs, signaling an upswing in home construction in 2012. In addition, the home builders have been snapping up deals on land and abandoned subdivisions, in anticipation of increased buyer demand. CNBC
- Home sellers, Realtors and home builders are getting help from rising rents, as Americans realize that owning a home is often less expensive than renting one. And, while future rent increases have no ceiling on how high they can go, ownership locks in housing expenses and equity is created as the loan balance decreases each month.
- Legal issues, property maintenance and other issues complicating the foreclosure process will push banks and lenders to approve more short sales in 2012, further reducing housing inventory.
- Interest rates will remain at historical lows in 2012, which allows more people to qualify for a home and cheap money buys more house for the same monthly payment.
- Overall, foreclosure activity was dropped more than 30 percent in 2011. Fewer than 2 million properties foreclosure notices were filed in 2011, down from 2.9 million property filings in 2010. Realty Trac
If you need to sell your home, things haven’t looked this favorable in years. 
Arm yourself with an MLS listing and exposure on Realtor.com and all the major search engines for real estate. Millions of home buyers search these websites, daily. If your home isn’t there, they will buy the one that is.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. We have helped thousands of home sellers and we can help you, too.
To MLS or Not to MLS? Separating Fact from Hype
Topics:
What is the MLS?
What are the Benefits of advertising on the MLS
What is all the “Hype” of the MLS
What Should You Consider?
What is the MLS?
The Multiple Listing Service is a database of homes and property that are for sale. The MLS is operated by the local Board of Realtors®. The MLS is the resource agents use to find homes for their buyers or advertise their home listings to other agents. MLS listings include detailed information about the property. In addition to selling price and address, an MLS listing generally includes number of rooms, size of rooms, interior and exterior features, lot size, local school district, property taxes, association dues, directions to the property and comments. Most also include photo’s of the home and a lockbox. At the sellers discretion, most MLS listings can also be upgraded for a fee to include additional photos or virtual video tours.
To MLS or Not To MLS; Separating Fact from Hype
The Multiple Listing Service (MLS) is a powerful tool for real estate agents and home sellers. It allows seller’s and agent’s to cross-sell all properties in a given market, which greatly expands the sales force of all the properties for sale. The Internet has expanded the power of the MLS by providing information in real time to not only agents, but to home buyers and home sellers alike through its www.Realtor.com website. The MLS and Realtor,com it is looked at by thousands of real estate agents who may have a buyer for your property and individual home buyers searching the Internet.
Note: In addition to Realtor.com, properties listed on the MLS also appear on other major real estate search engines like Zillow, Homes.com, Military.com, Trulia.com, Yahoo, Google and a host of others.
Benefits of MLS Advertising:
There is only one very significant benefit to having your home listed on the MLS…EXPOSURE! The fact that your home is for sale will now be known by anyone searching the Internet. Additionally, hundreds, if not thousands of real estate agents in your market will also know about your property. To fully benefit from this exposure, you need to be willing to “co-op” with a real estate agent, if they bring a buyer whose contract terms are acceptable to you. “Co-op” means that you agree to compensate the buyer’s real estate agent at the closing of your property. Typically, a buyer’s agent will earn between 2%-3% of the sales price of the home. If you are willing to “co-op” with a buyer’s agent, you should indicate this clearly in your Internet and classified advertising, and on your brochures.
To list your home on the MLS, you will need to contract with a real estate listing agent that is a member of your local real estate board. If your interest is purely to have your home listed on the MLS; you can contract with a new type of Broker who charges a one-time fee to cover the cost of them listing your home in the MLS and allows you to act as your own listing agent.
The flat-fee MLS listing concept is fairly new and not all agents will be anxious to provide this service, as they are in the full service real estate listing business. To learn more about using a flat-fee MLS service, visit websites like http://www.why6percent.com
In many areas of the United States, when a home appears on the local MLS, it will also appear on aggregator websites like MSN Home Advisor, Yahoo Real Estate, Realtor.com, Zillow.com and local state and broker websites. Many of the MLS Boards send their inventory directly to these websites to enable even more exposure for the homeowner.
In today’s transient society, thousands of people use the internet to search for homes far in advance of their relocation. Many people supply the list of properties that interest them to their agent, so the agent can set up showing appointments. When a buyer is relocating to a new area, time is limited and critical. This means the buyer’s agent becomes a critical part of relocation effort. Therefore, the MLS can be key to exposing your home to people relocating to your area.
What is the Hype of an MLS listing?
1) Your house will never sell if it is NOT listed on the MLS…False.
Your house may sell more quickly or for more money because of the tremendous exposure we discussed above, but your home can sell with or without the MLS.
2) Buyers will never find your home if it is NOT listed on the MLS…False.
According to the National Assn. of Realtors data, 60% of all home sales occur because of the sign in the yard. Newsletters, directional signs, open houses, classified advertising and InfoTubes or InfoBoxes, filled with attractive home information flyers, will also help you find a buyer for your home.
3) Real estate agents will not bring a buyer to you if you are NOT on theMLS… False.
If an agent has an interested buyer and you indicate you are willing to pay them a commission, they have no reason to boycott your property. If they do, they risk that the buyer contacts you directly and they don’t make a dime.
Considerations:
The MLS has proven value and is certainly a wonderful way to expand your advertising reach. If your goal is to make local agents aware that your home is for sale and reach the millions of buyers searching for homes on major real estate websites. Keep in mind that you will need to pay a commission to a buyer agent at closing, if they bring you an offer that you accept.
If you decide to place your home on the MLS, consider it as a part of your overall marketing strategy and not a replacement for your advertising program. Properly understood, the MLS can be another excellent part of your home selling process.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. Our national network of flat fee MLS brokers are standing by to assist you in marketing your home. Please visit our website or phone 1-800-381-9496 to get started!
College Students Swap Dorm Life for Suburban Mansions
When the real estate bubble burst in 2007, I predicted that we would likely see large, single family, suburban mansions carved up and repurposed into multi-family housing. Well, time and a prolonged recession have proven the idea viable.
The USA went through the same type of evolution, in reverse, with intercity housing. Vacant, large urban, single family mansions where carved up into apartments, efficiencies and co-ops, after the mass exodus to the suburbs in the 1950’s. Now, its the McMansions, gated communities and long commutes that are out of vogue.
Families are returning back to life in the inner city. They are buying multi-family homes and converting them back into single family residences. The concept of highest and best use…has come full circle.
Check out this short video to see the latest change in student housing in decades. A bad housing market has created some luxury digs for college co-eds out in the ‘burbs”.
College students renting suburban McMansions
Thank you for visiting Why 6 Percent. We offer flat fee MLS and Realtor.com packages to builders, homeowners and anyone who needs to keep more money from their property sell. We have helped thousands of homeowners sell their homes. We can help you, too.
Walmarts New Chinese Mega Ship Can Reach US Shores in 5 Days
What a ship….no wonder ‘Made in China ‘ is displacing North American made goods big time.
This monster transports goods across the Pacific in just 5 days!! This is one of three ships presently in service, with another two ships commissioned to be completed in 2012.
These ships were commissioned by Wal-Mart to get all their goods and stuff from China . They hold an incredible 15,000 containers and have a 207 foot deck beam!! The full crew is just 13 people on a ship longer than a US Aircraft Carrier (which has a crew of 5,000. With it’s 207′ beam it is too big to fit through the Panama or Suez Canals .
It is strictly transpacific. Cruise speed: 31 knots.
The goods arrive 4 days before the typical container ship (18-20 knots) on a China -to- California run. 91% of Walmart products are made in China . So this behemoth is hugely competitive even when carrying perishable goods.
The ship was built in five sections. The sections floated together and then welded.
The command bridge is higher than a 10-story building and has 11 cargo crane rigs that can operate simultaneously unloading the entire ship in less than two hours.
Cost for this container ship…$146,000,000
A recent documentary in late March, 2010 on the History Channel noted that all of these containers are shipped back to China , EMPTY.
Yep, that’s right. We send nothing back on these ships. What does that tell you about
the current financial state of this country? Let’s all just keep buying those imported goods (mostly, cheap nothing gadgets) until we run out of money, jobs, homes or all of the above.
Just our two cents here at InfoTube.net…. We support American workers, products and companies. We manufacture The InfoTube and InfoBox here in the USA, with materials Made in the USA…so don’t believe it can’t be done. We’re just a little company. If we can do, anyone can.
Please Buy Made in America, whenever possible!!!
Banks Bulldoze Houses To Cut Taxes and Fee’s
Getting rid of repossesed homes is the biggest headache for US lenders. 1,679,125 homes ( 1 in every 77) are in some stage of foreclosure as of June. Lenders feel that no one will buy many of these homes and they”re trying to cut their losses. Bulldozing the problem away means the banks won’t owe property taxes to our floundering cities and it won’t have to pay for repairs, maintenance and upkeep on the property. In addition, there are some perks for giving away a house. The banks get a bunch of tax write-offs and best case… they may even get a pat on the back and some nice PR, too.
The idea of Bulldozing houses is nothing new. Although the banks are not blowing up homes for alturistic reasons…I think we can all agree that removing home inventory is good for all of us. In 2010, Warren Buffet advised that ”blow up a lot of houses” was a viable option and similar to ‘cash for clunkers’ auto program. I always thought bulldozing abandoned homes and returning the land to a raw state was a smarter solution than handing out money in the form of a homebuyer tax credit. The tax credit cost billions of dollars, put money into the hands of a few people blessed with good timing and did little to reduce inventory.
Bankers, why not take the “TNT” strategy one step further. Donate unwanted houses to local non-profits vs blowing them up? Make a call to Habitat for Humanity, for example? I can’t understand why Habitat is still building new homes, when we can’t get rid of the ones that are causing problems in our neighborhoods. Habitat needs to change their business model with the times and so do our lenders. Families, who are in dire need now, wait up to 6+ months for a new home to be built and the cost of building from scratch far exceeds the costs of rehabbing properties, in most cases.
Just my two cents….
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. We offer a low, flat fee MLS program for owners, builders and for people who need to hold onto as much of their money as possible. If you aren’t familiar with advertising your home on the MLS or Realtor.com, please visit our website and review the FAQ. Our marketing packages reach millions of home buyers each day.
InfoTube.net is FREE home selling website. Visit our site for free legal forms, home searches, home listings, marketing tools, advise and support! We are a 100% Made in the USA company.
What the Real Estate Market looks like in 2012
Would you like to see what the housing market has in store for 2012? If so, take a moment to watch this video.
Remember that in spite of the doom and gloom…10,000 sets of keys are handed to new homeowners every single day!!
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com…we offer FREE marketing website for owners, builders and agents. In addition, our MLS and Realtor.com packages can give you all the exposure of a full service listing…without the cost.
Remember that… Who you buy From is as important as What you Buy! Look for Made in the USA products and support US workers!!