Due Diligence In Our Contract – An Important Perspective

By admin

Our new Offer To Purchase that was put in affect in January of 2011 has brought on some much needed fairness to the seller.  The seller is paid a due diligence fee by the buyer to allow the buyer to investigate the property.

Really the most important aspect of buying a house is now in the preparation.  It never should have been up to the seller to determine the buyer’s credit worthiness.  Now that we have a due diligence period, the contract should only be about the property.  After all it is an offer to purchase a property.

The buyer should investigate his/her credit worthiness and be comfortable with it before EVER writing a contract.  You see the due diligence will only really work as intended if the buyer is pretty sure they can be approved for a loan.

So, what are the steps for loan approval?

Pre-Qualification
This occurs when the buyer provides information about income, assets and liabilities to a lender and allows a credit report to be run.
Pre-Approval
This step requires confirmation of income and assets through thorough documentation like bank statements, paystubs, W2’s and tax returns.
Final Approval
This occurs when all information is validated and an appraisal is completed that is acceptable to his/her lender.

So where should the buyer be before writing an offer?  They should have completed the Pre-Approval process.  This would only leave selecting the property and having the appraisal done along with other ‘property’ inspections.  You see the due diligence should only include issues with the home and not issue with the buyers credit worthiness.

If the buyer is PREPARED, the due diligence period can be done in 10-15 days and the due diligence amount can be a small sum of money or ZERO!

 

How To Remove Pet Stains From Carpets

By admin

Carolina Living Real Estate

More tips to help you with managing and preparing your home for sale.  Information is provided by Carolina Living’s preferred Home Warranty Company; American Home Shield and Merry Maids.

First, blot up any liquid by putting towels or absorbent rags over the spot and stepping on them. Start with gentle pressure and increase it up to putting your full weight down. Change to fresh rags or towels until no more liquid comes up.

For fresh stains, apply a bacteria/enzyme digester from a pet store, following the directions—it’s the only way to deal effectively with both the stain and the odor. Bacteria/enzyme digesters work slowly, so leave the solution on as long as the directions say. Urine has probably penetrated into the carpet and pad, so use enough solution to reach as far down as the stain.

Apply the solution, put plastic over it, and step on the spot several times until the area is well saturated. Then, leave the plastic on the whole time the digester is working to make sure the spot doesn’t dry out.

Old or dry stains are hard—sometimes even impossible—to remove, but try the bacteria/enzyme digester. If it’s a popular accident site, the bacteria may produce enough ammonia in the course of breaking down the stains to create a super-alkaline situation that interferes with its own action. In this case, you may need to neutralize the spot after the digester has been working for about four hours. Mix a solution of one cup of vinegar to a gallon of warm water. Rinse the area with this solution and apply a fresh batch of bacteria/enzyme solution.

If the stain or odor remains, call a professional deodorizing specialist. A complete cure will probably involve cleaning the entire carpet by extraction and replacing the pad underneath, if not replacing the carpet.

Squatter Nation – Years Without A Mortgage Payment

By admin

According to a recent article at CNN-Money, Some 4.2 million mortgage borrowers are either seriously delinquent or have had their cases referred to lawyers to pursue foreclosure auctions, according to LPS Applied Analytics.

Nationwide, it takes an average of 565 days to foreclose on borrowers in default from their first missed payments to the final auction. In New York, the average is 800 days and in Florida, where the “robo-signing” issue is particularly combative, it’s 807.

In this article specific examples were given where borrowers have stayed in their homes as long as 5 years without making a mortgage payment.

An example of what has happened across the nation:

A borrower purchased a two-bedroom on Tampa Bay in 1998 for $135,000.

As the waterfront property’s value skyrocketed, eventually reaching $750,000, they refinanced twice (once to expand a business), and took out a second mortgage. They now owe more than $600,000 on the home, which is worth only $235,000.

Until we get out of this mess, the housing market will continue to drag!  However if you are looking to buy a foreclosure in the Charlotte and Lake Norman areas, the time may be right.

Check out our FREE list of foreclosures

Lake Norman Foreclosures

Charlotte Foreclosures

Find Your Charlotte Area Dream Home

By admin

Charlotte Real Estate Listings By Town/City

Just click on your town of choice and easily find the homes for sale!

City-MLS area City-MLS area City-MLS area
Mooresville – 12/13 Charlotte 1-9 Concord – 11
Gastonia – 16 Cornelius – 1,13 Huntersville – 1,9,11
Denver – 13,14 Kannapolis -11,21 Troutman – 12,13
Matthews 3,4,10 Belmont – 16 Sherrills Ford – 13,29
Davidson – 1,11,13

Charlotte MLS Areas

charlotte real estate

Carolina Living Real Estate and Lake Norman

By admin

Boats On Lake Norman

Carolina Living serves the Charlotte area with agents positioned around the entire area.  One of the areas where we are truly experts is Lake Norman.

We  have created a series of websites that encompasses everything you will need to know about Lake Norman Real Estate.

Starting with our blog which has all kinds of miscellaneous information about Lake Norman, from boat slips, to understand waterfront purchases.

Our company website Carolina Living Real Estate, has information about our company and information about the Charlotte area, from the arts to sports.

Lake Norman Communities has home listings for most of the communities surrounding Lake Norman.  Search by community and Lake Norman Waterfront and see all the active listings in the area.

Lake Norman Foreclosures has foreclosure listings all around the lake.  You can see home listings of Lake Norman foreclosures by price and by waterfront listings.

Birkdale at Lake Norman has home listings and miscellaneous information all about then Birkdale Golf Community and Birkdale Village which are two of the premier communities around Lake Norman.

Finally, Lake Norman Property Management is one of the premier property management companies in the area.  Our website displays many many rental listings as well as defines our services.

8 Tips For Adding Curb Appeal To Your Home

By admin

Houselogic created by The National Association of Realtors recently published an article about adding curb appeal your home.  Carolina Living Real Estate has had recent success selling our listings by insuring that we are “winning the war online” and by providing our clients tips to enhance their home against the competion.

Homes with high curb appeal command higher prices and take less time to sell. We’re not talking about replacing vinyl siding with redwood siding; we’re talking about maintenance and beautifying tasks you’d like to live with anyway.

The way your house looks from the street—attractively landscaped and well-maintained—can add thousands to its value and cut the time it takes to sell. But which projects pump up curb appeal most? Some spit and polish goes a long way, and so does a dose of color.

  1. Wash your house’s face
  2. Freshen the paint job
  3. Regard the roof
  4. Neaten the Yard
  5. Add a color splash
  6. Glam your mailbox
  7. Fence Yourself In
  8. Maintenance is a must

Read more: 8 Tips for Adding Curb Appeal To Your Home

According to RealtyTrac -1 in 4 Sales Was A Forclosure

By admin

This information is courtesy of Inman News.

Foreclosure sales accounted for 26 percent of U.S. home sales in 2010, with those properties selling for more than 28 percent less, on average, than homes not in the foreclosure process, data aggregator RealtyTrac said in its latest report.

A total of 831,574 U.S. residential properties either owned by banks or in some stage of foreclosure sold to third parties in 2010, a decrease of 31 percent from 2009 and a decrease of nearly 14 percent from 2008, RealtyTrac said.

Homes in foreclosure accounted for a larger percentage of sales in 2009 — 29 percent — but their share of total sales was up from 23 percent in 2008.

While controversy over loan servicers’ handling of foreclosure paperwork put a dent in fourth quarter foreclosure sales, the impact of the so-called robo-signing controversy seemed to be waning in the final month of the year.

RealtyTrac recorded a total of 149,303 foreclosure sales in the fourth quarter, down 22 percent from the previous quarter and down 45 percent from the same period a year ago. That decline was in spite of a 21 percent monthly uptick in foreclosure sales volume in December.

“The catch-22 for 2011 is that while accelerating foreclosure sales will help clear the oversupply of distressed properties and return balance to the market in the long run, in the short term a high percentage of foreclosure sales will continue to weigh down home prices,” said RealtyTrac CEO James Saccacio in a statement.

A total of 512,886 bank-owned (REO) properties sold to third parties in 2010 at an average discount of 36 percent, up from an average discount of 33 percent in 2009.

Another 318,688 pre-foreclosure properties — homes in default or scheduled for auction — sold to third parties in 2010 at an average discount of 15 percent, down from an average discount of nearly 17 percent in 2009.

In North Carolina :

Foreclosure Sales = 10,315
Percent of All Sales = 11.69
Average price = 146,261
Average Discount Percent 25.8

Looking for a Charlotte Forecloure

Looking for a Lake Norman Foreclosure

10 Pieces of Paper You Must Round Up to Buy (or Sell) a Home

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I recently read a great article on Trulia.com by Tara-Nicholle Nelson.  It speaks to the difficulties in buying and selling real estate with regard to the documentation you will need to actually buy or sell a home.  Buyers and Sellers are both becoming very frustrated with the numerous requests made by lenders for more documentation.  It is best to be prepared.  Tara was kind enough to provide the following list and explanation.

  1. ID (e.g., driver’s license, state-issued ID, passport).  Who must produce it?  Buyers and sellers.  Why?  Uh, hello!?!  Lender wants to know that you are who you say you are, buyers, and the title insurance company wants to make sure, sellers, that you actually have the right to sell the home.  Funny enough, this commonly goes unrequested until you get to the closing table, when the notary requests to see it before signing, but some mortgage brokers and even some real estate brokers and agents may ask to see it earlier on.
  2. Paycheck Stubs.  Who must produce it?  Any buyer financing their purchase with a mortgage.  Sellers, usually only in the case of a short sale.  Why? Buyers’ purchase price ranges are determined, in part, by their income. And short sellers have to prove an economic hardship.
  3. Two months’ bank account statements. Who must produce it?  Buyers getting financing; sellers selling short. Why? Buyers’ lenders now require proof of regular income and proof that the down payment money is your own.  Short sellers?  It’s all about the hardship.
  4. Two years’ W-2 forms or tax returns. Who must produce it?  Mortgage-seeking buyers and short selling sellers. Why? Banks want to see a stable, long-term income. They also limit you to claiming as income the amount on which you pay taxes (attn: all business owners!). And in short sales, again, they want documentation of every single facet of your finances.
  5. Updated everything. Who must produce it? Buyer/mortgage applicants. Why? Because things change, and because the time period between the first loan application and closing can be many months – even years! – on today’s market. During the time between contract and closing it’s not at all unusual for underwriters to demand buyers produce updated mortgage statements, checks stubs, and such – and its quite common for them to call your office the day before closing to request a last minute verification of employment!
  6. Quitclaim deed. Who must produce it?  Married buyers purchasing homes they plan to own as separate property.  Married sellers selling homes that they own separately, or joint owners selling their interests separately.  Why? With the Quitclaim Deed, the other spouse or owner signs any and all interests they even might have had in the property over the the selling owner, making it possible for the title insurer to guarantee clear, undisputed title is being transferred in the sale.
  7. Divorce decree.  Who must produce it? Buyers and sellers who need to document their solo status or the property-splitting terms of their divorce. Why? Again, to ensure that the seller has the right to sell.  Recently single buyers might need to prove that they shouldn’t be held to account for their ex’s separate debts or credit report dings.
  8. Gift letters.  Who must produce it? Buyers using gift money toward their down payment. Why? The bank wants to be sure the gift came from a relative, and is their own money to give.  They also want the relative to confirm in writing that it’s a gift, not a loan – a loan would need to be factored into your debt load.
  9. Compliance certificates. Who must produce it? Usually sellers, but sometimes buyers, by contract. Why? Some local governments require various condition requirements be met before the property is transferred, like some cities which require a sewer line be video scoped and repaired, cities which require a checklist of items be met before a certificate of occupancy be issued (usually relevant to brand new and really old homes, the latter of which are often subject to lead paint concerns) and energy conservation ordinances which require low-flow toilets and shower heads to be installed. Ask your real estate pro for advice about which, if any, such ordinances apply in your area.
  10. Mortgage statements. Who must produce it?  Any seller with a mortgage. Why? the escrow holder or title company will need to use them to order payoff demands from any mortgage holder who has to get paid before the property’s title can be transferred.

You can read the entire article on Trulia.

 

 

To Stage Or Not To Stage

By admin

http://www.thevirtualtourpeople.com/

Actually a seller should never be asking this question.  It is the wrong type of thinking if the seller is serious about selling his/her home.

The better question is ‘How should I stage?”  We Realtors, at Carolina Living Real Estate, are quick to tell our sellers that there are things we have no control over and other things that we have total control over.  It is the things we can control  that we try to address when we work with our sellers.

The process of preparing a home to put it on the market – from simple clean-up and clean-out to extensive repairs and improvements-always directly impacts how quickly a home will sell and for what price!

In fact a review that was published in USA Today stated that of 2800 properties in 8 cities found that “staged homes on average, sold in half the time as non-staged homes did.  They also sold for over 6% more than non-staged homes on average.

The hardest part for a seller is getting past their own personal tastes. We Realtors understand that sellers have spent lots of money and time personalizing the home the way they like it.  However, the moment the home goes on the market, a seller’s personal taste must go out the window.  It is now time to have it as a buyer pleases!

The house must appeal to the largest possible segment of likely buyers.  In today’s market, with fewer buyers, it become imperative.

Some sellers are justifiably concerned about costs of staging especially for homes that are vacant.  If you can’t afford to actually stage the home with furniture,worry no more.  The above picture from Ark-La-Tex Virtual  Tours can take your vacant house and convert it to a gorgeous home online using virtual staging!