Want to get a Deal or a Steal when Buying a House? Check out HUD Homes!

Are you thinking about BUYING a HOUSE in Garland, Rowlett, Rockwall or other Dallas County, Collin County or Tarrant County city? Do you not only want a Deal but a STEAL??? Well then, might I suggest you take a look at HUD Homes. 

HUD homes are not your typical Foreclosure or Short Sale home that has lots of issues or trashed by the previous owners ... Some HUD Homes are move-in ready while others aren't. HUD Homes also vary in price ... you can certainly find a HUD home for $100k or less, you can ALSO find a sweet $400k HUD home as well!

So What Is a HUD Home you ask. Good Question ... let's start with the basics:

• HUD stands for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD Homes are single-family residences that were acquired by the Government as a result of a foreclosure on an FHA-insured mortgage.

• HUD Homes are offered 1st as an Auction / online Bid. There's a Bid Deadline and if NO bid was accepted, the House then goes on a Day by Day basis until a bid is accepted

• HUD homes ARE sold AS-IS. They've already been Appraised by FHA & have noted if any, what work/repairs they will Reimburse the buyer for a portion of. These repairs that will be made are if they are to make the property "safe, secure or marketable". In other words, they're not going to Reimburse you to paint over the red wall in the dining room & change out the old appliances. If any work to the Main Systems of the house or Structure of the House needs to be done.  **When you click on the house Case #, go to the Addendum tab & click the "PCR" (property conditions report) and the "Escrow" links to find out what is wrong & how much you'll be reimbursed when you get it repaired. 

• HUD does NOT Pay the Agents Commissions like most other Sellers do. This amount will be deducted from your Offer Price so be sure to keep this in mind when setting your OFFER because bottome line, the Winner is the one who's NET Offer is the highest.

• Buyers SHOULD get their own Home Inspections & if you are awarded the winning bid for the HUD Home, you actually have 15 Days to get an Inspection! If it is discovered during the Inspection that there are issues with the Structural, Roof, Operating System Defect (plumbing, electrical, sewage, HVAC), or Non-Compliance with local codes/zoning, the Buyer can Request HUD to correct issues or the Buyer can Cancel their Purchase of the HUD home.

• Some HUD Homes accept a $100 as their Down Payment! Yup! you read that right ... $100 can be your Down Payment for a HUD House!!! There are some requirements to this, so check with your Lender to see if you qualify!!!

• Some HUD Homes also accept the 203K FHA Rehab Loan ... not a loan for recovering alcoholics or drug users (ha ha ha) but it's a loan specifically for people who buy "distressed" (foreclosed) houses where your Home Loan & Repair Loan are rolled into one. Again, check with your Lender to see if you qualify for this loan.

• There are also HUD Homes that can be Purchased for 50% off the already low HUD listed price!!! YES, 50% Off the List Price!!! This is HUD's Good Neighbor Next Door program. If you're a Firefighter, EMT, Police or teacher in Garland, Rowlett, Rockwall or other Dallas County, Collin County or Tarrant County city you can qualify to participate in this awesome HUD Program! There are of course certain requirements so talk with your Realtor (hopefully that'll be ME) & Lender to see if you Qualify.

HUD Homes Come & Go Quickly so check back periodically at the HUD HOME STORE {type in the county, # of bedrooms, & max list price only to get the most options}

So WHO can buy a HUD Home??!?? YOU CAN!!! 

Contact me if you have any questions about purchasing or if you would like to look at a HUD Home in Garland, Rowlett, Rockwall or other Dallas County, Collin County or Tarrant County city.

STAGING YOUR DALLAS/FT WORTH HOME TO SELL

Staging your home to SELL is a marketing tool that is becoming more & more essential in the DFW & the Lake Ray Hubbard Real Estate Market. As your Realtor, my main responsibility is to make sure YOUR HOME SELLS in a little time as possible and for as much money as possible! One of the things that I provide my sellers are tips on how we can stage & better present their home, and if needed, help from a professional Home Stagger.

Buyers are looking for value, especially in today's economy that has a lot of 1st time home buyers. Whether its a car or a house, buyers need to perceive that their purchase is worth the price & even that it has more value than the price. 

There are 2 Main Reasons that Staging your home to sell is important from my 2 favorite Home Staggers, Karen Otto with Home Star Staging & Holly Bellomy with Dallas Real Estate Staging ... 

• You only get 1 First Impression and often times it's on the internet. Holly says, "A beautifully staged home stands out from its competition & spends less time on the market. Many buyers start their search on the internet so if the photos of your home display the cat's litter box, 1980's wall paper, & mismatched furniture, you will not draw a crowd! Stage your home before it's placed on the market and entice those potential buyers to come and take a look!"

• Staging is beneficial in Preventing Price Erosion that inevitably happens in the minds of buyers. As Karen puts it, "Price Erosion is when the potential Buyers start to make objections to the condition, repairs or updates that haven’t been completed. This can be anything you do to prepare your home which could include De-Cluttering, Neutralizing, Updating, De-Personalizing & Organizing, and enhancing the Curb Appeal." 

The bottom line is that an attractive listing will be shown more often, which means more market exposure, which is obviously needed for a quick & profitable SALE.


As your Lake Ray Hubbard & Dallas/Ft Worth Realtor, I work with my Sellers from Beginning to End making sure that we do all that we can to your DFW Home SOLD! Contact me (phone /email) to set up an appointment to discuss in more detail about selling your Dallas/Ft Worth home.

Along with Staging your Home, Pricing your Home Correctly from the Beginning & setting up an aggressive Marketing Plan are the other 2 things that are a MUST BEFORE you put your Dallas/Ft Worth home on the Market. *What to Do to SELL Your Dallas/Ft Worth House ... What's Important

What to Do to SELL Your Dallas/Ft Worth House ... What's Important

So you've decided to SELL YOUR HOUSE ... 

NOW WHAT?! 

Finding yourself a Realtor is a great 1st step. As a Realtor who specializes in the Lake Ray Hubbard area and Dallas Metroplex, I'm here to help you reach your Real Estate goals and sell your house for a good price & in a timley manner! I understand that selling your home can be a very emotional & will enfringe on your personal time.  


As your Realtor, my goal is to make the selling process as stress free and profitable for you as possible. The three main things I stress in getting your Home Sold are to ... Stage your Home, Price your Home Right from the Beginning, and Marketing your Home. Below is more information on these:

• Staging Your Home is basically getting your home in "showing and selling" condition. You never get a 2nd chance at a 1st impression, so it's important to take the time to get your house set to Impress Buyers. How your home looks will greatly impact how quickly your house sells & the price you get for it. As your Realtor, I can assist you in approaching your home from the buyer's standpoint and recommend changes/repairs/updates that should be done to make a good first impression. *Read more about the importance of Stagging HERE

• Pricing Your Home Right from the Beginning is essential for getting your house sold both quickly & for a higher price. If your home isn't priced correctly, your home might end up sitting on the market too long because it's overpriced ... which then leads potential buyers to think that something is wrong with it & inevetably offering a much lower price, which could very well be lower than what should have been your initial listing price. As your Realtor, I'll do an intense Comparative Market Analysis for your house. It is important to remember that the current Market, meaning prices that homes have sold for over the past 6 months, is what will be used to price your house & will also be used by your Lender's Appraiser. It is this objective analysis that will be used to determine the best Price Range for your house. 

• Marketing your Home is the final step now that your home is ready, it's time to put it on the market and announce to the world that it's For Sale! Marketing a home has changed a lot from 10 years ago, and even 5 years ago. As your Realtor, I continually update & evaluate how I market my clients homes to reach the highest possibility of potential and qualified buyers. Online marketing is a MUST, ~85% of all home buyers start their looking Online, and this venue changes frequently as well as what is popular with the consumers. Along with the basics (taking quality pictures, inputting your house in the Multiple Listing Service, Sign in Yard with Flyers, and setting up buyer showings with the Centralized Showing Serivce & using a Supra Lockbox), I also do the following ... Create your own Website & Domain Name, Utilize major consumer marketing websites like Zillow, Trulia, & Realtor.com, Advertise continuously on my business & company Websites, Blogs, & Social Media sites like FaceBook, Twitter, YouTube & LinkedIn, and I also do Online Classifieds like CraigsList & RealBird.

When you put your house on the market, the 1st 3 weeks are the busiest and that's why it's so important to  Stage your Home, Price your Home Right from the Beginning, and Market your Home .

As your Lake Ray Hubbard & Dallas/Ft Worth Realtor, I work with my Sellers from Beginning to End making sure that we do all that we can to your DFW Home SOLD! Contact me (phone / email) to set up an appointment to discuss in more detail about selling your Dallas/Ft Worth home.

2011 Year End Market Report, Lake Ray Hubbard, Garland TX ~ Rowlett TX ~ Rockwall TX

Another year has come & gone, like the sun setting over the beautiful Lake Ray Hubbard! So how did Real Estate market do in 2011 in the Lake Ray Hubbard area compared to 2010? 

Overall, 2011 was an alright year for both Sellers and the Buyers in the Lake Ray Hubbard housing market considering the economic state of our Country. Houses tended to stay on the market a bit longer than 2010 and sellers typically recieved less than their asking price ... BUT ... on the positive side, the Housing market saw amazingly low mortgage rates!


Real Estate is local and it's actually Hyper Local ... so with that being said, here's a quick glance of how the different cities fared around Lake Ray Hubbard.

• GARLAND, TX: 2011 saw about 18% less Listings (2,757), about 4.6% fewer Sales (1,666), and Sale Prices were down about 5% with the average price being $108,000.
• ROWLETT, TX: 2011 saw about 16% less Listings (1,237), about 2.5% MORE Sales (760), and Sale Prices were down about 4% with the average price being $146,000.
• ROCKWALL, TX:  2011 saw about 13% less Listings (2,113), about 2% MORE Sales (1,163), and Sale Prices were UP about .2% with the average price being $219,000.

If there is a neighborhood that you're curious about, simply send me an email (sam@samiamhouses.com) or a facebook message (www.facebook.com/SamIAmHouses) and I'd be happy to share the information with you. Please know that I am never too busy to help you or your friends/family that you refer to me and I would honor the chance to earn the business!

How to Live a GREENER Lifestyle and Lessen your CARBON FOOTPRINT, Dallas TX

Are you looking to live a GREENER lifestyle and lessen your CARBON FOOTPRINT?                                                       

                                                                 

                                                            

Here are some simple ways to be kind live GREEN in your everyday routine.

·         Pay your Bills Online to lessen the waste of paper

·         Skip the Drive Thru Windows … park & walk in

·       Replace light bulbs with Energy-Efficient bulbs

·         Unplug Appliances you don’t use often & turn your computer off completely at night

·         Open your window blinds to bring in the natural light instead of using electricity

·         Print on both sides of paper or let your kids draw on the backside of used paper

·         Use reusable bags for ALL of your shopping

·         Wash as many clothes as you can in a load … and use cold or tap water

·         Insulate your water heater

·         Use a reusable water bottle & stop buying disposable water bottles … and you’ll also save $$$

For more ideas on how to be GREEN, check out The Daily Green.

If you are a Buyer looking for GREEN Homes for Sale in the Dallas/Ft Worth Metroplex or Lake Ray Hubbard area, you can search for houses that are currently on the market in your desired areas directly on my website (top right) … it gets all it’s information directly from the MLS which has the most up to date info.

If you would like to set up an appointment to see homes just give me a call (214-422-0729) or send me an email - I'd be ever so happy to help!

Keep Track of Home Improvements to Help Lessen Your Taxes

With Tax time here, I thought I'd share a tip on things you can deduct and minimize your possible taxes.  If it's too late for your 2011 taxes, start doing it for your 2012 taxes!

Maintenance on a principal residence, the house you live in, is not a deductible, BUT, Improvements can add to the basis which can reduce the gain in the sale. Improvements are easily identified if they add to the value of a home, prolong its useful life or adapt it to new uses.

Receipts and other proof, such as pictures, should be kept during ownership and for several years after the sale of the home.

A simple strategy is to put documents that affect the basis of the home in one envelope. Any receipt for money spent on the home that isn't the house payment or utilities, goes into the envelope. Your tax advisor will be able to sort through them to determine which are the capital improvements.

For more information on determining capital improvements, see IRS publication 523, and consult with your Tax Advisor.

If you're thinking about Buying or Selling a Home in the Dallas/Ft Worth Metroplex or Lake Ray Hubbard area, please contact me to see how I can support you! I love what I do & giving 100% is all I know!

The Best Way Home ... To Buying a Home That Is

"It's not far, if you know the way." Maybe it is an obvious statement but there are some definite steps that will improve your success in buying a home in today's market.

1. Know you credit score - the best mortgage rates are available to borrowers with the highest scores. Unless you know what your credit score is at all three major bureaus, you don't really know what rate you'll have to pay.
   
2. Clean up your credit - it is estimated that about 90% of credit reports have errors. Some are not serious but others could affect a borrower from getting the best loan terms. It is your responsibility to know what is on your different reports and correct them if possible. You're entitled to a free copy of your credit report each year from Experian, Trans Union and Equifax.
   
3. Get pre-approved - Taking the time to make a loan application with a qualified lender even before you start looking at homes will provide peace of mind, make sure that you are looking at the "right" homes and may help you negotiate the best price on the home you select.
   
4. Do your homework - when you find the home that meets your needs and desires, research the tax assessments, school ratings, crime activity, possible zoning changes and comparable sales in the area.

As your real estate professional I can definitely help you with these important strategies to invest in a home to call your own, raise your family, feel safe and secure and share with your friends. Call for a recommendation of a trusted mortgage professional; there really is a difference.