Really, really bad real estate photos

For anyone thinking of selling, this is what some agents think will help you sell your home. I thought this was hysterical. Especially the comments!
http://www.visualtour.com/applets/flashviewer/viewer.asp?t=830679&sk=46&dm=teamfisher.com

Interest Rates Down! (But only for a few hours?!)

I received an email today from a mortgage lender I work with saying rates may come down to a 52 week low of 5.875%. That is a great rate especially combined with the low prices already out there. However, rates can change with the blink of an eye so you really need to be on top of things and have a great lender who is even more on top of things. A lower interest rate can mean more buying power. I always tell my buyers, look at your monthly payments rather then the actual purchase price. Don't get hung up on a price especially with the rates jumping around like they are. On a $300,000 purchase, the difference in one percentage point can be as much $200/month. Would you rather spend that $200 on a nicer house or just hand it over to the mortgage company? Personally I would take the nicer house.

I'm not having fun anymore"

This is a direct quote from my one of my current buyers. She is buying a bank owned property, which thanks to the media, seems like the best thing since sliced bread. However, it can be extremely stressful and there is so much that goes into it that buyers don't know ahead of time. I like to think that buying your first home should be one of the happiest and most exciting times of your life, but as she said, it's not fun anymore.

There is no denying it, you can get a great deal on a bank owned home. My buyer is getting a house in a very nice town, at just a tiny bit over what the land alone is valued at. However this house is not without it's share of problems. It needs all new windows, the kitchen looks like it has never been updated, every appliance will have to be replaced, and since we have not done the inspection yet, we don't know what else we are going to find. But, for the price, it is a great deal!

Now the flip side. The owner of the house is the bank. While banks these days have a ton of property that they are trying to sell, overall they are not in the real estate business and can be very hard to deal with, let alone even get a response from. For this property we negotiated on the price for over a week, waited to get the initial paperwork for almost a week, and now are waiting to get the signed paperwork for almost a week. In addition there are costs that a buyer could have to pay that they may not pay for a regular purchase. For this particular property, there are back taxes and back water bills that that seller did not pay totalling over $2500 as well as the cost to dewinterize the property which is around $400. Sometimes these things can be negotiated and sometimes they can't.

Luckily this buyer understands that bank owned property is not as glamorous as it sounds, but a lot of other buyers don't. Think about this, if someone were taking away your home would you keep it looking all pretty and nice so that bank can have an easy time selling it? No way! You would probably trash it which is what many people do. And, if you couldn't afford your mortgage do you think you could afford to maintain your house. Probably not. From my experience, the best deals out there seem to be motivated sellers who just want to sell in this market. Most of them time the homes are well maintained, the process is much less stressfull, and the buyer still gets a great deal.

First time homebuyers share their experiences.

Congrats to Ron and Jenn who closed on their first home last week. They were kind enough to share their experiences with other newlyweds who are starting out their home search.

Ron and Jenn

Married May 2008, Cohasset MA

First Home Purchased October 2008, Stoughton, MA

How long did you search for your new home?

About 3 months.

What was the hardest part of your search/process?

Spending a day or weekend looking at multiple houses and walking away unsatisfied.

What was the best part of your search/process?

We learned something new every time we went out to see houses. It was also very helpful having such a friendly, patient, and informative buyer's agent with us.

What do you love about your new home?

Absolutely everything, especially the open floor plan, the fireplaces (because my wife gets cold), and the 2 decks.

Please give some advice for any other newlyweds looking to buy their first home together.

Call Jaime and make an appointment. Take the time to understand exactly what you are looking for. Be patient with one another because it can sometimes be stressful. You may have to see lots of houses before you find the right one, but be patient, because it will be worth it. Make sure that both of you discuss at length what each of you want out of your potential home so that it will make the search easier.

Anything else you would like to share.

In all seriousness, Jaime was absolutely amazing to work with and we now have a new friend. What could have been an extremely stressful experience became a fun learning process that ended with our perfect first home. We will miss our Wed. evenings house hunting with our adorable prego agent. We would also like to add that since you will be spending a lot of time with your buyers agent during this potentially long and stressful process, make sure that he/she is a good fit for you. It made all the difference for us.

Thank you so much Ron and Jenn. I had a blast working with you guys as well. Good luck in your new home!