Displaying blog entries 1-10 of 19
Time is ticking away if you're a first time home buyer and want to use the tax credit. The dead line to have your tranaction in place is April 30th so don't delay in getting that property now.
Is this a great time to purchase a home or what? According to the S & P Case Shiller Pricing Index home values have adjusted to August 2003 levels. You may be paying 2033 prices but you are actually getting a greater value! Why, because interest rates are 1% less than they were in 2003! On a loan balance of $200,000 that would save you $145.00 per month.
Take advantage of today's great buying opportunities!
THE RICH GET RICHER!
In "Rich Dad's Guide to Investing," the author talks about taking risks. As an example, "Rich Dad" says, "There is risk driving a car. But driving the car with your hands off the steering wheel is really risky." With regard to driving a car, his point is easily understood.
His real message, however, goes a little deeper. He's really speaking of the risks people associate with investing. While there are inherent risks in any investment (just as there are in driving to the grocery store), if you don't take control of the risks (as in keeping your hands on the wheel), the risks can quickly overwhelm you. Rich Dad goes on to say that, "It is not necessarily investing that is risky, it is the investor who is risky."
Whether you are investing in yourself, your business, real estate, or a stock portfolio, Rich Dad advises that you first gain control over yourself. This is accomplished in two steps: first by creating a written financial plan, and second through intensive study. Both make it possible to get a firm grip on your investment wheel. The written plan is your road map to successful investing, while study provides the knowledge level needed to invest wisely. Collectively, they put you in the driver's seat, giving you control over your investing direction.
If the idea of investing your way to wealth appeals to you, you must first commit to pay the price in time. You do not necessarily have to "have money to make money." Like any successful endeavor, however, you must be willing to invest your time, and we all realize just how valuable that can be!
PLAY BALL!
With the start of the major league baseball season, a simple success formula recently heard comes to mind. It uses baseball words, but contains plenty of success wisdom.
Which do you think is more important, a home run or a single base hit? Most of us would choose a home run - even a "grand slam" home run. Most of us were also brought up to believe that someday our "ship would come in" - that all of our success or wealth or whatever would arrive at once, in one grand port call.
Funny thing is - more ball games are won with base hits than with home runs. Most ships arrive slowly in port - guided by tiny tugboats - and only after having navigated the wide oceans through a series of thousands of minor navigational corrections.
Yes! Big wins and successful journeys occur most often as the result of daily decisions - not life-altering, once-a-year, mega-decisions. Want to lose weight? It won't happen because you vow on January 1 to do it. It will be the result of your daily decision to walk, run, or work out. Want excellent health? Your daily, even moment-by-moment, decisions to ingest only healthy foods and avoid junk are the ones that will win the day.
The same holds true for your success in business. While a master plan at the beginning of the year is important, it's really the steps taken each day that produce the results. As you face each of the very small daily decisions, be careful to make only the right choices. By day's end they'll add up to valuable progress both on and off the field.
Here is a list of the sold properties for March 2010 taken from Multiple Listing service. Four of these properties were foreclosures and five of the eight were sold for less than $100,000.
April sales are shaping up in a similar fashion. In a similar fashion I mean the foreclosures and distressed properties are selling. Of the four sales listed for April up to this point, three are foreclosures and one was a distressed sale heading into foreclosure.
Sadly, even more foreclosures are coming on the market. According to RealtyTrac there were more foreclosures in the first quarter of 2010 than there have since they have been tracking-since 2005. Leader states in foreclosures are California, Florida, Arizona and Nevada for the first quarter. Why so many now? The banks are finally getting through the glut of processing. RealtyTrac reports that there will be approximately one million foreclosures in 2010 and around four million fillings for foreclosures this year.
Two reasons for increased foreclosures: high unemployment and declining values making owners "underwater" owing more than their home's market value. This is really causing a domino effect as the foreclosures drag down market values more people will become "underwater".
Once this excess foreclosure inventory is gone, the real estate markets will stabilize.
Hit the brakes honey, this is it! This is a great home with lots of warm cedar wood throughout on 1.37 acres of land near the Salmon River. Three bedrooms and two baths with high vaulted beamed ceilings and lots of room to spread out on your land. There's an attached two car garage, mini shop and carport too! A big yard in the back plus garden area, tree house and woodshed.
Just listed at $290,000!
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The Portland metro price decline from last March to this March is 10,9%.
Mt. Hood statistics for March 2010 show a 6.7% decline. Based upon the numbers from March 2009 with minimal sales and March 2010 sales I don't see the 6.7% figure as a realistic gage. From what we are seeing in today's market in pricing the minimum gage we should use for Mt. Hood properties would be the 10.9% number.
The multiple listing service for the Portland metro area has just come out with the numbers for March 2010 Mt. Hood sales. Here are the numbers:
A huge number of new listings came on the market- this could be the "shadow inventory" or people waiting for the market to improve that have been holding on till economic news has improved. There's another wave of foreclosures coming on to the market so if this is "shadow inventory" the timing may be off. Forty three new properties to come on the market in one month is 25% of the entire market of listings for sale!
Real estate is local. No matter what the national media is saying it doesn't pan out in our local market. Oregon has always been a year behind most "national" real estate trends. We were late in the decline and we will be late for the "recovery".
Trends that are showing up:
1. much longer marketing times
2. serious impact of foreclosure sales on pricing
3. declining average sales price
4. increased pending sales numbers
Although this month's percent of sales price change shows 6.7% from last year, I find our data base is so small it does not give a true picture of what is really happening. Portland metro homes declined in price by 10.9% as an average so I suspect our number is greater than that.
If your home was built before 1978 and you're remodeling, there is a new requirement coming into play on April 22nd of this year passed by the EPA-o Protection Agency. This is the Lead Paint: Renovation, Repair, and Painting Rule (LRRP).
If you have bought or sold a home you know about the lead based paint disclosure that must be signed by the seller. The EPA hasn't provided enough trainers to certify contractors so it will be crunch time to hit the April 22nd deadline.
Hazardous Material: Lead based paint is dangerous to children if inhaled or eaten and causes brain and nerve damage. It's also dangerous for adults causing many health problems. Lead based paint is also very difficult to remove.
Here's the kicker though, not only contractors but plumbers, window installers and heating installers need certification.
This could delay some projects as all these groups complete the certification.
This one level home is close in but loaded with privacy on over an acre of land! $300,000
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Tons of upgrades have been done on this home from a new kitchen,appliances, counter tops, cabinets, new carpets and linoleum, paint inside and out, Avalon wood stove, fixtures, paneling and more! There's even a 30 X 40 shop to store your toys and cars. A tree lined driveway brings you to the home. It's in a neighborhood but no homes can be seen from your secluded acreage. There's room for RV parking and tons of room for the grandkids to roam. A big bonus is that you can walk to shopping or restaurants and it's only 15 minutes to great skiing. Only one hour from Portland too! The home is perfect for either full time living, snow birds or vacationers!
Located in the heart of Welches!
Displaying blog entries 1-10 of 19
