Spacious Perry Hills Colony Split Level with Large Yard

October 21, 2009

Posted by joeymarino | Filed Under Homes For Sale, Perry, Real Estate Blog | Leave a Comment

Look for Northeast Ohio Homes for Sale on Twitter

October 5, 2009

Twitter_256x256 If you are looking for a home in Northeastern Ohio and would like to be automatically updated of new listings in your area, now you can with twitter!

It’s super easy! Here’s how:

Go to @NEOhioHomes twitter account.
Or search for certain areas with search.twitter.com with searches like this #realestate #canton
Follow @NEOhioHomes or add the search to your RSS reader.

If you want to be updated by email, sign up for my free search app.

Posted by joeymarino | Filed Under Networking, Real Estate Blog | 1 Comment

Canton Among Top 5 for Affordable “Move-UP” Housing

September 24, 2009

According to the article below, Canton is much more than that place that has the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It turns out, not surprisingly to me, that Canton is among the top 5 most affordable housing markets in the nation. Not far ahead of Canton is our neighbor to the north, Akron.

The following article states that the influx of first time buyers has caused a surge in second time “move-up” buyers looking for a good deal. The average Stark County home is only a fraction of the cost of California home. Not to mention our living expenses are considerably lower. The luxurious homes in Jackson , Perry, and Plain Townships surrounding Canton are low priced compared to anywhere. With all the things northeast Ohio can offer, it’s a great place for people to move looking to upgrade their lives and spend the least amount doing it!

Article on Canton’s placement in the top 5 most affordable markets

Get affordable housing in Canton Ohio and Stark County now

Posted by joeymarino | Filed Under Canton, Real Estate Blog, Stark County | Leave a Comment

First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Extension?

September 17, 2009

There’s talk of an extension for the first time home buyer tax credit. There’s been a number of bills introduced to congress having to do with this extension. The latest potential extension gives it another 6 month run. Congress just passed a bill extending the credit for service members only for a year. It might be worth looking into purchasing your first home if they pass it. Read here how to buy your first home.

UPDATE: There is more and more talk every day about this extension. Nancy Pelosi mentions a possibility of extending it to all home purchases, while other bills have been introduced to extend to the end of 2010 with a gradual reduction.

With the tax credit deadline fast approaching, the tax credit is almost out of reach. The inventory of available homes are starting to dwindle as first time buyers are getting all the good deals as soon as they come available. Any new buyers may as well forget about good deals that can be found with foreclosures or short sales because they take too long. There is barely enough time to find a home and get financing in our area. If you’ve planned on buying and taking advantage, you better act now.

I feel that the market is being helped by this “cash for houses” plan and to see it go will also see a downturn in the housing market and economy. With 1,400,000 new buyers this year thanks to this stimulus, it’s going to be sad to see it go.

Take action and write to your congressmen to extend this stimulus until the market is working on it’s own.

**There is no official approval for an extension or new tax credit for next year.

This is an article by the Canton Repository on the possibilities of an extension and the current market.

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Time Almost Run Out for Tax Stimulus

July 24, 2009

housemoney The first time home buyer $8000 tax stimulus expires on December 1st, 2009. You will need to be closed by this date. Due to recent regulation and market activity, it is not uncommon for a loan to take 60 days to close.

This means if you do not have an accepted purchase agreement on a home by September 30th, 2009, it may be too late!

So how do you find your first home quickly and easily?

Get started today by using a free buyer’s agent to find and purchase your new home.

A buyer’s agent can help you by:

Searching the market for properties that meet your needs.
Showing you all prospective properties in one meeting.
Keep you informed on the buying process.
Negotiate for you when making offers.
Give you factual market information on your potential new home.
Make sure the deal is moving along smoothly and quickly.

Call or fill out this quick form to get started:

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First Time Home Buyers Should Find a Home Soon

June 29, 2009

If you are a first time home buyer and are considering purchasing a home and benefitting from the first time home purchase tax stimulus, you will want to stop thinking and start looking.

The purchase transaction will have to be closed before December 1st, 2009. However, once you have an offer accepted, it can take a couple months to close on a deal. It used to take 30-45 days to close on a deal, but that number has been increased recently.

Understaffed lenders aren’t able to handle files as quickly as they used to, so loan underwriting takes much longer than before.
Recent regulations criminalizing all direct communication between appraisers and mortgage brokers adds another few days to weeks on to the transaction.

Right now, it’s not unusual to see a sale go 45 to 60 days or longer before closing! This means if you don’t buy before September 1st, there is a chance you won’t close in time.

Don’t miss out on this once in a lifetime opportunity. Prices are low, interest rates are low, and there’s a lot of homes to chose from. It’s a lot easier and cheaper to buy a home than you may think.

How to save time finding a home:

Find a buyer’s agent.
- A free buyer’s agent can show you all properties you might like in one or two days.
Search extensively online and find the best choices
- You can save time by eleminating the least likely possibilities so you don’t have to visit too many homes. Start searching now!
- Install Dwellicious.com and save all the properties you find from all the sites to one location.
Don’t search way out of your price range.
Have your preapproval letter, good faith estimate, and earnest money ready for an offer.

Call or email today for a free consultation.

Start searching Stark County now!

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Should You Sell Now?

June 2, 2009

If you have been wondering whether or not you should sell your home, the following information should answer your question.

This is an article by Peter Schiff “Dr. Doomsday” who is credited for predicting the recession down to the quarter and knowing many of the main factors that caused it for years. This article eludes to what I’ve been wondering for some time. What happens once the stimulus credit runs out December first? My interpretation is that while the slowdown of dropping prices in recent months is good, it’s artificial. It’s artificial because the bubble was artificial and the tax stimulus and low rates have temporarily slowed down the dropping prices. If prices were to take the normal path of increase, slightly above inflation for the last 10 years, as it had for the last 100, prices would be 34% less than what they are now.

If what he is predicting is correct, the prices could continue to drop even more so after the first time homebuyers stimulus expires. The positive side to the story is that there are still buyers and there always will be buyers. You may want to consider selling now while the weather is good, school is out, the rates are great, and the first timer tax stimulus is helping keep our inventory and prices under control.

Peter Schiff – TheStreet.com – Housing’s Big Picture Isn’t Pretty

**Please note that this is just a prediction and is not intended to cause panic. This blog is merely a reflection on the possiblities of the market.

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Deed in Lieu or Short Sale?

May 22, 2009

When trying to avoid an imminent foreclosure, the borrowers should be aware of their options. I have found that currently there are two options to eliminate the loan, short sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure. The difference between the two really depends on the current market value of the home and the remaining amount owed on the mortgage note.

3/25/10 – Update: A new program from the treasury department may allow you to sell your home quickly at short sale and receive $1500 for relocation costs. Find out the details of this program and see if you qualify.

SHORT SALE
A short sale is an agreement between the bank and the borrower to sell the property for less than what is owed. The borrower will need to be in hardship for the bank to agree to discount the loan.

Short sales may or may not affect the borrowers credit somewhat, but not as bad as a foreclosure. A short sale may be recorded as a type of settlement on the borrower’s credit. So, if they keep up on the payments and the bank doesn’t record any settlement on the borrower’s credit, it may not affect their credit at all. The borrower’s might have to wait a few years to get a mortgage again, but there’s a chance their credit won’t get ruined.

One thing to note is that every bank is different. Most banks will eliminate the debt completely. One bank held my short sale sellers responsible for the remainder of the debt.

You will want to know your note holder’s policies on short sales.

An experienced short-sale agent can help you sell your home in short sale and get you out from under your expensive mortgage and over-inflated property. Email or call today to get a free short sale analysis and determine if your situation is right for a short sale in Stark County.

joey@whippleauction.com <- ~ – ~ -> (330)412.2221

DEED IN LIEU
A deed in lieu is a deed instrument that allows the borrower to sign over the deed to the bank to satisfy a loan in default. Most likely, a bank will only agree to a deed in lieu if the amount owed is less or equal to the value of the real property. This may be different now that the market has decreased, so anyone will want to consult a professional on deeds in their market.

It is my understanding this will most likely decrease your credit just as much as a foreclosure.

There are other options if the loan payment amount is just out of reach but you wish to stay in your home, such as loan modification, special forebearance, refinance, etc. Talk with your bank’s loss mitigation deptartment (if you can get through), and see what options are available.

*Contact your bank’s loss mitigation department for correct information.

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How To Get a Great Deal in the Current Real Estate Market

April 22, 2009

The real estate market these days is constantly changing. Today’s market is a strange one. There are always really good deals to be found, but because of the current explosion of buyers on the market, they can be difficult to find. There are a few ways to get a real steal in real estate.

First of all, get in contact with a free buyers agent and get prepared to buy a house. This can take some time, and you will miss out on a property of your dreams if you aren’t ready.

There are two types of sellers that will often sell property below market value; banks and estates.

Purchasing a property owned by a bank can be difficult and stressful, but the rewards are high. First of all, be aware that these transactions could take more than a couple months to get accepted and closed, so if you want to get the tax stimulus, you will have to close by December 1st, 2009. You will want to get started immediately, because you may not find a deal on a home you are interested in for some time. There are two types of bank-involved properties you can purchase, bank owned and short sales.

Purchasing REO (Bank Owned or Foreclosed Properties)

With REO homes, you will want to watch the market very, very, very, very closely. Look at all the new listings that come up every day in your desired market. A good real estate agent can help you with this by sending them to you in an email or other format. As soon as one pops up that you might like, take a look at the property that day if possible. If you like it, put an offer on the property that same day! When an REO property gets on the market, there are usually multiple offers on the first or second day if it’s priced well.

Not all REO properties are listed below market value, but it does happen when the bank wants a quick sale. An agent can help you identify a well priced listing. You will want to make your best offer up front because if you try to get an even better deal, you may get outbid. You might consider giving an offer at or over asking price to help improve your odds of winning. It can take a few days to a few weeks to hear back on an accepted offer, so break out the nail file, it’s going to be a stressful wait.

Purchasing Short Sales

A “short sale” is when the owner of the property owes more on the home than what it’s worth and they need to sell it, for whatever reason. The bank they are borrowing from has to get involved and approve the purchase price. We are running into these more and more these days.

My brokerage has many short sale listings and we understand the process involved. These banks all handle short sales differently. Some lenders aren’t even accepting offers at the listing price or even contacting the seller for nearly a year about a submitted offer. An agent that works with these entities are aware of which ones are better to deal with. Keep in mind that multiple offers can be submitted on the property while awaiting acceptance.

If you get outbid on a property, don’t be discouraged, an even better deal could make it’s self available. You may want to keep an eye out for another property while waiting to hear back, you can always rescind your current offer and place a new one on a different property.

Buying Estates

An estate sale is when heirs have gained ownership of a property for many reasons including when a parent passes away or moves to assisted living. Many times the property has a lot of equity since it was lived in and paid on for many years, allowing an aggressive listing price. The heirs may wish to have a quick sale so they don’t have to make payments on the property. These sales are usually a lot easier to deal with than banks. A great way to get a good deal at an estate is to purchase it at auction. An auction requires a down payment. A real estate agent can help you find and buy at auction.

While the other types of sales do produce good deals on properties, you will want to work with a buyer’s agent that can keep you informed on the market and help you recognize value.

Give me a call if you are looking in Stark or Summit County, Ohio to get started today! 330.412.2221

Posted by joeymarino | Filed Under Real Estate Blog | 1 Comment

10 Reasons to Own Instead of Rent (not what you’d expect)

March 14, 2009

We’ve all heard the familiar reasons to own instead of rent. “Build equity”, “invest in your future”, “stop paying someone elses mortgage”, “forced savings plan”, etc. I have constructed a list of own-not-rent motives that you may not have thought about.

10 (different) reasons to own a home instead of renting.

You can move in and out when you want to, you don’t have to wait till your lease is up.
No one has to approve the colors you paint your walls.
You actually could be paying less monthly in your own home than similar rentals. Enough to make a difference.
You don’t have to inform anyone that your living arrangement has changed.
Want new lighting fixtures? Not a problem.
Typically, your mortgage payment doesn’t ever increase, unlike rent. (Unless you get an ARM)
Staying in your home longer, means you can become more involved in the local community.
You don’t have to ask anyone to fix your shower head, just do it yourself.
Help build your credit by paying on time.
Most importantly: You don’t have to ask anyone if you can have a pet! Please adopt.

Are you a first time home buyer? Get started with my first time home buyer’s guide.