by Cathy Glass
What Realtors Think Home Prices Will Change in the Next Year
11:56 pm in Uncategorized by Cathy Glass
Expectations of home prices over the next year
You are browsing the archive for Cathy Glass.
by Cathy Glass
Schedule for the Oak Ridge Secret City Festival 2010
9:18 am in Oak Ridge by Cathy Glass
Here is the schedule for the Oak Ridge Secret City Festival 2010. This schedule appeared in the Oak Ridger today.
by Cathy Glass
Mortgage Applications Fall
4:36 pm in Market Studies by Cathy Glass
This report from the Mortgage News Daily NewsWire last week is concerning:
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending May 14, 2010. Michael Fratantoni, MBA’s Vice President of Research and Economics summed up the survey:
“Purchase applications plummeted 27 percent last week and have declined almost 20 percent over the past month, despite relatively low interest rates. The data continue to suggest that the tax credit pulled sales into April at the expense of the remainder of the spring buying season. In fact, this drop occurred even as rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages continued to fall…
We hope that Mr. Frantonini is wrong in his analysis! Economists at the National Association of Home Builders are more optimistic, with reservations: “Economists participating in yesterday’s [May 18, 2010] NAHB Construction Forecast Conference Webinar agreed that the housing market is on the road to recovery, but cautioned that several factors could contribute to a bumpy ride in the coming months.”
This is a post from the Tennessee Association of Realtors
Cathy Glass, Realtor
by Cathy Glass
Watch for the New Cash for Caulkers Program (Home Star Energy Retrofit Act)
9:40 am in Home Buyers, Home Sellers, Knoxville by Cathy Glass
There may soon be a new way you can get money out of your house. It is with the Home Star Energy Retrofit Act. As the Knoxville News Sentinel reported today, it’s a two year program that can give homeowners up to $8,000 for improving energy efficiency in their homes.
This is separate from the $1,500 credit homeowners can get this year.
I will post more details soon. Cathy Glass, Realtor
by Cathy Glass
11:31 am in Home Sellers by Cathy Glass
Cluttered House courtesy of Flickr
One thing I urge neighbors is, if your neighbor’s house is for sale, you can raise your property values if you help it sell. One way is to clean up your yard, especially if you are right next door. People do notice the neighbors.
Make sure your house has good curb appeal, too, as though you were trying to sell yours. Get rid of all clutter. Keep your entrance nice, your lawn mowed, and manicure your curb and sidewalk.
Cathy Glass, Realty Executives Associates, 865-693-3232, www.cathyglass.com
by Cathy Glass
New Homes Sales Fell in January 2010
8:16 am in Uncategorized by Cathy Glass
I just wanted to pass this statistic on to you. I feel strongly that home sellers should be making their decisions based on the true picture of the housing market, in order to get the highest amount in the shortest time.
This short blurb was in the TAR Newletter. Cathy Glass, Realtor®, Realty Executives Associates, 865-693-3232, http://www.cathyglass.com
New Home Sales Hit Record Low in January
Last week, the Commerce Department reported that new-home sales fell 11.2 percent in January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 309,000 — the lowest level on record. Analysts had expected a 3.5 percent gain. “This should be an ideal time for people to buy. And yet, they’re hesitating,” notes Brad Hunter of housing consultant Metrostudy. “You’re not going to have a robust housing market until you have more jobs, and you’re not going to add jobs fast enough to bring down the unemployment rate until you have a robust housing market.”
[SOURCES: AP, New York Times; Information, Inc.]
by Cathy Glass
REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-Secure a Lender Quickly for Tax Credit
9:13 pm in Home Buyers by Cathy Glass
This is important, house buyers. Go ahead and get your mortgage broker, now. Don’t wait until you find a property. There is a lot of preparation you and your lender need to do to get you ready.
REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-Secure a Lender Quickly for Tax Credit.
by Cathy Glass
Follow Up About the Foreclosures
8:57 pm in Foreclosure by Cathy Glass
This was a little article in our Tennessee Association of Realtors Newsletter that talks specifically about Tennessee’s foreclosures.
One in Nine TN Mortgages Is Delinquent
The Nashville Business Journal reports: “Delinquent residential mortgage loans rose in Tennessee in the fourth quarter to 11.31 percent, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Among the 50 states, Tennessee ranked 11th in terms of delinquencies and 23rd in terms of foreclosures started, the MBA said.”
[SOURCE: Nashville Business Journal]
by Cathy Glass
Foreclosure Crisis Ending?
5:51 pm in Foreclosure by Cathy Glass
For people who read only the headline in the business section of the Knoxville NewsSentinel, they might think, the “foreclosure crisis is ending!” In what way is it ending? In the article, it says “15% of homeowners with a mortgate have missed at lease one payment.” Also, “nearly half of all delinquent borrowers were at least three months behind on their payments, up from a typical level of less than 20%” Additionally, a new wave of 6,000,000 foreclosures are expected.
There was a drop inthe number of people losing their homes for the first time in three years, but with 6,000,000 on the horizon, isn’t it a little too optimistic to say it’s ending? Further in the article, each positive comment was balanced with statements like, “”It’s going to be a very long, gradual process.” and “The bad news is we still have a problem.” My opinion is that it is true it will be a while before this problem is “ending,” and home sellers and buyers (buyers, you need to get out there and buy a home!!) need to make their housing decisions carefully and not base decisions on the headlines.
I just watched a spot on Fox News of an expert being interviewed. Sorry, I didn’t catch the name, but he was indicating that a second wave is coming. They were talking about short sales and if that’s a good idea. I have recently gotten certified in short sales, and the thinking is that it’s a lot better than foreclosure. There are still negative ramifications, but it’s better.
by Cathy Glass
Two New Reasons to Sell Your House Now and Not Wait
5:47 pm in Home Sellers by Cathy Glass
There were two new news articles that show it would be a good idea to sell your house now, if you want to any time in the next few years. The first article is in the Business section in the Knoxville News-Sentinel, February 18, 2010 about how the Obama’s mortgage aid program has failed. Relatively few people have been able to refinance their mortgage to make the payments affordable. More and more people are just walking away from their homes and letting the bank foreclose. Those foreclosures are expected to continue rising. That will mean more competition and lower prices.
Cathy Glass, Realty Executives Associates, 865-693-3232, directly 865-384-8636, http://www.cathyglass.com
The other piece of news was in today’s NewsSentinel about the commercial real estate market. I have heard rumors since last September that the other shoe that will fall in the housing market will be the commercial real estate market. The loans for those are different, and they have to be reworked after a certain amount of time. Since the properties are overvalued, it is expected they will likely walk away, too. More jobs may be lost as the result, which will lower even more the pool of home buyers.
The good news is that it’s still a good time to sell (compared to what may be soon coming). I think there are a huge number of potential buyers who are still waiting to see what is going to happen next, and I think there is a way to sell your house that might excite the buyers.
