Cape Coral Real Estate

The basic of a Real Estate transaction is obviously a seller willing to sell to a buyer willing to buy. Once you have those terms agreed upon, you are half way to closing.

But if the seller have to settle for a low ball offer from a buyer, everyone involved in the deal may lose time and money. This is where a clever agent can use valuable skills to negotiate the deal and make it happen all the way to the closing.

One thing I use to do is really showing the temperature of the market to  my buyers. I think it is important that they acknowledge how the today’s Real Estate market in Cape Coral is reacting to. I compare sold pricing instead of listed pricing, and this can be valuable to sellers as well in order to ask the right price instead of waiting an offer forever. Once my buyer understand the market, of course, it is ultimately their decision on what to put in their offer. But at least they know the potential result.

Also, I like to compare what’s comparable. I recently visited a seller. It was a “by owner” and his price was close enough to what the neighborhood was asking for. However, the features of his home were very different and a realistic price should be much lower. That’s why it’s still for sale with no showing today, after months on the market. So, I show only similar features home for comparing and make a wise decision about the offering price.

Low ball offers usually waste buyers’ time. And that time is valuable. If a buyer is offering low ball offers on 20 properties and getting denied each time, offering a decent price at the first one would most likely had given equity by now to that buyer. Not only he had money in the property, but he is an owner instead of nothing, hoping for “the best deal” to happen. Make low ball offers if you don’t need to buy, not if you are looking for a roof to live under.

Now, if you see a property bought around 2005-2007, when the Real Estate was at peak, chances are the seller is selling at lost. He knows that and it is already difficult for him. Showing a low ball offer right there is to shoot yourself in the foot. This is something I have the need to emphasize for the health of a transaction. Sellers are people with families they have to take care of, not just a number. Ultimately, again, my buyers have the last decision about their offer.

Low ball offer

But let me tell you something that happened in the last few months when a buyer from Pennsylvania emailed me asking for a “good deal” foreclosure. I had several of them and even if I explained that the market is bouncing back, often with multiple offers, this buyer wanted to get a bargain in a location where everything was dirt cheap.

I found a nice pool home located in the SE of Cape Coral with access to the gulf of Mexico. It was a foreclosure well priced at $179,900. He told me he would pay that price when he saw the other similar sold properties I sent to him. But he wanted to “grab a deal” and he made an offer at $150,000, hoping a counter offer in the mid $160K from the bank. The scenario I told him just happened. They was a counter offer, but to another buyer who offered $175,000 and who ultimately close on that property. At this time, there is no more gulf access pool home in SE cape under $200K. No need to say the buyer made an easy $25K equity in one month. My buyer? He closed on a lovely property with a nice pool for $195,250. He does not have access to the gulf of Mexico. He’s on a fresh water canal. He knows he missed it.

So, if you are thinking of low ball offers, just know what to expect. And don’t make me wrong, I make low ball offers myself time to time, but I don’t have to buy. If I close it, great. If not, oh well, next…Not a big deal

Comments (0) Apr 25 2012

The number of foreclosure has hit the its lowest level. Today, when I checked those bank owned properties for Cape Coral, there were only 214 units. For your information, there were 1085 in December 2010. And that’s most likely why we see more interest in the non distressed market, often with multiple offers.

All is all, there are 1774 properties for sale in Cape Coral and we have experienced 451 sales in the last 30 days. That’s mean we have about 3 months inventory out there, making it a seller’s market now. And if you add the fact that multiple offers occur more often now, buyers have a harder time to have their dream home under contract. That is exactly what my french speaking buyers from France experienced. They use to make a search online for ” maisons a vendre a Cape Coral “, find me there, give me a call to begin the search and get very frustrated after looking around for a few weeks, seeing nothing good is available anymore.

Cape Coral luxury foreclosure

The thing is, today, if you plan to buy a property here, be prepared. Get your financing handy, bank letter, pre-approval. And once you see a property you like, make that offers good enough to have the seller put his signature on your contract. Unfortunately, if you don’t act quickly, chances are the property will be pending before you realize it. Prices are still the lowest in the nation here, especially if you compare the amenities that Cape Coral is offering with cities in the middle of Tennessee for example. Not only the weather is more attractive, let’s face it, but also the proximity of the water, with the gulf of Mexico and the beaches.

So, in my opinion, 2012 shows the switch from a buyer’s market where sellers were waiting for a single offer to show how low was the price offered to a seller’s market where the buyers are competing so ferociously to have a chance to buy that property at often a price above the asking price.

If you are entering the market for selling or buying a property in the Cape, give me a call or send me an email. There is still time to find your dream house at an excellent price, but don’t delay.

Comments (0) Mar 25 2012

So, you have been looking to buy a home in Cape Coral for over 6 months now. There is something important for you to know.  Stop looking to buy a home right now.  You are wasting your time and energy. Cape Coral properties prices have been increasing for the last 6 months in a row. So, if you’re still looking, it’s not for finding the best deal of the century, it’s already too late. It has to be because you’re searching for the best floor plan or curb appeal possible, but then, the inventory is so wide, if you didn’t find it already, it’s because it doesn’t exist.

Not to mention all the time that is being wasted by professional lending and real estate brokers. They are not your taxi driver even if it’s my second job. They are not the ones to fix your poor credit scores.  They are not the ones to hold your hand every step of the way even if I do it on a daily basis.  They are there to help you not be taken advantage of by someone who is not committed to the home buying process.

Buying a home is a process and it doesn’t take over 6 months to complete.  A Realtor can help you with the home buying process, however, you the buyer must take action to make it become a reality.  Seeing every home that comes on the market for a year is insane!  It’s not that big of a deal to find the house you will come to know as home.  If you see a house you like and it’s within your means, then buy it.  Otherwise, go home and leave everyone alone.

You can read more at 1capecoral.com or in my blog. The time to buy a home was in the last 6 month, with a rock bottom price reached last December 2010/January 2011  or today…not in 6 months. Quit trying to out think the other guy or the sellers. Find what you like and buy it.  If there isn’t anything out there that you like then you probably are not going to find it.

Go home.  Stop wasting your time. Watch some football or NASCAR or a movie anything but get out of the home buying process as you are not a buyer.  You are a looker and you are frustrating people around you that can actually and willingly help you.

The time is ripe to buy a home today.  Interest rates are low.  Prices are still low. In most markets inventory is high.  Sellers want to negotiate on their homes. It’s easy and time for action. And if you think that a home priced below a car’s price is too high, you’ll never buy anything. So, do something else.

If you are angry right now…good.  Here is a way which may help.  Revisit why you wanted to buy a home in the first place and re-motivate or inspire yourself.  If that doesn’t work then forget about it.  You will never achieve your American Dream without concise methodical action on your part.  Now go out there and become a buyer and call me to seriously get started!

Comments (0) Oct 25 2011

I read a great news about a new concept of homes to be build in the Cape. It’s actually a home with $0 energy bill, and that’s attractive. Go green and keep it!

Many American have jumped on the “Go Green” idea inside the past couple of years. One Cape Coral builder says that although green is great, zero is far better.

Ravenwood Homes lately launched their series of Net Zero and High Performance Homes. The houses are aiming to either cut property energy costs by over 50% or cut them out fully.

Energy efficiency has been built into higher end houses for awhile, but Ravenwood Houses say they desire to offer those exact same power efficiencies towards the average buyer of 1,500 square foot houses too as the million dollar houses.

Ravenwood Homes partner Reed Schweizer says the company has been working on the idea for the past two years. Schweizer says like numerous neighborhood builders they had been working predominately remodeling jobs throughout the slow economy, but felt in order to remain competitive they needed to appear at the future of actual estate. Then 1 day Schweizer says he received a call from Dave Jenkins, “It was during that conversation with Dave we had what you’d call an “a-ha moment”. We had been talking about power efficiency and also the ‘green’ movement that has swept the globe over the past couple of years and thought why not take it to the subsequent level and appear at creating houses with minimal to no energy costs,” said Schweizer.

With energy expenses rising and seeing that chances of declining rates within the future were slim to none, Ravenwood began thinking about the concept of offering houses comparable to other builders with no energy costs, “We must change the way individuals feel when purchasing a house. Property buyers ought to not just take into consideration the expense with the residence construction, but the ongoing expenses soon after they move in,” says Schwiezer.

With that in mind the organization began working with their subcontractors to create houses that were power efficient in methods not noticed in this location just before. Adding solar panels, high efficient air conditioning units, high quality insulation as well as the actual design and structure itself the company feels it now has the ideal power effective houses.

The builder has developed the Net Zero Houses, which come with solar panels equipped and the High Performance Homes which don’t incorporate solar panels, but can be added at a later date for an additional expense.

The other aim of Ravenwood was to make the energy efficient houses and make them cost-effective towards the typical residence buyer. Energy efficiency has been built into higher finish houses for awhile, but Ravenwood Houses say they need to provide those identical energy efficiencies to the typical buyer of 1,500 square foot houses as well as the million dollar homes, “If it’s carried out the right way you wind up having a gorgeous property and no energy bill,” says Ravenwood partner Dave Wishtischin.

Spending two years developing the idea, the business has created six different models ranging from 1,750 square feet under air to two,680 square feet under air. Costs range from $212,400 to $334,529 for their High Performance Residence lines.

The firm says building the same size residence with an average builder will price exactly the same initial expense, but with a High Performance Residence, the typical energy bill will probably be $70 per month, saving the home buyer close to a $150 per month. The Net Zero house will have a $0 electric bill and save the buyer on the same property just over $200 per month. Savings that Schweizer says will give the organization the edge over a lot of other builders in this market place.

Thursday morning, two years of function and preparation came to reality, as the organization held the groundbreaking of its 1st Net Zero Home in south Cape Coral on Gleason Parkway, “We need to have a neighborhood impact and be a leader, it is time to begin building houses once more in Southwest Florida,” stated Schweizer during the groundbreaking ceremony.

Wishtischin says the power efficient homes will appeal not merely to nearby property buyers, but the European market place also, “Europeans have been utilizing power efficient construction practices for the last 20 years. They’ve come to anticipate it and we really feel this can be a specific draw to that marketplace.

When asked why prospective residence buyers really should seriously give Ravenwood’s new line of houses a critical look, Wishtischin provides up his advice, “You don’t wish to be the person who just signed a contract to build a residence utilizing obsolete construction methods.”

The company hopes to have the new home total by the finish of the year and says it really is already has interest from buyers in creating other people.

If you are interested to purchase a $0 energy bill green house in Cape Coral, feel free to contact me through my Go Green Properties in Cape Coral website.

*photo courtesy of Paige Wilson

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Comments (0) Jul 30 2011

I got an article from my broker regarding purchasing a property these days see on the daily wealth website. It was kind of incredible to compare the time we are are living these days with the past.

Right now, is the most effective time in history to purchase a house in America.

These days, I’ll show you why… based on a few cold, challenging facts.

First, mortgage rates are lower than they’ve ever been in American history…

Most investors have only seen a couple decades of mortgages rates on a chart. But my buddies at Global Financial Data have databases – which includes real estate data – that literally go back centuries.

I had dinner with the Global Financial Data team over the weekend. And they told me about their “Winans International” real estate indexes, with housing costs back to the 1800s and mortgage rates going back over a century. I had to share it with you…

Take a look at this chart of mortgage interest rates since 1900:

In U.S. history, you can see that the current mortgage rates are the lowest.
The last time that the mortgage rates were so low was just after World War II.
And what happened, just after World War II, when mortgage rates were this low?
The greatest postwar boom in housing prices – by far.

Take a look. Mortgage rates bottomed in the mid-1950s, and house prices bottomed about the same time. Then the greatest boom in home prices in our lifetimes started.

Today we have record-low mortgage rates. And we have another thing in our favor…

Homes are more affordable than ever.

Based on the 40-year history of the Housing Affordability Index… houses are more affordable than they’ve ever been. Take a look…

“Affordability” takes three factors into account: home prices, your income, and mortgage rates.

Home prices have crashed. And mortgage rates are at record lows. But incomes (nationwide) haven’t fallen nearly as much… So homes are now more affordable than ever.

“Most people” out there will only tell you the bad news about housing… That’s the way it goes in a bear market. People drive looking in the rearview mirror.

Meanwhile, we have some darn compelling facts out there…

Home prices have fallen by a third… and mortgage rates are the lowest in history. Therefore, U.S. homes are more affordable than they’ve ever been.

You can listen to “most people.” Or you can choose to ignore them and stick to these facts.

Based on these facts alone, now may be one of the best times in American history – even the very best time – to buy a house.

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Comments (1) Jan 30 2011

Here are 10 frequently asked short sales made questions which are incredibly useful especially if you are just getting started or contemplating quick sales as a means to acquiring pre-foreclosures.

1. What occurs on the seller’s credit rating when they permit an investor to short sell their property?

What typically takes place is the loan will show up as “paid” on their credit report; even so there will probably be a notation that says “settled for less than originally owed” or something along these lines. It’s additional favorable for a homeowner to small promote than to have a foreclosures on their credit report.

2. Where do you find investors for short sales?

Depending on where you live, you may see buyers who advertise with bandit signs or in your local newspaper. Call the investors directly and ask them if they’re experienced in performing short product sales and if they would be interested in working with you. Another good place is your nearby real estate investors club meeting.

3. Define a short sales?

A short selling is really a form of pre-foreclosure sale made and occurs when the mortgagee agrees to accept much less than the loan volume to avoid foreclosure. A negotiated short sale results inside a discounted buy price for the buyer. The buyer would finance the acquisition significantly the same as in any conventional realty acquisition.!. but devoid of the luxury of time.

4. Can an proprietor profit from a short sale?

The seller can’t profit (monetarily) from a pre-foreclosure short sale.!!! But you will find usually exceptions towards the rule.

5. How do bankruptcies affect the possibility of carrying out a short sale?

Most mortgagees won’t take into account a short sale if the house owner is in bankruptcy.!.why? Due to the fact negotiating a short sale made payoff is considered a collection activity. Collection activities are prohibited in bankruptcy.

6. Can somebody tell me what paperwork do I have to include inside a short sale package?

Documents depend on the lender. Each loan company has diverse requirements. It is typical to require hardship letter, buy and sales contract, ECOR, settlement statement (HUD 1), net sheet, pay stubs, bank statements, personal financial sheet (monthly budget), amongst other things.

7. What percentage of mortgage firms send somebody out for an appraisal on a achievable short sale?

All lenders order a BPO or full appraisal of the asset prior to making their decision to accept or reject the short purchase offer. This is there only way of assessing the worth of your home.

8. How late in the pre-foreclosure procedure can you begin a short sale?

Attempt to allow a window of at least 90 days to effectuate a mortgagee approved, pre-foreclosure Short Sale made.

9. What is a Due on Sale clause?

“Due on Sale” Clause (DOS) Provision inside a mortgage or deed of trust calling for the total payoff of your loan balance inside event of a selling or transfer of title towards the secured genuine asset. A contract provision which authorizes the loan provider, at its choice, to declare immediately due and payable sums secured by the lender’s security instrument upon a purchase of all or any part of the genuine home securing the loan devoid of the lender’s prior written consent.

For purposes of this definition, a sale or transfer indicates the conveyance of authentic house of any proper, title or interest therein, regardless of whether legal or equitable, regardless of whether voluntary or involuntary, by for deed, leasehold interest with a term greater than three years, lease-option contract or any other technique of conveyance of true home interests. Standard language which states that the mortgage must be paid when a house is sold.

10. Will banks enable a short sale when the owner has some or a beneficial sum of equity?

If a asset has what the financial institution would consider a substantial quantity of equity, chances are they would take into account allowing the asset to foreclose and then reselling it closer towards the retail value. Focus on homes that don’t have much equity. Your job will be to create the fairness in the home by negotiating a successful short sale made.

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Comments (1) Sep 12 2010

First of all, understand the short sales.

A short sale is a transaction that happens when a homeowner is owning more money on his/her home than what it is worth in today’s Real Estate market, and when the bank or the lender is willing to take less than what the homeowner owes.
Most of the time, that bank or lender will be able to collect more money with a short sale than if the homeowner goes into bankruptcy or foreclosure. That’s why they will be listening to short sales under certain circumstances.
For the homeowner, the short sale transaction is a better situation than going bankrupt or foreclosed. They credit will be hurt for 2 or 3 years instead of the 7+ years in a foreclosure situation.

Secondly, here are a list of documents you will need in order to prepare the short sale transaction with the bank representative:

FOR THE REALTOR:

• ~ Signed letter of authorization from seller authorizing you to negotiate with the lender on their behalf.
• ~ Letter of facts about the property. Everything that is wrong with the property and why it is impossible to sell it at a higher price.
• ~ Current Market Analysis. Highlight comparable sales that reflect the lower value.
• ~ Photographs. Remember, the photographs aren’t to highlight a charming house. Photograph evidence of damage, bad location, etc…
• ~ Evidence of all showings and feedback. Explain to lender results and conversations you’ve had while trying to sell the property.
• ~ Copy of listing contract/MLS Listing/MLS history.
• ~ Current “AS IS” CMA.
• ~ Copy of purchase contract if you have one.
• ~ Preliminary HUD
• ~ Make sure the seller has a detailed, tear jerking letter of hardship. See an example here
• ~ Sales and services Quotes

Also, insert copies of the following if any:
1. Code Violations
2. Fines
3. Hearing Information regarding the maintenance of the property
4. Evidence of lawsuits the City is filing against lenders
5. Evidence of pending litigation or changes in the law
6. Insert Tenant / Landlord provisions if it helps your case
7. Evidence of the town / city’s enforcement of fines against other banks
8. Latent Material Defect
9. Sexual offenders and predators

FROM THE SELLER:

-Two years tax returns and W-2’s.
-Three months bank statements.
-Pay stubs for last 30 days.
-Detailed monthly budget.
-All mortgages with account numbers.
-Copy of the deed.
-Copy of the note and/or mortgage
-Pending bankruptcy, or other action/judgment or lis pendens.
-Tear jerking hardship letter. See an example here

Buyers generally get a lot more house for their money in a short sale situation, because these properties are usually very competitively priced in order for the sellers to unload them before they end up in foreclosure. It’s a very good situation for them. The only downside I see is often the multiple offers situation for those short sale properties. But there are a lot of short sale properties available in the Cape Coral Florida market than in other parts of the country, so this area is the place to buy!.

So, if you are thinking of buying a short sale, here are 3 tips:

1 – Find a Realtor with short sales experience. There are many rigorous short sales and foreclosure training programs available to real estate agents, including the Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) and the Short Sales and Foreclosures Resource Certification (SFR). If you wish to purchase a short sale property in Cape Coral, Florida, or anywhere else for that matter, you will greatly increase your chances of getting your deal to closing if your agent is experienced and comfortable with short sales….either through a short sales certification program, or through hard knocks experience in the field.

2 – Get pre-approved. No short sale offer will be considered without a pre-approval or a proof of funds letter. If you have not yet been pre-approved by a local lender and are not sure who to call, your real estate agent is a good source of referrals. The pre-qualification process generally takes less than 30 minutes, and can be done over the phone, however, a pre-approval takes longer but is better than a pre-qualification. Make sure you work with a local lender – today’s wild & woolly finance environment means that you greatly increase your chances of closing a deal if you use a local lender with a good reputation. All short sale offers must be submitted with a pre-approval letter, or with a proof of funds, as bank’s statements, in the case of a cash transaction.

3) Submit your highest and best offer the first time around! Lenders generally do not counteroffer….they will either say “Yes” or “No”. So if you are going to go through the process of waiting 60 days or more to hear back from the lender, you will greatly increase your chances of hearing that “Yes!” if you submit a good, solid offer with no contingencies.

Once you submit an offer that is approved by the seller, the seller has to submit your offer to their lender to see if the lender will accept the offer as well….remember, in a short sale situation the lender is agreeing to accept less than what the homeowner owes on the mortgage…..and the lender is going to do whatever they can to minimize the amount of that loss to their bottom line. Parting with their profits is not something that comes easy to lenders…..so it takes awhile to find out if they are willing to take the level of financial beating that is inherent in the amount you are offering. Sometimes the wait can be up to 90 days….sometimes much more (the amount of the wait often depends upon which lender holds the paper).

Look at the frustrating wait time as the price you pay for getting the chance to get a home you might not otherwise be able to afford.

If you want to receive listing from banks, this program will give tremendous help to get in the game as well.

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Comments (0) Dec 31 2009

As you may know, the first-time homebuyers’ $8,000 credit has been extended. I think it’s time to let you know what you should do before purchasing your first home.

1. Check the selling prices‘ of comparable homes in your area. Web sites like Zillow, Trulia or Homegain are not giving you an acccurate idea of what you should expect to pay. You can also do a quick search of actual multiple listing service, or MLS, listings in your area on a number of Web sites. The best will be to ask a Realtor® of course. Choose one that work in the area you are looking to buy.

2. Use a mortgage calculator to get an idea of what your monthly mortgage payments would be if you bought today. They are plenty of them online, just google it.

3. Find out what your total monthly housing cost would be, including taxes and homeowners insurance. In some areas, what you’ll pay for your taxes and insurance escrow can almost double your mortgage payment. Make sure you can afford that

To get an idea of what you’ll pay in insurance, pick a property in the area where you want to live and make a call to a local insurance agent for an estimate. You won’t be obligated to get the insurance, but you’ll have a good idea of what you’ll pay if you do buy. Just remember that exemptions and the intricacies of local tax law (like Florida’s Save Our Homes value cap) can create differences between what a homeowner is currently paying and what you can expect to pay as a new homeowner.

4. Find out how much you’ll likely pay in closing costs. The upfront cost of settling on your home shouldn’t be overlooked. Closing costs include origination fees charged by the lender, title and settlement fees, taxes and prepaid items like homeowners insurance or homeowners’ association fees. You can see what closing costs average here.

5. Look at your budget and determine how a house fits into it. Fannie Mae recommends that buyers spend no more than 28 percent of their income on housing costs. Go much past 30 percent and you risk becoming house poor.

6. Talk to a reputable Realtor® in your area about the real estate climate. Do they believe prices will continue falling or do they think your area has hit bottom or will rise soon?

7. Remember to look at the big picture. While a buying a house is a great way to build wealth, maintaining your investment can be labor-intensive and expensive. When unexpected costs for new appliances, roof repairs and plumbing problems crop up, there’s no landlord to turn to, and these costs and can quickly drain your bank account.

So consider whether you’re ready for the expense and effort of homeownership before pulling the trigger.

Then, prepare yourself for the hunting!

If the numbers make sense for you, taking a few steps at the beginning of the homebuying process can save you time, money and aggravation.1. Examine your credit. Right now, blemished credit or the inability to make substantial down payment can put the kibosh on your homeownership plans. That’s why it pays to look at your creditworthiness early in the home-buying process. Get a credit report and comb through it for errors and unresolved issues. If you find mistakes, contact the credit reporting bureau to make sure they are corrected. It’s also a good idea to get your FICO score, which will cost you a small fee.

2. Get your docs in a row. Collect pay stubs, bank account statements, W-2s, tax returns for the last two years, statements from current loans and credit lines, and names and addresses of your landlords for the past two years. Have them ready to show to the lender. This may seem like a lot, but in this age of tight credit, don’t be surprised if your lender needs a lot in the way of documentation.

3. Find lenders and get preapproved. Getting preapproved for a mortgage helps you bargain from a position of strength when you are house hunting. The institution where you bank and a local credit union are good places to start your search. Applying to multiple lenders in the same month helps increase your chances of getting a loan approved at the best rate possible without dinging your credit score too much.

4. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try … the government? If you can’t find a bank willing to lend to you — and in the current tight credit market, it’s possible you won’t — consider getting an FHA loan. The Federal Housing Administration has a program that insures the mortgages of many first-time homebuyers. As a result of this guarantee, lenders who might otherwise feel queasy about your qualifications will be more inclined to lend to you. As a bonus, the FHA only requires a 3 percent to 3.5 percent down payment from first-time homebuyers.

5. Finally, don’t forget about the first-time homebuyer’s credit. Get your hands on Form 5405 ahead of time and send it in with your tax return immediately after your home purchase to ensure you receive the $8,000 credit as soon as possible, especially since the credit is set to expire April 30, 2010 and you must close by July 31.

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Comments (0) Dec 07 2009