A recent testimonial letter says it all

When we decided to sell our house in this current uncertain housing market we knew we were taking a risk, however, after our first meeting with Mary Skanavis from Homeowners Concept we knew we were going to have a knowledgeable and experienced professional by our side.

From the beginning Mary gave us straight-forward facts about our home sale.  Unlike some of her competitors, she wasn’t telling us what we wanted to hear; she gave us a clear understanding of what our house was worth and what we could get for it.  Together we came up with a “game plan” for how we were going to tackle our home sale.  We really appreciated this type of approach because it left no mystery to how we were going to handle things going forward. 

Like a good coach, Mary had almost daily correspondence with us informing us how showings went, how other houses in the market were doing and advice on how we could improve the success of selling our own home.  Through that dedication we were able to sell our house remarkably fast and we sacrificed very little in the process.  I cannot stress enough how thorough and involved Mary was, especially with answering all of our questions.

When it came time to buying our new house the decision to use Mary as our buying agent was an easy one.  We ended up buying the house of our dreams and she negotiated the price saving us a substantial amount of money. 

Working with Mary goes way beyond her expertise in the real estate industry.  You can easily tell she enjoys her job and the challenges that come with it.  She is very encouraging and charismatic and I would encourage anyone to work with her for buying or selling a home and the savings in commissions is a bonus.

Lisa and Mike G.

Sold in Wauwatosa/Bought in Pewaukee Using Homeowners Concept

Tax Credit Deadline is Approaching

First-time home buyers have just 10 weeks left to find and close on a home to qualify for the $8,000 Federal tax credit before the November 30th deadline. 

The Federal tax credit has proved to be extremely popular already, since taking advantage of it is cited by 10.8% of the buyers as the most important reason for purchasing a home, according to a recent study. In fact, approximately 1.14 million buyers have already filed for the credit. Many more are expected to file for the credit when income taxes are due in April 2010. 

On average, first-time buyers search for 12 weeks to find a home, while closing can take between 30 to 60 days depending on the lender or issues with the property, appraisal, etc. So, it is going to be a challenge for the buyers who are just beginning the process. Smart buyers though, can make extensive use of our website to narrow down their choices, work with one of our extremely experienced real estate Professionals and use our preferred lender Netcentral Mortgage so that they can make sure the purchase closes on time. 

The Rent to Own program.

Recently we closed on another home that was under Rent to Own for a little over year. During that time the seller was able to cover the  mortgage while the buyer worked on getting the downpayment and bringing the credit score to a level that they could qualify.  Increasingly this is an option that sellers turn to to sell their property, especially if the property is vacant.

The way the Rent to Own program works is as follows: Buyer agrees to rent the property until such time (usually a year - but can be extended) that the buyer can get a loan. The buyer cannot qualify for a mortgage upfront due to credit, length of time on the job, sufficient downpayment or other reasons. Buyer would pay an upfront "option premium" which would not be refundable (usually around 2% of sales price). In addition any amount above and beyond an average rent for a similar property can be credited toward the downpayment of the buyer. 

From the standpoint of the seller, the Rent to Own provides a temporary tenant that could look after the property and help with the mortgage. The buyer on the other hand gets into a property they can call their future home. As a result they can make improvements with the blessing of the seller. Most times the sellers agree to the improvements/updates since it makes their property more valuable. At the point in time that the buyer can get a mortgage the property can go to closing and seller can transfer title. Homeowners Concept has done hundreds of Rent to Own contracts since 1984, as a result we are very familiar on how to negotiate and structure the contract so that the property does eventually close.

What's keeping a lid on real estate prices?

Part of the reason prices have dropped and continue to stay low is due to a very high number of foreclosures. What is interesting though, according to a report led by economists from Northwestern University and University of Chicago confirming that people are walking away from their homes even if they can afford the monthly payments and it's happening on a grand scale.

In a study of more than 1,000 American households, the report concludes that more than a quarter of existing mortgage defaults are "strategic" -- done by those who can afford their monthly mortgage payments, but choose to default anyway.

A main factor in strategic defaulting is the extent a home is underwater, or worth less than what's owed on the mortgage. Have a look:

Amount Underwater	Percentage of Sample Declaring Intention to Default
$50,000	9.38%
$100,000	25.81%
$200,000	41.23%
$300,000	44.65%

The report also found the propensity to walk away within a specific ZIP code fed on itself, which the researchers attributed to "a contagion effect that reduces the social stigma associated with default as defaults become more common." In other words, "Hey, if my neighbor's doing it, I might as well, too". This is happening far more in CA, NV, FL, AZ than in WI but it is happening nevertheless. As long as this phenomenon is going on and the high inventory of homes for sale, it is difficult to imagine a return to the bubble prices (years 2003-2005) any time soon.