As a REALTOR, it is always very exciting to see new housing opportunities become available. As a REALTOR specializing in senior adult moves, it is especially exciting to see a new planned community become available for 55+ homeowners.
Tuscan Village is one of the best kept secrets in the Lakeway area right now. Preparing to break ground, I spoke with Charlotte Windecker, Sales Director for Tuscan Village and she shared with me the plans and expectations for a beautiful and centrally located community for 55+ homeowners in the heart of Lakeway.
There will be some 280 residences on this 42-acre development off of Lohman's Crossing near Lohman's Spur. In addition to single family homes which are referred to as "villas," the development will also have condominiums and townhomes. Pricing will start in the $270,000 range and the upper end pricing will depend on the customization and upgrades one chooses. With plans ranging from 1,200 square feet to 2,300 square feet, this is a great option for many people choosing to downsize in their maintenance duties and not necessarily their space.
One of the best features of communities such as Tuscan Village is the low maintenance lifestyle! With no yardwork, painting, or upkeep on the exterior, residents can focus on living life to the fullest whether traveling or staying close to home. There will also be a community center with fitness area, pool, and other amenities on site.
For more information or to receive a packet on the Tuscan Village community: nikki@sellingalifestyle.com or 512-705-9174.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Anatomy of a Short Sale
March 11th, 2009 6:16 PM
Reposted with permission by Rosemary Langkawel
These days a Short Sale is a fact of life for many people. The question I get asked the most is:
What is a Short Sale?
Basically a short sale is when a person must sell a property for less then they owe the bank.
Here are a few myths some Buyers and Sellers have had in reference to a Short Sale.
Buyers Myths: I can talk directly to the Bank and avoid the Realtors and cut this deal myself because they have to…...
Truth: Banks do not want to talk to you and if you are in the middle of negotiating a deal, your calling the Bank will do nothing, the Bank wants to only speak to the Realtor or the Mitigator. You do not have the authority or authorization to speak about this account. Banks get calls from people like you all the time. They do not want to talk to you.
Seller’s Myth: I will negotiate the transaction with the Bank myself. I do not need any help. I will control the situation.
Truth: Banks do not want to talk to you either. The Bank will only speak to you when you tell them you are going to pay the balance owed or you are going to refinance. If you think you are going to talk to the Bank and negotiate the transaction yourself you are wasting your time and that of your Real Estate Professional. The Banks do not have time for all of the emotion that goes into this process. They do not care how smart you think you are. These Negotiators are getting as many as 100 calls an hour and do not care about the sweat equity you put into the home. Unfortunately, your property is just a number on a sheet to them.
How Does a Short Sale Work?
The procedures are not always clear and can vary from Bank to Bank. However, here is an assessment of what I have experienced from short sales with several Banks. You as the Buyer or Seller cannot profit in any way from the sale of or purchase of the property in Short Sale.
Short Sale procedure:
First of all determine the reason for selling your home. If you can hang on to it do so. Any deficiency type action will have a negative impact on your credit for years. If you cannot afford your payments because of an ARM (adjustable rate mortgage) or because of some hardship that is out of your control, then consider this process very carefully. Remember this is your home not an investment. You have chosen to make a life here. It may not be worth what it was when you bought it but, neither is your car. If you love your home and you can afford the payments. Enjoy it. The Real Estate Market goes up and down all the time.
If you determine that you must short sell your home, here are a few guidelines you may want to follow:
1. Contact your bank and request the, “Workable Solutions” packet. This is a form that will outline what the Bank needs from you to approve the Short Sale. The sooner we get this into the Bank the sooner we can move forward when we get a contract. (Not all Banks have a form, in that case supply to the Bank the following and send it in whether they request it or not.)
2. Let the Bank know that you are going to be placing your property on the market.
3. Identify the Realtor you will be using.
4. Send in the, “Workable Solutions” packet which can contain any or all of these items to the one or more fax numbers that the Bank gives to you. After you send the Packet into the Bank, call the Bank within 48 hours to make sure they received it. Also make sure you turn in this packet all at one time.
Here are some items that could be requested:
a. Letter of third party authorization giving your Realtor permission to speak to the Bank on your behalf
b. Your current bank statements,
c. Last two months pay stubs
d. Tax returns for the last two years
e. Hardship letter-this is the letter to the Bank explaining your reason for having to sell your house
i. Loss of job
ii. Marriage
iii. Pregnancy
iv. Divorce
v. Death
vi. Change in hours worked or wages
vii. Job change
viii. If you are self employed, you may need to include a profit and loss statement demonstrating the slowdown in work.
5. Supply copies of all of this to your Realtor to be included with the packet when an offer comes in.
6. Keep your home in showing condition. I know this can be inconvenient, but, Buyers still want to buy the best home available.
7. Be available to sign Modifications to the Listing Agreement forms, to adjust pricing every few weeks to show the Bank the efforts we are making to attract Buyers. If it is not selling you are moving closer to foreclosure.
8. Make sure you have a clause in the contract to let the Bank know that you will not accept an offer if there will be a judgment against you or an in lieu of deed notice on your credit report. The Bank must list this transaction as satisfied or paid in full with no further judgment. This will help you in the future restoring your credit faster.
9. When an offer comes in and your Realtor tells you to sign it, Sign it. Your Realtor should have done their homework and they have an idea of what the Bank will take. This is not personal. It is a transaction. I know your home is special but not to the Bank.
10. Your Realtor will continue to show your property and will let you know that you will be accepting and getting back up offers. (It has been my experience that the first offer rarely goes through and having a second offer gives you piece of mind.)
11. Be prepared to wait. I have seen some of these deals take 6-8 months for approval once it is in the short sale department of the Bank. I just got off the phone with a major lending institution and they told me to prepare my Buyer for a 6 -8 month approval process. This is ridicules I know but, this particular institution is not very organized. On the other hand, another major lending institution approved one short sale in 14 days. Yes we are all aware that the property may not be worth the value of the original, but this is what is happening.
12. Answer all the calls from the Bank when they call. Remind them that you are attempting to short sell your home. Be polite. Ask them to check the system and have them make a notation while you are on the phone. Again Be Polite. The person on the phone is just calling a list and can with the stroke of a key move you to the next level toward foreclosure. Be Polite. I know this is annoying and makes you feel bad and you hate to be repeatedly interrupted but remember the old saying about fly’s and sugar…It really matters in this case.
13. When the approval for your offers comes from the Bank, be ready to move fast they will want to close in 30 days or less. They now want this off of their books and may be under the gun for quarterly balance sheets. Be packed and ready to move. Delaying the process due to your inconvenience is not the concern of the Bank and could put a monkey wrench in the whole transaction causing it to go to Foreclosure after all of this work.
Does all of this sound like insanity? Well it is. My Team has jokingly referred to this as Psycho-Selling, because none of this makes any sense. Every Bank is different and in the end we put in more hours for WAY less money.
Buyers:
After all of this is said, there are some really great deals out there. BUT, when you make an offer as a Buyer, be prepared to wait. It could be a while but it is worth it. Calling the Realtor every day or week does not help the process. They will give you an update when there is activity on the property.
I know you think you will get a property for $.25 or $.50 cents on the dollar; however, Banks do not have to do a Short Sale.
This is one of several options for them.
They really have to do nothing.
They have a specific process and we must all follow it.
They have appraisals on every property and know its value.
They will accept a low offer, but they can also turn it down too.
Your Realtor will make a suggestion. May I suggest you follow it? They have an idea of what will be approved. If the property is the lowest in the community buy several percentage points, the Seller has already lowered the price to below market value and your 25%-50% saving is already reflected. Have your Realtor do a Competitive Market Analysis (CMA) of the property to give you an idea of what has sold there in the last 6 months. This will give you an idea of the property’s value. Remember the Seller does not have to sign the contract. If the Sellers Realtor does not feel that this offer will be accepted by the Bank, they may be advised to not take the offer.
Why do we Realtors go though this?
These Buyers and Sellers are still our customers. As a professional I will do whatever it takes to get the job done. Once we get these challenged properties our out of the inventories, the market will start to come back and the Sellers will then be Buyers again. Also like many of my Clients, they have become my friends and I will use my professional expertise to help them through these difficult times. If I walked away from them now, I would be a very bad friend.
Is there an end in sight?
I truly believe so. The end will come when the ARMS and all interest-only loans have expired. Unfortunately, a lot of families will be hurt in the process. Just be patient. There is always hope.
None of us like the dramatic housing situation we are in. But, we need to work through it to move ahead. I hope this gives you an idea of what is going on out there. By the way, this can all change tomorrow. Remember this is Psycho-Selling…
Posted by Rosemary Langkawel on March 11th, 2009 6:16 PMPost a Comment (0)
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Reposted with permission by Rosemary Langkawel
These days a Short Sale is a fact of life for many people. The question I get asked the most is:
What is a Short Sale?
Basically a short sale is when a person must sell a property for less then they owe the bank.
Here are a few myths some Buyers and Sellers have had in reference to a Short Sale.
Buyers Myths: I can talk directly to the Bank and avoid the Realtors and cut this deal myself because they have to…...
Truth: Banks do not want to talk to you and if you are in the middle of negotiating a deal, your calling the Bank will do nothing, the Bank wants to only speak to the Realtor or the Mitigator. You do not have the authority or authorization to speak about this account. Banks get calls from people like you all the time. They do not want to talk to you.
Seller’s Myth: I will negotiate the transaction with the Bank myself. I do not need any help. I will control the situation.
Truth: Banks do not want to talk to you either. The Bank will only speak to you when you tell them you are going to pay the balance owed or you are going to refinance. If you think you are going to talk to the Bank and negotiate the transaction yourself you are wasting your time and that of your Real Estate Professional. The Banks do not have time for all of the emotion that goes into this process. They do not care how smart you think you are. These Negotiators are getting as many as 100 calls an hour and do not care about the sweat equity you put into the home. Unfortunately, your property is just a number on a sheet to them.
How Does a Short Sale Work?
The procedures are not always clear and can vary from Bank to Bank. However, here is an assessment of what I have experienced from short sales with several Banks. You as the Buyer or Seller cannot profit in any way from the sale of or purchase of the property in Short Sale.
Short Sale procedure:
First of all determine the reason for selling your home. If you can hang on to it do so. Any deficiency type action will have a negative impact on your credit for years. If you cannot afford your payments because of an ARM (adjustable rate mortgage) or because of some hardship that is out of your control, then consider this process very carefully. Remember this is your home not an investment. You have chosen to make a life here. It may not be worth what it was when you bought it but, neither is your car. If you love your home and you can afford the payments. Enjoy it. The Real Estate Market goes up and down all the time.
If you determine that you must short sell your home, here are a few guidelines you may want to follow:
1. Contact your bank and request the, “Workable Solutions” packet. This is a form that will outline what the Bank needs from you to approve the Short Sale. The sooner we get this into the Bank the sooner we can move forward when we get a contract. (Not all Banks have a form, in that case supply to the Bank the following and send it in whether they request it or not.)
2. Let the Bank know that you are going to be placing your property on the market.
3. Identify the Realtor you will be using.
4. Send in the, “Workable Solutions” packet which can contain any or all of these items to the one or more fax numbers that the Bank gives to you. After you send the Packet into the Bank, call the Bank within 48 hours to make sure they received it. Also make sure you turn in this packet all at one time.
Here are some items that could be requested:
a. Letter of third party authorization giving your Realtor permission to speak to the Bank on your behalf
b. Your current bank statements,
c. Last two months pay stubs
d. Tax returns for the last two years
e. Hardship letter-this is the letter to the Bank explaining your reason for having to sell your house
i. Loss of job
ii. Marriage
iii. Pregnancy
iv. Divorce
v. Death
vi. Change in hours worked or wages
vii. Job change
viii. If you are self employed, you may need to include a profit and loss statement demonstrating the slowdown in work.
5. Supply copies of all of this to your Realtor to be included with the packet when an offer comes in.
6. Keep your home in showing condition. I know this can be inconvenient, but, Buyers still want to buy the best home available.
7. Be available to sign Modifications to the Listing Agreement forms, to adjust pricing every few weeks to show the Bank the efforts we are making to attract Buyers. If it is not selling you are moving closer to foreclosure.
8. Make sure you have a clause in the contract to let the Bank know that you will not accept an offer if there will be a judgment against you or an in lieu of deed notice on your credit report. The Bank must list this transaction as satisfied or paid in full with no further judgment. This will help you in the future restoring your credit faster.
9. When an offer comes in and your Realtor tells you to sign it, Sign it. Your Realtor should have done their homework and they have an idea of what the Bank will take. This is not personal. It is a transaction. I know your home is special but not to the Bank.
10. Your Realtor will continue to show your property and will let you know that you will be accepting and getting back up offers. (It has been my experience that the first offer rarely goes through and having a second offer gives you piece of mind.)
11. Be prepared to wait. I have seen some of these deals take 6-8 months for approval once it is in the short sale department of the Bank. I just got off the phone with a major lending institution and they told me to prepare my Buyer for a 6 -8 month approval process. This is ridicules I know but, this particular institution is not very organized. On the other hand, another major lending institution approved one short sale in 14 days. Yes we are all aware that the property may not be worth the value of the original, but this is what is happening.
12. Answer all the calls from the Bank when they call. Remind them that you are attempting to short sell your home. Be polite. Ask them to check the system and have them make a notation while you are on the phone. Again Be Polite. The person on the phone is just calling a list and can with the stroke of a key move you to the next level toward foreclosure. Be Polite. I know this is annoying and makes you feel bad and you hate to be repeatedly interrupted but remember the old saying about fly’s and sugar…It really matters in this case.
13. When the approval for your offers comes from the Bank, be ready to move fast they will want to close in 30 days or less. They now want this off of their books and may be under the gun for quarterly balance sheets. Be packed and ready to move. Delaying the process due to your inconvenience is not the concern of the Bank and could put a monkey wrench in the whole transaction causing it to go to Foreclosure after all of this work.
Does all of this sound like insanity? Well it is. My Team has jokingly referred to this as Psycho-Selling, because none of this makes any sense. Every Bank is different and in the end we put in more hours for WAY less money.
Buyers:
After all of this is said, there are some really great deals out there. BUT, when you make an offer as a Buyer, be prepared to wait. It could be a while but it is worth it. Calling the Realtor every day or week does not help the process. They will give you an update when there is activity on the property.
I know you think you will get a property for $.25 or $.50 cents on the dollar; however, Banks do not have to do a Short Sale.
This is one of several options for them.
They really have to do nothing.
They have a specific process and we must all follow it.
They have appraisals on every property and know its value.
They will accept a low offer, but they can also turn it down too.
Your Realtor will make a suggestion. May I suggest you follow it? They have an idea of what will be approved. If the property is the lowest in the community buy several percentage points, the Seller has already lowered the price to below market value and your 25%-50% saving is already reflected. Have your Realtor do a Competitive Market Analysis (CMA) of the property to give you an idea of what has sold there in the last 6 months. This will give you an idea of the property’s value. Remember the Seller does not have to sign the contract. If the Sellers Realtor does not feel that this offer will be accepted by the Bank, they may be advised to not take the offer.
Why do we Realtors go though this?
These Buyers and Sellers are still our customers. As a professional I will do whatever it takes to get the job done. Once we get these challenged properties our out of the inventories, the market will start to come back and the Sellers will then be Buyers again. Also like many of my Clients, they have become my friends and I will use my professional expertise to help them through these difficult times. If I walked away from them now, I would be a very bad friend.
Is there an end in sight?
I truly believe so. The end will come when the ARMS and all interest-only loans have expired. Unfortunately, a lot of families will be hurt in the process. Just be patient. There is always hope.
None of us like the dramatic housing situation we are in. But, we need to work through it to move ahead. I hope this gives you an idea of what is going on out there. By the way, this can all change tomorrow. Remember this is Psycho-Selling…
Posted by Rosemary Langkawel on March 11th, 2009 6:16 PMPost a Comment (0)
Subscribe to this blog
Savvy Seniors Choose to Move
We hear about the real estate market every day on the news and most of the time it is a doom and gloom story warning people not to sell right now. Unfortunately, there are a few key elements missing in what is reported and those elements are causing some confusion, especially when it comes to senior adults and their plans to move into a Life Care or Continuing Care community such as Longhorn Village in Austin, Texas.
Communities such as Longhorn Village are often appealing to senior adults due to the fact that they can live in one community throughout their life without worrying about their healthcare needs or having to move as a result of declining health over the years. Longhorn Village is a continuing care community (CCRC) with a Life Care Program... the best of both models as far as retirement community options go.
What does continuing care mean? A continuing care community provides a continuum of lifestyle options -- residences, services, amenitites and short or long-term care all on one campus. It is a full service environment centered on active, independent living, yet provides access to built-in support programs, if ever needed.
What is the Life Care program? Life Care is the most extensive and comprehensive type of contract provided in a CCRC. The Life Care contract guarantees lifetime access to and provision of assisted living, Alzheimer's/Dementia care or skilled nursing care, if ever needed. The additional services are provided for as long as needed at a minimum additional cost to what one would pay to live in a CCRC such as Longhorn Village in an independent residence.
Now...back to real estate and how this all fits together. There are seniors who made the decision to move into a CCRC such as Longhorn Village who now are seeing their home equity dwindle and their savings shrink with the downturn of the economy. When they decided to make this move, they did so with the idea that they would use their home equity (and maybe some savings) to cover the cost of their entrance fee. The long term plan made sense and the issue of healthcare down the road was resolved at a MUCH lower cost than if they waited until they were no longer independent (at which point they are no longer eligible to move into a CCRC under a Life Care contract).
The concern that many of today's downsizing seniors seem to be dealing with is the fact that they are being told..."Now is not the time to sell." This may be true for those who do NOT have a compelling reason to sell and can hold out for the next 5-8 years for their equity to rebound.
Keep in mind that most (but not all) seniors have owned their home for several years and are not subject to mortgages that exceed the amount of their value (many of their homes have no mortgage at all). The problem with this theory of "don't sell now" is that healthy independent seniors who want to maintain their independence and still have built-in peace of mind that goes with living in a CCRC with a Life Care contract DO HAVE compelling reasons to sell now. Once one's health begins to fail (or the spouse's) it is too late to make this move. Many seniors will likely lose this window of opportunity to secure their health-care options in a CCRC should they wait on the market to rebound.
The question??? Which is the wiser investment for seniors today... to wait to sell in 5 to 8 years and hope they still qualify for CCRC living and that their home as appreciated to a value that will sell for enough to pay their now higher entrance fee? Or sell now and utilize a combined total of their home equity and other investments to pay their entrance fees to insure their positions in such communities as Longhorn Village, an upscale beautiful and specialized senior living community?
Notice that in the previous paragraph I note that the entrance fees down the road will be higher than they are today. For seniors moving into newly built retirement communities like Longhorn Village in Austin, they are often getting in on an introductory "special" or charter membership entrance fee, which makes the move early on even more compelling. Later the entrance fees will increase as the community fills and the demand is higher.
It is no doubt a tough decision and for some it will cause many a sleepless night. It is my hope that those professionals, real estate and others, who are providing guidance and consult to seniors in this position, fully explore the factors that led to the decision of retirement community living in the first place. Sometimes (most of the time) it's NOT about the money!
For more information about Longhorn Village go to http://www.longhornvillage.com/ or call 512-266-5600. For more information about selling your home and moving to a retirement community, go to http://www.managingmaturemoves.com/ or call Nikki at 512-276-8876.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Looking for a REALTOR in another city?
I had an "ah-ha" recently when calling on a relocation company that markets themselves as specializing in "Senior Housing" assistance for retirement communities and their incoming residents.
"Our mission is to help senior communities fill faster by fully preparing our clients and their residents for the move-in process, and working closely with each to create resounding satisfaction," says the Moving Station web site.
I must say that as a REALTOR who has helped over 150 senior adult clients with their moves into retirement communities since 2002, this was a great resource.... so I thought, but now I am not too sure. Here's why...
I called the company and asked to speak with someone who could help me with the process of becoming a preferred real estate professional in the Austin, TX area... only to be told that they do not register individual REALTORs, only their Brokers of record. So, having been a Broker of record for a couple of offices in my career, I asked them, "Who determines as to whether the agent the Broker chooses has experience in working with seniors who are downsizing or making a retirement community move?" A good question I thought. He tells me that they rely on the Broker to make this decision. By the way, my broker assured me she had not gone through any screening process by their company either.
Back to my original line of thinking.... This is a service that is marketed to Senior Communities across the country as helping them to "fill faster"... so what is their commitment to the senior who is moving there??? They say they want to "create resounding satisfaction" for the client.... What does that mean exactly?
Basically, this service is a relocation company. They refer the prospective client out to a Broker and the Broker pays a referral fee to them for the lead when it closes (usually 30% of the gross commission earned). That is the extent of their assistance to the actual client. Now obviously, if the real estate agent they refer is one that is good... this turns out to be a valuable service to the client. If the agent does not turn out to be the best fit... the client loses. It's a win either way to the relocation company.
My point in writing this article is to point out that not all services are what they seem. It is our responsibility as consumers to ask a lot of questions and determine the best course of action. I hope that retirement communities that recommend similar services to their incoming residents understand that they are not necessarily being referred to "senior friendly" or experienced agents ... it is more or less the equivalent of picking up the yellow pages.
If you are looking for a professional FULL TIME REALTOR in the Austin area who has worked with hundreds of seniors, I would love to talk with you. If you are out of the Austin area and would like to be connected with other REALTORS who are also FULL TIME and are experienced with seniors making moves to retirement communities, please email or call me. I am well connected and if I don't know someone in your area...I will call and interview them myself before making the referral!!! Guaranteed!
http://www.managingmaturemoves.com/ or 512-276-8876
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