Real Estate Information

A common question Virginia Beach area homeowners ask is what do they need to do to get ready for property management.  Here is a list of things that should be helpful to most owners. The important thing is to create a baseline to work from, so when your tenant leaves they know what is to be expected of them.  

1. Whole house, attic, garage & shed clean and free of all personal property. Anything left behind may not be there when you return.

2. All doors, window facings and baseboards cleaned and touched up as needed.

3. Blinds and ceiling fans clean and in good working order.

4. Ensure all light bulbs, switches and fixtures are in good working order.

5. All appliances, vents & filters clean and in good working order. 

6. Kitchen & Baths need to sparkle. Sinks and tubs have to have working stoppers and properly caulked where needed.

7. Have carpets professionally cleaned.

8. Have dryer vent, fireplace & chimney professionally inspected and cleaned.

9. Install "heavy duty" door stops behind each door.

10. Heating & A/C system serviced and new filter(s) installed.

11. Provide current code and instructions for security system.

12. Each floor is required to have working smoke detector with fresh batteries.  Carbon monoxide detector (gas homes) and halon fire extinguishers recommended, but not required by Virginia law.

13. Garage door opener & remote(s) need to be in good working order and have fresh batteries. Provide current code and instructions for using exterior key pad.

14. Have grass freshly cut, all flower beds clean & weeded and install fresh mulch. Provide name & number of who will cut grass until rented if necessary.

15. Provide 4 keys for each unique lock. If more than 2 unique locks, have locksmith re-key locks to one matching key. Please verify all keys work, including new keys!

16. Repair wall holes and touch-up and/or paint where needed.

17. Provide good notes and instructions for unique things about your home that can help the tenant and your property manager in the future.

I hope you found this list of items helpful.  If you have any questions or need a referral to hire someone to help perform any of these tasks to prepare your home for property management, please feel free to give me a call.  Jorge Gonzalez, RE/MAX Allegiance 757-287-3400.

Freddie Mac put together a new video on their website to help Virginia Beach area homeowners understand the new “Making Home Affordable” program.  In this video, Ingrid Beckles, Senior Vice President, Freddie Mac, explains how borrowers can determine their eligibility for “Making Home Affordable” and use the plan to refinance their current mortgage, or if they’re already behind on their loan or facing a financial hardship, get a modification that makes their mortgage more affordable.  Click here to access the video.

Frankly, my opinion on paying good money to subscribe to a foreclosure website is it is basically a waste of money and I can provide a buyer with a list of foreclosure and short sale homes that are actually for sale for free.  I will explain this furhter, but let's discuss the issues with foreclosure websites first.

The problem with foreclosure websites is they draw their info from public notices, city records and the like for free.  Then they repackage the information to sell to the public on the internet. This is perfectly legal, but not always very helpful to buyers. A buyer would have to do all the legwork trying figure out what is good and what is not. For most buyers, they do not have the time or know how to do this. To make matters worse, not all homes on these sites even make it to foreclosure to begin with.

The real drawback to paying money to subscribe to a foreclosure website is the information is not always accurate either.  I will share with you a great example of this.  A friend of my mine owns several investment properties.  Her mortgage company recently sold her loans to another mortgage company, and the new company has messed up the payment processing for her accounts.  She has actually paid the mortgages on time, but her rental properties are showing up on these sites as going into foreclosure for non-payment.  Now some prospective buyers are writing her tenants letters and knocking on their doors to get into the houses to find out how to buy them.  

My advice to buyers is to just focus on all homes that are actually listed for sale.  You also need to understand that just because it is a foreclosure does not make it a great deal either. Please remember foreclosure homes have probably been neglected for a long time, since the owner could not pay their mortgage it is unlikely they kept up with preventive maintenance or other repairs either.  Many will have undisclosed problems and most will require some investment and sweat equity to bring them up to par. For some buyers, it may just be a better idea to buy a non-foreclosure home without having to deal with the unknown factors.  

Most of legitimate properties for sale that are foreclosures and short sales are listed in the MLS.  I have a program that can provide buyers with automatic daily e-mail of listings of the homes in the Virginia Beach area and other Hampton Roads cities are listed as bank repos, short sales, and Government owned VA and HUD homes and I can do this for you for FREE. The best part is you would know about these homes before most agents and other buyers even realize these homes are for sale. All you need to do is let me know what you are looking for and I can set it up for you today!

If you would like to discuss the issue further or you would like to receive foreclosure listings by e-mail, please drop me a line at Jorge@House4U.com.

The $8,000 Tax Credit can be earned by purchasing any home in Virginia Beach and Hampton Roads area, whether it be new construction or any residential home on the market.  If you are intertersted in finding out more about the $8,000 First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Program, please let me know.

Video Source: NAHB

For Rent $1,500, 2100 sqft in Virginia Beach home

2024 Twinflower Ct

Congress has included language in the economic stimulus package to compensate service members who sell their home at a loss or have been foreclosed upon because they were forced to move after a base closure, reassignment or a combat wound required them to be relocated near a health facility. The program also covers surviving spouses of those killed in combat.  Under the new provision, the government will cover 95 percent of a loss if a service member is forced to sell. The government can also choose to acquire the title of a home by paying off the balance of a service member's mortgage or paying the owner up to 90 percent of the home's previous value. No dollar ceiling has been set.  Click here to read more in a recent Virginian-Pilot article.

Source: Center For Real Estate Newsletter

Here’s a warning for potential borrowers: Nervous lenders have tough new rules and are paperwork crazy.

"Borrowers are going to have to prove they are the borrower they say they are," says Keith Gumbinger, vice president of HSH Associates, a mortgage-industry publisher in Pompton Plains, N.J.

Gumbinger says homebuyers should consider these things before they apply for a loan.

1. Down payments are critical. Borrowers should expect to put down at least 10 percent for a “conforming loan” – a mortgage that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will purchase.

2. Credit scores count. A 720 on the 850-point FICO rating scale will get a borrower access to the best rates. Rich Bira, branch manager of FCM Direct Lender in Chicago, says: "A score between 720 and 739 gets 0.125 percent added to the rate, a score between 700 and 719 gets 0.375 percent added to the rate, and a score between 680 and 699 gets 0.5 percent added to the rate.”

3. Consider VA and FHA Mortgages. Borrowers without down payments or with less than stellar credit scores should consider these government-insured loans offered through the Federal Housing Administration of the Veterans Administration.

4. Unearth the records. Before applying, borrowers should organize tax, banking and other records that prove income, savings and debts. They should also expect to be patient about what may seem to be endless requests for information.

5. Get rid of debts. Limiting debts, including what borrowers expect to pay for the mortgage, to less than 43 percent of gross income is important.

Source: NAR

If you thought you were the only one frustrated by people benefiting from not taking personal responsibility for poor investment decisions and having responsible taxpayers bailing them out, check out Rick Santelli's rant on CNBC.  

The $790 billion stimulus package increases the home buyer tax credit to $8,000, from $7,500, and drops the repayment feature for buyers who hold on to their property for at least three years.

The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS has sought removal of the repayment requirement because it discourages buyers from taking advantage of the tax credit. The three-year minimum holding period is a safeguard against speculators' use of the credit.

The legislation also extends the effective date of the credit to December 1 from June 30, and extends eligibility to borrowers who buy their home with the help of state or local financial assistance that comes from the proceeds of tax-exempt mortgage revenue bonds.

The credit remains open only to first-time buyers (those who haven't owned in at least three years) and some income eligibility restrictions apply, but those are unchanged from the existing program.

Other provisions reportedly in the bill that could help housing markets and communities include:

• FHA and conforming loan limits. Specifics have not been released but reports indicate that the 2008 limits have been reinstated for 2009 except in those communities where the 2009 limits are higher. Additional increases in individual communities may also be available at the discretion of the secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

• Foreclosure mitigation and neighborhood stabilization. Funding for states and localities to be used for neighborhood stabilization activities for the redevelopment of abandoned and foreclosed homes are authorized. Some news reports put the funding level at $2 billion.

• Rental assistance. Up to $1.5 billion to provide short-term rental assistance and other aid for families during the economic crisis.

• Transportation infrastructure. Up to $29 billion for highway construction projects, $8 billion for rail projects, and $5 billion to weatherize low-income homes.

• Rural housing development. Increased funding for the Rural Housing Service direct and guaranteed loan programs.

• Low-income housing grants. Allow states to trade in a portion of their 2009 low-income housing tax credits for Treasury grants to finance the construction or acquisition and rehabilitation of low-income housing, including those with or without tax credit allocations

• Tax-exempt housing bonds. Tax-exempt interest earned on specified state and local bonds issued during 2009 and 2010 will not be subject to the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). In addition, financial institutions will have greater capacity to purchase tax-exempt state and local bonds

• Energy efficient housing. Grants for energy retrofits for federally assisted housing (Section 8), funding for energy efficiency and conservation block grants to states, and Increases in the residential tax credit through 2010 for certain energy efficient upgrades. 

The RE/MAX Times Online sat down with the RE/MAX International CEO Margaret Kelly (CRB) and President Vinnie Tracey (CRB) to learn their reasons for optimism in spite of negative reports and dismal statistics surrounding housing markets across the United States.

RE/MAX TIMES ONLINE: What is your assessment of the U.S. housing industry?

Kelly: We have to promote that it’s a great time to buy a home. Rates are low, and there is a large selection of homes for sale. The U.S. economy will not recover until the housing market recovers. I believe the new administration understands that and will work to get the housing industry moving forward with affordable mortgages and programs to keep families in their homes. And it’s most important that buyers and sellers use a Realtor. Consumers need the experience and professionalism of a real estate agent.

Tracey: Going into 2008, there were 1.38 million Realtors - an all-time high. The good thing is that we lost 140,000 Realtors, mostly the inexperienced and ineffective, throughout the year. With a compression in the industry to a projected 500,000 new home sales and 5 million resales in 2009, and more Realtors expected to leave the industry, there will be less competition.

RE/MAX TIMES ONLINE: What do you see for the coming year?

Kelly: We’ll never see prices or times like this again. You’ll see more first-timers and side-liners getting into the market. We have had cycles like this before, and we’ll come out of this one too. People are still buying and selling homes.

Tracey: Another 180,000-200,000 agents will leave, putting the Realtor population a little over 1 million. It’s a good thing, showing that people who are well educated and well prepared with great knowledge and wisdom find success, and they realize that people are still buying and selling. Momentum from Obama’s inauguration will start a shift to more positive messages from the press. I’ve always contended that every recession we’ve had, real estate led us out. Now we need the press to help us with positive headlines that can lead to more consumer confidence.

RE/MAX TIMES ONLINE: How is RE/MAX poised to succeed?

Kelly: There are a lot of businesses out there without the ability to sustain. We’re strong, we’re well run and we have a good history of production. People who didn’t run their businesses right are getting out, which means more business for RE/MAX. Franchise sales are great, which means even more for-sale signs and sold signs promoting our agents and the RE/MAX brand. And the addition of regions in more countries strengthens us all.

Tracey: Brokers are seeing a flight to quality. Quality agents look at the tools and competitive advantages at RE/MAX, and they start coming over. We have several advantages over the competition: RE/MAX University with ATOD, MTOD and professional designation courses right from the comfort of your office or home; leads with no referral fees from RE/MAX International, and the Design Center. You would pay a considerable amount for the same service elsewhere. The competition isn’t advertising as much, or in the same places. RE/MAX share of voice will continue to outpace the competition.

RE/MAX TIMES ONLINE: What should RE/MAX agents be focusing on this year?

Kelly: It’s important to remember that in a real estate climate like this, our agents can help families stay in their homes. The more homes we help families keep out of foreclosure, the easier it will be on people who have to move. RE/MAX agents should take this time to get advanced designations - take classes on how to handle REO and distressed properties. They should use the strength of the RE/MAX brand in all they do. There are opportunities in every market, and agents need to find those opportunities in their marketplace.

Tracey: The obvious negative in the market over the past three years is the increase in foreclosures and the shift to a supreme buyer’s market. But affordability is up dramatically from a year or two ago. Affordability in California, for instance, has jumped from 20 percent to 50 percent. Interest rates are down. Foreclosures are sad, but now that they’re in the inventory banks are more willing to negotiate short sales. They used to hold out for 80 percent to 90 percent of the homes’ value, but now they’re taking 50 percent to push the inventory.