Dallas Appraiser L.L.C. wants your help and commentary on our Real Estate Blog

Title: 

Waterfront Real Estate: The Ins and Outs

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387

Summary:

As with any type of real estate, waterfront real estate comes with a few special considerations.

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Article Body:

As with any type of real estate, waterfront real estate comes with a few special considerations. 

If you are purchasing real estate on the water, be it a river, lake or oceanfront, you'll want to know for certain what your rights and responsibilities are to that water and its shoreline. For example, are you obligated to build a certain type of dock? Many areas have regulations governing what type of dock can be built. Are you even allowed to moore your boat there? Sometimes your rights end at the waterline. Is your beach accessible to the public or can you limit who goes there? Can you build right beside the waterline, or do you have to have any structures a certain distance away? Be sure you investigate the maximum water levels, and research the flooding history of your area. All of this will be important in your future at your waterfront home, so be sure to get the facts before you buy, so you know exactly what you'll be working with. 

Living beside a body of water, realize that it is a delicate ecosystem and be sure to consider the environmental impact of what you do. It might be best to avoid things like weed killers on your lawn if it's just running down a slope into the water. There may even be laws governing what is safe to use and what is not. For this similar reason, homes with septic systems will have special regulations beside the water. Because the water level is higher underground, follow the rules carefully to avoid sewage leaching either into the lake, into your drinking water or into your basement during especially wet times of year. 

You will also definitely want to consider safety when living beside the water. Ask around about any local dangers such as hidden currents or underwater rocks close to the surface. Also rusty old boats or garbage that has sunk that could hurt unaware swimmers. 

Once you've figured out everything you should know about your own unique piece of waterfront, it's time to sit back and enjoy some of the benefits. Not only will you enjoy living in such a beautiful area and taking advantage of the local recreation, you'll have peace of mind knowing you've invested in some of the most valuable real estate around.

Title: 

Using Foreclosure Auctions To Buy A House At Below Market Value

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481

Summary:

Foreclosure auctions are a good way to buy a house at below market value. You will see some things you should know before buying a house it a foreclosure auction.

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Article Body:

Buying a house below market value is a good way to get more profits as a real estate investor. One way you can find property at below market value is a foreclosure auction. Real estate goes into foreclosure when an owner of that real estate does not pay their mortgage on time. When real estate payments are not up to date it is a distress property. Nothing physically can be wrong with the house and it can be classified as a distress property. If the payments are not up to date that is enough to make a house a distress property. When a house is in distress status the owner is given a certain amount of time to bring the payments up to date. If the property owner does not bring the house up to date the bank that holds the mortgage can foreclose on the property. 

When the bank takes control of a house that is when a distress property is classified as a foreclosed property. When the bank forecloses on a house, the bank will try to sell the house in a foreclosure auction. In a foreclosure auction the person with the highest bid will take control of the house from the bank. If the price is too low the bank will not sell the house. Some foreclosure auctions start at the price the bank is willing to sell the house for. Finding these auctions can take some work. Some places you can find foreclosure auctions are the newspaper and online. One other thing you can do is buy foreclose property lists for your area online. It is important to do research on the properties to see witch ones you will be interested in. It is important to research the property so you will not over bid. One way of doing this is going and physically taking a look at the properties you think you will be interested in and do an assessment of there value. 

Most likely you will not get to see the inside of the house, but you can make an assessment of the house from the outside. You should stay off the physical property if you can. You will not want to get charge for trespassing. It is recommended that you take pictures and write notes about the property; this is a good way to help you to make the decision of what properties you will want. It can also help you to make an assessment on the highest you will pay. When it is time for the foreclosure auction stick to your assessments and do not over bid. You may not get your first choice but it is better to get your second or last choice at below market value than to over pay for your first choice. Buying foreclosure properties does take some work, but the money you will save is worth it.

Title: 

Use Real Estate to Pay Off Your Mortgage Early

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390

Summary:

If you live in an average market and paid $200,000 for your home just four years ago, it is now likely to be worth more than $292,000. And if you were able to purchase just three more houses, then in four years, you could have sold those three homes and made enough money to pay off your mortgage.

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Article Body:

If you live in an average market and paid $200,000 for your home just four years ago, it is now likely to be worth more than $292,000. And if you were able to purchase just three more houses, then in four years, you could have sold those three homes and made enough money to pay off your mortgage. 

If you think this is impossible because you are worried about finding the money to use as a down payment or qualifying for a loan, or are apprehensive about becoming a landlord, read on to learn about the everyday secrets used by investors to overcome these hurdles.

The easiest way to buy a house without a down payment is with a lease purchase. Search online to find lists of out-of-state landlords who may be looking to sell their houses once their tenants move out, and contact them by mail. Out-of-state landlords typically are motivated to sell because they live far away from the properties they own. 

Offer to lease the home for an amount that is high enough to cover the seller's entire house payment including principal, interest, taxes and insurance. Make sure that you also get an option to purchase the home at or below today's value at any time during the next five years. 

Try to arrange for your payments to begin after 60 to 90 days so that you will have time to find someone who is willing to buy the home on a rent-to-own basis. 

To find this person, who is called a "tenant buyer," put up plenty of rent-to-own signs in the neighborhood. Your tenant buyer will typically pay a little more in rent each month than you are paying to the seller. Set your tenant buyer's purchase price at around 75 percent of the amount the home will be worth four years from now. 

In addition, your tenant buyer should be responsible for any maintenance or repairs to the home while living there on a rent-to-own basis. Encourage him or her to have the home professionally inspected. 

If three of your tenant buyers purchase their homes after four years, you should be able to make enough in profits to pay off your own mortgage 20 to 25 years before other people. The best part is that you can accomplish this without needing any money for a down payment or qualifying for a loan.

Title: 

Using a Real Estate Agent to Sell your House

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582

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When selling a house, For Sale By Owner may seem like it saves you money, but the stress, extra work, worry, aggravation, waiting and uncertainty are a heavy price to pay. Here are some compelling reasons you should consider using a Real Estate Agent to sell your home.

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Article Body:

Why use a Real Estate Agent to Sell your House?

A house is generally the largest investment that an individual makes in their lifetime. When it comes time for you to sell your home the bottom line is "Am I getting the best price for my house?"

In an effort to save money and maximize return, many people decide to go with "For Sale By Owner" (FSBO). It seems easy enough until you begin to look at the massive amount of work and uncertainty involved. Add to that, national statistics show that 80% to 90% of FSBO properties eventually list with a real estate agent.

As you begin the process of selling your house, you are faced with the following questions. 

  

  What is the right price?

  What about marketing my house? 

  How do I make sure I'm dealing with qualified buyers?

  What about the final sale?

The services of a qualified real estate professional of the highest value in answering these questions.

A good real estate agent has a strong understanding of the local real estate market, a high standard of customer service and the support of a solid local company. Most importantly, a good agent saves you money, time and aggravation. 

Setting the Price 

Real estate agents know the value of real estate in your area. They should be able to show you properties comparable to yours that will help set a fair and competitive price on your home.  They can compare current homes for sale as well as recently sold homes. Price variables include age of home, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, pool, garage type, renovations and other amenities. A real estate agent can assess the fair market value and help to set an agreeable asking price.

Marketing Plan

Marketing your house is far more than putting a sign in the yard and an ad in the classifieds. A real estate agent should offer a variety of marketing tools including a yard sign, advertisement in local real estate magazines, inclusion in the local Multi-List Service (MLS), inclusion on their website and printed flyers or brochures. This multifaceted marketing plan ensures that your property is seen by scores of potential buyers. 

Remember that the agent is not paid unless the house sells. Their commission depends on them implementing a successful marketing strategy.

Finding Quality Buyers

An agents time is limited so they take care to bring quality buyers to your home. Many agents prequalify clients with a mortgage company before showing them a home. This is doubly beneficial. First, the buyers are serious. Second, the buyer is only looking at homes they can afford.

Not to beat this point, but agents don't make money showing houses, they make money selling houses. A good agent will make sure that the traffic coming through your home are quality buyers.

The Final Sale

As expert in the home selling process, your real estate agent will advise you of your rights, options and obligations.  Their negotiating skills help in determining appropriate offers, presenting counter-offers and  getting you the best price possible price. They can help break down the legalese of the contract and streamline the process of closing the sale.

Why use a real estate agent to sell your home?

Because it pays! It limits your stress, provides good marketing, offers quality buyers, gives invaluable assistance in closing the sale and provides peace of mind.

Title: 

Useful tips to buying a house

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355

Summary:

Buying a home can be a daunting experience

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Article Body:

Buying a home can be a daunting experience. If you have never done it before, you are left wide open to all sorts of dodgy things being done to you, by the seller, their estate agent, or even your own estate agent. However, as with many things in life, a little knowledge goes a long way. If you are buying a home, here are some things you should know.

First and foremost, you won’t go far wrong if you set a budget and stick to it. Work out what you can afford, and then work backwards to include agents’ fees and other expenses (surveys, for example). Your budget minus the fees and expenses is the maximum price that you should pay for your house. If you go over, you will struggle and get yourself into all sorts of bad debt ñ and once you get into debt, it is hard to get out.

The next important thing is to always have a proper survey done. They are expensive, so it can be tempting to skip it or try to do it yourself from a checklist you found in a book, but it will be much more expensive for you if you buy the house only to find something that the survey would have. This is one reason why it is not a good idea to buy houses at house auctions ñ they will sometimes have drastic structural defects that a survey would have found, but you have just committed to buy the house without one.

The last piece of advice I have for you is to take your time. Once you have decided to move, it can be tempting to dive in and see as many houses as possible in a week, and then buy one of them. The people who find the best houses, though, take a year or even more, looking at only a few good houses each week, until they find one that really grabs them. If you do it this way, not only will you be less stressed, but you will also be much more likely to be happy with the result.

Title: 

Used Mobile Homes - Be Careful

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562

Summary:

Why buy used mobile home? Simple affordable housing. Just buy on real estate and watch for these common problems.

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Article Body:

Why consider used mobile homes? My own first home was a mobile on a small lot. I bought it for $19,500. With the mortgage payments it was still cheaper than renting, plus I paid it off quickly and later sold it for $45,000. Obviously you can live cheap and build equity with a mobile home. (Buying may be the equivalent of cheap rent, but this article is about mobiles that are on real estate.)

The primary advantages of mobiles over traditional houses are clear for first time home buyers. It may be the only option, for starters. Then there is the lower initial price, the simpler, cheaper maintenance, lower monthly payments, less property tax, lower insurance cost, and perhaps even faster equity build-up (I explain this in another article). Mobile homes do have their own unique problems, so be sure to watch for the following.

Problems With Used Mobile Homes

Sometimes the age of a mobile home makes it tough to finance. If it can be financed, it may be at a very high interest rate. Check into this before making an offer, and take the higher payments into account when comparing your options.

The age of is also a big factor when it comes to insurance. Certain older homes may just be uninsurable. See if you can obtain insurance at a reasonable rate before buying.

Some mobile homes built before 1976 have aluminum wiring. This is a fire hazard because the chemical reaction between the aluminum and other metals cause the wiring to break down, eventually leading to sparking inside the walls (not good). Remove any of the electrical outlet or switch covers, and look inside with a flashlight. If the bare ends of the wires are silvery looking, they are probably aluminum, and you may have to rewire the home to get it insured.

Look for stains on the ceilings. Used mobile homes are prone to leaks. If it is raining and the stains are dry, the leaks have probably been repaired, but if there are many dark stains, at least ask for how long the roof leaked. Leaks that were quickly repaired may not have done much, if any, damage to the supporting beams, but if the roof is seriously sagging there may be rotten wood up there.

Look for wavy walls and crooked door frames. If the mobile is irregularly settling, the walls will sometimes show it. It may also show in the door frames, so see if the gap over the doors is straight in relation to the frame.

Check for spongy floors. Many mobiles have particle-board for floors. If these floors get wet, they can warp and rot. Step down hard here and there to test, especially in the bathroom. I've had to rebuild two bathroom floors in mobile homes. Around the toilet is a common place to find problems, because of the condensation from the toilet running down and soaking the wood around it. Is the toilet level or leaning?

Most of these problems can be resolved, and for much less than in a traditional house, so if there are issues, you may want to see them as an opportunity to make a lower offer. Alternately, you can just avoid the mobiles with problems. In any case, don't give up on owning your own home due to high prices. Just look for good used mobile homes.

Title: 

Home Appreciation and Capital Gains

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361

Summary:

The last seven years has seen tremendous appreciation in home prices. This brings up the issue of home capital gains tax issues for people when they sell.

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Article Body:

The last seven years has seen tremendous appreciation in home prices. This brings up the issue of home capital gains tax issues for people when they sell. 

Home Appreciation and Capital Gains

Owning home is considered part of the American Dream. Unless you are extremely unlucky, homeownership leads to tremendous wealth building. You simply sit in your home, make the monthly payment and reap the benefits of appreciation and increased equity. A bit of the luster, however, can be lost when it comes time to sell. 

Capital gains taxes are the problem. The federal government encourages homeownership, but also wants a chunk of a change when you sell. The capital gains tax is a percentage of the profit you have realized from the home, to wit, the difference between the price you purchased it at and the price it is sold. You can deduct mortgage costs, improvements and so on, but there is still the tax. 

Fortunately, there are some large safe harbor exemptions to the home capital gains tax. If you are single, you can exclude the first $250,000 in profit from being taxed. If you are married and filing jointly, you can merge your individual exemptions and protect the first $500,000 from being taxed. In most parts of the country, these exemptions will completely protect you from home capital gains tax. Even if they donít, the tax savings should be substantial.

To claim the exemptions, you must meet a few requirements. Obviously, you have to actually own the home. You must also have lived in the home two out of the previous five years. It must have been two years since you tried to claim the exemption on any other home. Put another way, you cannot claim the exemptions for investment property or second homes. Still, these healthy exemptions are a windfall for most homeowners.  

Americans are notorious for being horrific savers when it comes to financial planning. Homeownership provides a relatively straightforward savings method and the government promotes it as such by providing these large home capital gains tax exemptions. If you can pull it off, buying a home is one of the smartest moves you will ever make.

Home Ownership Papers

Titles and Deeds

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Like many other types of investments, the major thing that you will want to show at the end of the process is a piece of paper.  This is the same concept with real estate.  The type of paper that you will want to hold at the end of the loan is either a title or a deed.  This will allow you to show the locality that live in that you own the house and have paid off your loan.

A title is a document or evidence that you own the property or home that you have been paying off.  It can also mean that while someone else is on the property or land, an owner has the legal rights that are part of the property.  When you have a title as a piece of documentation, it will usually be matched in the records of the locality that you are at as well as by the one who has sold the property.  

A deed is a similar type of documentation that will be used in the process of gaining a title.  Often times, those who are investing in real estate will receive a deed as a transaction paper to the title.  This shows that the person who will be getting the property has the right to the title as well as the right to the property.  Usually, there will be several legal factors and regulations that are bound to this type of documentation in order to make sure that the transaction is fair.  

When you are about to receive a title or a deed for a home or piece of property, there are several steps you will have to take.  First, a proof of insurance will have to be shown.  You will also need copies that prove that you bought the house.  The person who is selling you the home or property will also have to have these proofs for purchase.  This includes a purchase agreement, invoices, receipts from the mortgage and proof of satisfaction that the one who is buying the property has met all of the requirements for purchase of the property.  

The last step to making your home completely yours is to make sure that you have the title or deed in your hand.  By understanding the process of getting a title, and making sure that you walk into the final closing ready to make the exchange, you can own the piece of property that you have been working towards.

Title: 

Having Equity In Your Home

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467

Summary:

If you are a homeowner then you should make building equity in your home one of your number one priorities. The reason for this is that equity in your home is like having cash in your bank account because you are able to borrow against it for a variety of different purposes. Also, when you build equity in your home it means you are that many dollars closer to owning your home outright. There are quite a few things you can do in order to build equity in your home that include ...

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Article Body:

If you are a homeowner then you should make building equity in your home one of your number one priorities. The reason for this is that equity in your home is like having cash in your bank account because you are able to borrow against it for a variety of different purposes. Also, when you build equity in your home it means you are that many dollars closer to owning your home outright. There are quite a few things you can do in order to build equity in your home that include making a higher down payment, additional principal payments, shorter mortgage, as well as focusing on home improvements.

Making a large down payment helps you build equity in your home because every dollar you pay in your down payment goes directly to your equity. Because of this, saving money in order to make large down payments has several benefits. First, it automatically increases your equity as means that you will require a lower loan amount which means you will pay less money in interest. So, if there is any way you can make a large down payment make every effort to do so.

Another way to build equity in your home it makes more payments on principal than is required. This is important because every dollar paid on principal means another dollar built in equity and less money that will accrue interest. So, even if you can only make small extra payments on principal now still go ahead and get in the practice of doing so. It will really pay off in the long run.

Also, sacrifice in the short run and have a short mortgage term rather than a long one. By doing this you do several things. First, you pay more money per month on your loan, but you will have less money accrued in interest and build equity significantly faster. Also, if you have a short loan period you will save a considerable amount of money that would be accrued in interest otherwise and the peace of mind of knowing that you own your home much faster.

Investing in home improvements is another way you can build your equity. The reason this builds equity is because when you make home improvements you increase the value of your home, which means you will be able to build more equity. However, there are some things to keep in mind when considering home improvements. For example, home improvements to kitchens and bathrooms always increase the value of your home more so than external improvements like swimming pools or fences.

If you are interested in building home equity then make a plan that includes the following tips and make sure you follow it diligently. By doing this you will build equity in your home quickly and efficiently.

Title: 

Going Green in Your Home

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443

Summary:

Texas builders going green, read the headline, and it got me thinking about the cost of not just building 'green', but of converting to green in our existing homes. Being able to list your house as a 'green' home must still be a novelty these days. One reason is that it can be expensive to switch to green, but there are reasonable contributions that the average family can easily make toward green living.

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Article Body:

Texas builders going green, read the headline, and it got me thinking about the cost of not just building 'green', but of converting to green in our existing homes. Being able to list your house as a 'green' home must still be a novelty these days. One reason is that it can be expensive to switch to green, but there are reasonable contributions that the average family can easily make toward green living. 

Of course, people go green for different reasons; for some of them it is just a common sense solution to allergies suffered in the family. But why do other people choose to put themselves through this hassle. It is not money, we know that much; going green usually costs more, not less. 

Many people seem to object to the idea that their home contains more chemicals than homes used to. What is more, we are paying for that privilege! It is strange to think that Vinyl linoleum gives off toxic gasses, but it is a fact. True linoleum does not, although it can be more difficult to find. (It is often a fact that the newer replacement product also brought with it toxicity.) 

Another way of helping the environment is to follow your municipalities outline for re-cycling. Private re-cycle depots in your area will often pick up where the government leaves off. The trick is to get it organized at the home base with different containers that are easily accessed.

When you decorate the home, if you want to think green, use paint that has either no, or low, VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds). Also if you plan on re-sealing sealing wood doors or floors etc, latex has no pollution factor to worry about.

If you decide to remodel, you will find many appliances on the market that will help you to go green. Most appliance companies now offer at least one green choice. Both washing machines and dish washers offer cycles which operate with less water. There are also toilets with the same feature, and all of these options will give you cheaper bills to pay, both on hydro and on water consumption.

If your remodeling or green choices are extending into your kitchen then when choosing a new stove or other kitchen appliance, look for the Energy Star rating. Many of these appliances are designed with a healthy environment in mind, and the stainless steel look of them will bring your kitchen up to the minute! 

Switching into a green frame of mind can sometimes have a gradual escalation. Soon you may find yourself buying environment friendly soap powders and cleaners and then you can feel even more virtuous!