NOTE: This article is part of the forthcoming book, the Gotcha Guide™ to Buying or Investing in Real Estate. Email us to join the mailing list for the release date. By DeeinAustin™ 

Remember Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARMs)? Here’s a tip. They’re mortgage loans that gained popularity in 2003-2005. Now pick the best explanation of their fate from 2006-2007…

A) They’re little demons that caused our foreclosure rate to increase to the highest in American history, prompting over 200 lenders close their doors.

B) Along with sub-prime loans, they were the downfall of the U.S. real estate and mortgage market, sending investors (i.e. speculators) and the secondary lending market running for the hills.

C) They aren’t so bad if used wisely and may be converted to fixed-rate loans with minimal paperwork and about a $250-$500 fee.

D) All of the above.

My ANSWER: Is D… All of the above, with caveats. I do agree that ARMs are one of many reasons why the lending market is now in recovery. The truth is that lending guidelines became lax and borrowers weren’t being responsible.

TOP 3 REASONS WHY ADJUSTABLE RATE MORTGAGES AREN’T THE BOOGEYMAN

(more…)

Popularity: 3% [?]

NOTE: This article is part of the forthcoming book, the Gotcha Guide™ to Buying or Investing in Real Estate. Email us to join the mailing list for the release date.
by DeeinAustin™

Today’s post is a follow-up from the yesterday’s article on home buyer safety tips. We typically cover Texas real estate news such as new developments, market updates, and
upcoming areas, but also provide industry news, tips and advice.

We felt that holiday safety tips were important this week because you may have a friend whose guard is down during the holiday season. Please remind them to be safe if they’re still shopping for a home or investment property this month. Feel free to provide feedback on whether these posts are useful or if you prefer "regular" real estate coverage.

NOW…HERE ARE THE TOP HOME SELLER SAFETY TIPS
In addition to the applicable buyer tips from yesterday:

(more…)

Popularity: 2% [?]

NOTE: This article is part of the forthcoming book, the Gotcha Guide™ to Buying or Investing in Real Estate. Email us to join the mailing list for the release date.
by DeeinAustin™

With the holidays fast approaching, it’s time to celebrate with our closest friends and family. While some of us are heading out of town, others are stilling searching for the right home or investment.

I hate to be a damper on your holiday season, but felt the need to post some quick tips on how to be safe when shopping for a new home during the holiday season.

Please note that these tips aren’t meant to be legal or professional advice for all situations. Think…what would CSI Miami’s David Caruso do? (photo inset).

HOLIDAY HOME SHOPPING SAFETY FOR BUYERS

(more…)

Popularity: 2% [?]

I have a small beef with the national real estate news media. I was reading an article from CoStar Group about the 2008 real estate outlook. I like Costar because they’re pretty straightforward and reliable.

The article, entitled "Housing Outlook Dims for 2008", reminded me of the same doom and gloom headlines from other national news outlets.

WHY TEXANS SHOULD HAVE A BEEF WITH THE NATIONAL MEDIA

They’re biased. Reporters chatter about housing
"booms" and "busts", but not stability because middle ground is boring. California, Arizona, and Florida sellers are
suffering after real estate speculators rushed to those markets and
overpaid. Houston and other areas of Texas aren’t suffering the way the headlines would lead you to believe.

They don’t know our market. I reported yesterday that the Houston market was "ho-hum" because it’s slightly declined, but hasn’t gone bust. Was this sensational news? No, but it was the truth. Texas didn’t severely appreciate so we
were largely ignored during your news hayday of 2003-2005. Smart
investors heard of our relative stability and are now flocking to us.

They don’t report the full story. My friend from Berne,
Switerzland said foreign consumers are pulling
their funds out of America because our media’s reports of the housing
markets crashing "everywhere". Consumers in the U.S and other countries still do not
understand why the subprime market failed and how banks will come back
even stronger with better practices established. They also don’t hear
about many local markets (like Austin) that are doing well.

HOW TO SURVIVE REAL ESTATE IN ANY MARKET

(more…)

Popularity: 5% [?]

NOTE: This article is part of the forthcoming book, the Gotcha Guide™ to Buying or Investing in Real Estate. Email us to join the mailing list for the release date.
–by DeeinAustin™

You may wonder why I’m writing about apologies and what they have to do with real estate gotchas.

I’m a strong proponent of a well-placed, well-thought apology. On the other hand, I believe that an insincere or poorly-made apology is the quickest way to diminish trust in a relationship. Trust is key to any business transaction, especially in real estate since there are so many parties involved. 

Successful agents and investors realize is that bad things happen. People make mistakes. Wires get crossed. Deadlines get missed. Paperwork becomes lost. This is all part of navigating the waters of a typical real estate transaction.

The instant these "bad" things happen, you step into the spotlight as a professional. You could be the buyer, seller, agent, inspector, lender etc., the role doesn’t matter. You’re on stage and will propose a solution that will either deepen OR weaken your relationship with the other party. In addition, an apology may be due in some instances.

STOP! BEFORE YOU APOLOGIZE…

(more…)

Popularity: 2% [?]

NOTE: This article is part of the forthcoming book, the Gotcha Guide™ to Buying or Investing in Real Estate. Email us to join the mailing list for the release date.
by DeeinAustin™

Being a real estate agent can be tough. Some clients think agents drive people around, show houses all day, and make easy cash so they can buy fancy cars or clothes and spend weekends on the golf course. On the contrary, most full-time professional real estate agents care deeply about our clients and just want to do a great job.

That said, a nice gentleman recently contacted me for help with his brother’s Northwest Austin listing for a problem that he didn’t know how to solve: Their agent simply stopped responding. He wanted to know what to do next.

Is the agent still in business? Did they give up? Should I fire them? How can we get our home sold if we can no longer believe in our agent?

WHAT TO DO IF YOU HAVE TO FIRE YOUR TEXAS REAL ESTATE AGENT

(more…)

Popularity: 1% [?]

We get a lot of questions from Texas real estate investors. They often want to know where to start, how to grow their current investment business, what the market is doing, etc.

I answered many of these questions in my recent interview with Jay Papasan, co-author of three New York Times Best selling real estate books and current VP of Publishing at Keller Williams. Our interview discussed how I got started in real estate, advice on getting started and how to invest in any market.

Jay inspired me to start work on a real estate investor handbook. Some of these articles may be included.

OUR TOP 6 REAL ESTATE INVESTOR ARTICLES

We cherry-picked the top  6 real estate investment articles that address the most frequently asked questions:

(more…)

Popularity: 5% [?]

NOTE: This article is part of the forthcoming book, the Gotcha Guide™ to Buying or Investing in Real Estate.

My seller clients were negotiating with a cash buyer this weekend who made a seriously low offer.

For background, their home is back on the market because the previous buyer backed out the day before closing. This new buyer made a cash offer that’s $35k below the September appraised value. I gave the sellers their options on responding to any offer in Texas:

1. They can accept the offer in writing as-is.
2. They can counter the offer by making changes and initialing them.
3. They can reject the offer entirely by simply not responding or writing "rejected" on the contract.
4. They can reject the offer nicely by using TAR (Texas Association of REALTORS) form 1926 “Seller’s Invitation to Buyer to submit New Offer". Download 1926.pdf. 
   
   

(more…)

Popularity: 2% [?]

NOTE: This information is part of our upcoming book, the Gotcha Guide™ to Buying or Investing in Real Estate.
by DeeinAustin™

I was doing a pre-market walk-through of some rehabs in East Austin when I received a call from Jay Papasan’s team at Keller Williams International. They asked if I’d like to interview on their popular Millionaire Mondays show.

As always, I’m very honored and excited to be asked to provide real estate investing advice, but purpose of this post isn’t to toot our own horn about the show (even though that’s VERY cool). I want to remind readers of a few principles discussed during the pre-listing consultation today.

REHABBING HOUSES IN TODAY’S MARKET

My investor isn’t a beginner, but he’s putting about $50k into each project. My job is to make sure he makes the right choices and saves much money as possible. Keep these tips in mind BEFORE you buy:

(more…)

Popularity: 3% [?]

I’ve been focusing on the mortgage market heavily this month because August and September were very tough for many Texas real estate buyers, agents and sellers. Inventory is up, home sales are down and the ability to obtain a mortgage has been tougher.

GOOD NEWS THAT "SOUNDS" BAD
As expected, a great deal of Texas real estate agents, investors and loan officers are leaving the business. While this sounds like bad news, it’s actually good. In our shifting market, sellers have to price homes well and buyers must meet more strict lending guidelines. Agents and loan officers who were previously under-performing really have to step up their customer service.

PREDICTION
Last year was feverish with speculation and lax lending guidelines. The initial shock of staunch lending guidelines this summer will slowly fade. In a perfect scenario, the most serious Texas real estate buyers, investors, agents and loan officers will be left standing, creating a win-win for motivated sellers.

Listen to the Millionaire Systems Podcast- Investing in the Mortgage Meltdown.

Popularity: 3% [?]