Tips About Real Estate Home Inspections

The decision of buying a home equals to a lot of debt, so keep your eyes wide opened when committing to such a thing. The only way to avoid any possible disaster is setting up a home inspection of your future house.

The main purpose of the real estate home inspection is making sure that the home is in good condition. Should anything seem like a potential problem in the house, the home inspection would let the buyer know what he is exposing himself at. Therefore, when having a home inspection done, the potential buyers should be aware of the importance such a thing has. The buyer must be careful about which home inspection service to go with.

There are times when the seller or the realtor of the seller will make a suggestion for a home inspection service. They will even offer discounts for using the service. The question is whether to go with the discounted service offered by the seller or not. In order to figure out the correct answer you must understand that the real estate agent has a rather big commission on the line. To be more precise about it, we can state that real estate agents often make 6 to 8 percent of the total sale. This means they have a lot riding on every sale and they are looking to close out every deal they can. This is the reason why most real estate agents are only looking out for themselves and are not always fair in the sales. You can see now the potential big loss on the long term that you could be setting yourself up for.

Some home inspection services recommended by the agent can sometimes have an unspoken agreement. The inspector will get more business, should the inspection reports be favorable to the seller. Otherwise, the agent of the seller will find someone else for future deals. The real matter of this situation is that certain deficiencies can be overlooked by the home inspector. This is a thing that any potential buyer will definitely pay for in any future deal.

The conclusion of all this is that a buyer needs to be aware of the importance of objective real estate home inspections. Should there be any problems with a potential dream home, the inspection must let you know about them before paying for it!

By: Dalvin Rumsey

Good Things To Know About Home Purchasing

Most people will agree that buying a new home is a very good investment on the long term. You will even say that it is an investment in yourself and you are perfectly right about it. The truth of the matter is that people use to spend very much money on almost anything you can imagine. It is just as if the money we spend will come back to us the same day! However, this is not how things go! Instead of saving the money, we keep on finding new and exciting ways to get rid of them. As long as we are young and healthy, we never think about what will happen when we get older and have no money to live on.

Should we want to buy a new home in the future, we must definitely start saving money, as this is a major investment that we cannot support in any other way.

There are many reasons for this, including the pride of ownership, as well as the tax deductions that you can pick up from mortgage interest. The fact that property is a good long-term investment also counts as a reason. All the statistics state that property appreciates over time. At the same time, you should be paying down your mortgage debt. Combined, these two actions will most certainly result in your living in a property that acts as a sort of savings account.

It is a clear thing that the very nature of this savings system is starting to offer new services. I am speaking about the reverse mortgage products that are actually flooding the market. In case you are wondering what reverse mortgages really are, you should know that they are the ones to allow you to cash out of your home while still living in it. Just as when you pay a lender with a traditional mortgage, the process is turned around with a reverse mortgage, meaning that a lender can pay you in exchange for chunks of your home equity. The reverse mortgages have won their place on the market just because homes are actually savings accounts of most people. Nevertheless, this is a matter of option, as there are many people who would never agree to such a thing.

If you see a home as an investment in your future, then you must never worry about the money you will live on when you retire.

By: Dalvin Rumsey

To Be Successful Real Estate Developers

In recent years, many economists have recognized that the lack of effective real estate laws can be a significant barrier to investment in many developing countries. In most societies, rich or poor, a significant fraction of the total wealth is in the form of land and buildings. In most advanced economies, the main source of capital used by individuals and small companies to purchase and improve land and buildings is mortgages -- bank loans for which the real property itself constitutes collateral.

With the development of private property ownership, real estate has become a major area of business. Purchasing real estate requires a significant investment, and each parcel of land has unique characteristics, so the real estate industry has evolved into several distinct fields. Cities such as Vancouver, British Columbia have experienced remarkable growth in real estate prices in the new millennium.

Now a days property is play many role it is use as investing money or for a living purpose If your desire is invest money in property then it is not bad for now a days but u r looking for living reason then there are many precautions that is keep in our mind earlier than the buying .If you are moving out of your rented flat and you want to your bond back. Then decide which city is good for you & your future then decide to buy it .as we know that in metropolitan city the price is touch to sky then it is not easier to buy a house. Then you should city as your budget.

Because the amounts of money involved are typically very large, a majority of real estate development projects are financed with a large amount of debt leverage. Because expense is high, sale is difficult, and return on investment is delayed, real estate investment is inherently risky. A large part of the work of developers is the management of risk.

Successful real estate developers can become enormously wealthy due to the large sums of money being transacted and the value of the assets they control. However, because of the illiquidity of their assets, they are also very often cash-poor. Inability to remain cash solvent is the primary cause of business failure for real estate developers.

Real estate markets are modeled as a stock/flow market. About 98% of supply consists of the stock of existing houses, while about 2% consists of the flow of new development. The stock of real estate supply in any period is determined by the existing stock in the previous period, the rate of deterioration of the existing stock.
Every piece of real estate is unique, in terms of its location, in terms of the building, and in terms of its financing. This makes pricing difficult, increases search costs, creates information asymmetry and greatly restricts substitutability

Real estate can be purchased with the expectation of attaining a return (an investment good), or with the intention of using it (a consumption good), or both. These functions can be separated (with market participants concentrating on one or the other function) or can be combined (in the case of the person that lives in a house that they own). This dual nature of the good means that it is not uncommon for people to over-invest in real estate, that is, to invest more money in an asset than it is worth on the open market.

Real-estate consulting group Knight Frank has ranked India 5th in the list of 30 emerging retail markets and predicted an impressive 20 per cent growth rate for the organized retail segment by 2010. The number of malls in Mumbai, Bangalore, New Delhi, Hyderabad and Noida was expected to grow to about 250 by 2010 as against 40 now. In terms of total area, there was 12.40 million square feet of mall space available in these cities.

By: Firoj Khan

The True Story About a Buyer’s Market

Every now and then you hear on the television, or through passing, or even in daily conversation how the real estate market is always changing. The markets can change from city to city and state to state. You hear terms such as “it’s a buyer’s market,” or “it is soon going to be a seller’s market,” and “it’s a hot market.”

Everyone understands, simply by the description of the terms, that a buyer’s market means the market is best for buyer’s to be purchasing property. A seller’s market means the market is best for seller’s to be selling their property. And hot market, is often used by investors to describe a market where there is a lot of investment activity and excellent land prices. This ultimately means increased return on investment for commercial real estate investors.

So we know what these terms describe, but what about the true characteristics of a buyer’s and seller’s market? Does it differ from residential and commercial real estate? Let’s look at these descriptions and what they really mean and how you can assess the market yourself and not have to rely on what the general public is talking about that specific day.

Many definitions of seller and buyer markets are very limiting. For example, a seller’s market: a market which has more buyers than sellers. Low prices result from the excess of supply over demand. A buyer’s market: a market which has more sellers than buyers. High prices result from excess demand over supply.

These definitions explain why each market is the way it is. However, what are the true ramifications?
Instead of using supply and demand, I prefer to describe these markets through power. Who has the power to call the shots- the purchase price for property.

With a buyer’s market, the buyer has the power to dictate the purchase price. There are so many properties for sell, so many sellers, and not enough buyers for those properties. So if a seller really wants to part with his or her property, they are almost fighting over who is going to purchase the property.
The buyers are going to naturally ask for a lower price because the seller will need to come down in price to sell the property. They could try to hold out for a buyer who will pay them more. However, a buyer could simply move to another similar property that could cover their needs just fine, at a lower price. So with a buyer’s market, they have the power to name the price and the seller’s must succumb because otherwise, they won’t be able to sell the property. That is how the prices are driven lower.

The opposite is true of a seller’s market. In a seller’s market the sellers have the power; they have the power to dictate the price. There are far more buyers than sellers so there is a limited supply of properties. The sellers can easily raise their prices because the buyers will have to pay more than the next buyer if they truly want o purchase a property. So prices in the market are driven higher as the sellers know they can get these prices.

So the type of market it is really has to do with power- who can call the price for a property. In the residential real estate markets, the type of market at a certain point in time is easy to determine. Are the housing prices rising or falling?

In commercial real estate, it is not so easy to determine. This is because there are so many different types of properties: development, building, rehab etc. Depending on your investment strategy and what you are looking for in a market, the terms buyer’s market and seller’s market do not hold as much value as the term “hot market.” A hot market is one where the purchase values are low and the return on investment is high. There is a lot of commercial real estate activity, a high population growth rate, and a growth strategy within the city. Then again, what one investor feels is a hot market is not a hot market to another investor.

Commercial real estate is a special case where the market cycle changes from city to city. And no matter what point in the cycle a city is experiencing, an investor with a specific investment strategy can find value within that specific market. That is a definite benefit of commercial real estate. You can always find value in commercial properties.

With this information, a person can decide when it is best time to sell or purchase a property and you can plan for it before hand. Review daily newspapers, housing and real estate magazines, and you morning news program to see if there are any noticeable changes in the real estate market.

By: Tony Seruga, Yolanda Seruga and Yolanda Bishop

Real Estate Investing Benefits

There are many reasons available to invest in the real estate. Investing in a real estate is said to be safer as well as profitable. This became a route cause for you development.

The essential part of the real estate is its growth line. Nowadays, everyone started investing in the real estate business. This real estate business has few fluctuations, but it has strong growth. There are numerous businesses available, compared to this real estate business no one is as popular as this business. In world market compared to other business like currency investing, mutual funds, buying gold and silver, but real estate business is high profitable.

Usually, people ask me a query why to invest in real estate business. The reply will be very simple. Investing in other kind of business, will surely give profit in a reasonable period. Real estate business takes some time, but we surely attain more profits compared to other business.

Tax Rate
American government has imposed multiple tax rate policies for the realtor i.e. the real estate investors, which includes the very popular 1031 exchanges. The definition of this text is “the internal revenue code defines the 1031 exchanges as if a real property asset is sold, and reinvested in some other property it becomes a capital gain. Since no profit or no loss is obtained, it is taxable under the capital gain. Till you reinvest your money in any other real property, you have to pay tax in a lump sum.

Investment
Since real estate investment is more profitable as well as safer, it needs huge investment to enter in to the market. Real estate business does not need any experience. Even if the realtors invest, he can get back his investment in a shorter period. Real estate investing is a business where the investors will invest in a real property. The real estate investors buy the property under a bond and resale the bond to another realtor. Real estate is a contract based transaction. While doing a business investor can hold the property for sometime and if he sells he gets a huge profit.

Someone’s Capital
Real estate business does not need own capital; someone’s money can be also been invested in the real estate business. There are many organizations ready to provide loan. Nowadays banks are ready to provide loan to this realtors. Today realtors are playing their essential role. Real estate market flourishes like never before. Those investing in this real estate business are enjoying the profitable venture. Real estate business is always worthable and they are providing the useful services to the customers.

By: Ron

Buying A New Home - Things To Consider Before Buying A House

Buying a new home is an exciting and tiring ordeal. However, the thrill of moving into a new home can often overshadow the frustration that comes with searching, negotiating, and being out bided. The home buying process is very lengthy. Thus, you should be prepared to devote a lot of time and energy to making your dream a reality. Here are a few tips to help smooth the home buying process.

Fix Credit Blemishes and Errors

Credit reports are critical to the home buying process. Sadly, many young adults and first time homebuyers minimize the importance of maintaining a good or fair credit rating. Although various mortgage programs exist to help bad credit applicants get approved for a home loan, these loans have higher interest rates. To ensure a low rate mortgage, which will also lower your mortgage payments, improve your credit rating.

If your credit score is at least 680, lenders consider you a prime candidate. As a prime candidate, you qualify for a low rate mortgage. On the other hand, those with credit scores below 600 can expect considerably higher rates.

Before applying for a home loan, check your own credit score. If your score needs a little improvement, delay purchasing a home for at least six months and raise your rating.

Choosing an Affordable Home

Naturally, pricier homes are more appealing. However, if buying a new home, realistically determine what type of home will fit into your budget. Many mistakenly purchase expensive homes, and can barely afford the payments. Avoid becoming "house broke." Ideally, mortgage payments should be no higher than 36% of our total monthly income. This way, you can comfortably pay your mortgage and care for other household expenses.

Get a Lower Interest Rate with a Down Payment

Although down payments are not mandatory when purchasing a home, they will help you secure a low rate mortgage. Moreover, with a 20% down payment, you do not have to pay private mortgage insurance. Planning for a down payment takes time and discipline. It may require cutting expenses, or sticking to a strict budget. However, the results are worth the sacrifice.
By: Carrie Reeder

Home Seller: Estimating Your Market Value

The simple truth is that the market value of your home is what a buyer is willing to pay. An estimate of your home’s value is a prediction of what most buyers would be willing to pay at a given time. This prediction requires a close look at two factors: recent home sales in your area, and an assessment of the real estate market. Pricing correctly is fundamental to a successful outcome in the sale of your home.

Market Analysis

Recent closed sales in your area offer the most relevant data for predicting the sale price of your home. Later, when your home is appraised for the buyer's loan, the appraiser will only consider closed sales. List prices of homes on the market are of interest too, because they show the current pricing trend.

If your home is superior or inferior to most homes in the neighborhood, or if there are no nearby sales, then it will be more difficult to anticipate the responses of potential buyers. In this case, a strategy of trial and error may be necessary. This strategy will require a realistic assessment of buyer responses. Sometimes buyer responses are unrelated to the size and condition of the home. For example, in an area where most buyers have grown children, a home with the master upstairs may not sell as high.

Real Estate Market

An important part of pricing is an assessment of the state of the real estate market. The market may favor sellers or buyers, or be in balance. An indicator of the quality of the market is the number of months of standing inventory in your market and price range. Use this formula to estimate months of inventory:

1) Count the number of sales in your market area and price range for the past 12 months. (Example: 60 sales between $300,000 - 500,000)

2) Divide the number of sales by 12, to get the number of sales per month. (Example: 5 sales per month)

3) Count the number of homes on the market now. (Example: 100 homes between $300,000 - 500,000)

4) Divide the number of homes on the market by the number of sales per month (Example: 100 homes selling at a rate of 5 per month = 20 months of supply).

The current inventory divided by the rate of sale shows the number of months it will take to clear the current inventory, and reveals the state of the real estate market.

Seller's Market

Less than 6 months of unsold inventory is considered a seller's market. In this market, there is a large number of buyers in proportion to the number of homes for sale. The demand for homes is greater than the supply. Buyers must compete with each other for homes. Sellers often receive multiple offers. Buyers will submit the highest price that the market will support. Prices will trend upward. In a climbing market, it makes sense to price slightly above recent sales.

Buyer's Market

More than 8 months of inventory is considered a buyer's market. In a buyer's market the number of homes for sale is large compared with the number of buyers. This market is created by excessive construction, employment decline or high interest rates. A low number of buyers relative to the inventory results in lower prices. Sellers must compete with each other for available buyers. Prices trend downward. In a falling market, prices should be set at the lower end of the range because time works against you - in six months prices may be lower. This may be difficult to do, especially if the home was purchased at a higher price.

Price Per Square Foot

Dollars per square foot is often used as tool for comparing homes. Keep in mind that you must make a sliding scale adjustment from larger to smaller homes. In other words, the larger the house, the lower the price per square foot for comparable properties. This is because the core square footage of a home has a higher value than the peripheral area. The price per sq. ft. on a 1,000 sf home will be much higher than a 5,000 sf home, for similar quality homes.

Should you price high, and hope for an offer?

Houses should not be priced over the market. This is not the best way to position your home for several reasons:

1) Your home will be shown to the wrong group of buyers. The buyer who steps forward will be an aggressive negotiator - someone who will make a low offer.

2) You will inadvertently help to sell the competition. Your high price will convince buyers that another home is a good value.

3) Your best leverage occurs during the early marketing period. Your days on the market is evident to buyers, and is a subtle but important factor in their decision.

How will you know if the price is correct?

Second looks from buyers is the best affirmation of correct pricing. This indicates that your home appeals to buyers in your price range. There may be a few nibbles before a buyer comes forward who is ready to act. It helps to get feedback from showings. However, keep in mind that buyers and agents are often reluctant to say something negative. Look at the overall result of all showings for confirmation of the price . If you are getting lukewarm responses, this will require a strategy of price reductions.

How long should you market a home at a given price?

There is no standard time frame for marketing at a given price. About 8-10 showings is a reasonable number to get a sense of the market response. This usually corresponds to about 2 - 6 weeks for an average home in a balanced market. About 30 days marketing time is a reasonable price test. However, this may be too short for an unusual or very high end home, for which there is a small market. Or, 30 days may be too long for your home if you need to move fast, and there is plenty of activity.

What if your home does not sell in a reasonable time?

If your home has been on the market for months with no offers, this is a clear message that the price is set too high. What you do at this point depends on whether you really need to sell. If you're not really motivated to move soon, you could wait for the market to move up to your price. It would be best to take your home off the market and wait for better conditions. Buyers are suspicious of a house that has been for sale for a long time. If you need to sell, consider a schedule for dropping your price until it reaches a level that attracts buyers. At the right price, you home will sell.
By: Roselind Hejl

Before You Buy

Before you start looking for a home, figure out what you can realistically afford to pay per month. Check out the market in the area you want to buy. Find out what price houses are going for and what the payments are per month. Remember that you may end up paying a little more per month than someone with a conventional bank loan, so keep that in mind as you figure out what you can afford.

You are going to have to work harder to find a home you can get without a loan. You will have to shop around more. So, concentrate on your needs in housing before your wants. Make a list of the minimum that you will accept in a house. Only write down your essential needs. Do you have to have three bedrooms or can you make do with less? Do you have to have a two-car garage or will a carport do? Do you have to have a single story home for health reasons? How close do you have to be to a school?

Make a separate list of the things you want. Wants might include things like a pool or hot tub, a walk-in closet, wooden floors, a deck, or a certain type of architecture. It would be nice if you can find a home with some of your wants, but to begin with, concentrate on finding a home that meets your needs. Often many of these things can be added to a home later.

Also make a third list of things you absolutely do not want in a home, such as: too many stairs to climb, a fixer-upper, certain areas of town you dislike, a location too close to a freeway, or a location too far from the center of town.

You may not be in a position to be too picky. Perhaps you can make do with a smaller home for now, while you establish your credit and get equity in the smaller home. Then you will be in a position to trade that home in for a bigger home.

Re-establishing your financial footing is not as difficult as it used to be, but it is impossible if you attempt to buy more house than makes sense. Be conservative!


From the book "Buying a Home When You Have Bad Credit-- 12 Ways to Purchase a House When You Can't Get a Home Loan" by Alexis Dey. © 2005-6 Mohave Publishing. All rights reserved. http://I-can-buy.com
By: Alexis Dey

Getting a Real Estate Agent

Getting a Real Estate Agent

The first thing to remember when finding a real estate agent is that they are all salespeople. You are a business to them and they want to sell to make a profit. Therefore, you should never let on that you need to sell your house ASAP, or you are in a hurry to buy because this will give them reasons to rip you off. How quickly you need to sell or buy is none of there business and to get the best deal you will want them to assume you are in no hurry at all. The first thing that an agent will want to know is how much you are willing to spend. Never tell them, because they usually do not have your interest at heart as most are based on commission. Whatever you tell your agent, they will go and tell the seller, meaning that if you say you will pay as high as $500,000 they are going to ask for that amount. It’s ok to tell them what you would like to pay for a certain house, but never tell them your maximum amount. If the agent tries to bargain you up, take your money elsewhere. Also, never make the mistake of assuming that your agent will try and bargain the seller down. They are trying to make a profit and do not have you best interest in mind.

If you are buying a house, you do not necessarily need a real estate agent unless you are looking to save time. Since the real estate agent will look for houses matching your criteria you can save yourself a lot of hassle. By searching for property on your own however, you might be able to find a cheaper purchase. You will need a property attorney however to settle all of the closing matters. However, if you are selling a house you probably will want a real estate agent. They can help you look for people wanting to buy and try to help you get the highest price for your property.

By: Bart Samuri

The Basic Sense Of Real Estate

Sometimes, some processes take two to tango! The processes could not be finished with an absence of one person. In the world of real estate, there are only two people involved in the process, the buyer and the seller. Whoever gets the most benefits, nobody can tell. But whether it's the buyer or the seller's game, getting involved in real estate business can be a very rewarding feat.

By definition, real estate refers to anything that is permanently set on a piece of land such as buildings. The concept of real estate lies on the fact that because of property ownership, real estate has turned out to be the most important theme in the business. And when there is a business, there is money.

Nowadays, there are people who buy houses not just because they want to own a home but for financial reasons. Generally, these moneymakers would get a home equity loan from their real estate and then use it as a deposit for another property. Thereafter, he or she will sell the other property at a higher value. This is better known as "flipping".

This is the reason why most mortgage lenders and builders would rather sell their real estate to customers whose purpose to buy a house is purely residential. Lenders and construction builders see these so-called "flippers' as a treat to their business.

For this reason, many builders include some anti-speculation writing clauses within the sales contract. It is stipulated in the contract that the owner will be reprimanded if he or she will sell the real estate within one year. It may also include a clause stating the defensive privilege of the builder to buy back the real estate at the selling price. This is applicable if the owner will resell the real estate within a year after the date of purchase.

But nevertheless, there are still people who try speculating in real estate especially if they have loads of perspective buyers who can compensate the higher rate of the property plus the cost it brings.

In a basic sense, property owners can do most anything with their real estate. The only drawback is that speculating on real estate fads can be really risky because nobody knows if and when the real estate "bubble" will burst.

Most business experts contend that what you invest in depends on your capacity to take risk or higher risk, higher return. So, if you want more income, you have to take more risk. Are you confident enough to face?


By: Dr. Drew Henry
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Real Estate Records In The Computer Age

It wasn't long ago that the records of real property title could be found in a collection of huge, thousand page books residing in the office of the county recorder. Now those same records are all electronically stored in a computer database.

Before computers recording a change of title meant tedious paper handling by both title insurance companies and county recorder employees. Not any more.

With the advance in technology, more and more companies are recording documents electronically. It works like this:

1. The recording department of the title company electronically scans the documents that must be recorded.
2. Then the documents are sent electronically to the county recorder's office… either by way of a private line or the Internet.
3. The county recorder receives a notification that the title company has sent documents electronically.
4. A county recorder clerk opens the electronic file, reviews the documents to be sure they are in the proper form. When the submission for recording is approved an email is sent to the title company with the instrument number, escrow number, date and time of recording.
5. After receiving that email the title company can inform all parties to the transaction that the sale has "closed".

Those documents are now a matter of public record. When a document is recorded it gives "constructive" notice to the world that a certain act has occurred. Any one with a claim or interest in the indicated real property will now be bound by the action represented by the recorded document. It can only be challenged by legal action.

The public can easily access the records in the database by the computer terminals located in the offices of the county recorder. In many counties those records are now available to everyone through the internet. In those counties you can view the records from your office or home computer. For a fee the recorder will print a copy of any recorded document.

In a real estate transaction the deed is recorded, but it is rare that any of the other documents related to the transaction will be placed in the public record.

Computers have truly opened public records to the public. At least to those members of the public who will apply the few minutes needed to learn how easy it is to review the records.

By: Mark Walters
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The Real Estate Industry and The Internet

The Real Estate business is truly unique in the sense that most people will only engage in it once or twice in their entire life.

And since purchasing property is such a complicated matter, Real Estate businesses have laboriously pursued every means to make this transaction as easy, and as informative as possible.

This explains the plethora of agents, advertisements, listings, open houses, and gimmicks realtors employ just to attract potential buyers, who, understandably so are squeamish about jumping headlong into such a big investment without thinking everything over.

However, there is great satisfaction in being able to close a successful deal with a client. This is especially true when the client is satisfied and heartily recommends the agent/broker to his friends who may be considering purchasing homes too.

Transition to the Information Age

Today's buyers and sellers turn to the Internet first. To be competitive, Real Estate businesses have started to tap into the power of the internet. Successful websites will more than pay for themselves with the business it generates and the time it saves.

The beauty of the internet is that it puts so much information in the hands of users in an instant and in the comfort of their homes. On the flip side, sellers are now able to push that information to the buyer’s table reliably, instantly, and most importantly – inexpensively.

Real Estate businesses should realize that potential buyers nowadays desire to see many options. Before deciding on purchasing a home, they now do research on the internet, scanning for good deals and supporting information to help them weigh their decision.

If a Real Estate business does not adapt to this need, or to the growing power of information technology, it may find itself lagging behind the competition.

Inexpensive Advertisement

In America alone there are close to 70 million users of the internet. What business would not want to have advertising mileage in this medium? The cost of advertisement on this medium may cost anywhere from nothing to a few hundred dollars.

In any rate that still makes for a great deal.

Instant Communication

A buyer seeks information – what does the agent do? In the older days, they would fax documents, call long distance, send snail mail, and such. This sort of communication made facilitating a sale sometimes tedious and backbreaking.

Today’s information architecture allows buyers and sellers to shuttle mail, images, data, and others at a snap. This too is, like internet advertisement, inexpensive.

Realtors can pitch to not just one buyer at a time, but as many as can access his website. And the good thing about that is that he does not have to repeat himself for each customer.

By: Nicky Pilkington
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A Few Tips On Buying A Home

The home buying process can seem complicated, but if you take things step-by-step, you will soon be holding the keys to your own home!

But before going into the buying process you should first ask yourself if your are already ready for home buying.

Do you prefer or even enjoy moving into different places. Do you prefer using your savings for things like vacations, appliances, retirement or having your own business? Do you like to enjoy not having so much trouble with regular maintenance and repairs?

If your answers to these queries are yes, then you may not be ready to delve into the home buying experience. You may have a lot of good reasons for buying a home but you should also have to consider your reasons for not wanting to.

Remember than buying home is not just the biggest financial decision you will ever make but also the strongest emotional choice in your life, so be prepared to make wise decisions when you are in this process.

Buying home always seems to be a great idea, but it is important that ownership of a certain property comes with a great deal of responsibilities too.

Of course, being a homeowner is something to be proud of but it also means having to invest money, time and energy and take on added responsibilities. So, before you decide to buy a home, make sure you're ready.

The first things that comes into our mind when we think about home owning, is the wonderful things that is connected to it. It is true that there are a lot of good reasons for buying a home. So here are some of the good advantages of home buying.

Financial security is a very great deal of advantage when it comes to owning your own home. If the housing prices would go up, your home can provide you with some financial security due to capital appreciation.

Flexibility is another thing, when owning your house you will be able to decide all the aspects that comes with it. You can decorate or renovate your home to meet your own family's personal tastes and needs.

And of course stability, having your own home will make you feel at ease and less burden than renting one.

Although it is really nice to think about the positive aspects of owning a home, it is also a crucial part to consider the downsides as well. Here are some of the disadvantages on home buying.
Financial Stress is a very common problem in home buying. Coming up with the down payment, meeting regular mortgage payments and other ongoing costs will tie up a lot of your cash, and can put considerable stress on your finances.

Maintenance and Higher Costs are also a big problem. Keeping your home in good shape requires time and money.

You may pay more each month for housing than you did as a renter. There are also extra costs for maintenance and property taxes.

So, you've decided that homeownership is right for you. Now you need to determine if you are financially ready to buy a house.

To avoid any future surprises, you can do some financial exercises to see where you stand. They include: calculating your net worth, your current monthly expenses and your current monthly debt payments.

Knowing your net worth is important because you will need this information when you discuss a mortgage with your lender.

Your net worth is the amount left over once you've subtracted your total liabilities from your total assets. It will also give you a snapshot of your current financial situation and show you how much you can afford to put as a down payment.

Just remember all this notes and surely you will be able to arrive at some very good decisions in home buying. Do not rush into home buying, take some time to think and view the property first before closing a deal.

Closing day is the when you finally have bought your home; you now take legal possession and finally get to call your new home your own. You are sure to feel great relief and satisfaction but remember that the home buying process isn't over just yet. There are quite a few things that need to be done on closing day.

Make sure that your lender will provide the mortgage money to your lawyer. You must provide the balance of the purchase price to your lawyer along with the closing costs. Your lawyer pays the vendor, registers the home in your name, and provides you with a deed and the keys to your new home.

What Everyone At Risk Of Home Repossession Needs To Know!

Anyone who owned property during the last house price crash in the early 1990s will remember constant headlines about negative equity and home repossession. Between 1990 and 1996 over a million individuals experienced mortgage repossession as they struggled with mortgage payments when interest rates doubled.

A lot has changed since then. The U.K. economy is much more stable, we live in a low-inflation environment and the Chancellor’s decision to pass responsibility for setting interest rates to the Bank of England is acclaimed by many as a master stroke. So, not much chance of a repeat of the early 90s misery, then?

“It’s different this time” has been the downfall of many a pundit, whether they are referring to stocks and shares, the housing market, or anything else. Because whilst there are certainly many differences between now and the early nineties, dig a bit deeper and there are quite a few signs that everything in the garden might not be as rosy as we would all like it to be.

Take household debt for example, now at over £1 trillion. Or to put it another way, around £17,000 of debt for every man, woman and child in the UK! The Nationwide Building Society recently calculated that debt is now at a record 2.75 times disposable income compared with the previous record of two times income in the early 1990s.

Or interest rates. They may be low – but the five successive interest rate rises last year actually equated to a 35% increase! As rising house prices in recent years have encouraged many people to take out the biggest mortgage they can get, this type of increase will have been very unwelcome!

Or employment. A record 28.3 million people are in jobs. However many of these are part-time or short-term contracts. Many more have benefited through the massive increase in public sector employment. But if the economy wobbles, and particularly if as many predict the government needs to reduce public spending, these jobs are vulnerable.

So maybe it’s not so surprising that figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders show that the number of home repossessions increased by a whopping 70% in 2005 compared to 2004, with the trend looking set to continue this year.

If you are in danger of home repossession, or might be affected in the future, what should you do?

We asked Richard Watters, Managing Director of A Quick Sale Ltd. for his views as his company receives hundreds of calls each week from people worried about losing their home because of eviction as a result of home repossession by a mortgage lender. He suggested sticking to the following 10-point checklist:

1. Don’t panic. Lenders normally use home repossession as a last resort. The first thing to do is to talk to them, explain the situation and ask for their support. Many of them will be able to offer repayment holidays or a short term reduction in the monthly payments, instead of repossession. You can request that your repayments be converted to ‘Interest Only’ which can significantly reduce monthly repayments.

2. If you can’t afford to pay what they request, pay them a regular amount that you can afford – this demonstrates that you are trying and haven’t lost control of the situation.

3. Know your rights. Your property can only be repossessed after a court hearing and judges are sympathetic to people in these situations, particularly if they have children.

4. Understand the process. The website http://www.a-quick-sale.co.uk/repossession/ has information on how the home repossession process works.

5. Get legal advice or speak to your local Citizens Advice Bureau. Don’t try a DIY job – your home is too important! http://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/

6. If the case goes to court – always attend the repossession hearing. Explain your situation and suggest a period over which the mortgage arrears can be repaid. Always suggest a plan you know you can stick to – even if this means the mortgage arrears will not be cleared until the last monthly payment is made in 20 years time!

7. In most cases the court will grant a suspended possession order. This means that if you stick to the agreement to repay arrears, you won’t be evicted and your home won’t be repossessed.

8. If the court grants the Lender a possession order, you will normally have about 4 weeks to move out – otherwise you will be evicted. It is often possible to find a buyer within this period, and avoid repossession of your house. You may have to accept less than you would like – and might end up with little in your pocket - but this is usually preferable to home repossession. Some property-buying companies are able to offer a rent-back option so you can continue to live there.