First time buyers are out there buying also. This is Really Good News! They free up the first tier buy-up buyers which free up the second tier – and so it goes until things are moving along at a healthy pace.

A recent article stated that the Cincinnati area looks to have hit bottom and things might be back to normal by year-end. “Back to normal” is a relative term at best but we are all looking forward to a return to a more balanced market.
I have some very interesting charts showing the inventory versus new listings and pendings. If you would like a copy please contact me. I would be happy to send a copy.

For the month of June 2009, NRT, the parent company of our local Coldwell Banker West Shell, will sell more homes, (new pending homes,) than they did in June 2008. That is the first time in 4 years that we have done that. Price is down, but unit sales are increasing especially in those markets that began to correct first.

As you know, properly priced listings have been and will be the key to achieving success for the remainder of 2009 and beyond.

If you are thinking of selling your current property please give me a call. Even though your sale price may be less than you hoped you can make it up on the price of the property you purchase. Please contact me and let me show you the graphs and explain what all this can mean to you.

This is Great News! First time buyers buy homes from the “first tier” buy-up buyers-people who want to purchase larger more expensive homes to fit their family needs. This in turn enables the next tier of buyers to sell their current properties and move up. This is the traditional way the real estate market moved. The number of foreclosures and distressed sales has given the first time buyer an opportunity but has not benefited the buy up buyers. We are beginning to see that trend level off and the “old market activity” start to move again. This is the action we need to see sustained in order for the real estate market to stabilize and move back to its traditional workings.

A new foreclosure starts every 13 seconds–nearly 6,500 a day.

“It’s easy to think, ‘Well, that’s tough luck for the families that lose their homes.’ The truth is that foreclosures are costing neighboring families hundreds of billions of dollars and dragging down the entire economy,” says Michael Calhoun, president of CRL.
Calhoun called on lenders and loan servicers to utilize the tools offered by the U.S. government to keep people in their homes.

Source: Center for Responsible Lending (06/01/2009)

While this article in factual, locally we are seeing the number of foreclosures being sold on the rise. That is Good News! This means that families are purchasing these properties, rehabbing them and thereby helping the re-establish neighborhood home prices. As the inventory of foreclosures decreases the market for non-distressed properties increases and neighborhood pricing will return to more normal levels. This is indeed “Good News”!

1. Finding Your Ideal Home – If you’ve already searched for a home for several months, you probably have chosen a few properties that you really like. Your Realtor® will help you sift through your choices to ensure that the property you think you want is really going to serve you well long-term.

As an added bonus, an experienced Realtor® has a knack for sniffing out things like dishonest sellers, lemon houses, and bad deals. Buying a home can present many pitfalls for the inexperienced buyer and having the expertise of a professional will provide peace of mind and ensure that the process goes smoothly.

2. Preparing the Real Estate Offer – You may already be aware of the basic steps toward owning a home, but there are some finer details to drafting and presenting a real estate offer to the seller. A Realtor® guides you in how to prepare your offer and helps you to draft a competitive set of terms that will increase your chance of being accepted by the seller. Some considerations include how much to offer for the home, when to close on the deal, what costs will be paid by each party, and if the seller will add improvements to the home before closing.

3. Closing the Deal – Once a seller has accepted your written offer, there are many steps that must take place before the house will be transferred to you. Since a real estate professional has been down this road many times, they will be able to guide you during the major phases of the closing process.

Although an objective third party may draw up all the paperwork and hold the escrow funds until closing, your Realtor® acts solely on your behalf. Don’t hesitate to voice your concerns or ask your professional lots of questions to ensure that you get the optimal benefit from the home-buying experience.

And for your best benefit, work with a Realtor® – a member of the National Association of Realtors®. We are held to a higher standard of ethics and know how to represent you in order to help you obtain you dream home in this truly challenging market.

I am happy to receive you calls and referrals. Please call me for assistance.

We learned that Anderson Township had the highest rate of sales of any area in the Cincinnati MLS – again A Very Good Thing! Anderson is now a mature community with not much new construction, except in the very high-end properties. This means that first time buyers are active, freeing up the “first rung” properties so that those sellers can finally move up the their next house, and on and on up the ladder. This is the first time we have seen this in a couple of years and it makes everyone happy and feel more secure about the future of local real estate. It also shows that lenders are actually lending.

According to the media, that just was not happening when we all knew better. Now it is evident. Not only are they lending, they are lending at very good rates. FHA financing is available to qualified buyers with a minimum down payment and they can ask the seller to contribute to their closing costs. Those items plus the still very large inventory of available homes in most price ranges makes for a really nice market.

Something for everyone to be aware of is that prices are down about 20% from this same period last year. Most sellers are understanding that. It means that what they may perceive to be loosing on their sale they will make up on their purchase. It all evens out eventually.

You may notice that I am pretty optimistic about all the above. Yes, I certainly am. I have been very busy these last few months helping sellers and buyers and I have seen first hand that all this information is really true and the System Is Working!

If you are interested in talking about buying or selling real estate, please give me a call. I can help to educate you so that you too can move forward in this volatile market.

Keep those referrals coming – I truly appreciate them.

This is very good news for our sellers as well as our buyers. Prices have decreased to the point where our first time buyers are out in force. Of course, the news for Sellers is not that good regarding price but it does mean we are being able to negotiate to an acceptable price on both sides.

Next week I will be posting the most recent figures from Cincinnati Area Board of Realtors MLS.

Have a Wonderful – Safe – Holiday Weekend!

Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke is forecasting the economic activity to bottom out then turn up later this year, noting that the housing market is beginning to stabilize.

Existing home sales rose for the second consecutive time in March and represented the first back-to-back monthly increase since March 2008. This is all good news.

There is growing activity in our area with the interest of buyers looking for properties. Again the government stimulus program is a major factor there for first time buyers. These first time home buyers are very important to our market. They are buying the homes of the people who wish to “buy up” to their next house. Without the first time buyers we have had a stagnant market waiting for those homes to sell.

Spread the word – it is an encouraging time to be in the real estate market.

Call me and let’s talk about your future plans. I would be delighted to help you.

Statistics for January through March 2009 show that the Greater Cincinnati area is down 15% in number of homes sold and down 16.1% on sale price. That is tough for our market. However, statewide the number of homes sold is down 18.8% and sale price down 17% and there is evidence of an uptick in March compared with February. The national news is reporting that April 2009 has been the best sales activity in the month of April since 2006.

The fundamental elements of a solid housing market are in place – historic low interest rates, an ample supply of housing in all price categories and price affordability. Conditions are perfect for prospective buyers, especially first-time buyers, who are able to take advantage of the non-repayable $8000 tax credit now available. Additionally, we are finding sellers have become more realistic in setting a list price, understanding the importance of gaining a competitive edge for the limited pool of buyers. This is a common sense balance that will hopefully help the state’s housing market, and specifically Cincinnati’s, get moving again as we enter what is traditionally the home buying season.

One year ago on March 31,2008 we had over 1300 showings for the week. Then things tanked to 850 in July 2008, 600 in September, and a new low of 250 for the week of December 29, 2008. Things have been getting steadily better from that time. Buyers are very active with the stimulus program offering them an income tax credit of 10%, if they buy before November 30, 2009. The continuing low interest rate of 5-6% is also a huge draw and is based largely on credit score of the borrower.

As of February 27, FHA increased the minimum credit score for a buyer to 620, up from 580. We are told that is to stem the tide of foreclosures on these sub-prime loans, which is now running at 12%. This is a good thing all around. It means that the buyers will be qualified to purchase a property. To a seller that means an offer to purchase can be backed up with a lender’s letter stating that the buyer can actually get a loan. It means that the lenders are serious about qualifying the borrower and the Realtors involved feel good about presenting the buyer to the seller.

So – our business is on the move – no matter what you hear or read in the media. All real estate is local and should always be looked at in that light. If you have questions about our market please call a Realtor. We don’t just sell real estate. We are in the consulting business and have the tools to help educate you in what is happening in your city, your neighborhood and on your block.