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Archive for January 2009

Examine Home Builders Before You Hire Them

Friday, January 30th, 2009

In this time of low economy and difficult times in Franklin, it is more important now than ever for a homeowner in Franklin to carefully examine the home builder they hire for home improvement projects. You don’t want to hire a home builder who has let their licenses and insurance lapse or fallen behind on payments to suppliers. The last thing a Franklin homeowner wants to do is hire a home builder who is on the brink of bankruptcy. A man from Tucson AZ, hired a home builder to build a pool at his home and they went bankrupt in the middle of the job. So, make sure you have a payment schedule. Do not pay for anything in full. Fortunately, this Arizona man had a payment schedule and had plenty of money left over to have the pool completed by a different home builder.

While it is impossible to gauge a company’s financial situation with certainty, there are services that can help you check legitimacy of the home builder in Franklin. For example, go to the Better Business Bureau. Because you can view Franklin information. Also through Angie’s list you can find out Franklin insurance information, court filings, including any lawsuits, or liens against the company.

Once you have selected a Franklin home builder to do the work, request a written contract with lots of specifics. If any part of the job changes, be sure to add new information to the contract as it happens. Insist that the Franklin home builder includes a start and end date along with detailed pricing. Be sure you understand the entire contract and do not sign it until you do.

Make sure you pay the suppliers directly for materials. This prevents home builders from using your money to pay for other jobs. If you are unable to do that, ask for detailed receipts and verify them with the companies before reimbursing the Franklin home builder.

Franklin Home builders are willing to do these things to insure they are taking care of their clients. If you come across one that isn’t willing to do these things, keep on looking. That is why we are making these suggestions in the first place.

Finding a Realtor When Buying a Home

Thursday, January 22nd, 2009

Buying a Franklin home can really be stressful.  In order to help in this process, finding the right Franklin Realtor can make a huge difference. Here are some things to look for when you shop for a Franklin Realtor.

  • You want to find a Realtor who you are comfortable with.  There are certain Franklin professions where trust is of their utmost importance.  At the top of this list is a Realtor.  You should be able to talk openly and honestly with your Franklin Realtor.   If you can’t find someone you trust, then you might want to get a new one.
  • You need someone who is local.  If you have someone who knows about the Franklin areas who can tell you the up and coming subdivisions, then you have some good insight as to where a good investment would be.  If you are buying in Franklin Tennessee, a Realtor from Kentucky won’t be much help.
  • You want someone who wants what you want.  Your Realtor needs to listen to what you want and what you are looking for and stay within those parameters unless they know something that might aid in finding you what you want.  A Realtor who asks questions and focuses solely on what you want is a Realtor worth keeping.
  • You want someone who works as a Realtor full time because you want their full time attention.  You want them to know what is on the Franklin market and what subdivisions have what you are looking for. This way, you won’t waste your time driving around aimlessly searching around Franklin.   By hiring a full time Realtor, you assure yourself that their search for your new Franklin home is full time as well.
  • You also want someone who doesn’t have a million clients at once and can focus on your needs and wants.  You want them to know what you want and focus on that.
  • Another plus in helping you find a great Franklin Realtor is through friends and family and by word of mouth.  Ask around and you will find someone that is happy to tell you all about their fantastic Realtor. If their Realtor sounds fantastic, get there contact information.  Word of mouth is the best way to go.

What is a Short Sale?

Thursday, January 15th, 2009

A short sale in Franklin, TN is a sale of real estate in which the proceeds from the sale fall short of the balance owed on a loan secured by the property sold. It is not necessarily about the amount the home is worth but what the owners own on the home which causes them to fall short on their payments due to hardship. In a Franklin short sale, the bank or mortgage lender agrees to discount a loan balance due to an economic or financial hardship.

A Franklin short sale typically is executed to prevent a home foreclosure. The bank will often allow a short sale if they believe that it will result in a smaller financial loss than foreclosing. For the Franklin home owner, this can help avoid foreclosure on their credit history and give them partial control of the monetary deficiency. A Franklin, TN short sale is nothing more than negotiating a pay off with lien holders for short of the full debt amount. It does not extinguish the remaining balance unless settlement is clearly indicated on the acceptance of offer. In order to have a short sale properly executed in Franklin, hiring a Realtor that has experience with short sales is a great way to handle this.

The borrower will have to complete and prepare the following:

  1. Hardship letter – a letter stating why they are in the situation they are in (you will want to state the facts, but the worse off it sounds, the better). This statement of facts describes how you got into this financial bind and makes the plea to the lender to consider the short sale process and accept less than full payment.
  2. Proof of Income – the lender will require the two most recent bank statements, last two year’s tax returns, and last two pay stubs (2,2,2).
  3. CMA’s – Comparative market analysis- sometimes Franklin’s market declines and property values fall. If this is part of the reason that you are looking into short sale and cannot sell your home for enough to pay off the lender, this fact should be substantiated for the lender through a comparative market analysis (CMA). Your Realtor can prepare a CMA for you that show prices of similar homes active, pending and sold in the last six months.
  4. Authorization- Lender will not disclose any of your personal information without written authorization to do so. You will need to write a letter to your lender allowing your Realtor to have full authorization to discuss this account on your behalf. The letter will need to consist of:
  • Property address
  • Loan number and phone number
  • Your name
  • Date
  • Your Realtor’s name and contact information with a note of you authorizing them to discuss this account and short sale on your behalf

In the short sale process in Franklin, once your Realtor receives an offer, they will present that and the listing agreement along with any and all requested information so that the lender will hopefully accept or counter the offer. Be prepared for the lender to renegotiate commissions, home

Market Recap

  • Avg. Sales Price: $1

  • Avg. Days on Market: 1

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