Here are some pictures of Destin area. I especially like the photo of Destin Commons at night. If you haven’t been there lately, during November and December they have the biggest Christmas Tree I have ever seen on display in the middle of the commons.
For many young couples, the idea of owning their own house just like their parents is an attractive idea, but it’s not very realistic. A recent poll conducted by the Associated Press and America On Line Real Estate showed that 80 percent of respondents believe that it is hard for first-time buyers to afford a home. A majority of those polled – 59 percent – also said that they believe it is harder to buy a home now than it was five years ago.
Taking a closer look at the poll reveals that young adults and those that classify themselves as minorities consider the affordability of homes a bigger problem now than five years ago, compared to those over the age of 50 and those that identify themselves as white. [Read more...]
Here is a tip that most people forget about.
How to Unpack without Exploding
One of the forgotten steps in moving is the fact that physically moving your belongings from one spot to another is only part of the deal. Once you get your boxes and your mattress and your desk to its final destination, you still have to be able to find everything and put everything where it belongs. A rule of thumb when surveying your house is that no matter how many box-fulls you think you have, a good idea is to at least increase your most generous estimate by at least 50 percent. And remember, for every box you pack, that’s a box you have to unpack.
According to data from the US Census, 14 percent of all American households last year moved. That translates to somewhere around 40 million people switching addresses.
Most of us take weeks, sometimes months to slowly and [Read more...]
Nationwide, homeowners have found themselves in a home that they owe more on the mortgage than the current market value of the property, and are not sure how long it’s going to take to actually see equity in their property again, at least not in the near future.
Because of this, many economists are now concerned about something called “Strategic Defaults,” which is basically homeowners that feel that it doesn’t make financial sense to keep their home anymore and are now considering a short sale or just letting it go into foreclosure. Lenders are now seeing a lot of cases where the homeowners are choosing to be late on their mortgage, even though they can afford the mortgage. [Read more...]
A home inspection is usually a visual assessment of the interior and exterior parts of your house. A typical checking should include all physical structures and systems in and out of your home – from the foundation to the attic and the roofing. While most people doubt that this process is an actual need for a real estate contract to close, read on and learn how to make this step to your advantage.
Before you purchase or sell a home, you need to think about the property. It should be at its best condition possible in order to guarantee that the deal was a sound investment. The inspection enables you either as a buyer or seller to become familiarized with the property. You would see [Read more...]
Thought you could use some pictures of the beaches and water recreation of Destin. Enjoy
Selling a house can really be a difficult task if you do not know about the ways through which you can present your house in an appealing fashion. Home staging is one such process which is very popular in the real estate market. Various good techniques like updating old and unattractive fixtures, accessorizing, depersonalizing, furniture rearrangement, de-cluttering and cleaning can be used for staging a house before sale. Professional stagers can also be hired for arranging all the things and preparing the house for a good presentation in front of the potential buyers.
So, now let me tell you about some tips that can really help you to improve your house before sale.
1. Your home should contain accessories and furniture
It is a known fact that houses which contain furniture, photos, paintings and decorative items sell more quickly than the houses which are presented vacant. Prospective buyers can easily imagine themselves living in the house which contains various objects and decorative items. If you want then you can even rent chairs, tables and sofas from rental companies.
2. The house should be spacious and should have a good lightening system
The potentials buyers always look for homes that are [Read more...]
In april, the USDA Rural Housing Income Limits were increased. This is great opportunity to get a quality mortgage vehicle with little down payments. If you have questions on this program, I can get you in contact with a lender that specializes in this mortgage product.
Here are the new limits
Okaloosa County:
If there are 1-4 persons in the household, maximum income is $76,250 and if there are 5-8 persons in the household, maximum income is $100,650
Escambia, Santa Rosa, Holmes, Bay and Walton Counties:
If there are 1-4 persons in the household, maximum income is $73,600 and if there are 5-8 persons in the household, maximum income is $97,150.
If you are looking for a house and you want something eco-friendly, then this is something that you should give much of your effort to. Finding a new home can really be a tough job, but searching for a green home is incredibly tougher. Nowadays, there are several green homes out in the market. Some of them are even for lease. However, you can not immediately jump into signing any agreement by simply listening to a broker claiming that such property is eco-friendly. You have to identify it by yourself that it is indeed an eco-friendly home.
So how are you going to detect whether it is a green home? [Read more...]
Markets roared in October with best year over year showing in 4 years. All regions up in unit sales and slower price declines
November 13, 2009 Denver, CO – October 2009 housing sales exploded to new levels with all four regions showing strong increases in unit sales and slowing price declines. Unit sales for the nation in October 2009 were up 14.0 percent over October 2008 results. The strongest region for unit sales growth was the South with October 2009 unit sales up 18.5 percent over October 2008; the Northeast showed an increase of 16.3 percent and the Midwest was up 13.6 percent. The Western region that had showed the strongest year over year comparisons for the last year showed unit increase of 7.7 percent.
Price declines slowed as well. The national average price for homes sold in October 2009 was down 8.1 percent, a measurable improvement over the September 2009 results when prices were down 9.8 percent from a year ago. The best region as the Northeast where prices were down only 4.2 percent comparing October 2009 to October 2008; the Midwest showed price declines of only 6.5 percent while the South showed price declines of 6.8 percent. The Western region showed the largest average price decline at 10.4 percent but still a huge improvement over the previous month’s report.
“October 2009 results were the best that have been recorded in nearly four years topping even the improved results in the September 2009 report. Unit sales strength was across the board with every region showing improvement in October 2009 sales over the September 2009 results”, said Steve Murray, editor of REAL Trends. “Unit sales have firmed up five months in row with October showing positive improvements in every region. Price declines are measurably less than they were than in the first 9 months of the year with every region showing improvement.”
[Read more...]
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| Laurie Hollowell Broker Associate, CRS, GRI, e-PRO Keller Williams Realty Emerald Coast 850-269-1369 laurie@soldbylaurie.com |
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