Iowa

I was just pulling up to TJMaxx when I got the call at slightly past 9pm on April 16th. I answered it cheerfully, "Hello this is Matt with Remax Concepts." "That's what I like, an agent who answers his *&^*($# phone!" Barked the caller. "Oh no" I thought. Many things raced through my mind but I replied "That's the best way I've found to help people. How can I help you sir?" Laughter

"Matt, This is LL." Of course I knew LL right away. He's only the top AR blogger in the state. Instantly my pulse beat faster as I informed him I knew exactly who he was, how great it was to have him calling and again asked how I could help him.

Seems he had someone special to him that needed to find a home in my market area. He'd been reading my AR blog and comments and "liked what he read" so he chose me to assist, even though his broker was part of a corporate referral program which did not include my broker. I was flabbergasted. I wanted to say enough to impress him but not so much as I'd sound like a total dork. Apparently it worked. The next day the referral form arrived from the corporate office. I had that thing signed and back in under 15 minutes.

After that I had to meet the prospect, establish rapport, help them select homes to view, drive all over two counties, look at dozens of homes, get an offer accepted: at midnight, get everything turned in, get past inspection, etc, and take it to close. All that however, was the easy part. That's what I'm trained to do. All that I couldn't have done if I hadn't had a prospect. All that I couldn't have done if I hadn't been on AR and quite possibly couldn't have done if I hadn't answered my phone that Thursday night.

So I met some super nice folks who I could help and who helped me, LL and his special somebodys, and sold another home. I love my job, and I love AR.

Well, it happened. In spite of a lot of REALTOR lobbying against the proposed mandatory septic inspection requirement at transfer, it passed as has now become law. Unless your transfer was recorded prior to July 1st 2009 you will be required to submit to a certified inspection process to record your deed in many cases where you have a residence with a septic system.

Some important points:

• The new law requires pumping at transfer, unless it has been "properly" completed within 3 years prior.
• Failing systems will be required to meet new code specifications.
• Inspections must be conducted by an inspection certified by the DNR.
• Inspection form will be required to be submitted with transfer.
• Inspections will be good for 2 years even if property transfers again.
• Property abstracts will include the inspection results.

Exceptions are:

• The law only applies to transfers of property containing one to four dwelling units,
• Exemptions for transfers which the consideration is $500 or less
• Intra family business organization transfers
• Properties which will be razed or demolished
• Foreclosures, Transfer by trustee, Execution of a Judgment

This law is a benefit for the States groundwater and for buyers, but could be a burden on a seller, septic business owner, and agents. The burden on the seller is the potential liability for updating of older systems if even only one component is failing. Septic business owners will have to become certified. The burden for agents then will be in ensuring that the inspections are performed, meeting with inspectors, and making sure the documents are filled out correctly and delivered properly.

All in all I think the laws is postive for consumers and groundwater but will take a little getting used to.

June 30th is the last day in Polk County to file for the Homestead Exemption and have the benefit be applied to this year's taxes. Home owners may always file after July 1st, but the Homestead will only be applied then to the next years taxes.

If you're unfamiliar with the Homestead Exemption, or other home owner tax credits, you can read about them at the Polk County Assessors website, which is an excellent source of information.

Home owners in other municipalities may enjoy similar programs as well. Basically what the Homestead Tax Credit program does is reduce the taxable value of your home by $4,850 if you are an owner occupant, meaning that you live in the home as your primary residence versus renting it out to someone else or having another primary residence. This results in a savings of around $142 per year for the average taxpayer. Hey, Every little bit helps!

There are currently 45 tax credit programs available in Polk County. CLICK HERE to view the complete list.

About Remington Financial Group, Inc - Hard Money

Since 1993, Remington Financial Group, Inc. (RFG) has had a successful history of securing hard money capital and financial services to sophisticated real estate owners and developers nationwide.

RFG specializes in hard money loans, a higher-risk loan, which is usually based on the quick-sale value of a property. Hard money loans are often issued for financially distressed properties that carry greater risks that most conventional banks are not willing to absorb. RFG issues hard money loans in cases where there is sufficient collateral and a promising business or financial plan.

Securing financing for transactions starting at $1 million and moving upward, RFG offers an extensive network of private and public lending partners, dramatically improving successful close rates for borrowers in need of a fast closing loan. With a successful track record of closing hard money transactions, Remington delivers expertise and competitive transaction options, even in challenging market conditions.

Hard money loans may be issued for any range of non-traditional properties or non-traditional borrowers - including property owners who may have missed a mortgage payment or real estate developers that are looking for immediate action.

RFG is interested in securing financing for companies that operate in expanding market sectors, such as manufacturing, resource development and service providers. Remington will consider securing financing on a diverse variety of commercial properties, including mixed-use, apartment buildings, assisted care facilities, business investment capital, corporate loans, real estate, special purpose properties (such as car washes), construction loans, hotels, land development, retail, office or industrial properties.

Remington Financial Group - What is a Hard Money Loan?

A hard money loan is easily recognized by some distinguishing characteristics, most notably its ability to close quickly. Although a hard money loan typically carries a lower loan to value and more costly rates and fees, borrowers continually turn to this unique loan because most times it can move from start to close in 30 short days.

Loans often times must close quickly for any number of reasons. Sometimes the timing is a requirement to take advantage of a good price on a commercial property. Other times borrowers must meet fast closing dates in order to avoid foreclosure. Regardless of the reason, hard money is a viable and valuable loan type.

It's also important for brokers to understand that a typical hard money loan does not have a pre-payment penalty associated with it. So, if the borrower is in a position to repay the loan early the lender will not impose an extra fee.

Remington Financial Group, Inc. - When to Use Hard Money

A hard money loan is easily recognized by some distinguishing characteristics, most notably its ability to close quickly. Although a hard money loan typically carries a higher loan to value and more costly rates and fees, borrowers continually turn to this unique loan because most times it can move from start to close in 30 short days.

Why would a borrower need to close a loan in 30 days? It turns out there are many reasons that a quick turn around might be necessary. Two examples include:

Taking advantage of a low cost property

A borrower is aware of a piece of available property that is near the site of a soon-to-be-built shopping center. The land owner will sell the property at a lower cost, but only if the deal can close in the next 30 days. By securing a hard money loan, the borrower will pay higher rates and fees, but can close quickly knowing that she will earn a significant return in a year when the shopping center's construction is complete and the land's value has increased.

Avoid foreclosure

An individual's lender is about to foreclose on his property unless he can repay a certain amount within a short time period. The property is worth $10 million and the borrower owes $1 million against it. If the property is foreclosed upon, all of the property's equity will be lost. Although a hard money loan carries high fees and rates it enables the borrower to meet the aggressive repayment timeframe and save the equity in the property.

If you're not familar with LPS, you should be. LPS stands for Lender Processing Services. This company according to its website "is the nation's leading provider of mortgage processing services, settlement services, mortgage performance analytics and default solutions." In other words, these folks are a go to source for information about loans and lending in America, and what their data shows is troubling indeed.

Here are just a few disconcerting facts from LPS's Mortgage Monitor for June: total mortgage delinquencies rose to 8.49% in May (a record), the year over year foreclosure increase as of May was 88.3%, Jumbo Prime, Option ARM , and Non-Agency conforming Prime loans continue to experience the highest defaults which have been accelerating the past six months, foreclosure starts in May 4.3% to the second highest level on record, and "almost no borrowes with credit scores below 620 are being awrded loans."

A few bright points were that: Iowa was one of the states with the lowest foreclosures starts, first payment defaults have fallen significantly, loan originations have been improving.

If what LPS says is true, continued deterioration in loans and rising foreclosures will keep a tight lid on home price appreciation in many markets across the US. This is bad news for sellers, but cause for optimism among sidelined buyers working on their credit who can expect to see deals continue for the near term.

We've heard a lot in the press about "signs" of a recovery and "signs" of a bottom in some arcane report or index. But from what LPS presents in its comprehensive review of US mortgages, the bloom will likely fall of the rose before the real recovery blosoms. But again, if you're a buyer in most parts of the country you can probably rest assured that there's still a deal out there for you.