About Elkhart County, IN

Elkhart REALTOR Evelyn Johnston has this to say: For those who have decided not to decide about buying a home, Higher home prices are ahead...

For several months now, I have been receiving multiple offers on properties that I have listed. According to an article I read online,The Pending Home Sales Index says all indications show that house prices are indeed on the upswing.

What does this mean to you? It means the urgency to buy is increasing. For several months, perhaps a year folks have been in no real hurry to make a decision on buying a home, even when they both loved it. People are afraid that after buying, the price will drop even further, and they missed an opportunity to get an even better deal! For those of you who have decided not to decide-higher home prices are ahead!

With the First Time Home Buyers Tax Credit extended and enhanced, now is the time to buy! To begin your search, call your local Elkhart Real Estate Expert Evelyn Johnston with Prudential One Realty at 574-304-7148.

Elkhart REALTOR Evelyn Johnston with Prudential One Realty fights the big guys who hold up short sale processing by filing complaints on her Clients behalf with the Indiana Attorny General's Office. A little known rule in Indiana is the House Bill that demands that the Mortgage Lender MUST acknowledge receipt of an offer on a pre-foreclosure property within 10 business days, and make a decision as to acceptance or rejection of the offer within 30 business days. There are only a few Mortgage Lenders who are complying.

So, if you are behind in your Mortgage and would like to sell your home before it goes into foreclosure, speak with a Certified Short Sale Specialist. This complex process is not for the weak or timid REALTOR!

For more information, call Evelyn direct at 574-304-7148.

During our second day at the Indiana REALTOR Leadership Academy, after the Rainbow Leadership Style Elkhart REALTOR Evelyn Johnston and 17 others from around the State learned the Duck Theory of Leadership. This was explained in detail by fellow Indiana Realtor Leadership Academy Student Barry Skalski in his blog. Learn the"Ducks" principles here.

If you are interested in Leadership and giving back to our Elkhart County REALTOR's, the 2010-2011 session will begin in October 2010. This is a wonderful thing to participate in and the benefit to you is tremendous... Contact Evelyn Johnston with Prudential One Realty at 574-304-7148 for more information on how you can serve!

Beautiful Camp Ransburg in Bloomington, Indiana, was the location of the first meeting of the Indiana REALTOR's(r) Leadership Academy that Elkhart Indiana REALTOR Evelyn Johnstonattended. The turning of the leaves, the smell of burning leaves and the definite chill in the air all worked together to bring 17 REALTOR's(r) from across the State together to learn about Leadership!

Some of us had met or talked with one another in our own markets while conducting normal Real Estate Business, but for most of us this was where we met for the first time. Within hours, we were on our way to becoming friends.

The C.O.P.E. Course Leaders at Camp Ransburg started us off with a clever way of learning each others names and after a few more "thought provoking" games to teach us to think outside the box and solve simple puzzles, we moved outdoors. Ahhhhh, fresh air! I choose to walk to the site of the course and slipped once, but didn't go down, and then had to hang onto a tree to swing my legs over a stream! It was a close call! I was under the impression we would be doing athletic type exercises but much to my surprise the activities were more a "team building" exercise. Several of them! In each instance we had to work together to solve various problems. We are building a team of future Leaders. Hopefully in the Real Estate World!

If you have Real Estate Questions, call your local Elkhart County Real Estate Expert Evelyn Johnston with Prudential One Realty at 574-304-7148!

Elkhart REALTOR Evelyn Johnston talks about selling to different generations, part 3, Generation X. Age plays a critical role in customer buying decisions. In fact, the generation into which we are born has as much impact on buying and purchasing decisions as income and education. Our shared experiences determine what motivates us toward or away from a sale, according to the report I received from Scott York of Metropolitan Title Company here in Elkhart. He may be reached at 574-293-9111. Part 1 was about Seniors/Mature generation, you can read about that here.

Let's see what we have on Generation Y:

• Watched parents and grandparents deal with change-growing up in a world that is constantly in motion, revising and restructuring
• Amazing optimism-goal oriented
• Color blind when they relate to people different from themselves
• Have always had technology and assume you should too
• Raised on the mantra "You are Special"-shaped them as consumers
• Extra solid snse of their individual identity
• Many receiving financial help from family members
• These buyers are starting from scratch and need a lot of attention
• More likely to live near the city rather than the suburbs
• Best informed customers but most unresponsive to traditional advertising

Bottom Line:

We are in the people business, take time to know and understand our differences.

Thanks you Scott for this information on how to deal well with Generation X! If you have questions about Title Insurance, call Scott at Metropolitan Title, 574-293-9111. If you have Real Estate questions, call Elkhart Real Estate Expert Evelyn Johnston with Prudential One Realty at 574-304-7148.