Palm Bay, FL

Ways to boost an already good credit score, or boost it after a foreclosure or short sale on your record.You never know when you will need your credit score again.

Tips to Improve your Credit

1. Review your current credit report for accuracy. Everyone is entitled to one free credit report per year from each of the three credit bureaus-Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. Get a copy of your credit report and look at it for accuracy. First, make sure that the information in your file is about you and only you, not someone who has a similar name or a similar Social Security number. It is very common for your credit reports to have mistakes or incorrect information. At a minimum, make sure that the information you are being evaluated on is current and correct.

2. Repair credit report mistakes. If you find something on your credit report that is incorrect or missing, you should dispute the mistake by contacting the credit bureaus directly. All credit bureaus have their dispute procedures on their website. They are also required by law to investigate any disputed items and these investigations will usually be done within 30 days of your request.

3. Pay your bills on time. Payment history accounts for roughly 35% of your credit score. Paying bills on time is the most important thing to do. If you're struggling to catch up, contact your creditors to work out a payment schedule.

4. Increase the length of your credit history. This accounts for about 15% of your score. Don't cancel your old card or get a lot of new ones in a short time span because this can hurt your score.

5. Keep credit card balances low. It's a good idea to keep the balances below 25% of your available credit. Even if you pay off your credit cards every month, a high average balance will impact your score. This accounts for about 30% of your credit score.

6. Keep new credit requests to a minimum. This accounts for 10% of your score. Every time a lender runs your credit, an inquiry is recorded. If you are trying to get a loan, don't apply for new credit cards first.

7. Be aware that paying off a collection account will not remove it from your credit report. It will stay on your report for seven years.

8. Pay off debt rather than moving it around. The most effective way to improve your credit score in this area is by paying down your revolving credit. In fact, owing the same amount but having fewer open accounts may lower your score.

9. Beware credit-repair scams. By all means, don't pay someone to wipe away the negative items in your file. If they don't follow through, the damaging items will reappear in two or three months.

Hope this will help consumers in the future to understand the importance of credit and how to protect themselves from not having the buying power for there future.

Give a Day. Get a Disney Day.

This year celebrate the spirit of giving. Give a day of volunteer service in 2010, and get a day of Disney Theme Park fun - free!

Disney Parks has announced a new program that celebrates the spirit of volunteer service with a simple proposition: "Give a Day, Get a Disney Day." To inspire people to volunteer in their communities during 2010, Disney is offering a free, one-day admission ticket to a Walt Disney World® or Disneyland® theme park to the first one million people who perform volunteer service for a participating organization (such as the Palm Bay Volunteer Service Corps).

Starting Jan. 1, 2010, Palm Bay citizens can go to www.DisneyParks.com to search for eligible volunteer opportunities. After you pre-register, sign up and complete your chosen volunteer activity, and your service has been verified, you will receive an email from Disney prompting you to log in to your account and print a voucher that may be redeemed for your free ticket to a Walt Disney World® or Disneyland® theme park. Ticket quantities for this program are limited. Other terms and conditions apply. For details, see www.DisneyParks.com.

I was recently contacted by a woman, through the internet, that inquired on putting her recently deceased father's Palm Bay home on the market. We arranged for a time to meet, so we could discuss the current market, my marketing plan for selling the home and a realistic list price for the property.

Prior to our meeting, I contacted my title company to do a preliminary search on the home's title, to discuss the way in which title was held on the property and what documents would be needed for a closing on this estate.

At our meeting, I asked what her target date was for getting the house on the market. She said she was ready to put the house on the market that day.

Uh-oh! That wasn't going to work. The house was in a state of disarray. The family was in the process of going through the father's belongings to see what was staying and what would be going. Since the parents that lived in the home had been elderly and sickly, there were some minor maintenance issues that needed to be addressed BEFORE the house went on the market. I explained this to the daughter.

The misc. items/knick knacks must be boxed up and put away. The old curtains needed to come down. The house needed a good, thorough cleaning, including kitchen and baths. Scuff marks should be removed from the walls. A couple of short walls needed a coat of paint. Carpets needed cleaning. The furniture needed to be rearranged to show off the roominess of this well loved home.

I explained that the house would need to be 'show ready' the day it goes on the market. Ideally, there should be nothing left to do. In this home's area, approximately 50% of houses currently listed for sale are either foreclosures or short sales. Although many may not be in as good of condition as hers (when it's market-ready), those other houses would most likely be priced lower than hers. So, hers would need to be in tip top condition in order to compete. She understoond and agreed.

I love sellers like this one!

I do understand that not everyone is in a position to do the things that I asked this seller to do (especially in the case of an estate, such as this one). I feel confident that with this realistic and cooperative seller I will have no problem securing a buyer for her deceased father's property in a timely fashion.

Sandy Shores REALTOR®, Melbourne/Palm Bay FL Real Estate

Brevard County, Florida's Space Coast Real Estate & Investing

I specialize in Residential, Investment & Relocations. We have a team of professionals that can help with your Short Sale.

I buy, sell, rent, own and manage Investment Property

Susan R. Engle
REALTOR®
Coldwell Banker Ed Schlitt
907 US Highway 192
Melbourne, FL 32901
Direct: (321) 951-3300
Cell: (321) 543-8172
Fax: (321) 951-3080
www.brevardsbestagent.com

If you have not gotten a chance to visit this outstanding nature trail - make sure you put it on your schedule the next time you are anywhere close to Orlando, FL.  Just 40 minutes east of Orlando - this nature trail is absolutely gorgeous!  4.5 miles of neatly manicured trails.  1.25 miles of the trail is a boardwalk.  Here is the website below with a few pictures that I took and a Google map of the location.  Definitely worth the trip!

http://www.foturkeycreek.org/id7.html