greta Saliger

I was just reading an article that I found really disturbing concerning Chinese drywall. I'm not talking about the drywall in the houses in China - no that would be too boring. Guess what folks? In the ever expanding arena of anything for an extra buck, US builders have begun importing this crap from China because, of course, it's CHEAPER!

Apparently, this new hazard began after Hurricane Katrina. There was such an urgent need for drywall during reconstruction that US companies couldn't make it fast enough. In steps "China to the rescue" - this phrase alone should be enough to make anyone pause.

There are over 100,000 homes affected ACROSS THE COUNTRY, not just in poor old New Orleans. These homes were built between 2004 and 2008. The drywall contains excessive levels of sulfur has made people really sick. In addition to making people sick it also corrodes the copper in home wiring, fixtures and appliances, including computers, televisions and air conditioners.

I suggest you go to the business section of MSNBC.com to learn more. I find this frightening indeed!

Why does it seem to be more difficult to work with the big banks on 3rd party properties? Word around our town was that if the property involved Bank of America, prepare yourself for an extensive ordeal.

As luck would have it, my clients fell in love with a BOA 3rd party property. A brief description of my client: they have been renting for years because they were financially helping family members. They both have excellent jobs with financially stable, name recognizable institutions, AND they have 700 scores WITH a healthy amount of money in the bank, plus they are going conventional with more than 20% down. No, they don't qualify for the tax credit - they make too much money. We presented a VERY good offer on the property, a seriously good offer. The Seller's Agent worked diligently on this deal. Seller's Agent kept getting positive feed back from the bank, my clients collected boxes and started preparing to pack.

You guessed it! After more than a month of this bs, word was finally handed down that their offer was NOT accepted. The bank was going to let the property go into foreclosure. Gee, how many months is this going to take? After many tears, my clients have decided to move on to other properties. We have an offer pending on a different home that is REO by a smaller bank in VA, again - a really decent offer. Keeping our fingers crossed on this one!

I am not at all surprised the banks are failing, are you?

Wow! My subscribers have increased by over 50% in one day - I now have 5! Thank you so much, and yes, I will remember you all when I hit the big time!

Yesterday, I blogged about the media and the possible interview with the Baltimore Sun that I was anticipating. Guess what - no interview occurred; however, I was mentioned in the Baltimore Sun reporter's article anyway.

I'm thinking the reporter must have been in a rush to meet a deadline, because it was a reassembly of material from a survey I participated in. Lucky for me, I must have been feeling brilliant that particular day because I actually made an additional comment. I rarely do things like that, leave comments - I may rethink that in the future. I can almost envision myself as a comment queen, even though I've always found that kind of person to be extremely obnoxious. Of course, I won't become obnoxious - not me!

I must remember to write a thank you note to the reporter for mentioning my comment in her article. In the meantime, I'll continue to do what I do: go out on 2 hour home inspections, suggest my sellers hide the cat litter, and make the beds every day and mundane things like that. But, secretly, in my spare time, I'm going to practice my commenting skills.

PS - Here is the link in case you want to read the article:

http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-homesales-survey-0518,0,5642012.story

Hi again my 2 faithful subscribers. Today I want to talk about the media. I feel the media had a great deal to do with the housing "bubble" and the "bubble bursting". I'm sure many of my fellow realtors feel the same way. And I think they create, feed and perpetuate all manner of hype. As a realtor, I've seen the direct results based on highly publicized articles. I've heard this loud and clear through my perspective clients when they tell me they are "waiting to buy" and when they've told me they want to look only at foreclosures because they think they are a better deal.

The media's opinion has been changing from week to week lately. Well, I've received a request to be interviewed by a Baltimore Sun reporter for a real estate article that will come out sometime this week (I think). I was slightly hesitant, but I thought what the heck. I'll provide some information that I think is insightful, that's the best I can do. What will be made with it after that is what I'm unsure about. What way is the press leaning this week? Is this the week they will be saying its perfect for buyers, lots of opportunities, etc. or will it be a week of gloom and doom. Are the current economic fears still preventing the market from rebounding; will rates go lower, will home prices continue to drop? Is the ball bouncing along the bottom?

It is Tuesday, and I've not yet been contacted. Maybe this reporter is waiting to see which way the wind is being blown by other media folk. Will I be on pins and needles - no. I'll just be doing my job, getting my future listings ready for the marketplace, lining up repairs for one of my buyers and going forward. Life is what you make it - not what the media says it will be.