This past week I was able to attend a wonderful class put on by our local HUD representatives. I can honestly say that in the 12 years I've been in real estate, I've never even heard of HUD classes being given.
A very informative presentation was given by our local HUD reps, Carole Card and Kim Kendrick. HMB, Inc is the listing company and serves not only West Virginia, but also the states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Illinois, Indiana, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. See: www.hmbireo.com
Brokers must register to obtain their "SAMS NAID" number. This process can be accomplished by visiting the above referenced site, completing the forms and sending them to HMB, Inc. It takes about 30 days to receive your number and HUD key. This process must be updated annually!
The listings for sale "As Is" are found online and all bidding (offering) is done online. Carole and Kim went through the process with us, explaining all the idiosyncracies along the way. There is definitely a method to their madness, and it was so helpful to understand why there are certain forms and how best to prepare our client's bids on these forms.
They also explained the difference between FHA insurable and uninsurable homes. Inspections are done prior to listing and estimates for repair are also provided to the potential purchaser. If a property needs less than $5000 in repairs to meet FHA approval, it is considered insurable. If the estimated repair cost is higher than $5000, it is considered uninsurable. At that point, if a buyer desires using FHA funding, a 203k loan is required.
Along with the HUD folks was a great lender, Nena Simerman, from Waterfield Mortgage who specializes in FHA 203k loans. Its probably been 10 years since I was first introduced to this type of loan, and back then it was quite time consuming and onerous for the buyer to complete the process. Not so anymore, at least not with Nena! This is just about the only type of loan she does, and she seems to know her stuff. Her website is: www.FHA-203K.com
Unfortunately, we did not receive continuing education credit for this class, but it was so worth the 3 hours! Lately, I've been finding that the most useful classes I attend don't count for CE...oh well...educating yourself is always a good thing anyway!
One of my favorite things about living in a small community is our local weekly county newspaper, The Spirit of Jefferson Farmer's Advocate. Readers can get caught up on happenings in Jefferson County through columns written by regular reporters on local and statewide issues, local sports teams and the like, but also events in the different municipalities written by citizens. These are a great place to see who's birthday is coming up, church socials, and good recipes! I Love It!!
Yesterday I picked up the paper (which is not online like many daily papers) and saw a large picture of Willard Scott with representatives of our Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce! They were presenting him with West Virginia artist David Brinkley's caricature of his exploits because Mr. Scott has been the "Voice of our local Mountain Heritage Arts & Crafts Festival" for many years. Huge attendance of this twice-a-year event is attributed to him and the ads he has done for the festival.
Held at Sam Michaels Park in Harpers Ferry, WV, over 200 artisans participate, showcasing their items and products.
Many thanks to our Chamber of Commerce reps: Mary Via, recently retired long-time executive director of the Chamber, Heather Morgan, executive director; W. Douglas Stewart, advertising director for the festival and Tiffany Hine, president of the Chamber!
If you're local, pick up the paper and see it for yourself! I've gotten this information from this week's paper, Volume 143, No. 38, Thursday, September 18, 2008. Its only 50 cents! Enjoy!
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Personalized service is my focus, so let me help you find all the answers to your real estate questions. Specializing in the gorgeous Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia!
Leading Edge Properties offers diversified programs for all types of buyers and sellers. We can help the first time buyer, provide a competitive listing package for the seasoned seller, manage your investment property and help commercial buyers find additional listings for their portfolios. With seven veteran real estate agents who have worked with a variety of clients over the years, we at Leading Edge Properties make a commitment to quality service and excellent client care. Give us a call or drop an email! We look forward to hearing from you!
Owners Susan Williams and Amy Salisbury decided that they and their clients had had enough with large corporate real estate. Their focus became looking for and offering non-traditional types of real estate service for their clients while dealing with a changing marketplace. Established in the fall of 2006, Leading Edge Properties has led the wave of change in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. By offering innovative programs such as "For Sale By Owner Plus" and "Property Management Plus" they have opened up a whole new model for residential and commercial real estate.
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"Amy and her colleagues at Leading Edge Properties are helpful and generous with their time. Knowledgeable and Consistent, they have helped me navigate the world of investment real estate and are flexible and helpful when doing non-traditional deals as well as the regular home-buying deals. Amy and Susan started their company to be free to do things differently. We have worked with Amy on several transactions and she is someone who says "we'll figure out a way to make it work." In this region, that is a rare commodity on a real estate team." Liz
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