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Kelly Klein

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Home sales are up, Prices are down

10-27-08
Kelly Klein

It is a great time to buy real estate right now. Home sales are up over last month and slowly the inventory levels are coming down a bit. The prices are equal to those of 2004. Economists continue to predict that the inventory levels of about 10.4 months will continue to put pressure on prices. Consumer confidence still remains uncertain at this time and many buyers are waiting for the election process to be over and keeping a sharp eye on the stock markets. Gas today was just $2.48 per gallon here locally. That is good news. Occupancy levels are low right now around Destin and if you want to just drive in for the weekend, your chances of finding a room are great.

You will want to use a reputable buyer's representative when you come in town. One like myself who will help you with your purchase and dig up all of the facts of a home, a subdivision, or condo. Especially the condos. Many condo developments are in trouble right now and are carrying a lot of bad debt on their books. Make sure you call me before jumping into what seems like a great deal. You will need a local expert to help you out.

The cooler temperatures, blue skies, emerald green waters of the Gulf of Mexico and butterlies migrating to Mexico, makes this stop on anyone's fall tour of the U. S. a must see.

Kelly Klein, Your Buyer's Specialist for Destin, Santa Rosa Beach, and Panama City Beach, FL

850-420-2480 -- www.KellyKleinSoldMine.com

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Short Sales

10-24-08
Kelly Klein

This is a warning to all buyers thinking of making an offer on a short sale. Don't be fooled by the so-called short sale experts. Let me share my story and this is just one of 25 this year.

I consider myself to be somewhat of a short sale expert myself. After all, I have been to nearly every course offered on it in our local market area. Not inexperienced at all as an agent. I hold certifications that resemble alphabet soup with such designations as ABR, EPRO, CIPS, CRS, RSPS, TRC and others I cannot simply even remember right now.

My buyer and I will call him Tom put an offer on a lot here in Santa Rosa Beach in May of 2008. Now at the time the listing was put in the system by the owner / agent and it was a short sale. Something interesting here right away as the owner cannot make a profit or a commission on a short sale. On the day of contract the listing was changed in the MLS system by the broker of the company and reassigned to another agent. Guess they realized it was a mistake.

So anyway, my buyer Tom was the most patient buyer I have ever seen. Most short sales do not work because the buyers become inpatient. They take months to work through the very inefficent system. Anyway the seller agreed to the price offered and the terms upon which were presented which were Tom will pay x amount of dollars for this lot and it would be contingent upon bank approval.

Well, that day finally came and the ABC company I will call it finally approved the deal. We had a closing date scheduled and the buyer was very happy. So was I, I was about to close the very first short sale deal of my life and I had tried 24 of them prior to this one and none of those ever went to closing.

Well, the seller and his wife decided they did not agree with the bank approval letter which would require them to pay the bank the deficiency judgement on a new payment plan. We are talking $25,000 here. This was the difference. The other option the seller had was to accept a 1099 form and pay taxes as though that was income. Now, I doubt that this option would have hurt this seller much because he was not making any money anyways and he had already declared personal bankruptcy.

I tried to get the ABC bank to forgive the debt of the seller so that they could close the deal. I explained to them that there were over 4,500 lots for sale in my market area alone and that only 280 of them had closed all year long. They should feel fortunate to have an offer at all. I further explained to them that they could have a guranteed $110,003.19 or nothing at all because if this deal did not go through with a rewritten approval letter forgiving the debt of the sellers, then the deal would not go through at all. The sellers on day of close would not sign the documents. My buyer had already wired the funds in and signed all paperwork.

The bank made the wrong decision and the deal did not happen. This lot will never sell using the short sale process. The bank is out $110,003.19 and my buyer is without a lot. My patient buyer will probably now just wait the foreclosure process out and buy it instead from the next owner who very possibly will be you and I and Fannie Mae.

So, if you are thinking about buying a short sale property I would run the other way. You would do much better to wait it out and buy it as a bank foreclosure. The bank foreclosed properties are less in value and close quickly. They are a whole lot less stress, work, and time. They are guaranteed to close.

If you are looking for an expert to guide you in the process of buying real estate in Destin, Santa Rosa Beach, or Panama City Beach, please call me! I can be reached at 850-420-2480 or Kelly@KellyKleinSoldMine.com

Thank you for your time today.

Kelly

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