Melissa Polce

If you deal with short sales on a regular basis and you normally list them, you will know what I am talking about...how many times do people or potential buyers come through and low ball the heck out of the listing? If you are like me, I regularlly keep up with weekly or bi-weekly CMA's on the property, for 2 reasons, 1 because if we can justify the seller lowering the price in order to snag a deal, I want to know, 2nd is so that I know the number(within a 5% range) of what the appraiser or BPO agent will most likely come in at...people don't yet fully understand that the home is still a deal...but, you will pay around fair market value for the CURRENT MARKET...when I explain it to them and say...the Bank is already losing money on this, if at all possible, They Wont Take A Blood Bath...even after they arrive at that magical number, they are still paying realtor fees and what not...so While You Can Get A Deal...Let's Keep It REALISTIC.

Melissa Polce mjpolce@kw.com 704-450-4335

www.MyRelocation2Charlotte.com www.TheShortSaleAgents.com www.ExclusiveHomesofCharlotte.com

Zoning plan suggested to control traffic on U.S. 21

The roadway protection overlay plan would put affect development around Exit 42.

By Dave Vieser
Special Correspondent Posted: Sunday, Aug. 16, 2009

In an effort to avoid the congestion problems often seen in Mooresville on N.C. 150, Troutman and Iredell County officials are considering a roadway protection overlay plan for U.S. 21.

The concept, presented to the town's aldermen last month, would affect a 300-foot corridor along U.S. 21 from the town limits southward to Westmoreland Road.

Overlay plans traditionally regulate such issues as road driveway access, signs, outside storage and parking.

Ron Smith, Iredell County's planning director, urged the board to sign onto the concept now.

"We know more commercial growth is coming to this area, and this plan could prove very important as the area near Exit 42 (of Interstate 77) develops," Smith said.

To adopt an overlay plan, both the town and the county would have to conduct public hearings. Mayor Pro-Tem Mike Spath asked Smith what would happen to businesses already in the overlay corridor.

"Existing businesses would be permitted to continue as is. However, if a business plans substantial improvements, then they must comply with the adopted overlay regulations," Smith said.

The board authorized Mayor Elbert Richardson to send a letter to the county endorsing the concept of the overlay plan.

"I lived down in Mooresville, and I know how congested some of those roads down there can be. We can't let that happen in Troutman," Spath said.

Iredell County's first public meeting on the proposed U.S. 21/Exit 42 Overlay Plan will be a drop-in forum from 5-8 p.m. Thursday at Troutman Town Hall.

In other action related to the Exit 42 area:

The board authorized the mayor to send a letter to the N.C. Department of Transportation asking for restriping and reflective markers along U.S. 21 near Exit 42.

"The way it is now, the lane markings are very hard to see, especially at night or in rain and fog," said police chief Matthew Selves. "I've contacted the DOT several times with no response. Maybe a letter from the mayor will get the ball rolling."

The board agreed to request no-parking signs along the entrance and exit ramps at Exit 42 to stop large trucks from parking there. Truck parking has become more common along the side of I-77 because there are not enough rest areas to accommodate the many trucks that use the interstate. The parked trucks reduce visibility, Spath said, and the ramps at Exit 42 are not long or wide enough to safely permit such parking.

Other municipalities have successfully lobbied to ban parking from exit ramps. Truck parking is also prohibited in part of interstate rest stops.

Melissa Polce, Broker 704-450-4335

www.ExclusiveHomesofCharlotte.com www.MyRelocation2Charlotte.com mjpolce@kw.com

Should they also get an option to purchase the house from the bank at the end of the lease term, assuming they have the income to afford it?

Before leaving for their August break, Democrats and Republicans in the House took a rare, unanimous stand on both questions by passing the Neighborhood Preservation Act by voice vote. The bill was co-sponsored by Reps. Gary Miller, R-Calif., and Joe Donnelly, D-Ind.

The bill would remove legal impediments blocking federally regulated banks from entering into long-term leases - up to five years - with the former owners of foreclosed houses. It also would allow banks to negotiate option-to-purchase agreements permitting former owners to buy back their houses.

The idea, said Miller, is, "at no cost to the taxpayer," to "reduce the number of houses coming into the housing inventory and preserve the physical condition of foreclosed properties," which ultimately should help stabilize values in neighborhoods with large numbers of distressed sales and real estate that is now worth less than the original loan.

If the bill is approved by the Senate, participation by banks would be purely voluntary. But the legislation might encourage banks to calculate whether they would do better financially taking an immediate loss at foreclosure, or by collecting rents and then selling the property at a higher price in four or five years.

Though it was not opposed by banking lobbies, the bill quickly attracted critics. The Center for Economic and Policy Research, a think tank based in Washington, said a key flaw is to leave decisions about leasebacks solely to banks.

"If Congress does want to give homeowners the option to stay in their homes as renters," said the group, "it will be necessary to pass legislation that explicitly gives them this right."

Some private-industry proponents of short sales - where the bank negotiates a price that's typically less than the owners owe on their note - say turning banks into landlords won't work well, either for the banks or foreclosed owners who want to stay in their houses.

Al Hackman, a San Diego realty broker with extensive experience in commercial transactions, argues that leasebacks with options to buy are the way to go - but not if banks run the show,

Hackman and a partner, Troy Huerta, have recently begun putting together what they call "seamless short sales" as alternatives for banks and property owners. Their short sales and leasebacks are "seamless" because the financially distressed homeowners remain in their properties, before and after the settlement.

Congress considering leaseback program

Former owners of houses lost in foreclosure would be able to stay as renters.

Posted: Saturday, Aug. 15, 2009

Here are two questions getting a lot of attention on Capitol Hill and from the Obama administration: When homeowners lose their houses to foreclosure, should they be able to stay in the property, leasing it back at fair market rent from the lender?

Here's how they work: First, the bank agrees to a short sale to a private investor, just as they often do now. In the seamless version, however, the investor is contractually bound to lease back the house on a "triple net" basis - the tenants pay taxes, insurance and utilities - for two to three years.

The former owners only qualify if they have sufficient income to afford a fair market rent and can handle the other expenses, including maintaining the property. The deal comes with a preset buyout price after the leaseback period. That price is higher than the short-sale price paid by the investor, but lower than the original price of the house paid by the foreclosed owners.

Hackman and Huerta already are doing seamless short-sale transactions. Here is one that Hackman says is "real life" and moving toward escrow: A family purchased a house for $725,000 with 20 percent down in 2005, then made substantial improvements with the help of an equity line of $72,500. The house now is valued around $500,000, but is saddled with $625,000 in mortgage debts.

Enter the seamless short sale: Hackman has brought in a private investor who is willing to buy the house at current value, all cash. As part of the deal, the investor has agreed to lease back the house at $25,000 a year, triple net. In three years, assuming they've been good tenants, the original owners have the option to buy back the property for $550,000.

Hackman says the internal rate of return to investors can be raised or lowered based on rents and the buyback price, but typically are in the 8percent to 10 percent range.

"It's a win-win," he says. "The owners stay in their houses. Private investors get a moderate return on what should be a safe investment." Plus the banks are out of the equation."

Ken Harney@earthlink.net

I personally don't think this would work...I would rather see a program that encourages short sales and has a well laid out plan of how to get these done in less time and in a standard fashion, but flat out, most people I come across can no longer afford that specific home, I just think this would compound the big problem we already face!

Melissa Polce mjpolce@kw.com 704-450-4335

www.ExclusiveHomesofCharlotte.com www.TheShortSaleAgents.com www.MyRelocation2Charlotte.com

I have a Land Company as one of my sellers. As of this week I will have listed about 15 different properties for them...great, a girls' gotta have listings right? Well....I am thankful but lets be honest...I have not sold a lot anywhere in the last couple years...matter of fact, I don't know many other agents that have either...one of the reasons of course is the recession, the 2nd? Financing...it's a bear these days...

As much as I have seen, local builders are trying to dump these lots by trying to put the construction loan into the lots, meaning...listing the lots with "probable planned" houses on them...taking them from what would be lot listings and throwing them into SFR listings...that is one route..

2nd...if you must go through financing, be prepared, 20% is the best I have seen for banks, most are 30% down...now the only upside to that is you can use that against the house you are looking to build...kinda like what the builder is doing...but most builders down't have that liquid cash anymore so now it is back in your court...best places I have found at good lot loan rates? Local Banks...I have yet had a good experience through Internet Sites...

3rd...if you are lucky enough to run into one of these and you still have a good chunk down, I have seen Seller Financing, far and few between, but out there.

Lastly...it is sometimes amazing the prices people ask for their lots, parcels and land, especially due to the market conditions and financing...I run reports all the time and just wonder "what are some people smoking out there?...it must be good stuff!"...That Is So Overpriced... My Land Company/Client would say I beat them up for sales reductions all the time but then...that is what we are susposed to do in the end, Get The Property Sold!

Melissa Polce www.MyRelocation2Charlotte.com mjpolce@kw.com 704-450-4335

Owning a home means pay, pay, paying

Something will always break down or need replacing.

Posted: Saturday, Aug. 15, 2009, Charlotte Observer

Last week, the garbage can track inside the cabinet broke and had to be replaced. Earlier this year, our refrigerator stopped keeping things cold, so we had to replace that as well. (Big surprise: Replacing our refrigerator actually cost less than what we paid for the original 10 years ago.) Our kitchen sink faucet broke, and we're on the hunt for something that doesn't cost more than $300.

The seal of the picture window in my office has broken and been replaced twice as well. We've installed new gutters, and put heat wires on the roof to help keep ice dams at bay.

Did you know that your smoke detectors only work for a few years before needing to be replaced? A couple of years back we were having irregular beeping of one of our smoke detectors. We called the manufacturer and were told that we should vacuum our detectors on a monthly basis. I don't know anybody who goes around their home vacuuming smoke detectors. Moreover, the manufacturer recommended replacing smoke detectors every five to 10 years. In the 15 years we've lived in our house, we've replaced the whole set at least three times.

Then, there's the ongoing house maintenance.

In the summer, we have weekly - or semi-weekly, depending on the amount of rain - landscaping chores. It takes my husband, Sam, about an hour to get the lawn mowed, plus extra time to trim the bushes, weed and water the flowers, and get the plant debris swept up. In the winter, he does snow removal. Once a year, we seal coat our driveway. If we didn't have vinyl siding, we'd have to repaint the exterior of our house about every three to five years.

Inside the house, we have to change all kinds of filters and batteries, repaint rooms from time-to-time, replace carpet and appliances when they break, spray for ants in the spring, watch for leaking in the fall, and so on.

Our rental properties aren't cost-free either. We've had good tenants and bad, clean ones and those who kept the place less than clean. Between each lease, the apartments need painting. One tenant's dog scratched up the hardwood floors in one of our units so badly we had to have the floorboards replaced and the whole floor sanded and sealed. And although you tell tenants to change filters and batteries, and to take the lint out of the dryer, not all of them do - some see that as a landlord's job.

There's always something going wrong with my house.

Yesterday, the microwave broke. Early in the morning, I put my mug of water into the microwave and when the time was up, I opened the door - and the microwave kept running. Yikes.

My point is simple: It's expensive to own and maintain property. Here's what you can expect to pay:

Mortgage, real estate taxes, homeowner's insurance premium. Often called PITI (principal, interest, taxes and insurance) for short, you'll either pay it altogether each month (if you escrow for taxes and your insurance premium) or you'll have to write a monthly check for the mortgage, and an annual or semi-annual check for taxes and insurance. These days, more lenders require homeowner's insurance on condominium purchases, in addition to the insurance obtained by the condominium association.

Homeowner's association fees, co-op assessments, monthly maintenance fees. If you live in a condo, co-op, townhouse development or single-family subdivision, you'll have some sort of fee you'll have to pay regularly to cover the maintenance and expenses of the common areas.

Utilities. Gas, electricity, cable, satellite, Internet service, garbage removal, water and sewer (may be billed together or separately). Don't forget to budget for septic-system maintenance and repairs or hard-water system maintenance and replacement of chemicals.

Repairs and maintenance of the exterior and interior of the property. This includes everything from window washing and tuckpointing to replacing appliances, carpet, batteries and filters.

Landscape care. Lawn and garden in warm weather months and snow removal in the winter (for those who get snow).

The problem with not taking care of problems when they're small is that they only get worse. My friend Alice has a country house about three hours from New York City. She didn't know there was a tiny leak in the roof. By the time she figured it out, they had to replace almost an entire wall of the house.

Bottom line: Home maintenance requires vigilance, and a wide-open checkbook. If you're not ready for the responsibilities, think about renting instead.

Need Help Finding That Perfect Home?

Melissa Polce www.MyRelocation2Charlotte.com www.ExclusiveHomesofCharlotte.com 704-450-4335