Michael Neville - Intown Atlanta Realtor

In the Metro Atlanta Area the economic stimulus of the $8,000 tax credit to first time homebuyers is showing signs of positively impacting the market. The additional $1,800 max or 1.2% of sales price state tax credit signed into law last week by Governor Purdue will be applied to ALL home buyers - NOT JUST 1st Time Homebuyers, but it only last for the next 6 months and to properties that were on the market at the time of the bill being signed into law. First time homebuyers typically fall below the $250,000 threshold on their purchases. In the Atlanta market, we’ve typically seen about 45%-55% of sales fall below that mark, but over the last few months we’ve seen that rise to 70% of sales. FMLS currently shows 5,212 single family homes under contract, with 3,685 of those being below $250,000 list price which represents 71% of the pending sales!

First Quarter Summary - Sales were down 20.2% from 1Q 2008 and Sales Price was down 23.2% from 1Q 2008. Foreclosures were 37.1% of the sales in 1^st quarter and 48.3% of the sales below 200K. The buying power in the current market has not been seen in the last 75 years. The Average Sales price dropped below that of 1998 in March.

What does this all mean? For Buyers: You are seeing opportunities that others only dream of, but the great deals go quick (a matter of hours/days on great foreclosures so you must be ready to act quickly). For Sellers: You must be realistic about the market values, knowing that you’re competing with Short Sales and Foreclosures – you must price below your gut feeling to stand a chance, otherwise consider staying put or renting the property if necessary.

If you'd like more details, the opportunity for an expert to evaluate your personal situation, or need assistance with your Atlanta area home sale - please feel free to call me at 404-310-8364 or email me at Mike@LiveInAtlantaGA.com . I'm here to help you get what you want.

The 7th Annual Kirkwood Spring Fling and Tour of Homes is this weekend! Browse the open air artist market in the shade of giant trees. Enjoy the sounds of bands and singers on the big stage. Bring the kids for the tot trot and children’s area. Grab lunch, a snack, or a beverage from one of the local restaurants that will cover the full gamut of food styles.

Interested in architecture? Kirkwood has a diverse collection of building styles from classic Victorian cottages to Craftsman bungalows to Modern lofts and everything in between! All of these styles will be on show for the Tour of Homes.

Admission to the festival is free. It is held in Bessie Branham Park and the surrounding areas. Tickets for the Tour can be purchased in the park at the festival or in advance at several local businesses – including Gathering Grounds, Vinocity, & Mission Motif. All proceeds go to benefit the Kirkwood Neighbors Organization that supports community improvements.

The Spring Fling will take place Saturday from 10 AM – 7 PM, the Tour of Homes will take place from 12pm – 6 pm both Saturday & Sunday.

For more info go on the www.kirkwoodfling.com

Yesterday, I ran around Atlanta delivering certified checks, writing contracts, & gathering signatures on addendums in order to meet "Highest & Best" Deadlines in multiple-offer situations on Bank Foreclosures. The properties ranged from Cash Investors looking in Bouldercrest Acres, East Atlanta, and Kirkwood, to first time home-buyers making offers in Grant Park to Alpharetta.

It was INSANE! 12 pm deadlines, 5 pm deadlines, 12 midnight deadlines, WOW -- the blood was pumping & buyers were nervous "Would they get it?" "Did they offer enough?" "Did they offer too much?" - Consulting, providing market analysis's, double-checking conditions & terms.

Heck, there were 4 multiple offer situations my clients participated in, and 2 other Buyer clients who "missed out" but learned how important it is to have a Pre-approval letter in hand, capabilities of writing an Earnest Money check or providing Proof Of Funds on Cash Offers, and know that if they at least put in an offer with contingencies that allow them to inspect/further evaluate the property they'll have the chance to take advantage of some great deals.

The volume of foreclosures in Metro Atlanta has slowed dramatically - making the "Good Deals" truly competitive. After speaking with a few other experts in the field, I still believe there will be another wave of foreclosures at all price points in July, August, & September as banks end their Fiscal Year in June - record major losses & catch up on the backlog from the Moratorium. It would be nice if they were responsible in the volume they released by not flooding the market and driving prices down even more - but we can only see what happens and pray they are wise about trying to ensure a stabilized market.

With Governor Perdue signing the home-buyer State Tax Credit of up to $1,800 (1.2% of sales price or $1,800 max) into law this week. Georgia home-buyers will have 6 months to take advantage. You DON'T NEED TO BE A FIRST TIME HOME BUYER to take advantage of this law!

There is also action being taken for the Federal $8,000 tax credit to be monetized at the time of closing on FHA loans, thereby increasing the likelihood of 1st time home-buyers taking advantage of market conditions & truly stimulating the economy.

How many realtors have heard "Why do I need you, I've got the internet? I know the market." They either think they can buy a house on their own or sell their house for an astronomically higher number than anyone else because "their house is different", heck "I did the renovations myself". All I can think is "Wow, good luck with that." There's no doubt, people have, can and will continue to buy/sell real estate without professional help -- but is it a wise decision?

(This is what they think they're getting)... when in actuality it's more like

When I have people say "Mike, I put an offer in with the listing broker on the REO & it's a steal." All I can do is be nice and listen, but the minute I have the second to double-check the comp's & I may know who the listing broker is (because I've dealt w/them before) - I say a few prayers and ask questions to see how big of a hole these people might have dug themselves.

It's amazing to watch people think they truly know values when they don't have access to credible services like the FMLS & GAMLS data to show active, pendings, and sold properties in the last 90 days, or they think the listing broker will "cut them a deal for dealing directly" (FYI- they signed a listing agreement to represent the BANK in foreclosure transactions NOT the Buyer & if you read carefully through the possibly 18 pages of bank addendums they add to a purchase and sale agreement you'll start to notice how much you're really at risk).

Do you have an appraisal contingency and if so, for how long & under what terms?

Do you have an Inspection Period or a Due Diligence Period, for how long & under what terms?

Do you have a financing contingency, for how long & under what terms?

How much earnest money is on the line, who's holding it, and under what terms can it be dispersed?

aaaahhhh... yeah, there might be a few things you want to confirm on your "steal of a deal"

This morning was just like many others I've experienced in the last year or two when someone I know has called/sent an email saying "Hey, look at this house I found on the internet - this is a deal!" Then they tell me about how the website they went on had houses all around valued for 2x the amount of this one house. They thought because the 3 bedroom 2 1/2 bath home in the heart of Atlanta was previously sold for $400,000 that the listing at $160,000 was an amazing deal. Heck, it even sounds like it - except for the fact that I could easily pull comp's & records to show the $400,00 sale was MORTGAGE FRAUD and the homes around the "steal of a deal" were selling from $70,000 - $140,000 depending on their condition. So, I quickly gave them this information:

"The rules governing how realtors & reputable brokers require bank foreclosures to be listed in either the FMLS or GAMLS or both - these are the only 2 sources that in Georgia should be trusted as being current & accurate (except some foreclosures will show as active when they're really under contract) --- the rest of the websites are like talking to 5 year olds about important events: once in awhile they'll say something true/accurate, but most of the stuff is b.s./outdated tax record information & they can't be held liable."

Thankfully, they've decided to retract their offer & are now willing to work with me and see that maybe they bit off a little more than they could chew, or in this case - stomach the fact they almost OVERPAID because they didn't have an experienced realtor.

They were lucky, but I've heard other people proudly boast about "2 for 1 deals" on a particular condo development in Midtown Atlanta that will remain nameless that said they'd cut them a "special deal if they didn't have a realtor". The "special" part about it was they OVERPAID by roughly $30,000 compared to other recent sales that had already been negotiated by Buyer's represented by Realtors in the last 60 days. Amazingly, they thought it would "cost" them more to work with a realtor.

I don't know about you, but I don't assume that because I know how to put on ointment, clean a cut, put a sling on someone, or put a band-aid on a wound that I suddenly should open my own medical practice or attempt heart surgery on myself. Heck, I've even seen one performed on Discovery TV.....so what makes people assume that they can handle the largest financial investments of their life without professional consultation?

If you want to ask questions or discuss your options on Atlanta Real Estate - please feel free to email me at Mike@LiveInAtlantaGA.com -- or visit my website at www.LiveInAtlantaGA.com and see how a professional realtor can help you get what you truly want.

So you want a "steal"? Well, you might want a realtor to give you the 4-1-1 on what's really happening before going on a bidding frenzy at one of these auctions.

If you wanted to buy a condo and get a "steal of a deal" - that there are 3 buildings in the Midtown area that will be conducting auctions over the next 45 days so this might be a great time for you two to consider purchasing. These are developments that are lowing prices 40%-60% for the auctions. While the media would make it seem like they are “steals of a deal” I’d honestly say they are just good values & a reflection of the impact the foreclosures on existing units & bankruptcy of builders has caused in the Atlanta market. We're following the trend of other major metropolitan markets that were flooded with Condominimum inventory b/c Developers grossly overspeculated the demand for units. No matter what, you must expect to hold a cond unit for 5-10 years to have a reasonable chance of ensuring you come out ahead of where you purchased. "Flipping Condo's" every few years is not a wise decision. Remember, if you need to sell and a developer still has unsold units or there's a large percentage of foreclosures/short sales (5%-10% or more of the units in the building) you will not be well-positioned as a residential resale.

There are definitely some opportunities to take advantage of based on the limited release on inventory they’ll do for some of these auctions, while others are “fire sales”. On top of all this there have been a few developments in Midtown where the HOA’s have filed class action lawsuits. This is important to keep in mind b/c with outstanding legal action those developments will not be capable of selling any units other than to cash buyers (lending institutions won’t approve loans on ANY building with ongoing litigation) – this means that some great buildings can’t be touched while others will have “owner/lender financing” for these auction properties with as little as 3.5% down.

Whether you want to live in Aqua, Viewpoint, Element, Enclave at Briarcliff, Twelve Centennial, Twelve Atlantic Station, Art Foundry, Spire, Plaza Midtown, Park Central, Tuscany or another Midtown location - it's best to speak with a REALTOR who truly knows what's happening behind the scenes at each location because they are all handling different situations

If any of this sounds interesting to you or you’d like to have any questions answered please feel free to give me a call or drop me an email. Mike@LiveInAtlantaGA.com or 404-310-8364.