Todd Yovino

Written by Gabriella for Island Advantage Realty LLC

I went to a family celebration the other day and was struck by an unusual phenomenon. I was in my aunt's rec room and on one end my nephew Thomas who is 15 months old was building a tower out of wooden blocks, in the same room two of my younger cousins were carefully building a house of cards, while in the front room my brother was giving advise to my nephew Bobby who will leave for college in a few weeks and on the back patio my cousin Julie was describing the house she and her husband recently bought.

As I moved through the rooms I realized that no matter what stage they were at they were all doing the same thing, they were building towards a future, and they were all happy because of it. Julie and her husband bought an REO property, of course, and they are very excited to be moving their growing family in their new home. With three small children and a fourth on the way (talk about building for a future!) they desperately needed more space but not more mortgage.

An REO property was the perfect solution for them. It's possible it could be the perfect solution for you as well. To find out more information about available REO homes in the Metro New York and Long Island areas give us a call at Island Advantage Realty, LLC. We love helping people build for their future.

The advice and tips offered in this blog are intended to be solely informational and do not apply in all circumstances. Make sure that you consult a real estate professional, financial consultant, attorney or accountant before taking any action. For further information or questions please contact Gabriella@IARNY.com

Island Advantage Realty, LLC specializes in Foreclosures and Bank Owned properties in the Metro NY and Long Island Areas. They are dedicated to educating home buyers and the home buying process in the Foreclosure and REO markets.

Written by Gabriella for Island Advantage Realty LLC

I love this time of year. Everything is in bloom, everything that was planted months ago has come to fruition. It is the same thing in the REO business. There are so many families that are moving into their homes this month, because they started the process of getting pre-approved for a home loan months ago. After their approval there were plenty of homes to look at before deciding which home to pursue. All of that hard work has paid off now and the families are now able to move in and put down new roots.

Anything worthwhile takes time. Buying a home requires time and patience, buying an REO property requires working with the right professionals. I work for Island Advantage Realty, we are experts in the field of foreclosure and REO properties in the New York and Long Island areas. We work tirelessly to stay informed about new legislation that affects home owners and especially those buying REO properties.

We understand that for most people the REO market is an unknown adventure. We are devoted to educating our clients to understand what the REO market has to offer. If you are interested in purchasing an REO property either as a primary residence or an investment property, give us a call at Island Advantage Realty.

The advice and tips offered in this blog are intended to be solely informational and do not apply in all circumstances. Make sure that you consult a real estate professional, financial consultant, attorney or accountant before taking any action. For further information or questions please contact Gabriella@IARNY.com

Island Advantage Realty, LLC specializes in Foreclosures and Bank Owned properties in the Metro NY and Long Island Areas. They are dedicated to educating home buyers and the home buying process in the Foreclosure and REO markets.

Written by Gabriella for Island Advantage Realty LLC

You have to have a sense of humor when you work in the REO market. REO properties are owned by the bank or lender. The property was foreclosed upon but did not sell at auction. In today's market more and more homes are converting to REO status. This is due in large part to the overwhelming number of foreclosures and the lessening number of people who have the capital to buy at foreclosure sales. The reality of an REO property is that it has very likely sat empty for a month or two and sometimes the previous tenants left in a hurry and/or were unable to take all of their belongings, hence the need for a sense of humor.

While REO properties don't typically boast sparkling clean kitchen floors and newly shampooed carpets at their open houses, their purchase price makes up for it. I recently showed a home to a couple and when we got to the master bathroom they found it gutted to the studs. I had warned them about it but it was still a bit of a shock. The wife smiled and calmly said, "That's okay. It's a good excuse for you to give me that garden tub I've always wanted," which made all three of us laugh.

The great news is that it looks as though she's going to get the garden tub of her dreams. The lender discounted the price of the home because of the necessary repairs making both the home and the garden tub affordable for the couple.

If you have a great sense of humor and an even better sense of value call Island Advantage Realty, LLC. We will be happy to show you all the REO market has to offer in the Metro New York and Long Island areas.

The advice and tips offered in this blog are intended to be solely informational and do not apply in all circumstances. Make sure that you consult a real estate professional, financial consultant, attorney or accountant before taking any action. For further information or questions please contact Gabriella@IARNY.com

Island Advantage Realty, LLC specializes in Foreclosures and Bank Owned properties in the Metro NY and Long Island Areas. They are dedicated to educating home buyers and the home buying process in the Foreclosure and REO markets.

Written by Gabriella for Island Advantage Realty LLC

I have a good friend who is a Stager. She stages homes for real estate agents so the property will be more appealing and buyers will be willing to pay top dollar for the property. She assures me that there is a psychological rationale for this. If it looks clean and beautifully maintained then buyers will be willing to pay more. The truth is the buyer doesn't really get a choice. The cost of a stager doesn't get absorbed by the realtor or even the seller, it typically gets absorbed by the buyer. I find it fascinating that people are interested in paying more for something that has fresh paint on it. In this economy I would think that more people would rather save money and paint it themselves. They aren't just saving money on the paint and the contract labor, they are also saving money on the stager as well. To top it all off, if they have to paint it themselves, they get to make design choices as well.

I deal in REO homes and occasionally we use the help of stagers also. But the vast majority of our clients would prefer to save money and get to view the property, warts and all. They enjoy knowing that they will be given a discount on the purchase price of the property so they can address the repair needs. Stagers are talented people and I have no desire to take away from my friends business, but in today's economy I think if most people knew how much staging added to the cost of their home they would forego it.

The advice and tips offered in this blog are intended to be solely informational and do not apply in all circumstances. Make sure that you consult a real estate professional, financial consultant, attorney or accountant before taking any action. For further information or questions please contact Gabriella@IARNY.com

Island Advantage Realty, LLC specializes in Foreclosures and Bank Owned properties in the Metro NY and Long Island Areas. They are dedicated to educating home buyers and the home buying process in the Foreclosure and REO markets.

Written by Gabriella for Island Advantage Realty LLC

July 30, 2009 by gabiarny

My Aunt Tova has a coin purse that belonged to my beloved Grandmother. Every one of my nieces and nephews remembers that coin purse fondly. When we were little it was the coin purse that came out to buy us an Italian ice when Mr. Grasso steered his cart down our street. Later, when we were older it was the coin purse that came out as we were leaving to go back to college. A twenty dollar bill that would pay for late night pizza would wiggle its way out of that beautiful beaded coin purse. And on more than one occasion substantially larger amounts of cash came forth from that same coin purse. I personally saw her pull $7,000 out of the coin purse once when my Uncle Teddy's business burned to the ground. It was an amazing little purse and it serves as a symbol to my entire family to this day. It's a symbol of how powerful money can be if you are wise and careful.

You have to understand, none of us thought the purse was magic and that money just appeared there. No, even at a young age we all understood that the money in that purse was money Grandma made by renting a small house that she had purchased after World War II. And while my grandfather supported the idea of her buying the property it was well known that the property was my Grandmother's business. She maintained the property, collected the rent checks and reinvested her profits back into more real estate. At the time of her death Grandma owned four properties outright and had two others she was making payments on. When I think of all the things that were made possible by that little coin purse, I have to smile. I know that if my Grandmother were alive today she would be so excited about the current REO market. Each time I help a family to buy a cost effective REO property I can't help but wonder all of the wonderful things that will come to that family as the result of investing in quality real estate.

If you are interested in investing in real estate so you too can have a magic coin purse to show your grandchildren, give us a call at Island Advantage Realty, LLC.

The advice and tips offered in this blog are intended to be solely informational and do not apply in all circumstances. Make sure that you consult a real estate professional, financial consultant, attorney or accountant before taking any action. For further information or questions please contact Gabriella@IARNY.com

Island Advantage Realty, LLC specializes in Foreclosures and Bank Owned properties in the Metro NY and Long Island Areas. They are dedicated to educating home buyers and the home buying process in the Foreclosure and REO markets.