Renee Porsia

I get a lot of calls every day from buyers who want to purchase foreclosed homes. After speaking with them for a few minutes, I realize that they really have no clue about what is really involved in purchasing a foreclosure.

With so many foreclosed homes on the market today its no wonder that so many buyers are thinking about purchasing one.

Buyers think that because the home was foreclosed on, that it just has to be a great buy. Not always the case.

I have been working with bank properties for all of my career and I can tell you lots of stories about foreclosed homes but I digress. I want to concentrate on what you should know before you venture out there.

Foreclosed homes are not always in great shape in fact, expect that the home will need repair, sometimes a lot of repair. When people are losing their homes, they tend to do lots of damage to the home. It's just the way that it is. Expect that the utilities will not be working. Banks do not like to put utilities in their name. Sometimes they have the Realtor put them into their name but I never liked to do that so I am certain many other Realtors feel the same.

Do realize that you will be buying the home in "as is" condition. Now, do not get confused, though you are buying a home in "as is" condition, that does not mean that you can not negotiate with the bank. I do it all of the time. Generally, these homes have been sitting vacant for a long time and nobody has kept up with maintaining the home so the home could have termites, mold, leaks, a bad roof, broken windows etc. Understand that banks do not want to negotiate or issue credits to you and that is why you need an aggressive, experienced Realtor who knows how to work with banks.

You can have a have a home inspection but keep in mind that you will be responsible for paying the inspector and any repairs that are needed. If you need to purchase as an FHA buyer, you will be responsible to make all repairs prior to settlement and that could wind up costing you a lot of money even before you take possession. Generally, if you need to purchase as an FHA buyer, I always advise my clients NOT to purchase a foreclosure.

If you do not have money for a down payment and closing costs, buying a foreclosed home is not for you. The bank will want to see how much money you have. If you are needing to scrape together enough money just to get to the table, you will be getting in way over your head. Remember, you are buying someones home who got in way over their head. You certainly do not want to end up the same way. There will probably be other offers and the bank will be looking for the strongest.

You will have no history of the home. If an investor purchased the home for a low price and used cheap materials and then was forclosed on which does happen, you may have future issues down the road. You get no disclosures with a forclosed home as you would from a home owner who is selling their home.

The bank will operate on their own schedule and not yours. In a traditional sale that involves a seller, there is usually a respond by date to allow for the seller to review your offer and make a decision. Banks DO NOT operate in the same way. They could get back to you in a day, a week or even a month which I have seen them do. If you are looking to be in a home by a certain date, buying a foreclosure could change your plans.

Make sure to have some place to stay because you may not be able to move in until after you have made the necessary repairs.

Foreclosed homes can be a way to get into a home at a reasonable price but you do need to do your homework and have the money and time to put into it. You should find yourself a buyer agent who is experienced in dealing with bank properties and not a Realtor who is a wallflower. You need an aggressive Realtor who will fight for you. You are buying someone else's problem. Someone who could not afford to pay their mortgage or make the necessary repairs to the home. As long as you realize that going in, you will be ahead of the game.

With home prices being so incredible right now, you may just be better off buying a home from a traditional seller and knowing exactly what you are buying and not having to worry about making all of the repairs, putting out extra money and you may even get a better deal without all of the stress.

I hope I have given you some things to think about prior to starting your home search. It's better to be safe than sorry rather than kicking yourself or blaming everyone else after you've purchased your home.

With all the talk about it being a buyer's market it seems the sellers are left wondering "what about me?"

After so many years of it being a seller's market, now the tables have seemed to have turned and sellers are no longer are in control which leaves so many home owners scratching their heads asking "is this a good time to sell?"

I get sick to my stomach when I hear so many people out there telling sellers that now is not the time to sell their home. Sure, I wouldn't just go sticking my house on the market just for the sake of doing it but if you have been in your home for several years and have been thinking of moving, have a great credit score, saved money for closing costs and a down payment, I couldn't disagree more.

I feel like a broken record when I say that this is an amazing time for everyone. If everyone would just stop always looking for something to complain about what a wonderful world it would be! When it was a seller's market, everyone was out there screaming about how home prices were ridiculous and buyers should not be out there buying and the real estate bubble would eventually have to burst. Come on people, is anyone ever happy?

Here is why the real estate market is just so amazing in my eyes right now. Mortgage rages are AT AN ALL TIME LOW, the supply of homes on the market right now is insane and best of all, wait for it, is that HOME PRICES HAVE GONE BACK TO WHAT THEY SHOULD BE and not what they should have never been in the first place.

So, if you put your home on the market and you hire an aggressive seller agent who will price your home realistically, you will sell your home. If your home is worth $300k then expect to get around $300k and nothing less. If you get an offer even close to what you are asking, take it because the next offer will be even lower. Believe it!

Ask yourself these questions before you put your home on the market:

• are my bathrooms updated
• is my kitchen updated
• have I ever done anything to improve my home
• if I were thinking of buying my own home, would I pay what I want someone else to pay

If you can HONESTELY answer yes, to those questions, then you can feel secure in knowing that your home will sell. If you can't answer yes to those questions and you do not have to sell, it probably isn't the best time to put your home on the market. Buyers are simply not going to want to over pay for your under-improved home!

So, your neighbor sold their underimproved home for some ridiculously high price and then in turn went and purchased someone else's ridiculously over priced, probably unimproved home. Nobody won in that situation. At least now, you will sell your home for what it is worth and then you will buy another home that is either worth exactly what you are paying or you will get an even better deal because some Realtor over priced the seller's home over 300 days ago so now can purchase it for UNDER market value and probably with a great mortgage rate. Their loss is your gain!

So, is it a good time to sell, I believe it is just as much as I believe that it is a good time to buy! Everyone wins!!

Can't we all just get along?

Do you need an attitude adjustment? Chances are, that you just might.

Very recently, I have come to realize that our attitude plays a very important role in what goes on in our lives. I say very recently because I didn't exactly grow up with the most positive of role models. Sorry Mom, Dad.

Everyone has those days when absolutely everything is going wrong, you wake up in the morning and spill your morning coffee on yourself then you get in your car and some hot headed driver cuts you off and infuriates you and then the rest of your day doesn't get any better. Why? Well, I have come to believe that it is our attitude and the attitudes of those around us.

I wanted to test my theory so I have been doing my very best to be extremely positive about everything in my life no matter what. I am trying to be around only positive people, which turns out is quite a challenge in itself, and I am putting out there what I want to be. We create our own reality. In doing this, I have found that things have been getting better, having more good days than bad and I have been in a much better mood.

So, how is your attitude? How are the attitudes of the people around you? Are you the type of person who always sees the negative in just about everything and everyone? Are your friends negative? If so, why not test my theory.

If you want to be more successful in your career, why not think of yourself in that position already. Carry around a notebook and every day write in it what you would be doing during that day if you actually had that new career or were in that new position. What would that new position involve? For example, "heading out for a business meeting." You will be surprised at how your mind starts to think and how motivated you become.

Do you have have goals? If so, what are you doing to keep track of them? Write them down. In the begining of every year, I write down my goals for the new year and at the end of every year, I take them out and see what I have accomplished and am always quite surprised to see that I do accomplish a lot of what I set out to do.

Do you want a better life for yourself? What do you have to do to have that better life? Write it down, change your attitude, surround yourself with positive, like-minded people and most of all, do something about it. Sitting around saying "oh, I'm too old" or " I can't do that" is just negative,harmful thinking. You are the key to your own success.

It's a brand new year, a clean slate, you can control your own destiny and a positive attitude goes a long way and so can you!

We've all heard and seen all the bad, horrible things the media has been portraying about the real estate market, "we're going to sink into another Great Depression", "the real estate bubble has finally burst." Threes no doubt that times are tough. We are in a recession and if you are unfamiliar with what a recession is, it's defined as being two successive quarters of negative growth. However, you must keep in mind that we will come out of it and better days are ahead!

I have just become frustrated with all of the negativity that the media keeps spuing all over the place. They seem to like to pick and choose what they report on leaving out some very positive facts, important, hopeful facts that I think you need to know about, the silver lining.

When you want to apply for a mortgage, certain factors are taken into consideration such as the Housing Affordability Index. The Housing Affordability Index measures the ability of a typical American family to qualify for a mortgage. A score of 100 means that a typical family would qualify for the preferred 20% down payment as well as the monthly payments of no more than 25% of their household income. The great news that the media doesn't ever tell you is that currently, the index is at 135.2% which means the average American family not only can afford to purchase a home, but also will have excess money for living expenses.

More good news according to the National Association of Realtors and that the media forgets to report on is that existing home sales prices are also expected to increase by 3.7 percent in 2009, with new home sales increasing by 4 percent.

I was reading an article recently and after I was done reading this one tiny blurb, I thought about it and thought to myself how true it was so I wanted to share it with you. "Real estate is the only industry that gets "bummed out" when we have a sale- "oh, there are lots of options, prices are down..I'm depressed!" At Nordstrom, they'd be saying this is the time to get into the store." Come on people how true is that? When department stores SLASH their prices we all go crashing through the doors to be the first one in line to buy, buy, buy and save, save, save. Same holds true for real estate. We just have to start thinking of real estate the same way we think about department stores. The only difference is that you won't see huge signs hanging up saying " CLEARANCE SALE!" You won't see commercials on television telling you to come by a house this Monday and save up to 50% off. So, I am telling you. If you are looking for a home, now is your time. The real estate market is having a sale. A huge sale. Interests rates are at an all-time low, the market is saturated with inventory and prices have been SLASHED!

Home owners who are out there screaming to anyone who will listen "it's not a good time to put your home up for sale" couldn't be more wrong. I want to be very clear here. Sure, those days of home owners putting their unimproved, out dated, not maintained home up for sale and getting $100k over what they should have ever gotten are OVER! Gone, goodbye! Goodbye and good riddance I say! I don't know about you but I wouldn't want to purchase a home where the home owner lived for the last 50 years and never made any improvements and now just because some other sucker paid one of their neighbors $100k over what their home was worth, this home owner wants me to pay it too. Today, that poor sucker who purchased that over priced home is living in a home that has now depreciated and isn't worth what they paid for it and more than likely is facing foreclosure! Home prices are now going from completely ridiculous back to realistic and that is great news for everyone. If you are looking to put your home on the market, expect to get market value. If you are a home owner who thinks that your home is worth more than every other home around you my advice is to not put your home on the market.

More great news for you is that gone are those unethical mortgage consultants and Realtors. All of the people who jumped on the band wagon just to make a quick, dishonest buck from you are gone! When all of the dust has settled, the only mortgage consultants and Realtors who will be left standing are those who are in it for the long run, the honest, ethical, caring, respectable professionals. Mortgage companies have now made it more difficult to get loans which is a good thing. Remember how we got into this whole mess, in 1999, the U.S. government passed laws to increase home-ownership. Now, home-ownership is a good thing, but it's not an entitlement. You're supposed to work hard, save and even sacrifice to buy a home and over the past few years, that didn't have to happen. Now, it does! Who said the American dream would be easy? So, settle down, buckle up and get ready for a bumpy ride. We enjoyed a nice, easy, relaxing ride for a long time.

I wrote this article to hopefully encourage you. I hope it does! There is always a silver lining!

Special thanks to Brian Buffini for his contribution to my blog!

I absolutely love my iphone. I mean, what's not to love? I can do everything with just a single touch. If I need to make a call, touch, need to check my e-mail, touch, need to send e-mail, touch, need to schedule a meeting or a night out, touch. And that's not all. I can listen to all of my favorite songs, download even more favorite songs, watch a video, a movie, look at photos, take more photos, check the stock market, keep up with the latest news all with a single touch.

I can even go into the app store and download a plethora of other applications.

This phone makes my life easier in so many ways. I find that it makes multi-tasking a breeze. If I am in a meeting or settlement and I need to get in touch with someone and I can't excuse myself out of the meeting, I just text a brief message to the person just to let them know that I didn't forget them.

I can take notes, make to do lists, if I get hungry and am not familiar with the area, I can just shake my phone and find the nearest eateries. No kidding!

I am always on top of current events and I can even socialize on Facebook and twitter.

It's lightweight at just 4.7 ounces, it's sleek and stylish and now comes in two colors black and white.

Other phones are simply no match for this phone.

I give this phone 5 sold signs out of 5.