Rob Kittle

Perfectionism - the irrational belief that you must be the best, must never make mistakes, and must achieve all your ideals or you are a worthless loser. If you are a perfectionist, you may find that you are prone to self doubt, plagued by feelings of guilt, overwhelmed with feelings of discouragement and bogged down by obsessiveness. Do you want to continue your life this way? You really don't have to.

Here are some steps to overcoming perfectionism:

1. Accept yourself as a learning, growing human being. You will make mistakes, but you can forgive yourself when you do.

2. Set realistic time frames for achievement of your goals, and recognize that an "ideal" is something to strive towards, not necessarily achieve. Be flexible.

3. Love yourself and believe that you deserve success. Build a support group of other people in your life who also accept and love you for who you are.

4. When you get discouraged realize that the important thing is to take steps in a positive direction; no race is won with a single step.

5. Don't allow negative self-talk. Stop yourself and try for a more realistic take on the situation.

Overcoming perfectionism will not be an easy journey. It requires time, effort and consistent practice. But every minute, hour or day that you succeed will take you that much closer to an enjoyment of life, a love and acceptance of yourself, and possibly even greater success.

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Q. The smallest of Canada's 1000 Islands shares a name with a fairy tale hero. What is it?

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A. Tom Thumb

Fort Collins currently has 35 short sale homes priced under $250,000 active on the market. So what is a short sale? A short sale is when a lender accepts a discount on a mortgage to avoid a possible foreclosure auction or bankruptcy. Instead of buying from a seller, you are purchasing the property directly from the lender for a discount. For example: A homeowner, who is facing foreclosure, has an existing first mortgage of $290,000. You write an offer to the lender for $210,000, which is accepted as full payment for the loan. This is a short sale. Why are they willing to take such a discount? Several reasons. First of all, banks do not like excess inventory and bad loans on their books; therefore, if they see an opportunity where they can sell the property without a huge loss, they will do it. Secondly, lenders know they could lose a lot more money if the property goes to auction. There are so many fees involved if the property goes to auction, that they would be better off taking the discount beforehand and be finished with the headache of it all.

Foreclosures are at an all time high which translates into more opportunities for you to invest in real estate. Since foreclosures are increasing, this is the perfect time to jump into investing because there will be more and more lenders discounting properties. It is safe to say that most lenders will accept a short sale, however, you may come across one or two lenders who will not discount. If the numbers work out for the lender they will do it.

It is best to do a short sale when the property is in the pre-foreclosure state. Yes, you can perform a short sale when the bank owns the property, however your profits will more than likely be smaller. There are two stages within pre-foreclosure. The first stage being homeowners who are behind on payments and the second stage are those who are behind on payments with a notice of default. In order for this to work properly and for you to successfully get a short sale, you must find the homeowners who are in the second stage of pre-foreclosure or more than 3 payments behind on their mortgage. Once the notice of default has been recorded, banks become motivated, so you are more likely to get a discount. Until that time, very rarely will a bank ever discount a mortgage that soon. Why would they? The homeowners still have time to cure the loan and make up the back payments.

It does not matter what type of house or condition it's in, all mortgages can be discounted. The best properties to perform a short sale on are the houses that need lots of work and repairs because lenders will give you a bigger discount if they see they are "don't wanters". Properties that are over leveraged are also prime candidates. Most rookie investors who see a house over leveraged with an upside-down mortgage may think there is no hope for this property. On the other hand, this is a sweet deal to the savvy investor. Properties with large 2nd mortgages are also treated as gold because the 2nd mortgage is wiped out at the foreclosure auction. Lenders with a 2nd and 3rd mortgage position would rather have something than nothing.

For more information on buying or selling properties in Fort Collins or Northern Colorado, please contact me today at 970-690-4920 or www.RobKittle.com.

Fort Collins is a great place to live, work and play! Money Magazine said so in 2006 when Fort Collins hit the "Best" list at #1 in 2006, they came back and puts us on the list again in 2008.

Per the article: "One of the first things you notice about this Rocky Mountain city is that practically every new road has a bike lane," the magazine wrote in its summary of Fort Collins. "Even the wheelless can get in on the action now that Fort Collins has a bike library: Residents and visitors can check out a bicycle for up to seven days, free."

Other highlights cited by Money: the presence of microbreweries and restaurants in Old Town, the heavy presence of bioscience and tech companies and the recent awarding of a Department of Energy grant to build a zero energy district in the downton area.

Those of us that have 'transplanted' here have known all along what the rest of the world is just finding out, that we live in a great town! With the views, the access to the outdoors and the local metropolis that is so close, we have everything we want within our reach. In my down time, I gravitate to the water. There is no better place to live with all the recreational activities available, it's either grab your fishing poles or skis.

Other Cities that made the "Best Places to Live in 2008" list are: #1 Plymouth, MN; #3 Naperville, IL; #4 Irvine, CA; #5 Franklin Township, NJ; #6 Norman, OK; #7 Round Rock, TX; #8 Columbia/Ellicott City, MD; #9 Overland Park, KS; #10 Fishers, IN.

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Approximately 135 years ago Fort Collins was established along the banks of the Cache la Poudre River and this weekend the community will celebrate this birthday with Northern Colorado's largest festival, Bohemian Nights at the 20th Annual New West Fest. Over 120,000 people will attend this celebration in Downtown Fort Collins. Bohemian Nights at the 20th Annual New West Fest will be held August 15, 16 & 17, 2008 and is located in Historic Old Town Fort Collins. In its 20th year this FREE weekend showcases over 300 arts, crafts and food booths, Kids' World, a carnival for those young at heart, two beer gardens, and seven stages of continuous entertainment highlighting Northern Colorado's wonderfully talented artists. The festival is always a great time of networking, shopping and enjoying all that Fort Collins has to offer artistically. When I'm not with clients selling Fort Collins Real Estate, I will be enjoying the atmosphere of the Fort Collins New West Fest!

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