Shawna Ebersole | Greenwood, IN Real Estate

Is this a question you've wondered about from time to time? Whether it was happening on your roof or someone else's? Well, ask no more. Here's what our friendly neighborhood home inspector, Jim Schwarz of Center Grove Real Estate Inspections had to say:

Dark streaks on your roof are algae growth. This typically shows on the North or East exposures of the roof surface that stay cooler and more damp than the sun exposed surfaces.

These streaks are also an indication that the roof is beginning to approach its latter stages of useful life. As the algae grows, it begins to harden the shingle, making it brittle and more susceptible to damage.

This damage will show up as granule loss, which will then expose the mat of the shingle to more heat and weather. Over time, the degradation of the roof will accelerate.

Roofs like this should be monitored bi-annually to find necessary repairs and to best determine the point of eventual replacement.

Great insight...thanks Jim!

This information was originally posted at: www.iShopGreenwood.com

Remember what it was like when you were a kid and you'd jump into the deep end and challenge your friends to see who could touch the bottom of the pool?

When you were little, you'd have to kick and push a little to get there. Your ears would pop and you'd get a little scared...wondering if you'd be able to hold your breath long enough to get all the way to the bottom and then back up again.

It's kind of the same with our current real estate market. People keep challenging themselves to see who can hold out long enough to time the market just right...holding off on buying something until the prices drop all the way to the bottom.

Well stop trying to guess when the market is going to "hit bottom". No one can predict the exact time it's going to happen...so stop trying! But by golly, stop sitting on your keester waiting for "the perfect time" to buy.

While you're waiting for the market to get all the way to the bottom, your friends and neighbors are out there taking advantage of the bargains that are all around them right now...whether we're at "the bottom" or not...who cares???

When the market finally does turn around, it will be just like finally reaching the bottom of the pool and then pushing off and soaring back up to the top of the surface...popping your head out of the water and coming up for that great big refreshing breath of air.

The market's going to come back up a lot faster than it went down. But we won't know we've hit the bottom until we're already on our way back up. How will you know that today will be the last day of low prices and that tomorrow they will be higher? You won't! You can't!

So stop waiting to "hit the bottom". You're gonna make it and you're not gonna drown! But you need to jump in...'cuz the water is more than fine!

This information was originally posted at www.iShopGreenwood.com

I realize the economy is bad for just about everyone right now, but you still may be looking for a way to reach out and do something for someone else that may be just a little worse off than we are.

If you're looking for such a cause, or maybe just for a place to put the kids out grown clothes to good use, please take a closer look at the message below. This is from our good friend, Allie and I know that anything you can contribute would be greatly appreciated.

Click to enlarge

Need to know where to bring your clothes for Alyssa? Please leave us a comment and we'll make sure your clothes get to Alyssa as soon as possible. Thanks in advance for your help!

This information was originally posted at www.iShopGreenwood.com

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Does stuff like this speak to you more than a wordy explanation? If so, our new Market Snapshot was created just for you. You choose how often you get the data and where the data is pulled from. Then when it comes, you can also sneak a peak at Community and School Info, too. You can even compare local schools one against another. And best of all, if you get sick of it, you can unsubscribe at any time. So sign up any time...try it Mikey...we think you'll like it!

This information originally appeared at www.iShopGreenwood.com

OK, so maybe that wasn't the name of the training I attended today, but it might as well have been because I think that's pretty much the main point that all of us got when it was over. Our training was taught by Linda McKissack, whose team usually sells around 300 homes a year, so I think she certainly knows what she's talking about.

One of the first things she said today that really got my attention was "Our price is good, but we're just not getting any showings." Ha! This caught my attention because I know I've said this myself. Her point was that in this market, if we're not getting showings, our price is wrong. Period.

In a seller's market, it means the supply cannot keep up with the demand. Put whatever price you want on your home because after all, in a seller's market, it's not as much about price as it is "Location. Location. Location."

Well guess what? In case you've been hiding under a rock, we're in a buyer's market right now...NOT a seller's market! And a buyer's market is exactly the opposite of a seller's market. It means we have an over supply for the amount of demand. We have more sellers than we do buyers!

When this happens, your house has become a commodity. And like any other commodity, it's all about the price. Here's a great analogy . . . "If you bought stock last year and that stock was worth $49 per share and today you need to sell that same stock and it is now worth $25 per share, what could we sell it at? Twenty-five is right."

How do you know if your home is over priced for the market? Well here's what the National Association of Realtors has to say:

• If you've had 10 or more showings with no offers, you're at least 5% over priced
• If you've been on the market 2-3 weeks and you've had no showings, you're at least 10% over priced

If you're a homeowner thinking of selling, this may not be the news you were hoping for, but I believe Dianna Kokoszka said it best when she said, "If I don't tell my sellers the truth, it's like I'm taking money from their bank accounts."

We didn't create this market, but as Realtors, our job is to properly communicate the numbers as best as possible so our sellers can make the decisions that are best for them.

This information was originally published at www.iShopGreenwood.com