Sheree Wilkerson

Here Fico, here boy!

No wait - Fico isn't the family pooch, FICO is something much bigger and something many of us don't understand, but are affected by daily. Particularly those of us looking to buy a home or make any other financed purchase.

Here's a brief overview of what FICO is and what it means to you.

FICO is just another credit score. Your credit score is a number that summarizes your risk to anyone loaning to you, and FICO is just one of the corporations that calculates your credit risk. It stands for Fair Isaac COrporation - FICO! It's the most popular score used by lenders to determine your risk to them. When a lender orders a FICO score, they can order it from any of the three agencies that maintain credit reports. The FICO is calculated at that given time, based on the information on that agency's credit report right then.

• Make sure you check your credit reports yearly for accuracy - it's free!
• When YOU order your own score, make sure you're ordering a FICO so you see what the bank sees.

FICO scores can range from 300 - 850! The higher the score, the lower the risk you are perceived to be to the lender. This generally translates into better approvals and better rates and terms on financing. A person with an awesome FICO is considered to have a great ability at maintaining their payments, credit, etc. Someone with a much much lower score is seen to maybe not be ready for a checkbook much less a loan.

Here's some of the big things that go into calculating your FICO score:

• Types of Credit you have (revolving, installments, etc)
• New Credit - including inquiries
• Length of overall Credit History
• Payment History - this is the biggest factor
• Amounts Owed - this is the 2nd biggest factor

From these and their importance, you can obviously guess that the recommendations are:

• Have a mix of credit types to show your ability to handle various credit lines, but not too many!
• Open credit you need, but don't open credit just for fun! Keep inquiries to a minimum - when applying for loans, do your inquiries as close together as possible so they register as one product search and not as though you're opening 10 mortgages.
• Obviously the longer you have a history the more data they have to calculate and the more time you've proven yourself. This of course can only get better with time.
• Pay on time, every time. As late payments fade in time, they'll affect you less. Set up automatic payments of at least the minimum on all your cards so that you are never late. Your FICO will thank you.
• The more you owe, the more overextended you look, the more risk that one thing going wrong will send you into financial disaster and the banks will lose all their money on you. So basically, try to keep your balances down to less than 30% of your limit.

For more information about FICO and how it affects you, visit http://www.myfico.com/crediteducation



photo courtesy of Trinity Credit Services, creative commons license, Flickr.

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For more information about getting ready to purchase a home,
drop me a line or call anytime!

Sheree Wilkerson

cell/txt 316.461.0575
sheree@rwwichita.com

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Q:  I have retro appliances in my kitchen, original to the home.  I think they're kinda groovy and are a bonus, but agents have said these will hinder my sale.   What do you think - groovy or old-school?


A:  To be honest, it depends on your buyer and how well it's presented.   If the retro appliances are in great shape, work wonderfully, and there's no mechanical need to replace them - that's one thing.  However, if the appliances are half working, half not, don't function at all, or are merely being used as extra cupboard space at this point - that's a whole 'nother animal.  

If the appliances are working great, and they don't build them like they used to so most run like champs, then you need to consider the decor.  Do the appliances stand out as crazy retro in an otherwise updated or sedate kitchen?  Do they blend in well or provide an accent that is aesthetically pleasing or stand out like a sore avocado green thumb?  

Most of us simply can't pull off a retro style kitchen, but if done well, it can help your home!   Overall, agents will recommend updating and going modern - green is the go-word of the day but they do mean energy-efficient, not color!  It's easier to for most folks than pulling a good scheme together, and appeals to more buyers anyway.  A lot of youngster first-timers are turned off by "grandma's kitchen."  



All in all - the overall recommendation is to update the appliances at the minimal with new epoxy if possible to erase the very retro colored (avocado, harvest gold, pink, etc) enamel, and preferably to update the items or price accordingly.  If you can pull off a groovy kitchen and do it well, with fully functional appliances, by all means go for it!  You'll find a special buyer that really appreciates it, even if you have to wait a smidge longer!

And don't think I'm dissin' on the Groove - we have some pretty Groovy agents at our office!

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So far there's been no promise from the government to extend the first-time homebuyer tax credit, much less increase it as was earlier rumored. If nothing is done, the deadline for the original credit is still the end of November!

That means your home must CLOSE by December 1st. Closed, done, completed. Not under contract, not in process, but all the way done.

With loans currently taking around 45 days to complete, this means you'll need to be under contract on a home by mid-October, in order to close by the end of November.

If you're picky, you'll want to be looking for a home by mid-September, yes - that's next month!

We fully expect a minor-rush as we near the deadline for the credit. This means more homes going faster and with multiple offers as you beat against some of your fellow first-timers to secure. Already we're seeing certain price ranges getting multiple offers. The last deal I put in was one of 6 offers, 2 went over-asking!

So if you're looking to cash in on that tax credit, don't be waiting till the last minute. Go ahead and get pre-qualified and start looking (with me of course!) so that you have time to get the home you want and close in time!

You can start your home search here at My Website ! or just catch me directly and let me know what you're looking for in a home.

Don't put this off any longer if you're wanting to get in on the tax credit!

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Sheree Wilkerson

Realty World Alliance

316-461-0575 call/txt

sheree@rwwichita.com

http://www.KansasHomeBuzz.com

Beautiful, classic College Hill - one of the more sought after areas of Wichita, KS!

Originally the area for affluent WSU professors to build, the area is now a great collection of vintage homes from the 1920's and 1930's era.

Generally the area is defined as between Hillside and Oliver, and between Kellogg and Central. Some folks try to carry this across Oliver, but that's actually considered Crown Heights area. Just a couple of miles north is the Wichita State University campus. And of course, the southern boundary of Kellogg makes it very easy to get anywhere in the city. Another mile or so down Douglas and you'll pass through the Eastborough area and to the Towne East Mall. So on top of being a classy vintage area, it's also convenient and features a good selection of its own eclectic shops in the Douglas Design District.

College Hill Park is a beautiful, peaceful, grassy park with established trees, great walking paths and large open areas for playing or picnicking! It's located on the southern end of College Hill, south of Douglas, in one of the few hilly areas of the city.

As far as the homes of College Hill, look below and see many of the features of the area that you'll find. Keep in mind that these are vintage 20's and 30's homes. You'll find a lot of original features, many which may seem odd to us these days, smaller yards and garages, rough basements, and generally higher maintenance homes. Ah, but if only WE could look so good going into our 90's and beyond!



And are you looking for a vintage College Hill home to call your own? Click below to see all the homes currently on the College Hill Market, including the condo's at Douglas/Hillside.

College Hill for Sale HERE!

Ready to talk more about your goals for a vintage home or are you ready to put yours on the market? Drop me a line!

~Sheree

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Sheree Wilkerson
sheree@rwwichita.com
316-461-0575

Realty World Alliance - www.KansasHomeBuzz.com

It's that time again, but with a twist!!

Sedgwick County recently mailed its tax valuation notices. This important little piece of paper tells you what the county thinks your home could sell for as of December 31, 2008. This value is derived from the past 2 years of comparable home sales in your area. An increase in value simply means that homes like yours are selling for that percent more, not necessarily that you have made that much more in improvements.

The twist? This year Sedgwick County announced that 72% of homes will see NO increase in their value at all.

Increasing property values are generally good for everyone! It means your property is increasing in value, so your investment is growing and worth more. However, it does hit your pocketbook tax-wise. In this market, even flat values are good - that means our properties have not LOST in value like many other areas of the country. From that value they assign your home, your property taxes are then developed!

From that Appraised Value, a small percentage (11 1/2% for Residential) results in your Assessed Value (the amount they base taxes off of). That value is then multiplied by the mill levy in your area to determine the property taxes that you will pay for 2009.

For example, your house is valued at $100,000:

The Assessed Value is $11,500.

The mill levy in your area is 118.05.

Your taxes would then be 11500*.11805 = $1357.57 roughly

So if your value increased by the typical 3% for the area - your taxes roughly went up $40/year.

NOW then. You might happen to not agree with the Appraiser's Office as to your value. Keep in mind that the Appraiser's Office operates off the data it has on record, and only visits a property typically once every 6 years. So any changes, for better or for worse, might not be on their record.

If you want to appeal your property valuation, here's what to do:

1. Fill out the form on the back of your valuation notice and mail it in. Include any days/times that are not good to schedule you on and indicate why you don't agree with the value. This must be done before MARCH 31st!
2. You will receive a letter with a date and time for an informal hearing. If you can't make that, call as soon as possible because times fill up quickly.
3. The hearing is informal. You will meet face to face with one of the real estate appraisers who actually goes out and does the evaluations of property.
4. Bring any supporting documentation - if you disagree about the condition of the property then bring in photos, bids for repairs, etc. If you've had it independently appraised or recently bought it, bring those in. If you disagree about size, amount of basement finish, or such, you'll need to request that they re-inspect the property in person.

They're fairly reasonable people and understand that they do "mass" appraisal and individual homes may vary. They typically have a 60% change rate - meaning that they do change values for 60% of those that appeal. But appealing is the first step!

Now if you get "no change" in value from the hearing, you can appeal to the next level.

For more information, do visit the Appraiser's Office website, or call them at 316.660.9110. You can also look up your property's appraised value at this site, if you don't already know it.

And if you do decide to appeal - Good Luck to you!

And if you get your valuation and decide that you're ready to sell that gold-mine of yours, give me a hollar. I'll get those taxes out of your name and into someone else's! :)

~Sheree

316-461-0575 ............. sheree@rwwichita.com ................ www.KansasHomeBuzz.com