Lisa Spalding, REALTOR, CDPE

Now, I'm not a big follower of baseball, but I came across this short story from By Referral Only. Cute!

What Can We Learn from Baseball?

Here's a great story about baseball - and perspective:

A little boy was overheard talking to himself as he strutted through the backyard, wearing his baseball cap and toting a ball and bat. "I'm the greatest hitter in the world," he announced. Then he tossed the ball into the air, swung at it, and missed.

"Strike one!" he yelled. Undaunted, he picked up the ball and said again, "I'm the greatest hitter in the world!" He tossed the ball into the air. When it came down he swung again and missed. "Strike two!" he cried.

The boy then paused a moment to examine his bat and ball carefully. He spit on his hands and rubbed them together. He straightened his cap and said once more, "I'm the greatest hitter in the world!" Again he tossed the ball up in the air and swung at it. He missed. "Strike Three!"

"Wow!" he exclaimed. "I'm the greatest pitcher in the world!"

Either way - he's right. Isn't perspective a wonderful thing?

Copyright 2009. By Referral Only.

Best wishes in your home search!

--Lisa Spalding

"How To" Buy a Home Report--FREE for Buyers

Click here:

http://www.orlandoareapropertysource.com/

I've missed everyone here on AR for the past few weeks. I haven't written anything recently, due mostly to being uninspired and it pains me to think about re-blogging someone else's hard work or re-posting my own. So, I'd like to talk a little bit about what I've gained from watching Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and from a real estate trainer I've had the privilege of learning from recently. So, here goes!

I have insomnia sometimes, I think, because some nights my mind is just whirring with how to solve the real estate problems that seem to always arrrive when transacting business with people. So, if I'm not on AR or FB or taking an on-line real estate course, I watch t.v. The only decent thing to watch in the wee hours of the morning is Law and Order: Special Victims Unit. Plus, it's typically a pleasure to watch a woman (M. Hargitay) kick butt on t.v.

1. Anyway, whenever there is a crime committed, it seems that there are a few rules that the detectives follow when ferreting-out the truth. One rule they have on the show is to "always follow the money." Usually, the crime was committed by someone who will benefit from it financially (or otherwise).

What I got from this "cop" Rule are two things. One is that People generally act in their own best interest. How this relates to real estate is exactly that--People act in their own best interest, or however they think will benefit them most at any given time. They use the information they're given (whether it's correct or incorrect info) and then they act. So, the next time you hear something on the news, radio, or something someone said regarding real estate, PLEASE check it out before acting on that information. I cannot tell you how many times that I have heard from a customer, "Well, X from work said that I can/should/will be able to..." [do whatever] when I was positive that that person was not an expert in real estate & the information was not only false but the customer had already acted on the faulty information and I could not help them. Be careful where you get your information. Get your real estate information from reliable experts.

The other thing I got from the "follow the money" idea is whether we like the current real estate market or not, someone is always making money. If you are unhappy with your current financial situation, then take a look at others who ARE making money in this market and do what they are doing (which seems to be buying/selling bank-owned properties and dealing with short sales.

2. Another Rule on the show is "evidence is necessary." On Law and Order: SVU, f there is no evidence, then a crime generally cannot be proven to have been committed. This idea of evidence is necessary is true in real estate, too. Gone are the days of business being conducted on a handshake and someone's given word. Sad, but true. If you have a transaction and it's not written down, it's not a real deal. Or, if you have a deal and miss an initial or a signature, that could pose a problem. Worse; neglect to have a written addendum of something that was discussed, that discussion never really happened. Written documentation is necessary; get everything in writing.

3. Okay-last thing for now. I am almost done working with a real estate trainer, Steve Woodruff. He presents very well and is usually soft-spoken and teaches a "soft-selling" method of selling real estate. One thing I have gotten from his classes so far is that "You don't get what you deserve; you get what you negotiate." That is certainly true in real estate, as well in other areas of life. We are constantly negotiating, all the time, whether we realize it or not. I have a LOT of examples of this Rule but I'm sure you can come up with TONS of your own examples for this one. :)

Whether you are the Buyer, the Agent, or the Loan Officer/Lender for the Buyer of a bank-owned property, just be careful that the bank you are buying the property from can actually SELL the property to you. Bank-owned homes are uber-good deals and even steals in some cases. What can you do to protect yourself and (try to) ensure that the property can convey to you?

When a Buyer enters into a contract to purchase a bank-owned home, also called an R.E.O. (Real Estate Owned), they believe that the bank has the right to sell the property to them and most of the time that is true. But what if you are in the middle of a transaction with a bank and are not one of the "lucky ones" and you find out at the last minute that there are clouds on the title for the property?

Here are some things you can do:

1. Request (nicely) that the title company (or in most cases, the attorney handling the transaction) checks the title on a weekly basis up until the closing. They will NOT want to do this but it could mean the difference to you of owning the property in a timely manner or not.

2. See if there is the proper Power of Attorney for real estate already generated and signed to convey the property. For example, with all the issues with banks, takeovers, etc. your bank today may not be able to sell the property if they merge/get taken over by another bank, so MORE DELAYS could occur. For example, if the property is Wachovia-owned, Wells Fargo is going to own them (or maybe already does own them?) which will cause delays. So, see if the listing agent, title company, attorney (or whoever) has a Power of Attorney to sell the property.

3. Have an attorney review your offer, the final contract, the chain of title, etc. And, yes, it WILL cost you money but typically, it's just a few hundred dollars. I know most real estate agents will cringe when I suggest this but we have to do what is in the best interest of our customer, so just bite the bullet and if they want yet another attorney involved, then fine and just understand that more delays are likely to occur. :)

Can you think of any other ways to protect yourself or your customer/client? Thank you in advance for your comments.

Happy Hunting for Great Deals!

** DISCLAIMER: The information contained above is not meant to be construed as legal, financial, or tax advice, so do not take it as such.

Good Information for Buyers & Sellers Located at:

http://www.winterparkhomefinder.com/

Search for Homes Myself on My Computer in the Privacy of My Home at:

http://lisaspalding.mfr.mlxchange.com/

Best wishes in your home search!

--Lisa Spalding

"How To" Buy a Home Report--FREE for Buyers

Click here:

http://www.orlandoareapropertysource.com/

MISINFORMATION About Loans and Down Payment Assistance--

Specifically about Orange County Down Payment Assistance is Running Rampant

Well, I am not a mortgage specialist, loan officer, lender, and I have no affiliation with Orange County Down Payment Assistance BUT I have successfully gotten money from them for a Buyer I worked with recently and I am constantly faced with people spreading misinformation about their program, probably because the information is confusing in and of itself and partly because everyone involved in a transaction with them must jump through many hoops (the Buyer, the Loan Officer, the REALTOR, and sometimes the Seller, too). That may be why they get a bad rap BUT--it's worth it for the Buyer who has little or no down payment and is willing to jump through those hoops.

Most recently, I was told by a two well-meaning people that our Orange County Down Payment Assistance Program for First-Time Home Buyers is all out of money. That is just not the case (for this week).

In the first instance, the well-meaning Loan Officer I was recently introduced to said flat-out: "I just came from a meeting in which we were told that the money is almost all gone."

In the second instance, I was at a listing appointment/Seller initial consultation and the Seller told me that another agent that she had met with said to her that that money is "all gone."

Hmmm. While it IS true that there is a lot less money available from Orange County's DPA/SHIP Program, there still IS money available (at least, as of this week). How do I know? Because on Friday, a Loan Officer for one of the Buyers I'm working with told me we got the thumb's up from OC DPA for a new property. That particular Buyer doesn't own the property yet but when the county has the entire loan package and the county reviews the file and says "yes," then it's very likely that it'll go through. That fact doesn't mean it's a done deal but it's likely to mean the money is still there.

So, if you are hearing that a particular loan program is or isn't available or that a particular county or city's down payment assistance funds are or aren't available, please check your source. Well-meaning people may or may not have all the pertinent information. Or, maybe they're talking about another program entirely. Or, maybe they know it's just a very difficult transaction to put together and don't want to bother. These programs are near-to no down payment (100% financing is still available to some people and for some properties) but the Buyer must have at least $1,000 into the transaction.

Well, in the course of writing this post, I heard another agent in my office say "Down Payment Assistance is GONE" and I literally cringed. He confused another lady in my office b/c he didn't qualify his statement by adding "Seller-Funded" DPA is gone, which is true--at least for the time being. But, that may be coming back in a limited form, too. The confused lady in my office did the right thing, though--she got more information and is better-educated because of it. Do the right thing for yourself--GET MORE INFORMATION before you give up entirely.

Okay. Remember when Virtual Tours/360 Tours came out? You saw some pics. You were amazed. If you were a REALTOR, you didn't want to PAY to have them in your listing and you didn't want to take your own pics for your listings. So, you just bit the bullet and bought them for premier listings, mostly b/c people dangled the percentages in your face about listings with Virtual Tours sell X times faster than those without. The plain fact is, a Buyer will make a choice about whether to even go SEE the home based on the pictures and/or Virtual Tour in the listing.

So, I was introduced this week to what may be the next best thing since the Virtual Tour.

During my office meeting this week, our broker discussed a lot of what you would typically hear such as current market outlook, some in-house issues, what mortgages are still available, the importance of using our own title company, etc. Pretty standard stuff. What made this meeting interesting to me was his choice of speaker for the meeting.

My broker invited a representative from a company called Diakrit to our meeting. Their website is www.diakrit.com

Another factor in whether a Buyer will even choose to tour the home is with the use of a Floor Plan in the pictures on the listing. You've seen them in a few listings here and there--Builder floor plans or artist's renderings about how a property may look. For listings without a Floor Plan in the pictures, Buyers have no idea about the flow of the house or if they can see the kids playing in the backyard from the kitchen window.

One of the other things that most Buyers have trouble with is VISUALIZING how a property would look with furniture in it (Where DOES the bed go?). Also, for listing agents who are working with a Seller than has a lot of clutter, a lot of furniture, a messy house--maybe a Floor Plan with furniture in it could show a Buyer an idealized version of what the house COULD look like if the Seller put more effort into staging.

The Diakrit company specializes in FLOOR PLANS for residential buildings. I don't mean just floor plans, though. There's floor plans and then there's Diakrit's floor plans. They have your standard floor plans like 2 Dimensional and 3 Dimensional. Then, the choices get INTERESTING.

Diakrit provide services for REALTORS and for Builders. REALTORS may draw up a sketch, submit it to them for a pretty nice floor plan within about 24 hours. You have to pay in advance and get "credited" for services and have those credits debited from the account. I haven't really researched the Builder portion of it, but I did tell one particularly good Builder about it and he's probably going to do business with them.

I have not used Diakrit as yet but, when I get an interesting listing, I definitely will. And, their products are cheap. Truly. Ask any Builder.

Take a look at their website and give me some feedback here on whether you think this would be a good idea for some listings. Thank you in advance.