About Conroe's Lake Conroe

We are all too painfully aware of the woes of the economy. You cannot escape the ever-present topic every time you turn on the television, listen to the radio or surf the Net. The reality of the economy however, is that we are all affected by what is happening. Therefore, do you stick your head in the sand or do you engage in a different tactic like being creative?

Of course real estate is not immune to the economic challenges out there. We have seen lending tighten, appraisals tighten along with job losses and stock market crashes. All of these factors have touched us in real estate in a very real way.

When doing business with our Seller's, we have had to educate ourselves as REALTORS® and have really had to become local economists. Knowing what is going on in your neck of the woods is critical when knowing how to effectively price a home these days.

Getting creative in selling homes has become a new way of life! One of those creative tactics is through educating your potential Seller's and Buyer's about the realities of the market. Potential clients need to ask their agents the tough questions and feel confident that they are getting the very best information that they can.

The way agents marketed a home a year ago may not be the most effective way to market a home today. Print ads still have value but the wise agent and client must look at which print media is the most cost effective as well as receiving the most exposure. Agents must look for innovative marketing techniques that really work. The Internet is a very efficient, quick and relatively inexpensive way to market homes. Interview your listing agent to find out exactly how many Internet sites they use and if those sites are effective.

Another creative tactic is of course pricing homes to sell without giving them away. A very creative way to help Seller's save money is to price the home right from the start to avoid playing the reduction game. Rather than Buyer's and Seller's going back and forth about price, have Seller's offer incentives toward closing costs or upgrades. The beauty of this approach is that Seller's can write off these fees on their taxes. You can't write off a price reduction.

Agents must be willing now to follow up, follow up, follow up on potential leads for their listings. We are no longer in the days of being order takers. It is imperative for the real estate agents today to put their efforts into chasing the lead and chasing the potential new clients.

Clients need to feel like they can call upon their agent to work together as a team. Put your heads together and get creative to have your property stand out. There are people out there buying right now and if you outthink the market, you could very well be successful in the sale of your home.

Conroe Homes for Sale

The business of residential real estate is different every single day. As an agent for over 30 years, I have experienced the cycle of a down market and of a market flooded with short sales and foreclosures. I get calls everyday asking me what a short sale is and what an REO is! I thought I would do a quick lesson on the two and why this is important to know for all future sellers and buyers.

First of all a short sale occurs when a home owner finds themselves getting behind on their mortgage payments and don't know how they will catch up. Rather than having their property go into foreclosure, another option is to see if your lender will consider doing a short sale. Basically this means that the lender agrees to accept less than the total amount due on the mortgage note through a "short sale".

It is important for home owners to know that not all lenders will agree to do this so checking with your lender is critical. Also however, it is key to remain in good contact with your lender on the reality with what is going on with your financial situation. It is much easier to work through a difficult time when good lines of communication have been established.

If you are considering approaching your lender concerning a short sale, finding a good real estate agent to work with you to get the property sold is key. A good team made up of the lender and a real estate agent can get your property sold quickly and correctly. As with anything, it is important to check with an attorney to make sure that a short sale is the way to go and that there won't be any hidden legal ramifications for you.

An REO is simply Real Estate Owned property or rather, property that has been taken over by a lending institution. These properties have been foreclosed on and are now in custody so to speak by the banks. Banks typically want to get them sold as quickly as possible so they can recoup their money. Therefore, the homes are priced to sell quickly and most people get into bidding wars over them.

With foreclosures come the "buyer beware" warnings. Foreclosures are sold "as is" so it is imperative to work with a seasoned agent who can walk you through the procedure ensuring that you are getting all of the necessary inspections and are weighing out the costs to refurbish and repair many of these homes. Make sure you know exactly what it is you are buying. It is much better to lose a couple of hundred dollars on inspections rather than tens of thousands or more getting into a home that had many more problems than you anticipated.

Education and communication are key essentials in either of these situations. Get good sound advice, do your homework and you could avoid foreclosure! If purchasing, use the advice of good contractors to get good numbers on the cost of repairs and go in with your eyes wide open!

Lake Conroe Foreclosures

Guys seem to have lots of time for bonding with each other; golf, fishing, watching sports. Sometimes it seems I have too little time for bonding with my sister friends.

Well that changed this week-end - 5 of my sister friends and I went to see "Menopause, The Musical." The musical was a real hoot. I highly recommend it if it ever comes to your area. I believe they have several traveling companies. The jest of the show is 4 average women who are in menopause. Their songs are oldies with the words changed to reflect symptoms of the dreaded change; My Guy became My Thighs, Tropical Heat Wave became Tropical Hot Flash and so on. I really felt bad for the men in the audience, I'm sure they thought at any moment there might be a riot. I have never been to a play or musical where the audience was so involved. It reminded me of a rock concert for "old ladies". People were dancing in the aisles, wearing costumes and having the time of their lives. The energy in that theater was unbelievable.

We stayed at a fabulous bed & breakfast and as luck would have it, we were the only people there, so it felt as if we were at a friend's house. The house itself was 100+ years old and had been the home of a prosperous businessman. The Victorian Inn survived both hurricanes that hit Galveston Island; one in the early 1900's and the one last year. The inn keeper had many stories to tell us, as she was one of only 40 people who remained on the island during the storm. The water rose 12 feet on her property and completely flooded the first floor of the house. She was a brave woman but as she said "I'm a Texas woman and I was well armed". We also learned that she had been a Playboy Bunny back in the 70's and she had many stories to tell about that.

All in the all - this was the best medicine for getting rid of those winter doldrums and reconnecting with my friends. We laughed so much this week-end that our faces ached. I love my family but there is nothing like a Sister Friend. I would recommend a getaway to everyone, even if it is just for lunch or a movie. It resets you and you are ready to face anything, even the real estate market.

Article by: Carol Hawkins

Conroe Homes for Sale

Myself and three other team members, Marion, Jacob and Christian all attended the recent KW Family Reunion in Orlando, Florida! It was cold there! The convention however was very warm and inviting! Despite the economic struggles and bad news we hear constantly in the news, it was refreshing meeting other agents from all over the country who were there and had great attitudes.

Even agents from Florida, California and Nevada where we have heard they are starving were saying they have found creative ways to keep their businesses going. Goes to show you that it is attitude more than anything that allows each of us to either reach our potential or bury our heads in the sand.

The keynote speaker was Clint Swindall who gave us a powerful lesson on being positive. His catch phrase of, "Tell me something good!" resonated with the crowd and you could hear people saying this for the rest of the convention. We laughed when he talked about asking others, "How are you?" and they answer by telling you all of the junk going on in their lives.

ALSO THE BEST NEWS WAS THAT KELLER WILLIAMS INTERNATIONAL IS NOW #3 IN THE NATION! WE SURPASSED REMAX AND WE ARE ELATED! This by far is an example of the genius of Gary Keller. The model that he has set for the company works and we are living proof of this.

My next article will be on the newly launched KW Commercial which is going to become a force within the industry very soon! I went to all of the classes in this area and heard from some of the leading minds in the business! Great program - great news!

The Franke Team celebrated on many levels. The South Texas Region of which we are a part of finished in 1st place for all the regions in the nation! We had a really fun party and danced the night away to celebrate with everyone! It was fun meeting other agents from our region. We have some good dancers too!

We also finished in the #11 position for Groups in the entire country! We are so excited about this and blessed! We are in the Double Platinum category which is a huge accomplishment.

The final morning of the conference was the Inspirational Breakfast which is a tradition. This is a very emotional and heartwarming time for everyone. Great music, inspirational and moving stories shared by real folks who have overcome so much allows us all to come back to the reality of why we all do what we do.

Because Keller Williams truly believes in God first, family second and work third, the company is firmly rooted in keeping priorities in the right order. I am proud to be with this incredible company and urge any of you out there who would like to find out if this would be a good fit for you - give me a call. I would love to share our vision here at Keller. You can find my information through our website.

Have a fantastic week - and....TELL ME SOMETHIN GOOD!

Conroe Homes for Sale

Everyday is a new day with the economic stimulus package. I think most of us are fairly confused by the whole thing are just sitting tight to see what really comes of it. I am personally interested in the bill that is specific towards homebuyers with down payment assistance.

On Jan. 15, the House Democratic leadership outlined an economic stimulus package ranging from health care issues to home buyer credits. A credit for home buying could bring a relief to the lending markets and the real estate markets which would ultimately boost the national home sales woes.

Looking closely at the stimulus package tucked away in the tax section was a significant improvement to July's congressional effort to stimulate home sales. This program offers a credit of up to $7,500 to purchasers who had never bought a house or hadn't owned one during the previous three years. To qualify, taxpayers would need to close on a house between April 8, 2008, and this coming July 1. Now we are hearing that this amount could be raised to $15,000.

Who knows how the final numbers will play out and how the funds will be available are yet to be discovered. Although final details on a revised credit are being hammered out between the House and Senate, there's a good chance that buyers who sought the credit in 2008, and new purchasers in 2009, will be relieved of the repayment requirement.

According to industry estimates, removing the repayment rule could lead to an additional 202,000 purchases this year. The National Association of Realtors is pushing for the July 1 deadline to be extended to Dec. 31, opening the door to even greater numbers of sales.

In the meantime, the IRS has introduced two recent advisories on the credit, plus a new Form 5405 for taxpayers interested in claiming the $7,500 benefit, either for 2008 or 2009. You can download a copy of the form at www.irs.gov in the publications and forms section.

Of course there are many stipulations attached to this money so future buyers need to read all information carefully and understand what they are signing up for. Read the fine print and get help from your CPA or attorney before you jump in.

As Realtors, we are keeping an eye on what is happening in Washington. Of course we all want what is best for the future economy of the country. A quick fix or band aid approach is not going to help in the long run. Housing incentives however, are more long term and gets money moving and people into homes.

Lake Conroe Homes for Sale