Concerned About Selling Before You Find Another Home?

Many buyers have justifiable concerns about timing when they are both buying and selling a home. But if you find yourself not wanting to move twice, ask us about contractual language to give you a negotiable close date, or to opt out of the selling process entirely if the timing is just completely wrong.


A contractual clause like this can allow you to go ahead and sell your current home with a much greater comfort level. And then you have also eliminated having to buy contingent to selling your current home.

In our current Buyer's Market, contingencies are not being readily accepted. Even if they are accepted, they frequently don't result in a closed sale. Another buyer who is "ready and able" can pull the carpet right out from under you! Most sellers who accept contingencies employ a "48 hour clause" that gives them the right to move on within 48 hours of notifying you that they have a buyer without the home selling contingency (even though you are under contract).

So if you are nervous about the timing of selling your current home, be sure and consult with The NO BULL Team. We can help keep those jitters at bay and get you through the process and into your next home!


Marianne and Dwayne Smith
The NO BULL Team
nobullteam@kw.com
615-517-6560
615-509-2428

The Seven DONT"S of Mortgage Funding

Wish I had been aware of this information the first time I attempted to buy a home:

The Seven DONT'S of Mortgage Funding

1. Don't change your employment status.

2. Don't make any major purchases (cars, furniture, home theater, vacations, etc.).

3. Don't increase your credit card debt or miss any payments.

4. Don't change bank accounts or make undisclosed large deposits.

5. Don't apply for a credit card, co-sign a loan or make a credit inquiry.

6. Don't spend money you have set aside for closing--not any, not ever.

7. Don't delay in providing all paperwork asked for by the mortgage company.

If you follow this advice, you can secure the loan and close on your home! Many don't realize that there is a final credit check before the loan is funded...

Source: Gary Keller, Shift, 2009

7 Tips for First Time Home Buyers

A year after the financial collapse of 2008, the housing market is very different than it was before the foreclosure crisis. Here are seven bits of wisdom from economists and financial planners for anyone contemplating a home purchase today:

• 
  Old-fashioned basics are more important than ever. The safest way to purchase a home is to put down 20 percent on a fixed-rate, 30-year (or less) mortgage.



• 
  Don’t become overconfident about income growth. Even though buyers in their 20s and 30s will likely see their incomes grow more quickly than previous generations, it is important to act sensibly when borrowing.



• 
  Anyone contemplating adding children to the family should calculate whether they could live on one income because having both halves of a couple work may turn out to be impractical.



• 
  Include a maintenance budget. Even new homes need upkeep and repairs.



• 
  Buyers who can't afford their dream home now should opt for a starter home where they can save money each month for what they really want.



• 
  Consider a property that can be expanded and improved down the road when money is available.



• 
  No two buyers are the same, but they should all feel confident with the loan they enter into, no matter the size of the mortgage.Source: The New York Times, Ron Lieber (09/12/2009)

A New Concept: The Thirty Minute Open House

My broker introduced me to a brilliant marketing idea recently: the thirty minute open house!

Holding an open house for only thirty minutes instead of the usual two hour window accomplishes three critical things:

1. You have immediately created an urgency for buyers to see the home. They may rearrange their route to be sure they make it to yours.



2. The shortened time span means that more potential buyers will be in the home at the same time. Perception then becomes that this is a "hot" property.



3. Buyers who are looking at the home are more likely to be targeted buyers (not looky-loos).

So if you see me out hosting a thirty minute open house, it's not that I have a train to catch! But I do have a BUYER to catch!

Marianne Smith
The Real Estate Cowgirl and The NO BULL Team
http://www.therealestatecowgirl.com/
615-517-6560
Keller Williams Realty, Hendersonville, TN
Each office independently owned and operated

Financing Hobby Farms/Ranches In the Current Market

Had an amazingly informative conversation yesterday with Jeff Stine of Platinum Financial Funding regarding how current market changes are affecting ranch/hobby farm financing here in Tennessee. Here are some tips that might be helpful if you are considering financing a hobby farm or ranch:

• If you stay at 10 acres or less with a home, you have several financing options, including FHA. If you go over 10 acres, your options diminish quickly. Important note: FHA is not currently fond of modular homes or trailers on acreage and will not finance them. Your primary option for more than 10 acres with home, or modular homes or trailers, or land by itself is BANK financing.

• Community Banks are your best bet for financing most farm/ranch properties over 10 acres. The four Jeff recommended most highly are: American Security Bank and Trust, Sumner Bank and Trust (at Indian Lake), First State Bank, and Wilson Bank and Trust. Bank financing usually requires 20 to 25% down.

• If you find the ideal equestrian property with barn/arena, consider the possibility of setting it up as a business loan.

• If you find land that you’d like to build on, then you could consider a staggered construction loan.

• If you find a property that is a major fixer-upper, you need a bank loan and NOT a traditional mortgage. Once the property meets inspection criteria, then you could always refi and move into a mortgage.
  

Most of all, don't get discouraged. If you partner with THE REAL ESTATE COWGIRL, there IS usually a solution! Knowing what the current financial climate is is half the battle.