Greenwich Real Estate News - Buying Brand New Homes

If you have decided that you and your family are ready for a new home, there is much to consider, including what you can afford, what kind of home you want, location, costs and more. Well, if you have thought about all of this and decided you would like to try looking at brand new homes to buy there are some things to still consider first. Here are some tips to buying brand new homes to help make the process easier and get your dream faster.

Ask your Greenwich real estate agent for advice
Your real estate agent has experience with the market for all kinds of homes brand new or older. They will be able to provide you with the resources you need to decide if a brand new home is right for you.

Look into the Builder’s Reputation
Ask neighbors and also your agent about the builder. Also, look at the quality of the construction in surrounding homes and check into who the builder typically sells to. All of this will make a difference in the quality of your new home.

Do not always use the builder’s lender
Shopping around for a lender that is just right for you and will help you out with all your needs is a good idea. Atomically using the builder’s lender may not offer you the best deal and they may not have your best interests in mind.

Obtain legal advice
Talking to a real estate lawyer may be good idea before buying a brand new home. This way you know exactly what you will be getting yourself into and know about any hidden costs or fees included.

Hire a home inspector
As with any other home purchase, it is very important to hire your own home inspector. They will help you make sure everything is of good quality and ready to live in. Then you can always have builders fix any problems.

These entire brand new home buying tips will help you and your family decide if a brand new home is just right for you. Then this will help you get the process started. This way you can move to your new home with fewer worries and just enjoy the future.

Greenwich Real Estate News - Carry Back Mortgages

If you are the buyer of a new home but have only reasonably good credit or live in a place where interest rates for loans are high, you may be wondering what to do. Carry Back Mortgages might be a good option for you and your family if the seller agrees. These mortgages are where the seller takes care of the financing for the buyer instead of a bank. They may finance all or part of the purchase price. This may be a good choice when money is tight. Here is some advice and tips about carry back mortgages to help you get started.

Ask your Greenwich real estate agent for advice
Real estate agents have experience with all different types of financing and may be able to help you decide if a carry back mortgage option is best for you.

Sellers may be more likely to use this option because of financial gain
Sellers may be likely to help out a buyer with this type of mortgage because they will have a monthly income, it gives them a better rate of return, and they may receive a higher sales price.

Buyers do not have to worry about being denied by a bank
With this type of financing, you just have to reach an agreement with the seller and follow through with that agreement, and do not have to worry about high interest rates or credit problems.

Payments may be lower with a more reasonable interest rate
If you are a buyer, this is good because you may get a more reasonable interest rate and more reasonable payment schedule than you would with a bank or other type of mortgage. This means less hassle.

The closing process may be faster
If the financing is worked out between the buyer and selling than the closing of the house may be faster because there will not be another lender involved. This will be nice for everyone involved.

Carry back mortgage options offer benefits to both a buyer and a seller, making it a win win situation if everything is agreed upon. Then the buyer can move into to their new home worry free and the seller can move on to their new future with fewer worries as well.

Movers or Do it Yourself?

Buying or selling a home usually means one thing: time to pull out boxes and start packing.

For some, packing for a move is a great opportunity to look through the memories and treasures they have gathered throughout the year. For the rest of us, it is a stressful task that we would just as soon get over as soon as possible. Finding boxes, wrapping breakables correctly, and then carting everything to your new home can be stressful, especially if you’re already busy with work and family responsibilities.

The alternative, of course, is to hire a moving company to pack and move for you. Although this is the more expensive option, it can save a lot of time, which is why most people choose to hire a moving company. However, they can be expensive, and it is sometimes easier to move on your own.

So, should you hire a professional, or do it yourself? It depends on a few factors:

1. How Much Stuff Do You Have to Move?

If you are moving from a small apartment into your first home, and you don’t have a lot to move, it’s probably going to be easier to pack on your own, and then ask some friends to help you. If your family is moving, including children and all of their things, it is probably better to hire a mover, unless you have a lot of extra time and patience. This is especially true if you have a lot of heavy, bulk, or difficult to move items, such as furniture.

2. How Far Are You Moving?

Are you just going across town, or are you going across the country? A short move, even if you do have a lot of stuff, can probably be done with the help of family and friends, if you don’t mind making a lot of trips. However, if you are moving a long distance, even more than 30 miles away, it is probably smarter to hire a moving company, or at least rent a moving truck. Being able to move everything in one load will be much easier, and won’t take as much gas.

3. How Much Time Do You Have?

If your time is at a premium, consider hiring a moving company. Professional movers can do the job with very little input from you while you continue on with your busy day. While you will need to be home while the movers do their initial estimate and while they are packing, you won’t be spending the weeks leading up to the move trying to do all of the packing yourself.

4. How Comfortable Are You With Someone Packing and Moving Your Belongings?

The chance of something getting broken by a mover is small, but it is still a possibility and one that should be considered. Even if you hire someone to do the packing and moving for you, you should still take the time to package any irreplaceable belongings yourself, and drive them to the new home in your own vehicle. Many moving companies ask you to pack any jewelry, antiques, or other valuable items yourself, to avoid something being broken accidently.

You should also consider how comfortable you are with someone going through all of your belongings as they pack. Some people are comfortable with this, but many aren’t. Instead of hiring movers to pack everything, pack all of your personal items, such as clothing, yourself, and let the movers handle things like dishes, books, and bedding.

5. How Much Help Can You Get?

If you live in a town surrounded by family and friends that can help out during a move, you may not need to hire a mover. This is especially true if you have friends with pick-up trucks. Spending a day moving as a team may even be fun. However, for those who do not have anyone nearby that can help, hiring a moving company might be the only way to move.

Hiring a moving company is a great idea, if you can afford it and can use the extra help. But don’t discount the benefits of moving yourself, especially if you can get help for free. Renting a moving truck might be all that you need to get everything moved.

Have you hired movers in the past? Were they worth the expense?

Greenwich Real Estate News - Afraid to Buy? Don’t Be!

Despite tax incentives, first time home buyer assistance, and low interest rates, it’s easy to understand why you might be afraid to buy a home right now. The market is still fairly unstable, and house values are still falling in some areas.

Buying a home is always risky, but it’s a risk that very commonly pays off. Real estate works in cycles—some years, the prices are up, during others the prices are down. It can be hard, not to mention frustrating, to try guessing what the next year or two will be like. Remember that buying a home is a long term investment. There might be a short term loss, but housing prices will go back up, and the home you buy this year will probably be worth more than you paid for it a few years from now.

Still, there are several fears that many first time, and second and third time, homebuyers face when considering purchasing a home, and they are all very valid. Let’s take a look at some of the most common fears, and see why you don’t really have to worry.

Fear 1: I might lose my job.

This is one of the biggest fears of potential homebuyers, and, in today’s economy, it is certainly valid. One of the best ways to alleviate this worry is to have a rainy-day fund in place before buying a home. Have enough money set aside to cover at least three month’s of mortgage payments while you look for a new position. And, while this is not a guarantee, and certainly no reason to be lax about payments, most lenders will not start foreclosure proceedings until you are two or three months behind. For those who are currently renting, this means that staying in a home after a job loss will be easier than staying in an apartment.

Fear 2: I won’t be able to afford my mortgage payments.

The easiest way to avoid this problem is to not buy a home that you can’t afford. Consider the amount of your payments, after taxes, interest, and any other applicable fees are added in. This amount should not equal more than 1/3 of your total monthly income. If you can get that amount down to ¼ of your take home income, that’s even better.

When you start looking for a mortgage, keep this number in mind. If you bring home $4000 a month, try to keep your mortgage payments around $1000, or less. Don’t take accept a mortgage with monthly payments over this amount. Also, make sure you have that rainy day fund saved, outside of what you used for a down payment. Having a cushion for tough times will make you feel more secure.

Fear 3: I’ll lose money.

This, unfortunately, is a risk common to any type of investment. The home you buy today for $150,000 might have sold for less three months from now, or may now be worth less after you’ve bought it. Unfortunately, it is hard to know when real estate values have hit bottom until after it has passed. If you wait too long to buy a home, you could very easily end up losing even more money, by paying considerably more for the home you by a year or two from now.

Buying a home is a long term investment. Even a short term dip in value doesn’t mean much, unless you are planning on selling. The market has dips and rises, but the overall trend is that home values do, eventually, go up. The average price for a new home in 1980 was $72,400. Today, that same home would cost $274,330. There are not many investments that go up $200,000 in value over 30 years.

There are definitely things to worry about when buying a home, but don’t let those worries automatically stop you from buying. Learn a little bit more about those fears, and see how you can alleviate them. Interest rates just hit a record low, averaging right around 5%. In the central NY area, some lenders are offering even lower rates. There will probably not be a better time to buy within the next 20 years.

So, what are you waiting for?

Greenwich Real Estate News - Short Sales: What You Need to Know

Short sale was a fairly unknown term, unless you were part of the real estate industry, until just recently. Although they are not a new concept, they weren’t as talked about as regular home sales or foreclosures. Of all the ways to buy a home, they are often the most misunderstood and confusing, but they can be one of the best ways to save money on buying a home.

A short sale is the purchasing of a home that is at risk for foreclosure for usually less than the home is worth. The current homeowner makes no money from the sale, but does get to escape with less damage to their credit score. It’s a complicated process because, unlike most home sales, the bank currently holding the mortgage has the ultimate say in whether or not a short sale can go through.

Here’s how it works. A current home owner is having difficulties keeping up with their payments, or maybe their home is worth considerably less than they are paying for it. At this point, they contact the bank and ask about the possibility of a short sale. If the bank gives the okay, the owner begins filling out the paperwork and then contacts a real estate agent to get the process started.

In a short sale, the bank accepts less than is actually owed on the home in order to avoid a costly foreclosure. A foreclosure can cost a bank thousands of dollars, not counting the time and effort that goes into it. To avoid this, many banks are willing to at least talk to a home owner about the possibility of a short sale. This is an excellent opportunity for buyers, allowing them to purchase a home for less than it is worth, in most cases.

There is a catch, however. Short sales are notoriously difficult to get accepted. The banks don’t want to lose any money on a home, and may stop a short sale if they feel that the amount offered is too low. Short sales also fail because of incorrectly filed paperwork and other small mistakes. It is important to know what to expect before you enter into a short sale, as either a buyer or seller. A buyer has to be dedicated to the home, and willing to work to get it. They must also be patient; a short sale can take months to go through, as opposed to a few weeks for a traditional home purchase.

New government incentives, offering banks stimulus money for each short sale they accept, have made banks more willing to accept a short sale. One of the best ways to successfully buy, or sell, a home through a short sale is to do some research and understand how the process works. Here are a couple sites to get you started:

A Field Guide to Short Sales

How to Handle Real Estate Short Sales

Would you consider buying through a short sale?

Greenwich Real Estate News - Four Steps to Making a House a Home

Congratulations, you’ve just bought a home! As you look around your newly acquired investment, you are first struck with a sense of pride, wonder, and excitement. As that feeling fades, a new one might take its place. You might notice that some of the walls have been painted a less than complimentary color, or that the carpeting has stains. Maybe the house just doesn’t feel like a home, your home.

That’s okay. It’s even perfectly normal. And, it’s a feeling that is easy to fix.

Before you do anything, start with a deep cleaning. Scrub the windows, walls and floors. Remove any window covers, and get a fresh look at your home. A fresh clean can make the home feel like it is yours—you’ve now put some work into it. That will allow you to really take ownership of the home.

Next, look at the walls. Are you happy with the colors, or would you like something different? Looking online for color ideas, or going to the local paint store for some paint swatches can inspire you to make changes. Consider the colors of any furniture, curtains, or other home items you already have. Find a color, or set of colors, that works well with the things you are bringing in to your new home. Just remember that it is easier to paint before you move everything in, if that is a possibility.

Flooring can be more expensive and more labor-intensive to change, but it can be worth it to get your home the way you want it. Before considering any changes, however, see if there are cheaper improvements you can make. Maybe the carpet only needs the care of a professional cleaning service, or perhaps the hardwood floor in the dining room needs to be sanded down and refinished. If you do decide to redo the flooring in your new home, be sure to consider how easy to care for the new flooring is. Picking something that looks nice, but will require a lot of extra work to keep it new, might not be right for everyone.

Now, it is finally time to move in your furniture. Set everything up, get settled, and take a look around. It is probably starting to feel like home now, right? Don’t hesitate to pick up accent pieces, new lighting, or other bits of décor to put your own personal style into your home. This is your place, and it should feel like you.

Even if you are still looking at homes to buy, keep these steps in mind. A house can change drastically with just a new coat of paint. It is easy to see a home for what it is, right now, when you are first viewing it. But I encourage you to take a closer look, and see a home for what it could be, with just a little work.

Greenwich Real Estate News - Three Questions Buyers Ask, and How to Answer Them

Chances are, you will have an opportunity to have a conversation with potential buyers interested in your home. And when you are talking to them, there are several questions that have a good chance of coming up. Knowing what they are ahead of time, and knowing how to answer them, can save you from an awkward moment later on, while you scramble for the best answer to give.

Why are you selling?

To them, the home you are selling may be the home of their dreams. They can’t imagine why you would want to leave. You want to answer honestly, but not scare anyone off. Maybe you need more (or less) space, or the yard requires too much upkeep. This is not the time to bring up the crazy neighbors, the window that leaks in a storm, or that woodchucks dig holes in the back yard. Keep your answer light and positive.

Are there any neighborhood changes planned?

Buyers want to know that the neighborhood they think they are buying is the same neighborhood they’re actually going to get. If you know that there are construction projects planned, or if there will be a new commercial site or residence going in nearby, let buyers know. But don’t miss the chance to play up any positive features in the neighborhood, like the new park, recently improved sidewalks, or vicinity to quality schools and shopping areas.

How much did you pay for the home?

This question has a few different parts. For one, buyers want to get a sense of how much you paid originally, and how long ago you paid it. This gives buyers a chance to see how much the home has appreciated over the years. It also gives buyers a sense of whether or not you might budge a bit on the price. If you bought the home five years ago, for $20,000 less than you are asking for now, they might have a little wiggle room in the price.

Buyers may also ask you, or your agent, about how much you still owe on the home, or if there is a second mortgage. Like many smart shoppers, these buyers are looking to see how low they might be able to get you to go on the price during negotiations.

Answering these questions is a little trickier than someone asking why you are selling. You could be forthcoming, and just answer the questions, but don’t give out too much information. How much you originally paid is a matter of public record, so the buyer (or their agent) could find out all on their own. Another option is to say you bought the home as a fixer-upper, and have put extensive work into the home, thus justifying your asking price.

As a seller, you should have ready answers lined up for these and other questions about your home and neighborhood. Be prepared with what you are willing to share, and what you want to keep to yourself.