Happy Fall Season! Just dont fall.

Hey guys! First of all thank you all for a great summer! Today I passed out the majority of my pumpkins to my clients. I LOVE doing this. It is so fun to pass out pumpkins and see the smiles over something so simple. I finish my task tomorrow and then I will have a great and relaxing weekend. This brings me to MY "fall"!

I am holding an open house on Sunday (12008 Wellingham Ct in Pine Valley) and I was putting up my open house signs and directional signs this morning. As I was stomping the sign into the dirt my foot slipped and I fell on my knee and into the sign. As I was falling, I grabbed the sign to keep my balance and it came out of the ground and fell on top of me as I continued to crash on the ground and roll on my back. All of this on one of the most busiest roads in the city, Coldwater. I was SO embarrassed! I stood up as fast as I could, smiled at the lady stopped at the stop sign, got in my car and bolted. I am pretty sure there is a facebook status somewhere commenting on my misfortune. I can only imagine how hilarious it was to see me out there! If I was a driver and saw that, I would tweet it for sure! I went into the office and told our assistant what I did and I think I made her day!

Be safe out there and if you see a guy limping that looks like a Realtor, It's probably me.

What a month!

So I have always loved my job. I love meeting new people and educating them on the market and making their real estate experience fun and enjoyable. More than not there is always something that happens in a transaction that might be considered a crisis but in the end it seems to work out for the most part.

However, this month has been one of the most interesting and bizarre times in my whole career!

I have represented a very inconsiderate, or unlucky, or fraudulent buyer. (probably fraudulent but I try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt)

One buyer asked me to show them houses, praised my real estate knowledge, and even had me write an offer for them. (That was ultimately rejected) Then yesterday I got an email from them saying they bought a house and used the listing agent to get a better deal.

Side note: You do not get a better deal by using the listing agent to buy a property. However, the listing agent gets a better commission.

I have had a Realtor's client call me to tell me they don't understand the contract their Realtor just submitted for them to purchase my clients house. I mean, if you don't understand a real estate contract you should probably say something to the Realtor that is representing you before they submit it and it gets accepted.

Now, the absolute most bizarre thing happened today. I found a rider (a sign that attaches to a sign) on one of my listings with a "text for info" number on it. I do not use this service and I did not attach this to my listing sign. I mean, it was bolted and secured tight onto my sign! Out of curiosity I text the number for more info. The text I get back says;

13 bedroom 13 bath
$549,900
Tacoma WA

I would love to get my sellers $549,900 for there 2 acre lake lot (ski from 1-4) but that just isn't gonna happen. Oh, and it's in Indiana. Not Washington.

I called the number and spoke to the agent and asked her if she had any idea how her rider ended up bolted to my sign. She was just as dumbfounded as I was! I mean, really? Does this stuff happen to other agents? I would really like to know!

Lots of stuff can happen in 9 months!

So my last post was in September of last year! I admit, I am a slacker. Although I only have two followers, (Thanks Allison and Cooper!) my posts do get shown on facebook and I am currently up to 338 friends!

So, just to recap the events after my September post.

Kent turned 30
Renovated a 160 year old house
Had Thanksgiving at our house again this year
Went on a cruise
It snowed
Saw my entire family on Christmas
Happy new year!
I sold my mustang on criagslist
It snowed again
Tax credit got extended
Landscaped the back yard
We had our 3rd annual Memorial day party
Helped the following people buy and/or sell homes
David and Hanah Dawson
Ashley and Zack Hobbs
Michele Dumford
Courtney Brammer
Kyle Pfister
Jake and Gretchen O'Neill
David Galligher
Michele Topp
Phil and Allison Wagler
Linda Grimm
Jessica and Tyne McClendon
Kent Gross
Jim and Tara Glenn

Ok so that pretty much catches you all up. I promise I will blog some more very soon! I have a lot of exciting things happening right now in my life and I will share them as they progress.

Short sales.

Many people in this economy are facing very difficult choices. With layoffs and pay cuts, many home owners are struggling to pay mortgage payments. There is no reason for people to have to go through a foreclosure! Many homeowners are embarrassed to admit they are in trouble. The fact is, banks are willing to negotiate sale prices on homes that are threatened with foreclosure. The lenders work closely with the Realtor and Title companies to come up with a fair price for the home. This is called a short sale. The lender is willing to take a loss on the balance owed because, in the long run, it is more costly for them to foreclose. This also gives the homeowner a scheduled and organized way to moved out of the home. The credit ramifications are far less worse with a short sale than a foreclosure. It is the job of the Realtor to negotiate with the lender to "write off" the difference, if any, that is owed after the sale. Although, the homeowner must file a 1099 in the amount of the difference, it is considered profit and falls under the capital gains tax law. If you have lived in the home for two years or more, you pay no taxes on the difference up to 250k if single and 500k if married.

However, if the home is foreclosed and sold again at a lower price than the balance, the lender may file a judgment against the original owner for repayment of the difference. This may force the original owner into bankruptcy.

The lender pays all the fees to sell the house and the homeowner walks away with some dignity and no foreclosure status on their credit.

Please note that this can be a very lengthy process but the homeowner may continue to live in the home while the sale is being negotiated.

If you, a friend, or family member could benefit from a short sale, please do not hesitate to call me. Do not let your home fall into foreclosure.

Dont bite the hand that feeds you.

I recently met a great couple looking for a lake house to spend their down time fishing and relaxing. I showed them a tiny little cottage in a small lake community. The cottage is owned by a local bank here in Fort Wayne. It was been on the market for several months and the bank has dropped the price two times in the last 4 weeks. I met with my clients yesterday and we made a very strong cash offer. After submitting the offer, the bank called and said, "We have an employee that is going to go look at that property today. He may be interested." I find it odd that the same day I submit an offer that an "employee" of the bank that owns the house is now suddenly interested. I am frustrated because you would think the bank would sign a strong cash offer on a home they have foreclosed. I mean, what do you think is going to happen next time I show a listing that this bank owns? At the very least I am going to say, "Oh, once we submit an offer, bank employees have first dibs." Not cool. You want me to sell your foreclosures? Then sign the offer and don't kiss and tell to employees that they may get a potential deal based on a submitted offer.

I have an awesome job!

This past Friday I had the great pleasure of closing on a home for first time home buyers. Now, I have helped a lot of first time home buyers but this time was different. I was in the office one day and got a call from a young women who wanted to see a house that was listed across the street from where she was living. This house was not listed by me and she had been trying to get in touch with the listing agent. After two weeks of not hearing back from the agent, she saw a ReMax sign and just called the office number on the sign. I was fortunate enough to be in the office that day and answer her call. She explained that her and her boyfriend had been renting a single wide trailer for two years and this past winter their heat bill was over $450! They knew about the first time home buyers tax credit and wanted to take advantage of the program. The two of them had been saving and paying off all their bills, their cars, and loans and finally, they were ready to buy a house. We set an appointment to get together and view a few listing. I set them up with a mortgage broker, they got pre-approved, and 30 days later we were sitting at the closing table. The smiles and tears of joy this couple had almost made me cry. I was so proud of them for being responsible, paying off bills and buying a home at the ages of 22 and 23. I was even more happy to see them get a suitable home for their 3 year old son. It was a pleasure and my honor to help them find this home. I think I was just as excited for them as they were for themselves. I love my job!

Before

Here are the "before" pictures of my house. I close in less than 4 weeks and then I will start the renovations. If you have any ideas.. speak up! Would love to hear your suggestion as to what you would or would not do.