That option of buying a bank owned home has certainly opened a viable route for those looking to own a home at the fraction of what it cost just a few years ago. But not without a price: the best Kenai bank owned home bargains are almost certain to fall into the ‘fixer-upper’ category.

When considering the purchase of one of our Kenai bank owned homes, I’ve found that my most successful clients have a few qualities in common:
- patience – they wait until they’ve found a house that suits all their needs
- prudence – they resist the temptation to take out too big of a loan
- realism – they know how much hard work they will be willing to put into the house

Finding the right fixer-upper should be approached as a process: in other words, never buy the first home you see until after you’ve checked out some of its competition. There are more foreclosures on the market than ever – a phenomenon that works to your advantage. When you do find the right home, make sure to take out a loan that makes sense. Often people who are in a hurry to buy a house are tempted to take out a loan without giving enough consideration to its immediate and long-term implications. Being coolly realistic as you work out the numbers will pay off for a long time.

Once a bank owned home is officially yours, the hard (often fun!) work begins. Buying a home in need of repair has always been the surest way to find a deal, but it is also the way to improve or develop home maintenance skills, bond with family members, and keep a tight rein on the family budget. Here, too, you need to be careful not to get carried away– you don’t want to overbuild or overdevelop beyond what is appropriate for the neighborhood setting. In other words, keep your end goals in mind. My advice to clients varies depending on their individual needs: Is it an income property? Or the family home for the next 15 years?

Foreclosures show no signs of slowing down in the near future, so this May’s buying market is opportune. If you’re considering buying a bank owned home in Kenai, call me today to go over your options and to put a plan into action!

That’s what a “100” means. In the latest report this spring, the Index across the whole
country was higher than 200! … 204.3, to be precise. Up there in
“never-before” territory. And it’s been there since January!

Yet banks are still not lining up to
approve mortgages – for the number of reasons we’ve talked about before. It’s
why some buyers and sellers have started to look for alternative ways to sell
and buy a home; and begun to look in the “for sale by owner” (“FSBO”) realm.

Kenai homes for sale by owner aren’t being sold through a licensed agent, forcing a
potential buyer or his agent to deal with the seller directly. If the home has
sat on the market for an extended period and the homeowner does not have a
mortgage to pay off, a buyer can sometimes interest the seller in owner
self-financing. In such a deal, the buyer gives his or her down payment
and installment payments directly to the seller. As anyone would guess, this
approach has its own special Pros and Cons.

The biggest Pro for the buyer is, obviously, easier financing. The biggest Pro for
a seller is the potential to make a sale where none was possible
before. As can be inferred from the Affordability Index, many people can
afford a mortgage, but cannot find a traditional lender.

But speaking of problems, there are some ‘Cons’ to consider. If the buyer stops
making payments, the seller must evict and foreclose on the property — both
time-consuming and costly procedures. A For Sale by Owner financing deal gone
sour is especially problematic if the seller is dependent on the income from
the home. And buyers need to pay attention, too. When dealing with a For Sale
by Owner transaction, there are a variety of potential legal loopholes and
title issues that traditional sale and mortgage disclosures and contracts are
specifically set up to avoid.  In all
cases, it is wise to consult a trusted financial professional and attorney
before signing anything.

While a home listed For Sale by Owner with attractive terms (like owner financing)
can be attractive, having a licensed real estate professional on your side can
make all the difference.  If you are
considering buying or selling on the Kenai Peninsula, I am always here to be
your real estate resource!

One of the major ways you can make your
own Soldotna home more marketable is to do a
bathroom remodel. It’s always a key focus for prospective buyers…and yes, it
does sound like a lot of work (and a lot of money) — but there are a number of
ways you can cut down on both.

First, step back and give a hardheaded
look at the conditions a remodel would correct. In a surprising number of
cases, all a bathroom really needs in order to look more glamorous and inviting
is to add a fresh coat of paint or a change in lighting.

But such quick and easy fixes are not
always enough to materially cut the time selling a home will take. The good
news is that ideas for more comprehensive solutions are now easier to find than
ever, thanks to the Internet. One such quick idea-generator can be found at www.Calfinder.com/bathroom-remodeling
, where you can view all levels of bathroom remodeling ideas and their
associated price tags. It is the site’s free estimate feature that can make it
easier to financially plan your project.

Some of those ideas can include
installing a new bath or adding a shower. Having a separate guest toilet is
also a feature the market tells us is highly valued. Trimmings such as taps,
mirrors and cupboards also increase the value of a bathroom (and decrease the
time selling a home may require).

Everyone planning on selling a home on
the Kenai Peninsula usually has the same two underlying goals: getting as much
of a return on their investment as possible as quickly as possible. Since
bathroom remodeling can be an easy way to earn as much as a 90% return on its
cost while increasing the likelihood of a quicker sale, it’s well worth
investigating. Other possible benefits are attracting better-qualified buyers
while reducing the costs and preventing delays associated with inspections.

I am always available to provide my clients with
information on which renovations are in demand, and where you might see the
most return on your investment.  My
experience and inside knowledge can give you the advantage of using your money
as wisely as possible to optimize your home for future buyers. If you’re
considering selling a home in Soldotna, call
me anytime!

That warm glow results
from doing more than just cleaning your home’s interior, though. It involves
maintaining the property in the ways that will prevent having to take more
costly steps later. There are three different tasks you can complete to get
your home ready for the warm weather that’s on the way. If you follow these
basic tips, your home will be looking its best – and the resulting beauty will
be more than skin deep.

One
of the most overlooked areas for most Kenai
properties is its foundation. It is important to check your foundation for
damage, and to patch and seal any cracks as soon as you discover them. The
foundation is one of the first areas potential buyers (and their inspectors)
examine when they get serious about writing an offer on a home. A sound
foundation is essential for the obvious structural reasons — and it can even
have an impact on utility bills.

May
is also prime time for cleaning out all of the gutters on your property. When
gutters clog, you can end up with leaks inside walls and into basements.  For the ladder-shy, the cost of a once-yearly
gutter clearing service can be a prudent and cost-conscious choice (as anyone
who’s experienced the major costs that result from neglecting the gutters will
tell you)!

Spring
is also a great time to paint the outside of your home. A fresh paint job gives
your Kenai property the fresh look nothing
else can. You don’t have to be selling your property to appreciate the ‘curb
appeal’ – the real difference a fresh coat gives to any house. That paint job
will also be more than just attractive: it will also prevent premature aging of
the whole exterior.

Whether your current plans are to sell, rent, or stay put in the Kenai area, you’ll be rewarded by taking a day or two each spring to focus on
these preventative care details.  If you
need a referral for a handyman or other maintenance service, I’m always happy
to recommend some of our reliable local
vendors. Call me anytime!

May 12^th 2012

10 A.M.-How to Make a Hanging Flower Basket

11 A.M.-Photographing Flowers & Plants

1 P.M.- Photographing Flowers & Plants

1-3 P.M- 2^nd Hand Glass Flowers

3-4 P.M.- Raising Piglets to Pigs for Meat Production

May 19^th 2012

11 A.M.- Wood Lawn Furniture & Chicken Tractors

11 A.M.- Composting Process, Garden Planning and More

1 P.M.- Composting Fast and Furious

1 P.M.- Bee Keeping to Improve Garden Production of All Kinds + Honey

3 P.M.- Gardening for the Birds by Julie Cickefoose, guest speaker for the
Kenai Birding Festival.

(Kenai Visitors Center- FREE and open to the public)

The mortgage industry learned a powerful lesson from the past, when it pretty much
gave anyone who applied a generous loan – sometimes with practically no
questions asked. But this “generosity” created financial problems for both the
banking industry and the country as a whole. It’s not hard to understand why
lending guidelines are stricter.

Reducing Loan Defaults

The overriding reason for
tougher lending policies is to reduce the number of loan defaults. In order to
qualify for a mortgage, borrowers are finding that lenders now look more
closely, may require a higher annual income, better credit score, or a larger
down payment. Their high-priority goal is preventing any foreclosure situation
where the bank owns a property it has to sell or rent itself.

Questioning Future Value

For many years, homebuyers
never questioned the investment value that seemed to automatically accompany
any piece of real estate. Buying a house was like investing in a blue chip
stock: certain to rise. The advent of a shrinking Dow Jones Average preceded
the phenomenon of ‘upside down’ homeowner equity. But in both cases, long gone
is the idea that everyone should expect to find no-brainer investment
opportunities. When buying a house can mean exposing the lender to a future
where more is owed than a house is worth, they naturally seek a safer place for
their money.  Since a smaller loan or
larger down payment achieves that goal, that’s what lenders tend to offer.

Lowering Consumer Debt

During 2010, the nation’s ten largest
mortgage lenders turned down about 26% of all applications (according to the Wall Street Journal).
In many cases, that could be attributed to lowered credit scores – due
in turn to increased debts from credit cards or unpaid student loans. In fact,
those heavy debt loads are part of what got homeowners into financial trouble
and helped to fuel the housing market crisis.

In the short term, homebuyers
denied a loan can’t help but be keenly disappointed. But it can ultimately
provide time to let them raise their credit scores, increase their savings, and
get their financial affairs onto firm ground. The ultimate effect should be to
put the whole housing market there, too.

If you’re considering buying a house on the Kenai Peninsula, I’d like to help you get pre-qualified under the current mortgage
guidelines. Once you see what real values are out there and available to you, I
think you’ll be glad you called!

A Gala Reception will kick it all off on June 1st 2012 from 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm

For more information contact the Kenai Visitors & Cultural Center at 907-283-1991 or visit their website at http://www.artskenai.com.