Paula Henry

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What Caused the Housing Crisis?

October 3rd, 2008 categories: Indianapolis Real Estate News, Indy Foreclosures, Real Estate Financing

Warning - this post is political in nature!

Not being one to publish political views on my blog, I have been debating for over a week about whether to post this video here. Ultimately - I decided the general public should see the video and make their own conclusions.

Even as a REALTOR, I wonder, how did the climate of the real estate market change so dramatically in such a short period of time. I believe this video answers the question best. The simple answer is, supply and demand. When the supply of “easy” loans were made available, the demand for such loans increased. As more people qualified, homes were quickly purchased, decreasing the supply of inventory, which increased the demand. Everyone seemed to jump on the bandwagon and money was easy to get.

Although Indianapolis did not have the same appreciation as many of the hotspots around the country, we are, nevertheless, experiencing the effects of the changes. We have our share of foreclosures and short sales, just not on a grandiose scale as some areas. We have other issues here such as property taxes, which have affected homeowners. Still, the supply of easy money was the beginning………along with the belief that real estate values would not go down.

Watch the video for the informational value, not the political opinion.

http://www.dailymotion.com/videox6wxmr

Authored by Paula | Discussion: 1 Comment »

Please Don’t Put Your Home on the Market!

September 21st, 2008 categories: Indianapolis Real Estate News, Indy Home Sellers

Put it ‘in” the Market

Really, I mean that! Probably not the way you think I do, though! See, there’s a huge difference between putting your home on the market and placing it “in” the market.

I’ve written before, not too long ago, actually, about pricing your Indianapolis home to sell. I honestly admit I do allow my clients to test the market “for a time”, especially if there are not enough comparable sales in their neighborhood or if they have an outstanding or unique home. I also let them know we must be ready to adjust the price based on activty, feedback and lack of offers. It rarely earns me bonus points, but I prefer honesty above all else and have walked away from listings I knew I had no chance of selling when the homeowner is stuck on their price.

A Current Example

So, why do I write this again? I have to tell this story; it is exactly the type of homeseller who needs to take their home off the market.

This particular seller is wasting their time and their agents time! It is a home I was personally interested in buying. I made an appointment, but was turned down because it was an inconvenient time. Hmmm……in this market, if you can possibly accomodate a buyer, you really should.

At the time, the home had been on the market for almost one year and they were on their second agent. So let’s look at the history:

Agent #1 had the home listed at $###,###. for 4 months. The information provided was accurate. The pictures used to market the home were just okay. The agent didn’t use a wide angle camera, which failed to capture the true beauty of the home.

Agent #2 did a fabulous job capturing the beauty of this home with professional photography which made you want to make an appointment to see the home. It made me want to go see it! It was originally priced at $###,### with agent #2 and reduced by $15,000 over the next six months it was listed. $15,000 represented less than 4% of the original listing price.

And…………………………..it expired last week without selling.

This week it came back on the market, listed with another agent, who is only marketing with 6 outside pictures, nothing impressive and here’s the big difference – they raised the price $10,000 more than the price it was originally listed for with agent #1, which is $35,000 more than the price when it expired with the last agent.

It Still Won’t Sell

If they really wanted to sell, this is NOT the way to do it. They should just take it off the market, because they are not “in” the market.

Raising their price will not sell this home. Now, though, it has been on the market for over a year, which makes homebuyers wonder what is wrong with the home. It also tells me they are stubborn about their price. This homebuyer – that’s me, will not look at a home where it is apparent the sellers are stubborn AND overpriced.

 

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Indianapolis Home Prices in Your Neighborhood

September 20th, 2008 categories: Indianapolis Real Estate News, Indy Home Sellers

Homeowners want to know what the home sales in their neighborhood are. Here at IndyRealEstateTalk.com, we offer an easy way for you to track the sales of homes in your neighborhood and the surrounding area.

We know you want details, which is exactly what we provide. When you sign up for your Indianapolis neighborhood market report, you will receive detailed reports and graphs. Here’s a few samples of the market reports you receive:

A report on the Average Days on Market.

Market Snapshot

A Report depicting the asking price versus sales price of recent sales.

Market Snapshot2

The high and low sales prices in your neighorhood.

Market Snapshot3

A graph representing the number of homes on the market, new homes on the market and recent sold homes by amount of homes available.

Market Snapshot4

Your report also contains a map indicating the location of your home and the homes sold, homes for sale, the asking price and sold price of the homes sold. You’ll also get neighborhood and school reports.

Get Your Market Report Today!  Once you sign up, you will automatically receive monthly updates.

Sign up today and keep track of your investment.

MLS Market Snapshot

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It’s Time for Home-a-Rama

September 20th, 2008 categories: Indianapolis Real Estate News

The Willows in ZionsvilleStarting tomorrow, the 2008 Home-a-Rama home show is open to the public. This years event is at The Willows in Zionsville.

Home-a-Rama is one of my favorite events. Not much more exciting than checking out what’s new in home design.

Granted, the homes built for Home-a-Rama are higher end homes using the highest quality materials available, but who doesn’t love to tour these homes, even if only for decorating ideas. I especially love the creativity in both builder and interior design. They really go all out on these homes.

Sign up to win a kitchen makeover or a weekend away. Talk to the builders and exhibitors at the show and above, all have a great time.

For a preview of the neighborhood, click here.

For event details and to see special features and tours, click here.

Home-a-Rama is brought to the Builders Association of Greater Indianapolis.

 

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Help! My Home Didn’t Sell - Part 4 - Price

September 16th, 2008 categories: Indianapolis Real Estate News, Indy Expired Home Help, Indy Home Sellers

Price is the subject most homeowners approach with trepidition. Almost everyone I meet with wants to try to price a little high so they have room to negotiate. I can not stress enough the dangers of pricing high and holding.

Price is the number one reason homes expire without selling.The longer a home is on the market, it becomes “old news” and buyers believe there must be something wrong with the home, or the seller is desperate, which results in lower offers and more seller concessions.

I have written about this subject before, so won’t bore you with the same old news about pricing. Here’s a few places you can find info about pricing your home:

Pricing Your Home to Sell, Part 1

Pricing Your Home to Sell, Part 2

Instead of repeating the same information, I would like to illustrate the difference with graphs from a few recent listed and sold homes from my inventory. These graphs chart the number of online views the homes have had during the period of time they were listed.

This first graph is the online views of a home where the seller would not budge on “their” price. In this graph, you can tell when the price was lowered. With each price reduction the online views increased, but were far less than when the home first went on the market.

MaketGraph1

The otehr graphs are homeoweners who wanted to start a bit higher than I suggested and were willing to drop their price when we suggested. That’s why their graphs aren’t as long

Market Graph 3

There’s not much to this graph, the home went on the market the end of June, we reduced the price the end of July and the views increased. The home closed the end of August.

Online HOme Views

This home went on the market in March, with a price reduction in May and sold in June. The total price reduction was less than 5%

Listing Online View

This home went on the market in February – The price reduction in late April sold the home in May. The price reduction and final sales price was 5.2% less than the original asking price.

Many people believe if the home sales too quickly, it must have been priced too low. The truth is, if you get activity, as in buyers coming through your home, the home is priced correctly and months on the market is actually money lost. When there is no activity and all other factors are in line, we have to look at the price.

There are other factors which affect price, such as the amount of foreclosures, bank owned and short sale properties within the neighborhood. I have seen several neighborhoods where the only sales are distressed sales.

I willingly show both my defeats and my wins, but my goal is to win for my clients. A large part of my expertise is determining market value, so a home listed does not lanquish on the market. Admittedly, sometimes, there are not enough comps to determine an exact price range. It is then, we must make an intelligent decision to reduce the price in a timely manner.

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