How many times have I gotten calls like this?   Unfortunately the answer is too often.

A young lady recently called and said that she was on a fixed income and wanted to buy a HUD home or do a rent to own on a HUD property.  She was on a fixed income and had some credit issues to “iron out.”  

Hating to be the bearer of bad news, I informed her that I was not aware of any such program that HUD has for low income buyers. I explained to her that HUD owned homes were simply homes that had been foreclosed and were being sold on the open market.  I explained that in order to buy a HUD home, unless she was paying cash, she would still have to qualify for a mortgage loan (which again, I didn’t see how that was going to happen due to her low income, but I offered to give her the number of a loan officer anyway).

She was very disappointed and I could hear in her voice how saddened she was by this news and yet she was determined that there must be a way.  She said she was going to contact HUD directly to see if there was anything that they could do.   Since I had not made myself clear, I suggested that that might be a good idea.  Unfortunately since you can’t buy a HUD home without a real estate agent, it’s likely that HUD will just refer her back to me (or any other real estate agent).

Before hanging up, she again mentioned that “somebody told me that HUD has a program for low income homebuyers” and in ending the conversation, I highly suggested that she go back to that person (who shared this misinformation) and ask them for direct contact information to the source that could help her and she said that she would.

This person really wants to be a homeowner and I just hate these kinds of phone calls that start off by saying “somebody told me…..” because more often than not, in my experience, it’s just misinformation that has been stated as fact.

Here’s my suggestion to anyone that has been told “somebody told me……”

• First as them for the name of the person that helped them
• If they had not personally been helped, ask them for the contact information of their reliable source

For more information on buying a home HUD home, you can go to the Hud Home Store website.

It’s always a shame when negotiations don’t result in a sale.  After all, you have a seller that wants to sell a home and by all appearances, a buyer interested in buying said home.  One would think that those offers would or could always result in a contract.  Needless to say, some things just get in the way.  More than anything else, I’d say that the following examples cause more lost transactions than anything else.

Pricing based on the seller’s need rather than based on the home’s value
What happens here is that the buyer may submit an offer at market value which falls well below the seller’s needed price.  In a contentious moment, the seller may be furious and offended.  This is a situation that perhaps could never result in a contract unless the seller faces the conclusion that the need has nothing to do with value.

Buyer submits an offer that is grossly under market value.
Again seller may take offense, but the offer in hand is better than none at all.  I think that sellers should resist this apparent new trend of their agent’s advice to  ”not accepting an offer and suggesting that buyer submit a new offer.” In my little, itty bitty mind, that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.  Sure I wish that buyers would just come right or don’t come at all, but I certainly if I were a seller, I wouldn’t want to risk loosing a perfectly good buyer due to a condescending jesture as requesting a new offer.  Why wouldn’t a seller just counter the darned offer?  If you can help me to make sense of this strategy, I’m listening.

Both parties refuse to accept the reality of the situation
The one that really suffers the most is the seller because their home will continue to languish on the market.  The buyer on the other hand (after loosing out on a number of homes) will finally come to the conclusion that s/he’d better wise up and make offers that had a great chance of being accepted.  Eventually they’ll be a homeowner.  But the seller……well if reality never sets in, they’ll just continue to pretend that their home is for sale.

On April 18, 2013, the Birmingham Reads program offers an opportunity for volunteers to read to Birmingham’s school aged children in the classroom.  I’ll be reading to children at Glen Iris Elementary and I’m looking forwards to it.

Not only will volunteers read to the children, but they’ll leave them with the gift of books.  It is such a worthwhile effort.  I saw the call a few months ago and I wasted no time volunteering and on top of that, I recruited some of my family and friends to do the same.  Like me, they didn’t hesitate to answer the call.

It only takes on hour of your time.  Can you spare an hour to read to a child.  it’s the equivalent of a lunch hour (with permission for commute time from your supervisor).

Birmingham Reads is sponsored by Better Basics.  Contact Kathleen Drake for more info and to volunteer or click the link to register.

Kathleen Drake, Volunteer Coordinator
Better Basics
211 Summit Parkway, Suite 108
Birmingham, AL 35209
(205) 944-2928, ext. 323
volunteer@betterbasics.org

 BIRMINGHAM READS

Arrowhead subdivision. Beautiful 3 bedroom, 2 full bath home, hardwood flooring in living room, laminate hardwood on bedroom level (looks amazing the same as the hardwood in living).  Finished basement den, 2nd bathroom is located in basement, marble counter top in kitchen, easy to care for tile in kitchen and bath. All appliances and window treatments are staying.  Check out the virtual tour of 2808 Arrowhead Drive.  For more info, 205-527-1112 (call or text).

We're sorry, but we couldn't find MLS # 558319 in our database. This property may be a new listing or possibly taken off the market. Please check back again.

Charita Cadenhead is a licensed Realtor® in the State of Alabama since 2006, serving the Metro Birmingham market.  In 2007, she founded Bham WIiRE (Birmingham Women Investing in Real Estate). Bham WIiRE consisted of women interested in real estate investing, but later the focus expanded to include all women interested in any aspect of the world of real estate.  She is co-author of the book “Sell Your House Fast for the Right Price”, and has been featured on NuWire.com.  She is an avid blogger on ActiveRain.com with nearly 1300 posts to date,  including a great number of featured posts.

When offers are made and presented, the one thing that we all have to remember is that a lowball offer is only a lowball offer if the house is properly priced.  If the home is overpriced from the start, then everyone will have to prepare themselves for:

• Seller denial, defensiveness and offensiveness
• Listing agent denial that s/he listed a home that was not properly priced

If the buyer’s agent has done a good job of explaining to buyers how to derive at an offer price (based on the solid foundation available sales data), then the buyer will be in a much stronger position to make a good offer.  Furthermore, the buyer’s agent will be in a better position to present, defend and negotiate from a standpoint of being able to justify the offer price.

When a buyer makes a lowball offer on a home that is properly priced, the buyer is not giving the listing agent anything to work with to reinforce that the offer is a reasonable one to be considered.

Comparable sales don’t lie and are to be considered an indisputable truth.  Always be prepared to make offers that you can support with available data. If the seller doesn’t accept then they just prove themselves incapable of analyzing information of further make themselves appear in an very unfavorable light.

How often have we heard a contractor say “well if we do that, we’re going to have to pull a permit?”  Or in some cases, they

perform work without even mentioning the need for a permit and unsuspecting home owners have no checks and balances to assure that the work was done properly.

For years, the very mention of a permit came across as some sort of “threat” or something that was bad.  When a homeowner secures a contract for certain types of work the should always question whether a permit is required, particularly for plumbing, electric, roofing, remodeling of any kind really.

Of course obtaining a permit will increase the cost of the job, but it protects the homeowner from substandard work.  Plus when it’s time to sell the  home and a qualified home inspector inspects the home for the buyer, surely the inspector will point out deficiencies in the quality of the work of the contractor.  Sure it may look good, but did the contractor made sure that his/her work was up to code.

By getting a permit, the local municipality will be behind the contractor at critical points of completion to ensure the work is up to code and that no hazardous conditions exist.  As a home owner, isn’t that what you want?

Choosing a real estate agent that can forewarn you about potential issues will prepare you for the sale of your home.  If you are considering selling your home, please contact me, Charita Cadenhead, and we will do a thorough analysis of your home and I there are any concerns, we’ll certainly address them.

Expired Listings Can Be Sold

For the last five years, all you’ve heard is that it’s a buyer’s market.   For the past five years, the Birmingham real estate market has been flooded with homes for sale.   Home owners trying to sell their homes had so much competition that it was almost like a cattle call and every home owner, if they were smart, made sure that their homes were show ready and in the best light.  For the past 5 years, Birmingham, Alabama home buyers have been able to choose the pick of the litter and take their sweet time in making decisions about the homes that they wanted to make offers on.  Well it looks like those days are gone, at least for now.

You see, the Birmingham real estate market is experiencing somewhat of a listing drought.  Make no mistake, as a Birmingham Alabama home seller, you still have to make sure that your home is in the best possible shape, show ready when you get the call and make sure that you are prepared to out-show the competition.  Oh and about that competition:  the bad news is that you still have competition.  The great news is that you have a lot less of it.  I would hope that would be enough great news to set you on a trail to get that home ready for listing day.

Let me just break it down a little further in the form of a question:  Would you rather have your home on the market with 40 other homes in your neighborhood and compete for the one buyer (like it has been for the past five years)?  Or would you rather have your home on the market and only have to compete with only 20 homes in your neighborhood? See what I mean?

So if you have been thinking about selling your  Metropolitan Birmingham, Alabama  home or if you had your home previously listed and your listing expired, then after reading this post, you should be feeling very inspired, highly motivated and excited about an opportunity to sell you home.

For a complete home and market analysis, call me at 205-527-1112 and let’s see what your home is worth in todays market.  We’ll also take a look at your competition should you decide that you want to list your home with me.  After all, you’ll want to out do and out smart the competition right?

Contact me today for a free no obligation consultation and get the book FREE (while supplies last).  

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Charita Cadenhead is a licensed Realtor® in the State of Alabama since 2006, serving the Metro Birmingham market.  In 2007, she founded Bham WIiRE (Birmingham Women Investing in Real Estate). Bham WIiRE consisted of women interested in real estate investing, but later the focus expanded to include all women interested in any aspect of the world of real estate.  She is co-author of the book “Sell Your House Fast for the Right Price”, and has been featured on NuWire.com.  She is an avid blogger on ActiveRain.com with nearly 1300 posts to date,  including a great number of featured posts.

Just Because Your Home Didn’t Sell, Doesn’t Mean That it Won’t Sell

I must mention upfront that I’m sure your Birmingham real estate agent marketed your home to the best of their abilities so this is no disrespect to them. However, it may be small things in the efforts of agents that make a big difference.  Below is some food for thought.

Allow Your Birmingham Real Estate Listings to Get Exposed to More People (Spheres of Influence)

Every agent has a sphere of influence which is basically people that we know, network and/or socialize with.  Like everyone else, yourself included, we all have different spheres or connections. When you change agents, you open up the scope and number of people that your home is exposed to.  In essence you become a part of a new sphere, your own sphere is broadened and your listing is exposed to a greater number of people.

Creativity plays a major role in marketing. Perhaps the marketing for your listing just needs a new spin or twist from a fresh perspective.  A new creative team may be necessary in order to freshen up and re-energize a stale listing. A new excitement may be needed to rejuvenate interest in your home.

Positioning Birmingham Real Estate Listings in the Current Market?

Here are just a few things to consider to heighten the chances of selling your Birmingham home this time around:

• There is no question that a new market analysis is necessary to see if the Birmingham home has been priced right and modified accordingly based on shifts in the market during the previous listing period. Don’t let this deter you because this doesn’t always translate into a price drop.  When armed with accurate comps of homes that have sold since your own has been listed, it should make you wonder why one house sold and yours didn’t.
• Don’t forget that selling your Birmingham home is a process and requires, not only a plan but regular review and modification (if necessary).
• Consider being open for change.  That may involve tipping the scales of your comfort zone. It may be exactly what you and your Birmingham home need to get it off the market as SOLD.

And finally, in addition to a new Birmingham real estate agent or agent team, make sure that you

• prepare your house for sale and that you are
• mentally and financially prepared to sell your home

Whether you’re looking to buy real estate your sell your existing property, call or send me and email today, so we can discuss how I can best serve your Birmingham-Hoover Metro area real estate needs!

Exceptional Service Because You Deserve It!

Charita H. Cadenhead,  Realtor®
(205) 527-1112 – Direct
(800) 496-7431 – Fax

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You may have heard talk of short sales before and either you didn’t get a good understanding of what a short sale really is or you simply thought that any effort to sell your home would be fruitless.

First for those that are not familiar with short sales:  a short sale is when the bank or mortgage company has agreed to consider a buyer’s purchase offer on your home that is less then what you (the homeowner) owes on the home.  That’s the gist of what a short sale is and you can find out more about short sales on the this website and by all means if you have questions or just want to pick my brain, please call me at 205-527-1112.

Now for those that think that any effort to sell your underwater home will be fruitless, then you’ll want to take a good look at the information below as it is extraordinarily contrary to your belief.

As you can see from the chart and table below, no area or demographic is immune from distressed property sales.  It doesn’t matter where you live, you have likely had a neighbor complete or attempt a short sale.  If you are having difficulty paying your mortgage and just need to get some answers or discuss your options, please contact me at 205-527-1112 or use the form a the bottom of this post.  Otherwise you may be overlooking a possibility for some financial relief.

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Charita Cadenhead is a licensed Realtor® in the State of Alabama since 2006, serving the Metro Birmingham market.  In 2007, she founded Bham WIiRE (Birmingham Women Investing in Real Estate). Bham WIiRE consisted of women interested in real estate investing, but later the focus expanded to include all women interested in any aspect of the world of real estate.  She is co-author of the book “Sell Your House Fast for the Right Price”, and has been featured on NuWire.com.  She is an avid blogger on ActiveRain.com with nearly 1300 posts to date,  including a great number of featured posts.

This message is for home sellers everywhere, but particularly home sellers in the Metropolitan Birmingham, AL area.

Have you decided that you want to sell your home this year?  Or if your previous listing has expired, are you thinking about relisting you home for sale?  If so, please keep reading.

Selling a home is a big deal.  It demands a commitment and lots of thought and many things to be considered.  I’m one of these people that like to make list and if you’re planning to sell your home, I recommend that you take good notes from your Realtor and you’ll soon find that you have a list of things to do and not do, while

• preparing your home for sale
• as well as when it goes on the market.

Below you’ll find a short list of some of the most important things to go on the list and it can be adjusted over time.  Please put it where you can see it often.

If you are a seller that already has your home on the market, I challenge you to pick up the phone and call your real estate agent with a redefined attitude and commitment to sell your home. If you are a Birmingham, Alabama area home seller whose listing expired sometime last year, my guess is that you still really want to sell your home, in which case, I’d like to talk with you about what can be done differently this time around and put in place a bonafide and concrete plan of action to turn your listing into a SOLD statistic in 2013.

All that is needed for the successful sale of your home is a commitment to do what it takes to get it sold. This includes, but is not limited to:

• List at the right price Act as if you want to sell your home (motivation is KEY)
• Be on high alert so that your home can be show ready for that showing request
• Make necessary repairs (or adjust expectations if this isn’t possible)
• Trust your Realtor® (if you don’t, then you should find another one) Be realistic about price, condition, location (as it relates to pricing)
• Let the facts (data) guide your decisions (and not your heart. I know it may be tough, but it’s necessary)

As a partner to sell your home, together we’ll implement a strategies that are practiced by top real estate agents across the country. Let “Sell Your House Fast for the Right Price!” be your home selling handbook in conjunction with my efforts to sell your Birmingham, Alabama home.

Contact me today for a free no obligation consultation and get the book FREE (while supplies last).  

Comments or questions are welcome.

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Charita Cadenhead is a licensed Realtor® in the State of Alabama since 2006, serving the Metro Birmingham market.  In 2007, she founded Bham WIiRE (Birmingham Women Investing in Real Estate). Bham WIiRE consisted of women interested in real estate investing, but later the focus expanded to include all women interested in any aspect of the world of real estate.  She is co-author of the book “Sell Your House Fast for the Right Price”, and has been featured on NuWire.com.  She is an avid blogger on ActiveRain.com with nearly 1300 posts to date,  including a great number of featured posts.