At a picnic, a wedding, golfing or just “hanging around” the 2nd most asked question is “should I buy a home now or wait?”. 

It’s a fair question if you have never owned real estate – but current homeowners (you) already have a good idea how much interest you’ve been paying on a 30 year fixed mortgage. 

But to put it in simple terms-yes with current unusually mortgage rates -now is the time to sell and buy.

Just do the math- for a 30 year fixed rate mortgage for $150,000 at an interest rate of 4.55%  (easily obtainable for qualified buyers) the table below shows what will happen when the Fed no longer has these ridiculous low low interest rates.

A  person today buying a home and mortgaging $150,000 @ 4.55% pays $764,59 a month and $125,216 in interest if they take 30 years to pay off the loan.
The buyer who waits and maybe gets a 5% rate will pay $805.23 monthly and additional $14,667 in interest. And the lucky person who really waits and snags a 6% interest rate will be paying $899.33 a month ($134.74 more than @4.55%) and an additional $48,541 in interest.

Add to those numbers the lower sale prices and the bottom line equals a very good time buy real estate.

You don’t have to be “right brained” or “left brained” to understand how much money you lose by waiting and that today’s real estate market is balanced favorably towards buyers.  The next consideration most homeowners grapple with is adjusting to lower sale prices on their existing properties- but if you look at the lower prices on the property you purchase-sometimes it is almost a “wash’”. 

Don’t get me wrong- for many of us it is a giant leap right now so if you need help figuring out “your numbers” call or email me now!

In case you’re wondering -the 1st question everyone asks a Realtor- “What’s my house worth?” or “”What did the neighbor’s house sell for?” – Let me know if you need those questions answered!

Did Mason’s housing market keep ticking this month?

According to the Multiple Listing Service of Greater Cincinnati:

Data from Greater Cincinnati Multiple Listing Service

During Juy 6 condos and 24 single family homes closed.  Condo sale prices remain the same however single family homes took a tumble.  Good news is that the current listing prices have gone down a bit which means sellers are tuning into the market.

Don’t wait to find out about the state of real estate-stay current on market conditions.

Need more detailed information- email or call.

Just a quick reminder that while we are watering grass and shrubs- we also need to “water the foundations” of  our homes.

The rain greater Cincinnati area is approximately 3 inches below normal and the lack of rainfall leads to the soil drying up and pulling away from the foundations.  If you don’t keep an eye or a sprinkler on the potential problem- you may experience wet lower levels when the fall rainy weather arrives.

Tim Carter from Askthebuilder.com has some tips:
Click here to view the embedded video.

Just a little bit attention to detail now may save you a lot of problems in the future.

Real Estate activity in West Chester, Beckett Ridge and Liberty Township -all located within the Lakota School District slumped in July.

According to the Multiple Listing Service of Greater Cincinnati real estate activity is shown below:

Data from Greater Cincinnati Multiple Listing Service

Data from Greater Cincinnati Multiple Listing Service

Data from Greater Cincinnati Multiple Listing Service

Overall, listing and sale prices have declined-the aftermath of the end of tax credits.  Sellers seemed to have gotten the message and pricing reflects meeting the market demand.

Stay ahead of the by market by clicking here.

More detailed information about your property’s market value is available-just email or call.

The Fairfield and Fairfield Township real estate market is up and down and up….

According to the Multiple Listing Service of Greater Cincinnati real estate activity is shown below:

Data from Greater Cincinnati Multiple Listing Service

Data from Greater Cincinnati Multiple Listing Service

Fairfield’s single family homes showed slight increases (very slight) in list, pending and sales prices for July.  Everything else decreased with the average listing price in the Township declining by $15,000.  Buyers are still out there, but with so much inventory available it continues to be a “buyer’s market” and pricing is critical.

Email with questions or if you need more detailed information.

No doubt about it- yesterday’s real estate news was a bummer.

However instead of focusing on “what’s wrong” maybe it’s time to find the upside by reaching out to help your friends and neighbors living in our community.  One my favorites events is the “Rubber Duck Regatta” where 100,000+ bright yellow ducks soar (actually they are dumped) off the “Purple People Bridge” during downtown Labor Day festivities.  This year the ducks are leaping at 3pm on Sunday, September 5th. 

All the proceeds benefit the Freestore Foodbank who distributes over 12 million pounds of food each year through a dedicated network of over 325 local Member Agencies.

A $5 donationbuys a numbered duck and if your rubber ducky floats across the finish line first- you win a car.  If you have a few extra dollars $25 buys 6 ducks.  So in addition to helping others- you get the opportunity to cheer on your duck in the race- a win/win.

Good luck- I’m pretty sure the winning yellow rubber duck has my name on it!

Below is the Market Action Reports for 6 zip-codes in the greater Cincinnati area – click here to order your report….or call or email for details.

45208

45014

45011

45069

45233

45040

Does cash really make you a king in real estate?  For one buyer in greater Cincinnati $3,200,000 in cash purchased an Indian Hill palace.

The greater Cincinnati area is experiencing the same phenomenon that many other cities are experiencing – an increase in real estate buyers paying jaw dropping amounts of cash to buy a home.

According to the Multiple Listing Service of Greater Cincinnati from January 1st through August 10th of this year- 75 single family homes and 16 condos with sale prices of $300,000 and above have sold for cash in Hamilton, Butler, Warren and Clermont counties.  The highest price home sold for $3,200,00 and highest priced condo for $842,026.  Don’t take this the wrong way, metro Cincinnati is by no means moving toward a “cash driven real estate market”- but cash deals do happen in our area.

Last year during the same timeframe 62 single family homes and 14 condos were cash deals.  The highest priced home was sold $4,500,000 however the tax records indicate a holding company was the purchaser- so I’m guessing somebody is going will eventually sub-divide the lots and build more  homes on the property.  The winner in the condo category sold for $1,500,000.

While it may seem “to good to be true”  there’s always a “slim chance” in our area that the buyer will offer cash and yes we’ll probably take a 2nd and 3rd look at the contract to ensure somebody didn’t check the wrong box.

Don’t forget that cash buyers need to provide similar information as a buyer with conventional financing- proof the funds required to close are readily available.  The information needs to be provided by a reputable source such as a bank, trustee, lawyer or investment firm. 

Cash is only king-if you actually have the money to close on time.

Good news for sellers in all 4 counties in metropolitan Cincinnati.  According to the Multiple Listing Service of Greater Cincinnati, sales volume is up for 2010 as compared to 2009.

However, as the chart below indicates,  increased sales volume doesn’t convert into huge price gains for sellers.

Single Family Sales by County

In Warren County, the average sale price has actually decreased and the # of  houses sold is down  for Hamilton County. 

Real Estate is selling, but sellers need to stay on top of the market and price accordingly.

If you need help figuring out today’s real estate realities- call or email me now.