HARRY’S COLUMN

INCENTIVES ARE THE BUZZWORD

Considering wherever you might be within the current position of your business cycle, various types of incentives are what will create the positive change. Incentives can be all types, from the Federal Government, to states and cities; from the Seller who must sell their house to using various bonuses to attract a Buyer.

In order to receive the greatest rate of return, here are some examples of marketing concepts that we have found to be mutually beneficial – whether you are a Buyer or a Seller. (Because all elements affecting real estate values, marketability, timeliness, etc., are localized, the enticements presented here are focused on the Colorado Springs area. Many of these ideas can certainly be correlated to other cities.)

One example of our services that can positively affect a client is our “incentive” of “Job Loss Protection”.

In the past week we have referred a doctor who is moving to Colorado Springs from Philadelphia to the proper real estate company to sell his house in Philadelphia.  We met with a local Seller who will be moving to Tennessee, to place their home in the Monument area on the market. In both cases, our “Seller” can use our Job Loss Protection as a great benefit to outperform their listing competition.

To remind our readers of the highlights of that marketing advantage, it is patterned after what Hundai Motors has done since 2008.  We’re sure you have seen their ads on TV. In a nutshell, what we offer is that, from the time of a closing, if a Buyer loses their job and gets “laid off”, we have a non-profit firm in Virginia to subsidize the Buyer’s monthly payment up to $1800 per month for up to 6 months. In order for the Buyer to obtain that terrific benefit, all they have to do is demonstrate that they are receiving  unemployment benefits from the state.

In order to fund this selling enhancement, at the time of closing, the Seller is debited only $500 on their HUD statement. It therefore reduces the capital gain upon the sold property.  We have found that this feature is a definite win for both the Buyer and the Seller.

Some other enticements that we offer to our Buyers, Sellers, corporate accounts, etc., are.:

Cyberhomes Complete Market Analysis for prospective Buyers

One year of Home Owner Association Fee

Family Gym Memberships

Riding Lawnmower (park in garage with a large bow and sign)

One year of Property Insurance

Snow Blower (park in garage with a large bow and sign)

One year paid Lawn Care, Maid Service, Snow Removal, etc

Gift card to Home Depot or Lowes

Gift cards for local Fine Dining.

Allowance for upgrades such as Hardwood Floors, Counter tops, Appliances, Light Fixtures

Allowance to upgrade Kitchen / Bath

Interest Rate Buy Downs

Prepay real estate Taxes for 6 months to a year

Pay Buyers Closing Costs

Bonus Commission to the Selling Agent

½ Day Packing Service

Packing Materials

Staging

Reimburse Inspection Fee upon closing

Just look at everything you’re missing, if you don’t buy a house from us !!!!

We welcome the opportunity to see how we can implement these ideas into your individual needs to outperform your competition.

WHY YOU WILL BENEFIT AS A real estate INVESTOR

We can no longer say, “Well, it’s business as usual”, or, “Well, the last time we came out of a recession, we did …..”. There are an absolute different set of criteria staring at us in the mirror. Here are some thoughts that, when implemented properly, should put some money into your pockets.

No matter what city you are reading this from, because it goes nationwide, these issues can be localized and are not exclusive to Colorado Springs. We are seeing an above average demand for good-quality rental homes, from both investors and from tenants. You see, it is our belief that many people who are losing their homes due to a foreclosure or short sale are still “credit worthy”. Their foreclosure problem might be because they were placed into the wrong mortgage by their lender. In other words, perhaps they didn’t meet a conservative type of qualification for the type of mortgage loan that their lender advised them to obtain. We are talking about millions, yes, millions of loans that were provided with “built-ins” like; zero funds down, a negative ARM, a loan of 105% to 125% of the sales price, etc.

Those people do not seem to be like the same borrower profile that the industry had to deal with prior to about 2005.

The increase in rental demand that we are seeing requested for rental homes today are from a tenant profile of a family which has been a recent property owner. They have typically maintained proper care for both the interior and exterior of their homes. Another major reason that the “tenant profile” has been established is because they were advised to obtain a mortgage with an adjustable rate. When the lender went to re-establish the new rate, the market value of the property was considerably below the current loan balance. Based upon the negative equity in the home, lenders either required the borrower to pay down the current loan balance or, if the homeowner was either unable or unwilling to do so, the lender began the foreclosure process.

Based upon a huge increase in this type of foreclosures and short sales, those former homeowners are increasing. There are many more people who must rent a home today, compared to the number of tenants prior to the middle of the past decade.

The point is that we are seeing a much greater demand for nicer rentals than we have seen in past years.

This ‘tenant profile’ should be a better quality tenant because they are used to properly taking care of their personal home.

Therefore, since the market is providing the investor with:

            A better quality of tenant

            The ability to select a better quality of rental house to buy

            Record low interest rates for a “non-owner occupant”

            Appreciation in housing values because of the looming inflation

You should probably give us a call to allow us, as an investor advisor, to give you some ideas of how the Colorado Springs residential market can be a positive factor in your investment portfolio.

GAZETTE PUBLISHES MOST RECENT HIGH-SCHOOL GRADUATION RATES

The Colorado State Board of Education has released the local high-school graduation rates for 2009. You will note that, among the best performing districts, are Academy (2), Lewis-Palmer (38) and Cheyenne Mountain (12). Courtesy of the Gazette, we are linking the statistics here.

If you know of anyone who desires to buy or sell local real estate, or, who is moving in or out of the Pikes Peak region, remember that, with over 37 years of providing relocation and Real Estate services to clients throughout the country, I am uniquely qualified to assist them with the relocation process, including buying and/or selling their homes on both ends of their move. Please allow me to implement my negotiating skills on your behalf.

To hear my latest podcast, just click on the icon at the top of this email and, if you would like to learn more about our Job Loss Protection Program, or, about our CyberHomes Complete Market Analysis of a property, please contact us. 

JOKE OF THE MONTH

Once upon a time, in a place overrun with monkeys, a man appeared and announced to the villagers that he would buy monkeys for $10 each.

The villagers, seeing that there were many monkeys around, went out to the forest, and started catching them.

The man bought thousands at $10 and as supply started to diminish, they became harder to catch, so the villagers stopped their effort.

The man then announced that he would now pay $20 for each one. This renewed the efforts of the villagers and they started catching monkeys again. But soon the supply diminished even further and they were ever harder to catch, so people started going back to their farms and forgot about monkey catching.

The man increased his price to $25 each and the supply of monkeys became so sparse that it was an effort to even see a monkey, much less catch one.

The man now announced that he would buy monkeys for $50! However, since he had to go to the city on some business, his assistant would now buy on his behalf.

While the man was away the assistant told the villagers, “Look at all these monkeys in the big cage that the man has bought. I will sell them to you at $35 each and when the man returns from the city, you can sell them to him for $50 each.”

The villagers rounded up all their savings and bought all the monkeys.

They never saw the man nor his assistant again, and once again there were monkeys everywhere.

Now you have a better understanding of how the stock market works