Surprising Numbers

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, less people moved last year than in any year since 1962! And of course, the U.S. population was much smaller then and so it you look at it as a percentage, in 2008 just 11.9 percent of Americans changed residences, the lowest move rate on record since 1948. I find that rather surprising.

So, how are we doing locally in 2009. By the numbers, it doesn't look good. The Greater Rochester Association of Realtors released numbers last week that indicated sales of existing single-family homes fell almost 14 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier. But I personally think these numbers paint an untrue picture.

I personally had very robust year in 2008 UNTIL September 1. That is when the phone stopped ringing. My personal sales for year-to-date are down more than the 14 percent locally reported but the market does seem to be picking up steam with first time home buyers. I am optimistic that this will be a much more productive fall than last year.

Another quick reminder, time is short if you want to buy a house and be closed before the November 30th deadline.


Mary Shelsby
ReMax First
585-756-7457

Mrs Clean Does Not Live Here!

Wow! I've seen some dirty houses on the market in recent weeks. I'm not talking dust bunnies, I'm talking dust gorillas. And these aren't cheap houses either.

At one of these houses, my client turned to me and said I feel like I'd just be buying their mess. I assured her we could require that the house be professionally cleaned at closing but the husband shook his head and said, “If they can't keep up with cleaning, what makes us think they have kept up with maintenance items?” Good point!

At another house I showed, the floor was so dirty that we went back to the front door and put our shoes back on to protect our feet. Then when I walked into the dining room, I saw that someone had swept that floor but there was a pile of debris just waiting for someone to appear with the dustpan! This is not an exaggeration!!! This house was listed in the $175,000 to $185,000 range and we had to give 24 hours notice in order to see it. Unfortunately, they did not use that 24 hours to prepare for our showing.

Ladies and gentleman, if you want to sell your house at top dollar, start with a good cleaning. If cleaning is not your thing, then hire it out. And by a good cleaning, I mean wipe down your walls and doors near light switches and door knobs. Organize your cabinets and closets. Clean out your window wells because buyers will be looking at your windows. And yes, do the windows as well. Heck, I also recommend that you eliminate cob webs, even in the basement and attic. It doesn’t hurt to dust the hot water heater and furnace. Send the message that you have loved this old house and have been compulsive about its care. And as long as your house is priced properly for its location and condition, you will have a much greater chance of getting a full price offer.

Mary Shelsby
ReMax First
585-756-7457

Location! Location! Guess this Location!

Do you know the location of this photo? Be the third person with the correct answer and I'll give you a $20 gift certificate to Tim Hortons. (No licensed realtors, please.) Leave your answer as a comment or shoot me an e-mail.

I've been supplying photos to the Greater Rochester Real Estate Board for a similar contest during the past few years and its been a ton of fun. I hope you enjoy it as well.

Mary Shelsby
ReMax First
585-756-7457

Buy Before Labor Day!

I am advising all of my first time home buyer clients to be under contract by Labor Day to qualify for the federal tax credit being offered to most home buyers that have not owned a home in the past three years. I don’t really think it is going to take 80 plus days for a transaction to close but I do anticipate gridlock at banks and attorney offices. I do know of several real estate attorneys that have plans to keep their office open until midnight if necessary to close every transaction that is clear to close before the December 1 deadline.


My biggest concern is housing inventory. Inventory is tight right now, especially homes priced less than $130,000. For example, I started working with new clients just over a week ago that want to buy in the city of Rochester near the U of R. To start their search, I called on 12 listings to schedule an appointment. I could only get appointments at 7 of them because the rest had accepted offers. Of the 7 properties, 2 had offers in that were being negotiated and one smelled so bad we never made it to the second floor. One home was really nice and when I called the next day to schedule a second look, four offers had arrived. This week, 4 new listing came up that met their criteria but 3 of them sold within 12 hours of being listed and the 4th was liked by her but not him. We’ve decided that we’re going to step our search up a notch or two.

Other areas of the city are selling very rapidly as well. The Culver-Winton and Browncroft neighborhoods are definite hot spots. Outside the city, starter homes in the Brighton School District seem to be sold even before they hit the market. And as we count down to the deadline imposed by the Federal government, I anticipate inventory to get tighter and competition more fierce. And so, again, I urge buyers to try to be under contact before the Labor Day holiday.

Beautiful Day on Lake Ontario

Lucky, lucky me! I hot to show property on Lake Ontario this morning and it was a simply beautiful day for it.

Should be a good weekend as well! I hope so! Look for me at the Corn Hill Arts Festival, credit card in hand, doing my part to improve the economy.

There is a lot going on in local real estate and I'll be updating soon, perhaps this evening. I promise!

Enjoy the wonderful weather!

Multi-Family Units & the Federal Tax Credit

I learned something new today regarding the Federal Tax credit for first time home buyers (defined as not owning a home in the past 3 years.) If you purchase a 2-family unit as your primary residence, you are only eligible for half of the tax credit and only a third of the credit if you purchase a three-family unit, etc.



There are still no local mortgage lenders that are providing a short term loan so that the tax credit may be used for closing costs. Since Labor Day weekend is the realistic cutoff to have an offer accepted in order to close before the November 30th deadline, I'm no longer optimistic that this loan is even going to be offered. Most lenders are now advising that buyers get a gift from a family member and give a gift back after closing.



Sales are still brisk in Rochester, with houses in the North Winton area selling within hours of being listed. If you'd like more information about buying in the Rochester area, consider signing up for my Buyer Seminar scheduled for Wednesday, June 24, 6 to 7:30 pm.

City Offers Grants to Landlords for Lead Removal

The City of Rochester is offering a lead grant for rental properties that will assist with 90% of the lead remediation related project cost up to $18,000 per unit for porch repair/ replacement, window/door repair/replacement, painting and bare soil treatment. In extreme cases, funding may be used for exterior siding. Landlords are required to contribute 10% of the total project cost.


There are only 75 of these grants available so act fast. To receive an application simply e-mail your: 1) full name, 2) telephone number, 3) address of business, and 4) email address to RocLandlord@TheHousingCouncil.org with "City LEAD Grant Application" as the subject line.

Home Buying Seminar - Wednesday, June 24, 6 to 7:30 pm

I've not done a home buyer Seminar in a couple of years but there is so much good stuff going on right now with the $8000 first time home buyer credit that the timing just seems right. So mark your calendar or tell a friend.

Wednesday, June 24, 6 to 7:30 pm at 2024 W. Henrietta Road, Suite 2A; which is the home office of First Rochester Mortgage Corp.

I'm real proud of the impressive panel of real estate professionals that have agreed to help with this project.

* Home Inspector Adam Backus of Pillar to Post will share tips on what to look for before putting in a purchase offer.

* Attorney Steve Kruk of Kruk and Campbell will discuss the $8000 Federal Tax Credit for first time home buyers.

* Steve D’Amico, Vice President of East Cap Mortgage will chat about the current mortgage environment.

* Mary Shelsby, Broker Associate with ReMax First will offer advice on the great adventure of finding the perfect home.

We will be serving food, so it is crucial for an RSVP. If you’d like to attend but this particular day or time are not convenient, please let us know so that we can schedule another event or a one-on-one consultation. RSVP to Mary Shelsby at MShelsby@gmail.com or call 585-756-7457.

If you RSVP before Friday June 19th, I will send you a coupon for $200 off your closing cost from eastCap mortgage.

Tortuous Weekend!

There is absolutely nothing more fun in real estate than calling your buyers and saying, “Congratulations! Your offer was accepted!”


And there is almost nothing worse than calling buyers and having to tell them their offer was out-bided.

My weekend started off marvelously when I showed a house in Brighton to a young family that had been looking most of this year. We were the very first to get to see the house and it was lovely. The buyers loved it and so we got together that evening and wrote an offer, a generous offer more than $2000 over asking price. And we made the offer good until Sunday at 1, which is when their open house was scheduled to start.

Well, Sunday at 1 came and went with no call from the listing agent. 3pm and the end of the end of the open house came and still no word. By 5 pm, I was getting steamed and called the listing agent. Of course all I got was voice mail. Finally, at 7 pm I received a call from him to say that he still had not been able to reach the sellers to tell them about our offer and by the way, there are now two additional offers on the table.

It was not until Monday morning that we learned that a total of three additional offers came in. Since ours was first, they did give us an opportunity to match the highest offer, which was $11,100 over asking and a cash deal. And so, I have emotionally drained and heartbroken clients that are still looking to buy a house in Brighton, which has to be hottest market around!

In between phone calls and property showings, I took a nice walk through Linear Park (also known as Philbrick Park) in Penfield. That’s where the photos were taken. It was a great escape from the stress and burned more calories than chewing my nails.

Children's Miracle Network Telethon is this Sunday! Call in and I'll Match your Donation!

I’m writing to you to ask for your support!

For the past 5 years or so, I’ve supported the Golisano Children’s Hospital by donating a portion of my real estate commission for every house that I’ve sold. Well, it’s no secret that the economy has had a strong impact on the real estate market and so this past year was far from my most productive year. As a result, I’ve decided to take my support for this important organization to a new level.

This Sunday, May 31st, I will be participating in the local Children’s Miracle Network Telethon which is being broadcast from the Strong Memorial Hospital Lobby on channel 10NBC. The show is being aired from 10 am to 1 pm and from 7 pm till 11 pm.

I will be answering phones and taking pledges for one hour starting at 11 am, and have decided to issue a challenge. If you will call during that hour and mention my name, I will match your donation.* The number to call is (585) 241-KIDS. In addition, you can contribute on-line at www.gchas.org but be sure to mention the Mary Shelsby Challenge in the special comments section.

Why? Well, a couple of weeks ago I attended a luncheon where I got to meet several of the children whose lives were saved by extraordinary care received at Golisano Children’s Hospital. It occurred to me that it would be unthinkable that some child might not have the same opportunity just because they were unlucky enough to get sick during a bad economy. This facility serves a 17 county region and is committed to treating all children regardless of the family’s ability to pay.

So please, mark your calendar for this Sunday, between 11 am and noon, tune into channel 10 and dial 241-KIDS and make a pledge. It’s that simple! Thank you for your consideration and generosity.

Mary
 
*  I will match the first $500 in donations between 11 am and noon in which my name is mentioned.

Happy Memorial Day!

The weather just can't be beat right now, just perfect for a holiday cookout. Best wishes for a safe and happy holiday weekend. Please do take a moment to remember our veterans. The Vietnam Memorial at Highland Park is an excellent spot for that.

Cash for Buying a House

For the past two weeks or so, there have been rumors galore that first time home buyers will be able to borrow their federal tax credit in order to use that money for closing costs and down payment towards the purchase of a home. The details have not yet been worked out but I think this is going to happen. There are some technicalities that have to be worked out because basically you are not suppose to borrow money in order to have the funds necessary to qualify for a mortgage. Hopefully this will be worked out soon because there is not a lot of time left in order to qualify for the tax credit. The purchase must be closed before December 1, 2009.


I have also heard rumors of homebuyers amending their 2008 tax returns to claim the credit before they close on a home in order to get the money early and use it at closing. I’m not a lawyer and this is not legal advice BUT I don’t recommend you doing this. Lying to the federal government so that they will send you thousands of dollars doesn't seem like a prudent advice for individuals that enjoy the simple things in life, like freedom.

Anyway, I’m working with plenty of first time home buyers right now and questions keep coming up about the disbursement of money, i.e., when and how much. Here are some general guidelines.

When you write a purchase offer for a property, you need to be willing and able to make a good faith deposit within 48 hours of when your offer is accepted. Deposits are a minimum of $1000 and are made payable to the listing broker. That money is held in escrow (not given to the seller), is refundable if the contract is canceled due to contingences, and is used towards the closing costs or down payment of the property.

Generally, the buyer has up to one week to conduct inspections of the property and these are done at the buyer’s expense. Inspections include a home inspection ($300 to $500), radon test ($150 to $200), mold inspection ($200 - $500), chimney inspection ($125 0 $200) ect. In addition, if the house is on septic system and/or has a well, they will need to be inspected. It is not unusual for the seller to pay for these inspections but occasionally the buyer will prefer to pay for these themselves just so that the inspector works strictly for the buyer. Well inspections and water testing can run from $35 to $250 and septic pumping and inspection is $200 to $400.

The next outlay of cash is usually to the mortgage lender. Some lenders will collect an application fee at the time the mortgage application is made ($200 - $300). Nearly all lenders will require that the appraisal be paid up front ($250 - $400).

Things get quiet after mortgage application and the next big expense is homeowner’s insurance. Mortgage companies require that you pay for the first year of insurance up front and that the insurance binder is faxed to your attorney before closing. Insurance premiums are based on the replacement cost of the property plus there is consideration of personal possessions, so I won't dare to quote a range for homeowner’s insurance, but do encourage you to shop around.

The day before closing, you will receive a call for your attorney’s office telling you how much money to bring to closing. Hopefully, any surprises with this phone call are good ones, as you will have received and signed a “Good Faith Estimate” at the time of mortgage application. Some of the language on the GFE is confusing to the layman. The GFE will give a total of closing costs, prepaid items which includes interest and mortgage insurance and the down payment. The GFE should include “Total Estimated Funds Needed to Close” and this should be fairly close to what you are asked to bring to the attorney’s office.


I hope this helps clarify how much money is needed when in the home buying process. If you’d like more information or a consolation, don’t hesitate to give me a call.

My Favorite Helpers!

Property is selling in Rochester, NY, thanks in part to the federal first time home buyer tax credit. I've been struggling to keep up but Colin and Sean were a big help in putting a sold sign in front of their home in Southeast Rochester. Thanks guys.

Hopefully, I'll be able to squeeze out a little time over the next couple of days to catch up on blogging!

The Purpose of the Home Inspection

Okay, I'm getting grumpy! I'm tired and have not had a day off in a while. With that being said, let me get this off my chest!

The purpose of the home inspection is NOT to renegotiate the terms of the sale. If you put in a purchase offer on a house with a tarp over the garage roof, don't expect $5000 concession because the inspector says the garage is a piece of crap.

The purpose of the home inspection is to discover defects that were not obvious at the time of purchase. There is no such thing as a perfect house. The inspector will let you know what is imperfect about it and you decide if you can live with that imperfection. Sometimes the seller will fix the imperfection. Sometimes the seller will offer a credit so the buyer can fix the imperfection. But the inspection is not intended to renegotiate the terms of the purchase.

There! I feel better! Now, hopefully I can go back to my normal smiling self.

The Lilacs are Coming But the Magnolias are Here!!!

At some parks, there are signs telling you not to leave the walkway. But not so at

Rochester's Highland Park. In fact, they have many park benches well off the beaten path just beckoning you to come and sit and ponder. What a delightful way to spend a spring day.

Highland Park might be best know for its lilacs but I believe the magnolias are just as spectacular, if not more so. The warm temperatures of the past few days have brought them almost to peak so if you get a chance to take a stroll, do so soon. Enjoy the photos.

And about real estate, well, it's been busy. My two new listings this week both sold in a week or less. I have many buyer clients that still can't find a place to buy. Now is a good time to sell in Rochester.

54 Westmoreland Dr. - Great deal for U of R Employees

54 Westmoreland Drive. Cute house in a wonderful location. This property qualifies for up to $9000 in grants for full and part time employees of the University of Rochester. In addition, if you have not owned a home in the past three years, you may qualify for the $8000 federal tax credit if you close before December 1, 2009. Stop by and see me today at my open house from 1 to 3 or call me for details. 585-414-5513

How Quickly are Houses Selling In Rochester?

Very, very, very quickly!

Case in point, a new listing came up Friday afternoon. There were no photos but my clients decided to drive by anyway. They called me from the driveway and said we want want to see this. I pull up the listing and there is not even a flowery description of the property and call to get the appointment. There is no sign in the yard so I drive right by it but we get to see it first thing Sunday morning. They really, really like it but we decide to look at an open house that afternoon to compare the properties. No comparison!

We sit down last evening and write an offer. I don't even call the agent ahead of time because, heck, he hasn't even posted photos yet so no one is going to find this property, right? WRONG! Full price offer accepted just hours before ours was submitted.

This was not a starter home either. It was 2500 sq feet in the $200,000 range. So, yes, houses in Rochester are selling very, very quickly.

How Much House Can I Afford to Buy?

I've got a very good feeling that young people have been watching the news and learning from the messy financial situation facing the country and world these days. While they are enticed by the excellent market conditions (very low mortgage rates, lower house prices and a tax credit!!) there is a lot of concern and conservatism regarding personal finances. Hooray! I am meeting more and more people in their 20's that have little to no debt, aside from student loans. I'm optimistic that this next generation gets it.

As I meet with first time home buyers, they struggle with the decision over how much house to buy. They don't want to get in trouble. That is excellent but I also counsel buyers not to buy too little. It is very expensive to buy and sell houses and with houses appreciating at a slower rate these days, you can expect it to take 4 to 7 years to recoup your closing costs.
So how do you know how much house to buy? Conventional wisdom is that a 30 year mortgage payment (PITI) should fall in the range of 28 to 33 percent of personal income. Here is a link to a handy calculator that can help you figure this range. http://cgi.money.cnn.com/tools/houseafford/houseafford.html .

Keep in mind, this is a very simplistic approach to deciding how much to spend. A more comprehensive approach is to chart out all your monthly expenses, set goals for savings (long term and short term) and actually formulate a budget. I know that "budget" is often considered a dirty word but a budget will help you analysis your spending habits and prioritize where you want your money to go, i.e., would you rather travel or have a more expensive home? Visa, the credit card company, has an excellent web site on practical money skills that includes a budget tool. If you want to check it out, go to http://practicalmoneyskills.com/english/wizards/downloadtool.php


Houses in the lower price ranges continue to sell very, very quickly in Rochester right now and luxury homes are beginning to get more attention. I'm looking forward to seeing the numbers for our first quarter.

Already Sold!

The only reason I have time to update my blog this week is that more than half of the houses that I've called on to schedule a showing have already been sold.  In fact, one house had an accepted offer at 6 pm on the very day it was put on the market.  I think it is safe to say that the $8000 first time home buyer tax credit is doing it's job to stimulate the real estate market.

I did a quick check of houses that went pending today in the MLS system.  At 4 pm, we had 37 new pendings, with an average sale price of $133,900 and average days on market is 62. 

The Seach for the Ugly House

Some of my clients think I'm a little crazy when I advocate for buying ugly houses. Now I'm not talking butt-ugly. I'm talking about the type of ugly that a coat of paint or perhaps new carpet will fix. And I advocate for that type of house because that is where the best deals are.

Houses with "Pottery Barn Decor" are fun to look at but you will "ohh and ahh" all the way to the bank if you purchase this type of house. Sparkling clean and tastefully decorated houses command top dollar but keep in mind that the furniture and art work will be gone when you move in.

Everybody wants to buy a beautiful house. It's just not as exciting to tell all your friends, "Well, it has green and orange shag carpeting from the '70's BUT the roof is new and the furnace is only a couple of years old!"

Here are a few tips for ugly house shopping.

1. Do your homework so you can budget for remodeling jobs. Kitchens, for example, and be remodeled for a few thousand dollars or tens of thousands, depending on your standards. Even wall-to-wall carpeting comes in a wide variety of designs and quality and so no real estate agent can honestly give you a ball-park figure for these projects.

2. Have a checklist so that you are certain to check all the mechanicals, such as electric, hotwater heater, roof. It would be down-right depressing to have an ugly house that also leaks every time it rains. This is not to say you won't have the house inspected, but you should check for obvious problems before you put in an offer.

3. Analyze the layout. This is especially important in kitchens. You may be able to improve its looks but it also needs to function well.

4. Don't be afraid to ask for help. If you'd don't know how to decorate, hire an interior designer. Generally, they charge a few hundred dollars for an initial consultation which is a bargain if you saved thousands on the purchase.

Want to go ugly house shopping? Give me a call. I don't mind showing you beautiful houses as well.

www.RochestersBestHomes.com