HGTV

Just wanted to let everyone know how excited I am to have just finished another episode of "House Hunters" for HGTV. I also did an episode of "My House Is Worth What" in July with more HGTV shows to be filmed next year. I'll be keeping you all posted as to when those will air. Any opportunity to tell people how great Portland is, I'll take!

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Want to Buy a Forclosure

Are you hoping to be one of the buyers out there who score a deal during the bad housing market? Taking a look at foreclosures are a good bet for you but there are some things to keep in mind.

There are plenty of foreclosures out there right now and lenders are definitely looking to get rid of them. This isn't exactly the time to be holding on and waiting for a better offer.

Apparently there are different stages of foreclosure and they all have different amounts of risk and reward so you can choose what fits your comfort level.

Pre-Foreclosure

A home goes into pre-foreclosure when a borrower has fallen behind on his payments, but the house has yet to be auctioned off. If you wanted to go over all the delinquency notices that are filed with the county by the lenders when an owner misses a payment, then you can see if any of the homes meet your criteria.

Then you have to approach the home owners and see if they want to sell. This has potential to go really badly because people often don't want to move and a low ball offer could be insulting. Wording is important. You need to point out that you are offering them a way out of trouble.

You are essentially offering them a short sale, which is a buyer paying less for a house than the mortgage owed. The lender has to agree and then forgive the rest of the debt. Normally this would take some persuasive power but today's market certainly makes it easier.

Sheriffs' Sales

Homes in default are auctioned off on the county courthouse and can be real bargains, but the process is a crap shoot.

There is no inspect the property, so there's no telling how much work it needs. You also don't know what kind of liens there are against the home so you don't know what you end cost will be. Most importantly, you need to come with cash. 10%-20% has to be put down on the spot, and the rest in a matter of days.

Even after all that, you decide to make the purchase and feel it's a good move it can still fall apart. If the current owner can come up with enough cash to repay the buyer the amount of the winning bid then they get to keep it.

Post-Foreclosure

When a lender takes a house back from an owner the property goes back on the market. This is called an REO (real estate owned) property. This is a normal listing with a broker and the deal to be had is not as big as the other stages.

These homes are often listed on the lenders websites, including Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. This is a less risky way to go because the title is clear and the home is vacant.

There are also REO auctions. Some auction companies will buy a bunch of these properties from the lender at once and then put them on auction. These can be sold quickly for quite a low price and can start the rebuild of a neighborhood.

http://money.cnn.com/2008/08/06/real_estate/Foreclosure_bargains/index.htm?postversion=2008080811

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Fixed Mortgage Rates

Have you locked in your mortgage rate. Some people simply haven't been paying attention and think the housing market and mortgage rates are the same as 2005. It is no longer the best idea to wait for rates to drop. More than likely you are going to miss out if you don't act now.

Rates are no longer stable like the used to be and people don't seem to realize that. Many people didn't get their rates locked back then when it would have been easier, and at the time there was no need. Things are different now and things can change drastically at anytime.

If good rate presents itself you need to get it locked in, in writing from your lender. The way things are now, even if the rate dips down it won't be by much and it will be very temporary. You've got to take the deal when you have the chance.

Rates are expected to go up in the next six weeks, and even hit 7% by the end of this year. Every half point of an interest rate increase, the monthly payment on a typical $200,000 mortgage jumps about $70.00. That is around $800.00 a year!

Getting a rate locked in is easier than you might think. As long as you have a contract or a binder on a home the lender should be willing to give you a commitment in writing. A lock is good for 60 days at a very low cost.

http://money.cnn.com/2008/08/04/real_estate/mortgage_rate_lock/index.htm?postversion=2008080405

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Last Thursday

Last Thursday has been an event in Northeast Portland for about a decade. The last Thursday of every month the streets, stores and restaurants of Alberta street are flooded with people. It is thought that there are currently around 10,000 people participating in this event each month.

Now it is time to take measures to keep up with growth. Vendors are putting merchandise on the sidewalk, which is already over flowing with pedestrians. There are also some sanitation issues to deal with.

No one wants this to go away so steps need to be taken to ensure safety of participants and those who live in the area. They are even having TriMet re-route some buses. The Northeast Portland area has made great strides in recent years and keeping the community involved will only improve it more.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25959344/from/ET/

PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR NEW PODCAST ON THE HOMEPAGE OF OUR WEBSITE http//:www.TonyandLibby.com