Hudson Valley Happenings Blog : November 2009

The Greater Hudson Valley is a great place to live or to have a weekend place.  If you would like to start a search for a permanent residence or vacation home in the area I would love to help you.  Working with an experienced buyer's agent can help you to choose what is best for you.  I work in Orange, Ulster, or Sullivan County NY and I would love to be your Buyer's Agent. If you are looking elsewhere I would love to find someone in your chosen location to help you.  Give me a call  or send an email today.

What a year it has been!  Can we find things to be thankful for even within the downturns and uncertainty of the economy?

Maybe your year has included some very painful moments.  Almost all of us are suffering, shocked by the burst bubble that we were happily living in.  We were happy to move along while times were good without much thought about the future.  It would take care of itself after all.  Missteps were taken by a lot of people based on the general buoyancy of the county.  Everyone felt they had the right to have it all without taking the steps to build a firm foundation to balance the future on.  Now we need to refocus on basic common sense and go back to building our futures rather than borrowing easy money from nowhere to teeter on.  

Happy Thanksgiving to all my readers, friends, and family!  
I will save a place at my virtual table for you.  
Know you are loved.

The Greater Hudson Valley is a great place to live or to have a weekend place.  If you would like to start a search for a permanent residence or vacation home in the area I would love to help you.  Working with an experienced buyer's agent can help you to choose what is best for you.  I work in Orange, Ulster, or Sullivan County NY and I would love to be your Buyer's Agent. If you are looking elsewhere I would love to find someone in your chosen location to help you.  Give me a call  or send an email today.

Those of you who are Friends with me on Facebook will know that I have taken on a commitment to post something that I am thankful for every day until Thanksgiving.  I do find it has made me reflect on my life and made me realize how much I truly have.  Oh I have posted thankfulness for my family, my friends, and many other things so far but this morning I put up the following:

I am thankful for the opportunity that each new day represents. We can seize the day and live it to the fullest or we can let it slip away. Here's hoping that all of you take advantage of the possibilities this day represents and live it as if it were your last. Part of my commitment to post something I am thankful for every day until Thanksgiving. Carpe Diem!

We all need to try to make each day the best it can be.  I try to work through disappointments and turn them into lessons.  I make every effort to let those I love know that I love them each time we have contact (in fact if I forget to tell someone that I love them I feel uncomfortable until I can rectify it by talking to them again.)    

Join me in this challenge for the next week.  If you are not my Facebook Friend please send me a request.  If you are already my friend there and plan to participate let me know so I can stop by and visit.  Be thankful and positive and your life will be so much better.  Have a great weekend and a wonderful Thanksgiving Week next week.

What was true a year and a half ago is still true today.  Foreclosures can be a good investment for some but it is buyer beware.  Make sure you know what you are getting into before you sign on the dotted line.

I have had a lot of requests lately for "foreclosure listings".  I know that there is a lot of news about how many people are in trouble with mortgages that are adjusting up to amounts they can't afford.  Many of my buyer clients feel that they can get a real deal from a foreclosure.  There are a few things to consider prior to buying a house that has been in foreclosure.

First, more often than not, the bank has bought back the foreclosure and has it listed at the going rate for houses that are comparable.  They are not going to give away a home because it is worth more than the loan that was defaulted on.  Another thing to think about is that many of these homes currently reaching the foreclosure market are worth less than the borrower owed to the bank due to the borrower having taking $ for closing costs and financing as much as 106% of the homes value at the time of purchase.

You must also consider that the people who owned this house and went into foreclosure have been in a very depressed state for a long time before the bank finally got them out of the house.  Some of them are going through other personal and financial difficulties and none of them is taking care of the house the way it should be taken care of.  Unless you are ready to work on a "fixer upper" you may not be the right buyer for such a property.  

Another issue that I have seen a lot of in making offers on bank owned properties is that the process is slow, often someone at a distant location is handling the file and it can take a long time to get a response on an offer.  Bidding wars also abound on these properties.  Buying a home is stressful enough without adding to the stress by dealing with a corporate nightmare.

These properties are sold in "as is" condition and, in New York at least, there is no requirement for a property condition disclosure.  It is difficult to know what lurks behind the walls or what is missing in some cases. Many defaulting owners will strip what they can from the house before they are evicted. 

So yes you can sometimes get somewhat of a bargain on some foreclosures but more often than not you are just opening yourself up to a headache.   

If you are looking for a home and want an agent who will look out for your best interests just let me know.

A big Thanks you to Lenn Harley for this one.  She has a wonderful grasp on many aspects of the real estate market.  She provides a great explanation of the differences and usefulness of two often misunderstood terms that are used in real estate analysis - Median and Average Prices.

The Average selling price in an area will give you a glimpse of affordability but should not be used when preparing an offer.  Don't be fooled by numbers that don't apply directly to the property you are looking at.  Each property is unique.  A Buyer's Representative Agent will provide you with a specific Market Analysis of the property you are interested in.

For Further Information 845-786-2701

The Greater Hudson Valley is a great place to live or to have a weekend place.  If you would like     to start a search for a permanent residence or vacation home in the area I would love to help you.  Working with an experienced buyer's agent can help you to choose what is best for you.  I work in Orange, Ulster, or Sullivan County NY and I would love to be your Buyer's Agent. If you are looking elsewhere I would love to find someone in your chosen location to help you.  Give me a call  or send an email today.