How's The Market with Nancy Braun | Real Estate. Real Answers.

Hello! This is Mike. I'm with Showcase Realty. Today, we're gonna do our webinar which is part three of our three-part agent training series on successfully selling hud homes. This segment will focus on closings and deadlines for closings with hud properties. So let's go ahead and get started.

6 Advantages of Renting Versus Buying The decision to rent or to buy is a common dilemma for most adults. But the current economic conditions place buyers in a more advantageous position than renters because it’s now actually less expensive (38% cheaper) to buy a home than it is to pay a landlord rent. If paying less for the place you call home is not enough to lead you down the path to home ownership, then we’re here to help you better understand with 6 advantages of  buying vs renting. #1 Equity Each payment you make towards the principal of your home loan every month increases your equity; the percentage of your home that you own. When you are renting you are actually paying off your landlord’s mortgage debt and increasing their equity in the house. #2 Rent Goes Up No landlord reduced your rent, right? As a renter you are at the mercy of your landlord.  Rent typically goes up every year. However, mortgage payments can remain the same with a fixed rate loan. #3 Tax Break When filing tax returns, you can claim mortgage interest as a deduction.   Rent payments are not deductible from income taxes. #4 Your Personal Touch When you rent, you live in a space not designed for you and without your personal touch. You don’t have the opportunity to select paint colors, remove or add a wall or take any sweat equity with you. When you own your own home you can make improvements to your property based on what you want. You can paint walls any color you want, update the kitchen, and add those special touches to your house to make it feel like home. Renters don't have any long term benefit from investing time, money or sweat equity into someone else's property. #5 Appreciation As a homeowner you typically can gain from the appreciation on your home. Repairs and upgrades (those personal touches) to your home (especially kitchen and bathroom renovations) tend to add value to your home. This is why homeownership is considered the best long-term investment any individual can make. #6 Pride of Ownership There is a great deal of pride, comfort and stability in owning your own home. Homeownership gives you a joy and happiness that’s hard to describe. But some of the highlights of homeownership is having privacy, entertaining friends and family, having pets without paying a deposit, and the freedom start to your own garden, if you like.

HUD Homes: The Biggest Deal You Don't Know About3 Important Steps to Remember Before Buying a HUD Home Buying a HUD home is certainly one of the best real estate deals available. HUD homes are actually properties owned by HUD, the Department of Housing and Urban Development. These are homes where the owner failed to pay an FHA backed loan that resulted in foreclosure. These properties are now back on the market for sale, often at a great price. However, before buying a HUD home here are three very important steps: 1.      Find an experienced Realtor. Purchasing HUD homes involves a lot of details; rules for investors vs home owners. When bidding on a HUD home homeowners that plan on occupying the home will have a slight advantage or real estate investors.  An experienced Realtor can guide you through the bidding process. 2.   Understand Your Financing Options. One of the most economical ways to purchase a HUD home is through the $100 down program. Conventional loans can also be used as well as 203-B programs or the 203k loans. 3.    Properties sold AS IS. Unlike typical homes for sale on the market where you may have the opportunity to negotiate for repairs cost. This is not the case with HUD homes. What you see is what you get. So do your homework, make a licensed contractor part of your team and make sure to get a honest estimate on repair costs. Some HUD homes only require minor cosmetic repairs. Other properties could have extensive and perhaps hidden repairs.  

How to Win with Short SaleAre you currently facing foreclosure? Are you  planning to purchase a distressed property? There’s one thing in common between the two situations - you might be considering short sales.Learn how to win in this kind of situation by listening to this episode of “How’s the Market: Real Estate. Real Answers” with Nancy Braun, host and owner of Showcase Realty and Wes Pruitt with Reliance First Capital.Highlights:Short sale's have been around forever but recently in the last  10 years  during this recession, they’ve really became a great solution for a lot of underwater borrowers. - Nancy BraunShort sales can be a huge benefit to the borrower in a number of ways. One would be the ability to avoid foreclosure. In addition to that, it helps get rid of the negative stigma that comes with foreclosure, the embarrassment to the family, and from a lender's standpoint and from the banks standpoint, it allows them to avoid foreclosure. - Wes PruittOnly 64% of Americans own a home now, which is our lowest percentage since 1995. So if you're sitting on some 401K or an IRA or have some savings in your retirement fund, it maybe beneficial for you to rethink that and say, wow, I can be making so much more money from my investments if I buy some short sales. If individuals buy some investment properties and rent out the property, they can watch their money grow. - Nancy BraunAt this point, short sales are a very safe investment.  The return on your investment would probably be much better than sitting in bonds or in the stock market unless you really know what you're doing. Real estate is still a safe investment. - Wes PruittIn most cases, you may want to reach out to an agent or interview some agents, to find out who really knows what they're doing as far as a short sale, especially if you believe you're underwater. Before its too late its a great idea to obtain really good professional advice on how to proceed. - Wes Pruitt

4 Important Steps To Fix & Flip SuccessFixing and flipping real estate has become more and more popular. There are tons of Reality TV shows hyping the drama of flipping mistakes, contractors and unforeseen real estate nightmares. Not to fear, tune into to this podcast of “How’s the Market: Real Estate. Real Answers” with Nancy Braun, host and owner of Showcase Realty along with by Wes Pruitt with Reliance First Capital and contractor Jim Potter with Old Towne Development Corporation to talk about the four important steps to fix and flip success.Highlights:Fix and flip means to me investing in real estate instead of investing in the stock market or your IRA, or other 401K plans. Take some of that money and diversify it and put it into dirt and some, not just land but also you know, some construction whether it's commercial or residential. - Nancy BraunWhen you take a house and turn it into a gym, and you remember you took pictures, you remember what it used to look like and you see it now, and it's just a, you know, makes for a real satisfying endeavor. - Jim PotterConventional loans, Fannie Mae also has several programs available for first time homeowners as well as investors. For home improvements on properties to fix and flip, there's a tremendous amount of opportunities, a lots of money available to do that. - Wes PruittCommunication is really the key. The client really needs to explain to the realtor what it is they're looking to accomplish. That way you're both on the same page and you can really get the best of both worlds that way. - Wes PruittBudgeting is critical to the process of renovating the house that you're gonna sell because you have a price in mind that you wanna sell that house for and you probably can't go much higher than that. So you have to make sure that what you're gonna spend on the house that you're gonna buy is not gonna be certainly any more than that and you want to have a profit margin in there so you have to allow for that. - Jim Potter

How To Purchase a Foreclosed HomeWant to buy a foreclosed property? Learn how by listening to the newest episode of “How’s the Market: Real Estate. Real Answers” - How To Purchase A Foreclosed HomeTune in to Nancy Braun, host and owner of Showcase Realty along with Wes Pruitt with Reliance First Capital and Laurie Baker from Baker Law as they discuss the ins and outs of how to purchase a foreclosed home.Highlights:The key is though is to make sure that you know what you’re getting into as a consumer and make sure you’re working with the people who really have in-depth knowledge of how these properties work and what you should really be looking out for in advance. - Wes PruittI still say rates are still so low right now that I would finance as much as they would let me finance and keep as much of my capital or spread that out. Purchase more homes. You know you're probably gonna have to do a little work on these homes so you're going to want to save your cash if you can. - Wes PruittBuyers are reluctant to tell their lender the condition of the property and I want them to tell them the good bad and ugly so they're prepared because the appraisers’ gonna go out there and they're gonna notify the lender that there's a roof leak or that there's peeling siding and if they don't have the right loan product in place, they won't get with the financing if it doesn't match the condition of the house. - Nancy BraunOn the buyer side, the main thing you wanna watch out for is when you purchasing a foreclosed home, the vast majority of the time, the seller's gonna be selling that property as is. - Laurie Baker

Relocation CharlotteDid you know that a lot of corporations have moved their headquarters to Charlotte? For instance, Hitachi American Ltd., Sealed Air Corporation and Spectra Group. Want to know why of all the growth cities in the country these corporation choose to relocate to Charlotte?Tune in to How’s The Market. Real Estate. Real Answers, with Nancy Braun, host and owner of Showcase Realty and Wes Pruitt with Reliance First Capital as they share stats, trends and insights behind these corporate moves. Topics include Charlotte’s low cost of living, top higher education systems, diverse neighborhoods, and much more. Tune in!Highlights:I've been here now for I guess 13 years now. I really wanted somewhere where I can have a real good life and work balance. The other thing that kept me here I was already in the lending industry so Charlotte is a big big area for banking operations. So I thought it will be a good good time for me to move back then and it's worked out very well for my family. - Wes PruittThere's so many opportunities here. And the thing about this area is it is so diverse. There's a lot of folks here from different nationalities. There's a large range of the population from different backgrounds, different cultural backgrounds, different socio economic backgrounds. And I think that really contributes very well to the environment and the overall atmosphere in the city. - Wes PruittNow we're experiencing a lot of other companies that are moving and big part of the real estate agent's job is not just finding them the home but making them feel at ease and comfortable and finding the right neighborhood that fits their lifestyle. - Nancy BraunThat's the thing, you know, you can choose your lifestyle and live in Charlotte. You don't have to give up anything to live in this area. - Wes PruittJoining a club in Charlotte is totally cool. And it's how people meet each other. Again, 65% of the people aren't from Charlotte so joining some type of meetup group or and one of these professionals organizations that fits your lifestyle or that interest, is gonna really make you, you know, have an instant social network very quickly. - Nancy Braun

Millennials: How to Buy Your First HomeAre you a millennial unsure whether to rent or make the leap to purchase your own home? Not familiar with the mortgage options or where to start? Tune in to the latest episode of How’s The Market. Real Estate. Real Answers. Millennials: How to Buy Your First Home.Nancy Braun, host and owner of Showcase Realty is joined by Wes Pruitt with Reliance First Capital; Ashley Fomen and Heather Hamilton, Millennials who recently purchased their own home, along with their respective real estate agents.Listen to this episode and learn how these Millennials were able to successfully purchase a their own home.Highlights: I had set a goal for myself to buy a home by 25 and thankfully I was able to reach that goal. And once I started looking for a home, I did some research and I discovered that, as you mention earlier, rent was actually in many cases, more expensive than purchasing my own home. - Ashley FomenThat's something cool about the Charlotte market. I always think we always can find the right house for someone. There's such diversity in the market out here. - Nancy Braun203ks is just an amazing program. They will in fact, allow you to purchase the home and like we were talking about, they will have contractors come out and bid on making the improvements so they will loan on the home in an as-is condition, however, give you the value based on the improvements already being made. - Wes PruittApplying for the loan is a little intimidating. I would recommend that as people go into searching for a loan, that they have all their ducks in a row with paperwork and I recommend that they keep all of their tax returns, W2s on one location and any important documents so that last minute you're not scrounging around looking for everything. - Heather HamiltonI never thought that I could own my own home but it happened. So definitely, just start looking and look into the programs that Wes has just mentioned and see if any of them speak to you and know that you can do it. It can happen. - Heather Hamilton

Non-Traditional HomebuyersAre you an unmarried couple, a millennial, a recent college graduate, or a veteran? Do you want to have your own home?Homeownership is not as hard as you think with the help of the latest episode of “How’s the Market: Real Estate. Real Answers.” Nancy Braun, your host and owner of Showcase Realty together with Wes Pruitt from Reliance First Capital and Laurie Baker, Baker Law discuss the process how each of these non-traditional buyers can have their own home with the different options available today.Highlights:It's also extremely important - between unmarried couples - that these issues are resolved prior to the actual taking of title because you're not gonna have the protection of the courts if there's not an agreement in place as to how title is going be held or differentiated from being a married couple. - Laurie BakerThe FHA program is very very strong, allows a very very low downpayment program. And they do allow gift funds from a relative for the downpayment and closing costs. So with just a very little bit of money and the truth of the matter is, for most of them, they can actually get into a home for about what they are paying in rent right now and get bigger advantages come the end of the year. - Wes PruittIf you are veteran, when you're talking about buying or refinancing your home, make sure you let your lending professional know that you are a veteran and ask what options are available from the VA right now. - Wes PruittI think it's so important to work with a lender that understands all the different advantages and options there are out there. In my practice, I see too often agents that may not suggest to their buyers all the alternative financing that's out there. - Nancy BraunA lot of institutional investors have come into the Charlotte market and just bought a ton of properties and they are using them as rentals now. And there is history showing that they are increasing rent. Rent is gonna exceed the cost to buy. Buying's going to be less expensive. - Nancy Braun

Negotiation Strategies for Home BuyersFound the house of your dreams but the selling price a bit too expensive? Don’t know how to negotiate with the seller? Listen before you buy!In this episode of How’s the Market: Real Estate. Real Answers, host Nancy Braun, Owner/Broker in Charge of Showcase Realty along with Wes Pruitt from Reliance First Capital will share the best negotiation strategies you can use as a homebuyer. This includes understanding the seller, finding out what the seller paid for the home, asking for a competitive market analysis and much more!Highlights:The ultimate goal in any negotiation is to make sure that you get everything you want without having the other party feel like they didn't get anything they wanted. - Wes PruittIn our Internet world, too many parties rely on email as their negotiating strategy and I think we all know that 70% of communication is in our expressions, how we sound, whether we lift our eyebrow up, our hand motions. It's the personal one on one communication, 30% is just the words. - Nancy BraunYou really need to ask the pertinent questions. What are they looking for? Why they are selling? Are they relocating? Is there a financial issue involved? Pending foreclosure? Are they behind on payments? Maybe that will tune you into some of their motivation. - Nancy BraunI think that the critical component when you're talking about a transaction of this magnitude it's really important that you have someone with experience representing you. - Wes Pruitt

How to Get the Best Price for Your Home If you’re planning to sell your home, whether it’s a buyer’s or seller’s market, one thing you don’t want is to leave money on the table. But how can you stop this from happening? How do you know you’re getting the best deal for your home?On this episode of How’s the Market: Real Estate. Real Answers, Nancy Braun, owner of Showcase Realty, along with Wes Pruitt of Reliance First Capital discuss how to get the best price for your home. Listen to it now!Highlights:A great tool is to have a pre-inspection. I know locally we don't really invest a lot in that but it could go a long way if you market the home as pre-inspected and everything's been repaired per the inspection report. That's gonna really give a buyer a lot of confidence in the home and maybe showcase your house above all the others. - Nancy BraunMost things around the house only last a certain period of time. Paint and carpet for example. They need to be redone and your professional should be telling you those things when they come in and review the house. - Wes PruittFor the seller, if you have equity in the home and you have fairly good credit, a HELOCK is a fantastic program, it's a short loan, a home equity line of credit. That is a tremendous avenue in order to get the repairs done if that's what you need to do. Wes PruittFHA has a fantastic 203K program. The buyer could look at a 203K and include that in the budget in order to get repairs made upon purchasing the home. - Wes PruittStudies have shown that 90% of the buyers found their homes on the Internet. The Internet's key. That's why it's very important that your pictures and virtual tours on the Internet really showcase the home. - Nancy BraunIf you're selling a home, you are probably ready to buy a home as well so rather than waiting until your home's sold, you should call a lender and get pre-approved so you know how much money you may need to set aside to purchase your next home. - Nancy Braun

Remodeling and Mortgage Nightmares: When to Leave the Work to the Professionals

Why is Charlotte Zip Code 28277 Hot for Real Estate?Thinking about moving to or within the Charlotte area? Still not sure which neighborhood to choose? Find out why Charlotte zip code 28277 is hot for real estate. Listen to the latest episode of “How’s the Market: Real Estate. Real Answers” on Newstalk 1110 WBT for the latest in real estate news and trends. Nancy Braun of Showcase Realty and Wes Pruitt from Reliance First Capital talk about how to make your neighborhood the next hot destination in Charlotte! Highlights:"I think it’s an opportune time to talk about 28277; this hot, hot zip code has been labeled by various reporters and industry studies as the second hottest zip code in the country for moves. That’s pretty outstanding for the Charlotte area!" – Nancy Braun "A jumbo loan is typically a loan over $417,000 financed. So if people are buying a larger property or a let’s say they’re buying a property in the country club, they may take advantage of several programs. There are even some programs out there with just 5% down. You can do 95% financing on homes 300 and up." – Wes Pruitt"If you see a home in your neighborhood that’s for sale and not selling for whatever reason, whether it’s a distressed home or even just a regular retail listing, maybe you should think about investing in your own neighborhood." – Nancy Braun"It’s really the best of both worlds when you think about it. The school system in the Ballantyne area is a very, very highly respected. But the other nice thing is a lot of their private schools are also in very close proximity as well." – Wes Pruitt"We also see that the values of the homes in the Ballantyne market have held very strong and there’s still such a desire even during the recession. I don’t think the Ballantyne area took such a real hit as opposed to some other areas." – Nancy Braun

Divorce: What You Need to Know About Your House, Mortgage and TaxesWhen a relationship ends and a couple decides to get a divorce, one of the major issues they have to deal with is their home. Getting a divorce can be stressful enough, making crucial decisions about what to do with your home can be overwhelming. This episode of How’s the Market: Real Estate. Real Answers, Nancy Braun of Showcase Realty is joined by Laurie Baker from Baker Law and Wes Pruitt from Reliance First Capital to talk about some of the important details you need to know about your house, your mortgage and taxes before and during a divorce. This also includes the four basic housing options when you’re in the middle of a divorce.Highlights:It is important to be proactive in communicating with your own divorce attorney in bringing these types of issues up. – Laurie BakerCredit is critical in the decision making process as far as the lenders are concerned. Divorce is typically one of the biggest issues that we see cause credit problems whether it be on their mortgage or credit cards or car payments. Typically, anytime someone has gone through a divorce at any point, you can usually see that blip on their credit report. – Wes PruittYou do have to get the spouse to actually execute that deed and unfortunately, we see a lot of times where the divorce attorneys do not follow through immediately after the order is handed down to make sure that that deed is actually recorded. – Laurie BakerOne of the things if you’re going to buy out your spouse, consider whether you’re gonna be able to qualify for a mortgage if it took both of you to buy a house to buy the first one. Maybe it took both of your incomes and your credit to justify a home loan so you really want to talk to a Wes and find out if you’re going to qualify on your own. – Nancy Braun

Summer’s here! Along with a change in the season comes a new set of maintenance tasks you can do for your home. In this episode of How’s the Market: Real Estate. Real Answers, we’ll be sharing a few summer home maintenance and renovation tasks you can do to keep your home happy and healthy. Wes Pruitt from Reliance First Capital and Jim Potter, President of Old Towne Development joins Nancy Braun to lend their expertise. Tweetable moments:Work on your kitchen. Take a look at it. Does it splash? Is it attractive? Is it contemporary? Or is it dated? if you want to sell your home quickly and for top dollar, I would suggest you would think about that. – Nancy Braun Take a good look at the structure of the deck, before replacing/refinishing any boards. There may be problems with the actual structure. – Jim Potter In the summer, attics are heating up,which causes heat to come down into the living space.Think about adding attic insulation. – Jim Potter You can finance your renovation costs with a renovation loan, but once you close on the home, the work has to begin within 30 days and it has to be completed in 6 months. – Wes Pruitt