Archive for April, 2009
Forelcosure Review in Brandon, FLorida
Posted By Rick Frissell on April 21st, 2009
The market is heating up and bank foreclosures are driving it. If you are in the market and specifically interested in foreclosures in East Hillsborough county communities of Brandon, Valrico, Riverview, Lithia, Fish Hawk, Apollo Beach, Seffner and Mango, now is the time to keep an eye on our video reviews.
We will be stepping up our video reviews both in quantity and turn around time. Our property ratings will remain with us as a “A Real Gem, Diamond in the Rough and Lump of Coal.”
Here is our most recent review. This property is located in the community of Bloomingdale in Brandon, FL. It is 1746 square feet. The condition of the property is good. Out of pocket expenses are limited to appliances in the kitchen and paint through out the house.
Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this Viddler video.You may want to subscribe to this web site or our other web site at www.brandonsbeautifulhomes.com in order to receive our reviews as they are published.
ALSO as mentioned, foreclosures are finally moving quickly and the banks continue to have some houses that are a great buy. But, the best buys go quickly. If you would like to receive an email, absolutely free and without obligation, of foreclosed listings as they hit the market that meet your preferred criteria, send me an email. My email address is rick@diamonddwellings.com. Just ask me for “New Foreclosure Listings and I will get you set up to be one of the first to know about these houses. You will receive an email within 15 to 20 minutes of when a listing is entered by the banks.
Please call me with your questions. I am a buyer’s foreclosure expert and we do not charge buyers for our service. We are paid by the banks when the house is closed.
Rick Frissell ~ 813 340 68 28 Cell
A (very) Quick Rundown of Some Current Buyer Programs
Posted By Lane Bailey on April 19th, 2009
Just in the last few days I have highlighted a couple of Buyer Programs that are currently available. I have also hit a couple of others in the last few weeks… there are a lot of programs out there to spur buyer attention!
If you are a buyer, especially one that doesn’t have to sell a house in order to buy, you can find all sorts of great options to help with the purchase. Let’s hit some…
Read the rest of this page »
Gwinnett Braves Home Opener Tomorrow!!
Posted By Matt Hermes on April 16th, 2009
Hey fans, the Gwinnett Braves home opener is tomorrow night. The opening weekend of minor league baseball in Gwinnett County, as our home town Gwinnett Braves take the field tomorrow night for the first home in the new ballpark.
Even a small fire this week could not stop this from happening and I for one am sure excited about the season. The Gwinnett Braves, if you are not aware, are the AAA affiliate of the Atlanta Braves and relocated from Richmond Va. over the winter.
Here is what I know. The Team is doing everything it can to create a great game day atmosphere at the ballpark, and make the game day experience one that is worth the price of admission. The hiring process for the opportunity to work for the club is incredible and extensive. The Gwinnett Braves want each customer to feel a part of the team and will work hard to make your time worth while.
Did you know “we” have already played seven games this spring and have posted a 3-4 record? Now is the time to get the Braves home and make this Team feel welcome.
One thing to keep in mind for the first few weeks is that the traffic in and around the stadium is going to be hectic to say the least. Have patience, head to the park early and try to relax as the team works through the kinks. I have included excerpts from a recent article in today’s Gwinnett Daily Post about the traffic issues.
With the home-opener of the Gwinnett Braves sold out Friday, team spokeswoman Courtney Lawson is encouraging fans to carpool and come early.
A shuttle had been planned to help compensate for the 2,500 parking spaces at the 10,000-seat stadium. But the logistics became problematic, Gwinnett Transportation Director Brian Allen said.
“We’re keeping options open,” Allen said, saying vehicular traffic took the priority over the buses.
“We don’t want to have gridlock on surface streets,” he said.
Lawson said team officials were aware of the parking issue.
“We’re trying everything in our power to make sure it goes as smoothly as possible,” she said.
Team staff plan to park at a nearby church to make room for the crowds and a shuttle has been set up for VIPs to free a few more spaces.
Lawson said the family environment often means a car contains three or four people, which should also help, she said.
The parking lots, which have access from Buford Drive, Braves Avenue and Tech Center Parkway, will be open at 3:30 p.m. Friday, three and a half hours before the first pitch. Parking is $3 a car and tailgating is permitted, although it must be confined to the fan’s parking spot.
The gates to the stadium open at 4:30 p.m., and Lawson encourages fans to be in their seats by 5:45 p.m. to enjoy pregame festivities, including team introductions, ceremonies led by Braves Hall of Famer Pete Van Wieren and a National Anthem performance by Bill Gentry.
If you go to the game, send me your game photos and I will post them for all to see.
GO BRAVES!
Did Your House Just Get Pounded? (by Hail)
Posted By Matt Fagioli on April 10th, 2009
If you live in Northern Gwinnett, your house probably just got lit up by the nasty hail storms that also passed through Hamilton Mill tonight (my house too).
My Friend Finn Smith called me tonight from White Oak Roofing to let me know that he will be up this way all day tomorrow providing free estimates for hail damage repairs for my roof and many of my neighbors too.
If you want a free estimate from White Oak Roofing, call Finn Smith at 404.805.9466 or check out WhiteOakRoofing.com
Buyer Expectations For Foreclosures Will Cost Many Money!
Posted By Rick Frissell on April 8th, 2009
Recently I had a buyer find a house they wanted badly. The house was a foreclosed property and had been on the market for a while. The bank had originally listed the house for $159,900. It was not a house that I recommended to my buyer clients at that price.
After roughly 30 days, the bank dropped the price to $139,900. Better, but I continued to feel it was not priced properly. After 80 days, the house was re-priced to $119,900. Another $20,000 decrease. At this time I thought we had a property to market. I sent the listing information to several of my clients and I got a phone call requesting a showing. At the same time, I selected 3 more foreclosures I thought were of good value and scheduled showings.
Sure enough the client and his wife loved the property. I pointed out that the roof would need replacing and that could give us a little additional room to negotiate. I suggested we price in down by twice the cost of a new roof and be happy if we are met half way.
My client insisted that we offer in the $80’s and pay no more than $95,000 because of the repairs required on the house. I immediately searched for a foreclosed house that was pristine, in his price range. I found a two year old home described as “barely lived in and with upgrades galore.” Yes, he and the wife loved it. Basically a new roof and new everything. It was the same size house and listed at only $11,000 above the older “needs repairs” house.
What was he willing to pay (not offer, but pay)? “No more than $100,000.”
That led me to provide him a study to share with all buyers in the market for a foreclosed home.
This study was based on homes listed in Riverview and Brandon Florida for a list price between $90,000 and $150,000 since the beginning of 2009. Here is what we found.
|
List Price |
Sold Price |
Price p sq ft |
% Ratio |
DOM |
|
$120,660 |
$119,247 |
$74.83 |
97% |
48 |
List price is the final list price on MLS
Sold price is what the buyer actually paid
% Ratio is the ratio of the list price to sold price. (Based on actual square footage prices)
DOM is Day On Market
What do these numbers tell us?
Banks on most of the properties are getting their price. List price decreases with Days On Market, but does not necessarily open the door for further price reductions. Price per square foot is a starting point to understand value, but not the final point. Property condition, neighborhood, supply and other attributes help to determine price.
What can the buyer walk away with regarding this information? First, don’t set yourself up for disappointment after spending a lot of time finding the right house and lose your excitement or the home by unrealistic expectations. Banks are not desperate as we all may think or as the media reports. In the study area 41% of all sales were bank owned properties that closed on average 48 days or less. That is a hot market for the banks and they don’t need to come off their price except on very special circumstances. Your real estate agent can help you understand those circumstances.
We have specialized in finding great foreclosed properties and will gladly find or review foreclosures for you. Give us a call or email us.
If you would like a copy of this stuy in Excel spreadsheet form let us know. It contains each and every foreclosed property in Brandon and Riverview along with the list price (study price of $90,000 to $150,000), sold price and days on the market as well as other helpful information. Drop us an email and request “Foreclosure Study 1/1/09 to 4/8/09. We will be glad to send you the report.
