Mortgage Payment Problems?

If you or someone you care about are caught in the midst of having a difficult time making your mortgage payment like thousands of other Americans and need help, give me call. I specialize in helping people save thousands of dollars by not letting the bank take complete control of your destiny. I can help get your home sold before it is too late and bankruptcy becomes the only alternative. I am discreet, direct and will work hard to help you out during one of the most difficult financial times that one can experience.If you feel like many others, that you could use some help in the financial and legal maze that you are in, give me a call. I can potentially save you thousands of $$$$.Remember waiting for a miracle will not solve the problem. I specialize in finding a solution for hard working Vermonters who are just having some current bad luck.Call me today and I’ll work hard to fix this situation

Economist Promotes Optimism

There  was a conference  this past week in Cambridge Massachusetts and the National Association of Realtors had Economist Yun Lay speak about the real estate conditions in New England. Interestingly enough, he supported what I have been saying for quite some time. The real estate market is not as bad as the media is making it out to be on a local level. Certainly there are pockets in all states that are feeling the pinch worse than others, but the fact remains that it doesn’t encompass all areas in a state. In his presentation according to Robert Hill the executive Director for the Vermont Association of Realtors, Yun pointed out a number of favorable economic trends and showed that Vermont was doing much better than most of our region. The reality is that the doom and gloom approach is always more interesting for the media and typically sells more newspapers. Well I am not buying it, and we will choose to not participate in that way of thinking. “Buyer pessimism is self-fulfilling” was Yun’s theme and we are much more optimistic than that.

Buyers and Sellers Value Good Agents

In a recent study done by the National Association of Realtors, 79 percent of home buyers and sellers have used a real estate professional up from 77 percent over the last 3 years. Although the market has taken a turn for the worse in a number of areas, apparently not the attitudes of those people involved in the real estate transaction about using the services of a Realtor.  Additionally, according to the 2007 study, 9 out of 10 buyers said they were very satisfied with their agent’s knowledge of the sales process. In fact 90% of the buyers said they would use the services of their agent again or recommend them for others to use. In a market that has certainly become challenging, agents are rising to the occasion and proving that it is more than just putting a sign on the lawn and an ad in the paper. The real estate process is involved, with many different parties participating, with deadlines needing to be met, inspections to be done, appraisals to be coordinated, financing to be obtained and negotiations to close; to name a few parts of the transaction. Realtors are required to meet a standard of education and to renew those credits continually. The good agents go above and beyond the requirements, to stay ahead of the ever changing market so they can provide a great service to their customers and clients.  In today’s world, good agents are truly appreciated.

Retiring Wealthy or Not

I read a number of books and magazines on personal finance and investing and found one common denominator. Those people who are willing to sacrifice in the short term for the long term benefits, typically are the ones who have enough saved when it comes time to retire. There are so many people who feel that they can’t go without the new car, the flat screen tv, the big exotic vacation and all the other things that have no appreciable value. Because of this, according to Money magazine 45% of Baby Boomers have saved less than $50,000 for retirement. A majority of the boomers   splurge any time they feel like they need or deserve something. I found over the years, that the secret to build wealth is to live below your means, invest in appreciable assets and let time take care of the rest. If you can sacrifice now, you will be able to enjoy the fruits of your labor. If you need help with your real estate investing, let me know. I can help determine where you should invest and where you shouldn’t. 

Spring Anyone?

Okay, here we are for all intensive purposes putting a wrap on March and it is still quite cold going outside. The temperatures hovering around 22 degrees and is predicted to rise maybe in a few days to the 30’s.  Hallalujeh a movement in the right direction. I think I have talked to at least 8 people in the last week that have mentioned how sick and tired everyone is of the cold. Yes  winters are long, but come on, we often have hit 50 degrees a couple of times in the past just to tease us a bit. Cabin fever I think is real, I can’t remember a time when I wanted spring to be here so bad. I knew I shouldn’t have gone to Florida to get a taste of what it’s like elsewhere. For crying out loud it was in the 50’s last week in New Jersey. New Jersey!! Oh well, I guess it’s mother nature’s gift to those inhabitants, because it is New Jersey. By the way, nothing personal to all my friends and family that live there. I’m just venting.

Go Cats Go

 We live in a great area with a number of colleges located in our community. This weekend is a big weekend for the University of Vermont and their hockey and girls basketball teams. Both are in the playoffs with the hockey team in the final four of the Big East tournament and the girls in the National Invitational tournament where they just defeated Dartmouth last night. They now will advance to the next round. It is an exciting time for the College and our community. We live a small area and sports are extremely important to us. With that said, we support our local sports teams enthusiastically. What a thrill it has been over the last few years to see first the incredible success the girls program had and then the mens team when they beat Syracuse in the NCAA tournament. It was one of the biggest upsets in the history of the tournament. Yes we get worked up about it, and enjoy every minute of it, at least I do. I  played numerous sports growing up and when I attended  St. Michael’s College I played soccer. For the last ten years, I have coached baseball so you can see, athletics are an integral part of who I am. With that said, this is a going to hopefully be a great weekend for the Catamounts and all I’ve got to say is, Go Cats Go.

Electronic Lock Boxes

About 6 months ago our multiple listing service switched to electronic lockboxes to access listings. It has been an interesting transition incorporating more technology into our businesses and one I think that enhanced the security of our business and communication. By having an electronic code to use that is registered and then sent to the listing agents, we are able to see who has shown the property by receiving automatic e-mails updating us each time the property has been shown. We then can give feedback as well to our homeowners that have been given to us via the system. Additionally, for vacant homes we can now keep track of who has used the key and when. It is a system that requires a bit more to remember in using the technology, but one that has improved our service to our clients.

Mamma’s Boy

Have you ever wondered how you became your parents? If you have children you know what I am referring to. Recently my two kids were arguing and out of my mouth without a split second warning I said, ”I hope when you are older that you  have kids just like you “. I’m not quite sure the sense that statement really makes or the real impact or lack thereof it had on their behavior, but it was the best I could muster up at that moment.  It wasn’t something that I came up on my own, no I had heard it before, when I was a boy from my mother. Have you ever stopped to think about how much you are like your parents and how your parenting style is sometimes influenced by your childhood? I remember as a teenager thinking I know I’ll never say that to my kids, or I’ll never make my kids do something they didn’t want to do. Well, needless to say, there are times when I do things or say things that my mother used to “just because that’s the way it is.” By the way, that’s another saying I used to hear, along with if my son or daughter says something is not fair, then my response is “Life’s not fair”. That too borrowed from my mother. Anyways, as I get older and hopefully wiser, there are times that we remember our past as we influence the present with our children. Sometimes it makes me chuckle. And in time, they too will do the same. I guess ‘it’s just part of growing up”, and that too has been passed along as well.

Why Wouldn’t You Buy Now?

I went to a seminar last week and received some interesting information about people’s buying habits that seem to be right on target at the moment. Just a few years ago we had a lack of inventory,  housing prices were at an all time high, and it was a seller’s market. With that said, people were looking at very few homes and deciding to make offers on these homes in a matter of minutes and quite often for more than the asking price.  Interest rates were about the same back then as they are now. In today’s market, we have a surplus of homes, interest rates are still around the 6% mark and it is a buyer’s market. But, people are sitting on the sidelines to wait and see what happens. So some of the questions I have is, are there too many choices for buyers? Are the buyers waiting for interest rates to go up? Are the buyers waiting for their choices to disappear? Are the buyers waiting to pay more than the listed property’s price again? Is it just too much of a good thing and that is why buyers are missing a great opportunity? These are all questions that eventually will be answered, but for now if I were a buyer I would still ask myself, why wouldn’t I buy now, when everything is in my favor?

Ice storm

I find that we seem to focus on the weather  an awful lot. An explanation for that could be that we have a saying here, if you don’t like the weather, just wait 15 minutes. Also, it could be the fact that we do have 4 very distinct seasons and transitioning from one to the next is sometimes to say the least interesting. This past weekend we had a wild storm blow in that brought a driving freezing rain that left much of our area without power and lots of icy roads and sidewalks. Once the freezing rain hit, the temperature dropped making everything solid ice. The roads were treacherous and all the tree branches were encapsulated with about 1/2 inch thick ice. It was quite beautiful, but it caused many trees to bend and eventually come crashing down into power lines, thus causing the power outages. It was so strange that in some areas you could glide on top of the snow, because it had been turned to ice. I can’t say that I have seen it this way in a long long time. Back in 1998 we had a similar storm which caused tremendous damage, so we are thankful that it was not that bad. Anyways, the extended forecast is for the temperatures to rise to the mid 30’s by Wednesday.  That will be a welcome sight, because for now it is that stupid kind of cold where you try to run to, and in our case,  skate to our cars in the parking lot to go show property.