Wednesday, February 27, 2008

EDITORIAL

Interesting editorial in the Wall Street Journal this morning! Looks like congress is playing to the voters by creating a bailout for homeowners near foreclosure. This quote a "correction in the market" is particularly appropriate:

"........drawing out the correction prevents the market from finding a bottom. It prevents owners and shoppers alike from having confidence to judge what houses are worth. It bails out lenders and investors who incautiously or fraudulently financed home purchases for speculative buyers, which can only encourage more of the same behavior in the future."

The six or seven market in the country which are having a hard time need to let it bottom out rather than trillions of dollars of taxpayer money being spent to bail them out.

Friday, February 22, 2008

REAL ESTATE AGENTS

This from MSN Money this morning:

"Evidence is growing that agents, especially in hard-hit markets such as Florida, California and Georgia, are closing up shop in large numbers, experts say.
In Atlanta, the number of agents letting their licenses lapse is growing at a faster pace than the number of overall licenses held. Not helping that trend is the cold fact that, according to Standard & Poor's house price index, home prices dropped precipitously in 2007, breaking the record 6.1% annual decline in 1991.

"In Cape Coral, Fla., where only 30% of agents sold even a single home last year, real-estate agents are "dropping out" daily, says local agent Ginette Young. The Oregon Association of Realtors reports an 11.5% decline in licensed agents statewide in the past year.

"Many of those who leave quietly shelve their signs. Others go out big: In Gilbert, Ariz., the fastest-growing city in the fastest-growing state, RE/MAX 2000 closed 13 offices throughout the Valley of the Sun, laying off at least 20 employees and scores of contract agents right before Christmas. The company couldn't meet its expenses.

"Real estate is a line of work filled with mothers returning to the work force, older workers squeezed out of lifetime careers and young opportunists looking to trade sweat equity for potentially big cash-outs. Indeed, the industry norm is that only 4% of agents choose real-estate sales as a first career. "

Here at Tyler Texas Real Estate, http://www.johncmartin.com/, we're in that 4% who are career agents. After 35 years in real estate, we're here to stay - good or bad. We make our living by serving customers, and that living has been a blessed one.

Monday, February 18, 2008

MONEY TO LEND

Judging from all of the advertisements on TV and the internet, there are lots of companies wanting to lend you money! As a matter of fact, there is SO much money out there that folks are desperate to get your business. Of course you have to have a job; and you have to have decent credit. But lenders need to make money in order to cover their loses sustained during the last 18 months.

Tyler Texas real estate is a great place to buy property and get a loan at a good rate, because lenders know that we have a stable market! And at http://www.johncmartin.com/ we know who they are and where they are. And mortgage rates are at a historic low. So get out of your place and come to our place!

Saturday, February 09, 2008

MOVE!!

This from MSN money:

"Real estate prices are stalling or even declining in some high-cost cities, but buying a home in a decent neighborhood is still just a dream for many middle-class families.
You can try stretching your finances to the bursting point or gambling on a less-desirable neighborhood. Or you can consider doing what many families have done: decamp to somewhere the cost of living makes more sense."

This is exactly what I've been preaching here in this blog! Move to Tyler, Texas, where the average (median-priced) home is $151,000, and cut your housing expenses down to a fraction of what you're paying now. Even if you have to take less for your home in order to get out, do it!

Friday, February 08, 2008

THE BLOOM IS OFF THE ROSE

Here at Tyler Texas Real Estate, http://www.johncmartin.com/, we like to keep you up to date on things happening in the mortgage and real estate world.

This from The Wall Street Journal:

"While mortgage fraud has abounded in recent years, voluntary foreclosures are not by themselves evidence of a newfound irresponsibility on Americans' part. To be sure, until recently, mass-scale voluntary foreclosures were unthinkable. But markets have changed, and people are changing their behavior in response."

What this means, of course, is that folks are exercising their rights to walk away from loans which were fraudulently made, and taking whatever "hits" to their credit scores that may ensue. And lenders, packagers, and insurers are loathe to call their loans and sue for payment, because the feds are breathing down their necks about the fraud!

These things are happening in states where big run-ups occurred from 2005 to 2007. But here in Tyler Texas, real estate had a steady six percent to eight percent per year increase in property values for the past five or six years. So we still have a nice, steady market. And folks can still buy the average home for $150,000 in Tyler, Texas.

Friday, February 01, 2008

IMPROVEMENT

No matter what one thinks of the goverment bailout of our mortgage-induced economic situation, some things have already improved. In the first place, brokers and lenders are much more careful now about those to whom they're lending money. That's good, because you don't get into trouble when lending to credit-worthy buyers. Secondly, realtors aren't trying to sell stuff to folks who can't afford the "stuff"! That's good, too, since buyers won't sue their realtors who "stuffed" them into places they couldn't afford. And, third, since many banks have plenty of money, they're anxious to lend it. This is really good, since credit-worthy people can certainly find a good use for it.

Tyler Texas Real Estate is an excellent place to start in one's search for a good place to invest money.