texas real estate: How To Find A Texas REALTOR® - 03/20/12 07:59 PM
Now that we’ve qualified you for a loan, it’s time to go out and find your new home! Buying real estate in Texas is an exciting but often overwhelming process. This can be especially true if you are a first time home buyer in Texas. It may be a good idea to hire a real estate agent who knows your local market and can help you through the buying process.
Finding a qualified agent can assure a smooth and problem–free transaction. Do you know anyone who has purchased a home recently? Getting a referral from a satisfied customer is often the best … (8 comments)
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texas real estate: Tax Deductible Rewards of Home Ownership in Texas - 12/20/11 10:46 PM
Reap the tax deductible rewards of home ownership in Texas.
If you’ve purchased, sold or refinanced your home in the past year, tax season is the best time to reap the benefits of being a homeowner! Take advantage of these tax breaks today and you could enjoy a bigger return in April!
Mortgage Interest. For most homeowners, the bulk of your mortgage payment is going towards interest – and that’s a big tax break for you! The mortgage interest on your primary residence is fully tax deductible, unless, of course your loan is more than $1 million.
You can also … (6 comments)
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texas real estate: October 2008 Statistics for North Dallas - 11/10/08 07:11 PM
Below you will find the NTREIS October Statistics for North Texas, specifically Allen, Frisco, Carrolton, McKinney, Plano, and Richardson. The numbers themselves shouldn't come as any great surprise. As you would assume this year, the sales dollar and volume are down from this time last year. The good news is that homes here in the Metroplex continue to hold their value. Average and Median sale prices are up in many areas - a point underscored in Tuesday's Dallas Morning news, which referenced an industry study concluding that Dallas was one of several markets (virtually all in Texas) where homeowners would … (6 comments)
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texas real estate: When did you realize you wanted to be involved with Real Estate and what did you do prior? - 10/28/08 01:56 AM
While I watched the Titans whoop on the Colts tonight, they had a quick segment on Kerry Collins. Although Kerry has always been a quarterback, the segment was about all of the teams he had played on since 1995 (or so). Within that time, he had played quarterback for several teams before coming to the titans, where he appears to be doing very well (6 & 0).
That got me thinking about the different jobs I have worked prior to becoming a Loan Officer.
I started at the age of 15 working at a fast food restaurant. Actually I worked several. … (22 comments)
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texas real estate: Improve Your Rainmaking - 10/21/08 08:29 PM
Improve Your Rainmaking
Do you have the exceptional ability to attract loads of clients? In such a highly competitive business compounded with a slumping housing market, there are lots of Realtors competing for the same clients. What separates top producers from average ones is the ability to generate clients with less time & effort and less money.
There are plenty of good marketing strategies that can help you produce clients. What's important though is you find ways to differentiate from competitors and get prospects to trust you quicker. For a prospect, selling or buying a home is their most important decision. You have … (21 comments)
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texas real estate: Recent Closing... she wasn't asking the impossible, was she? - 10/13/08 04:33 PM
I recently closed a loan for a new (and future) client. Her name is Edleeca Thompson. She had a simple goal. Her goal was to buy a house and start her life as an independent woman. She made an offer on a condo; all she needed was to close on the loan. As her closing date approached, Edleeca began to grow concerned about the size of her payment. Each phone call to her loan officer left Edleeca more frustrated, as if she was getting the run around.
** this is not Edleeca but this is how she felt **
Edleeca … (8 comments)
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texas real estate: Building Credit... Because it's Your Greatest Asset - 10/06/08 12:51 PM
Building Credit… Because it is Your Greatest Asset
Everyone has to start creating a credit record somewhere. Those that got off on the wrong foot and have poor credit need to repair and rebuild. Even if you’ve gone as far as to file for bankruptcy, you have the opportunity to bounce back and rebuild credit…your greatest asset. Here are the best ways to build or rebuild a positive credit record and score:
Pay everything on time. This includes rent and utilities. Even if these creditors don’t report to the credit agencies, you can give proof of your good … (5 comments)
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texas real estate: Credit Reports... What to look for - 10/02/08 03:30 PM
Credit Scores
If you’ve been researching real estate and mortgage possibilities, you’ve seen the term “Credit Score”. There are three main credit reporting agencies in the US; Equifax, Trans Union, and Experian. These are the agencies to whom your creditors report any activity on your accounts. Your credit report shows how much you owe and to whom, as well as whether or not you make your payments in a timely manner.
Each agency in turn uses a formula to determine your overall credit rating, knows as your credit score. Higher scores indicate better credit than a … (16 comments)
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texas real estate: Why Now May Be a GREAT Time To Sell Your Home (Yes I know what everyone else says) - 09/23/08 12:03 PM
Good afternoon Real Estate Professionals. I wanted to share this blog written by my buddy Leander McClain. He is a Real Estate Agent in New Jersey and is always posting useful information. If he is not showing a customer why its still a good time to sell and buy real estate, then he is telling them what's going on in Jersey this weekend (with driving instructions) - oh yeah and a blog about the "Man Cave"..
This particular post is filled with great information, including a breakdown of the homeowners 'loss' in value to their current home, but a 'gain' in value to their new purchase. Do … (4 comments)
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texas real estate: Why It's Still a Good Time to Buy in a Cooling Market - 09/19/08 06:12 PM
The last few years in the real estate market are an anomaly. The downward spiraling interest rates and rapid rise in home prices doesn't happen very often. Sure, the market rises and falls in cycles, but the changes are generally more gradual. The truth is that many people land themselves in hot water during an especially hot market. They start speculating by buying extra houses for quick sales or mortgage flipping. If their timing isn't perfect they are left holding mortgages they can't pay and homes they can neither afford to live in, or sell.
Real Estate is Always a Solid … (8 comments)
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texas real estate: Become A Leader and Standout - 09/18/08 09:37 PM
Most top producing listing agents absolutely dominate a particular geographic area, which is typically referred to as their "Farming Area." Though it is not unusual for the agent to "farm" or blanket this area through direct mail - they are more likely to become dominate listing agents because they are leaders.
Not quite like this leader...
If the agent lives in a subdivision that has an organized condominium or homeowner's association, the agent is not just a participant in the association, they become the leader by running for the board of directors. Become actively involved in the committees, events, and/or … (3 comments)
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texas real estate: Pre-Approvals for More Listings - 09/15/08 08:10 PM
In my previous posts of FSBO Marketing, I mentioned that providing pre-approvals would help obtain more listings. How can a pre-approval help you obtain listings? When a homeowner is considering selling their home, anything that adds security and peace of mind helps the decision-making process. Is your competition adding value in the form of security and peace of mind? If they are pre-approved for their next mortgage there is no doubt that they will be able to afford their next home if their present home sells. This pre-approval also helps wed them to you as the listing agent on their transaction. … (9 comments)
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texas real estate: Use Synergy Partnerships to Leverage FSBO Synergy - 09/09/08 09:53 PM
In my last post I commented that the referrals you might receive from homeowners selling their homes themselves could actually far exceed the value of the listings missed out by not listing the home they are attempting to sell. You are more likely to receive value from these referrals if you leverage your resources through a system. Such a system for leveraging FSBO referral relationships would involve putting together packages of vendors for the homeowners in such a way that you are solidifying your own synergy partnerships.
Every real estate sales professional should have partner relationships comprised of vendors of the … (14 comments)
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texas real estate: Help Sell FSBOs - 09/05/08 07:08 PM
Well, for the past few posts I have written some fun things and did not go back to my series. To be honest, I just overlooked the fact that I had just stopped in mid though. Anyway, here is a link to the previous posts regarding 'Obtaining More Listings'.
The next stage of FSBO capture is to become one with the enemy (I know that sounds cheezy). What I am suggesting here is that you need to help owners sell their homes - to a point. If your FSBO approach is merely trying to overcome their objection regarding listing their home … (16 comments)
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texas real estate: Real Estate Focus - 7 Common Home Buying Mistakes - 09/03/08 03:40 PM
Even though each home and each home buyer is unique, the same mistakes are made over and over again when making a purchase. I have put together a quick report which outlines 7 common mistakes made during home buying and how to avoid them.
Buying a home is one of the most exciting events in a person's life, whether it's the first home or the fifth one; however, it can also be one of the most stressful. Purchasing a home should be regret-free and anxiety-free.
Learning to avoid these 7 most common mistakes when buying a home can help lower your … (13 comments)
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texas real estate: Improving Your Ability to Attract Buyers - 08/30/08 05:00 PM
Recent real estate trends have caught homeowners in a difficult position. It's no longer possible to simply put your home on the market and have it sell within a few weeks. Now, homeowners must be extremely diligent in making their home as attractive as possible. There's a new battle of the Jones's, but this time it's how to make your home sell quickly, especially when compared to your neighbors.
The secret to selling a home quickly is preparation. When owners make the effort to get their home in top sales condition, it will sell quickly. Many of them put the home … (5 comments)
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texas real estate: Get Them Talking... Without Saying a Word - 08/26/08 12:22 PM
Most agents have one question on their minds: How can I spend less time prospecting and more time closing deals? Prospecting costs you time and money, and to be honest, most agents just don't like doing it.
What is I told you there was a fun way to spend more time working and less time scrounging for work. How would that impact you? More money, less stress, fewer hours, higher quality of life...perhaps all of the above. But is it really possible, and if so, how do you get there? You get there through client referrals. Now, I'm not talking about … (14 comments)
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texas real estate: Approaching Potential FSBOs Early - 08/22/08 04:21 PM
Good Afternoon Rainers! This is the 4th part of my series. You can always start reading at this point and still pick up a few tips. Here is the link to all thus far if you want to go back and read the first 3 parts - Obtaining More Listings
The real estate market has changed, as you are all aware. In the late 1990s we went through a period in which just about anyone could hang out a sign and sell a home. Or that is what the average consumer thought. With the proliferation of technology there arose a host of … (11 comments)
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texas real estate: How To Obtain More Listings - Part 3 - Value in Education - 08/18/08 09:34 PM
If you have not been following along - here are the other parts on How To Obtain More Listings
My last post spoke about the value of a unique offer. The offer must add value rather than discounting your services in order to be unique. There is one area in which we can always add value to the process and that is education. Many homeowners do not understand the real estate sales process and educating them gives you several advantages. (quick note - Be careful not to give TOO MUCH information. That can work against you because the homeowner may become … (8 comments)
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texas real estate: How To Obtain More Listings - Part 2 - Make Your Offer Valuable - 08/18/08 09:06 PM
There are thousands of real estate agents out there looking for listings. They all claim the same thing - that they will give owners great service (sounds like some mortgage guys/gals I know... what for that post shortly). It becomes a challenge to differentiate yourself from the competition because of the large numbers of competing agents. Actually, it is not as much of a challenge as it may seem. How much of the competition seems to stand out from each other? If you have not seen them before, Greg Nino from Houston, TX offers some excellent examples of what NOT to do … (11 comments)
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