Spring is here, flowers are beginning to bloom, and buyers are out looking for homes all over the city.

If you are one of these buyers, you have probably spent countless hours sitting in your car, stuck in traffic, or just plain lost as you drive around looking for houses. When you finally spot a for sale sign, you stop the car and sit idle while you wait to leave a message. Then you drive away until you see another sign, where you repeat the process... over and over and over again. What a waste of time, not to mention gas!

Fortunately, I have a solution that will free up your time, keep the gas guzzler parked, and possibly reduce your carbon footprint.

When you use our FREE HOME SEARCH SAVER, you can preview active listings that meet your specific criteria. The best part is, the report is delivered to your email in a clear, easy to read format. New matches are highlighted so there is no need to look at the same results day after day trying to find the changes. It can't get much simpler.

So what are you waiting for? Sign up today and start receiving this FREE REPORT. Now, Go out and enjoy these beautiful spring days!

  If you own a Rockdale County, GA home or have had it on the market for sale in March, there appears to be some good news. The number of sales for all price ranges increased by 19.8% compared to February.  The most active price range continues to be $0 - 100,000, which saw a 39.1% increase in number of sales vs. February.  This is good news when compared with other East Metro Atlanta counties of Newton and Walton which combined saw a decrease in total sales of 1.6% in March.

Here is a breakdown of the numbers for March 2010.  This data comes from MLS and represent single family residential sales only.

Rockdale County Real Estate Values For March 2010

• Number of Sales - 67
• Average Days On Market (Solds) - 134
• Active Listings - 680
• Average Days On Market (Actives) - 162

Hopefully, we will continue to see an increase in the number of sales as the spring selling season gets going.

Let us know how things are going with your sale.

Tax Credit Ending Soon! 

With the Homebuyer's Tax Credit set to expire soon, many buyers have gotten off the fence and are frantically running around trying to buy their first home.  Many of these buyers are becoming frustrated by the process.

There seems to be 2 common theme these days. Either, everything they see is under contract or has multiple offers as soon as they see it, or they are outbid on their offer. 

So what is the answer?  How do you have success as a buyer in this market?  How do you get your offer accepted? 

It really is very simple.  You need to understand the market and make your best offer from the beginning.  While it may be a buyer's market in general, the neighborhood that you're looking at may be moving quickly.  As inventory decreases, prices will go up.  The law of supply and demand.  In the Metro Atlanta area, inventories are definitely decreasing.

The chart below shows the last 24 months of history for active listings for Dekalb County Single Family Homes.

For March 2010, there as been a 23.4% decrease in active listings vs. March of 2009.  February 2010 had 28.5% fewer listings than February 2009. 

So what does this mean.  Simply put, if there are fewer houses to choose from and more people trying to buy, competition is going to be fierce.  Look at the chart below. 

This chart shows what is happening in the last 2 months in Lithonia, GA.  You can clearly see that in some price ranges, houses are selling above list price.  This is just 1 example of what is really going on with home prices. 

When you find the shiny penny in the group, you will not be alone!  Everyone else will see the value in the same home that is price aggressively and is move in ready. 

When you are ready to write the offer, give yourself the best chance to win. Do Not be afraid to offer more than list price.  It doesn't mean you overpaid. 
After all, prices have declined substantially over the last 2-3 years so go in knowing that you are still getting a great deal.   

if you need specific information for your area, Call Us at 678.229.8767 or visit our website at HomesByUrsula.

If you are planning to buy a home before the tax credit expires, you need to be aware of the new forms and filing requirements from the IRS. 

Basically, the IRS has a new form that must be completed (IRS Form 5405 "First-Time Homebuyer Credit and Repayment of the Credit")  and the tax return must be mailed in as a hardcopy.

You can still use tax preparation software to complete your return, but you will need to print it out and mail it in with all appropriate documents.

Please click the link for further information:  Taxpayers Seeking Homebuyer Tax Credits, Reunds Must File Paper

If you would like more information about the tax credit, or buying and selling a home, please contact us at 678-229-8767 or visit our website at www.HomesByUrsula.com

If you have been listening to the news recently, you have probably heard that it's a great time to buy real estate.  Interest rates are at historical lows, prices are down, and inventories are up. 

So, armed with this information, you go out with your local real estate agent and find a house.  As you prepare to write up an offer you remember what you heard on the news this morning:  "It's a buyers market, inventories are high, home values are declining."  You tell your agent that you want to make a low offer.

Is this always the best approach?

The answer depends on the situation. 

What everyone needs to understand, is that the buyer's market that is being reported is looking at a very broad picture.  When you break down the information for you local area, you may be very surprised at what you see.  There can be, and frequently are, several different markets within a local area.

This is the situation in the Metro Atlanta real estate market.  We have some neighborhoods that are seeing a buyer's market and a seller's market at the same time.

You are probably asking, "How is this possible?".  The answer is simple.  Look at the number of days that a property has been on the market for both active listings and recent sales.  If it is less than 6 months, you have a seller's market.  If it is more than 6 months, you are in a buyer's market.  If you break the information down by price ranges, you see areas that are selling much faster than 6 months and those that take much longer than six months to sell. 

So what does it all mean. 

When you are writing an offer, having this knowledge of the local market will help you to make the best offer with the highest chance of being accepted.  If you know that homes price between $50,000 - 75,000 are selling in 36 days at 103% of the list price, you may reconsider making an offer at 90% of the asking price if you want to have the best chance of success.  After all you are probably not the only buyer making an offer. 

How do I know what the best approach is.  Simple.  Ask your agent.  They have all of this information available to them. 

Remember, just because you saw it on television or heard it on the radio, you may need the rest of the story.

So the end of the year and looming and it is always a time of reflection for me. What did I learn in 2009 and what will I do differently in 2010???

1) I will not work as many hours anymore. I love what I do but working 14+ hours a day, 7 days a week will cause burn-out.

2) I will hire more quickly next time. In my arrogance of thinking only I can do everything as good as I do and only I care so much for these people, it took me awhile to realize that there are others that can do it better than I can and that I can hire them to do it.

3) With hiring other people it gives me time to help even more people. The cycle becomes a good one in that more will be helped when I get more help.

4) Taking time for me is not selfish. This one is so hard for me but I am working on it.

5) You can not help those that are not willing to help themselves. Man, I hate this one and let me tell you I have cried alot of tears over this one.

6) There is always a bright side... you just may have to turn it upside down to find it.

7) Work with your strengths. I am very empathetic.... and then I am just pathetic when it comes to technology. That is OK. I have someone else to deal with technology and I will deal with the people.

8) When I actually focus on my 20% it amazing what I can accomplish!

I hope that everyone has a very special holiday season. 2010 is going to be great for me and I hope it will also be great for you!

So the other day I am making coffee.  I fill the pot with water, carefully measure out the coffee beans for grinding (or just dump them in until it looks right), grind the beans and add them to the filter basket, add the water to the pot, replace the carafe and then walk away...

Almost an hour later, when I get a minute to go pour a cup, I realize that I never started the coffee maker.  A simple push of the button never happened.  All of the preparation and no results.  Was I too preoccupied with other business? Is my memory really that short?

It made me think about buyers and investors.  They do their research on the web, then they call a Realtor to show them the houses, and then they go home to think about it, and think about it....and then think a little more...and then "maybe we should see a couple of other homes that I just found while thinking about all of the others we looked at today.  After all, the perfect house may still be there."

As a buyer, if you never "hit the button" i.e., make a written offer on a home, you miss out on the opportunity to enjoy that cup of coffee in your new kitchen.

If you were planning on going to Corn Dawgs Corn Maze in Walnut Grove this weekend, they have postponed the opening until Friday, September 25, 2009 due to the rainy weather.  Be sure to come out next weekend, though, for all the fun. 

Your admission includes access to our main maze, junior maze, pedal racers, hay jump, mountain slide, tile maze, labrynth maze, barrell train, hayride, and more.

Maybe we will see you there!

We have recently updated our website to simplify searches for foreclosure and short sale properties.  You can now search each county in the Metro Atlanta area in different price ranges with just the click of a button!  Please come check it out.

Foreclosure Hotsheet