Nealtor's Charlotte Real Estate Forum

IRS Presentation on The First Time Homebuyer Credit

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:41:26 -0600

Via Christa Ross (RE/MAX Select Realty, Ecosociate and RE/MAX Green Specialist):

If you have heard about the extension on the first time homebuyers credit but still have questions here is the official word directly from the IRS. Follow the link below to a powerpoint presentation that contains all the details on the extension, expansion and rules.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/23297630/IRS-Homebuyer-Tax-Credit

Looking to buy your first home in the Pittsburgh area? Call Christa Ross from RE/MAX Select Realty, at 724-933-6300 x214 (office) or 724-779-1437 (direct) or visit my website at www.greenhomespgh.com.

Keller Williams Receives JD Power Award for Highest Score from Home Buyers...

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:21:14 -0600

*Keller Williams Realty received the highest numerical score among full service real estate firms for home buyers in the proprietary J.D. Power and Associates 2008-2009 Home Buyer/Seller Study. 2009 Study based on 3,138 total evaluations measuring 7 firms and measures opinions of individuals who bought a home between March 2008 and April 2009. Proprietary study results are based on experiences and perceptions of consumers surveyed April-June 2009. Your experiences may vary. Visit jdpower.com

Keller Williams is growing in agents and offices in today's market! Most other companies are losing agents and closing branches left and right. Why is this? As a veteran in the real estate industry since 1996, I have experienced Allen Tate Company, Prudential Carolinas Realty, my own firm for 3 years, RE/MAX Signature Properties and RE/MAX GOLD before finally arriving at my current affiliation with Keller Williams. Each company had its good points and some not so good (including my own firm!). Ultimately it's each agent's own personal best fit. It depends upon things ranging from your broker in charge, the agents you are working around, your company's position in the market and how well they are adapting to the market's current state.

It is this last criteria that I think is the reason for this prestigious JD Power award. Keller Williams is adapting to what agents want in our challenging market. Happy agents lead to happy clients. With the industry changing so rapidly with the mortgage market in an uproar to short sales and foreclosures becoming a large focus to constantly increasing technological dependence in our industry, Keller Williams seems to have done the best job at adapting in those areas. An affordable monthly fee combined with cutting edge web presence and perpetually evolving educational materials make Keller Williams the top contender in today's era of real estate. More and more agents are leaving other firms and coming to Keller Williams. These are top agents in the marketplace too. Agents whom you can be sure do their research and do not make a company switch frivolously.

Again, ultimately the decision depends upon a good fit between agent and company. This is my two cents' worth, but apparently many others feel the same way. Here is the fine print attached to the JD Power award received by Keller Williams.

Keller Williams Realty received the highest numerical score among full service real estate firms for home buyers in the proprietary J.D. Power and Associates 2008-2009 Home Buyer/Seller Study. 2009 Study based on 3,138 total evaluations measuring 7 firms and measures opinions of individuals who bought a home between March 2008 and April 2009. Proprietary study results are based on experiences and perceptions of consumers surveyed April-June 2009. Your experiences may vary. Visit jdpower.com

The Short Sale…A Perpetually Evolving Organism…Sort of like the Swine Flu (Part 4 of 4)

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:52:37 -0600

(This is a continuation of a post I wrote about the status of today's short sale market. You may want to review Post 3 of 4 here before continuing with this one.)

Another issue to keep in mind when helping a buyer purchase a short sale is that buyer's mortgage. If they lock in their interest rate, that rate lock (typically a 30 day lock) will quite possibly expire and cost the buyer more money to extend by the time the short sale transaction goes through to completion.

So a buyer needs to be prepared for a longer than normal transaction time, a complete renegotiation of price and/or terms once the banks start the process of deciding what they'll accept, added costs of rate locks being extended or if not, then rates going up. Short sales are not for the faint of heart!

Is a short sale worth the trouble? It CAN be. Is a buyer guaranteed to get a fantastic deal when buying a short sale property? There are NO guarantees. For instance, my buyer who closed last month was counting on the $8000 tax credit. At the time, there was no word on the extension of the first time buyers' tax credit, so all we knew was that if we couldn't close by December, he would lose out on that tax credit. That money was a major advantage to him buying, so if things had delayed any further, he would have benefitted far less by buying at that time. Fortunately, the tax credit was extended and we ended up closing in a good time frame after all. But it wasn't without some last minute craziness and panic on both the seller's side and the buyer's side.

And short sales do not only apply to lower price ranges either. An agent in my office recently had a $750,000 short sale property. The owners had paid over $1 Million for it but had fallen on hard times and needed to sell. The biggest problem for them was that the $500,000 to $900,000 price range is probably our quietest segment with the least number of potential buyers. The last I heard, they had dropped their price again toward the $700,000 mark.

So the lesson here is that short sales are constantly changing. If you are a consumer (seller or buyer), make sure the agent you hire has experience in this part of our market. They should either have lots of experience in short sales or an advanced designation focusing on short sales, or both.

As an agent helping sellers with their short sale, be sure to have a game plan. Help your client gather their financial information quickly and completely. Be ready to make lots of phone calls and stay on hold for a long time. That's what it takes to speak with those who will help push things through. Do not stop at the automated voice. Try to forward through to a live person. BE POLITE. No matter how indifferent the person on the other end of the phone may sound, they will be less likely to help you if you lose your temper. They hear that reaction all day long. It has to result in them turning a deaf ear to "just another person yelling at me." If they tell you to call back in ten day, call back in three. You will likely never speak to the same person twice, so they do not know the difference. Once, I was told to call back in two weeks. I called in one week and was told that the thing I was waiting for had happened three days earlier which was a week and a half earlier than their two week estimate! So I kicked myself for not having called sooner. Persistence and patience is key. Document your conversations so you can tell future negotiators and phone answerers what you have sent and not sent... Also so that you can report to your seller, the buyer's agent and the other lien holder (if applicable) on the status of the process.

If you are a buyer's agent helping someone purchase a short sale, take some steps before ever making your offer to ensure the listing agent knows what they are doing. Be careful not to cause friction by asking the more blatant question "So how many short sales have you done?" Instead ask these questions, as suggested by the Short Sale Panelists I heard on Tuesday.

•1. Where are you in the short sale process?

•2. How many liens are on the property?

•3. What's your plan to satisfy those liens?

If the listing agent answers with intelligence, chances are greater that they will handle it properly and the transaction will go through. As a buyer's agent you are less involved in the process, but it is important to stay in touch so your client is confident that the steps are progressing as quickly as possible. One thing you might do to help...if the listing agent is having trouble getting in touch with the negotiator, sometimes it helps to have the loan originator for your buyer give the lien holder a call. This might serve to show them that your buyer is serious and there is a risk of them walking away if this transaction does not move forward.

Of course we are all at the mercy of the bank's employees who will forever be faceless, nameless beings who do not have to worry about ever meeting us or our clients. This sense of anonymity creates a thick layer of insulation which can foster slower response times from these folks. If they don't know the buyer and seller as human beings, they'll be naturally less likely to care as much about the transaction going through. Their paycheck simply requires that they put in a certain number of hours. We agents, at 100% commission, have learned to do whatever it legally takes to get a transaction pushed through. We do not get paid until the house closes. The seller is highly motivated because his credit rating and perhaps his/her family's peace of mind are at stake. The buyer is motivated because they have spent lots of time looking and picking out this house, spending money on the home inspection and appraisal, have the risk of a rate lock expiring, moving plans to coordinate which can affect their family, school starting, work at the new job, etc. So the people with the least to lose are the ones in control. Keep this in mind and adjust your attitudes accordingly and your chances of short sale success will be maximized. Best wishes to you whether you are a seller, buyer or agent!

The Short Sale…A Perpetually Evolving Organism…Sort of like the Swine Flu (Part 3 of 4)

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:48:07 -0600

(This is a continuation of a post I wrote about the status of today's short sale market. You may want to review Post 2 of 4 here before continuing with this one.)

Another issue in today's short sale market that is vastly different from even just a few months ago is the following. Last year if the borrower/seller had two loans on the property (a first lien holder and a second lien holder), the second lien holder would have been thankful to get ANY amount of money from a short sale transaction. What used to happen was the first lien holder got as much money as possible once all fees and closing expenses were covered without regard for the second lien holder's bottom line. I had one lien holder in the second position tell me that they would be satisfied with 10% of the original amount they were owed. In that particular case, the amount of that second lien holder's loan was $65,000, so they would normally be fine with about $6500 from the sale. However, rules are meant to be broken and once they found out the borrower/seller had good credit and some credit cards with available balances from which he could take a cash advance, they changed their mind and demanded that $3000 come from the borrower. It was Christmas 2008 and the seller had lots of bills to pay including moving expenses to get from Charlotte NC to Virginia. Fortunately, I was able to negotiate with the lien holder to take $1500 less, so my seller client was able to pull together the money and the sale went through.

Fast forward to today's market. I helped a first time buyer purchase a short sale last month. The seller had already done their homework and the package was already approved, so the actual time frame was short. However with one week before closing, the second lien holder decided they wanted another $3000 (in addition to the $3000 they were set to receive). The first solution that came to mind to the listing agent was to ask my buyer to pay $3000 more for the home. The problem with that was the appraisal had already been completed and it was an FHA loan. This meant that an FHA "case number" had been assigned to the property. What THAT meant was that for six months, any buyer who might purchase that home (if we had walked away) would have seen the appraisal from OUR transaction. That appraisal had come in at $119,000. The contract price was $118,500. The appraiser felt confident about his value and therefore even if my buyer were willing to increase the price, he would not have been allowed to.

I suggested to the listing agent to have the seller sign a deficiency judgment agreement promising to pay this additional $3000 over time, after the closing. This is something banks will often require of their borrower/sellers as a condition to approving the short sale. After initially balking at the idea, the listing agent was finally able to convince the seller that this was the only way the transaction would happen.

You see the second lien holder felt more confident in demanding more money because the house had only been on the market for about two weeks. In their mind, since the foreclosure phase wouldn't start until June 2010, they were willing to gamble that if my buyer walked away, another one would come along before June. They were probably right. But my buyer needed a place to live. And the seller needed to move on with life. The only parties to whom this transaction was NOT a crucial issue were the banks.

So keep in mind that if there are two loans on a property, there are two (or more!) lien holders who have to be satisfied. And second lien holders have been kicked around so much by getting just a fraction of what they are owed, that they cannot afford to take so little anymore.

(to be continued in part 4 of 4 of this series here)

The Short Sale…A Perpetually Evolving Organism…Sort of like the Swine Flu (Part 2 of 4)

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:42:54 -0600

(This is a continuation of a post I wrote about the status of today's short sale market. You may want to review Post 1 of 4 here before continuing with this one.)

One panelist said that there is a big switch within banks to shift their asset managers into the role of being "loss mitigation specialists". You see, what has happened over the past eighteen months is that there are just so many short sales and foreclosures that the banks have realized it is ultimately in THEIR best interest as a first step to help the current borrower (home owner) to KEEP the property by adjusting their payment down. Depending on the borrower's financial situation the bank may lower their payment and add the difference to the back of the loan with some sort of re-amortization formula. This requires a staff of workers who can walk borrowers through the process, handle the paperwork, and answer the myriad of questions that the borrower has.

This is a good thing. It is almost always best for the owner to hang onto their house. If loss mitigation cannot be worked out, then the next best choice is the short sale. This is preferred over a foreclosure because usually a short sale costs the bank less money than it would to foreclose on the property (I'll explain why in another post) and the ramifications to the borrower are lighter. Their credit score does not take as large of a hit with a short sale versus a foreclosure. Sometimes a foreclosure can jeopardize one's job if they have government security clearance or work in a financial capacity.

But back to the panelists...They stated that there have been over 11,000 foreclosures in Mecklenburg County alone this year! That's 50 per workday folks. This shows the gigantic scope of this segment of the mortgage market we are in. Of all the short sales that are attempted, only 43% (forty three percent) are ultimately approved. So if over half the short sales fail to happen, they move on to foreclosure resulting in this massive 11,000 figure for Mecklenburg County alone.

One important tip to remember is for the borrower/seller to go ahead and complete as much paperwork as possible in the short sale package. This gets the process started and hopefully results in a shorter time frame of negotiation and approval when and offer comes in.

From the buyers' perspective, the biggest issue with a short sale is the time it can take to get a response. I have submitted an offer on a short sale on behalf of a first time buyer and 16 weeks went by with no word or acknowledgment of our offer. Finally my client simply could not wait any longer and backed out. We ended up purchasing a house that was NOT a short sale to spare him such extensive time delays any further.

In another case, I was a listing agent in a short sale and when the offer came in, it took almost eight weeks exactly to get to the closing table. At the time (November 2008) that seemed like a long time. Eight weeks is about twice the time it used to take a "normal" (non-short sale) transaction to go from contract to closing. Today I am the listing agent for a short sale and our offer came in July and we have still not heard the first word from the Stage One Negotiator. I would love that eight week time frame from last year right about now! By the way, the time frame for a "normal" (non-short sale) transaction in today's market is more along the lines of five to six weeks. Lenders are so bogged down with everything that it's affecting the processes of all types of loans.

(to be continued in part 3 of 4 of this series here)

The Short Sale…A Perpetually Evolving Organism…Sort of like the Swine Flu (Part 1 of 4)

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:39:43 -0600

If I were a betting man, I would be willing to wager that a couple of years ago only a tiny portion of agents truly knew what a short sale actually was. They were a small segment of the industry and few, if any agents had a crystal ball letting them know what the market would be doing in just a couple of short years. Now the term "short sale" is probably one of the most highly searched terms on Google or any other search engine. Newspapers jump on any article pertaining to them no matter how trivial the story may be. The public as a whole has begun to be more aware of them. There are agents who devote almost their entire book of business to the short sale market. It is truly the market of the moment (defined as a segment of the market that is prevalent of the next five years or so).

Whatever anyone knew about short sales a couple of years ago however, is almost completely irrelevant today. Past the basic definition of what a short sale is, the process of a short sale transaction, the players involved, the time frame to get one closed, the percentage below the loan balance that a lien holder is willing to take...all these things have changed and continue to change weekly, if not daily.

Just to catch someone up, who may still be unsure of what constitutes a "short sale", the basic definition is a transaction where the current lender of a property where the owner has fallen on hard times is willing to take less than the full amount owed on the property. Not just any property is eligible for a short sale. An owner cannot just decide to sell his property as a short sale so that it will capture more attention from buyers (although buyers probably ARE noticing homes listed as "short sale approved" more so than "regular" listings). The owner has to have encountered some sort of hardship like a job loss, medical issues, marital issues, etc. that have caused them to no longer be able to afford their house payments. There are more stipulations and steps in the process, but I will tackle those in another post.

The purpose of this post is to report on some current information I learned in a recent Panel of Experts meeting I attended this week. The event I attended is called the Keller Williams Road Show. This is a travelling event that takes place in some major markets like Charlotte, Raleigh, Charleston and Greenville. The owners of the various Keller Williams offices as well as the Team Leaders (office managers/brokers in charge) orchestrate the events and ask various panels of experts questions about hot topics in the industry. On Tuesday, I attended the Charlotte Road Show and there were four separate panels plus a speaker at "halftime". One of the panels discussed nothing but short sales and foreclosures (also called REO or "real estate owned", as in real estate owned by banks). A member of this panel is actually on the "short sale taskforce" to help streamline the process and forecast the future of this industry segment.

I have been involved in several short sale transactions myself, so I am familiar with the process. I have also completed an advanced designation that teaches specifically about the ins and outs of the short sale market. This designation is called CDPE or Certified Distressed Property Expert. But I know that the one constant in the short sale market is that it is ever changing, so it was important to me to hear the experiences of other agents who have done even more of them than I have.

(to be continued in part 2 of 4 of this series here)

Tax Credit is Extended and Expanded!

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 22:38:49 -0600

Via Ellen Molla (Coldwell Banker Prestige Properties):

They did it. They finally extended the $8000 tax credit to first time homebuyers. Not only that, but they extended a $6500 tax credit to existing homeowners. Here are the basic guidelines. First time homebuyers or buyers who have had no interest in a principal residence for the last three years are eligible for the $8000 tax credit. Homeowners who are selling or sold their principal residence and lived in it for 5 consecutive years of the last 8 years are eligible for the $6500 tax credit. If you are single, you income must not be more than $125,000, and if you are married, your income must not be more than $225,000 to receive the whole tax credit. Above these income limits, you tax credit will be prorated. The purchase price on the home must not exceed $800,000. You must be in a written binding contract by April 30, 2010, and you must close escrow by July 1, 2010. Proper documentation must be submitted with your taxes to prove your eligibility.

So, all you first time homebuyers and existing homebuyers don't want to miss out. Find your new dream home today. We would love to help you with all your real estate needs.
Ellen Molla

Owner/Broker

Coldwell Banker Prestige Properties

Visit me at www.findinghome.net

760/613-4396 Cell 760/749-4642 Fax

"Now with offices in Escondido and Valley Center!"

Standard Poodles in Real Estate...Our new additions, Samson and Luke

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:32:03 -0600

This is Samson, one of our Standard Poodles. He's only five months old so he'll grow another 20-30 pounds and about seven inches taller. I'm thinking of making he and our other one Luke company mascots. I'm thinking of different marketing ideas in which to incorporate these guys. Here's Luke below. He's the half brother of Samson (same dad, different moms). He was tired on this day because he had just been groomed for the first time and it was a four hour process.

If anyone has ideas of ways to use dogs in marketing their real estate business, I'd love to hear them.

Have a great day!

Neal

Commercial Bounce House for free to my Clients (and For Hire when they're not using it...)

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:23:19 -0600

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Description

Bounce House Rental $150 for 4 hours, includes delivery, setup, and break down. Call or email for availability. Commercial Grade 1200lb capacity. Great for Birthdays, Neighborhood Parties, Business Openings, Fun for the whole family. Even the adults can get in and jump around. This is sponsored by NEAL PENDER .
NealPender@gmail.com www.NealPender.com

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Service Area:	Concord & Harrisburg
Service Type:	Bounce House Rental

vFlyer Id: 1782186

Specifics of Entering the Real Estate Business in the Charlotte/Concord NC Market

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 17:21:25 -0600

I answered an email from a young man asking about getting his real estate license and joining Keller Williams. Here are my answers to his questions...

Does it seem plausible to take the route of keeping a full time job while doing the Real Estate part time as well?

I would absolutely keep the full time job as long as possible until the real estate becomes somewhat consistent. The reason for the high dropout rate among new agents in the first two years is lack of consistent leads which is a result of both lack of funds and/or training. The J-O-B will keep the pressure off, allowing you to enjoy the real estate learning process. It will also keep you plugged into a network of folks to help with real estate.... Always work on enlarging your sphere of influence. Maintain a database of folks who know and hopefully love you and cater to them with regular contact via in person lunches, phone calls, written correspondence, and emails IN THAT ORDER! Don't make the common mistake of thinking the easy email/texting methods are enough. You'll stand out with the old fashioned personal touches like one on one lunches, small token thank you gifts/cards, phone calls on their birthdays/anniversaries (you keep track of these dates with a good contact management software), birthday cards to their kids on THEIR birthdays, etc.

What are the fees associated with MLS membership?

MLS is $165 per quarter and there may be a set up fee. Go to www.CarolinaHome.com, look for Contact to email or call them to find out details. Realtor membership is $354.00 per year. Lockbox dues are $145 per year.

What, if possible would be an estimate on joining say Keller Williams...Monthly desk fee? Associate Fee?

I pay $45 per month which includes Errors and Omissions Insurance (a must have), website through KW, fantastic upgraded Realtor.com enhancement. I also pay $68 per month for a desk which is required of provisional agents which you will be for between 1 to 3 years after the initial licensing. (I just choose to keep a desk there, but don't have to since I'm a full broker). So I guess that's $113 per month, but includes some nice extras with the benefit of the KW group discount (website and realtor.com upgrade)

Do you know of any good online resources to get trend info, area info, sales info, ect...to use for my blog? Well the best resource won't be available to you until you get licensed and can join the Multiple Listing Service. But there are tons of resources you can use including www.ActiveRain.com (a real estate oriented blogsite full of agents, mortgage folks, stagers, etc who talk about all sorts of real estate topics). Also www.Zillow.com although do NOT rely on them for property evaluation because they are nearly always way off for our market. You shouldn't blog about values until you're licensed yet anyway, but you can learn stuff. www.Realtor.com will have listing info where you can learn market data and inventory. www.Trulia.com for more random market info. Also www.RealtyTimes.com for articles and such.

Hope this helps,

Neal Pender

So You're Thinking of Becoming a NC Realtor... (What you should know...)

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 16:34:15 -0600

Today I received an email from a young man who is considering getting his NC real estate license and joining Keller Williams. I responded and thought I'd post that response here for the benefit of others with similar questions...

Dear Prospective NC Real Estate Agent,

Congratulations on your new career aspirations! And great job planning ahead by doing the research on companies.

I have been in the industry since 1996 and have worked at Allen Tate Company, Prudential Carolinas Realty, opened my own firm for three years, and worked at two separately owned RE/MAX firms before changing to Keller Williams on October 1st.

Keller Williams is opening their first (and likely the only) Cabarrus County location in what was previously the RE/MAX GOLD building. The owners of GOLD decided to close its doors and become Keller Williams agents, so the rest of us at GOLD had to decide whether or not to also become KW agents or to go to another RE/MAX or some other company.

All of us except one nearly retired agent and two lower production agents chose to remain and become affiliated with Keller Williams. I think that in itself is a testimony to the impressive KW atmosphere and mindset.

Keller Williams does hire new agents and what's most important is that they offer lots of training opportunities in the form of live classes at any of the KW Offices, online videos and personal accountability with your specific Team Leader if that's what you would like.

One big difference that sets KW apart is their profit sharing component. While it shouldn't be the main reason for selecting a company, it is a very nice perk that will pay off for you in the long run. KW is set up to reward its agents for helping to add good, productive agents to the company. They reward you by sharing with you the profits in your office based on the production of the agents in your "downline". I was initially confused about this concept until I attended a morning session on it last month. While I don't care to be in the recruiting business, I do like the idea of perhaps having a good transaction with an agent from another company, deciding they'd be a good fit for KW and recommending to them to come on board. It's always better to be surrounded by productive, busy agents. Rarely do I ever find myself in competition with my office colleagues. There is just too much business out there for that to be a common occurrence. So it's a good thing to try to add to the office when you run into a good agent. Judy will discuss this a little bit with you too if you wish.

Another important point is that while nearly every other office is closing doors and losing agents, KW is the only one to actually be growing in the face of our current challenging market. I think it's growth is because of the approach they take of giving agents what they need in today's market. That is both ongoing training (because things change so rapidly these days) as well as a very manageable monthly desk fee.

What you'll find as you interview companies is a wide assortment of commission structures and desk fees. For a brand new agent, something with a split between 50 and 70% with monthly fees less than $100 and that also includes guidance and training is much more desirable than a 95 to 100% split that has monthly fees of $300 too $1000 and less training. RE/MAX is one of the larger commission split companies, but because of it's high monthly fee structure, it tends to work best for those who have been in the business awhile, developed a sphere of influence referral base and can survive zero sales months but still pay that high monthly fee from time to time.

Realize that as a new agent, it may be very likely that you won't have a closing for six months to a year. It's safest to have some reserve cash on hand to survive this scenario. Also realize that it will cost about $800-1000 to get up and running in the business. This money includes setting up your MLS subscription, lockbox key, Realtor membership, and perhaps a few signs and lockboxes. You'll also need a dependable computer, printer and internet connection, but I'm sure you already have those things.

Despite what the media says, this is a great time to get into the business. There is less competition because agents have dropped out in the past eighteen months and there is lots of inventory to be sold. The task then becomes finding good listings where the owners will price correctly and cultivating the buyer leads that you get either through your listing marketing, personal referrals and internet marketing.

If you have some spare time, you might look into the choices of starting a real estate blog website. Writing blogs about real estate in your preferred area is the best way to generate organic search results to your business. It's better than Google pay per click because it's nearly free (besides whatever it costs to set up the site and buy your domain name) and it puts you right at the top as an expert.

Also, go to www.GoDaddy.com and click on "Domains" then "Bulk Register" and type in all the possible domain names you might want to use in your business. If yourname.com is available (or some version of it) go ahead and buy that one for sure. Then think of other, more generic ones like www.CabarrusisHome.com and try to get a couple of that type. You see, there are some marketing areas where it's more effective to have www.YourName.com and others where a more generic domain name would work best. It's all about traffic and lots of folks would be quicker to visit www.CabarrusIsHome.com for example than www.NealPender.com.

So best wishes on your new endeavor! I hope to see you around the office in 2010!

Sincerely,

Neal Pender

Certified Residential Specialist

Certified Distressed Property Expert

704-737-7653

Visit www.NealPender.com to learn more about...

~ Getting top dollar for your house in today's market

~ Avoiding Foreclosure: Time is critical in these situations, so call right away.

~ Buying your next house for the lowest possible price

Lakefront, Two Story with Finished Basement and Huge Garage

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 15:56:28 -0600

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Description

Beautiful 5bdrm home w/finished basement offers serene waterfront views.Main level Master Bd w/french door to covered balcony.Huge soaking tub in master bath.KT w/granite & lots of custom cabinets + access to balcony.Basement has 2 large rooms (1carpet,1hardwoods)plus workshop/garage w/single roll up door to backyard.Lge basement family rm has screened porch w/hot tub included.

Features

Bedrooms:	5
Bathrooms:	2.5
Year Built:	1998
Subdivision:	Heinrich Russena Estates
Lot Size:	1.04
Square Footage:	2850
Agent Name:	Neal Pender
Broker:	Keller Williams Realty
MLS #:	895718

Location

6024 Israel DR Concord NC 28025

vFlyer Id: 2327232

Gorgeous Two Story with over 4000 SF in Harrisburg, NC

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 15:45:54 -0600

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Description

Stately brick front full of upgrades incl.full irrig,plantation shutters,heavy crown & wainscoting,landscape lights,tile backsplash,upgraded faucets,extensive landscaping,30x12deck & more.Main level office/bedroom w/full bath access.Dramatic 2story foyer & family room with balcony.Kitchen has solid surface counters,smooth range,double ovens,42' raised panel cabinets.Formal dining & living rooms.

Features

Bedrooms:	6
Bathrooms:	4
Subdivision:	Heatherstone
Garage Size:	3
Square Footage:	4157
Agent Name:	Neal Pender
Broker:	Keller Williams Realty
MLS #:	897584

Location

2153 Woodstream Harrisburg NC 28075

vFlyer Id: 2928188

Two Story Master Down Home in Popular Concord Neighborhood "The Woodlands"

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 15:32:22 -0600

Links

Visual Tour

Photo Gallery

Description

Spacious 4 bedroom home with master on main level situated on large level lot. New Roof 2008,hardwoods in foyer,Dining Room, Breakfast Area, Family Room, Heating/Air 2006,Tile floors in Kitchen,Baths. Dramatic 2story foyer and Family Rm with balustered balcony/loft area. Open flowing plan allowing lots of natural lighting. Formal Dining & Living Rms. Living Rm could become office with addition of door.

Features

Bedrooms:	4
Bathrooms:	2
Year Built:	1995
Subdivision:	The Woodlands
Lot Size:	.29
Garage Size:	2
Square Footage:	2491
Agent Name:	Neal Pender
Broker:	Keller Williams Realty
MLS #:	897945

Location

1817 Moreland Wood TRL NW Concord NC 28027

vFlyer Id: 2928501

Master Down Home with Fenced Back Yard Close to Conveniences of Concord

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 15:29:42 -0600

Links

Virtual Tour

Photo Gallery

Custom Cabinets

Master Suite

Kitchen

Living Room with Gas Logs

Upstairs includes a Loft

Dining

Great Patio Area

Description

Well-cared for, up to date home on large acre lot with fence, storage building & plenty of room. Laminate floor in Family room and Dining room. Kitchen has custom cabinets & attractive dark laminate counters.Master on main with large bathrm including separate shower & soaking tub.Upstairs is a huge loft plus full bath & two guest bedrooms. The stairs & loft feature clear glass balusters allowing lots of light.

Features

Bedrooms:	3
Bathrooms:	2
Year Built:	1996
Lot Size:	1.08
Garage Size:	2
Square Footage:	1710
Agent Name:	Neal Pender
Broker:	Keller Williams
MLS #:	891649

Location

328 Belvedere DR Concord NC 28027

vFlyer Id: 2865636

Bright, Open Ranch Plan on Large, Fenced Lot in Concord

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 15:22:54 -0600

Links

Visual Tour

Photo Gallery

Description

Beautifully cared-for,Ranch plan with lots of natural lighting & tons of updates included.
Brand new carpeting,attractive wall paint,brand new heating & air unit.
Recent roof,vinyl siding,windows,storm doors.
Freshly treated deck w/built in gas grill overlooks huge,fenced backyard with mature trees.
Kitchen has smooth top range,stainless steel microwave & dishwasher.1 Yr warranty!

Features

Bedrooms:	3
Bathrooms:	2
Year Built:	1991
Subdivision:	Hidden Pond
Lot Size:	.32
Garage Size:	2
Square Footage:	1749
Agent Name:	Neal Pender
Broker:	Keller Williams
MLS #:	901249

Location

3616 Wood Duck CT NW Concord NC 28027

vFlyer Id: 2948624

Brick Home in Beautiful Harrisburg Neighborhood

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 15:13:40 -0600

Links

Visual Tour

Photo Gallery

Foyer to Dining

Dining

Breakfast and Living

Master

Living

Kitchen

Media Room

Description

Niblock's 'Kingston':Full Brick w/3Bay Garage,4 Bedroom,Huge Bonus,office,Formal Dining Room & Gorgeous Chef's Kitchen w/tons of cabinet & counter space.Kitchen flows smoothly to large breakfast area & inviting Family Room-Perfect for entertaining.Hardwoods through foyer,KT &Breakfast area.Built in camera system,Wired for surround sound.You don't have to wait to build--This one is ready for move in!!!

Features

Bedrooms:	4
Bathrooms:	3
Year Built:	2006
Subdivision:	Kensington Forest
Lot Size:	.35
Garage Size:	3 Car
Square Footage:	3580
Agent Name:	Neal Pender
Broker:	Keller Williams Realty
MLS #:	893537

Location

9050 Kensington Forest Harrisburg NC 28075

vFlyer Id: 2704854

Help!!! My listing SOLD! Now we just have to find $55,000 for my seller to pay off their mortgage at closing!

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 22:44:16 -0500

My seller owes $202,000 but the market value on the house is $160,000. We have a contract for $163,000 with the seller agreeing to pay closing costs of $4800 and provide a warranty.

My clients have tried borrowing the money from several banks but of course, no one is lending money right now...especially without collateral. So our only real option is to have the lender agree to a short sale.

There is a first lien for $137,000. That one can be paid by the proceeds from closing. The second mortgage is for $65,000 with Countrywide. That's the one we're trying to arrange a short sale with.

After selling expenses including commissions, revenue stamps, and assorted other fees, the seller would need $55,000 to be clear.

So today I gathered together the sales contract, listing agreement, current CMA, net sheet, showing history and price reduction history. I faxed those things in to Countrywide and now we wait while it travels through the system. Countrywide says an accurate estimate is 30 days or so to get it done. We'll see.

I think the CMA will help convince them that our contract price is good enough to go with. The buyer is strong and willing to work with us. The seven comps I found include two new construction sales (which are the highest prices) and five foreclosures. The average sales price after adjusting for square footage is $160,000 while the average of the five without the two new construction homes is in the $140's. Since we listed it on June 23rd, we've had four showings. The first one didn't occur until two price drops and three months later. It was listed before me since February, so there were five total price drops along the way.

So the market is definitely challenging for this particular house. It was a CP Morgan house to begin with. That's the first strike. Then the sellers refi'd to pay some debt. Which was basically just prolonging the inevitable. Strike two. Then the market for financing got crazy. Combined with the less than ideal location and this one has been a struggle.

I'm just hoping the short sale is approved and this whole thing happens in 30-45 days. We're thinking of doing a rental agreement in the meantime so the buyer can go ahead and get out of the apartment she's in with her four kids while still protecting both parties in case the worst case happens and the short sale doesn't work.

If anyone has any advice or comments, I'm always open to it.

Podcast Website Gives You the Edge on the Latest in Techno Gadgetry

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 18:55:23 -0500

Let me tell you about a website I've been visiting for a couple of years now. I just realized it might be helpful to others on here. It is called www.GeekBrief.tv and it's a video podcast about the latest developments in tech gadgets and services. I've enjoyed it because it is a brief snapshot of upcoming gadgets and tech news by a young couple who have made it their career. Neil and Cali find products new to the market, test them out and give their opinion on how well they do what they're supposed to do. Included in their assessments is everything from the latest Apple Computing devices, external hard drives, cameras and other hardware to software and services like Twitter.

They have also posted a list of the equipment they use and have used in producing their show. This includes cameras and microphones that they've found work best for podcasting. The video camera they recommend for beginners is about $700 and features digital and an external sound option. It is the Canon HV30 and can be found at Amazon and other online stores as well as Circuit City.

They've been podcasting for a few years now and I've always enjoyed surprising people with information on some random gadget I heard about in advance on their site.

Take a look and let me know how this site has helped you start a conversation or relate to your tech-savvy clients (or kids!)

Bounce House Open House... Look for us to do more of these in the future...

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 17:56:21 -0500

Here's something I did recently at an open house to generate interest. I'll be using the bounce house more often for such things as it makes a big spectacle which is what we really want for those exciting open houses!

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Bring the kids and let them enjoy the castle bounce house at 3063 Hawick Commons Drive Sunday October 12th from 2PM until 5PM. While they're playing, you can enjoy viewing the open house.

The home has 3 bedrooms and a single car garage and is situated on a large, level, fenced lot in popular Hawick Commons. Just a short drive to Harrisburg and Concord, this home offers convenience to Lowe's Foods and Bloom supermarkets, Walgreen's and CVS pharmacies, Tru Value Hardware and restaurants like Soho Cafe, A.J.'s, Pizza Hut, NYPD Pizza, Zaxby's, Harrisburg Family Restaurant and more. This home is also close to Highways 49 and 29 for easy access into Charlotte or Concord.

The school system is highly rated and you are also only minutes away from Frank Liske Park on Stough Road. Frank Liske offers tons of walking trails, baseball and soccer fields, playgrounds, fishing pond with paddle boats, picnic shelters, tennis courts, miniature golf and acres of lawn to play on.

In the nearby Harrisburg Town Center, the YMCA is located on the second story of the Town Hall building for a convenient workout.

So come on out and take a look. We'll also have information available on other local listings. We'll also have loan options that will show what your monthly payment would be. We look forward to seeing you on Sunday!

$135,000 3 bedrooms 2 1/2 baths, level lot in Concord NC's Hawick Commons

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 17:35:49 -0500

Hawick Commons Market Activity from October 2007 to Today

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 17:34:13 -0500

Here's a brief thumbnail sketch of what's been happening with real estate in Hawick Commons over the past year.

There are total 159 total homes in Hawick Commons.
Right now there are 7 homes for sale
1 home is under contract or "Pending"
17 properties have sold within the previous 12 months.
Average Sale Price: $134,797
Average Asking Price: $138,410
Average Days on Market: 58
Average S.F. of those sold homes: 1395 (Heated/Cooled not including garages)
Sales to List Price Ratio: 97.4% (sellers sold for this much of their asking price)

What is the Absorption Rate? By looking at a community's absorption rate, you can learn how competitive a market is. With 17 homes sold in the past 12 months, that means there was an average of 1.42 houses sold every month. Right now there are 7 active homes on the market. That means Hawick Commons has almost 5 months of inventory. In other words, if no other houses went up for sale in the neighborhood right now, it would take 5 months for all the current homes on the market to sell.

What do these things mean to you? To put it in perspective, in the entire Cabarrus County market over the past 12 months, there were 2096 sold properties. Right now there are 1696 Active listings.

•· Right now there are 1696 homes for sale in Cabarrus County overall

•· 2096 properties have sold within the previous 12 months.

•· Average Sale Price: $199,197

•· Average Asking Price: $205,528

•· Average Days on Market: 90

•· Sales to List Price Ratio: 96.9% (sellers sold for this much of their asking price)

That gives us 9.7 months worth of inventory. So again, if no more houses were listed as of today, it would take almost 10 months to run out of houses for sale.

So Hawick Commons is better off than the overall Cabarrus market by 2 times. In other words, there are half as many months of inventory in Hawick as in the whole Cabarrus market.

Also, the sales to list price ratio for the entire Cabarrus market is 96.9%. So homes in Hawick are selling for more money on average than in all of Cabarrus.

In today's market, with the media predicting the end of the financial world, this is a ray of light. Our market will improve. It's not nearly as bad as the newspaper would have you believe. What it means to sellers is that in order to get top dollar for your home, it needs to be clean and decorated in neutral tones so every single showing counts. Sellers also need to pay attention to pricing strategy and make sure they put their home on the market so that it doesn't sit with no showings. If you build in too much "negotiating cushion", the result is often far fewer showings. That doesn't mean you'll lose money necessarily. It just means you have to watch the market's response to your price. If you aren't getting a certain number of showings every week, adjustments need to be made.

The days of "995 pricing" are in the past as well. We've all seen homes priced at $139,995 or $147,900. It made sense at the time because car dealers did it and shoe stores did it too. But in this day and age, over 85% of buyers use the internet when searching for their home. If your house is worth between $130,000 and $141,000, you would get far more potential buyers if you priced it at $140,000 (even) rather than $139,900. This is because some buyers might begin their search at $140,000 and therefore miss your house altogether if you're priced at $139,900. You wouldn't even show up on their radar screen and they may very well be interested in your house even though it's at the lower end of their price range.

There are other factors to consider as a seller in today's market as well. A good, full-time REALTOR can discuss these issues with you to make sure you get top dollar for your home in this competitive market. If you would like to get a more specific picture of your home's value, look to the upper left of this site and request the automated Market Snapshot. Our Market Snapshot will be created for your house and show you what other homes have sold and how many days it took. This service is free and without need to talk with an agent.

If you would rather speak with a seasoned agent about your particular home selling needs, feel free to email or call me and we can set a time to chat about your specific circumstance and how we can get the most money for you.

Update on Triple Lakes Trail Marathon in Greensboro

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 17:05:52 -0500

As a recent disciple of running, I've been online checking out the various running related gadgets designed to improve one's time and ability in that sport. I had found a site called www.REI.com which sells apparel and equipment for various outdoors activities like running, hiking, kayaking, camping and the like.

Then while driving past NorthLake Mall a few weeks ago, I found a brand new REI store in my area and got to touch lots of things I'd only seen online so far. I bought the Amphipod hand held water bottle (excuse me, "hydration container" :) as well as one that fits at my lower back on a belt. I've run with both of them a couple of times. I definitely like the hand held better, but can see value in the belt one for longer runs.

I also bought several brands and flavors of gels to try them out before the half marathon I planned to run on October 4th. It was the Triple Lakes Trail race in Greensboro (www.triplelakesrun.com) . I didn't want any rude surprises in case my digestive system didn't care for a particular brand. I tried three of them before the race (GU, PowerBar gel,and another I can't remember) and each went down fine with no craziness.

About two weeks before October 4th, I tapered down in my runs to make sure I had time to rest and recover. I never did fit in a 20+ mile run. I did 16, 15, 13, 12, 11 and several 8's and 9's. It was too late to try the 20 miler, so I just worked on speed and tempo runs within reason. I felt good that my cardio ability was there. My big concern was with knees and ankles, but I've only ever had one bad ankle sprain before. No knee issues besides occasional popping sound when squatting.

The day of the race came and I woke up at 5 AM with butterflies in my stomach. I had packed a bag the night before so all I had to do was shower and hit the road. I ate a light breakfast of a 3 egg white omelet and headed out. About two hours before race time (6:30AM), while driving, I ate a peanut butter sandwich. The drive was an hour and 15 minutes and I arrived over an hour before the start of the half marathon.

In another post I'll outline the rest of the details. Overall, it was a wonderful first race experience and since then, I've run a 15K (9.3 mile) road race. That too went well and now I'm officially hooked.

I read the articles on www.RunnersWorld.com as well as google different runners I learn about. I'm learning about training techniques and pacing and recovery. This has become something very important to me as it has taken the focus off of simply "losing weight" to something much more interesting and fun. Concentrating on getting faster or going further is much more exciting than weighing every week wondering if I'm going to be depressed or not just because I didn't lose another pound. With running, the weight just takes care of itself. I began running on June 29th weighing 232 pounds at my 6' height. Now, I'm maintaining a weight of 208-211 with the occasional dessert or chocolate treat a couple of times a week. I feel good in my clothes and have dropped from a size 40 waist to size 34. That's a great feeling, but I think by the time I'm at my maintenance weight after continuing to run at a comfortable pace, I'll drop another ten pounds and get to a 32 waist. Either way, I'm no longer concerned with those numbers.

In the past two weeks, I've returned to the weight room for 2-3 times a week just to make sure my weight loss doesn't affect muscle growth. It's important to keep muscle mass while doing endurance exercise, so I want to lift to maintain muscle tone.

In the future, I will post my progress as well as things I learn that may help others interested in running and exercise.

It's been interesting since I've begun this journey. At least four times in the past couple of weeks, I've talked with someone about the running and either at the end of the conversation or within a couple of days, they've said something like "Wow, you've inspired me to start running again" or "Now I want to exercise." That is the true payoff to what I've been doing. Making a difference in the lives of others' health is so much like the rewards of making a difference in their housing and financial needs. It is a feeling that is almost indescribable.

I'd love to hear from you about your exercise journey. If you have questions or comments, please share them. Sometimes it just takes one random word of encouragement to get someone motivated. Let's be that for one another.

Have a healthy day!

Running is Fun???

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 16:19:25 -0500

Run Forrest Run!!!

After years of being slightly averse to running more than a mile or so, I've recently become a bit obsessed. It all started on June 29th when I went to Concord's Frank Liske Park and ran 3 miles without stopping. I admit I was a little nervous about how hard it might be, but I felt pretty good after that run. From that point on, I've maintained a regular schedule of 5-6 days a week running. I did get off track during our little monsoon season a couple of weeks ago, but I still managed to go to the West Cabarrus YMCA and use the treadmill---and HATED it! Yes folks, it seems I've turned into an "outdoor running" snob. Don't get me wrong, the treadmill is okay in a pinch and it does go a little easier on the joints, so it certainly has its place.

But there's just something about being outside in the fresh air, a breeze pushing you along, squirrels and rabbits scampering out of the way while you put one foot in front of the other one. I find that I get lost in my thoughts or sometimes I don't even seem to think much at all during my runs. Mostly though, my mind just sort of wanders in and around the various situations in my head. If it's been a bad day, I'll think about what went wrong and what to do to fix things. If it was a great day, I'll replay the best parts and think of how to recreate them again. I'm also a wannabe writer, so lately I've found that running gives me a great session of peace and quiet during which I can work out ideas for novels or songs.

Another great motivator that has fueled my newfound passion is the Nike Plus device for my iPod. Nike Plus is a little transmitter (about the size of a quarter and as thick as two or three of them) that fits in my left shoe. During my run, I plug in another small device (the receiver) into my iPod and it all functions as a sophisticated pedometer. As I'm running and listening to music, a voice will let me know the miles left in my run or how many calories I've burned or how many minutes remain. At the end, I sync the iPod to my computer and this data is sent to the Nike Plus website where I can view a graph of the run and see all my previous times and distances and calories burned. I can join challenges with other Nike Plus users from around the world and compare my times with theirs. It's quite addictive to watch those numbers rise. I find that even if I don't feel much like running one day, I'll still do so just so I can stay on track to increase my miles run.

So as I explore this newfound passion, I'll blog about gadgets I've found, gear I'm using, races I've entered, nutrition advice, training advice and the overall experience from one NEALTOR's viewpoint. I'd love to hear your input and experiences about running, biking and most any outdoors activity. Let's swap some great ideas!

Part II of "Motivation that Helped Me Stay True to an Exercise Program... "

Neal Pender CRS, CDPE, CLHS, CNHS (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 14:38:29 -0500

Continued from "Motivation" post

So the day arrived and this past Saturday on October 4^th, I got up at 4:30AM, grabbed my bag I had packed the night before and drove the 75 minutes North to Greensboro. The atmosphere was electric. I'd always run either by myself or with one other person, so to be around so many other runners for the same cause was exciting. And everyone was so nice. I think that's because we all knew what sacrifice and discomfort (okay, sometimes downright pain) we, as runners, endure.

This particular half marathon (there was also a full marathon and a 40 mile race that day) was through heavy woods and trails, often only wide enough for one person. There were steep hills and gulleys, exposed roots and precarious drop offs to the lake below. I tripped four times and fell once, but didn't get hurt. The scenery was beautiful as the entire half marathon course was around a large lake among tall trees. I loved it. The key to a long run is to not let yourself start off too fast so that you burn out at the end. I kept this in mind, but it was hard to hold back because of the energy from all the other runners and the perfect temperature and weather.

Twice I thought I was lost, but both times a nice fellow competitor kept me on the right path. Finally, I finished on my feet, running the whole way in 2 hours 7 minutes and 37 seconds. I was 26^th out of 100 competitors, so I was happy with the result.

But now my next problem. I'm hooked. I've already found three more races I want to do this fall and winter. The next one will be a 15K (9.3 miles) in about a week. After that there is a half marathon two weeks later. Finally in December another half marathon is in Charlotte. Depending on how I feel after the next race, I might shoot for the full marathon in December. I'm just staying attentive to my joints. I don't want to end up having to stop training altogether just because something as primitive as a male ego caused me to get injured.

So for me, a physically uninspired REALTOR in the first two quarters of 2008, the motivation of the Nike Plus iPod device made a difference. It's amazing how something so simple as tracking results can keep us focused on a long term goal.

Best wishes to everyone as they find their own way to staying healthy in these next cooler months.