I heard that today. That is good. Metro Detroit home buyershave to feel comfortable and in control when putting in an offer. Some Metro Detroit real estate agents push buyers to put in an offer right away. Make a decision quick. But you as a home buyer need to set the pace.
Sure the house may be gone. Especially if it is a foreclosure that is in good shape and price cheaply. It probably will go quickly but if you are unsure or uneasy do what make you feel comfortable. If you feel bad about missing out on a deal maybe next time you will feel comfortable about making a quick decision about a good foreclosure.
Many times I take home buyers out and we see a nice house on the very first time out. Most home buyers are smart and don't get rushed. They take their time to make a sound decision after reviewing recent sold comparables and looking at a reasonable number of home choices.
So don't let any real estate agent rush you. But at the same time once you make a decision, don't wait to put in the offer. If you like the house and want the house don't wait. Good houses priced reasonably don't last so don't wait to long.
Does anybody realize what the new HVCC rules are going to do the real estate market? If the appraisers are so tight with the appraisals and values how will home values ever go up?
I had a young first time homebuyer that was buying a Livonia condo. She had put an offer of $122,000 in but the bank came back and said it was only worth $118,000. So my Livonia condo buyer had to come to the table with $4000 more because the sellers couldn't sell it for less. They owed that much on it.
Banks are now and appraisers are now determining market value. My client thought it was a fair price. It wasn't outrageously high. Or extremely unreasonable. But there was no Livonia condo that sold for that price in the last six monthes. There were two other offers that were full priced offers on the condo. So we weren't bidding crazy. We only go it because we had 20% down and the others were FHA offers.
Isn't that the way it is when real estate values go up? A home will sell for more than a neighbors when the demand is high. That's the way the real estate market works. Supply and demand determines price.
But that isn't the way it is going now. I wonder how long it will take Washington DC to realize they really screwed up. They have basically put a cap on real estate values in the US.
Leave it to Washington politicians to screw everything up. Home values can now go down but how will they ever go up if banks and appraisers only value the house on past sales. Doesn't what a buyer will pay really determine market value?
It is going to be real interesting and quite a while before everybody realizes what they have done.
CONGRATULATIONS WASHINGTON POLITICIANS ON PUTTING ANOTHER RESTRAINT ON THE REAL ESTATE MARKET. SO MUCH ON THE HOUSING RECOVERY.
The key to making a good offer that will secure the Metro Detroit home you want is to know the market. You can never guess the sellers thoughts or believe what public records show. Let me give you some examples.
A couple of years ago my home buyers put an offer on a Northville home. It was owned by a retired couple that had moved out. The house was empty. The public records showed they owed nothing on the house. The listing ticket said "bring us an offer"
We put in a 13% below list price offer in. The house needed total updates. They turned us down.
Here's another one. My clients were looking at a Novi home. The public records showed they bought the house for $420,000 2 years prior. We put in an offer of $371,000 when the list price was $410,000. The public records showed they owed $375,000. We thought we would be countered. They accepted the $371,000 offer.
Then we came to the closing to find out the sellers had to come to the closing with $20,000 to sell the house!
On my first example who would believe that somebody that
owed nothing on the mortgage
had moved out
and stated to bring us an offer
would turn down a decent offer on a home that needed total updating. The house sold for $10,000 less three months later.
Then my second experience who would have thought that somebody would have accepted so little so quick when they owed so much.
Both offers were based on current market prices so they were good offers. The people that should have accepted didn't and the ones that did accept the current market prices did. You never know how a seller will react to an offer. So if you base your offer on current sales prices the you will be putting in a good offer. How the seller reacts you can't control. Then you just have to adjust your offer or move on after you hear from the buyer.
Or am I losing it? I guess I don't understand what some people are thinking anymore. Metro Detroit has been hit hard but some people just don't get it. Here are some examples of the craziness.
I have a friend that has been out of a job for over a year. My wife works at a staffing agency and a job came up that fit my friends credentials to a "T". The recruiter talked to my friend but she "can't make it in until next week. She has a hair appointment. WHAT!!!!!!!!!!! You're unemployed you can reschedule your hair appointment. How many job interviews have you been on in the last month. ZERO!!!!
Here's another one. Now I'm a guy so I don't quite get this one. A realtor friend of mine is just about ready to lose her house. But she is still going to the hairdresser, still getting manicures and pedicures. Excuse me if you are homeless it doesn't matter if your nails are done does it? Am I right or am I being a guy on this one.
We have the same craziness in the real estate business. I tried calling a Metro Detroit real estate agent about a home. My client had some questions about it. Do you think he called me back after 2 days, 3 calls and an email? NO. I guess he doesn't want to sell his client's house too much.
He's another one. This one I don't feel sorry for. It is a FSBO (For Sale BY Owner) I have called him twice to set up showings for a Northville relocation buyer. Both times he couldn't or wouldn't have the house available for us to see. He wanted to set the time for us to come. My relocation clients have a limited amount of time. So it has to fit their schedule of seeing employers, future schools, and homes. This Metro Detroit FSBO doesn't get it. I guess that is why sometimes Metro Detroit Realtors and lockboxes are needed. If you are selling a home to have to make it available to show when the buyer wants to see it not when you have time.
Many times when a Metro Detroit relocation buyer comes into town we sometimes see 30- 60 houses in a short period. Add the stress and confusion of kids, living in a hotel, and trying to get accustomed to the area. It's a crazy time for the home buyer. I try to keep the days and times as short as possible for the buyer. So if a home seller wants us to drive from the far side of a city 10 miles away to see their home 4 hours later rather than accommodating us when we were down the block seeing another home. Well most of the time the house doesn't get seen. It usually has to fit into the game plan of 1 or 2 days.
So to any of you crazy people..... before you blow off the only job interview you had in a month think about what you are doing. Or before you tell the prospective home buyer you're too busy to sell your house think about it.
I am noticing that there are great deals in Highland Twp. You are getting a bigger house with a little bigger bit of land for a great price in Highland Township MI. Here are all the homes that have sold in the last 30 days in Highland Twp.
The average price per square foot last month was $75.5. That's great. Especially since many of the homes were on over .3 of an acre. There were even three homes that had over 5 acres. I am noticing these kind of deals in many of Metro Detroit outlying areas.
If you are looking for some space, a reasonably priced home yet within a hours drive of Detroit give me a call. There are lots of great deals out there whether it is Highland Township, Howell, or Pinckney.
1.) Are you seeing this happening in your real estate market.. I took out a client tonight. They just retired and they had bought a new construction home in Canton bout 5 years ago. Their Canton home has lost over 40% of its value. Neighbors that are buying homes in Canton MI have payments a thousand dollars less than theirs.
At retirement age they are realizing that the home will never be worth what they paid for it. That if one of them dies they can't afford the house. They are realizing that why should they pay all that money in a payment when the person next door isn't. That the next door neighbor paid $100,000 less.
The guy just got a cash buyout for retirement and they are thinking of paying cash for a smaller home and not having any payments in retirement.
2.) Husband and wife just got married. Husband had a Novi home. But now the original Novi home is worth $100,000 less than it was 6 years ago. They are walking away from the original home and buying a much bigger and newer home for a lower house payment than they had.
Is it wrong? Is it financially smart? Would you do it? Does it make sense? Isn't it just getting back the money we gave away to the big banks and their executives?
This is the fourth deal I am working on like this. I myself think a few people are getting financially smarter. I myself think they are doing the right thing. Sure it may not be morally or ethically right, but financially it is the right decision.
Whenever a home buyer puts in an offer the worst part is yet to come. The waiting, the uncertainty is so rough. Everything goes through your mind.
What is taking so long?
Did I bid too low?
Did I bid too high?
What is the seller thinking?
Are they going to accept our offer?
Should I have put more down?
Does it normally take so long?
What is taking so long?
What is taking so long?
My advice I too keep busy. Visit friends, go to a local festival, see a movie, take the kids out. Enjoy yourself. But keep your cell phone handy so your agent can get a hold of you. Nothing is more frustrating to an agent than getting an answer and then not being able to get ahold of our client for a day.
What else would you expect as a roadside attraction in Detroit? Yes we have a 80 ft tire. I guess nobody got around to building the 200 ft car to go with it.
The Giant Tire was originally created by U.S. Rubber (now Uniroyal Tire) as a Ferris wheel attraction for the 1964/1965 New York World's Fair. The two sides looked like a tire but in between the sides there was the ferris wheel. Over two million fairgoers at the New York Worlds Fair rode the tire. Jacqueline Kennedy, Caroline, and John also took the ride at the World's fair.
When the New York World's Fair ended in 1965, U. S. Rubber decided to move the tire to it's present location in Allen Park, Michigan near it's sales office. The Ferris wheel was taken apart in 188 sections and transported by train to Detroit. Since then, the tire has become one of the nation's most recognizable roadside icons and featured in items ranging from maps and artwork to town Christmas ornaments.
I grew up less than a 1/4 mile from the tire. We used to spend hours in the woods there. (We called them Ford woods) There was a swampy woods area right near the tire that would freeze over. We would skate through the trees and play tag on ice skates in the winter. (Things kids do) Even then the tire had a fence around it to protect it from vandalism and graffiti.
In 1998, to demonstrate how their NailGard® self-sealing passenger tire worked, Uniroyal placed an 11-foot high, 500-pound nail into the tread of the Giant Uniroyal Tire.
In the fall of 2003 Michelin Uniroyal's parent company renovated the tire as part of a Interstate 94 renovation project. They spent about a $1,000,000 to renovate the tire. They added the company website, took down the neon lighting, added new structural beams, repainted the wheel, and added reflective lettering. Michelin, Uniroyal's parent company, donated the Big Nail to the city of Allen Park, Michigan.
The City of Allen Park put the Big Nail up for auction on eBay, and a short time later, Ralph Roberts of Ralph Roberts Realty placed the winning bid of $3,000, which ultimately helped the Allen Park Historical Society's programs and facilities.
The Uniroyal tire roadside attraction is located on I-94 just east of the Southfield Rd exit just minutes from Detroit's Metro Airport.
Dearborn International Arabic Festival was held last weekend. Me and my wife Marianne went down about 12:30 on Sunday afternoon when it was just opening on Sunday.
If you don't know it Dearborn MI has one of the largest Arabic Communities in the United States. We have people with Arabic ancestry from
Palestine
Jordan
Iran
Iraq
Yemen
Saudia Arabia
Lebenon
living in Dearborn and the surrounding Metro Detroit area. (forgive me if I forgot any other countries).
I am slowly learning more and more about Arabic customs, and Arabic food from my clients. I have sold homes to some great people who have invited me into their home and fed me some great food. I have found people of Arabic descent have been some of the friendliest and most giving clients I have had.
Here are some of the pictures we took of the festival.
Everybody was enjoying the rides and the food.
Great food. Marianne and I had two Fallefel sandwiches and then I had a Middle Eastern Sampler platter. I was stuffed and then had to go to a Fathers Day dinner. It was early and there weren't alot of people there but it got really crowded before we left.
They had a couple of tents full of Middle Eastern wares that included jewelry, books and food.
If you didn't know this the Arabic community eats Halal food which means kosher food. Food that meets Islamic standards of butchering etc. I don't know all of the standards yet but I'm learning.
The festival was supported by the local Businesses and of course ACCESS.
Of course on the way we stopped on the way home and got some dessert at Shatila Bakery. Again forgive me if I spelled it wrong. I took a picture of the outside of the building so I could spell it right but the picture did not come out. But I am glad the inside picture of one of the many cases of great food did. I have to guess there were about ten cases of food like the one below. MMMMM.........
Whether you are Arabic or not Dearborn's Arabic festival is a great place to enjoy good food, carnival rides, and immerse yourself in the Arabic culture.
Livonia is a great community town and the city officials each year put on the Livonia Spreewith the help of local businesses. Todays the last day of the Livonia Spree with only the fireworks left. The Livonia Spreeis held between Eddie Edgar Ice Irena and the Livonia YMCA at Ford Field off Farmington Rd between I-96 and 5 Mile Rd.
The had food tents with coney islands, pizza, middle eastern food, hamburgers, hotdogs, elephant ears, cajun food.
Everybody had fun enjoying the rides and the entertainment. Livonia Spree is a family event with lots of police presence to make sure the fun didn't get out of hand.
I even got into the act.
They even had racing pigs, circus acts, and other entertainment for the kids. They had a beer tent for the adult refreshments. Local restaurants and churches had many of the food booths.
If you are thinking of moving to Livonia you won't be sorry. It's a great place to raise a family and live whether you are young, old, single, married, kids or no kids. I hope to see you at the Livonia spree next year or at the fireworks tonight.
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If you don't know it 
I am slowly learning more and more about Arabic customs, and Arabic food from my clients. I have sold homes to some great people who have invited me into their home and fed me some great food. I have found people of Arabic descent have been some of the friendliest and most giving clients I have had. 
The festival was supported by the local Businesses and of course ACCESS. 
;)
;)
