Negotiate Your Rent - 01/26/09 06:10 PM
It seems that economic crisis has caused an opportunity for some. (besides buying up cheap properties)  Apartment vacancies are on the rise putting people in a mighty good bargaining position. 
Managers are starting to get desperate to get and keep people in their buildings all across the country.  The Portland OR area is one of the biggest rent drops of -3.2%.  So if your lease is up, now is the time to talk to your landlord about a new longer and cheaper lease.
http://finance.yahoo.com/real-estate/article/106480/Rents-Drop-Nationwide-as-Vacancies-Spike
PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR NEW PODCAST ON THE HOMEPAGE OF OUR WEBSITE http//:www.TonyandLibby.com & OUR NEW PORTLAND … (6 comments)

Taking Matters Into Their Own Hands - 01/22/09 06:34 PM
Toll Brothers Inc. is a luxury homebuilder who is tired of watching buyers sit on the sidelines waiting for mortgage rates to hit bottom.   They are now offering on their new-home inventory a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage at an interest rate of 3.99% with no points paid up-front.  The idea is to get those teetering on the fence to finally jump off and buy. 
This is a brilliant idea on their part and the phone has been ringing off the hook.  Now they are even locking that rate in for nine months for those who want to buy a new, built-to-suit … (3 comments)

Do You MeetUp? - 01/20/09 05:48 PM
I was going through the Realtor magazine and found a page about people connecting.  With all the blogs and facebook pages and ways people are getting together on the internet this article was letting people know that you can still meet face to face. 
Apparently there is this website called http://www.meetup.com/ where you can start or join a group of like minded people who want to meet up and get to know new people. 
So I got on there and looked up my city and found all kinds of cool groups!  People who meet to hike, play poker, talk about Buffy … (5 comments)

14305 SW 100th Ave, Tigard OR - 01/16/09 11:13 AM
… (3 comments)

Inflated Home Values - 01/14/09 07:00 PM
This article on CNN.com mentions that one of the reasons that home prices were soaring too high was the appraisals.  Loan officers and mortgage brokers were (and do) putting lots of pressure on some appraisers to "hit the number" that the officer or broker was looking for.
So now there will be a Home Valuation Code of Conduct starting in May.  These will be guidelines for appraisals being used in loans being sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  The guildelines prohibit lenders from coercing, extorting, colluding with intimidating or bribing appraisers.
So what you are telling me is, this was … (3 comments)

Pendings still going down... - 01/07/09 06:26 PM
It's hard to be optimistic when pending sales for the month of November have hit a 7-year low, but you just have to try. 
There are so many factors working against home buyers like strict lending standards, recession, rising unemployment and the likelihood that their currant home isn't selling and/or the value has dropped too much.  Even historically low interest rates have only caused a lot of people to refinance their currant mortgage.
The bright side?  Well, we can only go up from here, right?  It will be slow, but it will be in the right direction.
http://money.cnn.com/2009/01/06/real_estate/pending_home/index.htm?postversion=2009010614
PLEASE CHECK OUT … (7 comments)

Refinancing Frenzy - 01/02/09 01:00 PM
Interest rates have fallen recently, as most people are aware, and naturally people are rushing to refinance in order to reduce their housing payments.
The average rate for a 30-year, fixed mortgage dropped to 5.08% last week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, more than a full point lower than just a month ago.
Mortgage applications were up 48% last week, and by far, the majority of those were from homeowners looking to lower housing costs.
Refinancing is not for everyone however.  If you currently have an adjustable rate, you could lower your rate by a percentage point or more, you … (7 comments)

 
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Tony and Libby Kelly, CRS, ABR, ePro, SRES, CLHMS, CDPE

Lake Oswego, OR

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Keller Williams Realty Portland Premiere

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In this forum we will offer discussions on a wide variety of subjects, but focus on Portland Metro and real estate. Hopefully our insights and experiences will inform, educate, challenge and entertain our readers week after week.


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