Last week I was able to attend a seminar featuring Steve Harney, one of the leading experts in the real estate industry. I was invited by one of my good friends - Sammy Garner.  Sammy and I are in the same industry and have been friends for years. He was kind enough to not only invite me but to provide my ticket because he knew there would be information of value for us both.
 
A secondary benefit of the seminar was the opportunity to sit at the table with a Plano real estate legend - Mike Brodie of Keller Williams. Mike is not only a speaker and seminar presenter on real estate issues; he is also one of the best producing realtors in the North Texas market.
 
According to Mr. Harney, in 10 years there will be people sitting down and talking about the market of 2009...saying that 'I could have done it....I should have done it'...talking about 'if I had bought that house'....Basically he's saying that prices are at their low and at some point they will begin to head back up, maybe not tomorrow, but pretty soon. He believes that there are many properties that are very distressed and that now is one of those times that people should buy so that in ten years they can be looking at the investment that they made instead of a missed opportunity. He said that in six months agents will be looking back at the help they had in selling houses from the tax break the government has given and from the low interest rates. It is an unbelievable time to be in real-estate and the agents in the business today should see an unbelievable year.
 
In discussing foreclosures, Mr. Harney said that 20% of Texas homeowners' value is under water. In other words, one in five Texans' home value is below their mortgage amount. The percentage is even worse nationwide: in 35% of occupied homes the mortgage is now greater than the value. He spoke at length about foreclosures and said that he has found that 25% of the homes that have gone into foreclosure have been strategic foreclosures. In other words, these are people who have made their mortgage payments without a hitch for years but have recognized that they are now so upside down in their property that it becomes a good business decision to allow it to go into foreclosure. His studies are showing that the higher the person's FICO score is, the more likely that they will make such a strategic move.
 
Mr. Harney's advice for Realtors was that they should strive to be the 'expert' in their market and be able to answer the questions about foreclosure, short sales, etc.  Although it will be a challenge to predict the future of real estate, it is important for them to be the people with all the answers.  Steve's view is that Realtors and the housing industry will have the largest impact on the economy for 2010, let's hope he is right!

Geoffrey Davis

Davis Family Lending, LLC

214-975-1266- fax

214-529-9622- cell

www.DavisFamilyLending.com

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.