WRA 2009 Press Releases – Wisconsin Home Sales and Prices Fall as Unemployment Rises in Second Quarter

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Foreclosures are on the rise in Dane County. Since 2000, there has been a 46% increase in the number of filings. There are many reasons why this is occurring. In most cases the family is facing a hardship such as loss of job, an unreasonable mortgage or unforeseen debt. Many of us know someone in that situation. So, I have made it my mission to help!
After learning about foreclosures, I was surprised to learn of the following statistic. 7 out of 10 families don’t reach out for help when they are in this predicament because they are too overwhelmed to deal with it. I understand how they feel, however banks prefer a short sale or renegotiation over a foreclosure in almost every situation. Since I learned this, I have made it my mission to spread the word and help families in this situation.
While many Realtors are turning their backs on foreclosures and short sales, I am taking it head on. If you know of anyone I can help, please pass my name on. I would like to meet with them confidentially to share all the options they have. They have options, however time is not on our side.

Lynn Holley, Certified Distressed Property Expert & Realtor
Phone: 608-219-8955
Email: lynn@holleydevelopment.com
Web: www.LynnHolley.com

Brown as a color in decor

Ever wonder who decides what colors will be hot from year to year?  Why do we one year embrace orange and brown, and the next sky blue? There are people whose jobs are to determine what the new “trendy” colors are.  One of these groups, the Color Marketing Group, is a non-profit organization of color professionals that predicts color trends.  For 2009 the new hot colors are purple, mauve, yellow (as accent), blue and grey-brown. Click here to read the latest on this year’s trends:  Color Trends Article.

If you’re a first time homebuyer, or haven’t owned a home for 3 years, click on the link below for info on the government’s $8000 tax credit:

$8000 Tax Credit

Custom Tile Backsplash

This is a great explanation of how to easily install a tile backsplash….for the do-it-yourselfers. 

EASY!!!   How To Install a Kitchen Backsplash

Denny Flanagan Article

This guy is fantastic!  He epitomizes the ultimate in customer service and happiness.  There are real estate agents in our Keller Williams market center who treat their clients with the same reverence.  Great customers are hard to come by – so we should try our hardest to treat them well, service them like crazy during the transaction and after.  Great customer service given by happy people creates clients for life.

  
HUD and the Treasury Department have launched a new Web site designed to help consumers understand the administration’s loan modification program.
    
The site is MakingHomeAffordable.gov.
    
The site offers a number of tools to help borrowers determine if they’re eligible to participate in the program. Borrowers can calculate the monthly mortgage payment reductions they could realize under the Obama program.
    
A HUD statement said more than 2,500 loan servicers, investors, representatives of non-profits and housing counselors already have been briefed on the program to assist borrowers.

Source:  Wisconsin Realtors Assn

We all love to talk about real estate – especially today.  Here are some timely FACTUAL tidbits for you to use next time you get together with your friends:

• Mortgage rates are now under 5% – the lowest they’ve been since Freddie Mac started it’s mortgage survey in 1970. (Source: Freddie Mac )
• To qualify for a great interest rate your credit score must be solidly in the 700’s. 
• The Housing Affordability Index composite level for January was 166.8. A composite H.A.I. value of 166.8 means that a family earning the median income has 166.8 percent of the income needed to qualify for a mortgage on a median-priced home. (In other words, a higher index number means housing is more affordable; a lower index number means housing is less affordable.) The index had fallen during most of the housing bubble, when it became more and more expensive to buy a home. January’s composite level was the highest the index has reached since the association began collecting this data in 1971. (Source: Nat’l Assn of Realtors )
• Wisconsin’s foreclosures are less than 1%.  The highest foreclosure state is Nevada at 7%.(Source: Realty Trac)
• Nationally, housing inventories were at an all time low in January. There was buyer hesitation with buyers sitting out waiting for clarity on the stimulus package.  NAR estimates the impact of the stimulus package and lower interest rates on the housing market to be about 900,000 additional home sales in 2009 compared to conditions before the stimulus package. Inventory is expected to fall below an 8-month supply by the year end, which would be consistent with home price stabilization. (Source:  Nat’l Assn of Realtors)
• The average sale price in our Madison, Wiscosnin MLS was $239,098 – about the same as 2007 ($240,168). (Source SCWMLS)