Why Are Charlotte, NC. Short Sales A Good Deal?

There are a lot of homes for sale...In Charlotte, NC. approximately one third of all sales this year have been either bank owned or short sale homes....So why are they such a good deal? Are they really a good deal. A short sale has the potential to be a great deal for the buyer and the seller. The buyer can get a home they want at bank owned pricing...The seller can sell the home without going through a foreclosure. But there are certain things to remember when looking to buy a short sale home....If it is to good to be true then it probably is. Most Realtors start the price of the home at fair market value and then begin the decrease the price accordingly if there are no offers until they get to a certain point where they receive an offer on the house. The good thing is that the bank will know what the starting price is and what the price has been lowered to and at what number it took to receive an offer on the house....That is generally the number the bank can expect to receive for the house. I have negotiated my fair share of short sales on the seller side. One thing I always do is start at fair market value and lower accordingly based on showings and feedback until i receive an offer. When i receive an offer I send in the complete history of the pricing strategy i used from the original price to the asking price before I received an offer on the house. In addition I include all the feedback on the house. This helps me justify my price to the bank and help with the appraisal value of the house. if that number is significantly higher I have had banks ask for a second opinion and have sent supporting documents in to help justify the price I have the house marketed at... not always but most of the time it has gotten me the price I needed for the house. Short sales can be very beneficial and a good buy for prospective buyers. just know when you go in that there may be a wait time longer than anticipated if you were negotiating a regular conventional sale with a seller....but if you can wait the price and the deal would be worthwhile to both you and the seller.... Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker www.davedicecco.com

Should I Have A Home Inspection On My Charlotte Home Purchase

Having a home inspection on your Charlotte home is probably the most important thing you can have done. There is a misconception I noticed lately with some of my buyers about whether they need to get a home inspection. There is never a reason for not getting a home inspection on your Charlotte home. The question comes up "but the house is bank owned or the seller is selling the home as-is; so why should I pay for a home inspection?" A lot of times you cannot notice things wrong with a house with the naked eye. Being a Realtor in the Charlotte market; I have looked at thousands of homes with buyers and sellers...And I do notice more now than before; but still miss a lot of things a home inspector notices. Even if you are purcsahing a home in the condition it is in and the seller will not do repairs; the home inspection is vital to the transaction. I think outside of the mortgage it is the next most important aspect of buying a house in Charlotte. Generally when you are purchasing a home you notice before you put an offer in if the home needs any cosmetic work and sometimes if it is in need of any repairs by visually seeing damage to the house. But what if there are repairs and work to be done to the house that you have not anticipated when making the offer? I had the perfect example of a house where from the naked eye it appeared to be in move in ready condition... however; after an extensive home inspection found issues with the house that were basically masked by the cosmetic work done to the house and never addressed the issue with the house...Without the home inspection my buyer could have spent upwards of $30,000 on repairs to the house that they were not anticipating when they put the offer in. Obviously, being bank owned we knew the bank was probably unaware of the extent of damage to the house; but without an inspection my buyers might have purchased a home that they would not have been able to afford to maintain.... In cases where the homeowner is not the bank; you have the right during the due diligence period to ask for the repairs to be done. if the seller and you cannot agree on the repair request then you have the right to walk away form the house purchase only losing your due diligence money. A small investment of money can lead give you peace of mind when you get the keys to your new home..... Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker www.davedicecco.com

Columbus Day And Being A Realtor In Charlotte, NC.

Today we celebrate Christopher Columbus day. A day that is recognized for when he discovered the new world. the actual day is October 12th but we celebrate it on the second Monday of October every year. I thought back as I was beginning to write this to my days in school (many years ago) and what we learned about him. He set sail for the new world with three ships. Unsure of what he was going to find he set sail... Later that year he discovered the New world Being A Realtor in the Charlotte, NC. market has had it's fair share of ups and downs (just as it has everywhere in the country). there are people out there telling us that the bottom has not fallen out of housing prices and it will get worse before it gets better. On the other hand is the people saying we have hit the bottom and have nowhere to go but up from here...And those in the middle that think this may be the new status quo. Much like Christopher Columbus had his detractors who said he was going to fall off the end of the earth; there were others who believed that maybe there was something out there.... Is the housing market an ideal situation? NO. But are you listening to the detractors who are saying it is getting worse or the ones that think maybe it is getting better and there is a new World out there and they can see it in the distance. Like Christopher Columbus everyday as a Realtor I am asked the question and there are detractors that say I am crazy and there are others that say okay maybe it is the right time to sell or buy..... With historic low interest rates and purchasing power at it's highest; how can you not think you can see the vision of Home ownership like Christopher Columbus did the new world?... On a daily basis i am showing prospective home buyers how they can purchase a home for the same or (in most cases) less than what they are paying in rent right now. So, like Christopher Columbus I have my detractors out there saying I will wait to it gets worse and others who see the new World and are realizing the dream of home ownership. Where are you? Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker www.davedicecco.com