What Does Increased Housing Inventory Mean?

     

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Increased housing inventory means more homes are entering the market, and this macroeconomic factor will cause more competition among the homes already in the market if the homes are cheaper and offering more advantages than your home. To understand how to handle increased housing inventory entering the market, if you already have a home on market would be to analyze the increased inventory homes entering the market first, and see if they are comparable to your home with having a CMA done by a real estate broker. The CMA will provide a competitive edge showing key factors on where the market is being driven with characteristics of the comparable homes and why. If the increased inventory of homes homes aren't comparable, then you still have to make sure their not cheaper if better than yours, and if they are, then this is a issue where if your appraisal is accurate on your home, then you can be at ease and not let it bother you and remain firm with your price. Eventually the increased inventory of homes entering the market will sell off and close out if they're more competitive than your home, but cheaper. A key factor to understand is increased inventory of homes do trigger higher DOM if their competitive advantage is better but cheaper.

Iran War & Real Estate

    

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

The Iran War has affected the majority globally and because of this, even real estate is unable to avoid it. Best thing to do is counter back back with finding hidden opportunities that become available in your area with real estate whether it be with; 

• Construction 
• Interest Rates 
• Foreclosures
• Short Sales 
• Loans
• Remodeling
• Rent
• Auctions
• Taxes

or whatever you may discover that can bring you better opportunities with your real estate journeys. 

Why Choose a Local Houston Real Estate Broker?

    

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Working with a local real estate broker offers significant advantages. Local expertise allows clients to gain valuable insights into Houston neighborhoods, property values, and emerging real estate trends. At A. Colette Harris Properties LLC, we focus on building long-term relationships with our clients while helping them make informed real estate decisions. Whether you are looking for homes for sale in Houston, investment properties, or real estate brokerage services, our team is committed to delivering results. Book your appointment by clicking "Book Appointment" on our blog. We're open 24/7 and you're highly appreciated for choosing us for your real estate brokerage services. 

Buying Foreclosures

 

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Buying foreclosures, can be a wise investment if you research the foreclosure in depth, and understand some of these key factors will play major roles;

• What kind of foreclosure is the property?
• Why is the property a foreclosure?
• Who owns the foreclosure?
• What is the DOM?
• Is the foreclosure causing tough buyer competition?
• Does the foreclosure have owners, tenants, squatters, living their or is it empty? 

Those are just a few key factors listed, but apply due diligence, in depth research, and your decision will be well thought out thoroughly, when you buy your foreclosure. 

Model Homes

    

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Model homes can be a great way to learn about remodeling, popular upgrades, floorplans, builder incentives, and the subdivision the model home is being built in. Learning about these key factors can help one on their journey to buying the dream home they desire. When seeking out model homes to analyze, make sure they are actually the style of home you're planning to buy and move into, as well as the characteristics by asking in advance from the sales coordinator;

• What school districts are zoned to this subdivision?
• Are the homes being built in a MUD or PUD?
• How many homes will be in this subdivision?
• Who are the builders in this subdivision?
• What is my timeline for having the home built?

Those are just a few questions, but having some kind of relevant information about the home and subdivision are the key points. When remodeling/upgrading your home model homes can help deliver great information by just touring the home and seeing the latest trends with appliances, flooring, paint, and etc. 

 

Buying Wooded Land

   

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Buying wooded land, can be a wise investment if you research the land in depth, and understand some of these key factors will play major roles;

• Is the land unrestricted or restricted?
• Does the land have a HOA?
• What are the yearly taxes?
• Is the land in a flood zone?
• What are the zoning and ordinance rules?
• Is the land classified as residential or commercial? 

Those are just a few key factors listed, but apply due diligence, and you will know when you do your decision will be well thought out thoroughly. For example, a wooded lot can be appealing to one who sees beyond the woods, and takes immediate note the grass doesn't have to be cut, since it's wooded, but another could see the woods as an eye sore, and any vision beyond the woods can't form since it's not cleared and will have an expense to clear it. Everyone is different, but researching wooded land in depth before you buy it is the key. 

 

Not All Real Estate Is Affected By Economy

      

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

When macroeconomics take place in the economy, these factors don't affect the real estate all in the same way. For example if you bought some land before the developers and builders discovered it, and this land was already underpriced, the macroeconomics won't affect your situation when sell, because of the developers and builders discovering after you, since their discovery will drive up the prices no matter if the macroeconomics are good or bad, if the land is scarce elsewhere, but yours isn't. Understanding the economy as a wider prospective, than just your market can deliver some triple plus returns if you apply macroeconomics to your real estate endeavors. In conclusion our economy is not showing consistent positive macroeconomic factors, but as long as you;

• Understand your property beyond your market by applying macroeconomic factors as a broader prospective 
• Analyzing the economy as a broader whole than just your local economy 
• Realizing key factors from what the president says on bad market trigger days 

You will be able to continue on with your real estate endeavors and not get affected much by any of those issues. 

 

Property Taxes

 

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Property taxes come with every residential and commercial property some examples are;

• Homes
• Condos
• Apartments
• Land
• Shopping Centers
• Malls
• Banks
• Stores
• Offices
• Restaurants 
• Townhomes 
• Mobile Home Parks
• Mini Warehouses
• Storage Facilities 
• Schools
• Colleges

The examples listed above, are some of the residential and commercial properties that have property taxes. Their are cases where these same properties listed above might have property tax exemptions to pay no property taxes, whether be for government purposes or charity purposes,  but either way majority of the population does pay property taxes. 

Does Inflation Effect Real Estate?

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Inflation can effect real estate, in different ways. Some ways maybe;

• Higher interest rates on the mortgages, for the real estate bought, whether residential or commercial.
• The DOM "days on market" number climbing higher, causing the real estate to sit longer on the market.
• Remodeling costs costing more for renovating the real estate.
• Demand slowing down from the buyers, buying the real estate, because of the higher interest rates, the expensive renovation costs, and the DOM.

The examples listed above, are some inflation factors that can affect the real estate. Best thing to do when wanting to buy real estate when inflation is high, is do your due diligence by researching what maybe causing the property you're trying to buy to get affected, and then proceed with whether it's worth it to continue forward with your search for buying the real estate, or the sell of your home. 

Repair Fees

  

 

Hi Prospects & Friends!

If you're renting a place from your landlord, make sure you understand, and are fully aware of the repair fees specified in your lease agreement. Doing this task before you sign the lease, helps you understand your responsibility from costly repair fees you will be responsible for from your neglect, as well as from damage caused by you, with the rental property you are renting. The lease you sign will specify the repair responsibilities from the landlord, as well as the repair responsibilities from the tenant. Every landlord and property manager have different repair specifications specified in their leases, so make sure you understand them, and your responsibilities to any neglect as well as damage caused by you.

Mortgage History

 

 

Hi Prospects & Friends!

Mortgage history means all the types of mortgages you've been approved for that were reported on your credit report, which you've made payments to with the lender. Understand if the mortgage history you develop with these lenders turns negative from the payments, any new lenders if view your credit report will require you to pay higher interest rates, if you're not paying the mortgage in cash. Paying cash can become costly if you don't have it, so keeping your mortgage history positive will help greatly avoiding these costly mortgage issues.

What Is A Buy/Hold Strategy?

  

Hi Prospects & Friends!

Whether you're analyzing residential or commercial properties, certain properties make more sense to use the buy/hold strategy. A buy/hold strategy is a technique applied, when a property makes more sense to just hold it to reap the profits longer term. These properties maybe;

• Raw land
• Revitalizing communities
• Rental properties 
• 1031 Exchanges
• Apartments

All properties are very different, and carry different characteristics, and when applying this to economical factors, the buy/hold strategy comes into play immediately when these key factors join together. A buy/hold strategy wouldn't make sense if you're needing the appreciation and the equity from the properties immediately short-term, since you would also trigger capital gains taxes, and recaptured depreciation disposing the property short-term. Buy/hold strategies also don't work great for everyone, since you need to know in advance how long to hold the property, before you purchase it. Best key factor to decipher is know why you're buying the property, and then apply this to the economical factors to see if it falls better in a buy/hold strategy.

Mortgage Interest Rates

 

 

Hi Prospects & Friends!

Mortgage interest rates are still currently much higher than they were awhile back. This doesn't mean if you're currently still sitting on the sidelines to still sit there. If you're concerned about the interest right now, try buying down points technique and get your rate to what you want. If you can afford to buy down your points, and the costs you pay are worth it in the long run, versus sitting on the sidelines hoping the mortgage rates will come down, then you should proceed with this technique. The lower your mortgage interest rate, the lower your loan will be in interest, as well as your mortgage payment. When you buy down points you can have;

• Good credit 
• Bad credit 
• No credit
• Cosigner 
• Partner

It doesn't matter, since you're paying to buy down your rate anyways. The buying down your mortgage interest rate isn't for everyone, so do your due diligence in advance on this unique real estate loan option. Sitting on the sidelines hoping mortgage interest rates will come down, could actually be costing you hidden jewel opportunities in the real estate industry.

Real Estate Notary

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Ever Google a search for a notary, but really need a real estate notary? Well time is on your side if you've discovered this blog by accident. We all will either need a Will someday, or will know someone related needing one. Majority of Wills need a notary signature, if their written correctly, and the best option is to get your Will notarized by a real estate notary. Real Estate Notaries focus on real estate related documents, including notarizing Wills, so key here is making sure you locate the proper one, who will be able to notarize your real estate documents appropriately. 

What Is A Property Manager?

 

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Property managers manage and oversee the properties they manage whether residential or commercial properties, and they all have tenants and these managers are responsible for managing them and the properties these tenants are leasing. Property managers can be an:

• Individual
• Company 

It all depends on the person managing the property whether they're a individual or a company. Majority of property managers are companies, while there are some property managers who work independently as individuals to their rentals. Either way the tenant/landlord rules don't change, because the property manager is acting solely as an individual property manager or as a property manager with a company. So understand these key facts here, and you will fare well with understanding these differences. 

Facing Foreclosure

   

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Year end is near, and many of us are ready to start the New Year off right. Some of us are tangled up in foreclosure or facing foreclosure, and have very limited resources or sources to save the property. The best thing one can do is learn your foreclosure timeline in your state, and once you get that information, then next contact your lender and either;

• Reinstate your loan
• Modify your loan
• Sell your home

If all else fails and you can't get the money fast enough to reinstate the loan, or get the application done quickly and timely enough to the lender to do the modification, then sell the property. What you don't want is the sale date to post with an actually date, because by then things will start to escalate with the lender and their foreclosure process, and your timeline will get more aggressive with how to get out of the foreclosure, and not lose the property.  So key here is to know before you contact the lender, what you're planning to do to prevent the foreclosure, and don't wait till you're told you have a sale date to take action. 

Over Pricing Your Property

  

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Over pricing your property isn't a good idea at any given means, and it's even a worse idea if you end up in a bad market while doing it. We all want the best price for our property, but in reality market conditions actually have much of a bigger influence on what our property is worth versus what we think. You can make top notch repairs and improvements to your property, but it's a waste of money if your selling it in a bad market with:

• Neighbors and close by markets discounting their properties for quick sales.
• Foreclosures, shortsales, and loan modifications occurring more than normal proximate to your property and nearby market areas 
• Investors buying properties as is to buy just to remodel and rent right back out. This technique actually profits the investor owner doing this, but it devalues the next owners property if the investor decides not to sell the property fixed up. Example would be the investor buys a property in your market area as is and pays cash, while decides to remodel but not resale for immediate gain, but rather wants to lease property back out. Well this sales comp will affect the other property values, because it was bought as is, and it can't be ignored when analyzing your property values if it's comparable. If it's not comparable then it won't affect you.
• High Mortgage rates 
• Been rezoned in a 100 year special flood zone, or in any flood zone. This will discount your property no matter what remodeling you do. Best to know if your property is in a flood zone before you buy it, so you can discount it then.
• In a unrestricted community, but has some laws restricting certain business uses. This can really affect a properties value if you didn't research the property when you bought it. Example would be Sam bought his property 15 years ago. It was nonconforming and grandfathered in, and he has decided to sale it as a commercial property, which has allowed him to realize a 50% gain. Well new buyer decides to make offer on property thinking they will be able to use it as a daycare, but when buyer receives the updated zoning and deed restrictions they're informed they have to use it as is in it's nonconforming grandfathered use or tear down and use as SFR. Current owner realizes this issue will discount his property if appraised, and pulls off market and decides to rent out until get approval from their zoning committee to get rezoned as commercial, and hope it gets approved. 

These are just a few issues listed that could affect a already over priced property. Key here is to always factor in market conditions, and research the property thoroughly before you decide to sale it. Properties change just like anything else. You could be just fine while living in it as you have or even using it as commercial, but if things have occurred under your radar you never knew ocurred, you could affect your own properties values, and not even know it. No one wants their neighbors going to board meetings with a majority vote blocking other neighbors from doing things to their properties they thought they were allowed to do in the past. Attend those meetings, and if can't stay on top of the changes in your community. I recently ran across a MLS property where it went from $800,000 and reduced to $425,000. The agent said in comments "discovered bylaws have changed the use on this property and it's residential and can't sale as commercial like thought". Well I bet the seller is quite angry about this, since it's a lot money that they lost, but like I said research and stay alert with your community while don't overprice, and all will go well. 

Buying A Restaurant Business

 

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

Buying a restaurant business can be a great business endeavor if you know the aspects and handlings of the restaurant business, as well as have the appropriate assistance. When buying a restaurant business some things to take into consideration for analyzing as well as who would possibly needed to be hired would be:

• Financial Statements, Balance Sheets, Income Statements
• Appraisal of the business fixtures, and the business to make sure you're not over paying for it.
• Real Estate Attorney
• Real Estate Broker
• Business Broker
• Inspector
• Lender
• Insurance Company
• Title Company

Depending on your particular situation for your restaurant business, as well as where you're within your negotiated contract, you may not need all these items listed, but it would be wise to make sure you do realize having any of these will allow for your contract to go smoother, once you pin point who will benefit you better in your restaurant business contract. So in conclusion buying a restaurant business doesn't have to be difficult, if you know who you should be approaching to assist you from the very beginning. 

Buying Down Mortgage Rate

  

Hi Prospects & Friends!

What are discounted points, and how would you use them? Discounted points are actually points connected to your mortgage rate that you pay for to buy down your interest rate offered to you from a mortgage company. These point can be costly, and while it does look enticing to buy down your interest rate, it would make better since to only buy them down if you will actually save money from your loan. Example would be Tom wants to buy an investment property and is quoted an 9% interest rate for his loan. Tom knew he would have to pay a higher interest rate, because of his property being an investment property, and he also knew, because of the current state the economy is in with inflation issues, and federal funds rate being raised to stabilize the economy, which this rate affects the other rates on loans. So Tom's loan officer offers Tom the numbers and says for each rate but down it will cost you $1,000. Tom does the numbers, and calculated it will only cost him an additional $3,000 to buy down his interest rate to 6%. So in this case Tom gives the ok to loan officer to do this. Once the interest rate is bought down to 6%, Tom knows this will be his new fixed permanent interest rate. So in conclusion buying down points can work well if;

• Economy is unstable
• Mortgage rates are much higher for your property than would normally be.
• You can afford to pay the buy down point costs.
• You're not just doing it, because it's a "norm" or pressured too.
• You've done all the research on discounts points, compared all the lenders costs buying them, and you understand what you're actually doing in first place asking to buy down your rate with points.

So staying alert with some of these key tips will help assist, when thinking about buying down your interest rate.

Commercial Office Holdover Fees

 Hi Prospects & Friends!

When one leases a commercial office space, a key factor to know upfront is understanding holdover fees. If you're not familiar with holdover fees they will be explained in this post. Majority of landlords want to recoup their rent costs if you stay beyond your lease with a expired one or even not moving out on time if don't renew. What happens is holdover fees will generate against you coupled with even one months rent and you will be responsible for these fees. Example would be Mary's lease expired June 30, she doesn't renew and didn't move out in an timely manner out of her office space, and moved out July 2. The landlord sends her the July statement and she explodes when she sees her rent being charged as a holdover fee for July and another charge for Julys rent. Mary assumed 2 days wouldn't be a issue since the movers came late, but she didn't realize her landlord didn't view this as a simple just 2 days over. Best thing to do in cases like this in commercial office leases are if not going to renew;

• Contact your property manager and let them know well in advance your not renewing, as well as send them an email stating this along with the pictures showing your space is vacant when it's empty by your expiration date.
• Make sure you don't slip past your expiration date by even 2 days, it will cost you holdover fees and another rent payment.
• Don't damage the space while moving out, this will cost you the security deposit as well as holdover fees if the landlord thinks you did this neglectly. 

So if you apply these key factors against your commercial office lease move, you won't have any issues and will even walk away with a payment "your security deposit".