Realty Revolution LLC Blog

The Tax Credit Is Really A Loan

The recently announced tax credit for first-time home buyers - part of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act - is definitely a good deal for qualified buyers. However, the credit is not a cash gift from the government.

The credit is 10 percent of the home's purchase price, up to $7,500. The maximum credit is $3,750 for married couples filing separately, or $7,500 for unmarried couples who jointly purchased the home. Rather than a simple tax credit, the amount must be paid back to the government in equal installments over a period of 15 years. It could be more accurately described as an interest-free loan administered through the tax code - still a very good deal for many buyers. The pay-back amount for a maximum "credit" would be $500 per year or about $42 per month.

The credit offer is in effect for any home purchased by a first-time buyer on or after April 9th of this year and before July 1. 2009. You'll be required to start repaying the amount in the second tax year after the home purchase. The definition of a first-time buyer is one who has not owned a primary residence for at least the past three years.

The credit will allow many buyers to purchase a home now, instead of waiting while they save more money and improve their chances of qualifying for a mortgage. It will also help to reduce the inventory of unsold homes.

Market Overview for Collin County - July 2008

The Collin County Association of REALTORs® just released the Market Overview for July 2008.

While 2008 sales are down by 21 percent compared to this time in 2007, our market remains stable with sales prices down just six tenths of one percent. Overall we are not seeing an increase in prices but we are not experiencing the decline in sales prices seen in other parts of the country.

Click on the Market Overview Logo below to see the complete summary.

This report is compiled from data in the North Texas Real Estate Information System (NTREIS). NTREIS is the provider of the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for all of North Texas including Collin County. If you would like more detail or want to see the data for a specific city, please email me and I will be happy to send you the data.

Source: Collin County Association of REALTORs(R) with commentary by Tom Branch

Realty Revolution LLC Expands Into Cedar Hill, Adds New Agent

Gina and Tom Branch would like to welcome Mary Hernandez into the REALTOR® family at Realty Revolution. Mary has been in the real estate business intermittently over the last 20 years and also has a stock broker license. Mary is a mother and grandmother and enjoys running with her new husband and raising money for charity.

Mary is the second Spanish speaking agent on our staff and she gives Realty Revolution a new presence in the Cedar Hill area, southwest of Dallas. We appreciate Mary’s positive outlook and her desire to help others. Mary can be reached at 214.579.0532 or email to mary.hernandez@realtyrev.com.

Author - Gina Branch

Broker Agent Professional Endorses Tom Branch

Realty Revolution LLC is pleased to announce that Tom Branch, Broker and Designated REALTOR(R), has been endorsed by Broker Agent Professional as their exclusive agent for Plano. Broker Agent Professional is the nation's largest independent real estate trade publication. They hand selected one real estate professional to represent their city/area and is certain to meet the highest expectations. Tom can be reached at 214.227.6626 or via email to tom.branch@realtyrev.com.

Author: Gina Branch

Poll: Homeowners Optimistic About Their Property Values

Homeowners aren't going to let the worst national housing downturn in a generation interfere with their property value expectations.

A survey earlier this week found that asking prices for Dallas-area homes had risen more than 2 percent in the last three months.

Now, a national survey finds that 40 percent of U.S. homeowners think their house is worth more than it was a year ago. And 22 percent more believe their home price is unchanged, according to the poll by online real estate site Zillow.

Poll: Homeowners optimistic about their property values

Source: Dallas Morning News - Steve Brown

I've Never Been Convicted (in Texas)

You can't get a real estate license these days until you provide your fingerprints for a DPS criminal background check.....

I've never been convicted (in Texas)

Source: Teaxas Association of REALTORs(R)

Timeshare Rental Business? Do Your Homework

Timeshare buyers are cautioned about labeling their weeks as investments. Think of it as prepaid vacations, timeshare developers famously say.....

Source: Texas Association of REALTORs(R)

Texas’ Real Estate Markets Healthier Than Most

Texas’ real estate markets never caught the housing bust bug that spread like the flu across most of the United States. But now the doctors tell me that the Lone Star State is showing some of the symptoms that flattened residential sales nationwide.

Texas’ real estate markets healthier than most 

Source: Texas Association of REALTORs(R)

The Importance of Online Marketing

When searching the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), I’m often amazed to find listings with one or no photos. I wonder how the listing agents expect to effectively market the properties. There was a time when this was not a big issue but those times have passed. We need to take a look at where we were to understand where we are now and why photos are so important.

There was a time when the MLS was simply a computerized tool to share listings with other REALTORs replacing the listing books of days past. As time went on, brokers started displaying the listings of other brokers on their web sites through the Internet Data Exchange (IDX) protocol. These IDX search portals allowed the public to access all active listings within a particular MLS. As Internet usage grew, so did the utilization of those search portals. In 1995, only two percent of consumers used the Internet during their home searches - in 2008, 84 percent start online.

Why is this important? In the early days, we placed our listings into the MLS to market them to other agents. In 2008, we market to the public. What? If 84 percent of buyers start their searches online, then the online marketing has to appeal to that 84 percent. Multiple photos are critical to the marketing of a property. According to statistics complied by the National Association of REALTORs(R), properties with multiple photos have a 200-plus percent click-through rate over those with one or no photos! Virtual and video tours are appropriate for larger or unique properties.

As consumers, you should review the online marketing completed by your agent. If you’re unhappy with any aspect of it, give your agent a call. Most of us are more than willing to modify the listing and/or explain the reasoning behind the marketing avenue chosen.

Authors: Tom and Gina Branch

What Does Real Estate Have To Do With It?

When most people think of REALTORS, the first thought that comes to mind is a person who helps you buy and sell properties. But real estate is tied closely to so many other aspects of our lives than just the buildings where we live and work.....

What does real estate have to do with it?

Source: Texas Association of REALTORs(R)