Austin Home Sales Increase in November 2011

The real estate news in Austin, Texas has been much better than in the rest of the country.  Here’s an article from the Austin Business Journal which details some of the reasons why the Austin real estate market is doing well:

The number of existing single-family homes sold in November rose 11 percent and the median price for area homes was up 3 percent when compared to the same month last year, according to the Austin Board of Realtors    .

Last month, 1,358 homes were sold and the median home price was $189,300.

On average, homes spent 83 days on the market in November, which is exactly one week less than the same month last year.

Austin’s market listed 18 percent fewer active listings and 15 percent more pending sales in November 2011 than November 2010.

The Austin market had 4.5 months of inventory, 1.4 months less than November 2010 and the lowest figure reported since the organization began tracking the statistic in January 2009, according to the Multiple Listing Service report.

It was the sixth month in a row that the volume of home sales in Austin outpaced 2010 while the inventory of available homes decreased, according to Judith Bundschuh, chairman of the Austin Board of Realtors.

“As we approach the end of the year, sellers should be encouraged that demand and prices are strong. Buyers should know the decrease in inventory combined with increased demand could mean they will encounter more competition for properties,” said Bundschuh.

The Austin townhouse and condominium market spiked as well.

According to ABoR, 123 condominiums sold in Austin last month, up 21 percent over November 2010. Median prices for condominiums were up 1 percent over November last year, rising to $157,000.

When compared to the same month of the prior year, these properties spent 12 percent longer on the market, or an average of 114 days.

Some real estate brokers on the ground are seeing the numbers in action and analyzing what they mean for the coming year.

“The numbers ABoR is reporting still reflect the hangover effect from the buyer tax credit that expired in April 2010,” said Robert Grunnah, broker and owner of Austin-based Castle Hill Investments    .

Grunnah said the vast majority of homebuyer demand in 2010 was satisfied prior to the federal homebuyer tax credit’s expiration that June, leading to a significant dearth of sales later that year, making the November 2011 numbers seem like a more significant increase than they actually were.

“2012 will see continued moderate increases in sales volume and a less significant increase in overall values,” said Grunnah.

Regarding condo activity, Grunnah said “the increase in activity in the condo market is clearly a result of owners being more realistic with their values, and reducing prices to stimulate sales. We’ve also seen a large number of foreclosed condos coming onto the market at reduced prices, which increases the rate of overall condo sales.”

Looking into the crystal ball, Grunnah expects growth.

“Once the pent-up supply works through the system, we will likely to see a return to more typical 4 percent to 6 percent annual value growth. I’d like to say this will happen in 2013, but it depends on factors outside of Austin’s control such as residential financing becoming more available and unemployment decreasing in other parts of the country,” Grunnah said.

Todd Grossman with Realty Austin    said the residential real estate market is currently seeing a lot of activity even though this time of the year is typically slow.

“Rates are still low, employment is high in Austin, press is positive nationally, and weather is great, which is probably doing something for us currently,” said Grossman.

If current trends remain unchanged, Grossman said the biggest challenge in Austin’s immediate future is a lack of quality inventory for buyers when the selling season hits.  http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/blog/real-estate/2011/12/austin-home-sales-rise-11-in-november.html?page=all

While the housing market in Austin, Texas is better than anywhere else in the U.S., there are still people out there who are having a tough time selling their houses for a variety of reasons:  can’t afford to make repairs, can’t catch up the loan, no equity, little equity, and even negative equity.  Regardless of your situation, Hippie Hollow Homes can help.

Hippie Hollow Homes is a collection of Realtors and real estate investors who specialize in solving problems.  In the past 8 years, we have successfully participated in over 1,200 real estate transactions totaling over a quarter of a billion dollars in sales.  There’s very little in real estate that we haven’t experienced.

So if you’re in a tough spot and you don’t know where to go or who to turn to, call Hippie Hollow Homes today.

Image: digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

If you liked ‘Austin Home Sales Increase 11% in November 2011′, then you may also enjoy other articles written by Shenoah Grove at  Hippie Hollow Homes.

You Can Still Sell Your House in Austin, Texas

By sidestepping the national real estate bubble that has particularly decimated the once thriving economies in the south west part of this country, the Austin housing market served as a stabilizing force for the Central Texas economy. That, experts say, was key to helping the region outperform many other U.S. metro areas during the economic downturn.  So why is it you can still sell your house in Austin, Texas, and the rest of the country has a tough real estate market?  Here are some reasons from Eldon Rude, director of the Austin office of Metrostudy, a housing market research firm:

• Pricing: Home prices locally didn’t experience a big boom-bust cycle like they did in Las Vegas, where prices went up 44 percent per year at the peak ; Phoenix, up 41 percent per year at the peak; and Orlando, which saw 33 percent annual appreciation at the peak, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency. By contrast, Austin’s peak annual home price appreciation was 10.5 percent, according to the agency’s data.

On the flip side, prices have dropped sharply, down 16 percent in Las Vegas from mid-2010 to mid-2011, and by 15 and 10.7 percent in Phoenix and Orlando, respectively. The decline in the Austin area was much lower at 2.3 percent during the same 12-month period.

• New-home construction: Home starts plunged nearly 90 percent from early 2007 (roughly the housing peak) through September of this year in Las Vegas. Phoenix and Orlando also saw dramatic declines, nearly 85 and 72 percent, respectively.

By comparison, the Austin area registered a 61.4 percent decline, the lowest during that period among major Texas cities and well below the most troubled markets.

• Construction employment: Comparing September 2006 — roughly the peak of new home construction — with this September, construction employment fell 62 percent in Las Vegas, and Phoenix and Orlando each lost more than half of their jobs in the sector. During the same period, construction employment in Austin dropped slightly more than 8 percent.  http://www.statesman.com/business/real-estate/housing-market-still-a-stabilizing-force-for-austins-1981312.html

You Can Still Sell Your House in Austin, Texas | Hippie Hollow Homes

While you can still sell your house in Austin, Texas, some situations make it more difficult than others.  For example, what do you do if you owe more on your house than it’s worth?  Or what if you have no equity but can’t afford to come out of pocket to pay closing costs?  The solution to your problems is to work with a company that real estate company that utilizes both the services of Realtors for traditional sales as well as real estate investors for unconventional sales.  That is where Hippie Hollow Homes comes in.

Hippie Hollow Homes is uniquely different from any other real estate solutions provider. Contact us and we guarantee the following:

1. We will always make you an immediate cash offer
2. We will always offer to list your home, with one of our affiliate agents, with our purchase offer as a back-up
3. We will also make you some creative offers that may be more beneficial to your situation and timeframe
4. We will share with you a market analysis on your home, that determines it’s as-is value, in today’s market, compared to homes recently sold around yours
5. Our offers are no-pressure, no-obligation

The only thing that we cannot do is help you if you don’t contact us.  You can still sell your house in Austin, Texas, even if you’re in distress.  Despite perhaps the best economy in the Union, there are still unique situations.  Whatever your needs, contact Hippie Hollow Homes; we can help.

If you liked ‘You Can Still Sell Your House in Austin, Texas’, then you may also enjoy other articles available at Hippie Hollow Homes

How Have the Government Foreclosure Aid Programs Fared?

Since the financial crisis of 2008, the Federal Government has taken steps to create Foreclosure Aid Programs to assist distressed homeowners.  After all, $800 Billion plus was provided to the banks to help them through a tough time.  How much was allocated for the American people?  $46 Billion.  How much was spent?  Well, when it’s all said and done, it’s estimated that as much as $13 billion will actually be used to help homeowners.  2.5 million homes have been lost to foreclosure since 2009, an additional 4 million are in the foreclosure process or seriously delinquent, and home prices are still falling in much of the U.S., shrinking household wealth for millions of Americans.  So how have the individual Government Foreclosure Aid Programs fared?  Here’s a scorecard provided by USA Today:

Government Foreclosure Aid Programs | Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP)

Budget: $19 billion; Launched: 2009
Goal: Modify 3 million to 4 million home loans so borrowers could afford them.
Results: 883,076 permanent loan modifications as of Oct. 31. Homeowners save a median of 37% each month.
Shortcomings: Success rate lower than hoped; mortgage companies have not aggressively pursued HAMP modifications. Instead, they do nearly twice as many modifications outside of HAMP. Those are more likely to fail, government data show, keeping borrowers at risk of foreclosure.

Government Foreclosure Aid Programs | FHA Short Refinance

Launched: 2010, with a $2.7 billion program to modify second liens. 
Goal: Help 500,000 to 1.5 million homeowners refinance to lower-interest FHA loans.
Results: 334 refinances through September. 
Shortcomings: Loan owner must forgive at least 10% of the mortgage. Lenders don’t generally forgive principal and especially not on loans on which borrowers are current.

Government Foreclosure Aid Programs | Hardest Hit Fund

Announced: 2010
Goal: Help 500,000 unemployed or underemployed people in 18 states and the District of Columbia avoid foreclosure. Loans typically made for six to 24 months and will be forgiven if borrowers fulfill requirements.
Results: 18,946 homeowners helped through September.
Shortcomings: Start took longer than expected. Just $113 million provided to homeowners through September.

Government Foreclosure Aid Programs | Emergency Homeowners Loan Program (EHLP)

Announced: 2010
Goal: Make loans to 30,000 homeowners facing foreclosure because of lost jobs or reduced income in 32 states and Puerto Rico. Loans can be forgiven if borrowers meet requirements.
Results: Fewer than 12,000 homeowners made it through the application process in time, preliminary data show. More than half of the $1 billion went back to Treasury because it wasn’t allocated to homeowners in time.
Shortcomings: Organizational delays pushed launch into 2011, and eligibility requirements disqualified many.

Government Foreclosure Aid Programs | Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA)

Launched: 2010
Goal: Encourage short sales and deeds-in-lieu instead of foreclosure. A short sale is when a loan owner sells a home for less than what is owed. Deed-in-lieu is when homeowners return deed to lender.
Results: 20,701 completed through October. Mostly short sales.
Shortcomings: Servicers may collect more money doing short sales outside the government program, and they do more outside the government program, according to an October government report.

Government Foreclosure Aid Programs | Second Lien Modification Program (2MP)

Launched: 2010
Goal: Get second liens modified or extinguished if first liens are modified via HAMP. Treasury has estimated that up to 50% of mortgages at risk are backed by second liens. Second lien holders can block loan modifications.
Results: 50,434 modifications started through October.
Shortcomings: Program started slowly, in part because industry lacked good data to match borrowers’ first liens with second liens, the Government Accountability Officereported in March. Mortgage servicers said there were differences in spelling of addresses, for instance, that prevented accurate identification.

Government Foreclosure Aid Programs | Principal Reduction Alternative (PRA)

Launched: 2010
Goal: Encourage mortgage owners to forgive principal with a HAMP modification.
Results: 53,323 trial modifications started through October.
Shortcomings: Mortgage servicers don’t have to offer borrowers a principal reduction even if calculations show that doing so would result in better returns to the loan owner.

Government Foreclosure Aid Programs | Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP)

Announced: 2009.
Goal: Refinance 4 million to 5 million home loans with mortgages backed or owned byFannie Mae or Freddie Mac to lower interest rates.
Results: 928,570 through September.
Shortcomings: Program initially didn’t adequately reduce risks to lenders and others to refinance homeowners with little or no home equity. Changes announced in October may double number of HARP refis.

Source: Office of the Special Inspector General of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, Oct. 27 report to Congress, USA TODAY research

Most of these programs never had any real chance of working. A cynic would state that these plans were nothing more than lip service designed to ease the taxpayers’ pain of seeing money going to the bank. It was an appeasement; an attempt in legislation name only to help distressed people on Main St.

If you’re behind on payments or feel that foreclosure is your only option, your best alternative is to work with a real estate professional who has experience dealing with tough circumstances. As you can see from above, the Government Foreclosure Aid Programs will certainly not help you.

If you liked ‘Government Foreclosure Aid Programs Results’, then you may also enjoy other articles available at Hippie Hollow Homes.

Austin Home Prices Expected to Increase in 2012

Despite the recent study that shows that Austin metro area home prices fell by 2.3 percent in 2011, the fact that Austin home prices expected to rise in 2012 is welcomed news.

Austin Home prices will see a growth of 0.6 percent between the second quarter of 2012 and the second quarter of 2013, the report said.

“Austin is very fortunate to have avoided the negative impact of the housing bubble that much of the rest of the country is experiencing,” says Hippie Hollow Homes Co-Founder Shenoah Grove.  ”While opportunities for short sales do still exist for some unfortunate home buyers, those who need to sell their homes fast still may do so without having to let their houses go to foreclosure.”

One of the biggest reasons that Texans were able to avoid the bubble is due to lessons learned from previous bubbles, like in the ’80s.  The Texas rule that prevents homeowners from taking out more than 80% of home value on a refinance helped stay the mad dash to take out all the equity from their houses in the mid part of last decade.  Since people weren’t refinancing in Texas at the same rate the rest of the country was, we didn’t experience that same bubble.  Conversely, when the bubble popped, we didn’t experience the same drop.  Austin home prices grew at a slow, steady pace.

“Foreclosures account for only 14 percent of the 5,298 total listings in Austin, that’s a much lower percentage than in the markets with the largest home price crashes,”  said David Stiff, chief economist at Fiserv.

Since there are fewer foreclosures, there are fewer real estate transactions occurring at a discounted rate.  Also, Austin’s ‘shadow’ inventory is much lower than other states, which is why Austin home prices are projected to increase next year.

For more information on Austin home prices in 2012, please visit: http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/blog/retail/2011/11/report-austin-homes-prices-fall-but.html

Austin Home Prices Expected to Rise in 2012 | What if your house is distressed?

While 86% of Austin homes are selling at market price, there’s still 14% that require assistance.  Foreclosure is not a good option and there are some ways to avoid foreclosure and sell your house without coming out of pocket even if you have little, no, or even some negative equity!

At Hippie Hollow Homes, we have been a part of over 1,200 successful real estate transactions totalling more that $200,000,000 since 2003.  We’ve had tremendous success during the toughest housing climate because we think outside of the box.  Phill Grove, Co-Owner of Hippie Hollow Homes, is regarded as the top post bubble real estate investor in the U.S. and is a national speaker as well as creator of the Assignment of Mortgage Payments System.

Hippie Hollow Homes is uniquely different from any other real estate solutions provider. Contact us and we guarantee the following:

1. We will always make you an immediate cash offer
2. We will always offer to list your home, with one of our affiliate agents, with our purchase offer as a back-up
3. We will also make you some creative offers that may be more beneficial to your situation and timeframe
4. We will share with you a market analysis on your home, that determines it’s as-is value, in today’s market, compared to homes recently sold around yours
5. Our offers are no-pressure, no-obligation

Image: Kookkai_nak / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

If you liked ‘Austin Home Prices Expected to Rise in 2012′, then you may also enjoy other articles about real estate in Austin and San Antonio Texas available at Hippie Hollow Homes

Despite 3 of 10 Homeowner Mortgages are Underwater, You Can Still Sell Your House Without Coming Out of Pocket or Hurting Your Credit

Zillow announced today that 28.6% of homeowner mortgages are underwater nationwide, meaning that the mortgages are higher than the value of the home.   What this means, for example, is that if you took out a mortgage on a home for $120,000 and the home is now worth $100,000, then you would be $20,000 underwater on your mortgage.  If you can afford to make payments, continue to do so as the housing market will eventually correct itself.  However, if you are seeking to sell your house, this scenario can be very costly.

Homeowner Mortgages Are Underwater | Why is this happening?

Homeowner mortgages are underwater because the housing market is losing value due to foreclosures.  When foreclosures occur, they are resold at less than market value.  With so many foreclosures on the market, the average value of homes is dropping.  Until more houses are sold at market price, the housing market will continue to drop.

Unemployment is high.  Officially it is reported around 9%, but the real unemployment rate is around 20%.  People who are unemployed need to cut expenses, and one of the first expenses is the biggest one of all; the mortgage payment.  Traditionally if you needed to sell a house and did so, you could turn a profit.  In today’s economy, you cannot do so.  In fact, due to the fact that so many homeowner mortgages are underwater, many people don’t know how to sell their homes and simply allow their homes to go to foreclosure.  Consider the following example:

Sally Seller was laid off for 3 months but found another job.  However, she is making 33% less than she was before.  Her house is worth $100,000 and her mortgage is $105,000.  She has depleted her savings while unemployed.  Her mortgage is $900 per month but she can find a house to rent for $650.  The problem is that if she sells, she’ll have to come out of pocket approximately $13,000 for all sales commissions, fees, and deficiency.  Sally cannot afford to do this.  Therefore, she lets the house go to auction.

Another reason that the housing market is stagnant is that banks, recognizing dropping housing prices, are hesitant to lend money.  They understand that the likelihood of homeowners ‘strategically’ defaulting on their underwater mortgages are significantly higher in this economy and will not begin lending again until more houses are sold at market price.

In summary, unemployment is causing more people to want to sell their homes, home prices are dropping due to foreclosures causing more ‘underwater’ sellers, banks aren’t lending, and most buyers can’t qualify for loans.  How in the world can a real estate professional help me sell my house?  The best real estate professionals know how to solve problems.

Homeowner Mortgages Are Underwater | The solution

The solution to the housing crisis is to stop real estate transactions from occurring at less than market price.  This means that you should work with real estate professionals who know what to do when homeowner mortgages are underwater.  An educated, knowledgeable, and experienced real estate professional can sell a house with little, no, or negative equity without the seller having to come out of pocket and affecting their credit.  If you are in a tough situation where you have little or no equity and you cannot afford to come out of pocket to pay commissions, you can still sell your house without going to auction.  I have a buyer’s list of several hundreds of people in Austin and San Antonio, Texas, who are looking to buy a house but cannot qualify for traditional bank financing.  A survey down earlier this fall by Trulia, a real estate portal, found that 70 percent of  respondents still consider home ownership the American Dream.

I know how and have the experience in putting together ‘unsellable’ homes with ‘unloanable’ buyers where a real estate transaction that otherwise may have resulted in a foreclosure occurs at market price where everyone wins.  Contact me today for more information.

Image: renjith krishnan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

If you liked ‘Almost 3 out of 10 Homeowner Mortgages are Underwater’, then you may also enjoy other articles written by Hippie Hollow Homes.

Shenoah Grove with Rudy Guliani and JT Foxx

Mega Partnering is considered to be the number one wealth networking and business relationship building event.  This event is held in major U.S. cities a couple of times per year.  They generally bring in the Industry’s Top Business people to discuss their tricks to the trade.  The topics vary from philosophy to marketing to specific businesses.  Some of the others who have spoken at these events in the past include Gene Simmons from KISS, Rudy Guliani, George Ross (NBC’s ‘The Apprentice), TV Pitchman Anthony Sullivan and Stedman Graham.

As luck would have it, Hippie Hollow Homes President Phill Grove was invited to speak as a real estate expert.

Here are some pics of Phill and Shenoah Grove from Mega Parnterning:

Phill With Shannon Tweed and...uhm...Gene Simmons

Shenoah Grove with 2008 Presidential Nominee Wayne Allen Root

George Ross with Phill Grove

Can you sell a home fast in Austin, Texas?

There is definitely some positive housing news coming out of the Central Texas real estate market recently.  Consider the following statistics recently released from the Austin Statesman:

• the annual home starts pace improved for the first time in more than a year, new figures show.
• home starts in Central Texas picked up 27 percent in the third quarter compared with the same period last year
• each of the previous four quarters had ended with fewer homes started on an annual basis, so this is encouraging
• Builders started 1,760 homes from July through September, 376 more — and “decidedly better” — than in the same period in 2010  http://www.statesman.com/business/good-sign-for-austin-market-home-starts-up-1889148.html

The biggest factor to the Austin home starts increase is due to increased employment.  The Austin area produced 15,500 net jobs for the 12 months that ended in August, a 2 percent growth rate, according to the Texas Workforce Commission.  There is absolutely no question that employed people are able to buy houses and that a healthy job market leads to a healthy housing market.

Austin Home Starts Increase |Hippie Hollow Homes

The statistics are showing an improved housing market, and there’s no question that Central Texas is better off than just about any other housing market in the U.S., but this doesn’t mean that there aren’t some people out there who are struggling to sell their houses.

During this economic downturn, housing prices have dropped.  What do you do if you require a fast sale on your house but you owe more than it’s worth?  Maybe you owe as much as it’s worth but cannot afford to pay closing costs?

Regardless of your situation, Hippie Hollow Homes can help!

These times are unconventional, and if you have a situation that is not conventional, such as you owe more than your house is worth, you’re facing foreclosure, you cannot afford to pay Realtor / closing costs, need to sell your house quickly, etc… whatever your situation, we have real estate investors who can assist you.

Our out of the box, creative solutions have helped us participate in more than 1,200 real estate transactions since 2004.  All of our strategies we use are legal and work; after all, as our logo states, we have nothing to hide!

At Hippie Hollow Homes, we work tirelessly to solve the problems that plague distressed sellers in today’s marketplace.  We have years of experience and some of the top real estate investors in the country working for us.  We match strategies that work with the current state of the economy.  We can provide you with solutions.

We cannot help you if you don’t give us a call.

Contact us today at 512-900-7991, let us know your situation and we can provide you with options.

If you liked ‘Austin Home Starts Increase’, then you may also enjoy other articles from Hippie Hollow Home.

Home Staging Tips

Is Home Staging Important?

An unfurnished home looks cold, empty, and unappealing.

This cold look gives off a negative first impression.  Do you want your potential buyer’s first impression of a home you are trying to sell to be anything associated with feelings of coldness or emptiness?  You never get a second chance to make a first impression, and neither does your home, and this is why home staging is vital.

Home Staging 101 |What is it?

Home staging is when you stage an empty house to look like a home someone would want to purchase.  You put in some furniture, some wall hangings, and give the place a personality.  The 3 D’s of home staging involve delousing, de-cluttering and decorating a home to give the end buyer a positive first impression and to help buyers see a home’s full potential.

Home Staging 101| Delousing

You would think that keeping a house clean when trying to sell it would be common sense.  However, many sellers that I speak with don’t think a dirty house is a problem!  Consider, if you will, the point of view of a potential buyer.  Purchasing a house is the biggest financial investment they will probably make in their life.  Don’t hope that they can imagine the place clean; make it clean!

When the potential buyers walks into a kitchen, they should be fantasizing about family dinners they will be holding, which should put them in a pleasant frame of mind, not trying to picture what the stove will look like after a gallon of de-greaser.  If they see a dirty, grimy kitchen, they won’t have those ‘I wanna buy this house’ type of fantasies.

Same situation with the bathroom.  When the potential new buyer sees the bath tub, they should be envisioning relaxing in a bubble bath in the tub, or wanting to wash their children in the tub, not being afraid to step foot in the tub because it;s filthy.  If that tub is dirty, they won’t want to get into the tub and won’t buy the house.  Therefore, cleaning a house is imperative to selling a house.

On a side note, I may choose not to work with a seller who shows me a house in a dirty condition.  If the seller doesn’t care enough to make the house presentable for you, they won’t care enough to make it presentable for your potential buyers.

Home Staging 101| De-Cluttering

I’m not sure de-cluttering is a real word, but you get the meaning of the word.  Psychologically speaking, clutter is associated with lack of cleanliness and deceit, and a house full of clutter will be perceived as a dirty house with a lot of necessary repair work.

In fact, many self-help gurus will say that one of the best things anyone can do to improve their emotional state is rid themselves of clutter.   So if you’re interested in selling your house, break out the boxes and either box up your belongings in an attic or make a couple of trips to the Goodwill to get rid of the stuff you don’t need because buyers don’t want to see it.

Home Staging 101| Designing

Remember, you never get a second chance to make a first impression, and the first impression anyone will have of your house is the outside front.  This outside front includes landscaping the yard, the garage door, and the front door.  On one of my first fix and flips in Cedar Park, TX, I decided to paint the outside door of a cream colored stone house a bright red to give it a fancy pop.  I’d seen two other houses in the neighborhood do it and I liked it.  I had trouble selling the property and asked for advice from two other investors who were in the area.  Both of them said that in their first impression, they didn’t like the red door as they didn’t feel the house was welcoming.   So I repainted the front door with a different, toned down color and the property sold shortly thereafter.  A well manicured lawn, lively garden, and properly painted outside will give off the best first impression of the house.  Even if the paint inside isn’t the best color or the flooring could be replaced, once you have a good first impression, the potential buyers will be more forgiving of things that need repair.  Surprisingly, even if the inside is immaculate, you still cannot change the buyers perception they receive from a negative first impression from the outside of a house.

Home Staging 101| Conclusion

In summary, as home sales decline and a record number of for-sale houses cram the market, more sellers are turning to home staging to make their properties stand out.  Quite frankly, a beautifully decorated, uncluttered, clean, and staged home sells faster, and for more money.  In this tough real estate economy, you need to take advantage of every situation, including home staging, in order to sell a house.

Image: scottchan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

If you liked ‘Home Staging Tips’, then you may also enjoy other articles available at Hippie Hollow Home.

Austin Home Prices Continue to Increase

Nationally, average home prices continue trending downwards, falling 4.4% in August 2011 as compared to August 2010. Some cities, like Atlanta, GA., saw even greater declines. of over 7%.

But here is Austin, things are much brighter, and it’s not just because we can’t get any rain clouds in this city!  According to the latest data from the CoreLogic Home Price Index, Austin area home prices continue to increase, trending upwards by 1.6 percentage points in August over the same period last year.

This figure also takes into consideration distressed real estate as well. When you leave out short sales and foreclosures, the actual year-over-year Austin home prices increased by 1.8 percentage points during the same period.

So what does this mean?  It means that the Austin real estate market for residential real estate is relatively healthy.  Of course, there are still people who owe more than their house is worth or folks who are looking for creative ways to sell their house fast.  This is why working with a real estate company that has both a Real Estate Broker as well as real estate investors is so valuable.

Austin Home Prices Continue to Increase |Hippie Hollow Homes Advantage

If you have a situation that is out of the ordinary, such as you’re facing foreclosure, you cannot afford to pay Realtor / closing costs, you owe more than your house is worth, you need to sell your house quickly, etc… whatever your situation, we have real estate investors who can assist you.

At Hippie Hollow Homes, we work tirelessly to solve the problems that plague distressed sellers in today’s marketplace.  We have years of experience and some of the top real estate investors in the country working for us.  We match strategies that work with the current state of the economy.  We can provide you with solutions.

Our out of the box, creative solutions have helped us participate in more than 1,200 real estate transactions since 2004.  All of our strategies we use are legal and work; after all, as our logo states, we have nothing to hide!

We cannot help you if you don’t give us a call.

Contact us today at 512-900-7991, let us know your situation and we can provide you with options.

Image: digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

If you liked ‘Austin Home Prices Continue to Increase’, then you may also enjoy other articles from Hippie Hollow Homes.

Latest foreclosure report for Austin

(September 28, 2011) There is good news bad news for the Austin real estate market.

First, the good news:  the latest foreclosure report from the Foreclosure Listing Service Inc shows that foreclosure notices for this month are down 18.5% from October 2010.

In Texas, foreclosure auctions occur on the first Tuesday of every month.  Last October, 1,256 notices were filed for the Travis, Williamson, Hays and Bastrop counties.  This October, only 1,024 are being filed.  This month also marks the 6th consecutive month that foreclosure filings have been under 1,200.

On a year-to-date basis, 11,823 properties have been posted for foreclosure in the four-county Austin region, 8.2 percent fewer than the 12,885 properties posted during the same period last year.  Year-to-date postings were down 11.3 percent for Travis County, with drops of 0.7 percent in Hays County and about 6 percent in both Williamson and Bastrop counties.

Latest Foreclosure Report for Austin| Has the Housing Market Corrected?

Does the latest foreclosure report for Austin mean that the housing market has corrected?  Well, therein lies the bad news.

“The backlog of foreclosures continues to be abnormally high due primarily to banks looking for lower-cost alternatives to foreclosure.  There is starting to be light at the end of the tunnel here in Austin because of our stronger than average job growth, but we will still continue to see a large number of foreclosures coming posted for auction each month,” said Peter Sajovich,  president and CEO of eCounty Inc., an Austin-based real estate investment and development company that specializes in buying foreclosure properties for investors.  Although the actual foreclosure numbers are down, “they are still at historical highs and will continue throughout the remainder of 2011 and well into 2012.” http://www.statesman.com/business/real-estate/austin-area-foreclosures-drop-18-5-percent-from-1869703.html

The good news from the latest foreclosure report for Austin is that we’re not as bad as we were last year, however, our foreclosure numbers are still higher than they should be and will remain elevated for the foreseeable future.

Latest Foreclosure Report for Austin| Alternatives for Foreclosure

While Austin’s unemployment numbers and foreclosure filings may not be as bad as other cities and other state’s, we are still finding people who cannot afford to make their house payments or who cannot sell because they have little, no, and even negative equity in their homes.  Sadly, many good people in these tough situations decide to walk away from their homes and let them go to auction.  Foreclosure is perhaps the worst option a homeowner can choose.

A foreclosure can result in the following for the homeowner:

• Deficiency judgement- bank sues you for the difference of the amount the house sold for at auction and the amount owed.  For example, if you owed $120,000 and you house sold for $100,000 via auction, then the bank may sue you for the deficiency of $20,000.  Not only do you not have a home, but you have a judgement from the bank.
• 1099- if, as in the scenario above, you have a deficiency of $20,000, then the IRS may consider this $20,000 as income.  Their logic is that if you didn’t pay it as an expense, then it is income, and you may be taxed accordingly.
• Drop in credit score- while there is no set standard for foreclosures, most likely a foreclosure will drop your credit score anywhere from 80-200 points.  It’s not an exact science but the higher your starting credit score, the more it will drop.  A foreclosure on your credit report will greatly delay your ability to improve your score for the next 7-10 year.

If you are a homeowner and you find yourself in this situation, you may still be able to prevent yourself from joining the latest foreclosure report for Austin.  If you are behind on payments and even if you owe more than your house is worth, we can help you.  If you’re current but you can’t afford to come out of pocket to pay closing costs, we have solutions for you.  Hippie Hollow Homes has participated in over 1,200 successful real estate transaction since 2003; there’s very little we haven’t experienced in the real estate market.

But we can’t keep you off the latest foreclosure report for Austin if you don’t give us a call: 512-473-6633.

If you liked ‘The Latest Foreclosure Report for Austin, Texas’, then you may enjoy other articles written by Shenoah Grove of Hippie Hollow Homes.