Most people do not like to buy a house that is older than ten years, but many of us like to sell homes that are older than this! The meeting point is in the condition of your home.

In the stealthy realty market of today, we need to be selling our homes in top notch condition. If we are a buyer, we can feel confident to ask for certain repairs to be carried out before we move in.

In amongst all the woeful realty articles we have been reading, there are a few outlining the difficulty that builders are having in selling their homes. There is even talk that they have overbuilt for the present market, and this is not good news for a home owner that wants to sell.

The house prices being asked now should be comparable with prices of similar houses sold in the last three months. Even if the house was worth 10,000 more last summer, it still needs to be priced in today’s market if you want to sell it.

The Internet will often show you how much a brand new home costs in your area, if you want to check out the competition! Your real estate agent will have the up-to-the-minute pricing information.

Of course, there are many advantages to buying a home that is not new; all the ’settling’ underground has been completed and usually the yard is well laid out to lawn, garden, pathways and driveway. The site of mounds of muddy top soil can deter many buyers from a new home, so some conditions still favor older homes.

All this points to one obvious need to be taken care of when putting your house on the market: ensure your front yard looks as good as it can get! Another reason for this is that the front yard will be the seen on the only picture of your home that is shown on the Internet.

The first picture that potential buyers see is a view of the front of the house and the front yard. If they do not like the look of this they will not click any deeper into the file to take the virtual tour of the interior. The front yard is also involved in tempting the ‘drive- by’ buyers so it is very important.

Spend a few dollars buying some trees and shrubs in pots and place them strategically to enhance the photo appeal of your home. Hose down your pathways and ensure the edges are sharp – this shows in a photo.

If buyers think that new homes are the optimum, then make sure that the prospective buyer feels confident that your home is in ‘as new’ condition. Be one step ahead of the buyers and show them your house report.

Pay a home surveyor to come and do an appraisal of your home. Ask for a quote that will require two visits; it will be cheaper than two separate visits, also you have negotiating power over price before the work is awarded. Ask for a brief copy of the quote in writing.

You will require two visits as you will get one report before the repairs he lists and one after you have repaired them. When the buyer comes offer him a copy of your appraisal, it will save him a few hundred dollars, and set a tone of trust in any house-price negotiations.

Your real estate agent will advise you of any inexpensive changes you can make. If you do have any spare cash, the best place to invest it is in your kitchen or bathroom. You get approximately 80% of the expenditure back on the price of the house, and these two areas are the first that new home owners decorate when they move in.

Always re-decorate in neutral colors, grays, cream, beiges and whites. Add extra inexpensive lighting, preferably for ambience in the bathroom and for brightness in the kitchen. It doesn’t matter how top-of-the-line your kitchen gadgets are – buyers like to see a clear counter top.

If you do not want to re-furbish your whole kitchen then replacement cupboard doors make a big difference for a little price. Also spending a littler extra on some quality kitchen taps will be eye-catching and smack of newness.

Ensure that you buy an electrically charged air freshener and keep at least one of these in operation right by the front door.



Sell House Quick

You have found your ideal retirement property – safe, secure, convenient and neighbourly. All you now need is to sell your old home – easy!

It should be but the process is rarely trouble free and never quick. A recent MORI survey said that transaction times in the UK now averaged over 6 months, among the slowest in Europe.

The problem revolves around the fact that, with some 80% of people owning their own home, most need to secure a sale on their present house before they can purchase a new one. As a result, even when you find your dream retirement home and a buyer for your present property there is invariably a chain of transactions which all need to be pulled together simultaneously.

However, for many situations, time is of the essence and deadlines have to be met. This can be for a variety of reasons, eg you may have found your “dream retirement home” but need to secure it quickly or, a builder may be offering huge incentives for a quick completion while you are constrained by the market to a later and uncertain timescale.

Selling to house buying companies is the only foolproof method of avoiding the stresses, delays and uncertainties of selling your present home in the open market. Most importantly it secures the property you want at the time you want it as they can synchronise our purchase of the current home with your new purchase. If the old home is worth more than your new one you may even manage to buy without the burden of a mortgage.

How can house buyers help?

In short, house buyers can buy your existing house, quickly and for cash, enabling you to secure your retirement property.

Some of their schemes have proven especially appropriate for people buying in the retirement sector as the combination of convenience, speed and the certainty of achieving the move they want in a cost effective way without continuing liability suits their needs precisely.

What are the benefits of using a house buying company?



You can guarantee the purchase of your new retirement property

We can complete the sale process quickly and to suit your timescales

You avoid estate agency fees

You avoid the stress and uncertainty of selling on the open market

You avoid having the stress and security issues of multiple viewings

Your next house, its cost and your moving timescale is guaranteed, enabling you to relax





Repossession

One of the most unpleasant consequences of failing to pay your mortgage is “repossession” of your property. This is a problem that is affecting an increasing number of homeowners throughout the country.

The first notification will be from the lender warning of the consequences should you not keep up your payments on the mortgage. If your mortgage payments are not being kept up to date then the lender may decide to approach the courts to apply for a repossession order.

The threat of repossession is something that a growing number of individuals are facing today. This can be put down to a number of factors that will on the most part, include borrowers who overstretch themselves financially and subsequently struggle to meet their monthly secured commitments.

Runaway property prices have too played a part as this has made homes in many areas unaffordable for first-time buyers. Many stretch their finances to get a first foot on the ladder. Some will see this as an essential means for home ownership.

Debt campaigners have highlighted in recent months that a growing number of borrowers were unable to meet their mortgage repayments, with many of them first-time buyers who only recently climbed onto the property ladder.

The Citizens Advice Bureau said that nearly a million people had missed one or more mortgage repayment in the past year. Over two million said they were concerned that their finances may not stretch to cover their monthly debts.

Missing payments on the mortgage or secured loan is a serious issue which could lead to arrears and possibly repossession if matters are not dealt with.

The repossession process will start by the lender applying to the courts for a repossession order. It is unlikely that the courts will grant this on the first hearing. They will probably grant a suspended repossession order.

This suspended repossession order means that that the individual involved must abide by the courts ruling. This will include having an agreed a payment in place with the lender to reduce the arrears balance over a period of time.

If these payments are not being met, the lender can apply for the repossession court order. In this case the courts are more likely to take the side of the lender & grant the repossession court order.

If the repossession order is granted, the lender will attempt to sell your property quickly to recover their money. They typically use auctions and estate agents to sell your property, often discounted to attract quick buyers. When the property is sold, the lender’s account is cleared first.

Any surplus will be repaid to the homeowner. However, if there is any shortfall, the lender will attempt to recover it from the individual involved for a period of up to 12 years!

The important points to remember is that without taking action, these problems do not just go away. At the earliest possible stage the lender must be informed of any financial issues that may affect the monthly payments of the mortgage. Do not ignore letters, especially court papers and court hearings.

If this does happen to you, then you must contact the lender immediately and explain your situation to them. It may be possible that you able to come to an arrangement to ease the situation.

If you are having serious problems then another option to consider is remortgaging. If you have enough equity in your property then you might be able to switch lenders and start afresh.

So whatever stage of the repossession process you are, you do have options that you can explore. Just make sure you act quickly and keep your lender informed.



Quick Property Sale

It’s been a very dull summer this year, not only in the form of the weather but also in the housing market. Indeed, there are very definite signs throughout the UK that the property market is beginning to stall. Many homeowners put their property on the market in May or June hoping to achieve the double whammy of selling quickly and avoiding the production of a Home Information Pack (HIP). But many of those properties are still waiting to attract a buyer and estate agents are now struggling to sell properties in weeks that previously sold within hours.

However, although bad for sellers, this news has now finally given a glimmer of hope for those wishing to get on the property ladder. “We’ve entered a buyer’s market,” says Lucian Cook, the director of residential research at Savills estate agents. He believes that sellers need to be more realistic about what their properties will sell for and how long it will take.

Supporting that belief, housing market analysts Hometrack point to the significant change in the length of time that properties are taking to sell compared to three months ago. That particular gap in Greater London has shifted from two to three weeks, while the wait in Wales is now three times longer at over nine and a half weeks. According to Hometrack director Richard Donnell, “the froth is coming off the market” and there is a definite downturn in the market in the East Midlands, the north-east and Wales.

However, as with every trend there is the exception that proves the rule, and in this case it is property for sale in Chelsea, London’s most expensive borough. Unlike the rest of the UK, property in Chelsea is still being snapped up by eager buyers, fuelling a 32% rise in house prices in the borough of Kensington and Chelsea over the last year. So despite what might be happening in the rest of the UK, if you’re looking for property to buy in Chelsea, expect to pay at least the seller’s asking price for quite some time to come. Kensington and Chelsea may be immune to the workings of the UK property market at the moment but it may just be lagging behind the general trend.

That trend identifies the beginning of June as the time when interest rate rises finally started to bite, resulting in homes being marketed at prices less than the previous two months, up to 10% lower in the £500,000 to £1.5 million range. Sellers are now expecting to negotiate lower prices than advertised and take longer to get a firm offer.

So is all this bad news for anyone wishing to sell property in the UK? Many experts point out that this is not a crash, but the start of a predicted minor ‘adjustment’. They expect a recovery in the second half of next year, but whether or not that will happen remains to be seen.



Sell and Rent Back

The UK Mortgage Market (May 2008)

 

In recent months, much has occurred in the mortgage market and with such a lot of press/media coverage, this summary may be helpful to people who wish to understand and ‘take stock’ of the current situation.

 

What is happening?

 

The UK Mortgage Market is presently operating in a manner that it is unlike any other within the past 30 years.

 

From a position of over-supply this time last year – with intense competition among lenders – both new and traditional – on criteria and on price – we’ve moved to a state of under-supply, tightening criteria, widening lender margins and, consequently, higher prices to the consumer.

 

Many lenders have even left the market – some large, some small. Others have withdrawn from new lending and are ‘sitting on their hands’. Even those with strong balance sheets funded by deposits and savings accounts are restricting their new lending in order not to damage their operations or overrun their funding budgets.

 

The most obvious consequences of this situation are a shortage of mortgage products, mortgage products being withdrawn at very short notice, mortgage products being re-priced upwards and generally more rigid lending criteria.

 

Why is this happening?

 

There are three key reasons for this happening:

 

Firstly, a lack of liquidity in the money markets – that is money that would have been available for banks to lend to each other. In the past (the distant past!) banks would have used their deposits – money in savings accounts – to fund mortgage and other lending. More recently, however, mortgage lending has increasingly been funded by money markets – borrowing from other banks – or from the sale of ‘packages’ of mortgages (Mortgage Backed Securities or MBS).

 

Unfortunately, because of the incidence of very high mortgage arrears within MBS packages and, particularly, those used to fund the American ‘sub-prime’ mortgage market, banks have had to write off huge sums – billions of dollars or Euro. It is estimated that 20% of lending for a number of years in the USA has been to the ‘sub prime’ market (the UK ‘sub prime’ market has been better controlled and has accounted for only some 7-8% of overall lending).

 

 

 

Major banks are now in a scramble to have less money market funding for mortgages and other loans and more funding for such lending by deposits – just like the ‘old’ days! And, if a bank has surplus cash e.g. from a mortgage that is being redeemed, it is not going to lend it to another bank that may have financial problems hidden away in its balance sheet. The interest rate at which banks lend to each (LIBOR) is much higher than the Bank of England base rate (3 month LIBOR is, at the time of writing, 5.8% compared to the BOE rate of 5%) and, generally over the last few years, 3 month LIBOR has been running at only 0.15% to 0.25% above the BOE rate.

 

In short, there is not much cash around to fund new mortgage lending!

 

The second key problem is, simply, confidence. Lenders fear that, as a result of all of the other problems in the market, house prices will fall and that mortgage loan performance – arrears – will worsen considerably. The consequence of this is the tightening up of lending criteria e.g. the disappearance of 100% mortgages – many lenders are now insisting that potential borrowers have a significant deposit. No lender wants to be the last one left in the market with wide-open lending criteria.

 

The third issue is that of the lenders’ mortgage processing capacity. Lenders’ administration systems can run into serious problems if too much volume is taken on too quickly and many have taken the decision to ‘cool it’ by adjusting criteria or price (or both). In some cases, lenders are no longer ‘open’ for new business.

 

Of course, the situation could become a self-fulfilling prophecy – house prices will fall because buyers cannot obtain mortgages to buy property. This possibility is certainly a serious concern.

 

When will things ‘return to normal’?

 

The short answer is that nobody knows! Indeed, it is quite possible that we won’t see a return to the sort of market that we had in 2006 and 2007 for many years. Arguably, the market then wasn’t normal either – there were plenty of aggressive new lenders with big aspirations who made the market compete on risky terms with little or no profit margin. Following their departure from the market, the remaining strong lenders are rebuilding a more appropriate approach to risk – taking lending criteria back to where we were several years ago.

 

The hope in the market is that, perhaps, a year or so after the ‘credit crunch’ started and when all of the banks have gone through a whole new reporting cycle, all of the bad news will be exposed and the write-downs and losses will be history – albeit it, recent history. To date, we are some nine months into the ‘credit crunch’ and, if the history of previous financial crises is a guide, we are more than halfway through the current squeeze.

 

 

 

 

If the confidence issue can be handled, we may see lenders becoming competitive again and with a return to larger lending appetites and willingness to grow.

 

Essentially, everything points to a slow and steady recovery; there will still be tough times ahead with the numbers of arrears/repossessions ticking upwards.

 

The Bank of England has made £50 billion available to banks via a ‘Special Liquidity Scheme’ and this is a deliberate move to free-up liquidity and confidence in the market; this has to be considered positive news.

 

Are there any reasons to be cheerful?

 

There are some positives in the current situation – fundamentally – the fact that the UK is not USA!

 

In the UK, employment is at record high levels (unlike the early 1990’s) providing a high demand for housing. At the same time, there are not enough new homes being built in the UK. The economic law of supply and demand means that the housing market is strongly underpinned and is unlikely to suffer a ‘crash’.

 

Overall new lending is clearly down but demand remains strong, in particular for ‘buy to let (the rental market is boosted at such times) and for re-mortgaging (rate switching, debt consolidation and capital-raising). The lending for house purchases is quiet and will remain so until confidence returns to the market.

 

In addition, interest rates are on the decline and some economists have predicted the possibility of BOE rate becoming as low as 3.5% to 4.0% next year.

 

Whether falls in BOE rate will be followed by falls in mortgage rates is far from certain – with sufficient cuts, the cost of borrowing should become cheaper and, perhaps, encourage more people back into the mortgage and housing market.

 

Mortgage brokers remain the most favoured route for consumers to obtain mortgages from lenders and the proportion of mortgages arranged by brokers has increased over several years as ‘shopping around’ has become more common. Customers need advice more than ever and independent brokers have a key role to play in this regard – in order to obtain the best possible deals for their clients and to protect their client-banks from other brokers or lenders hunting for good quality business.

 

 

Nigel Osgood on 01628 636360 ext. 257 nigel@afpmortgages.co.uk

 

www.afpmortgages.co.uk – Winners – ‘TOP UK MORTGAGE IFA 2007’ – The annual awards ceremony sponsored by Legal & General and Mortgage Solutions Magazine

 

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage



Sell House Quick

Spanish property for sale – finding YOURS

Spain is medium sized country with population thinly spread out throught the entire country. There is vast streches of hilly areas which over look the sea and have become a best location to build villas. These hills have their own water supply and hence it comes a feasible location for building a township or a villa as per the requirements of the customer. The speciality of these areas are that they are a short distance away from the main city. This adds special feature to the hilly locations. They have the peace of the hills and are easily accessible from the main city. Other an the hills, most of he apartments have a own community swimming pool and independent villas of course have their own swimming pools.

Finding a Spanish property for sale that fits the family wishes and requirements can be a daunting task.

First you have to ask what kind of Spanish property for sale that are you looking for. This includes searching for suitable areas, price range, property type etc. This takes some thinking and discussing over the family dinners and also researching Spanish property for sale over the Internet. You will find many a lot of Spanish properties for sale, but more importantly you will get an understanding of the Spanish market. Also, you can find other people who have already found their homes, and some of them share their experiences.

Make contact with the estate agent who has the Spanish property for sale you would like have more information about. This can be done from home, and you should also take time to speak to the agent on the phone (ask them to call you) to find out if the agent understands your wishes and requirements. There are many agents who will show you any Spanish property for sale, but take your time, and if it doesn’t work with the first agent, then just call the next one.

The real estate agent assists you in finding a Spanish property for sale

Typically an agent will be escorting you on the viewing trip to see the any Spanish property for sale you have asked for and explain about the areas where they are located. The viewings are always arranged on a “one to one” basis, where you are the only client. The same agent will support you from start to finish, saving you the stress, and time, and hassle re-explaining your wishes and requirements. It is important to come to a decision with peace of mind and at your own pace. The buying procedure and how to obtain a mortgage will also be explained on the viewing tour if needed.

We found our “Dream Home” – support please!

A thorough step-by-step walk through of the buying process is often required, including the legal aspects of buying a property in Spain. An agent should go through different options on how to get the mortgage in place, and should visit one or more banks with you.

After having bought the Spanish property for sale where are looking for, the agent should be your contact to the Spanish, and assist you with renting, renovation work or any other help needed with your property.



Rent Back

In the aftermath of the recent Northern Rock crisis many property experts are now warning of the risk of a 1990’s style property crash in the future, although they put the chances of this actually occurring at 10 percent. Whereas these same experts had previously predicted continued increases in property prices, this change of tact in property price predictions is due not only to the events at Northern Rock, but also due to what has happened recently in the sub-prime lending market in the United States, as well as the seemingly endless increases seen in UK property prices.

However, Simon Rubinsohn, chief economist at the Royal Institution of Chartered surveyors told Reuters that while talk of a “crash” was legitimate and not irresponsible, homeowners were unlikely to see a repeat of the previous slump. Rubinsohn had previously predicted further increases in prices over the next 12 to 15 months, estimating growth of around 3 percent. Now, however, he is forecasting a flattening of prices across the same time period.

The huge increase in property prices seen throughout the UK over the past few years has made its share of the headlines – highlighting the need for more housing in the country. Property news and price forecasts have driven people towards making decisions regarding buying and selling their homes and investment properties and we are likely to see this new prediction change the property market yet again.

The number of people buying property to rent has already been subject to increase and these numbers are only likely to climb even higher in response to the latest news regarding the fall of property prices. Rubinsohn predicts London property will have the greatest likelihood of experiencing a drop in prices, claiming that were was a 20 percent chance of a decline in property prices in the City – possibly as much as 10 percent. As a result, many homeowners who have recently sold their properties are now hedging their bets on further price reductions, while in the meantime renting properties as they wait to purchase property at an even lower rate.

Renting accommodation allows these people who have recently sold their property to sample life in a new area, town or city. Furthermore, many people who have recently sold their property have been placing their profits into savings accounts in order to take advantage of high rates of interest currently on offer through banks – often generating a sizeable income while waiting for the perfect opportunity to reinvest in the property market.

If the drop in prices of property for sale in London and across the country does occur, it will also give hope to many people who have previously been out of reach of the property ladder as prices and deposits will be lower than before.



Quick House Sale

This is the first and probably the most fundamental strategy that you will begin with. It is used for those without sufficient experience in the buy to let market.

In a nutshell it works like this: once you are in a position to invest simply buy one or two properties and then stop. The one or two properties will allow you to experience the process of buying, finding tenants, dealing with agents, arranging mortgages and every other aspect of the property process.

Throughout this process its important to have someone who can answer all of your questions and guide you through the process. But the true power in this strategy is not in the practical side of investing, although this is important. It lies in its ability to allow you to mentally and emotionally develop or accept that you are now a landlord, an investor.

I had a client who had payed his property off a long time ago, he earned around £20,000 per year income so he never thought that he could build a significant portfolio. Over the years his home doubled, doubled again, and doubled twice more. This left him with a considerable amount of equity that he wasn’t making use of.

His first time speaking with me, he mentioned that for a long time he knew that he had to do something but for years had lived in fear of using his equity, worrying that if he invested and couldn’t find tenants, if property prices crash and all of the other beginning investors issues.

These fears were spawned out of a lack of correct education. So the important thing to do is replace the old outdated beliefs with a new set of aligned beliefs. The reason we stop after two is to let your emotional state catch up with your portfolio. If you did continue building the portfolio you would invariably stumble or the stress would become too much.

The only thing to consider now is how long to stop for. This is totally dependent on you. Don’t continue investing until you are ready. In saying this, if you’re a year down the track and you haven’t started you may be resting in your comfort zone. This is where the assistance of an experienced portfolio manager can ensure you move onto the next step.



Quick Property Sale

Your home, given as security to a lender, is not sufficient for ensuring low cost on a secured loan. You should be taking different aspects of a secured loan into account in order to ensure a suitable deal, if low cost is the prime motive. Low cost secured loans make it possible to borrow money in such a way that repaying the loan is seldom a burden on your finances. Clearly, you can meet variety of expenses towards home improvements, wedding, holiday tour, buying a car with less cost involved. You can also use the loan for debt consolidation purpose.

Interest and lender’s fees make cost of a loan. Therefore for a low cost loan it is to be ensured that interest rate is low and lender’s fee also is reduced to minimum. So we can say that low cost secured loans are those loans which have low rate of interest and the lender have little additional fees.

Secured loans are usually of lower interest rate as these loans are less risky for lenders on taking borrower’s home or any other asset as collateral. But interest cost on a secured loan will be reduced when you go for Annual Percentage Rate [APR]. Apart from usual interest rate, APR also includes variety of fees that the lenders charge on processing loans. So it is not just simple interest rate, but you must look for a low APR. Lenders display their interest rate on secured loans which more or less is almost the same. You should therefore ask secured loans lender to show their additional fees as well. Compare these fees or charges for finding a low APR. This way you can avail Low Cost Secured Loans.

There are ways to reduce the rate of interest also. For instance, the rate gets further reduced if you take a secured loan against equity in home. Such a loan is safer for the lender. If you borrow an amount that is way below than collateral value than also the rate is lowered further. Your excellent or good credit history also can fetch you a low rate of interest on secured loans.

Online lenders usually have competitive rate secured loans offers. So they should be given preference for low cost secured loans aver banks and financial institutions who charge higher rates with additional fees. Ensure making extensive comparisons of low cost secured loans lenders so that you seal the best deal.



Quick House Sale

Apprehending instant secured loan

Instant secured loan is generally meant for those peoples who are in an urgent need of money and are crippled to obtain the same. This loan provides you with money without any delay. You just have to apply for it and in case of approval; money is there for your disposal within no time.

Loan amount varies from £ 500 to £ 100,000 which depends on the security which you have placed as collateral. Loan term ranges from 1 to 25 years depending upon the loan amount. You should always search for a lender which suits you best, that who can lend you money faster with a cheaper rate than others. There is a risk involvement in case of such loans as in case of failure to repay lender is liable to seize the collateral placed as security.

Advantages of instant secured loans

First of all the main advantage of is that they provide you money at the time you need it the most. Moreover, the rate of interest is also quite low due to collateral part involved with them. The onus you have to shoulder is to find a genuine and compatible lender and apply for the loan. In order to attain these loans, going online is a viable option where you can find all the requirements easily at one place only which further saves a lot of your time and money. Online facility available with them makes your task further easier as the processing goes easier with this facility.

Secured loan provided in an instant can be used to serve any kind of need such as business applications, purchasing any valuables etc. The only thing you should keep in hindsight is the repayment. You should make it sure to repay the loan within time else the results can be detrimental for future financial transaction.

Summary

Instant secured loans serves you best if you are in an urgent need of money. Loan amount varies from £ 500 to £ 100,000. Loan term can be 25 years. You can search for a better lender on internet. Online facility available with them eases your transactions. Bad creditors are also provided such loans.



Quick Property Sale