Coldwell Banker M&D Good Life is proud to announce our 3rd office opening; formerly Coldwell Banker Bellbrook; our 3rd new office location is 66 Medford Avenue, Patchogue. More experienced agents, more online resources and more connections! Don’t forget our other locations in Moriches & Shirley.

Print out the flyer below and have fun coloring. Drop off your art work at one of our locations 1 Montauk Hwy, Moriches or 850 Montauk Hwy, Shirley for a chance to win.

 Posted By The KCM Crew On November 9, 2011

Last week, Fannie Mae released their National Housing Survey for the third quarter of 2011. They survey the American public on a multitude of questions concerning today’s housing market. Each quarter, we like to pull out some of the findings we deem most interesting. Here they are for the most recent report:

Most Important Reasons to Buy a Home

The study shows that the four major reasons a person buys a home have nothing to do with money. The top four reasons, in order, are:

• It means having a good place to raise children and provide them with a good education
• You have a physical structure where you and your family feel safe
• It allows you to have more space for your family
• It gives you control of what you do with your living space (renovations and updates)

When we talk about homeownership today, it seems that the financial aspects always jump to the front of the discussion. There is no doubt that families must justify a home purchase from a financial point of view today. However, the reasons they actually buy are the same reasons our parents and grandparents purchased their home – to create a better lifestyle for their families.  

The Home as an Investment

Though most people purchase a home for non-financial reasons, everyone realizes there is a money component to homeownership. Here is what they said on this issue:

• 64% of the general population (and 69% of homeowners) believe that homeownership is a ‘safe’ investment.
• 55% believe that homeownership has more potential as an investment than any other traditional asset class.
• 68% think that now is a good time to buy a home  

Rent vs. Buy

We are always interested in the difference people see in renting vs. owning.

• 63% of renters have aspirations to someday own their own home
• 70% of renters think that owning is superior to renting
• 96% of homeowners see homeownership as a positive experience (4% see it as a negative experience) while 83% of renters see renting as a positive experience (15% see it as a negative experience)
• 97% of homeowners live in a single family residence while 53% of renters live in a multi-unit building

Bottom Line

Even in these difficult times, Americans still realize the value of homeownership both from a financial and social standpoint.

Information provided by: http://www.kcmblog.com

THE PUBLIC TO HELP FIGHT HUNGER

Realtors Against Hunger (RAH) collecting donations of non perishable food items

Coldwell Banker M&D Good Life is joining the Long Island Board of Realtors® (LIBOR) initiative, Realtors® Against Hunger, to fight hunger in our local communities. Realtors® Against Hunger (RAH) will be collecting donations of non perishable food items from September 1st – December 31st. During that time period, the public is encouraged to drop off canned and dry food donations at Coldwell Banker M&D Good Life, 1 Montauk Highway, Moriches & 850 Montauk Highway, Shirley between the hours of 9am to 5pm. This collection drive will support efforts to provide food to hundreds of local food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters and other programs that feed the hungry. LIBOR is working with several strategic partners to ensure proper distribution of food to outlets in Nassau, Suffolk and Queens Counties. “With more than 300,000 children and adults facing hunger or potential malnutrition in the region the Long Island Board of Realtors must respond to the needs of our communities, especially in these difficult times,” said Liz English, LIBOR President.

Realtors® Against Hunger (RAH) is part of the Long Island Board of Realtor®’s “We’re More Than Realtors®” initiative that supports numerous programs and charitable community organizations. A kick-off celebration for the campaign will be hosted at Bethpage Ballpark in Islip at the start of the Long Island Ducks baseball game.

Food donations can be brought to Realtor Service Centers in Jackson Heights, West Babylon, Riverhead and Woodbury as well as local Realtor offices such as Coldwell Banker M&D Good Life. “We cannot stand by and watch our communities struggle. The impact of the economy and the escalating cost of fuel and other challenges is negatively impacting families throughout Long Island. Many families must now choose between paying for a tank of gas to get to work or feeding their family. We will work diligently to help our communities by filling these pantries and making an impact in the fight against hunger here on Long Island,” explained Kate Koplinka, Coldwell Banker M&D Good Life.

LIBOR is the largest local Realtor^® Board in the Country with ten Chapters covering the North Shore, South Shore and Central areas of Nassau, Suffolk and Queens Counties.

Short Sale vs. Foreclosure: A Short Sale Always Wins

by Christopher Reale on October 4, 2011

We are again honored to have Christopher Reale, Director of Short Sale Operations at Lepizzera and Laprocina Title and Escrow Services, as today’s guest blogger. He is an expert on the short sale process and will share his knowledge with us on a regular basis. – The KCM Crew

Today’s ever changing real estate industry has brought upon some very challenging questions from our clients. We as counselors, want to put forth the best, non-emotional advice that we can, in hopes that we can help our clients and their families navigate the rough waters of the short sale process.

The most prevalent question and one that continues to permeate the industry is:

“Why should a seller go through the short sale process rather than letting their house be foreclosed upon?” 

While we cannot speak to every client circumstance, we can say one thing with complete conviction.  In almost all instances in which a potential seller is contemplating whether they should short sell their house or let it go through the foreclosure process, a short sale is the better option. The following are examples to consider:

Example A- Short Sale

Mr. Smith owns a home in which he has a mortgage balance of $220,000 and a current market value of $150,000. Mr. Smith has elected to short sell his property. His Realtor successfully obtains a buyer who puts forth an offer price of $120,000 (80% current market value according to Realty Trac Foreclosure Report 5/26/2011). After reviewing the buyers offer and the financial hardship information from Mr. Smith, Mr Smith’s bank agrees to accept the short payoff of $120,000 which would leave a deficiency balance of $100,000.

The transaction closes and is final.  Mr. Smith then pulls his credit report 30 days after the transaction takes place. On the report he notices that the mortgage trade line states “Mortgage debt was settled for less than full” and the balance on the mortgage is $0.  Mr. Smith is now on the road to financial recovery.

Example B- Foreclosure

For the ease of illustration we will use the same value and mortgage debt amounts as in Example A. However, Mr. Smith has elected to forgo the short sale process and let the bank foreclose on the property.  The bank holding his mortgage facilitates the proper legal procedures to foreclose on the property, all of which are costly.  Mr. Smith is notified and his property foreclosed upon of which is taken back by the bank to sell as an REO.

Six months later, the bank finally sells Mr. Smith’s home only they sell it for $90,000 (60% of current market value according to Realty Trac Foreclosure report dated 5/26/2011). Remember, as a short sale, the home would have sold for $120,000 keeping the deficiency to $100,000. In addition to the deficiency now being $130,000, the bank has elected to add on legal costs of $15,000 and asset preservation costs of another $5000 for a total deficiency liability of $150,000. Mr. Smith pulls his credit report 30 days after being notified that the bank has sold his property and of his liability.

On the report he notices that the mortgage trade line states “Foreclosure” and the balance is $150,000. Because of Mr Smith’s choice to choose foreclosure vs. short sale his road to financial recovery has taken a major detour. He not only has a foreclosure on his credit report but now has a much larger deficiency balance in which the bank, in most cases, will report on his credit report as a balance owed.

The Best Option is Clear

While the financial and credit advantages are clear when choosing a short sale over a foreclosure, other advantages are sometimes overlooked. The most important of all of them is maintaining the seller’s dignity and peace of mind. We have heard too many stories of families having to leave their homes because of a Sheriff’s order or some other type of legal action. The short sale process alleviates this negative social impact. The process puts the control back in the seller’s hands so that they can get back on the road to financial recovery and start providing for their families. In the battle of the two evils, a short sale always wins!!!

Information provided by: http://www.kcmblog.com

We welcome Edwin Roman, a seasoned agent from another prominent company to our Coldwell Banker M&D Good Life team! Eddie brings market knowledge, sales skills and considers himself an expert agent.  Buying or Selling? Let Ed’s familiarity with this ever changing market work for you!

by The KCM Crew on July 18, 2011

                                                                                                                                                     There have been some bright spots in the residential real estate market over the last couple of months. Several price indices have reported a stabilization of prices and some regions have even shown small levels of appreciation. This has led some to believe that we may have reached a bottom for home values. We must realize that what we are actually experiencing is a ‘window of opportunity’ as the banks are delayed in bringing certain inventories of distressed properties to the market. Let’s look at what others are reporting:

Bloomberg Businessweek

“The crux of Simon’s analysis is that the loose lending practices seen during the housing bubble allowed 5 million renters to become homeowners, and that the market is in the protracted process of evicting this group. He believes housing prices will decline 6 percent to 8 percent nationally, with 6 million to 7 million more foreclosures yet to come.”

Yahoo Finance

“The problem with the real estate market remains excess inventory. Based on Shilling’s research, there are 2 million to 2.5 million excess homes in the country — a supply that will take 4-5 years to work-off. The result: Housing prices will fall another 20% and underwater mortgages will balloon from 23% to 40%, he says.”

Housing Wire

“Both warmer weather and the drop in distressed sales percentage have contributed to recent home price improvements. However, given the disappointing pace in housing demand recovery, both factors may turn against us in the coming winter and push home prices lower again…

This supply-demand imbalance affirmed JPMorgan analysts’ estimate of a further 4% drop in home prices from the first quarter of 2011 to a new bottom next year.”

DS News

“Home prices have gotten a little bit of a boost in recent months thanks to a seasonal uptick in market activity. Most analysts, however, expect further declines to characterize the later part of the year and possibly extend into next year, largely because of the huge supply of foreclosures on the market.”

Bottom Line

If you are thinking of selling in the next twelve months, you would probably do much better if you sold your house sooner rather than later.

Information provided by:  http://kcmblog.com