Free List Of Bank Owned, REO Properties For The Big Bear Valley, Week Of Jan 24, 2009
This is the current list of Bank Owned, REO properties for sale in The Big Bear Valley for the week of January 24, 2009. If
you would like your own personalized Big Bear Real Estate list emailed to you on a weekly basis, simply call
me or send me a email. My email is tony@tonycard.com and my phone number is 909 866-3481.
Due to the fact that the mortgage has reset, many people in the Big Bear Valley are trying
to sell their homes rather than face foreclosure. In a lot of cases, the home owner owes the bank more than the house
is worth and as a result, can't refinance the home. If the home owner goes ahead and sells his Big Bear property
short of what he owes, he has a couple of options. The first is to make up the difference at closing and the second
is to ask the bank to take a loss. If the bank agrees to take less than is owed, then you are selling the property short.
Currently, there are 86 homes for sale in the Big Bear Multiple listings Service being offered as short sales.
Short Sales normally take a long time to work their way through the process. This statement can NOT
be underestimated. If you plan to enter into negotiations on a short sale, you need to be prepared for a long escrow.
Here is just one of many examples that I can share with you. A great little
cabin came on the market as a short sale over in the Sugarloaf area of the Big Bear Valley for $125,000.00. I told my
client that if you could get the cabin for that price, it would be a steal. Needless to say, when I contacted the listing
agent about the property, I was told that there was an accepted offer on it. My client moved on and we started
looking at other homes. In early November of 2008, the agent called to tell me that the bank had told her that they
would accept $140,000.00 for the house and the other offer had fallen through. Even at $140,000.00, this
property was still a good deal. My client wrote an offer and we submitted it on November 9, 2008. At that time,
I warned him that he would need to exercise patience as this would probably take a long time. We are now in the last
days of January and we are still waiting. It now looks like after 80 days of waiting, we should be in escrow in a few
days.
This is very typical of a short sale. If you chose to go the route
of a short sale, plan to have your patience challenged. The up side to all of this is that you can walk away with a
good deal on a cabin in Big Bear.
Besides the 86 homes being offered as short
sales, there are 69 bank owned properties currently listed in the Big Bear Multiple listing Service. If you are looking
to take advantage of the fantastic prices currently being offered on the Bank Owned and Short Sale properties in Big Bear,
please give me a call or send me an email.
Big Bear Bank Owned, REO List for January 18, 2009
This is the current list of Bank Owned, REO properties for sale in The Big Bear Valley for the week of January 18, 2009. If
you would like your own personalized Big Bear Real Estate list emailed to you on a weekly basis, simply call
me or send me a email. My email is tony@tonycard.com and my phone number is 909 866-3481.
It seems
that we can’t escape it.Every time we pick up the newspaper, turn on the news, or surf the internet,
we are always hearing about the home foreclosures.It wasn’t too long after the foreclosures over
took the headlines that you started hearing about loan modifications.In an effort to stop the avalanche
of foreclosures, lenders started to take a look at the adjustable rate mortgages.In many cases, the root
cause of many of the foreclosures started with the adjustable rate mortgage.
I’ve been selling Real Estate in Big Bear since 2003 and I
can’t count how many of the deals I did where done with adjustable rate mortgages.Why not?The rate of appreciation in Big Bear was double digit and the turnover was averaging 18 months.A
good example of what I am talking about is this.I sold a cabin that was located very close to Snow Summit
to a buyer for $395,000.00 in December of 2003.I sold that same cabin 18 months later for $495,000.This was a case of a buyer taking advantage of the adjustable rate mortgage and it working out well for him.The people who bought in 2005 and 2006, who took the lower payment with the adjustable rate mortgage, with plans to
refinance before the mortgage reset are the ones in trouble now.These are the people who find that they
can’t afford their Big Bear cabin now that the mortgage has reset.They can’t refinance the
cabin because the market has fallen and they owe more on the cabin than it is worth.
When the mortgage lenders started doing the loan
modifications they targeted these types of loans.They wanted to help these people get into a mortgage
that they could afford.
Let’s look at the home owner who has never missed a mortgage payment in his life, but wants
to take advantage of the historically low interest rates.In most cases, the idea of refinance is out of
the question because you are upside down on your loan.So, what can be done?Simply
ask your mortgage company for a loan modification.This may sound silly, but trust me, it works.I found myself in the situation where I was paying too much each month in interest.With the mortgage
rates as low as they were, I wanted to take advantage of it.So, I called my lender and asked for a loan
modification. It took about 30 days to get it all handled but once it was over, it cost me nothing
out of my pocket, the only term that changed was my interest rate.They didn’t reset the loan to
30 years; they didn’t add a prepayment penalty.They simply lowered my interest rate and I saved
a lot of money.
In
closing, if you want to try and lower your payment, simply pick up the phone and call your mortgage lender and ask for help.You just might be surprised.
Bank Owned, REO Listings for Big Bear, Dated January 12, 2009
This is the Bank Owned, REO list for the Big Bear Valley as of January 12, 2009. There are a lot of other
homes for sale in Big Bear besides the bank owned, REO listings. If you would like to see a list of properties
besides the bank owned REO listings, simply click here. This will take you to one of my search engines and will allow you to look at the current inventory of homes in Big
Bear. As always, feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns. My email is tony@tonycard.com.
Over Pricing Your Big Bear Property Will Cost You A Lot Of Money
Three months ago,
I took a listing on a clean 1 bedroom cabin in the east end of the Big Bear Valley.The problem is that
I took the listing at to high a price.After previewing the cabin, I suggested a list price of $99,000.At that time, there were very few, if any homes for sale priced under $100,000 and I believe that it would have sold
quickly at that price.The sad thing is that the property owner didn’t listen to me and insisted
that I list the cabin with some “cushion” built in.Over time, the seller has given me price
reductions, but never what I’ve asked for.
Here we sit, some three months later and guess what?That’s
right, the cabin has not sold.The property owner has reduced the price to what I wanted to start with
but that price has past.Three months ago, there were no homes under $100,000. for sale in Big Bear.Today there are a dozen homes in the Big Bear Valley that are priced under $100,000.Three months
ago, his place would have sold very quickly.Today, he has a lot of competition and if he is serious about
selling the property, it will need to reduce another $20,000 in order to stand out as being a good value.
It does the seller in
Big Bear NO GOOD to over price his or her home in today’s market.The buyers of
today are looking for properties that make good financial sense. For the home owner to sell his house in Big Bear, he must
price his home so that it stands out as the best value when compared to the bank owned, REO properties.The
days of impulse buys are long gone.The days of pricing their cabin 10% higher than the competition are
also long gone.Buyers are looking for a good investment and they are not buying until they find it.
The biggest mistakes sellers make in
a buyers market like we have today is trying to price their houses with a "cushion" in the asking price for negotiation
room. In the current market where most sellers find themselves, it's all back to price, condition and location.
Pricing the house from the start
is the first offensive strike the seller possesses in his arsenal. The best way to determine price in our market is to start
looking at two categories of real estate: solds and actives.
Properties that have sold in the last 30 days provide you a picture of what price range pulled in offers
60 days ago. By looking over those properties, you'll know if you're headed in the right direction with your price.
Then, after seeing what's pulled in offers, look at where the competition is priced -- and price lower than the lowest
price. If the trend is headed downward over the last 12 months the motivated seller will get in front of that price trend
and sell for less than everyone.
This can
be an emotional ordeal for sellers. The seller who approaches the sales price of a house like the asking price of a used car
-- where negotiation and give-and-take is expected -- will also be calling the movers sooner and get through the transaction
with the least amount of emotional turmoil.
Condition is the second part of this equation that sellers have control over in today's market.
Folks,you may have an older cabin, but it's got to look new. Period. Here are the steps that
MUST be taken for a successful sale.
New paint. Everywhere. Don't
leave one room unpainted. Paint is the cheapest, yet most effective way to give a house a face lift.
New carpet/flooring.
These additions along with fresh paint makes people drop open their mouths with, "Wow."Why do
you think some of the banks won’t list their properties until they have been painted and had new carpet installed.
Replace
the small things. It's the attention to detail that can make a big difference for the buyers. New faucets throughout,
new hardware on the doors, and new switches/plugs/plates take the house from just "cleaned up" to new.
Deep
clean. I always have to mention this because a lot of sellers still just don't get it. It's still amazing to me how
many people will leave a house in the "un-" condition. Unvacuumed, undusted, unwashed. Invite friends over for a
deep cleaning or hire it out. This is a must, no questions asked.
Do you do windows? Well, somebody better.
Get all the windows cleaned and caulked. The house may look great from the inside, but if you can't look outside because
of the dusty film over the glass, steps 1 - 4 could be for naught.
Finally, location is what buyers are looking for.You need to know
what the homes in your area are selling for.Price your home based off of those numbers.If
you live in Big Bear City, you can’t base the asking price off of homes for sale in the City of Big Bear Lake.
While you may not be able to do anything about the location
of your cabin, you can definitely put a positive on the good things that surround your location.Examples
might be that you are close to Hwy 38, or minutes from the ski slopes. Near Hwy 38 could mean that your cabin is next to big
highway, but for some who commute up and down the hill, being located close to the main road can be a big plus. After all,
they just want to get home quick after work.In this case, having your cabin near Hwy 38 is going to be
a benefit -- but only if you market it that way.
All of this being said, it’s all about price.If you don’t
price it right, it is not going to sell.
Big Bear Bank Owned, REO Listings for the week of January 4, 2009
So many of you have emailed me and asked for lists of the current bank owned, REO properties
that are for sale in the Big Bear Valley. Because of the interest in the bank owned, REO properties in Big Bear, I will
be updating my REO blog every Sunday. If you would like to be added to my weekly REO mailer, simply contact me with
your name, phone number and email address. As always, you can contact me by phone at 909 436-8043 or email, tony@tonycard.comwith any questions about REO property in the Big Bear Valley.
The search has ended and you found the perfect cabin in Big Bear. The negotiations are over,
the inspection is history, and the long and stressful escrow period has closed. Now comes the tough part, it's time to
move.
Even though you have spent many weekends in Big Bear, the thought of moving can be an especially
stressful time. So many details to oversee, children and pets to think of, the tension that comes with leaving family and
friends, and the thought of starting your life over in a new community where you don't know anyone.
The
summer months are the most popular times for moves, usually so a child's school year isn't interrupted. While preparing
a child for the big move is important, it's equally important that you keep your cool, stay organized, and present the
upcoming move as a positive thing.
Recently, I read an article by Joe Harrison, president of the American
Moving and Storage Association, that states that moving is usually one of the most stressful events in a person's life,
ranked as high as the death of a loved one or divorce. But like so many other things that come up in our lives, taking
the time to plan the move will be very helpful. You will find that by taking the time to plan your move to Big Bear,
it will help you make your move a lot less stressful.
One of the best ways to do that is to stay organized
and use countdown checklists, such as the ones below.
One month before the move:
Review
your moving arrangements. Will the moving company deliver your belongings if it is snowing
Start a log of moving
expense receipts.
Get estimates from moving companies.
Arrange for storage facility.
Arrange transport
service for vehicles or pets, if needed.
Contact your bank, arrange transfer of accounts.
Submit change-of-address forms to the U.S. Postal Service. The majority of homes in Big Bear use P.O. Boxes
Give day care
provider notice that you will be withdrawing your child.
Contact new schools, arrange for transfer of records.
Contact
your doctors. Get referrals for new physicians.
Change your property, auto, and medical insurance policies.
Organize
important documents in a fire-safe box.
Cancel newspaper subscriptions. Change your address on magazine subscriptions.
Arrange for temporary housing, if needed.
Two weeks before the move:
Hold
a garage sale to get rid of the things you don't want to take to Big Bear.
Arrange for disconnection of
services. Big Bear has its own utility companies.
Take measurements of rooms in your new house. Try to
determine where furniture will be placed.
Begin packing things that aren't used on a daily basis.
Try
not to buy anymore perishable food items.
One week before the move:
Make an inventory
list of all items going with you personally.
Confirm arrangements and dates with moving and storage companies.
Inform
friends and relatives of your new address.
Have your cleaning supplies ready.
Pack yard and shed items.
Confirm arrangements with auto and pet transportation companies.
One to two days before the
move:
Clean and defrost the refrigerator and freezer.
Close bank accounts.
Purchase
traveler's checks, if needed.
Finish all financial matters relating to the sale or lease of your home.
Finish
packing all your belongings.
Moving day:
Confirm delivery address, directions and
delivery date with movers.
Supervise the move. Make sure boxes are clearly marked.
Thoroughly clean your
house or apartment before leaving.
Check thermostat. Make sure doors are closed and locked and appliances are turned
off. Leave garage door openers and keys with new owners or renters, if necessary.
Make sure your real estate agent
knows how to contact you.
Arrival day
Make sure all utilities are functioning.
Let
family and friends know you have arrived safely.
Begin unpacking necessities.
Let your kids begin unpacking
and getting their rooms together.
And lastly, kick your feet up, relax, and enjoy living in the Big Bear Valley!
As a member of Chuck Hurd's Real Estate Group, my goal is to demonstrate that professionalism truly
exists in the real estate industry, and my commitment is to prove this with every time we speak. Please enjoy my site,
and please don't hesitate to contact me if I can assist you in any way.