Until your home sells to a willing buyer and the sale is closed, nobody knows for sure how much your home is really worth. But there are three methods that will help guesstimate your home’s fair market value until you actually close the sale. Internet market-value estimates. Don’t laugh! In the last few years, computerized Internet market-value estimates for houses and condominiums have become remarkably accurate. My first experience with an Internet appraisal was three years ago when I obtained a home equity credit line secured by my vacation-home condo. I estimated it was worth $125,000 at the time. But Wells Fargo Bank used a computerized appraisal to determine the market value was $150,000 so they approved a $100,000 credit line without a formal appraisal.

Today, homeowners can obtain free Internet market-value estimates from several sources. The newest is at www.Zillow.com. This advertiser-driven Web site seems quite accurate, based on several properties I entered where I am familiar with their market values. However, Zillow doesn’t yet cover the entire nation so don’t be disappointed if your home isn’t included. What I found especially amazing is Zillow includes, in most situations, an aerial photo of the property and even the lot boundary lines! In another situation where I entered a condominium along with the value estimate, Zillow included a map showing the precise location. (more…)

search for : fair market value, computerized Internet market-value, home equity credit line, vacation-home condo, Wells Fargo Bank, www.Zillow.com

America is facing a crisis when it comes to electricity. But also a tremendous opportunity. The forces that put us here look grim. Energy prices are high, supplies are increasingly tight, and anxiety is growing about climate change. But that dark outlook is driving consumers, utilities and public officials to finally take advantage of innovations that could radically reshape the nation’s power consumption without lowering the standard of living.

Most urgent, of course, is the skyrocketing demand for electricity — and the tightening supply. Many parts of the country set new records for electricity use in July and August, which sent a warning signal to officials that they have little time to act. Conservation seems a much more feasible solution than quickly building dozens of new power plants to add generating capacity — especially if reducing emissions is a goal. The fact that the nation’s energy bill totaled $296 billion last year, up nearly 50% from 1993, also provides impetus. We’ve also gotten smarter about saving energy. New technology makes it possible to build more-efficient hardware without breaking the bank. And public officials now have much better data to draw on when they plan conservation efforts. They know what’s worked in the past and can build on that success. (more…)

search for : Energy prices, power consumption, standard of living

A weekend exposition will showcase a hot trend in home building — the high-end log home. Tim Dearman is particularly passionate about log homes. Dearman just finished building his log home in Avery Park, which he’s now selling. “It’s almost depressing when you realize a dream,” he said, adding that he and his wife, Cindy, have already designed the plans and purchased the land for their next “dream” log home.

Log homes are built primarily with unplaned logs, which provide good insulation and give the home a cozy, rustic feel. Timber framing uses natural wood as well, but the wood has been cut and planed, is only exposed on the interior of the home, and feels a bit more elegant, Wertheim said. The craftsmanship of both styles is part of what attracts people to these houses. Timber framing uses post and beam and mortise and tendon-pegged construction. This authentic craftsmanship attracts a certain type of person,” Wertheim said. “They’re typically active, outdoorsy, attracted to nature.” Buyers also are typically older and building second or retirement homes, Wertheim said. The majority of his clients are older than 50. (more…)

search for : log home, Timber framing

Qualifying for a loan on a second home is easer than it was just five year ago and “two houses are better than one” is now the thinking among a growing number of homeowners. These days, one of the hottest segments of the real estate market is for second homes. Several factors have driven this burgeoning second home market, including housing price appreciation and the favorable interest rate environment of the last several years. What’s at the core of the trend, however, are easier financing options and an aging baby boomer population seeking more spending outlets.

As recently as five or six years ago, extra hurdles got in the way of hassle-free financing of that second property. Lenders often viewed second homes as a higher risk, meaning buyers had to pay slightly higher interest rates and fees and larger down payments. Today, the guidelines of financing that secondary home nearly mirror those of a primary residence as lenders adapt to changing demographics with the help of sophisticated technology that better assess buyer risk. Such tools enable lenders to offer new home loan programs to address the buyer’s needs. Interestingly enough, five to 10 percent down payment is common in second homes. There are a couple of strategies that have been considered by buyers looking to keep their cash liquid and not tied up in a second-home transaction. Tapping into the available equity from a primary home with a cash out refinance loan, especially if the rate is low enough on a first lien refinance mortgage, is one way to fund a down payment on the second home. (more…)

search for : second home, homeowners, interest rate, financing, down payment

Seven U.S. real estate brokerage firms unfairly blocked some home sellers from their listing service, the Federal Trade Commission said Thursday.The FTC settled its case against five of the real estate brokerage firms and is suing two more for “anticompetitive rules or polices.” The brokerages withheld access to a valuable real estate listing service if the seller did not sign up for a wide range of brokerage services, the FTC said. That action limited consumers’ ability “to obtain low-cost real estate brokerage services,” the FTC said in a statement.

Under traditional listing agreements, property owners appoint a real estate broker to act as an exclusive agent and pays when the property is sold. An alternative, and typically less costly, arrangement preserves the property owner’s right to sell without extensive help from the broker. The FTC faulted the named brokerage firms for denying full listing services to sellers who sought this alternative arrangement. There are several hundred such real estate brokerage listing services around the country that dominate the regions they serve, said Jeff Schmidt, director of the commission’s Competition Bureau. “The value they provide can sometimes be abused,” Schmidt said, and the FTC has several more such investigations “in the pipeline.”
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search for : real estate brokerage firms, Federal Trade Commission, real estate listing service, low-cost real estate brokerage services

Fall is already in the air, which means that another chilly winter can’t be too far behind. So before the cold weather arrives and you snuggle up indoors again, here’s your annual homeowner maintenance checklist of things to do to get your home ready for the change of season.

Check smoke detectors: Please don’t neglect that smoke detector any longer! Take some time right now to check the operation of detectors and to change the batteries. If you have an older house with a limited number of smoke detectors, you really need to install some additional ones. Battery-powered smoke detectors are inexpensive and very easy to install, so add one to each bedroom and make sure there is one centrally located on each level of the home as well. Install a carbon monoxide detector:A fire is not the only danger you can face inside your home. As houses get closed up for winter, the chances of carbon monoxide poisoning from malfunctioning gas appliances increases substantially. If you have a furnace, fireplace, water heater or other appliance that is fueled by propane or natural gas, now is the ideal time to install a carbon monoxide detector. They’re available inexpensively from many home centers and retailers of heating system supplies, they’re an easy do-it-yourself installation, and they can truly be a lifesaver! (more…)

search for : homeowner maintenance checklist, Battery-powered smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detector