openkentuckiana.com

Hello Everyone!!! David and I are excited about the launch of openkentuckiana.com

We started this site to make it easier for everyone in the community to search homes and ask questions. Instead of aimlessly sending questions and not knowing who will actually be answering them, all questions will come directly to myself or David Fonseca. We will answer all inquiries directly and honestly.

The site of course  is in its infancy stage, so bugs and glitches are expected but will be fixed as we notice them.

The idea behind the site came when speaking with some clients who mentioned that there isnt an easy site to find a list home open homes, so they could go look leisurely around with the feeling of  ”pressure to buy” from an agent. This along with lots of calls about rentals led us to believe this site was needed.

We are currently gathering information for rentals and will have them available on the site soon. We know the real estate market is “back” yet, but it is trending upward. We just want to be here to help you along the way. So please check out the site, and contact us about any questions regarding real estate you may have.

11523 Forest Hill Circle

If not for a fellow agent feeling under the weather I would have never met these wonderful sellers. I was out running errands with my wife when I received a call to show a home. I was unshaven, wearing a ballcap and in some pretty casual clothing at the time I agreed to meet a couple to show a home in New Albany. I was pleasantly surprised when it to turned into an offer and listing presentation. I was blown away when I finally had a chance to step into there home.

I could sit out on this porch all day long.

Very lovely custom glass on the front entrance.

Great design of this kitchen and dinning area

Large living room and open floor plan give this home a nice flow.

You can not imagine how much storage space is in this home.

The current owner uses this area as a workshop. Probably the most organized person I’ve ever met.

This home wont be on the market long. If you are on the fence about it don’t blink. This neighborhood sold quickly. This to be on the market is very rare.

Learning Curve(Communication)

So far the best advice I’ve been given from another agent  is answer the phone. I am amazed when trying to schedule showings for potential clients at the number of agents who either don’t answer or just flat out do not respond. I can understand not answering the phone everytime it rings. There are times when you truly are unable, or it would just be rude to do so.  However, there aren’t too many situations where a response in a few hours can’t take place. That just seems lazy to me.

I have gotten a few clients this year because I simply responded first. Being a rookie in the business I haven’t acheived much as far as status yet. I kind of have to take what I can get. If that means other agents drop the ball so be it. I will provide the best possible service I can in hopes of being the first choice for their friends and family.

 

My credit isn’t great :( What do I do?

As everyone knows having a good credit score(620 or above) is key to getting the loan to buy the house you want. Here are 8 ways to improve your credit score(as provided by the Fannie Mae Foundation)

1. Check for and correct errors in your credit report. Mistakes happen, and you could be paying for someone else’s poor financial management.

2. Pay down credit card bills. If possible, pay off the entire balance every month. However, transferring credit card debt from one card to another could lower your score.

3. Don’t charge your credit cards to the maximum limit.

4. Wait 12 months after credit difficulties to apply for a mortgage. You’re penalized less for problems after a year.

5. Don’t order items for your new home you’ll buy on credit—such as appliances—until after the loan is approved. The amounts will add to your debt.

6. Don’t open new credit card accounts before applying for a mortgage. Having too much available credit can lower your score.

7. Shop for mortgage rates all at once. Too many credit applications can lower your score, but multiple inquiries from the same type of lender are counted as one inquiry if submitted over a short period of time.

8. Avoid finance companies. Even if you pay the loan on time, the interest is high and it will probably be considered a sign of poor credit management.

Hunting Foreclosures

Had an interesting look at some bank owned properties yesterday. It seems to always be a mystery what type of condition you are going to find some of these homes in. Half of the homes we saw had little work needed. One (hud owned) seemed far to daunting of a task.  It takes someone with a great eye (Steve) to see past flaws and figure out if the home will be a good investment. Katie you are lucky to have your dad helping in your search. I would recommend that anyone who is considering a fixer upper to have a friend with you who has a background in home repair or construction. There are so many investment properties available right now. Interest rates are about as low as we may ever see them. If you are in a position to purchase that rental property you have been thinking of, then now is the time.

Open House 1352 Mill Lane

It was nice to have a pretty productive open house in New Albany this past Sunday. We had a pretty good turn out. Good Luck to Stacy and Josh and also to Diane on their home search, and a big kudos to Christian and Amy for coming with them to be an extra set of eyes. It was a pleasant surprise to see Jennie and James pop in. Thanks to all others that stopped in to check out the house. I hope one of you win the IPad2.

I wont be holding an open house this coming Sunday with plans on attending the wedding of my wife’s close friend Meredith. Congrats Mer and Michael Paul.

I am very excited about the project David, Kyle, and I are currently working on. More news to come!!

My First Home

Not only am I a new agent I am also looking to be a new home owner. Thanks to Laura for being so supportive!! We are currently going through the same struggles and questions as everyone goes through at this time. How much can we afford? How much money should we save to put down? Having the little bit of knowledge I have gathered through my real estate classes and various training gives me a bit of an advantage over someone who is walking in blind.

However, the stress level is still there. Not really sure where we are willing to move yet? Are we looking for a short term or long term home? Do we want to buy move-in ready or a repo and add a renovation loan? Do we understand exactly how the renovation loans work?

Luckily we have decided to give ourselves 6 months to save money before we make some of those desicions, though it won’t keep us from looking at homes online every single chance that we get.