Economic Recovery? New Orleans, Houma, and Alexandria!

I just wanted to share this short video with you. It talks about markets around the country that are showing signs of economic improvment. In Louisiana those real estate markets are New Orleans, Houma, and Alexandria.

Of course as you watch the video I have to instruct you to ignore the startup commercial from a competitor! And of course, entrust all your real estate needs to an agent at Home After Home!

Here’s the link to the video:
Economic Recovery Bright Spots

Stay Tax Free – Vote FOR Ammendment #1 on Nov 19

Comming up in November you will be faced with a decision on Ammendment #1. It’s really a very simple decision. Vote FOR it! Ok, you might want to know why? A vote FOR Ammendment #1 will help to prevent the institution of a real estate transfer tax in Louisiana. Currently, people pay a property tax, so adding a real estate transfer tax would be a form of double taxation by adding another tax when the property is sold. This is a destructive tax that further digs into the pockets of hardworking Louisianains.

Now, I know that is an easy concept. Here’s why we need you to tell everyone you know. Most ammendments are written in a way that confuses most of us voters. And when we are confused we tend to vote against the ammendment – especially if the ammendment has something to do with a tax. We tend to think that if it’s about a tax and we vote against it then we prevent the tax. But November 19 will be opposite day when it comes to that line of thinking. A vote FOR this ammendment is the way to keep these transfer taxes from being imposed.

A transfer tax on the sale or purchase of real estate in Louisiana could be harmful. This ammendment prevents any municipality in Louisiana from using a real estate transfer tax as a form of gaining revenue for the local governement by outlawing the tax on the sale of real estate throughout Louisiana.

Read more at www.staytaxfree.com, and calculate how much this tax could cost you to tell your home!  Please help to get the word out to all your voting friends!

VOTE FOR AMMENDMENT #1 ON NOV 19

The Craigslist Scam

Lately, we’ve been running into a fairly regular situation with Craig’s List that you need to be aware of. We go out an list a house for sale. We input the data through all the regular channels and within about a week, the scammer get’s his work started. Soon, the home we have listed for sale may appear on craigslist as a rental… usually at a monthly rate that is well below the market value. This is your first warning sign.

I contacted one such scammer to inquire about the property. He promptly replied with some story about how he’s travelling and cannot meet me to view the house. But if I will send a wire to him with the deposit and the first month’s rent, he’ll mail me the keys. Of course he makes it sound really good and says that he’ll refund the money if I don’t like the house. The key is that he is not the owner. He doesn’t have any keys to mail to anyone. And once he receives and money that is sent to him, you have been had.

I also contacted the state police about this scam. They indicated that these scammers are usually located outside the country and we have no jurisdiction over them. So the moral of the story is 1: if it’s too good to be true then it’s not true! and 2: don’t send money to strangers in strange parts of the world no matter how good it sounds.

If you are the owner of a home and have found your home listed (without your permission) on craigslist you can go on craigslist and submit a report on the ad stating that you are the owner and the house is not available as advertised. Craigslist has been quite good at removing the ads once it’s caught by the owner and requested to be removed. But new scammers often pop up and repost the ads. This is just the nature of the beast.

If you are a prospective tenant, deal with people who are here locally who you can see and touch to ensure the chances that you are dealing with someone who is legitimate. Or hire a REALTOR to help you find the right rental. This can be a great way to protect yourself when securing your next rental property.

REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-Scam Cheats Borrowers Out of Loan Payments

REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-Scam Cheats Borrowers Out of Loan Payments.

Beware! There is a new scam out there designed to swindle thousands of dollars from you.

The Setup: A homeowner receives a letter in the mail instructing them that their home mortgage has been transferred to a new servicing company and to begin mailing their payments to the new servicer.

The Con: The servicer is a fake. Once the money is sent into the con the check is cashed and they make off with the dough. Most homeowners figure out they have been scammed within 1 -2 months, most likely, because by then their actual mortgage company is probably calling to find out where their payments are.

This scam can leave a home owner behind on their mortgage and out those couple of months of payments.

Protect Yourself: If you receive such a letter in the mail, it would be best to contact the company to whom you have been sending your payments an inquire about the status of your account. Mortgage servicing companies do sometimes transfer the loan to other companies so it is possible that your servicing company may change. But be sure that it did before sending you hard earned money into the wrong company or even a scammer.

S&P Case-Shiller: The Housing Price Index Hoax

Today I was driving in my car listening to Rush Limbaugh and he was talking about the housing market having taken a double dip. He was on a rant about what a terrible economy we are in. Of course his objective was to criticize the President, but the basis for his argument drove me to write this blog. Its time everyone understood just what Case-Shiller is.

His argument was fueled by the recent news released by the Case-Shiller index that housing prices have hit the double dip in this recession. But Case-Shiller is not an all encompassing housing index. And this is where it really gets my goat. He’s preaching fear and using an index that faulty, at best, to back him up. If you live in Louisiana and you heard his argument you might think that it would apply to you. After all, Case-Shiller is a S&P index and it’s a national housing price index… right? Well sort of.

Yes, it’s national. It takes data from 20 markets across the country. How many of the data sets used by Case-Shiller come from Louisana? NONE! Other than Dallas and Denver the other 18 markets are either on the east coast or the west coast, so the Case-Shiller index is representative of our coastal regions but I take issue with this being the end-all and be-all of housing price indexes. You cannot live in Louisiana and be concerned with Louisana’s economy and look at Case-Shiller for guidance. And if you are looking to Case-Shiller to tell you about the housing market in Baton Rouge, then your are spot out of luck.

So the next time you hear someone on the news preaching about the state of our economy look a little harder at what they really want you to hear and where they get their data. The housing market is like the weather. A bad storm in Las Vegas means nothing for the weather in Baton Rouge. It’s the same with housing. A down housing market in Las Vegas means nothing with regards to the housing market in Baton Rouge. And even if I were looking at the housing market in Las Vegas I wouldn’t suggest looking at Case-Shiller which pulls data from 19 other markets. Case-Shiller creates a false notion that the housing market is “national,” but instead housing markets are “local”. There’s a reason why the appraiser doesn’t use comparables from Denver to value your house in Baton Rouge.

Personally, I suggest taking that news article about the Case-Shiller index and tossing it in the trash. Get real data about your local housing market from your local REALTOR. To learn about the Baton Rouge market, call me. I keep a chart that tracks values from 2002 to present. Now that’s real data!

-Bridget Fredericks, REALTOR
Home After Home: 225-341-BRLA or 225-341-2752
Licensed in Louisiana, USA

Real Estate Transfer Taxes in Louisiana

Yesterday the Louisiana House of Representatives voted on HB 135 which is an important bill. First, let’s discuss what this bill does. Currently there are no areas of Lousiana that use transfer taxes. A transfer tax is a extra fee paid at the closing of any piece of real estate. Transfer taxes could be 2 or 3% of the value of the property. The problem with this tax is that the public generally does not receive any service in exchange for the payment of this tax. This tax is generally charged over and above the recording fees and other fees already invovled in the transaction. It’s also a form of double taxation. On any piece of property there are generally real estate property taxes which are paid by the owner of the property. So a transfer tax is an additional way for the municipality to squeeze more money out of the same property for which property taxes are being collected.

Transfer taxes could be harmful to real estate. It could force buyers out of the marketplace by making a piece of real estate unaffordable by having to deal with these extra costs. It is also an unsteady and unreliable form of taxation that doesn’t generally help the budget of the municipality. Usually the municpality trying to implement the transfer tax is trying to plug a hole in the budget or moving money into the general fund. Any way you look at it, it’s just not a helpful tax.

HB 135 is set to be a constitutional ammendment that would permanently prohibit any real estate transfer taxes in Louisiana. You can see how this would be a great thing! If this becomes law, then no municipality would be able to institute a transfer tax. What I really love about it is that our state legislators are taking a proactive approach to creating prosperity in Louisiana by prohibiting this form of useless taxation. Many areas across the country are implementing these transfer taxes and Louisiana lawmakers are taking a stand against it in advance of any local governments in Lousiana even trying it.

HB 135 passed in the House yesterday with 100 Yes votes and 0 No votes! It’s next step is to move to the Senate for approval. What you can do is write, email, or call your State Senator and ask them to support this bill. Finally, if the bill is passed in the Senate it will be on the ballot in November for the rest of us to approve it as a constitutional ammendment. Because these ammendments can be worded in weird and unusual ways, I’ll add another blog post later in the year advising on the voting for the ammendment.

If you want to keep up with the action here’s a link to the Louisiana State Legislature’s website.

Open House! 13565 Honey (5/1/11 2p-4p)

We’re holding an open house this weekend on one of our great Baton Rouge homes for sale. The house located at 13565 Honey can be your new home! This house features FOUR bedrooms – most homes in this price range only have 3 bedrooms. There is a full 2 car carport – most homes in this neighborhood only have a single car carport. And did anyone say “curb-appeal”? Oh, yes, this one has that too!

Nestled under a beautiful, old, oak tree, this home gets it’s fair amount of shade. The kitchen is open to the dining area with a door to the backyard which is great for entertaining and those summer barbeques! The four bedrooms are located along the hallway so that the bedrooms have privacy from the front of the house. You’ll also enjoy the covered patio area and the fenced yard for your pets!

Join us on Sunday, May 1, 2011 anytime from 2pm to 4pm to view your next home!

13565 Honey, Baton Rouge, LA 70810

View Larger Map

Buyers Looking for Great Deals? Found it! Limited Time!

For a limited time, Fannie Mae is offering an incentive that buyers will find hard to pass up. The government-backed FNMA is offering home buyers 3.5% assistance to help with closing costs to buy homes owned by FNMA. Offers must be submitted on or after April 11, 2011 and must close by June 30, 2011 in order to qualify for the incentive.

Buyers simply purchase a home that is being offered through Homepath. Your REALTOR can help you find homes that qualify. Homepath even offers financing to buyers with minimal downpayments and a rehabilitation loan for homes that need a little fixing up. View homes at HomePath.com or search for homes at www.HomeAfterHome.com.

Read about this breaking news at the Fannie Mae website.

Did You Miss Our April Fools Video?

Here’s a link to the video for you to view. Have fun!
Overnight Real Estate Explosion!

Listing and Selling Your Green Home

• 

  If you want to get the full value for your green home when it comes time to sell, use a green real estate agent and a green MLS. Read

Visit houselogic.com for more articles like this.

Copyright 2011 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®