Real Estate SOULutions

Being a first-time home buyer can be both exciting and nerve-racking. Often it can seem overwhelming and you may not know the best place to start. We’ve listed some things to do before and during your home search, to help you along in the right direction.           1.        Know your budget – It is important to know what you can afford, so you can rule out homes that are outside of your budget. How much money does your household take in collectively? Make sure that you factor out ALL your expenses: car payments, bills, food, etc. You want to make sure that your monthly note is not going to be outside of your means.      2.        Save for a down payment – Whether going through the traditional route and getting a loan through a lender, or buying a home through seller financing; you are going to need to have saved up a down payment. How much you have for the down payment can...

On average, a home seller is likely to make at least three costly mistakes throughout the process of selling their home that will likely cost them thousands of dollars. We’ve put together a list of five of the mistakes we’ve seen most often to help you avoid them and show you how working with us takes all the worry of making any one of these expensive mistakes. 1.      Mis-Pricing Your Home: When selling your house do your research! It is so important to know your market and get to know the comps of similar homes currently on sale or recently sold. This will help you more accurately give you a realistic price for your own home. Make sure you stick with homes that are located close to you, with similar square footage, bedrooms and bathrooms. Don’t forget to factor in realtor commissions, closing costs, and the time it could take to sell your house. Working with us – we do all the leg work for you. Our due diligence includes evaluating what the market looks li...

There is often a fear of the unknown, or a hesitation to go down a path that you may not be accustomed to. That’s why we want to take the time today to give you 3 great things you can expect when working with a real estate investor. We also provided an example demonstrating these points from real deals that we’ve been a part of. 1.      Real Estate Investors are Understanding – Real estate investors are understanding of your unique situation. We’ve seen and worked with all kinds of people dealing with all kinds of circumstances. It’s never the same, and we will be sensitive to your individual needs throughout the entire process. EXAMPLE: We worked with a woman who was recently widowed and had fallen behind on her mortgage payments. She had lived in the house for the last 8 years and did not know where she would go if she had to leave. We worked it out by taking over her mortgage and allowing her to stay there and just pay rent until she was able to secure a n...

The true answer to this question is: it depends. Several factors such as where the house is located, the time of year you are trying to sell, and the appearance of your house – both inside and out can impact how fast your house sells, especially if you are selling through a realtor. These factors are much less of an issue when you work with a real estate investor selling for cash or terms directly to the buyer. Here’s a breakdown of the time it takes to sell under the three main options for selling your home. SELLING THROUGH A REALTOR This is generally the most time-consuming way to sell your house. Nationwide, on average a house will sit on the market for 70 days. Of course, as mentioned, this time frame can be dramatically changed based on factors both inside and outside of your control. You can not choose where your house is located – but it matters what state, city and even specific area of a city your house is in as to how long it can take to sell. What time of the year yo...

We’ve talked before about the benefits of owner financing from both the perspectives of a buyer and seller – but maybe you still want to know what exactly owner financing is – and what it entails. Owner financing put simply is a tool that can be used to purchase real estate when you can’t, or don’t want, to use a traditional mortgage or go through a real estate agent. Owner financing goes by many names including seller financing, owner carried financing, owner carryback or owner will carry. They all mean the same thing – the seller has agreed to accept installment payments directly from the buyer. Owner financing can be used by anyone and can be used to purchase any type of property – a single-family home, apartment building, or raw land. When it comes to owner financing, there are some terms you will want to know and understand: ·         DOWN PAYMENT – It is very unlikely that you will be able to work out an owner finance deal without a...

The great states of Louisiana and Texas both agree, the best way to handle foreclosure is like ripping off a Band-Aid - fast! Unfortunately, the pain of foreclosure is much longer lived than the adhesive strips of a Band-Aid being removed from your skin. But how bad can being foreclosed on really be? Let’s look at the 5 biggest problems that you likely face if you go into foreclosure. 1.    FINDING A NEW PLACE TO LIVE – This is going to be your first hurdle. Very quickly after your house sells at auction, you will be evicted and in need of a new place to stay. This can be a problem on several levels – not only will you need to have enough money to put down for your deposit and first months rent, but a majority of landlords also require application fees and will do a credit check. With a foreclosure on your record your credit score is going to be low and this is likely to discourage landlords from renting to you. 2.    LOW CREDIT SCORE – Having a foreclosu...

Foreclosure is one of the scariest things a person can go through and comes with some highly devastating effects. Not only will you lose your home, but your credit score will surely tank. You may think, “Okay, I’ve learned some valuable lessons. I’ll move on from this.” This may be true, however, moving on after a foreclosure can prove more difficult than you think. A foreclosure on your credit report will make it almost impossible to secure another mortgage on another home for upwards of 7 years. You’ll be forced to either rent for the next almost decade or stay with family or friends. It can even impact your livelihood and your ability to obtain certain employment positions that require a financial background check. Bottom line, the whole ordeal can be extremely stressful and embarrassing. Texas and Louisiana both follow a non-judiciary foreclosure process, making it particularly fast and ruthless. Mortgage companies can start the foreclosure process as soon as you are 90 to 12...