Archive for July, 2010
Tax Credit Extended for Military Members
July 30th, 2010 categories: Home Buyers
Thanks to Brandon Fischer from VABenefitsBlog for this guest post.
Real estate agents were super busy this year as many families took advantage of the $8,000 tax credit for first time homebuyers. Millions of people cashed in, according to the Internal Revenue Service. Because of the sheer number of applications sent in, the IRS was delayed for weeks. Some people are just now receiving their returns!
Unfortunately, for the average population, the time for the tax credit has passed. However, military personnel still have until April 30, 2011 to sign a sales contract and June 30, 2011 to complete the sale. That’s one whole extra year to still be able to claim the tax credit.
via JColman
The extension was enacted because of the many service members still on active duty. They do not have the time to search for a home much less think about claiming a tax credit. So, the government hopes the extension will give such persons who start to return home the ample time to find and buy a home. Read the rest of this entry »
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Selling My Aunt’s House
July 27th, 2010 categories: Real Estate Listings
Mostly I list houses for sale with a sense of detachment. I’m selling the future - what the next owner will be able to do in their home, its potential, or its future value. It’s intangible, really.
But listing my aunt’s house reminds me that every home has a story - a past, a present and a future. I usually can’t tell you the past. Sometimes I don’t know and neither do the sellers.
Listing agents also have to be cautious in describing a home in a way that would exclude potential buyers - like “great family home,” just because the last owners had 6 kids and every single neighbor has kids. So, we come up with really boring copy that doesn’t interest or draw in any buyers.
Buyers, though, always want to know about the owners - who they are, why are they selling, etc. So it’s not just about the physical house. It’s also about the buyers relating to the owners and having some kind of connection.
So allow me to give 32 Rustic Lane some past, at least through my eyes. It’s by no means a complete picture - I am but one person who’s spent holidays at 32 Rustic Lane. But they’re my memories. My anecdotes to share. And maybe through the home’s past, a buyer will see their future…
32 Rustic Lane, East Hartford
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June 2010 Hartford County CT Real Estate Market Report
July 19th, 2010 categories: Real Estate Market
1999?
The lyrics to Prince’s “1999″ seem to best express the last month in the Central CT real estate market and what lies ahead.
“..when I woke up this mornin’, could’ve sworn it was judgement day. The sky was all purple, there were people runnin’ everywhere. Tryin’ to run from the destruction, you know I didn’t even care. Say, say two thousand zero zero, party over, oops out of time. So tonite I’m gonna party like it’s nineteen ninety-nine.”
June was a very busy month for closings - especially in comparison to June in the last two years. Median sales prices went up. Homes were even selling a little closer to asking price. Some of this is due to the tax credit, but the rest attribute to normal reasons people buy and sell real estate (job relocation, divorce, marriage, downsizing, upsizing, etc.). Plus, low interest rates are luring first time buyers who missed the credits into the market.
Will this continue? Look at the inventory - 3,658 single family homes are on the market. That is the highest I’ve seen it since I began tracking. And you have to assume a fair percentage of the pending sales will get re-listed.
Recovery from the spring market won’t be as quick as taking an Alka-Seltzer in the morning to cure a hangover. From people who service the real estate business - lenders, stagers, home inspectors, etc - I’ve heard they’ve all suffered a dramatic slowdown in the past weeks.
The market will slow over the summer but not come to a grinding halt. Pressure will continue to push prices down. Well priced homes in good condition will sell and sell quickly - the one fact we can always count on.
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List of Connecticut Fireworks
July 3rd, 2010 categories: Central Connecticut News & Information
I found this list of fireworks in Connecticut for this July 4th weekend. Have a great weekend!
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