GET OUT OF THE CITY..

Nothing like living in style on the lake. Minutes away from the lake with over 2 acres, private pond, separate apartment to rent, huge 40x40 garage, fenced in yard, private drive, the list goes on. Come and see what relaxation is all about. Wrap around porch with views of the front and your pond.

Lawyers vs. Real Estate Agents

"My wife is an attorney, I don't need an agent"
"My best friend has a law degree, why do I need to hire an agent"
"I have bought many houses in my day, there is no reason to hire an agent"

I have heard them all. But if I said, that I work for free? Would you hire me? What if I said, I will represent you and provide you access to multiple attorneys for free? Would you hire me? What if I told you, I would save you money, protect your house from any loss and negotiate on your behalf, as well as do all the paperwork for free? Would you hire me then? Would you still say you don't need to hire a real estate agent? Well, okay, maybe you feel like you do not need an agent, but would you like one to do all the work for you and pay you for it? Still NO? Good, I do not want anyone to hire me, I want to hire them. What do I mean by this...buyers can not hire agents, that would mean that they are paid and are working for the buyer. All I want to do is work with you and consult with you and guide you in the right direction. (Can I hire someone as a buyer?...I promise I will pay you more than you pay me!)

I get frustrated when I here people say these things, because they are completely uneducated on what agents do and what benefit they provide and how much they cost. So I am going to explain things in a simple way.

1. Buyers do not pay anything to have representation.
2. Real Estate agents are paid from a listing agreement with the seller and the sellers agent, before a buyer even comes along.
- So, the thought that one is getting a better price because the seller is only paying one agent is false. That seller has already agreed to pay XXX amount. The only difference is that they are either paying two agents and splitting it 50/50 or they are paying ONE agent the entire amount. Again this amount is determined when the house is first listed on the market.
3. My buyers, as well most buyers when they use a real estate agent are not only represented by a Licensed agent, but are backed by errors and omission insurance and multiple attorney's. All of my contracts are review by an attorney. (Yes all of this is still free)
4.Real Estate agents are required to update and continue their education with a min. of 15 hours each year. These classes are to understand changes in contracts and real estate law. (which changes every year)
5. Real Estate agents are more qualified and more knowledgeable in the field of Real Estate, than attorneys are. Period. Oh, and they cost a whole lot less.

Now, do not get me wrong, if you work with a real estate agent and want to hire an attorney separate to review everything, well than sure, more power to you. I will however tell you that I have never had anyone question my team of real estate attorney's and hire their own.

I only have one question to leave with...

IF YOU GET A DWI.. DO YOU CALL A REAL ESTATE AGENT, WHAT ABOUT A CAR SALES MAN (they know all about cars)? NO, SO WHY WOULD YOU HIRE AN ATTORNEY TO DO A REAL ESTATE TRANSACTION?

2011...everything is going up

So we ask ourselves what is 2011 going to bring? I say it is going to bring wealth..though what is wealth and for whom is going to get wealthy? First gas prices are going higher and higher, everyday they increase .10 at a time. I wish I could increase my rates that much! Interest rates are getting higher...though have you seen them lately, they are still below 5%, so why are you not buying a house! The market is getting better, the amount of houses on the market is getting higher (allowing the buyers to have more choices) the amount of short sales is increasing and sellers are selling their houses. So if you want to keep up with the rest of the world and have a wealthy 2011, increase your sales, increase what you charge and go buy a house! (From me of course!)

SUPER BOWL RENTALS

Anyone going to the SuperBowl? Want to be close to the SuperBowl? Want to be part of the action?...Rent this house for the weekend and be right. Okay, so this month I am completely using this BLOG for advertisement for my listing.. but really I have 10 days to rent this house. Don't you want to rent it? Truly, lets think about this for a minute, why would you NOT want to be minutes away from JERRY's WORLD during the SUPERBOWL. It does not matter who is playing, even though GREENBAY is going to win, what matters is that YOU want to be CLOSE and you want a NICE place to stay during the weekend. YOU want to be play XBOX 360 with KINECT, Wii, PLAYSTATION 2 all weekend and drink and party and not worry about anything except how you are going to return the chair you stole from the stadium during the outrage after you realized that the STEELERS lost. Okay, seriously, I understand why would you pay to trash someone else's house during the largest party of the year, and during the something that happens minutes from you once in a lifetime....well...because even if you dont have tickets.. this is where EVERYONE is going to be. PLAYING pool all night and watching late night movies on the 55in TV's.--WHO cares, because it is SUPERBOWL weekend.
See this AMAZING house and opportunity below.

Video of the HOUSE you are going to stay IN during the SUPERBOWL.

NEW CREDIT SCORES

If you have ever looked at your credit score recently? Or the main question is have you looked at what is required now in order to buy a house? 640! Yep you read that correctly, all investors are now requiring 640 credit scores. ALL THREE credit scores higher than a 640. Now the government and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are still saying anyone above a 600; but does it really matter what the government says, if investors are not buying any loans with a purchaser who has less than a 640. So now lenders can not sell their loans to investors if they approve a buyer with a score below a 640. What does this mean in ENGLISH?
If you are looking to purchase a home, you must have great credit. Check your credit score before you even think about buying a home. I understand the housing market was bad, because everyone was approved. Just two years ago I was doing loans with 540 scores, but this is a dramatic change. Basically this is going to assure that if you are buying a house, than you WILL be able to afford it AND MAKE PAYMENTS and the banks are going to make sure of that. There are two things you can do to help yourself in this situation.

1. CALL JOHN PAYNE AT FIRST NATIONAL BANK. THEY ARE STILL DOING 620 SCORES

2. BUY CASH

and the number one thing you should NOT do is to pay someone to fix your score. If you want free advice and help, call a lender or myself. All the companies out there that say they can fix your credit for $XXXX are all there to make a quick buck and will stay around as long as they can while the requirements are high.

Johns number is :972-673-1909
My number is: 972-322-1717

Where are People Moving...Where can People afford to Live

Now that the census is complete, statistics are coming out. With the national average of home prices dropping, where can people get a solid job and afford to live? Many things are considered when these statistics are put together, but the one thing that is most accurate are the actual numbers. Numbers of people moving in to a particular state and numbers of people actually moving out of a state. (Or in this economy being forced out). Out of the top 10 states that have an increase in population, Texas is number 9; ranking in with a 55.4% increase in population during the year 2009. The census even shows that Texas actually brought in the largest influx of people. In terms of the total number of inbound and outbound moves, Texas ranked second only to CA.

Okay, so Texas is a large state, so you would expect large numbers, but Wyoming ranked 3rd in the highest percentage of increased population! Lets be honest, Wyoming? Whats there? Job? Big cities? I will let you think about that.

MSN.com constantly puts Texas in the top ten places to acquire a job; so with the housing market staying stable, at least in TX, and job market being one of the best in the US, why wouldn't you want to be one of the numbers? Move to Texas now so we can be number one!

HOW TO GET THE CREDIT SCORE YOU WANT.....

The following 2 items count for about two-thirds of your credit score:

Your Payment History
Having a long history of making payments on time on all types of credit accounts is one of the most important items lenders consider before approving a loan.

Owed vs. Available Credit
This compares the amount you owe versus the total amount of credit available. Your credit score can be lower when you use more than 50% of your available credit for each account. This is because when you are at the point of possibly maxing out your credit limits, lenders see you as a higher risk and more likely to have late payments in the future.

The following 3 items count for about the last one-third of your credit score:

Length of Credit History
A credit report containing a list of accounts opened for at least 5 years or more will help your credit score.

New Credit
Opening several new accounts in a short period of time can lower your credit score. Along the same lines, multiple inquiries may also lower your credit score.

Type of Credit Used
A mix of credit cards, retail accounts, finance company loans, installment loans and mortgage loans will help your credit score, as long as they all follow the above rules.

About 13% of Americans have a credit score of 800 or higher. If you were to look at their credit report, they generally have:

· 4-6 credit card accounts
· No late payments in the last 3 years
· At least one installment loan (mortgage or car) with excellent payment history
· An average of 3 years credit history and a few accounts with 5 years of good history
· Low number of credit inquiries (less than 3 in a 6 month period)
· No bankruptcies, foreclosures, judgments, charge-offs or collections
· Debt limits at no more than 35% of their overall credit limits per account

To sum it up, having a long history of on time payments, using the right mix of credit and not maxing out on available credit are the keys to having a great credit score.