The number of days it takes for homes to sell in Cache County has also risen. Last month it took 164 days on the market before a home actually sold. During January, homes that sold were on the market for 171 days. One interesting thing you can note from this graph is that the days on market dipped down a built right around the expiration of the first home buyer tax credit. This is evidence that the tax credit has made an impact on the Cache Valley Real Estate market.

Here is the latest from the Logan Real Estate Market blog:

52 residential Cache County Homes sold last month as reported on the WFRMLS. This is up by more than 17% compared with February of last year when just 43 residential homes sold. The average price of these properties was $180,232, and the median sales price was at $164,495. This is the highest monthly average for home prices in five months. It is also up by 4% compared with the average sold price in February of last year.

Some positive news is that the amount of new listings in Cache Valley only slightly increased compared with last month. There are currently 752 homes for sale in the Logan Utah area. At February’s home sales pace this represents an absorption rate of a little over 14 months.

via Logan Utah Real Estate: February Cache County Home Sales UP.

The problem is that procrastinating real estate transactions is a little bit more dangerous. That is, if you want to make sure you get the $8,000 or $6,5000 tax credit. If you’ve never bought a house, or been through a real estate transaction, you may not understand quite how complicated the process can actually be. Even if you have purchased real estate before, your previous transactions may have gone perfectly. The truth is, it doesn’t always happen this way.  About 1 in 5 real estate contracts don’t go through.

Real Estate transactions often don’t close on time, some of the common reasons real estate transactions fall through include:

• Buyers aren’t satisfied with the results of the home inspections.
• Mold, Radon, Meth, or Lead based paint are found on the property.
• The appraisal value comes in low.
• Lenders require repairs are made to a property, that can’t be made in time.
• Lender verifications take a long time.
• Insurance companies won’t insure houses.
• Flood insurance, or additional unknown fees arise.
• Title Reports show unsatisfied Liens and Judgements.
• Banks won’t approve short sales.
• Buyers can’t actually get financing with a certain lender.
• Homes for sale get foreclosed on.
• Sellers just decide they don’t actually want to sell anymore.

Today is currently March 8th. The date that homes must be under contract to qualify for the tax credits is April 30th. this means that you have about 50 days in which to find a home for sale you like right?

Well, that is if you are sure there won’t be any problems or hold ups that occur in the real estate transaction.

To be on the safe side, I would recommend getting your home under contract by the end of March, and having the Due Diligence completed no later than the middle of April. This way, if problems arise with the house you still have time to find and put another property under contract before the deadline.

If you haven’t started yet, click the appropriate link below to start viewing Logan homes for sale now!

• Cache Valley Home Search
• Logan Utah Homes for Sale
• Ogden Utah Homes for Sale
• Northern Utah Homes for Sale
• Utah Homes for Sale

Fixating on price in real estate may cost you the deal:

# Sellers who decide that a specific dollar figure will buy their home and won't budge from that bottom line may sell themselves short.

# Buyers who drop out of a transaction for a property they love because the seller's counter-offer shocks them may be quitting before they have really started negotiating.

When a buyer makes an offer to purchase a house, condominium unit or commercial property, the purchase price is a prime consideration, but it represents only part of the total value offered to the seller. Problems may arise for both sides of the transaction when this fact is forgotten.

Value Elements in an Offer

The value expressed in a buyer's offer to purchase, or in a seller's offer to sell, involves 5 key elements — a financial package:

# Purchase Price, the stated amount of dollars offered by the buyer, represents a significant contributor to value, but there are other important factors which can reduce the amount the seller receives or which can compromise the transaction. It's not the purchase price, but the net proceeds of the sale that sellers — and savvy buyers — should concentrate on.

# Closing Date, or the day ownership changes hands and the seller receives the money, can represent cost or value to both parties. Savvy buyers usually attempt to meet the seller's preferred moving date, especially when the seller has committed to purchasing another property or needs the proceeds of the sale on a specific date. For instance, a closing before that date may be expensive because the seller would have to move out and store everything until they could move into their new home. That double move and the inconvenience represent out-of-pocket costs and time lost that make the actual purchase price lower than stated. A closing date later than the seller's preferred date may leave the seller owning two homes – and paying off two mortgages – at once. The seller may incur extra costs in arranging bridge financing to meet legal obligations to close on their new home before they receive proceeds from the sale of their current home. Choice of closing date may represent costs or value to the buyer as well. Balancing this reality for both parties is key in negotiation.

# Inclusions and Exclusions to the sale also represent costs and value for both parties. Appliances, heating systems and draperies are common seller inclusions designed to boost value for buyers. If warranties for everything from a new roof or solar panels to new appliances cannot be transferred to a buyer, these items become “second-hand”and will probably represent less value to buyers. Buyers are also free to include excluded seller items, like an antique light fixture, in the offer to purchase. Deals have been lost to disagreements over light fixtures, fireplace accessories and vintage furnishings, so prudent sellers remove contentious items before listing. A buyer may offer less than list price and ask for nothing; a seller could sign back for more money and include items to sweeten the pot. Value is very subjective for these non-real-estate items and that's where negotiations can get heated.

via Cornerstone Real Estate ’s Real Estate Update.

via Quick Snapshot of Logan Real Estate Conditions by Ethan Poppleton.

Investors breathed a sigh of relief Wednesday when Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke told Congress that interest rates are likely to remain low for an extended period. The economy, he said, “still requires support for recovery.”

via REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-Fed: Interest Rates to Remain Low.

While interest rates will eventually have to go up to reduce mass inflation, it looks like it might be a while before this window of opportunity goes away.

If you price your home right, it is actually a good time to sell real estate in Cache Valley for several reasons. One thing to remember is that you only need to sell your house to ONE potential buyer.

1. Buyers Have Urgency – There are lots of potential buyers out there who have a sense of urgency to buy. The home buyer tax credits require that homes go under contract by the end of April. Mortgage interest rates are likely at the lowest they will ever be. Many people realize this, and want to take advantage of mortgage savings.

2. Great Time to Upgrade – There are lots of deals out there if you are looking to upgrade. The deal you get on the house you upgrade to can far exceed the loss you would take on the sell of your house. If you lose $5,000 on the sell of your house, but get $25,000 in equity on the home you purchase you have a net gain of $20,000. The low interest rates and great deals on homes for sale in Logan have personally tempted me into possibly upgrading.

3. Spring is in the Air – Spring is traditionally a huge season for looking for homes for sale in Cache Valley. New potential buyers are starting their home search every day. Remember, they are only going to be buying one house. There are also lots of buyers out there who have seen everything currently on the market that matches their criteria and are looking for something better. They know that lots of new listings are coming out each day and are waiting to find the best home possible.

4. It is NOT a Buyers Market for Starter Homes – Homes priced below $161,000 are actually selling at balanced market paces. Many have multiple offers. It is not a buyers market at all for the less expensive properties for sale in Cache County. Cache Valley home prices between $160,000 and $180,000 are also selling at almost balanced market paces.

While many of the higher end homes won’t sell this year, some will. For many sellers, it is a GREAT time to sell in Cache Valley. You only need to sell your home once.

via Logan Utah Real Estate.

What is the definition of a Landlord and when will they need a licence?

According to LoganUtah.org:

Landlord means a person, persons, and/ or legal entity, or a landlord’s agent who rents to tenants one or more legally established dwelling units.

An agent of a landlord shall not perform services of a landlord unless the landlord is licensed in conformance with this Chapter.

A business license for landlords is not transferable.   Any person holding a license shall give written notice within thirty (30) days to the business license official after having transferred or otherwise disposed of legal or equitable control of any rental dwelling.  Such notice of transferred interest shall
include the name, address, and information regarding the person(s) or entity succeeding to the
ownership or control thereof. The new owner shall obtain a business license as required by this
Chapter.

Here is the latest from the Logan Herald Journal:

The licensing of landlords in Logan moved a step closer to reality Tuesday.

The Municipal Council at its regular meeting discussed a proposed ordinance requiring owners of rental property, or agents acting on their behalf, to be licensed. The next step is a public hearing scheduled for March 2.

The proposed cost of the license is $50 but landlords or agents could have the fee reduced to $10 — in the third year of being licensed — if they take part in a “Good Landlord” training session. The fee is levied per landlord, not per rental unit.

via The Herald Journal Serving Logan and Cache Valley > News > Landlord licensing one step closer.

The Landlord licensing isn’t official yet, there is still a public hearing scheduled on March 2nd, where the movement could still be enough opposition, could pose some obstacles.

So what does this mean for Real Estate values of rental properties?

Essentially they will go down. The fact is, rents in Logan Utah are low.  It is hard for property owners to make substantial income off of rentals in Logan. Many of the small time landlords like me, will just decide to sell their properties rather than bother with, and pay landlord fees. With an increase of rental properties for sale, prices will decline.

There is another new Federal Government program out their designed to reduce the consequences and liability of people trying to avoid foreclosure by selling their homes as short sales, or else voluntarily giving up their homes with a Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure. This program is called the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program. Say that five times fast.

This program will be implemented on April 5th. It is supposed to “streamline” the  short sale process, and remove the ability for banks to seek a deficiency judgement for the amounts they are actually owed from the borrowers. According to the official HMPadmin website:

The Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA) Program provides additional options to avoid costly foreclosures and offers incentives to borrowers, servicers and investors who utilize a short sale or deed-in-lieu (DIL) to avoid foreclosures.

With either the HAFA short sale or DIL, the servicer may not require a cash contribution or promissory note from the borrower and must forfeit the ability to pursue a deficiency judgment against the borrower.

HAFA simplifies and streamlines the short sale and DIL process by providing a standard process flow, minimum performance timeframes and standard documentation.

More details are available at this the official site: HMPadmin: Foreclosure Alternatives.

While personally I think it is wrong for Government to relieve individuals of the responsibility of paying back debt they rightfully obtained, this should be a good thing for the housing market and real estate industry. Lengthy short sales are a huge problem with the way real estate works, and if that can somehow be shortened, Utah Real Estate transactions will be far less complicated.