Ro Troia

Market Conditions Category

Pricing Your Home

Tags: Tags: list price, pricing real estate, pricing strategy, pricing tips

Homeowner Maintenance : Twice-Annual Gutter Cleaning

Gutters are designed to funnel rainwater away from a home. Properly working gutters help keep a home’s basement from filling with water, and protect a home’s foundation from long-term, structural damage, and keep a roof in tip-top shape.

In other words, keeping clean gutters is essential for homeowners. Thankfully, gutter maintenance can be a do-it-yourself job.

There are four main steps in gutter cleaning, summarized cleanly in this 4-minute video from Lowe’s.

1. Gather your tools. You’ll need a ladder, a bucket, a hose, and a trowel.
2. Scoop large debris from the gutter, using the trowel for hard-to-reach places smaller sticks and leaves
3. Flush the gutters using a garden hose and spray attachment
4. Remove clogs in the downspout and check for proper sloping

Gutter maintenance is a twice a year task and the Lowe’s video offers helpful safety tips, too.  Of course, if you’re uncomfortable on a ladder, or prefer to hire a professional, reach out to me anytime.

I’m happy to make a local gutter-cleaning recommendation.

Tags: Tags: DIY, Downspout, Gutters

Looking for an Alternative to Foreclosure

Really?  Not a short sale?  Not a foreclosure?  It’s called a ” Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure” which actually lets a homeowner voluntarily turn over the deed to their house to the lender!    This is not a new concept, however, neither is foreclosure, but this crazy real estate market we are living in now requires that you cover all you bases before making a final decision on how to get out from under your mortgage.  Even thought the federal government launched some new rules earlier this month concerning short sales, some homeowners might not quality for a short sale because they have no hardship. Could this be you?  Read on please…. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Tags: boulder, deed in lieu, foreclosure, real estate, short sales

Mortgage Rates as of 4/20/2010

Here ya go readers and potential buyers.  Another update on the mortgage rates here in Boulder Colorado.  Not much has changed but a few numbers have.  Please check them out.

1) 30 yr is at 5.2 with no points and 5% even with 1 point

2) FHA 30 yr is 5.238 with no points and 5.138% with 1 point.

Also, I would like to inform you all about a unique program that only Coldwell Banker is offering.  It is a Pre-Purchase Rate Protection (PPRP).  It allows a buyer to lock a rate without identifying a property, and is good for a 90 day lock.  Every Coldwell Banker Mortgage customer gets the opportunity to enroll in the (PPRP) as soon as they receive a mortgage pre-approval decision from Coldwell Banker Mortgage.

So click here and lock in your rate today with a professional mortgage broker.

Tags: Tags: boulder, buyers, Coldwell Banker, colorado, mortgage rates, professional, The Troia Team

Update on Mortgage Rates in Boulder

Here is the first of many to come.  The Troia team at Coldwell Banker will have frequent market updates for your convenience.  So please visit our blog frequently and stay in the loop. 

1) 30 year fixed conventional loan is at 5.22% with 0 points.  5% with 1 point

2) FHA 30 fixed is at 5.239% with 0 points.  5.149% with one point

For more info or to speak to a professional motgage lender please click here. 

The cycle of mortgage rates tend to consistenly rise slowly with large unpredictable and infrequent drops occuring occassionally.  Most likely, tomorrow’s rate will cost you more than today’s.  So lock in a loan today and you will save tomorrow.  Pick up the phone and call a qualified professional real estate agent with the Troia Team and lets find you a home.

Tags: Tags: The Troia Team

Shrink Your Home Loan: Obama’s Foreclosure Prevention Plan

The following is a true story.

  I have a family member who bought her home in 2005.  The economy was better then and real estate was hot in Boulder Colorado.  Prices were high, inventory was low, and banks were more lenient with loan qualifications.  She makes over $50,000 and has a steady job.  However, she just had a baby and would like to buy a bigger home.  As expected, she got her home ready to list and had the home appraised first in order to determine a price. 

What do you guess happened?  Click here to find out.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Tags: Bank of America, boulder colorado, Federal Housing Administration, financial hardship, Government Accountability Office, homeowner, job loss, lender, loan modification, mortgage, Obama Foreclosure Prevention, renting, selling, shrink home loan, under value

Examples Of Short Sale Financial Hardship Letters

Yes, we can help! Short sales are increasingly common as new government acts have passed to find alternatives to foreclosures.  You are not alone.  The economy is tough in Boulder Colorado and elsewhere;  people are losing jobs and it’s been a difficult time in real estate as property values have dropped below mortgages owed on homes.  This makes it difficult to refinance and when it’s hard to pay on that mortgage, you find yourself in a dire situation.  Often times if you qualify, a short sale is a better solution that foreclosing.  It’s not as hurtful to your credit and the bank is willing to accept a payment lower that the borrowed amount in order to avoid foreclosure costs.  The Troia Team has written many blogs on the topic so if you feel you are a candidate for a short sale, let us know.  We can help.   Because we have covered the positives to a short sale and explained the process in detail, I wanted to use this blog to provide examples of short sale hardship letters.  These are necessary to submit to a lender when simultaneously submitting the other necessary documents that go along with a short sale request to the bank.  Click here for hardship letter examples.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Tags: Bank of America, boulder colorado, foreclosure, hardship letter, job loss, lender, market trends, mortgage, property values, real estate, realtor, short sale, The Troia Team

Yes! It’s Another Short Sale Blog.

 

But worth your while, I guarantee you.  The Troia Team from Boulder Colorado is writing so much on the subject lately because IT IS the subject lately.  Real estate short sales are everywhere and the numerous listings are partially due to the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program; go ahead, call it HAFA. 

The information is non-ending.  You can’t write enough about short sales.  As we discussed before, having a knowledgeable Realtor is most important.  One who can walk you through the process.  If I were going through a short sale, here’s what I would want to know from my real estate agent.

 

 

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Tags: agent, boulder colorado, buyer, comparative market analysis, HAFA, hardship letter, Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program, inspection, lender, listing contract, loan, market, mortgage, purchase agreement, real estate, realtor, seller, short sale, The Troia Team

What You Need To Know About A Short Sale

What is it when a seller’s lender agrees to accept a lower amount for a property than is owed? 

Yes…a short sale. 

This is big real estate news in Boulder Colorado and throughout the country.  If the owner of a home has an outstanding loan/lien that is greater than the value of the home and they are in financial distress (late on mortgage payments), then a short sale is an option other than foreclosure.  Click here to read all about  it. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Tags: bailout, financial hardship, government, lien, market, owner, real estate, real estate news, realtor, seller, short sale

Foreclosure Verses A Short Sale

A short sale is when the real estate sale proceeds fall short of the balanced owed on the property’s loan.  This happens when the borrower is unable to pay their  property’s mortgage.  Instead of penalizing the mortgagor, the lender agrees to sell the property at a moderate loss.   This is an advantage to both parties as  it allows them to avoid foreclosure, which involves hefty fees for the bank and poorer credit report outcomes for the borrowers. Clients in Boulder ask this all the time and no,  this may not release the mortgagor from their deficiency. Neither foreclosure nor a short sale leaves you free and clear.

Definition made simple of foreclosure: when the borrower is legally removed as owner to their home.  Ownership is terminated due to late payments (default).  The property is sold at a public auction.  Proceeds go to payment of the balance.  When the bank buys the property at the auction, it is then put on the market.

If it’s right for your situation, a short sale would occur before the home goes to auction.  A Realtor lists the home in hopes of selling and presenting an offer to the bank before the sale date.  This date can be extended while the home is listed.  Two basic scenarios: 1) Home receives an offer and the bank accepts = no foreclosure. 2) Property receives no offers or the bank rejects offers = home goes to auction & foreclosure.

Tags: Tags: bank, borrower, boulder, Boulder County, credit report, default, deficiency, employment, foreclosure, home, homeownership, lender, listing, mortgage loan, mortgagor, proceeds, property, realtor, selling, short sale