Thursday, February 9, 2012

Find Foreclosure Homes Online at Fannie Mae's Homepath.com

By Troy Corman, www.t2realestate.com

Buyers can buy  foreclosure homes online at HomePath.com.

Fannie Mae announced that it has expanded it's pilot program for selling foreclosure homes online. Buyers interested in Fannie Mae foreclosed properties can now view and bid on them online at HomePath.com.

Realtors can now submit offers on behalf of their home buyers, and track the status of their offers on the HomePath.com website. Fannie Mae hopes that the online REO website will speed up the real estate recovery and dispose of foreclosures more efficiently.

The pilot program of the online home selling system by Fannie Mae originated in Orlando, Florida; San Diego, California; and Detroit, Michigan. To read more details, find the sourced article at DSNEWS.com. Active Data Technologies developed the online system and touted the success of the pilot program within a few months.

The online offers feature is now available for all fannie mae properties throughout the United States. Real estate agents are able to get receipt confirmation and track the status of their offers on HomePath.com.

Buying foreclosure homes is how I got started in real estate. If I can help or answer any questions for you, you can reach me on my cell at 214.690.9682.

Troy Corman is the founder of t2 Real Estate LLC, a Dallas real estate firm providing specialized knowledge with a hands-on approach. Specialties include residential real estate brokerage, land and acreage, and commercial real estate services. Contact us today at 214.827.1200 if you need to sell, buy or get your DFW property leased.

Sunday, February 5, 2012

January 2012 Dallas Home Sales Market Report.

By Troy Corman, t2realestate.com


Below we'll take a look at homes sold in Dallas and DFW suburbs in January. Keep in mind, for sale inventories are down dramatically compared to one year ago. That may have an effect on some popular suburbs showing volume declines. Statistics are compiled from the North Texas Real Estate Information System (NTREIS) for homes sold from January 1 through January 31st for 2011 and 2012.
  • Frisco Homes 2011 * 113 Homes Sold  * $87.50' * 113 Days
  • Frisco Homes 2012 * 122 Homes Sold * $95.18' * 107 Days 
  • Plano Homes 2011 * 121 Homes Sold * $87.39' * 117 Days
  • Plano Homes 2012 * 106 Homes Sold * $85.28' * 106 Days
  • Allen Homes 2011 * 67 Homes Sold * $86.18 * 99 Days
  • Allen Homes 2012 * 57 Homes Sold * $87.70' * 116 Days
  • McKinney Homes 2011 * 113 Homes Sold * $77.09' * 114 Days
  • McKinney Homes 2012 * 115 Homes Sold * $79.47' * 91 Days
  • Richardson Homes 2011 * 29 Homes Sold * $79.83' * 91 Days
  • Richardson Homes 2012 * 33 Homes Sold * $86.80' * 121 Days
  • Garland Homes 2011 * 88 Homes Sold * $59.62' * 116 Days
  • Garland Homes 2012 * 90 Homes Sold * $57.07' *104 Days
  • Rockwall Homes 2011 * 29 Homes Sold * $73.23' * 116 Days
  • Rockwall Homes 2012 * 31 Homes Sold * $77.66' * 113 Days
  • Rowlett Homes 2011 * 38 Homes Sold * $65.53' * 95 Days
  • Rowlett Homes 2012 * 23 Homes Sold * $67.74' * 101 Days
  • Mesquite Homes 2011 * 65 Homes Sold * $50.27' * 109 Days
  • Mesquite Homes 2012 * 46 Homes Sold * $44.45' * 133 Days
  • Carrollton Homes 2011 * 47 Homes Sold * $77.53' * 97 Days
  • Carrollton Homes 2012 * 58 Homes Sold * $76.66' * 99 Days
  • Farmers Branch Homes 2011 * 11 Homes Sold * $76.21' * 95 Days
  • Farmers Branch Homes 2012 * 12 Homes Sold * $73.44' * 97 Days
  • Irving Homes 2011 * 57 Homes Sold * $72.58' * 134 Days
  • Irving Homes 2012 * 65 Homes Sold * $78.18' * 119 Days
  • Arlington Homes 2011 * 144 Homes Sold * $62.13' * 111 Days
  • Arlington Homes 2012 * 145 Homes Sold * $59.57' * 91 Days
  • Grand Prairie Homes 2011 * 65 Homes Sold * $58.33' * 128 Days
  • Grand Prairie Homes 2012 * 60 Homes Sold * $58.62' * 123 Days
  • Colleyville Homes 2011 * 16 Homes Sold * $113.80' * 194 Days
  • Colleyville Homes 2012 * 19 Homes Sold * $123.45' * 109 Days
  • Southlake Homes 2011 * 16 Homes Sold * $117.77' * 130 Days
  • Southlake Homes 2012 * 21 Homes Sold * $122.99' * 104 Days
  • Keller Homes 2011 * 31 Homes Sold * $95.70' * 156 Days
  • Keller Homes 2012 * 26 Homes Sold * $92.72' * 119 Days
  • Lewisville Homes 2011 * 39 Homes Sold * $81.69' * 112 Days
  • Lewisville Homes 2012 * 47 Homes Sold * $81.91' * 87 Days
  • Flower Mound Homes 2011 * 46 Homes Sold * $102.34' * 106 Days
  • Flower Mound Homes 2012 * 26 Homes Sold * $96.59' * 108 Days
  • Highland Village Homes 2011 * 4 Homes Sold * $91.53' * 84 Days
  • Highland Village Homes 2012 * 13 Homes Sold * $83.78' * 111 Days
  • Argyle - Bartonville Homes 2011 * 4 Homes Sold * $112.87' * 253 Days
  • Argyle - Bartonville Homes 2012 * 5 Homes Sold * $138.89' * 168 Days
  • Corinth - Lake Dallas Homes 2011 * 17 Homes Sold * $72.79' * 81 Days
  • Corinth - Lake Dallas Homes 2012 * 24 Homes Sold * $75.34' * 99 Days
  • University - Highland Park Homes 2011 * 19 Homes Sold * $293.26' * 113 Days
  • University - Highland Park Homes 2012 * 20 Homes Sold * $343.81' * 111 Days
  • E Dallas - White Rock Lake Homes 2011 * 44 Homes Sold * $169.24' * 122 Days
  • E Dallas - White Rock Lake Homes 2012 * 39 Homes Sold * $172.52' * 102 Days
  • North Dallas 2011 * 32 Homes Sold * $149.19' * 149 Days
  • North Dallas 2012 * 32 Homes Sold * $165.51' * 103 Days
  • North East Dallas 2011 * 23 Homes Sold * $113.18' * 126 Days
  • North East Dallas 2012 * 24 Homes Sold * $125.71' * 101 Days
Troy Corman is the founder of t2 Real Estate LLC, a Dallas real estate firm providing specialized knowledge with a hands-on approach. Specialties include residential real estate brokerage, land and acreage, and commercial real estate services. Contact us today at 214.827.1200 if you need to sell, buy or get your DFW property leased.

    Friday, February 3, 2012

    This Week in Dallas Real Estate. What Housing Glut, and Mortgage Rates Fall.

    By Troy Corman, t2realestate.com

    Dallas Homes Listed For Sale Now at 2001 Levels.
    Steve Brown, real estate reporter for the Dallas Morning News reported this morning that contrary to popular belief, Dallas-Fort Worth home for sale inventory is now under a 5 months' supply. Below 6 months is considered a seller's market.

    And, there's very little new home inventory as well. There are only about 3,000 vacant new homes in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, or about 25% of 2007 levels. Builders say that most of the homes being built are already sold. I guess that's why I'm getting more home builders calling me looking for lots in the Dallas Lakewood and lower Greenville areas.

    Mortgage Rate Lows Break Another Record.
    Freddie Mac reported that 30-year fixed rate loans dropped to 3.87%. That marks another new record, just below the 3.88% level recorded a couple of weeks ago. The 15-year fixed rate mortgage fell to 3.14%, which was also a record low.

    "The House" In Victory Park Goes In To Foreclosure.
    Also reported by Steve Brown, Victory Park's House condo tower is now in foreclosure. Built in 2007, the 28-story tower featured interiors designed by Philip Stark. Only 20 of the 132 units have sold, which started at price points just under $400K for a one bedroom, and up to $2 mil for a penthouse. Originally developed by Ross Perot Jr's. Hillwood and London's Yoo Ltd., German investor's eventually took over ownership and management when the recession severely slowed any Victory Park momentum.

    Lender HSH Nordbank AG wants repayment on $79.8 million in debt from Block J LP, the House condo tower's owner. It will be interesting to see if prices drop substantially for the remaining units.

    Dallas Considered a Commercial Real Estate Hot Spot.
    More than $1 billion in commercial real estate sales have occurred in Dallas-Fort Worth in the last few months. Williams Square in Los Colinas changed hands ($230 million), as did Trammell Crow Center, Fountain Place and Crescent office landmarks for close to $700 million. According to some Dallas commercial real estate brokers, Dallas office property investments are now considered among the top five favorite locations and mentioned in the same breadth with New York, Boston and San Francisco.

    Addison's Behringer Harvard In Default on Frisco Square.
    A payment for six tracts of land in or near Frisco Square, was missed by Behringer Harvard on January 28. The Behringer Harvard Opportunity REIT I Inc. reported to the SEC that it missed the payment, financed by Bank of America, to the tune of $44.1 million. Behringer Harvard has interests in office, retail, apartment building and a now in default move theater at Frisco's Main Street and Dallas North Tolloway location. The Dallas area real estate investment company says that 95% of the apartment and 90% of the office space in Frisco Square is leased. They are fighting to retain control of their ownership stake but they've also reported that they missed a $3 million payment on a Dallas high-rise residential building, which is most likely the Hotel Palomar condominium building at Mockingbird and Central Expressway. Behringer Harvard said lenders may take over the unsold condos.

    Troy Corman is the founder of t2 Real Estate LLC, a Dallas real estate firm providing specialized knowledge with a hands-on approach. Specialties include residential real estate brokerage, land and acreage, and commercial real estate services. Contact us today at 214.827.1200 if you need to sell, buy or get your DFW property leased.
    Connect with Troy Corman on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/troy.corman
    Follow Troy Corman on twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/troycorman
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    Wednesday, February 1, 2012

    The "You Don't Have to Live in Your Personal Residence 2 Years to Get the Tax Break" Loophole.

    By Troy Corman, t2realestate.com

    One of the best things that happened in the Bill Clinton presidency was allowing home owners to sell their personal residences' tax-free if they had lived in their home 2 of the last 5 years. This is definitely another potentially great wealth builder that home ownership provides versus renting. Now, I've just learned from mortgage broker, Les Tuttle (@leslietuttle), with Cendera Funding, that there's a major loophole, that in certain cases, allows you to get a partial tax break even if you don't meet the 2-year test.

    If you sell before the 2-year limit, and have an "unforseen circumstance", you can still take some profits tax-free. These are defined as natural disasters, a change in employment, becoming self-employed, divorce, legal separation, and even multiple births from the same pregnancy. Just starting a home-based business may satisfy the test, but consult with tax or legal experts for further clarification.

    Currently, an individual home owner who fully satisfies the 2-years-out-of-last-5 years residency requirement, can book up to $250,000 in profits tax-free. For couples, it's a cool half-mil ($500K)! So an individual who satisfied the "unforseen circumstance" and lived in the house for only 1 year could claim half the tax-free amount, or $125,000. For a couple that met the "unforseen circumstance" requirement and only lived in the home 1 year, the tax-free capital gain max would be $250,000.

    For the well-heeled that recently bought Dallas area homes at big discounts in tony neighborhoods like Highland Park, University Park or Southlake, this is definitely food for thought!

    If you'd like to get your home sold while we have ultra-low interest rates, contact me for help.



    Troy Corman is the founder of t2 Real Estate LLC, a Dallas real estate firm providing specialized knowledge with a hands-on approach. Specialties include residential real estate brokerage, land and acreage, and commercial real estate services. Contact us today at 214.827.1200 if you need to sell, buy or get your DFW property leased.


    Connect with Troy Corman on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/troy.corman
    Follow Troy Corman on twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/troycorman
    Reach Troy Corman at his google+ page