Louisville Homes Blog: #1 Real Estate Blog in Louisville, KY

Zell Predicts Housing Turnaround this Spring

Feb 28, 2008 Trends/Statistics

Sam Zell, the 52nd richest American by Forbes, is predicting a housing turnaround this spring. My biggest gripe with the media is that they often focus only on the negative, so we’ll just have to see how widely this news will be reported.

As it so happens, Mr. Zell made the bulk of his fortune in real estate, so he knows a thing or two about the housing market. If you’ve been thinking about a move, now might be a great time to list your home.

2007 Home Improvement Values, Louisville KY vs. Nation

Feb 26, 2008 Residential, Trends/Statistics

In one of our most popular posts of last year—Comparing Home Improvements in Louisville with the Nation—we looked at how home improvement project costs were recouped when it came time to sell your home. This is important information given that so many homeowners desire to include 100% of their home improvement dollars in their asking price when it comes time to sell, which isn’t realistic.

Now we have the numbers for 2007! Unfortunately, in almost every case, recoup values have gone down, sometimes drastically. But having this information should help every homeowner better prepared for both what kind of home improvement projects to undertake, as well as, what kind of home value increase is reasonable for each project.

Costs Recouped: 2007

Kitchen Remodels Are Hottest Update

Feb 25, 2008 Trends/Statistics

If you are only allowed to update one room in your home, chances are the kitchen is your best bet. Buyers are especially demanding when it comes to the most used room in any house.

Looking at the photos of this kitchen remodel (above) I didn’t think the “Before” looked poor, in any respect. But “Wow!” would you look at the “After” photo? It’s certainly impressive. (Although, I do think those bar stools no longer fit the image of the room.)

The Courier article states:

Kitchen remodels are a popular option and can pay off. The annual Hanley Wood LLC “Cost vs. Value” report for 2007 shows that for the East South Central area of the United States, which includes Louisville, the average midrange major kitchen remodel, priced at $55,503, returned 81 percent of its cost to homeowners upon resale, while the average minor kitchen remodel, priced at $21,185, returned 85 percent of its cost upon resale.

The number, 81% for a midrange kitchen remodel, is just a bit higher than the National Average of 80.4%, which Louisville Homes Blog reported on in our 5/07 post called Home Improvement Recouping Costs. The same project in Louisville, Kentucky would rank just a bit lower at 78%.

It’s important to keep in mind the relative condition of the room prior to the remodel before undertaking the project. If the room is in terrible shape currently, the remodel makes more sense. If the room is already in what might be considered standard or average condition, the benefit will be marginally less.

Louisville Buyers Can ‘Background Check’ New Homes

Feb 25, 2008 Residential

Caton Bredar is reporting in the Courier-Journal that home buyers in Louisville can request a background check, of sorts, from the county health departments. With a rise in meth labs, this is something conscientious buyers (and their Realtors) should do as part of their due diligence.

This is especially important if you know that the property in question was being leased. The old adage—”Buyer Beware”—is certainly true. “Better Safe Than Sorry” is another one that pops into my head, but you get the picture.

‘Louisville Relatively Strong’ According to WSJ

Feb 6, 2008 Residential, Trends/Statistics

Saw this complimentary snippet today:

The housing market is Louisville, Ky., is slowing, but not nearly as much as other parts of the country, says a Courier-Journal news story. In August, the number of home sales was about equal to the amount sold in August 2005, while listings jumped from 589 to approximately 700, the newspaper says. Meanwhile, the spring quarter of this year showed an annual home-price appreciation rate of 2.4%, the Courier-Journal says. “Overall, Louisville is still a very good real-estate market,” the paper quotes a local real-estate professor as saying. However, real-estate professionals report that in coming months, home buyers will have more properties to choose from, while sellers will face more competition, the article says.

It’s like we’ve been saying here at Louisville Homes Blog for months, buyers can still get some amazing deals while sellers’ properties at least are appreciating.

Solid Advice for Homebuyers in Louisville, KY and Beyond

Feb 6, 2008 Commercial

Liz Pulliam Weston has done a solid job of outlining the changes in home financing since the sub-prime lending scare began. Of particularly note is this.

At the height of the lending boom, you could be zero for three — lousy credit scores, little or no down payment and unable to prove your income — and still get a loan. Today, “you better be two for three,” LendingTree.com’s Svinth said. Good scores, a down payment of 10% or more and a steady, provable income put you in the best position to get a loan.

While this largely affects those of us with low credit scores, but even homebuyers with great credit can benefit from this advice. Of the “big three,” a large down-payment is the most powerful.

Build your down payment. The more cash you can bring to the table, the better the loan you’ll secure. Shoot for 5% as your minimum, but 10% is even better, and 20% is great if you can swing it.

Nothing beats cash for buying power. For some, a down payment of 5% is a required part of getting the loan. But why stop there? Putting down more will improve every aspect of your buying process and will reduce the total amount of debt you are accepting.

Most often it just takes the discipline of putting money aside every month and pushing off the purchase. This is not something we like to hear, nor is it new, but every so often it’s healthy to hear the many benefits of lowering one’s debt.

January 2008 Home Sales in Louisville, KY

Feb 4, 2008 Commercial

There are signs of improvement here and there but nothing significant for January. You can click here to compare these sales results with last month. And as always, please contact me with any questions you might have.

January 2008

Source: MetroSearch, Inc.