Little Rock, AR

First Impressions are everything!

If you are a Realtor, which first impression would you want? Your sign in front of a stagnant, unattractive vacant listing or your sign in front of a fully staged show-to-sell Showhome?

With the economy the way it is, and the staggering number of homes on the market, a Realtor is really doing everyone and their industry a dis-service by not enlisting a staging company to assist them with a vacant listing. A Realtor has the responsibility to inform the property owners that a staging company is recommended for their vacant home. A Realtor should inform the property owners that the cost to stage a vacant home is usually less then a reduction in the selling price of the home. By enlisting the services of a staging company the property owners remove the label that this vacant home is cold, distressed, run down, and un-inviting.

Tests have shown that vacant homes upon being staged sell faster and for a higher amount. The amount the property owners save when using Showhomes services also increases as we reduce the property owners holding costs as we eleminate higher insurance premiums, utility bills, and yard expense. A staging company sends a positive message to everyone including the neighbors who do not wish to see their property values diminish.

Working together with Realtors in Central Arkansas, Little Rock Metro Area, and West Tennessee, Memphis Metro Area, our two Showhomes franchises have been able to assist property owners in the staging of a lot of vacant homes this year. Many of the homes have sold quickly after we staged them with a home manager.

www.showhomes.com

Free Real Estate Course and Little Rock Distressed Property List

Have you been tempted by the TV infomercials about making money in real estate? Me too. Contact me and I will send you my real estate course and I'll throw in a list of Little Rock distressed properties (a current list) to help you find your first deal.

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http://LittleRockRealEstateResources.com/free-course/?R=4675

Sincerely,

Tracye

The Housing Market should see some positive results from the signing of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 by President Bush. The benefits are for first time home buyers in the form of a home-buyer tax credit. First-time buyers are vital to the housing market because they start the domino effect. They also keep the market stable because of the demand vs. supply.

Buyers who haven't owned a property in the last three years can qualify for a tax credit up to $7,500 or 10 % of there home purchase price. To qualify homes can be purchased from April 9, 2008 till July 1, 2009. There are income limits and recapture taxes, so please check with your financial advisor.

The housing bill includes higher loan limits allowing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to increase loan limits based around median pricing, which means we will see the jumbo loan limits raised. The effect on the local market will be lower interest rates on loans higher than $417,000. WE should see some positive results in the higher end areas of Central Arkansas.

Using history as a guide, Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors believes the Housing Act could represent a boost of 10% in the number of homes sold.

In Central Arkansas we have seen a slight slow down in homes sold. With the new incentives for first time home buyers we expect to see increase sales.

See below for the trends in Pulaski County:(the numbers below are from CARMLS and are based on Jan. through July 31 numbers)

Year: TTL Listed # sold Avg. List $sold Avg DOM % Expired

2006 5403 3494 $171,558 58 .02%

2007 6385 3461 $177,974 76 15.72%

2008 5541 2798 $176,168 79 22.83%

Our local market is only slightly down from 06 and 07 numbers, but the inventory is adjusting and surprisingly prices have only seen a 1.1 % decrease. We still have approximately a 13 month supply of homes, however we are seeing much stronger markets in specific neighborhoods with only 5 months of supply.