Utah

Saturday Morning TV seems to be filled with shows on HGTV and the DIY network among others that show people upgrading their homes followed by a Realtor telling them how much more it is worth.

The country's present real estate market shows us that those upgrades may not all be good and definitely don't necessarily make you money in the end. This is not to say that something can't be bought at a great price have a few cosmetic upgrades done and be sold for a profit, but the days of the easy fix and flip may be gone.

The Park City area, having a resort originally built in the 60's and 70's (not to mention miners shacks from the early 1900's), has some properties that are in need of a remodel. The majority of the guests coming here expect a world class resort and accommodations to match. Real estate buyers in Park City have come to expect granite countertops surrounding professional grade appliances, jetted tubs and travertine tile in bathrooms, LCD or Plasma screen TV's, hot tubs plus plenty of snow in the winter and sun in the summer.

Maybe your Park City home or condominium doesn't currently have all this. Do you have to upgrade? If so, what should you do and how much should you spend? To answer these questions you really need to consider what end result you are trying to accomplish. Are you looking to sell soon? Are you looking for better rental revenue? Are you looking to just please yourself or spouse by making your place more comfortable? Do you just want to smile when you turn the corner and see your home come into view? Each of theses answers may lead to a different upgrade and investment in your property.

If your intention is to fix up the property and sell it, consult your local Realtor about which project to tackle first and the resulting revenue difference it may make in the sales price of your home. Remember that the most important part will be to get people to come into your Park City house or condominium, so work on the outside "curb appeal" first (this is the first and last thing people see when they come to look at your property).

If your intention is to remodel the inside of your home, take a look at the cost of remodels and the average return on that investment in the Sellers section of our website. Remember why you are making an upgrade, if it brings you happiness while you are living in the home; consider that value in your return on investment calculation.

Also, for those of you that plan to "do-it-yourself" note that it is never as easy as the ½ hour TV show would lead you to believe. Think about what type of person you are (are you a perfectionist or do you settle for adequate?), make sure that you finish the project to the end and not just do "good enough" especially if your end wish is for better resale value.

We have had a lot of buyers call us wondering about the REO market and finding a "screaming deal" in a foreclosure. We have several in our market, so there is a good selection. The other night I was going over some old blogs that I have commented on and saw some of the damage that people that are losing their homes do to those properties.

I have to wonder, is it really a better deal to buy an REO from a bank or HUD not getting a complete disclosure of property conditions from them versus buying from someone that has equity and may be priced around $10K more than a REO? There are property inspections that need to be done regardless of who you buy the property from. I honestly believe and preach that a home inspection by a licensed inspector is just the cost of buying a house. It is well worth the cost of the inspection.

There are defects that come inside homes that the inspector may comment: living room needs to be repainted, or linoleum flooring in kitchen needs to be replaced. These types of defects or problems are deal breakers in any sense of the word. However if you have a REO that needs to be repainted and the linoleum is showing a lot of wear and tear, and the carpets need either a real good cleaning or to be replaced. It doesn't take many of these items in an REO home to make up the difference in price in a resale home that shows a lot of pride of ownership.

Landscaping is another area that can make up the cost difference in a hurry if a REO has allowed the lawn to die, or the landscaping is either non-existent, or has been torn up; (Non-existent landscaping especially in the back yards is common in foreclosures in our area) and you are comparing that home to a home with well maintained landscaping, there is a cost or value there. I guess what I am really trying to say is that it is our job as Realtors to make sure that our clients understand that value is a lot different than price in some cases.

www.liveinlogan.com is a real estate website we have had for about 5 years. We got it through a company called z57.

It is starting to rank pretty good. I would recomend this company if you need a real estate weblsite.

I am available Monday thru Saturday and most evenings. As you see homes that you are interested in, just give me a call and we can set up a time to see it.

Thank you, and let me know if you have any questions about any property.

Robert J. Brown

Cornerstone Real Estate

Cell: 435-760-1113

Fax: 435-752-4498

Email: Robert@LiveInLogan.com

www.robertjbrown.info

www.utahcornerstone.com

According to Law Encyclopedia: A Golden Parachute is defined as: An agreement that provides key executives with generous severance pay and other benefits in the event that their employment is terminated as a result of a change of ownership at their employer corporation; known more formally as a change-of-control agreement.

Golden parachutes are provided by a firm's board of directors and, depending on the laws of the state in which the company is incorporated, may require shareholder approval. These agreements compensate executives in the event that they lose their job or quit because they have suffered a reduction in power or status following a change of ownership of their employer corporation. Some golden parachutes are triggered even if the control of the corporation does not change completely; such parachutes open after a certain percentage of the corporation's stock is acquired.

Golden parachutes have been justified on three grounds.

First, they may enable corporations that are prime takeover targets to hire and retain high-quality executives who would otherwise be reluctant to work for them.

Second, since the parachutes add to the cost of acquiring a corporation, they may discourage takeover bids.

Third, if a takeover bid does occur, executives with a golden parachute are more likely to respond in a manner that will benefit the shareholders. Without a golden parachute, executives might resist a takeover that would be in the interests of the shareholders, in order to save their own job.

I can't quite see how these 12 Credit Crunch guys were looking out for their shareholders . . . it appears they were looking out for themselves. If you are outraged at paying the price for these guys being rewarded for MASSIVE FAILURES, then why not send a loud signal to your State Representative to say that you want to see legal charges imposed against these guys?

Alan Fishman . . . left on Sept. 25, 2008

Golden Parachute Total: $19 million
Company: Washington Mutual

Fishman was paid $19 million for three weeks of work! He joined WaMu on Sept. 8 and left on Sept. 25, 2008. The bank was seized by the FDIC -- the largest bank failure in US history! Then WAMU was bought out for under $2/share by Chase.

Kerry Killinger

Golden Parachute Total: $44 million
Company: Washington Mutual

Killinger was removed as CEO on Sept. 8, 2008. He was replaced by Alan Fisherman (above), who led the company for only three weeks until the bank was seized by the FDIC and sold to JPMorgan Chase.

That is $63 Million going to 2 men before WAMU was sold for under $2.00/share

James Cayne

Golden Parachute Total: $13 million
Company: Bear Stearns

Several months after two hedge funds collapsed, Cayne stepped down from the CEO position on Jan. 8. Bear Stearns was bought by JPMorgan Chase in a Fed-engineered deal in March for about $2.00/share.

Richard Fuld

Golden Parachute Total: $24 million
Company: Lehman Brothers

Fuld's four-decade career with Lehman took a hit on Sept. 15, 2008 when the investment bank filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the largest such case in US history

Richard Syron

Golden Parachute Total: $16 million
Company: Freddie Mac

Freddie Mac, led by Syron until Sept. 8, 2008, was taken over by the federal government along with Fannie Mae.

Daniel Mudd

Golden Parachute Total: $8 million
Company: Fannie Mae

Fannie Mae, led by Mudd until Sept. 8, 2008, was taken over by the federal government along with Freddie Mac.

Robert Willumstad

Golden Parachute Total: $22 million (his was declined)
Company: AIG

Willumstad reportedly rejected a $22 million severance package from troubled insurance giant AIG. He was replaced as CEO on Sept. 17, 2008 after the company received an $85-billion loan from the federal government in exchange for a 79.9 percent stake in the company.

Stanley O'Neal

Golden Parachute Total: $161 million

Company: Merrill Lynch

Merrill Lynch ousted O'Neal from his position on Oct. 28, 2007 shortly after the company reported $8 billion in write-downs. What a great way for Stanley to collect $161 Million

John Thain replaced him as CEO. See him Next!

John Thain

Golden Parachute Total: $9 million
Company: Merrill Lynch

Thain served as CEO of Merrill Lynch for less than a year, before Bank of America bought the investment bank for $50 billion on Sept. 14, 2008.

Angelo Mozilo

Golden Parachute Total: $56 million
Company: Countrywide

Mozilo stepped down from the CEO spot on July 1, 2008 after leading Countrywide for 39 years. Bank of America bought the troubled mortgage lender in Jan. 2008

Charles Prince

Golden Parachute Total: $105 million
Company: Citigroup

Prince resigned from his position on Nov. 4, 2007 after the company announced $11 billion in write-downs. But they are in line to buy Wachovia this week, see the link below.

Ken Thompson

Golden Parachute Total: $42 million
Company: Wachovia

Thompson was removed from his position on June 1, 2008 (replaced by Bob Steel) following questions about a major acquisition as well as heavy losses. Once the fourth largest bank in the US. Read the latest on the battle to purchase Wachovia between Citibank (who seems to be having trouble keeping their word and Wells Fargo (the only AAA rated bank in the USA) (Royal Bank of Scotland is the only AAA rated bank in Europe) http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/06/business/06bank.html?bl&ex=1223438400&en=f895f0fd514c47fb&ei=5087%0A

Be sure to see, be sure to read what CNBC Mad Money's Jim Cramer has to say on Wachovia and more importantly Bob Steel!

Hey don't you think this is worth a letter to your Senators or your Congressmen to consider this $500 Million a crime?? You do remember that Martha Stewart went to PRISON for 6 months and then another 6 months of house arrest for only saying to her stock broker: SELL @ $60 on her Imclone Stock. She was charged with Insider Information.

WHO had more insider information than these guys?

Why should they get to bail out when they are the ones who should be standing behind this mess and fixing things.

Don't you think doing nothing means you are sort of supporting their GREEDY actions!

Please feel free to forward this BlogPost onto your State Senators or Congressmen to let them know you would like to see legal action taken against those taking these big parachutes, against those who were party to the demise of your business model as you have always known it.

It can't HURT you to speak up to your State Representatives. It might even make you feel better!!