The First Time Home Buyers Tax Credit Boosts Sales, Not Economy

The first time home buyer’s tax credit, which expires November 30, 2009, has been boosting U.S. summer home sales. The question is: can it last? With budget cuts, layoffs and an all-around depressed economy, there are some questions as to whether this jump in home sales will last and, too, whether the people buying homes will be able to keep them.

In July, sales jumped a record 7.2 per cent, with one out of every three home buyers being a first time home owner. 7.2 per cent might not seem like a lot, but when you realize that this equals 350,000 more home buyers in July than in June, it’s clear that something is spurring on real estate consumers. With a third of home sales being to first-time home buyers, it’s clear that the tax credit bears some responsibility for the situation.

Normally improved home sales would be cause for rejoicing. “Sales are up! The economy’s turning around! Yay!” Indeed, we all hope that we will soon see some relief from the recession. However, it would be unwise to use this particular instance as “evidence” of a financial turnaround for the U.S. This brief burst of prosperity may subside once the first-time home buyer’s tax credit expires at the end of November.

Many buyers are taking advantage of the huge dips in prices for homes, hoping to see gains in equity. Foreclosure homes are especially popular, as buyers are getting homes at a fraction of the price, even in traditionally expensive markets like San Diego and Orlando.

The national median sales price is now 8,400, nearly 0,000 below what it was in the early part of the decade. This can offer home buyers an exceptional value, but means nothing if the home owners are unable to hold onto their assets.

Job losses are threatening the ordinary home owner even as they and the housing market bust have caused the spectacular drop in home prices. Even today, with a plethora of information on how to avoid home owner scams and how to make sure you can really afford your home, people are still losing their homes due to job cuts, job losses and just plain bad budgeting.

Despite the spike in home purchases, it would be unwise to take this as a sign that the recession is over or that the economy is gaining equilibrium. It remains to be seen whether the year’s spike in home sales will continue on into 2010. If so, perhaps it is indicative of a positive change in the nation’s finances, but there are definitely some doubts in that regard.

Hard times at the bottom of the Bush economy


Image by Renegade98
From a tent city in Reno to a drug dealer’s block in Detroit, I saw how Republican rule has hit those living on the American fringe.

By Dan Hoyle

Oct. 13, 2008 |

The Flying J Truck Stop outside of Jerome, Idaho, has some of the cheapest gas in the area, so on a Tuesday afternoon in late September, vehicles were lined up at its 16 pumps. For Rickie S., this would normally mean brisk business — he’s been an itinerant polisher of semitrailer wheels and hubcaps for the past 26 years. He doesn’t have a résumé or calling card but insists his work is world-class. “Get on a CB and ask about Rickie — I’m known coast to coast,” he says. But lately the truckers, who have been crunched by high gas prices for months, have been reluctant to hire Rickie even for a few bucks to buff and shine their rigs.

Business has gotten so bad that Rickie, who is 50 years old, has decided to abandon his trade.

“I’m done. I just threw away my rags, all my polish. You can’t make any money doing that anymore,” he says, taking a seat on his Army duffel bag and pushing back his Conway trucker’s mesh cap. He glances at the dirt caking the rims of my van, accumulated over 11,000 miles of traversing the country since June, and shares his story of economic blues. “I’ve got three blankets, two dollars, one beer and a 50 percent chance of survival,” he says. “This economy is bad, man! And guess what? The buck stops here.”

With the American financial system in crisis, politicians in both parties have taken every opportunity to denounce the corporate pirates of Wall Street and sound off on behalf of the anxious working majority. But far off embattled Main Street is another troubling picture of the nation’s economic swoon, where the working poor and lifelong scrappers struggle to keep from sliding onto Skid Row. For those on the bottom rung of the economic ladder, the current crisis is in a sense a mere aggravation of years of hard times. But for some it has turned particularly harsh.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor statistics, the national poverty rate increased from a record low of 11.3 percent in 2000 to 12.5 percent in 2007 — an increase of approximately 5.8 million Americans living below the poverty line. “In George W. Bush’s presidency, there’s been an almost total absence of benefits of growth trickling down to the middle class, much less to those at the bottom,” says Jared Bernstein, an economist with the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute, whose extensive writing on the working poor includes the book "The State of Working America." The nation’s unemployment rate has risen from 4 percent in 2000 to 6.1 percent at present. Bush’s economic policy has been marked by tax cuts largely beneficial to the wealthy, while federal funding for many programs helping low-income people has not kept pace with inflation.

Traveling around the country for three months this summer and fall, I found abundant evidence of an economy under strain. At the truck stop in Idaho, amid overgrown lots in run-down Detroit, at idle slot machines and in a dusty tent city in Nevada, I met people struggling to survive on the fringes of the faltering economy. Many were suspicious of a journalist’s inquiries and wary of divulging personal information (including their last names). But they were outspoken about the way economic hardship has hit home in recent months.

In Jackpot, Nev., a casino town of 1,416 people, Olivia A., 38, waits tables at Barton’s Club 93 Casino. She is a lot less busy these days, even with the prime rib special dinner on a recent Monday going for the tantalizing price of .98. The casino is not empty — there are still a few older women pulling on long, thin cigarettes and feeding slots with names such as Winning Times and Stinkin’ Rich — but Olivia says business is way down. As a result, her hours have been cut. A mother of three, she never expected to be struggling so hard to pay the bills when she left her job as an accountant in Mexico more than a decade ago to come to the U.S. with her husband. Leaving a middle-class job in Mexico was difficult, yet worth a better life for her children, she had thought.

But lately, every day seems less of an improvement over her previous life in Mexico. “Sometimes, I think about going back,” she says. “the only reason I’m here is for my kids. Back home I was a professional. I had a completely different life.”

The severity of the downturn can also be seen beyond the legal edges of the economy. On a recent Sunday afternoon on Jefferson Avenue, in Detroit’s notorious East Jefferson neighborhood, Joe, 37, is dressed in street-business casual: a white Adidas T-shirt, gray stonewashed jeans, white Adidas sneakers and a black do-rag. But the tattered state of his attire is a telltale sign that sales are down at his corner drug business, where he waits anxiously for today’s payday to come from across Alter Road. Three blocks to the north, the boarded-up storefronts and treeless sidewalks here give way to a leafy, boutique-strewn lane of Jefferson Avenue in Grosse Pointe, the wealthy suburb that is home to many of the top engineers and executives of the American auto industry. They have been some of Joe’s most profitable customers over the years. “When a white person come across Alter Road, they might spend 0 at a time,” explains Joe, “whereas round here, people only looking for dimes and nicks [ and bags].”

Over the past year, Joe’s big buyers from the suburbs have been cutting back. Like everyone else in the Motor City, Joe has felt the impact of losses at Ford, General Motors and Chrysler. “As goes the Big Three, so go Detroit, and I mean everybody,” says Joe. He grew up on welfare, and admits to being “knee deep in the drug game” since he was 15 years old, but he complains that he is even less shielded from the economic crisis as a part of the illegal and informal economy. He says he has been struggling to make child support payments for two kids. “At least the autoworkers get memberships to Sam’s Club and Costco. We have to buy our Pampers at the corner store for !”

Detroit has the highest poverty rate of any American city at 33.8 percent, with many blocks boasting only a lone house surrounded by fields of overgrown weeds. Watching the cars pass by, Joe eyes a yellow BMW. “Right there! That dude spent about 0 last week right here on this corner,” he declares. “But he didn’t come round last weekend like he normally do. You know he’s thinking, ‘I can’t be blowing money now. I might lose my job.’”

Economists across the board agree that this decade has been nothing like the 1990s, which saw sustained, healthy economic growth at most levels. Still, Rea S. Hederman Jr., an economist at the conservative Heritage Foundation, seeks to paint a less bleak picture when it comes to the plight of the working class. He notes that consumption inequality has increased far more slowly than income inequality, as more and more people at the bottom of the economic ladder own cellphones, dishwashers and microwaves. Hederman, preferring the term “pro-growth” to “trickle down” economics, also points to a long streak of positive job growth numbers from August 2003 to January 2008.

But with regard to those numbers, Bernstein, of the Economic Policy Institute, says that the period from March 2001 to December 2007 was “the worst business cycle on record for job growth, and you won’t find an economist to disagree with that," with jobs growing at just 0.7 percent annually, well below the 2 percent annual average. Put another way, in the 1990s, 21 million jobs were created, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, while in this decade only between 5 and 7 million jobs have been created, according to various estimates. (The decade isn’t over yet, but few economists are likely to be predicting a bonanza of job creation in the two years remaining.)

A stark picture of what it means to be down and out these days has cropped up just four blocks from the towering casino hotels of downtown Reno. After a local homeless shelter reached overflow capacity this spring, people began pitching tents in the dirt of an open lot; a tent city of more than 50 structures has since sprung up. On a warm late September afternoon, I weaved my way around people’s makeshift homes, some adorned with T-shirts featuring arty designs, others guarded by plastic animal lawn ornaments. People’s stories were a potent mixture of misfortune, bad decisions and dwindling opportunities.

In recent times, Bill Rosenbaum, 48, was installing carpet for new subdivision homes in Southern California and Arizona, traveling so much that he found it easier to stay in hotels. Then his van blew out and the home foreclosure crisis crippled the market for new carpet installation — and he was homeless for the first time in his life. He recently found a day job picking up pine cones for a rancher outside town. He hopes to save enough money to buy a new van and start his business back up.

Tammy Tyra, 47, of Seymour, Texas, was a trucker for the Landstar Carrier Group until last November, when she started having seizures. Diagnosed with epilepsy, she was forced to quit. Unable to find a new job, she eventually found her way to the tent city in Reno. She put her goal in simple terms: “I want to get me a freakin’ job!”

Alden Collins, 56, lost his job when he refused to take a pay cut from to an hour at a restaurant in Lake Tahoe. As he told his story, it quickly devolved into a song. (His friends nearby noted that he had been off his medication recently.) Nashing his teeth between notes, and banging his foot in the dirt to keep time, he sang, “Trying to go to work/ yeah yeah yeah/ but workin’ in the dirt just don’t work for me.”

Many of the people at the tent city suffered from mental health issues, and as social programs have been cut, they have less access to services. Those at the bottom have suffered in multiple ways, Bernstein says. “They’ve been hit on two sides. The markets are letting them down, and our government is letting them down.”

Debbie Weinstein, executive director of the Coalition on Human Needs, a Washington-based advocacy group for low-income people, says that “there’s been a great deal of shrinkage of a bunch of different kinds of services.” The organization has tracked 97 federally funded programs during Bush’s second term in office; according to data from Weinstein, federal funding for all but 13 of the 97 programs failed to keep up with inflation. Funding for major initiatives such as the Center for Mental Health, Adult job Training and Homeless Assistance Grants (which have budgets in the hundreds of millions of dollars), was down between 8 and 17 percent in inflation-adjusted dollars from 2004 to 2008.

According to both Bernstein and Hederman, those at the bottom usually receive less attention in times of economic crisis. They are a politically insignificant group compared to the broad American middle class, and expressing support in policy terms for the poor, who are often seen as lazy recipients of the un-American handout, can be risky for a politician in a close election. “The poor have been pretty invisible on the political stage,” Bernstein says. “It’s usually only in boom times that we look at those issues closely, and people debate if there are policy failures or they are just lazy bums.”

“I’d like to think people are more sympathetic in terms of volunteerism and charitable contributions," Hederman says. But a bad economy can get in the way, he says. "People are also looking to save in case things get worse.”

Setting aside any moral imperatives to aid the working class and poor, it’s evident that the relative health of this population tells us something about the state of the country.

At the truck stop outside Jerome, Idaho, Rickie speaks of two decades as a troubled but hard-working independent contractor to truckers across the country. On a good day he said he could make 0 to 0 polishing rigs; lately, he was lucky to make to . He expresses sharp frustration with the truckers, many of whom were loyal customers for years. “I feel like getting on that CB radio and saying, ‘Y’all are the sorriest motherfuckers I know, driving around the country with dirty wheels and dirty trucks. You gotta have some pride in your ride!’”

He cocks his head and watches a 18-wheeler with dirty rims easing out into traffic. “But people just don’t have any money for that anymore," he adds. "I know.”

– By Dan Hoyle
SALON.COM
www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/13/bottom_of_Bush_econ/

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As the housing crunch affects numerous markets around the country, there have been some markets that have been able to blissfully continue with rising home values and rather quick sales. There is some evidence that the housing market crash is finally beginning to penetrate those markets; however. That is certainly the case in cities like Provo, Utah. Even homes that would seem as though they would be rapidly snatched up are sitting on the market with no takers. This has been quite a surprise for homeowners in such markets.

Most homeowners were impacted by the sliding market in 2006. Other markets; however, continued to experience price increases. In Provo, for example, average home prices rose a staggering 14% within a short period of time, compared to preceding home values.

Homeowners in previously hot markets are discovering that they must now resort to creative selling tactics and offering concessions to attempt to move their homes off the market. Just a year ago these homes would have been sold within a matter of weeks. Today these homes are sitting on the market for months at a time. In desperate bids to sell their homes, sellers are slashing prices by thousands of dollars and even offering discounts to buyers who can close quickly or who are willing to work without an agent; providing sellers the opportunity to save on commission fees.

The message is certainly clear. While these markets were once hot, no market is immune to the housing bust. Even markets that are still experiencing price increases are finding that prices are not rising as much as they were in the past. Clearly these markets are beginning to lose steam. In addition, the rapid pace of sales that once marked these areas is beginning to slow down as well. Tighter loan restrictions as a result of the subprime mortgage crisis are likely affecting many of these markets. It is simply difficult to sell homes when buyers are unable to obtain loans.

In most cases, the economy is the one factor that is not affecting these markets. This is certainly the case in Utah, where the economy has managed to remain strong. Despite this fact, the housing market is stalling.

Seattle is another previously red hot market that appears to be stalling as well. While Seattle is certainly still nowhere near the frantic freefall of many other markets, prices are simply not rising as rapidly as they once did. Like many other markets, homes are not selling as quickly as they did last year either. Foreclosure rates have also begun to increase in Seattle in the last few months.

Despite this fact, experts are quick to point out that Seattle should be able to miss the collapse that has affected many other markets throughout the country. The apartment market in Seattle, in particular, looks as though it will continue to remain strong in Seattle even while home prices begin to settle somewhere closer to reality. Overall, inventory amounts are higher than they were last year; however, sales volumes continue to outpace other states.

One of the reasons that Seattle and the bulk of Washington state has been able to avoid the real estate market collapse that has affected the rest of the country is the Growth Management Act the state enacted. This act prevented the development of construction projects in the state as the same rate that occurred in many other states. While other states were building at a rapid rate, Washington was being reigned in.

This turned out to be an advantage for Seattle and other areas in Washington. In markets that experienced a sudden rash of construction, once those projects were completed the market had already begun to crash. As a result, newly completed construction projects were suddenly left vacant with no buyers in sight. Construction loans suddenly began to join the throng of defaulted loans clogging the market.

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Many homeowners have been taken by surprise when the value of their home suddenly seemed to hit freefall. It would certainly seem as though there should be one advantage to dropping home prices; however. Many homeowners assumed that when the value of their homes fell, their property taxes would as well. This has not been the case in many areas; however.

In some cases; homeowners have been shocked to discover that not only have their property tax bills not decreased, they have actually increased in some cases. This has been quite a surprise for homeowners as they struggle to understand why they are paying more in taxes on homes that are not worth as much as they were just a year ago.

The reason for this relates to the complex manner in which property taxes are calculated in many areas. One of the biggest problems, especially in Nevada, is the fact that property tax increases were capped during the housing boom. During this time home values skyrocketed rapidly. Today, the values of homes in these same areas are falling; however, the decreases have not actually been enough to compensate for the increases of just a few years ago. Consequently, the values of homes would need to decrease sharply over a short period of time in order for property tax bills to decrease. While declining property values have certainly been a problem, they simply have not decreased enough in many areas to provide any relief from property tax bills.

As the rate of defaulted loans and foreclosures continue to soar in many locations, numerous counties have discovered that the rate of unpaid properties taxes is also on the rise. The metro Detroit area, in particular, is experiencing a record high rate of unpaid property taxes. Detroit is currently considered to be one of the worst housing markets in the United States based on the decline of housing prices and increase of foreclosures. The lack of jobs and weak economy in the greater Detroit area are considered to be the primary factors contributing to the housing crash in the area.

Even if property owners are paying their monthly mortgage payments on time they could still be at risk for losing their properties through foreclosure if they fail to pay their property taxes for three years in a row. In such situations, the county would then take control of the home and auction it off to pay the balance of taxes owed. Counties in the Detroit area are currently struggling to recoup hundreds of millions of dollars in unpaid property taxes. The issue has had significant repercussions on counties in the greater Detroit area.

Property owners who find they are behind on the property taxes can take some steps to stave off foreclosure. The first step is to begin making payments on their taxes. Many homeowners make the mistake of thinking they are doomed if they cannot pay off all of the taxes owed and thus pay nothing at all. Keep in mind that making any payment, even if you cannot pay all of the taxes, is better than paying nothing at all. If you are not able to pay all of the taxes; at least try to pay off your oldest taxes first. Remember that taxes which remain unpaid for three years consecutively places you at risk for foreclosure. Pay off the oldest taxes first to combat this risk.

You might also check with your county to determine whether you may be eligible for an extension for property taxes which are unpaid. In some situations, the county treasurer may be able to grant you an exemption for your taxes if you are able to demonstrate extreme hardship. It is best to do this as early as possible; however, as there are commonly deadlines for the exemption applications.

In addition, check with your mortgage company or bank to find out whether they offer any type of program or loan that can provide you with the money needed to cover your taxes. It is never in the best interest of the bank to have the county take over the property, so they are often willing to work with the homeowner to avoid having this happen. Keep in mind; however, that when you do this will you will be taking on an increased debt burden.

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In some of the worst housing markets in the country, deflation has reached double-digit proportions. While housing woes have reached around the country, California appears to be poised to rank among the worse. One of the primary reasons for this is the fact that in the last several months California has experienced the largest rate of deflating home prices. In fact, home prices in California have fallen at levels that have been unprecedented.

Miami, Florida has also proven to be a difficult market at the moment. Here, the weak mortgage market and record high rates of foreclosures have let to decreasing home values as well. In fact, Miami has been among the worst home markets in the country for two years running. The condo boom in Miami just a few years ago has fueled further problems that have now spiraled into a massive real estate bust.

While Florida and California may have been easy to predict as being among the first housing markets to crumble when the real estate market crashed, there are other markets that are on the precipice of falling which have not been as easy to predict. One of the primary reasons that Florida and California were poised to fall so rapidly were rapidly escalating home values during the boom a few years ago.

Other markets; however, did not rise as much or as quickly, which could be one reason why they have managed to avoid reaching the top of the list; at least until now. These markets include Arizona, Nevada, Indiana and Massachusetts. Declining home prices as well as high rates of foreclosures in these states are also contributing to their worsening real estate market conditions. In Michigan, where layoffs have been significant, the economy is playing a strong role.

Problems are expected to grow worse in many markets as several million adjustable rate mortgages are scheduled to be reset in the coming months. As these mortgages are reset, it is logical to assume that even more homeowners will find themselves facing the reality of being unable to pay their monthly mortgage payments in certain markets. When that happens they will be forced to either face foreclosure or in some cases make a short sell on their home as refinancing is becoming less and less of an option for many homeowners.

According to most statistics, the remainder of 2008 is still poised for problems in the housing market. Many statistics indicate that home values could continue to drop and new homes could experience a loss of up to 18% before the year is out. While there are some indications that the market could begin to level off at the end of 2008 or the beginning of 2009, many experts are quick to warn that when the market does begin to rebound it will not reach the point where it left off. In comparison to the housing peak of 2005, the rebounded market could still be quite a bit lower. Part of the reason for this is that in many areas, prices escalated so quickly that there is simply no way for prices to rebound back to that point.

Still, there may be some home for certain areas. In many markets sub-prime mortgages have either left the market through quick sales or foreclosure. The stimulus package that is on the horizon is anticipated to help the housing market in many areas.

First-time home buyers may soon find the relief they have been seeking since they were forced out of the market; however, it may longer before homeowners begin to experience that same kind of recovery. This is because most homeowners are still reluctant to sell and lose the equity they once had in their homes. The simple fact is that many homeowners have yet to accept the fact that they can no longer get the same prices for that was possible just a few short years ago.

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It is the opinion of many people that the government, despite what the President may say, will in fact bail out mortgage high players Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. For these companies to fold would be detrimental to the economy. But what exactly are Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and what do they do? Simply put, a home buyer achieves a mortgage from a lending institute and Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac purchase the mortgage to then resell it again to investors. They receive money from the sale to the first lender to continue lending.

In the last decade Freddie Mac handled nearly $164 billion in New York mortgages alone; serving over 1,325,000 families. If Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have serious financial problems then credit will tighten and it will become increasingly difficult for any consumer to get a mortgage; but particularly for the first time home buyer. At this point it is speculated that these companies will not need to borrow money from federal reserves, the government or the treasury; however, the government has stated that if they do need it they can come for it. With the potential for government bailouts confidence is building.

When push comes to shove, impact from national news or news on a local level does not change the rules in applying for a first mortgage; make sure you have your finances in order before shopping for a home, make sure your credit is in line and be aware of your credit score. The first time home buyer needs to educate themselves more than ever as lenders begin to tighten their belts. Knowing what your credit score is, how to increase that score and look favorable to the lenders will increase your chances of obtaining a mortgage regardless of what is happening in the financial world; these are basic rules.

Before a lender will grant a loan for a home he will first run a credit report on the buyer to help them get a picture of the buyer’s ability to pay the loan. The last thing a lending institute wants is for a buyer to get in over their head and default on their mortgage. It is therefore recommended that before shopping for a home or showing up at the lending institute to apply for a first mortgage you run a credit report of your own. This will help you figure out any areas that need to be corrected and what areas could be improved. Once you are satisfied and your lender runs the report he will be able to help you understand what you can afford. If you have discovered your credit is in shambles or your credit score is low there are ways to bring up your credit score and you will have the time to do so.

Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae having financial problems is just the reflection of what is happening in the economy today; we are all feeling the pinch. This is a time, more than any to tighten our own belts, avoid using credit excessively and manage your credit well; doing these things will allow you to be among the few buyers that the lenders extend a first time mortgage to.

Home loans make the process of buying a new home more affordable than ever. As you may already know, these types of loans give you many opportunities that wouldn?t be possible without them. When you buy a home, you should understand as much as you can about the process, as well as the questions you will be answering. This way, you?ll be familiar with how things work and you?ll find the entire process to go much smoother.

When you look towards a home purchase loan, you?ll need to fully understand the interest rates. They are never the same and will vary among the different financial institutions, as well as from time to time. In many cases, home loans can change on a frequent basis, with little to no notice. When you buy a home, it is very important that you keep up with the economy. Any change in interest rates for a home loan can either increase or decrease the amount you pay back.

When getting a home loan, you?ll also need to understand the terms and the length of the loan. Almost all financial institutions and lenders have a variety of different plans or periods for you to choose from. If you choose a longer period, in most cases your interest rate will drop. You can find this out yourself by using a mortgage calculator. This way, you?ll know how much your mortgage payment will be before you decide to further pursue the loan.

As you probably already know, your ability to pay the loan back is very important. Some lenders require that you keep your loan full term, while others may provide you with the option to pay it off any time you wish. Home loans that give you the option to pay it off early will normally save you quite a bit of money in the end. If you are able to pay your loan off several years early, you?ll save a lot of money in the long run.

Even though the early payoff option is great to have, it can also come back to haunt you if you end up defaulting on the home loan. Or, if you decide to sell your home in the future, the early payoff can haunt you as well. For those very reasons you should always consult with a specialist before you commit to any type of home loan.

For the potential home buyer, home loans offer several different opportunities. Before you rush out and get a home loan, you should always know what you are agreeing to. You should also look into the company you are thinking of getting the loan from as well, so that you can better prepare yourself when you go through their process of getting your loan.

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Due to the current down market, more and more people are looking for alternate, non-traditional ways to sell their home. The days of sticking a FSBO (For Sale By Owner) sign in the yard or simply listing it with the realtor that your friend at work used, just isn’t having much effect these days. Depending on your selling situation, selling your home to a professional home buyer can be the right selling decision. As with other home selling options, selling your home to a real estate investor has benefits.

Working with an experienced investor can really simplify and expedite the process. Some of the great benefits of selling your house to a professional property buyer are: you are able to sell your house fast, “as is” on the date or your choice, you do not have to pay large real estate commissions to a Realtor, you do not have to spend your time, energy and money updating and making repairs and you only have to have one showing. There are many other benefits that an honest, experienced and well trained Charleston real estate investor can provide, such as knowing exactly how to handle problem properties or situations where Low Country folks are taking the brunt of the current economy on the chin and are facing many of the more and more common financial problems like foreclosure that need short sales in order to sell their over leveraged home and avoid foreclosure.

I would recommend selling your house to a local real estate investor if you are in any of the following selling situations:

I am behind on monthly mortgage payments I need to sell my home fast I am moving out of state or out of my local area and can’t afford two mortgage payments I have been transferred by my job I am going through a Divorce and need to sell my house My home is 100% financed and I do not have enough equity to list my home with a Realtor I need to Stop Foreclosure and avoid ruining my credit I am currently in Bankruptcy Someone in our family has health problems and can not work, therefore we can not pay our bills I am tired of being a Landlord and do not want to deal with tenants anymore My home needs lots of repairs and I do not have the time or money to fix it up My home is in pre-forclosure I want to cash out of my investment property My home has been on the market with a realtor for many months and my listing agreement is now expired, I want to sell my house fast, now We recently inherited a property and want to sell it quickly and want someone familiar with an estate sale and the probate process I own my house free and clear and am willing to wait for the market to turn around but would consider taking payments for my equity if I can get my asking price now

As you can see there are many reasons why you should consider selling your home to a local home buyer, and these are not all of them. Simply put, listing your home with a Realtor or trying to sell your home FSBO cost you money and time, it also does not get you offers within just a few hours/days. If you do not have time, do not have money, or simply do not want to deal with the hassles of selling your home, then sell it to a real estate investor. You may be happily surprised by the offer you get.

Before calling some random number on the side of the road off one of those “We Buy Houses” signs, it is important to make sure you know who you are dealing with. Unfortunately, there are a few unethical investors, like in any business, and currently the real estate market is a prime target. Thanks to the Internet it is relatively easy to locate information about a legItimate business. South Carolina business owners are required to register with the South Carolina Secretary of State and you can see if they the business you are calling has bypassed even that basic requirement. The Attorney General’s office handles consumer complaints, as does the Better Business Bureau. Realtors and brokers are licensed through the Real Estate Commission. These agencies can help to ensure you are working with a licensed, legitimate, complaint-free business or real estate investor.

Charleston Home Buyers, LLC is an Accredited Member of the Better Business Bureau, a registered LLC with the South Carolina Secretary of State, and an active member of the Charleston Real Estate Investors Association. “We pride ourselves on our integrity and conduct business under strict ethical principles. We say what we mean and do what we say!” Many references and testimonials are available upon request and some of which are posted on our website. We buy houses in Charleston, Dorchester and Berkeley County and work with a group of nationwide investors. We currently are looking to buy more real estate in Summerville, Goose Creek, North Charleston, Ladson, Hanahan, West Ashley, James Island, Johns Island, Mt. Pleasant, Downtown and all other area in the tri-county area.

If you need to sell your house quick, submit your property information via the “Sell My House” form at our website today for a Free, Confidential, No-obligation offer or call our toll free 24 hour recorded message at 888-52-BUYER (888-522-8937) for more information about selling your home to a professional house buyer. You can also always call us direct 843-72-BUYER (843-722-8937), however it is usually better to take 5 minutes to fill out our property information form first so that we can save you time by having the information already and do some research so that we can get an offer to you right away.

Here’s what some of our sellers have had to say:

“I had been trying unsuccessfully to sell my house for 9 months with a realtor…tired of having the house perfect… we closed the following week” Frank P. – North Charleston

“In less than a week’s time, all of my headaches were over… I would recommend anyone who needs to sell their house to this group of caring people…” Rev L. Greene – Summerville

“My experience with Charleston Home Buyers began and ended with extreme kindness, genuine concern, and sympathetic professionalism…” Brenda M. – West Ashley

“Selling a house can be quite difficult and stressful unless you can find someone like Charleston Home Buyers …… They saved me from losing my house to foreclosure and I was able to make some money and not lose everything.” B. Harvey – West Ashley

“….selling our home to Charleston Home Buyers was the best decision we made. They handled our affairs with the utmost care and efficiency…..” The Daniels Family” – Charleston

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