Gayle's Blog

OK, I know this seems like OLD NEWS, but LA Realtors just passed this info on to me. By parish, the foreclosure rate for April, 2009, shows how few foreclosures there are in Ouachita Parish.  So, before you  rush out determined to buy a home in foreclosure, consider the low number. Your search will be much easier when you are willing to look at everything on the market in your price range and desired location.

Call, text or email me when you need more info.

Gayle Causey, Keller Williams Realty
318-614-5615  Gayle@GayleCausey.com
Monroe, LA USA
http://GayleCausey.com

Louisiana Ranks 38th for April

According to RealtyTrac's April 2009 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, Louisiana ranks 38th out of 50 states and the District of Columbia.  In Louisiana in April, there were 1,125 properties with a foreclosure filing, or 1 for every 1,653 households. This represents a 18.8% increase over March.
The upward trend in foreclosures during the spring may suggest that lenders and servicers are beginning foreclosure proceedings on delinquent loans that had been delayed by legislative and industry moratoriums.  Nationwide, filings were reported on 342,038 properties during April, an increase of 32% from April 2008. The report also shows that one in every 374 U.S. housing units received a foreclosure filing in April, the highest monthly foreclosure rate ever posted since RealtyTrac began issuing its report in January 2005.

If your Saturdays and Sundays consist of driving around neighborhoods looking for homes for sale, then you know the drill. See house, call number on the sign, leave message, expect a call back the next day when you have already forgotten which house you called about.

If you have an iPhone, you can save all that time and effort. In fact, you can get details on that home ON THE SPOT!     

Zillow.com released a free iPhone app recently, enabling consumers to get the low-down on more than 88 million homes. Keller Williams listings are included as well as those of many other companies in town. 

It's really neat--it's GPS-powered, so the map follows you as you drive around. Homes and prices pop up along the way. Pass a sale sign and you can find out about the number of bedrooms and baths, the size of the house and how much it costs.  If you're in Indian Lakes, Remington Estates, North Pointe or the Garden District, you're covered.

This app will add a new experience to your weekend drives.  Of course if you don't have an iPhone, you can always call your favorite Realtor (ME!) to find out the details on any home you see. I'll be glad to tell you all about it.   Have fun!

Gayle Causey
318-614-5615
Keller Williams Realty, Monroe, LA
http://GayleCausey.com or http://WestMonroeRealEstate.com

 

 

People are always asking me to tell them about foreclosures in the area. Yes, there are a FEW on the market in Monroe and West Monroe, but no more than any other time in the past several years.

From today's news:
Louisiana moved down to #41 on the May foreclosure ranking list (down 16.36% from April) with a rate of one in every 1,976 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing.The U.S. average is one home out of every 398. Nevada continues to lead the nation with one in every 64. The top 10 states in RealtyTrac's list (Nevada, California, Florida, Arizona, Utah, Michigan, Georgia, Colorado, Idaho, and Ohio) account for nearly 77% of U.S. foreclosure activity.

I know about one nice house in Frenchmen's Bend that is bank-owned. It's priced at $329,800, below market value for a home this size. All the others are in the lower end of the market, well below $100,000.

Buying a bank-owned home is a little more time-consuming that buying from a private homeowner, but it's usually worth the wait. There's one big hurdle, however--the property is sold strictly AS IS. Even if the appliances have been ripped out and the A/C unit has been stolen, the bank will do NO REPAIRS. This stipulation sometimes makes it difficult to get a mortgage because banks want to lend money on houses that are in good condition.

If you would like to know more about the house in Frenchmen's Bend or any other aspect of the market in Monroe, West Monroe, Sterlington or Calhoun, call or email me. I'll be glad to help.

Gayle Causey
318-614-5615
http://GayleCausey.com or http://WestMonroeRealEstate.com

Keller Williams Realty, 1390 Hudson Lane, Monroe, LA  318-812-7653

I'm smiling so big right now that I can't talk! This is wonderful news for our little part of the world!

From The News Star,  June 13, 2009
By Greg Hilburn

Ouachita Lands 1,400 Jobs in Old Guide Plant

A deal has been signed that will bring about 1,400 jobs to the former Guide Corp. plant in Ouachita Parish, Louisiana business titan James Davison confirmed Saturday.

Davison, who owns the Guide facility and is an investor in the project, said a confidentiality agreement prevents him from revealing details of the deal until it's officially announced in Ouachita on Wednesday, but The News-Star has learned that the startup company will assemble new autos in the plant.

"Our infrastructure is ideal for the type of industry this project will bring and our work ethic in northeastern Louisiana is what's going to make it a success," Davision said. "I believe this project will literally change the economic landscape of the region."

The deal, known as Project Liberty, involves famed Silicon Valley venture capitalists Ray Lane and John Doerr of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.

Lane, the managing partner of KPCB, was previously president of Oracle Corp., while Doerr has backed such projects as Google and Amazon.

Many of the partners and investors will attend a dinner at Davison's Squire Creek Golf Club in Choudrant on Tuesday night in preparation of the official announcement on Wednesday.

State and local governments put together an incentive package to lure the project to Ouachita Parish, which includes up to $15 million in combined local funding and multiples of that from the state.

The cities of Monroe and West Monroe and the Ouachita Parish Police Jury will likely ask voters to a approve a new property tax to meet the local obligation. The OEDC Land Corp. ($2 million) and the I-20 Economic Development Districts ($150,000) have also committed funding toward the local $15 million.

Monroe's City Council has scheduled a special meeting on Monday to sign off on its commitment.
****    ****    ****    ****

I can't wait to find out more. This area needs a shot in the arm, and it looks like it's on the way!  Stand by for more news about this exciting announcement.

Gayle Causey
Keller Williams Realty
Monroe, LA USA
http://GayleCausey.com

 

People ask me that all the time. When you watch TV, you're sure to think that the housing market sucks, and that is true for some areas of the US. But, not all parts of the country are experiencing plunging real estate values. Certainly not here in Ouachita Parish.

Home sales in Ouachita Parish for May, 2009 were slightly down from May, 2008, but the local market is still very stable.   

For the first 5 months of 2009, local Realtors listed 733 homes and sold 443 at an average price of $148,052.  Buyers paid an average of 96% of list price for homes in the Parish. Homes stayed on the market for an average of 128 days. 

To compare the same period of Jan.-May, 2008, local Realtors listed 957 homes, sold 497.  The average selling price was $143,350 with homes staying on the market for an average 124 days. Sold prices were 96% of list price for this period of time as well. 

The figures for list vs. sold price are really important. People watch TV and think they can make a low offer on properties in the hopes that they will be able to get a good deal.  When you look at the average of 96%, buyers should be realistic and make a reasonable offer if they really want to buy the house. For instance, a house listed at $100,000 will not sell for $75,000 in Ouachita Parish. These statistics show that it will probably sell for more than $95,000.  

Let me remind you that the old adage "Real estate is LOCAL" applies here, too. Not only is the market in Ouachita Parish different from, say Clark County, Nevada, but parts of the Parish make up their own market. Each side of the river has its own hot market as well as less sellable areas.  

The best advice is to trust a real estate professional to interpret the market for you before you sell or buy your next home.

Gayle Causey
318-614-5615
http://GayleCausey.com or http://WestMonroeRealEstate.com
Keller Williams Realty
Monroe, LA USA

GREAT NEWS! If you were skeptical about how the new tax credit works, see the post below from a Realtor in New Jersey.
Call me today and let's go house-hunting!

Gayle

The following is a press release from the National Assoc. of REALTORS:

FHA To Allow Monetization of Tax Credit

Shaun Donovan, secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, said that the Federal Housing Administration is going to permit its lenders to allow homeowners to use the $8,000 tax credit as a downpayment. Donovan's remarks came in an address to several thousand Realtors® gathered last week at a special Real Estate Summit program during the National Association of REALTORS Midyear Meetings in Washington D.C..

Secretary Donovan said that important changes, which NAR has been calling for, will help consumers purchase a home. "We all want to enable FHA consumers to access the home buyer tax credit funds when they close on their home loans so that the cash can be used as a downpayment," Donovan said. According to Donovan, the FHA's approved lenders will be permitted to "monetize" the tax credit through short-term bridge loans. This will allow eligible home buyers to access the funds immediately at the closing table.

Donovan said the Obama administration plans to further stabilize the housing market. "I do think we have some early signs hat the market overall is stabilizing," said Donovan. "Since January we've seen both home sales moving up and down around a relatively stable number and we are seeing the first signs that the rapid decline in home prices is starting to abate."

NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker in Dallas-Fort Worth, said, "As the leading advocate for housing issues and homeownership, NAR continues to take a leadership role in promoting ideas for improving our economy by stabilizing the housing and real estate markets. Today we have the best of the best to begin a dialogue, develop solutions and initiate action toward real estate and economic recovery."
*****

This is wonderful news for any buyer in the Monroe and West Monroe market today. Remember, you must purchase an existing home before December 1, 2009, to qualify for the tax credit.
Call, email or text me if you want to buy your first home and take advantage of this fabulous program. With interest rates so low, conditions are more favorable than any time within the past 50 years!

Gayle Causey
318-614-5615
http://GayleCausey.com

Keller Williams Realty
Monroe, LA

The long tradition of Open Houses on Sunday afternoon is about to be shaken up a bit. This past weekend (May 9) was just the beginning of a new era in open houses in Monroe/West Monroe, LA.

Keller Williams Realty hosted 30 open houses all over Ouachita Parish on Saturday afternoon! It was decided that Mother's Day (May 10) was a day set aside for moms, so they should not be inconvenienced by having to leave their homes to have them open on their special day.

Personally, I love the idea of Saturday Open Houses. I think it's good to give buyers the choice of 2 weekend days to see houses without having to make appointments. And, I also like the idea of having a Sunday off now and then. That doesn't mean that I won't show houses to my buyer clients on Sunday. I'm always happy to do that.  But, not hosting open houses on Sunday gives me a chance to have a little family time, too.

So, what do YOU think?  I would really like to know your opinion. If this is an idea that customers like, I think more and more Realtors will also jump on the bandwagon.

Please share your thoughts.

Gayle Causey
Keller Williams Realty
Monroe, LA
http://GayleCausey.com or http://WestMonroeRealEstate.com

 

If you aren't swimming through your yard right now, you're doing well!  We've had so much rain over the past week that it's almost time to get out the boats.

Now is a good time, before the stifling heat that's on its way, to check the drainage around your home. If water pools in the yard or near the house, it's time to do something about it. It's bad for the grass and it encourages mold and mildew around your home.

I'm certainly no expert, so go to your neighborhood garden center and ask for advice. Some of the local landscape firms do an excellent job at improving drainage. Sometimes it's simple--clean out the drains near the street, remove old leaves and pine straw from the natural drainage lines. Sometimes it's a little more difficult. You may have to install French drains or underground pipes (for lack of a better word) to move the water to a more appropriate location.

Either way, your grass will be more healthy and you will have a smaller crop of mosquitoes this summer. I won't tell you that all the work in the world will keep mosquitoes away, but it will help!

A beautiful lawn increases your enjoyment of your property, and it really helps when you are ready to sell!

Gayle Causey
Keller Williams Realty
Monroe, LA, USA
http://GayleCausey.com

 

 

OK. There's no doubt now. We were taken aback last week when the temps went down into the 30s again, but I believe that spring is here to stay in north Louisiana!

Before the last cold snap, the Japanese magnolias were very showy this year. Here's a picture of one of the area's finest on Trenton St. in West Monroe. The lawn has 2 matching trees that never fail to impress every year with their wonderful blossoms. This was taken about 2 weeks ago, so the trees are now without blooms, but already leafed out completely.

The dogwoods are spectacular this time of year, and the azaleas are beginning to show their fabulous colors. I've seen a few tulips, mostly at Biedenharn Gardens, but they're just about done. While driving from Sterlington to West Ouachita yesterday, I saw wisteria draping the trees and full of those sweet, sweet blossoms. It's a wonderful time to be outside, and to be out looking at homes!

I'm sure you've read about the mortgage interest rates. Here's an excerpt from a letter I received from one of our local lenders on Wednesday:

"The hot topic regarding the mortgage industry - the Fed will be purchasing an additional $750m - 1.25 Trillion in Mortgage Backed Securities.   The bond market is loving this news right now.   
What does this mean for you and your clients?  We are approaching the territory which yielded rates in the low 4%'s in the 15-yr and 30-yr rates in early January.  If you recall, this lasted for only a couple of days. Short term - we could see rates improve as early as this evening.  If things hold overnight with the overseas markets, we will should see much improvement in our rate sheets tomorrow.  Long Term - what goes up will eventually come down, especially in this market.   Just remember, the market is very volatile, so things can turn very quickly."

My hope is that those buyers who have been "waiting for a good rate" will wake up and smell the coffee. The time is NOW! Rates are as low as they were in the 1960's!

I'm off to show houses to someone who KNOWS this is a great time to buy a house. I'll make time for you this week if you give me a call.

Gayle Causey, 318-614-5615
GRI, ePRO, Buyer Specialist

Keller Williams Realty
Monroe, LA USA
Off: 318-812-7653