Lots of people in financial trouble just have the urge to give up. If you are in this position you know just what I am talking about. The phone rings off the hook with calls from natsy collectors trying to make you pay money that you don’t have. They call at all times of the day and night. Inspectors from the bank may be stalking the property with clipboards and digital cameras to report to the bank if you are still in the property or not.

Give Up or Give In

If you have already missed a few mortgage payments and have no way to make them up, trouble is lurking. The key is to not stick your head in the sand and ignore the problem. Just letting the house go will not be a good solution.

First of all a foreclosure will put a big downgrade on your credit score for up to 10 years. If you take action through a short sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure, the damage to your credit can be mitigated. They key to deciding which route to take will depend on how close you are to foreclosure, where you want to move to and what the costs will be. During the short sale process, you will not be making any monthly payments. Moving to a rental after a deed in lieu (happens fast) will cost you money. The short sale can prolong the foreclosure for up to nine months. Do the math–do you want to pay rent somewhere or stay in your home for free? I would suggest the latter. 

Do nothing and you lose

Choosing to ignore the problem and letting the house go may cost you more in the long run. Again, the foreclose will happen much faster without the short sale to stop the process. If the bank forecloses, you have to move right away which again costs money you can’t afford to waste! If you have been considering letting the house go, DON”T! Please fill out the form below to contact me. I have buyers for distressed properties. The buyers don’t care if your home is a mess or needs updating. All you have to do is get in touch with me and I can help eliminate the bulk of your stress with just one meeting. What have you got to lose?

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Buyers may receive a “gift” for their down payment from anyone. This one is tricky since the lender requires that the gift funds be verified though bank statements or other official means. If you have someone who is planning to give you a gift, it is a good idea to wait until you start the loan process to accept it. This way the trail is much easier to follow.

FHA loans have no pre-payment penalty. You can pay the loan off at anytime without an extra cost. There is also the ability to finance the mortgage insurance premium (MIP) upfront. The MIP is the insurance premium charged against the possibility of default. This amount can be financed into the mortgage.

The FHA loan limit for homes in El Paso county is $325,000. There are plenty of wonderful properties available in our area that meet the price guideline. If you have been thinking of buying a home but have been unsure about how to begin the process, please contact me. I can refer you to one of our preferred FHA lenders for a conversation about the strong benefits of this financing program. Why wait? Interest rates are still very low. Get started now and enjoy your new home in a few weeks.

Priced at $110,000 this rancher is a bargain. Just under 1100 square feet with three bedrooms and one full bath, this home needs very little to make it shine. This is a perfect opportunity for someone who just wants to do a little bit of fix-up to have a very nice home. Large deck offers mountain views. Corner lot gives a sense of privacy. This home is a very easy commute to Fort Carson.  Investors will also appreciate to potential for profit in this home. Contact me today for your private showing.

Wooded Oasis in the City!

This home is perfect for those who like the convenience of city living but want to live near trees, hiking & biking trails and parks. Backs to scub oak and wooded area. Short distance to Pinon Valley Park, Ute Valley Park and the Garden of the Gods.

Updated kitchen has unique touches like custom vintage pantry door. Upgraded lighting and built in speaker system in the updated kitchen. Family room has new tile flooring. Formal living and dining for entertaining.  Upper level features large master suite plus 3 more bedrooms and additional bath.

Enjoy the pub-like atmosphere of your finished basement full bar area with beautiful woodwork. Built in entertainment shelves and big screen TV included. Guests will enjoy their stay in the bedroom with private attached bath.

The outdoor living area includes patio with lush green surroundings. Lawn spaces offer plenty of room for play. Room for herb or vegetable garden as well. Watch the deer while you sip a glass of wine in the evening. This home has absolutely everything you need for relaxed yet convenient living!

For a private showing, contact me at 719-264-7777

A good home inspector will look at the quality and safety of the home including the basement. He may or may not check to see if the basement was finished with a building permit. Guess what–this info is available to the public online.

The Pikes Peak Regional Building Department web site has a feature that allows for an address search of any area property. The search will yield info on all of the building permits that have been pulled for that property. If there are no basement finish permits, this could indicate a future problem with the home. If no permit was pulled for the work then more questions need to be asked. The basement may look fine but the issue could be with what we cannot see.

The building department does periodic inspections during the construction process. The insures that the framing, electrical, plumbing etc. all were done according to the local building codes. If these inspections were not done, the new homeowner may be required to prove that the code has been followed to bring the permit current. This might require cutting into walls to show how the work was done.

Many buyers do see this as a major inspection issue. This is because when they get ready to sell in a few years, their new buyer might want the inspections to be completed. If not done, resale value can be affected. Safety can be greatly impacted if wiring or plumbing wa not done correctly. Just because your cousin Billy used to work in construction does not mean he is qualified to wire a basement properly!

Bottom line here is that all work done on a home needs to be properly inspected if it impacts the structure or safety of that home. A new deck require a permit. New kitchen cabinet installation does not. For more info on local building permit issues, contact me or leave a comment below.

If you are moving to Colorado Springs it can be a daunting task to determine exactly where you want to live. Some people rely on the “feel” or look of an area when moving to a new city. Many relocating buyers are data junkies that want to know all   about the different areas that they have to choose from. I personally like to use a bit of both.

These days, many MLS search sites use zip codes as a data field to search for homes. If you have never been to an area, that is just not very helpful. I spend time searching for homes in cities other than Colorado Springs so I know firsthand the frustration of navigating the zip code maze!

There is a cool web site that I found recently. It is called ZipSkinny. The site uses recent Census Bureau data to educate its users about individual zip codes. I love this site! Having all the data that you need is a good thing when searching for a home!

The site will pull all of the data available for a certain zip code. If you want to know the incomes, education levels or ages of the residents, its all there! School info is also avalable.  Colorado Springs real estate values can vary from area to area so this is all good info to arm yourself with before searching for a home.

My favorite feature is the zip code comparison search. You can input your current zip code and then compare it to others in Colorado Springs. This way, if you like where you live now, it is easy to find a similar area where you might feel comfortable.

Zip code analysis is just one way to narrow down your search for a home. Again, many people will just go by price range and feel of an area. I prefer to use both when learning about Colorado Springs homes for sale. In my opinion you need to use every tool available to you!

To learn more about specific areas in Colorado Springs, comment below or contact me. I would love to assist you!