Mark Brace's Blog by Mark Brace

Grand Rapids 8th among Top 10 fastest growing real estate markets

Mark Brace — Wed, 07 May 2008 15:00:00 GMT

According To CNN Money on May 7th, 2008; Grand Rapids, was ranked 8th in nation as the one of the fastest growing real estate markets with a projected appreciation rate of 1.9% by May of 2009, This is in sharp contrast to the other side of MIchigan in which CNN projects that The Farmington HIlls Market which is the only major Market to have negative 5 year appreciation of -7.5%, and is also projected to fall another 5.9% by May of 2009. It's very Difficult for people from other states to seperate the 2 metro markets but Grand Rapids is a positive market and is building into the future and the east side of Michigan around the Detroit Metroplex is struggling.

Sellers Chasing The Declining Market

Mark Brace — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 10:19:00 GMT

Have you ever seen a dog chasing after a car? To a sadist, it might seem very funny.

No matter how fast the dog runs, it will never catch the car. The dog will never slow the car down. And, the dog will never bite a moving tire. What must the dog be thinking?

Today, many sellers are running after the market, the same way dogs chase vehicles.

What are these sellers thinking? Their home is the only castle for sale? Buyers will love the scent of their lilac bushes so much that it will temporarily cause them to forget the competition? Is it possible the smell of fresh baked bread will cause a buyer to pay yesterday's price in today's market?

In my opinion, it is imperative for a seller to price their property 10% below market in order to sell promptly and avoid being left in the long line of expired listings. It may be an election year, but it will be a long wait for the inventory levels to decrease to a ..(read more)

Why Selling Now Makes Sense

Mark Brace — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 13:43:00 GMT

Daily Real Estate News | April 16, 2008

Why Selling Now Makes Sense

Home owners who are reluctant to sell because prices have fallen, should do the math, and realize that the market downturn could work in their favor, say practitioners in hard-hit, but still pricey Boston.

Their reasoning may work in many other parts of the country as well.

"People are finding houses at prices they thought they'd never see again," says David W. O'Neil of Century 21 Spindler & O'Neil Associates in suburban Boston.

O’Neil points out to potential sellers that if the house a buyer covets used to be $500,000 but its price has fallen 20 percent to $400,000, it is a deal, even if the ..(read more)

For Buyers: Interest Rates are more important than Purchase Price

Mark Brace — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 10:33:00 GMT

Real Estate buyers are usually highly focused on the purchase price of a property. This is a legitimate concern. The purchase price is one of the most important considerations in a real estate transaction. But at the same time home buyers too frequently treat interest rates as a secondary concern. Many buyers will stress over $300 or $400 in negotiations over purchase price. But when told that interest rates dropped half a point, home buyers will often respond with a shrug.

This is frequently because it is easy to understand the difference between paying 200k and 195k for a house. But it's harder to appreciate the difference between an interest rate of 6.5% and 6.0% for a house. But interest rates can have a large influence on mortgage payments. Using a mortgage calculator first let's look at the difference between the mortgage on a 200k and the mortgage on a 195k house assuming a 6.5 percent interest rate.

200k (6.5%) Mortgage $1264.13 per ..(read more)

EXISTING HOME SALES REBOUND in Grand Rapids

Mark Brace — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 14:04:00 GMT

The Grand Rapids Association of REALTORS reports that sales of existing homes, including single-family homes, vacation homes, and condominiums, rose to record levels in January of 2008. The Association reported 996 sales in January of 2008 - an 18.9 percent increase over the same period last year, and its strongest January sales report since 2002. This comes on the heels of the Association's report that sales of existing homes in each month of the fourth quarter of 2007 also rose to record levels when compared to 2006. Jim Fase, President of the Grand Rapids Association of REALTORS, said that this notable rise in home sales means we will likely see a faster and more meaningful recovery of the local housing industry, which will help to stimulate overall economic activity. "The average price of an existing single-family home in January was $129,500, a reduction that was anticipated in light of the increased number of sales of homes in January that were at or near foreclosure. ..(read more)

Outside investors sink $150M in West Michigan properties

Mark Brace — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 07:26:00 GMT

It's a record year in western Michigan for out-of-state investment, which likely surpassed $150 million, estimated Colin Kraay, investment adviser at Grubb & Ellis|Paramount Commerce in Grand Rapids.

In the last days of 2007, the firm negotiated the sale of 17 industrial buildings for $35 million to $40 million to California-based Core Realty Holdings - a return buyer in the region. Core in 2005 purchased several industrial buildings in Kent County and the lakeshore.

This purchase, of an undisclosed price, totaled 572,000 square feet and included 90 tenants, Kraay said. Principals of First Cos. Inc. in Grand Rapids, which managed all, built many, and owned some of the properties, organized the sale and will continue to manage the buildings.

"It was a sale we have thought about for quite some time," First Cos. President Jeff Baker said. "It's one of the biggest ones we've done."

"West Michigan ..(read more)

When Selling Your Home, Using Scents Makes Sense!

Mark Brace — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 18:40:00 GMT

Even though now doesn't seem to be the ideal time to sell your home, you can take heart in knowing that small actions may make a difference in getting your home sold.

"Scentmosphere" isn't exactly new but it is rapidly becoming a way to attempt to attract buyers.

"When [buyers] walk into a house before they actually see anything in that house, because they breathe, they are smelling. So they are actually getting an impression, whether it's conscious or subconscious, of your home -- just by the way it smells," says Rick Ruffolo, senior vice president of brand, marketing, and innovation for Yankee Candle Company.

So, right now take a deep breath. What kind of "smellment" is your home making?

Choosing to proactively make a statement in the way your home smells is just another step in helping to sell your home faster. It's the next step after curb appeal. Ruffolo says curb appeal gets buyers in the door but then they see ..(read more)

The Top Ten Reasons It's a Great Time To Buy Real Estate!

Mark Brace — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 07:52:00 GMT

Selection, selection, selection. There are about 10,000 resale homes on the market in Grand Rapids Metro Area, Regardless of the price range a buyer desires, there are plenty of houses from which to choose. Just a few years ago the resale inventory dropped below 3,000-4,000 units. A buyer was forced to make compromises if they were going to locate the home of their dreams. There is a great selection of attached homes, condos, and townhouses. You can find large lots, small lots, and a lot that will accommodate your boat or RV. There are lots of options in this market.
No Bidding Wars. In 2005 we had one client that made an offer on ten homes. They lost the first nine to the 'feeding frenzy' that existed. Other buyers bid the properties up substantially from the original listing price. There were escalation clauses where buyers authorized their agents ..(read more)

Myths of Credit Scoring

Mark Brace — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 07:35:00 GMT

Myths of Credit Scoring

There is a tremendous amount of misinformation spun into the marketplace regarding consumers' credit rights. Here are a few examples of the most prevalent myths.

Myth #1- When I pay off an account, it will no longer be reported or be considered negative…Wrong!

Myth #2- If a negative item is deleted, it will just come right back on my report…Wrong!
Myth #3- Certain items such as bankruptcies, foreclosures, and tax liens are impossible to remove from a credit report... Wrong!
Myth #4- Disputing a credit report is easy and any consumer can do it for themselves… ..(read more)

What Your Real Estate Agent Knows That You Don't

Mark Brace — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 11:35:00 GMT

When you make the decision to sell your home, you are under no obligation to hire a real estate agent or broker to help you with the sale. Nonetheless, most people prefer to hire a real estate agent in order to better protect themselves. And, it also puts them in a better position to successfully sell the home in a short amount of time.

When you hire a real estate agent, you gain access to a wealth of knowledge that can help keep you out of trouble and will help provide for a smooth transaction. Here are just a few things your real estate agent knows that you probably do not.

The Federal Fair Housing Act

According to the Federal Fair Housing Act, you cannot discriminate against someone when selling a home. The act defines seven different classes of people who are protected against discrimination. These include:

race
color
national origin
sex
religion

(read more)

Bargain Smartly to Get the Best Deal

Mark Brace — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 09:40:00 GMT

Bargaining is an art, particularly when the buyer wants to make a rock-bottom bid without insulting the seller.

"The offer has to be palatable and show you've done your homework," says Deb Greene, president of the Minneapolis Area Association of REALTORS®.

Sheri Fine, an associate with Edina Realty in Minneapolis, agrees. "Sometimes an unreasonably lowball offer can make a seller so angry they won't make a counter offer or deal with a buyer."

Here are their suggestions for coming up with a number that is competitive and compelling.

That an offer that is more than 10 percent off the list price isn’t customary and is likely to be rejected.
(read more)

Grand Rapids Realtors Catch-up with emerging Technology, with new MLS system

Mark Brace — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 20:53:00 GMT

As the Public may not be aware yet, but the Grand Rapids Association of Realtors (GRAR) is switching technology used to run its MLS system. For the past 14 years GRAR has programmed and operated it’s own RE/Source (in-house MLS), This MLS has proved to costly and difficult to keep-up in today’s highly connected society to maintain and program. On February 1, 2007 GRAR elected to convert its in-house MLS system to an outside Provider, and Solid Earth’s “LIST-IT MLS” system was selected. The anticipated conversion date is December 6, 2007, and then all GRAR Realtors will be using a Forced over to the new MLS system.

(read more)

New Grand Rapids hotel generates 250 jobs, draws former residents back home

Mark Brace — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 07:33:00 GMT

Grand Rapids' newest hotel, the luxury brand JW Marriott, opened September 21 with some 250 new employees. That number could rise to 300 over the next couple of years. So far, the hotel has hired 198 people, and is hiring more as we speak.

The hotel received over 4,000 applications from all over the world, and has conducted 2,500 interviews thus far -- 1,200 of those were in just one week.

So far, about 10 percent of the new hires are former Grand Rapids residents who are taking on new jobs so they can return home.

"There's so much written about the exodus of college students from the state," says George Aquino, general manager. "To me the most rewarding part of the whole job piece is realizing that people from West Michigan eventually come back. Our executive chef moved back from Orlando and he's been gone for about 20 years. Our director of finance moved ..(read more)

Michigan ranks 6th most entrepreneur-friendly state, up from 10th

Mark Brace — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 07:11:00 GMT

Just how friendly toward entrepreneurs are the policies Michigan's elected officials implemented in 2006? According to the Small Business Survival Index 2007 released this month, those policies were the sixth friendliest in the nation. That's an improvement over last year when the state's policies affecting small businesses ranked tenth.

The Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council conducted the twelfth annual study, which ranks all 50 states and the District of Columbia according to 31 major government-imposed or government-related costs that affect small businesses. Those costs include personal income tax, capital gains tax rates, health insurance mandates, electricity costs, and workers compensation benefits.

Among the Index's findings was the rate of job growth across the country. From August ..(read more)

The Top Ten Reasons It's a Great Time To Buy Real Estate!

Mark Brace — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 08:25:00 GMT

Selection, selection, selection. There are about 57,000 resale homes on the market in Maricopa county(Phoenix). Regardless of the price range a buyer desires, there are plenty of houses from which to choose. Just a few years ago the resale inventory dropped below 5,000 units. A buyer was forced to make compromises if they were going to locate the home of their dreams. There is a great selection of attached homes, condos, and townhouses. You can find large lots, small lots, and a lot that will accommodate your boat or RV. There are lots of options in this market.
No Bidding Wars. In 2005 we had one client that made an offer on ten homes. They lost the first nine to the 'feeding frenzy' that existed. Other buyers bid the properties up substantially from the original listing price. There were escalation clauses where buyers authorized their agents to outbid other ..(read more)