QR Codes are on the Rise for Nothnagle!

Nothnagle has started to incorporate QR codes to make it easier for you to get connected with more information and an agent that can help you! If you haven't seen a QR code before, it stands for "Quick Response" and it is a black & white matrix barcode. You may have seen the codes on our fliers, but they will now be available on ads in the Democrat and Chronicle, yard signs, brochures and your agent's business card! QR codes are available if you have a Smartphone with a QR code reader (you can download an app for free if you don't already have one). Just by one click of a button you will be taken to our mobile site and given more information on the property within 8 seconds!

So what's the reason? A QR code saves you the time of having to open up a browser on your Smartphone and type in an actual web address. Instead by simply taking a picture of the QR code with your reader, you are taken instantly to the web page.....and you have the ability to connect with an agent.

Rochester's Unemployment Rate Improves Again

April saw the lowest number of unemployed people looking for work since 2008, according to state Labor Department figures released Tuesday.

The unemployment rate in the Rochester region hit 7.2 percent in April, down from 8 percent in April 2010. It marked the lowest the area's unemployment rate has been since December 2008's 6.5 percent. It also marked the 12th straight month of a year over year decline in the unemployment rate.

According to the latest jobs figures, 488,100 people were employed in the Rochester region in April, up from 483,900 in April 2010. Conversely, 37,800 job seekers were among the ranks of the unemployed in April, down from 42,100 in April 2010. That marked the seventh straight month of growing numbers of employed in the area.
April's jobs figures for the Buffalo and Syracuse areas showed similar improvements, with both having unemployment rates of 7.6 percent, down from 8.3 percent in April 2010.

Five Reasons to Consider Selling Now

If you are thinking about selling anytime within the next few months, here are five things to think about and why:

1. Exposure. Spring is when most buyers are entering the real estate market. The more buyers that are out there means the more exposure your home will get. It is also the best chance of getting quality offers (maybe even multiple offers)!

2. Beat Foreclosures & Short Sales. Distressed property inventory levels are almost 45 times the rate of monthly foreclosure sales. There are also twice as many loans going 90+ days delinquent as are starting foreclosure. This means that there is a backlog of properties that will start coming to the market in about 90 days after banks clear up the paperwork challenges. These homes will compete with yours in sale price, so get your home on the market!

3. Interest Rates. Interest rates have begun to climb again, they have gone up 1/2% in the past 6 months. Every time the rates increase 1/4%, approximately 250,000 buyers are eliminated from the market by not qualifying for a mortgage. Waiting to sell your home could mean fewer buyers that are eligible to buy later. It will also mean that you will pay a higher rate on the next home you buy.

4. Difficulty in Qualifying for a Mortgage. Along with increasing interest rates, lending standards have been getting stricter due to the amount of foreclosures.

5. Get on With Your Life! Is the dollar difference in sales price worth putting your plans on hold? Only you can decide by weighing what made you want to move in the first place with today's market.

Where are Mortgage Rates Headed?

The cost of buying a home vs. the price of the home is often discussed. The price obviously is a major component of the cost. The other major component is the interest rate on your mortgage. A small increase in a mortgage interest rate can have a dramatic impact on your monthly payment. Remember, when purchasing a home, take into account the upcoming rise in mortgage rates in comparison with the purchase price.

Below are the projected rates from four major institutions: The National Association of Realtors (NAR), Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and PMI.

Caprini Merges with Nothnagle Realtors

Caprini Realtors is now Nothnagle Realtors! Anne Caprini of Caprini Realtors and Nothnagle CEO Armand D’Alfonso issued a joint announcement regarding the merger today.

Anne Caprini and her team, including salesperson Tammy Benziger and associate brokers Sue Ryan and Leo Caprini, have served the Canandaigua Lake/Bristol Hills areas for over 30 years. The company has been a full-service firm specializing in second homes, condo/townhomes, single family residences, investment properties as well as year-round and seasonal rentals. The company and its agents have been and will remain active in the Canandaigua Chamber of Commerce and many other business and cultural groups in the region.

The Caprini Team will continue to service the Canandaigua and Greater Finger Lakes areas, where they also live. “The merger will allow us to continue a tradition of highly regarded real estate service that gets the job done for our clients,” said Anne Caprini.

The Caprini Team is an experienced sales force with deep ties in the community. They take great pride in delivering an exceptional consumer experience which will be enhanced by the additional services and marketing programs they will be able to provide clients through the partnership with Nothnagle. “We are thrilled to have them on board,” said Nothnagle CEO Armand D’Alfonso.

Rochester is the Best Place to Buy

The Rochester area is listed as the best place in the United States to purchase a home right now, according to Forbes.com.

The website of Forbes magazine cites several factors about Rochester, including proximity to colleges and universities, the affordability of homes, the unemployment picture compared to many parts of the nation, and the quality of local schools.
Forbes.com also quotes a recent study by the real estate website Zillow.com, which ranked the Rochester area the best place to buy a home in the U.S.

The Democrat and Chronicle, in a recent report on the region's real estate market, cited Rochester as one of the three most stable markets in the country among the 51 metro areas with populations over 1 million. That finding was based on home prices over the past 15 years. Oklahoma City and Pittsburgh were the other two.
Those cities also are at the top of the Forbes.com list. Rochester is No. 1, Pittsburgh is second and Oklahoma City fourth. Third is a much smaller community in upstate New York, Utica.

Click here to view full article.

Do You Disagree With Your Assessment?

Your assessment should reflect the approximate value for which you could sell your property. If you believe your assessment is too high, you have the right to a review of your assessment. The deadline in most communities is the 4th Tuesday in May (24th for Monroe County).

What Should You Do?
Once you find out what the assessor's estimate of the market value is, you should develop your own estimate. The Real Property Tax Law requires the assessor to notify the taxpayer by mail of an increase in assessment (Section 510) or removal of an exemption (Section 510-a), at least 10 days before the date for hearing assessment complaints. The notice should specify each parcel of real property, the assessed valuation for the new assessment year and for the previous year, and the net increase in the assessment.

The following are items that may affect how your home is assessed:

External characteristics - "curb appeal", home condition, lot size, popularity of an architectural style of property, water/sewage systems, sidewalk, paved road, etc.
Internal characteristics - size and number of rooms, construction quality, appliance condition, demonstrated "pride of ownership", heating type, energy efficiency, etc.
Supply and demand - the number of homes for sale versus the number of buyers; how quickly the homes in your area sell, and
Location - desirability for a particular school district, neighborhood, etc.

Click here for additional information in estimating the Market Value.

Once you have developed your own estimate and feel that your assessment is too high, you may file a complaint. Form RP-524 must be completed with a written complaint including statements, records, and other relevant information to support your complaint.

You may complete the complaint yourself or your representative or attorney may complete it for you. The form is also available from your assessor's office or your county real property tax services office. The complaint must be filed in the city or town in which the property is located, with either the assessor or the board of assessment review. The form must be completed and submitted by May 24th. A non-resident owner can request a date after grievance day for the grievance hearing. Request must be made to the BAR or to the assessor on or before grievance day and the BAR must set a date no later than 21 days after grievance day for the hearing.

The Truth About Credit Scores

If you are thinking of purchasing a home and applying for a loan, there are many misconceptions about how scores are calculated and how factors such as having multiple credit cards play in. Below are some common things to know so you can be prepared when getting a loan.

Ownership of several credit cards can hurt your credit score
Mostly false. Having many credit lines isn’t necessarily a bad thing, says credit expert Liz Weston, author of Your Credit Score. Multiple lines give you a favorable debt-to-available-credit ratio. But use them correctly: It’s best to keep any balances below 10% or 20% of the total credit line, she says. Anything more will affect the ratio of debt-to-available-credit, which can decrease your credit score.

Opening and closing credit lines can hurt your credit score
True. New credit applications can decrease your credit score, so be careful about applying for new credit cards or personal loans before applying for a HELOC, second mortgage, automobile loan, or other large line of credit. Surprise: Closing existing credit lines may also hurt your credit score, since it’ll damage your debt-to-available-credit ratio. A good rule is not to make any credit changes in the months leading up to a major credit request, such as for a HELOC.

Consolidating credit lines will help your credit score
Mostly false. Although it may seem like a good idea to move all your balances to one card, that can actually hurt your credit score, since your debt-to-available-credit ratio will spike on that card, says Weston. However, credit expert Harrine Freeman says such a slight decline isn’t necessarily a deal-breaker for a loan, especially if the card has a lower interest rate and will allow you to pay off the balance sooner. Your score will increase as soon as that ratio goes down.

Changing jobs can hurt your credit score
Partly true. Taking a new job or losing your job doesn’t affect your credit score. However, if you have a spotty employment history, lenders may hold that against you in making a loan. Dips in income may signal that it could be difficult to pay bills in a timely manner.

Co-signing for others can hurt your credit score
Partly true. Simply co-signing on a loan for someone else may not affect your score, but if that person is late on paying the loan, it’s likely to show up on your report, says Freeman. And that’s a nasty surprise if you didn’t know the person was late.

Judgments and liens aren’t considered in your credit score
False. If you’ve had a judgment or lien filed against you, it’s considered in your payment history, which represents 35% of your score. Similarly, while most utility companies don’t report payment history to credit bureaus, your account will likely be reported if it is seriously delinquent and referred to a collection

7 Reasons Why you Should Join Nothnagle

There are many reasons to become a Nothnagle agent. And one of the best reasons is that we make switching to Nothnagle easier than ever. Seven reasons you should switch are:

1. More Money: Nothnagle agents average a 10% higher "actual split." Our company-paid and company-supported tools and services will decrease your monthly expenses and increase your business, which means you can spend more time selling homes and getting listings.

2. Productivity: In the 2009 REALTOR Magazine Top 100 report, Nothnagle agents ranked #3 nationally and #1 in New York State for average number of transactions per agent.

3. Lead Generation: No real estate company does more than Nothnagle to provide agents with leads. In the past 12 months, Nothnagle has delivered an average of 96 leads per agent. Over 50,000 leads came in through our 4-SALE LINE and text messaging. All leads are delivered direct to our agents. And with LeadsNOW, agents get a system to manage, track and organize their leads.

4. Nothnagle.com: Nothnagle.com not only shows all Nothnagle properties, it also shows most properties that are listed with our competitors. Since our web site is the most popular real estate web site in the region, we attract the most inquiries--both for properties listed by Nothnagle and ones listed by someone else.

5. Guaranteed Print Advertising: A recent study by Google proved that print ads drive web traffic. In fact, 67% of people who see a print advertisement will go online to find out more. That's why Nothnagle has a company-paid advertising program that invests over $1 million in print advertising each year. Most other companies require their agents to pay 100% of the ad cost.

6. Showcase of Homes: The Sunday morning Showcase of Homes still produces tremendous results for our agents. Nothnagle Open Houses enjoy 100% more attendance from potential buyers who have already seen the home on TV.

7. Training: Training is an essential element to the growth of an agent's business. We provide FREE intensive training and coaching programs to our new agents, while offering a comprehensive course catalog to our more experienced agents allowing them to remain ahead of the curve on relevant topics, issues and trends. Online training is now available so you never have to leave your office.

Still not convinced? Read more at JoinNothnagle.com

14,000 Homes Sold a Day!

A common notion about today's market is that homes aren't selling. We are here to tell you that is not true! According to last month's National Association of Realtor's Existing Sales Report, homes were selling at a yearly rate of 5.10 million! That averages out to be 13,973 homes per day!

The National Association of Realtor's chief economist, Lawrence Yun, says that in accordance with their Pending Sales Report (homes under contract), there has been an increase in 6 out of the past 9 months.

"Since reaching a cyclical bottom last June, pending home sales have posted an overall gain of 24 percent and demonstrate the market is recovering on its own. The index means modest near-term gains in existing home sales are likely."

The facts do count from 40% of distressed property sales and 22% being sold to investors, but 60% are NOT foreclosures or short sales! This proves that homes are selling!

Yun also says that he believes existing-home sales should rise around 5 to 10 percent this year.

If you price you home wisely and competitively, you have a great chance of getting it sold!

What do Buyers Want?

The United States had tax credits in 2009 and 2010 for both first-time homebuyers and move-up homebuyers. The nation saw a spike in sales because of this incentive, but has recently slowed now that there is no pressure to buy under a deadline. Buyers are taking their time before making a decision which is why your home must stand out to potential buyers. There are not as many buyers these days, so sellers have to meet expectations. Prospective buyers have the upper hand in the current real estate market.

So what are they looking for? Buyers today want move-in ready homes and they are willing to pay extra on a price tag if it will save them time, money and effort in the long run. Buyers are typically looking for amenities such like granite counter tops, fresh paint, hardwood floors in great condition and airconditioning. There are really two seperate trends emerging: one with houses that are in good condition and priced well and another with higher priced homes that need work.

If you are a potential seller thinking about putting your home on the market, make sure to read articles and get tips for easy aesthetic home improvements. Sometimes just a fresh coat of paint and new hardware can get you up to another $1,000! Also remember that kitchen and bathroom upgrades are worth the most value to buyers!

Is Renting Really Better?

We know that due to the housing market decline over the past five years, people are hesitant to buy. Is renting really better, though? Although purchasing a home is not an easy decision and requires some cash upfront, rental prices are about to skyrocket, so take these findings into consideration.

Earlier in the week the Harvard University Joint Center for Housing Studies released a report which found:

Rental markets are now tigethening, with vacancy rates falling and
rents climbing. With little new supply of multifamily units in the
pipeline, rents could rise sharply as demand increases.

In addition, the Spring 2011 Housing Report released by hotpads.com states that rental listing prices across the US climbed 7.4% while for sale listing prices retreated 8.8% within the past 365 days.

According to Trulia, buying a home has become more affordable than renting in almost four out of five major cities.

"aspring homeowners should focus their energies on locking down a low mortgage rate sooner than later. While home prices are unlikely to return to pre-cash levels, today's low interest rates will likely rise thanks to inflation and spikes in the Fed rates," said Ken Shuman, Head of Communications at Trulia. "AS the government winds down its role in the mortgage market, higher mortgage interest rates will be inevitable".

Just a few things to think about when considering renting vs. buying!