“BOLD Assault Team here we are! Selling houses near and far!”

Yesterday Valerie Hunter-Kelly and The Air Assault Team graduated the 2010 Keller Williams Clarksville-Fort Campbell BOLD (Building Your Own Life by Design) Class. Thanks to Linda Cooke, Keller Williams MAPPS Coach and BOLD Coach!

Amberly with BOLD Coach Linda

Thanks, Amberly, for capturing it all on camera.

Watch a video of the BOLD Assault Team’s new rally cry.

We’re money magnets! Literally!

The Air Assault Team recently participated in a team building exercise to help us remember to channel prosperity.

Buyer’s Agent Mark Anthony Hodges said, “If this ever happens to me again I must remember to not close my eyes.  It is hard to participate in the fun of it if your eyes are closed. The actual exercise is a great class room ice breaker.”

Buyer’s Agent Yana Kan shared some more photos of the team celebrating at BB Kings and at the Keller-Williams Awards Banquet last month.

This morning we received an email from Collier Swecker, a friend of mine on the Mega Agent Real Estate Team in  Birmingham, Alabama.

Collier writes:    “I just wanted to share some information about changes to the FHA’s home loan program that will begin to go into effect beginning on April 5, 2010, and will cost borrowers more money after that date. This information is important for any home buyers who are currently looking for a home and plan to get a mortgage underwritten by FHA, which currently accounts for nearly 40% of all borrowers.”

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The changes will be as follows:

1. Required upfront mortgage insurance premium increases from 1.75% (of loan amount) to 2.25%, to be paid at closing.

2. Seller’s contribution of closing costs and other concessions to the Buyer is reduced from 6% to 3% of purchase price.

3. FHA will begin to require a 10% down payment for borrowers with credit score below 580.

4. FHA is seeking congressional legislation that will increase the monthly mortgage insurance premium that is required, on top of the upfront mortgage insurance premium mentioned in #1 above.

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The increase in upfront mortgage insurance premium will probably add around $50 to $100 to monthly mortgage payments for the average FHA borrower. Additionally, the reduction in seller concessions to 3% will on average cost some borrowers to bring an additional 1% to the closing table.

For more information on these changes visit their information page at the FHA website.

Each week I answer questions from readers and listeners of our local media sources for a series called Ask the Expert. As the real estate expert for Clarksville-Ft. Campbell, this week I answered another question submitted to The Leaf Chronicle, our Clarksville, TN, newspaper.

Q: What should I look for when deciding on a new community?

A: If you’re thinking of relocating to a new community, the first thing to determine is what your needs are. Consider your family make-up—how many people you are, the age of your children, or the needs of any elderly family members living with you. What are your interests? Is golf a weekend priority, or is boating more your style? What about a religious community, gardening, or volunteering? Consider how your new community’s  amenities, or the lack of, may affect your lifestyle. Is public transportation available? If you plan to drive, how long is your new commute to work or school? Compare the cost of living in your present and future communities. And if you or your spouse will be seeking employment, research potential job opportunities.

What's on your relocation checklist?

After deciding that this new community is for you, but before you begin your home search, learn the “culture” of the new area’s real estate market. Every community has different real estate customs—even Nashville and Clarksville, though they’re located only an hour appart. Find out if the seller will pay closing costs, or if homes typically sell for close to the asking price or for far below. Are there housing incentives unique to your new community? A good housing specialist can help you answer these questions.

Before you purchase in your new community, don’t forget to figure in resale value in case you decide to move again. Remember that if you buy a unique home that suits you now, it may not appeal to potential buyers in the future.

Finally, once you’re in your new home, investigate zoning laws for neighborhoods and architecture and honor the restrictions.

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More questions? Ask them here!

Or follow Ask the Expert at www.TheLeafChronicle.com, read it in print, or listen to recent podcasts of Ask the Expert from local station 100.3 FM, The Beaver.

To reward ourselves for all our hard work and to celebrate our success in 2009, we went in style to BB King’s Restaurant and Blues Club in Nashville over President’s Day Weekend.

It’s been an especially snowy winter in Clarksville this year, and days off for school aged kids are piling up.

But while 7 snow days so far may have made students happy, teachers, the Clarksville-Montgomery County School Board, and members of the Education Association worried that all that time out of the classroom will leave students unprepared for upcoming state testing. Even though three extra days are built into every school year to account for snow days, 7 days off meant that a new contingency plan was necessary.

The school board developed their new plan for dealing with snow days without compromising state standards on Tuesday. Between March 1 and April 9, school days will be  longer to make up for lost time.

“The four remaining days of instruction will be essentially accounted for by adding 30 minutes to school days until Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program testing begins April 12,” according to The Leaf Chronicle, our local newspaper.

More details were published in The Leaf Chronicle earlier this week.

Though 2010 is already underway, this year’s Keller Williams Clarksville Awards Banquet gave us one more chance to reflect on our blessings from last year. It was my best and the Team’s best year in real estate. We worked hard and saw results!

The Air Assault Team celebrates in style

The banquet was held February 6 at the Hopkinsville Christian County Convention Center and had a pretty good turn out despite some challenging winter weather. Air Assault Team Buyer’s Agent Wanda Jordan-Barnett began the night’s program with a beautiful rendition of our National Anthem, and Buyer’s Agent Beverley Slocum gave the invocation by singing the Lord’s Prayer.

When the awards were announced, it was clear that all of Keller Williams Clarksville had really excelled in 2009. There were 8 teams or groups at KW Clarksville that were in the top 25% of all Keller Williams Realty International (KWRI) Teams & Groups, and another 7 teams were in the top 50%.

There are 7 total categories of awards ranging from Bronze to Triple Platinum. Here’s how the Keller Williams Clarksville Market Center fared:

Exterior improvements give more of a return when remodeling

There is an annual report that examines the cost versus value for home remodeling.  The report is helpful for those  considering making improvements to their homes, especially if their home is one that they consider selling in the near future.  Historically,  homeowners most often consider spending money on bedrooms and bathrooms, but the return on the remodel investment is not necessarily there.

According to the 2009 Remodeling Cost vs. Value Report the best return for your money are exterior improvements that often are lower cost projects to begin with.  Adding  a deck or replacing siding, doors and windows are among projects that recoup the most money when re-selling a home.  The return on these projects is typically 80% or more.

First impressions count for a lot!  If you’re considering selling your home make sure that the exterior is as eye-catching as it can be.

Click here to learn more about remodeling costs versus value at The National Association of Realtors’ website.

Each week I answer questions from readers and listeners of our local media sources for a series called Ask the Expert. As the real estate expert for Clarksville-Ft. Campbell, this week I answered a question submitted to The Leaf Chronicle, our Clarksville, TN, newspaper.

Q: What’s an appraisal?

A:  The appraisal is an important part of your home buying transaction. A real estate appraisal helps to establish the home’s market value—the likely sales price it would bring if offered in an open and competitive real estate market.

Your lender will require an appraisal when you ask to use a home or other real estate as security for a loan, because she’ll want to make sure that the property will sell for at least the amount of money she’s lending.

Real estate questions? Ask a real estate expert.

Don’t confuse a Comparative Market Value, or CMA, with an appraisal. Real estate agents use CMAs to help sellers determine a realistic asking price. Experienced agents often come very close to the eventual appraisal price with their CMAs, but an appraiser’s report is much more detailed—and is the only valuation report a bank will consider when deciding whether or not to lend the money. In some cases, if there aren’t enough comparable properties to perform a CMA, your Realtor might suggest that a certified appraiser help determine the value before you put the home on the market.

But remember, neither an appraisal nor a CMA determine official market value.

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More questions? Ask them here!

Or follow Ask the Expert at www.TheLeafChronicle.com, read it in print, or listen to recent podcasts of Ask the Expert from local station 100.3 FM, The Beaver.