Despite what just feels like the right answer, buying a home in Indianapolis can be significantly cheaper than renting one. It’s one of those rare cases where, if you stop and make common sense judgments about the factors at play, the ‘just feels like’ conclusion is the opposite of the one common sense leads you to. Much of the reason has to do with short-term versus long-term considerations (buying a home starts with paying a sizeable down payment, after all); but over the long haul, the amount of cash at stake is so great it’s worth taking a hard look at this fundamental housing choice. Four leading factors that currently come into play: ·         Increased Demand Has Made Rentals More Expensive After the subprime mortgage mess-between 2007 and 2013—something like 6,200,000 people wer... 10/25/2014

Even before you are presented with the sheaf of paperwork that accompanies the signing of your first mortgage, if you are a Indianapolis first-time home buyer, you will have already learned about closing costs—the fees and charges that pay for various parts of creating the mortgage loan. Included in closing costs are sums that can vary from inconsequential (chump change) to head-turners (“whaaaat th-?”). You’ll want to be prepared in advance for what the line items cover.   That’s where the “Good Faith Estimate” comes in. It’s a detailed document that is issued in advance; it’s a heads-up that estimates closing costs you’ll pay when you buy your new Indianapolis home. The GFE varies considerably from one lender to another although the overall costs tend to be more predictable. It’s easi... 10/20/2014

When it comes to tracking the national housing market’s performance, CoreLogic is one of the industry’s top voices. They provide insights and trend projections based on “trillions of data points” to anyone interested in “housing economies and property markets” (that’s the dry-as-melba-toast description of their focus area).  From time to time I come across their blog (the one with the exciting title of—wait for it— “Insights”). It’s worth reading because their national data has a track record of providing a fairly accurate profile—one we can compare with our local Indianapolis housing market trends. It should be of interest to any Indianapolis homeowner since, as CoreLogic puts it, “this is information which is at the core of every smart decision.” Hard to argue with that. At the end of... 10/13/2014

Note:  I wrote this blog several weeks ago, before the tragic death of Beverly Carter,  a Little Rock Arkansas Real Estate Agent.  Our team at Home Matters  would like to extend our deepest sympathies to Beverly's family and friends and dedicate this post to her memory.  This is a reminder to our Realtor partners and their clients as well as our Home Staging colleagues  to please practice safety first, Always.   Though stagers do not often talk about it, another reason it is important to depersonalize your space while you show your home is for your own safety. When you leave your prized possessions out for everyone to see, remember you may also be inviting trouble later on. I would like to tell you that I have never heard of a robbery happening after an open house, an agent never being ... 10/02/2014

Indianapolis Real Estate Agents at their finest!   It is not about the over priced listings and fair weather sellers.  This letter is what it is all about for our team. This is a large part of what our team is and does.       09/27/2014

Open layout multi level home is sure to please from welcoming front porch to tranquil backyard! Welcome to your impressive kitchen featuring SS appliances, center island w/ plenty of storage space & breakfast room! Charming great rm w/ wood burn FP leaves plenty of space to entertain! Main lvl master bdrm suite & 3 additional bdrms compliment floorplan! Lower level adds more sq footage to your new home! Peaceful & secluded outdoor oasis, surrounded by mature trees is the perfect place to relax!   For more information: http://www.indyhomehunter.com/homes/8954-Log-Run-Drive/Indianapolis/IN/46234/43442019/       RodneyHeard   HeardRealEstateTeam 8555N River RdSuite200   IndianapolisIN 46240   317-800-5537   rodney@heardrealestateteam.com               09/25/2014

Even before you are presented with the sheaf of paperwork that accompanies the signing of your first mortgage, if you are an Indianapolis first-time home buyer, you will have already learned about closing costs—the fees and charges that pay for various parts of creating the mortgage loan. Included in closing costs are sums that can vary from inconsequential (chump change) to head-turners (“whaaaat th-?”). You’ll want to be prepared in advance for what the line items cover. That’s where the “Good Faith Estimate” comes in. It’s a detailed document that is issued in advance; it’s a heads-up that estimates closing costs you’ll pay when you buy your new home. The GFE varies considerably from one lender to another although the overall costs tend to be more predictable. It’s easier to think of... 09/23/2014

You’ve done it: found what’s soon to become your family’s new Indianapolis home! It’s in a great neighborhood…reasonable commute…decent kitchen (size is right; definitely upgradeable). All this and it fits the budget! Congrats! Looks like your housing hunt is over... YET…before you sign on the dotted line, there should be one last check-off. Factor in all the costs that improving the house to your liking will entail. The cost of home improvements in Indianapolis can be light—but since that’s not always the case, there are areas where the possible impact on your bottom line can be meaningful. For instance: Anyone who has had the experience of paying for new fencing—even for just a section in need of replacement—has learned to respect the fencing cost factor. Depending on the type and si... 08/25/2014

  Once upon a time I received a call from a home seller who had done everything right. His agent had provided him with a list of “suggestions” to help his home sell quickly and after investing a considerable amount of time, money and elbow grease into these improvements, his home hadn’t received any offers in the three months it was on the market.     “I have no outdated lighting. The house is very clean and yet I have had to reduce my price $15,000. Can you tell me what’s happening here?” He asked.     I couldn’t over the phone but when I walked into the house, it was a little more obvious. It was a house only Switzerland could love. It had been neutralized to the point of being austere. Every wall was painted beige. Every piece of art had been stripped from the wall. There were no acc... 08/05/2014

Great Downtown Indianapolis Townhouse for Sale!!   615 East New York Street, Indianapolis    Listed for $296,000.00     Amazingly Renovated Townhouse inside and out. Urban living at its finest in the unique historic Lockerbie townhome.  Gorgeous Woodwork and tasteful features. 3rd level allows for an office, 4th bedroom type option, bonus room or gym/Pilates room.   Minutes from Mass Avenue, shopping and dining!   Close to parks, cultural trail and endless options that come with Downtown Living. 07/19/2014

Did you know that the average homebuyer assesses the potential of a property within the first six seconds of the walk through?             It’s a little like Real Estate speed dating when you stop and think about it. When someone buys a home, they are entering a long-term relationship and they don’t want to make a mistake. They may have entered the fray with an open mind and only a vague idea of what they were looking for, but it doesn’t take long for their list of “faves” and “turn-offs” to grow exponentially. A few bad showings is all it takes for a home buyer to start eliminating abodes that have been on the scene too long, who appear needy of come with more baggage than they want to deal with.   That’s why it is more important than ever for a home seller to highlight their home to t... 07/18/2014

So, you are wondering how to make your home worth more in Broad Ripple, Indianapolis, IN Isn’t this the age old question?? Everyone thinks they know what the answer is, from personal opinion, to all of the flipping and HGTV shows that are so unrealistic.  Sellers often make the mistake of putting a ton of money into part of the house that may look nice and it may be what they like, but at the end of the day, it didn’t add any value.    The biggest key to answering this question is knowing what the ‘norm’ is in your neighborhood and area.  Just because something added value in SoCal, doesn’t mean that it will do the same thing in Indianapolis.  And even then, the neighborhoods are so different, that you really have to know what the common/upgraded features of your area are.     For examp... 04/23/2014

3 Things Home Sellers Need to Know in Broad Ripple Indiana         Broad Ripple is one of the hottest and trendiest places in Indianapolis that is known for its quaint shops, hot night life, beautiful greenways, the Monon Trail, sidewalk cafes, art galleries, and of course, fabulous restaurants. It is one of the hottest real estate markets in Indiana right now.  Great houses are selling after being on the market for just a few days. However, just because it’s a hot spot, doesn’t mean that you can just list your house and expect multiple offers.  1.  Bringing the Home up to Code The majority of Broad Ripple homes were built in the early 1900’s, so needless to say almost every part of the house needs to be upgraded and brought up to today’s codes.  Sellers sometimes overlook this since th... 04/04/2014

    Why choose us to buy or sell your Indianapolis Home?     What sets an agent who has specialized in REO’s and Short Sales apart from the rest? REO=Bank Foreclosure   One of the things that set a real estate agent apart that has worked for quite a while on bank foreclosures is that we have constantly had to research values on the properties that we list.  How do we do that?  We pull the active, pending and sold comps in the area of the subject property and review those for the comps best suited to assisting in determining the subject property’s value.  We review this information more extensively than the average agent in the business as it is how the bank determines their list price. Many banks are not ordering appraisals (to determine the REO value) or if they do, they do not rely on... 03/05/2014

A few months ago I appeared on a local Radio show. I received the recording for it but understand that no one would want to sit and listen for 45 minutes so I opted to create several short video clips showcasing some of the best topics from the show. Today I'll showcase the topic of Real Estate Photography and Indianapolis Home Staging.  Real Estate Photography and Indianapolis Home Staging These factors are two of the biggest determinations on how many showings a home will get and very likely the quality of offers. Since nearly every buyer (last statistic I saw said 98.9% of buyers) shops online prior to buying a home, the way the home is viewed online will likely determine if a buyer is interested in viewing it.  As Margaret Gehr wrote about in the blog, A picture says a thousand word... 02/23/2014

Indianapolis Short Sales Available for Sale Currently       Indianapolis IN Short Sales available range in price from $8,200 to $650,000.   It is an incredible time for you to buy a house, whether as an investment property or as your home for you or you and your family.  Homes are incredibly affordable in comparison to 20-30 years ago and interest rates are still incredibly low! If you need help finding an Indianapolis Short Sale, let us help you by putting our experience to work for you.  Having closed numerous short sales, we know what questions to ask as your buyers agent, more so than an inexperienced agent or one who does not work very often with short sales.  We also have vast foreclosure/reo/bank owned experience that has also helped us negotiate Indianapolis Short Sales on the l... 02/18/2014

Multifamily acquisition strategies with cash-out refinancing is the best strategy for today's market.  Lately I've taken calls from several investors who have very small loan balances, $250K or less and they are looking for rate and term refinances to lower their rate .. the problem?  The loan balance is to small! Many of these investors are sitting on large amounts of equity, some as much as $1 million!  Instead of having all that equity tied up in one property, they should be refinancing with cash-out and leveraging it into the acquisition of multifamily assets (apartment buildings, apartment comlpexes or multifamily developments that help that can increase the NOI of a porfolio of multifamily assets. Multifamily acquisition strategies should inlclude cash-out refinance to obtain the ... 02/12/2014

Home staging has a lot to do with love when it comes to buyers, sellers, and real estate; after all, the primary goal of what we do is to make a potential buyer fall in love with a home. Residential real estate, someone’s home, is usually the biggest purchase or investment that anyone will ever make. Like finding love in any other relationship, it usually happens based on feelings, not logic. When a potential buyer looks at a home, they are probably already viewing one that has all their needs (location, number of bedrooms, baths, and within their price point). What they are looking for is one that “feels right”. They want a house that feels like home. They want to fall in love.    How home stagers create love for home buyers   Love is easy for home stagers to create for home buyers. Wh... 02/09/2014

  Bill & Jill at the Annual Carpenter Sales Rally Awards Program. Listing Leaders of their office and more than $3 Million in sales for 2013!       Buyers can use their smart phone to search for homes for sale nearest where they are now. Let's say you're in a neighborhood that you love, and you want to find more homes for sale nearby. At callcarpenter.com, you can search for homes for sale and they will be sorted by the nearest home within a mile of your location. Drive to a different neighborhood, and your search results will change. You can be in front of a home and download all of the info about that house right to your phone. "We're thrilled to be the first real estate firm in metro Indianapolis to offer a GPS search option on our mobile website," said David Caveness, Senior VP of ... 02/05/2014

While commonly referred to in the same way as if it were a town or city, "Geist" is actually short for the reservoir that bears its name and around which waterfront estates and hundreds of upscale neighborhoods have been developed.   The Geist Reservoir was named for Clarence Geist, a former owner of the Indianapolis Water Company. Geist imagined this reservoir to address the expected future water needs of the growing Indiana capitol, Indianapolis. Planning began around the time of the first World War and over the next twenty years the Water Company's Shorewood Corporation purchased about 5,000 acres in the Fall Creek Valley and what was known as Germantown, IN. Today, Germantown is, well, underwater. And we don't mean in financial trouble.   The Geist dam was completed in 1943, but the... 01/19/2014