$700 Billion

I cannot even imagine how much money that is. The real question is will this bail out have the desired effect of liberating the commercial credit markets from non-performing, or under performing "sub prime" loans allowing them to start lending to banks and businesses. And will it happen soon. Another question without an answer is what are the long-term effects of this bail out. Will this fix a current problem and create a long-term one? I don't know the answers to any of these.

What I do know is too many people are talking about this. The problem is on every ones mind. This type of issue can become a self-fulfilling prophecy if left un attended and un addressed. I have also seen commercial lending change even in Iowa City lately. Loans are being scrutinized, and LTV ratios are falling. Easy loans last year are tough loans this year. And, an active real estate market requires available financing. I have also seen business startup and expansion plans be put on hold pending the shakout of this problem.

My hope is that this plan returns liquidity to US credit markets and takes the heat off banks and businesses. I hope that we are able to also drill down through the mortgage backed securities aspect of the bail out to the actual home loans and deal with them on an individual basis. This will require a lot of administration, but it will also protect our $700 Billion investment and will help restore a healthy resale housing market.

This thing is unfolding in real time, so we will all see what heppens very soon. Buckle up.

Jeff joins Lepic-Kroeger Realtors

After 13 years at Coldwell Banker Real Estate Professionals why change companies? I out grew it. CB is a great company to learn the business and they have loads of resources for newer agents.

Lepic-Kroeger offers more oportunities for more experienced agents and as a result of that, has more experienced agents. The agent pool sells more properties and so, this association is better for me and my clients.

There are great agents at both companies and at most companies in Iowa City. I am excited about this move and am energised by it to move to a higher level of professionalism and professionals service.

My new address is 2346 Mormon Trek Blvd, Iowa City, Iowa 52246 and my email (jeff@icrealestate.com) and my cell phone (319-331-6187) are the same.

I'll try to report in more often than every 6 months!

New year, new opportunities

Wow...have I been remiss in posting new material. The market has been so strange and difficult to predict that I just waited on the sidelines and watched the sales to see what was happening. It seems that sales are about the same in 2008 as they were in 2007. This is a good sign. Interest rates are creeping up to just under 7%. This is not a good sign. Home prices are increasing at about a 2%-3% rate over 2007. This is a normal range and is also a good sign. With all these good signs, why do we have the feeling that real estate is in trouble? Real estate is a local phenomenon, but money (interest rates, jobs, wages, prices, oil) are national considerations. We cannot divorce ourselves from the national trends even thougth things are moving along in Iowa City. We pay more for gas, heating, and well, everything. We pay a little more for interest rates, too.

I think people have a lower degree of faith in the future, and want to made darn shure that are getting a good value for their real estate purchase. I do too. Buyers a looking at 12 instead of 3 houses. We have more low offers that in the last decade. Also, for the first time I have seen in Iowa City, buyers are not qualifying for their loans.

This is not all bad. We should be responsible and make sure we are getting value for our purchases. We should be aware that finances are different now than in the past and travel is expensive and we are vulnarable to oil prices. We can still be secure, happy, content and free...and responsible and that is a good thing!

Home sale prices off 10% for 2008

Yikes! Home prices for 2008 will be down 10% nation wide! Some markets like Miami are down almost 30%, followed by San Francisco which is down by 25%.

Iowa City is somewhat insulated from national trends, but it not immune to the influence of national real estate trends.

NAR home sales prediction

So, what's the deal? We're all trying to look into the crystal ball and see what our home value future is. Well, the NAR is indicating that 2005 was a banner year for sales, they dipped and will be increasing through 2007 and 2008. Keep in mind that these are numbers of sales and not sales prices, but it is good news for the industry and for individuals, as well.

Steve Seligman at Cornish and Carey Commercial in the Bay Area of California summed it all up after going to the Rolling Stones concert at the Filmore. "Good news is good for real estate. Bad news is bad for real estate." It is really not any more complicated than that. Thank you Steve.

New Demographic Reports

I have just posted new demographic reports for the Johnson County, Iowa area on my commercial website. Go to http://www.iowacitycommercialbroker.com/ and select the demographic tab. I love these reports. They offer in depth, current infomation about this area and give some sort of foundation for decision making.

New market snapshot feature

I just put a new button on my website titled "market snapshot". Unfortunately some of what we do is marketing fluff, but this is the real deal. The link sets up a market snapshot based on your search criteria and emails you a full featured, graphic report showing meaningful statistics, maps, and photos. I am excited about this tool and invite you to give it a try. It is set up for residential properties with active listings, and sold listing information. Go to http://www.icrealestate.com/MarketSnapshot and fill in the form and wait for the response. I think it's great. See if you agree!