With roughly 1000 active home listings between Spanish Fort, Daphne and Fairhope, the Eastern Shore real estate inventory is excellent! This is the time to buy in this charming area, and your local agent Barbara S. Reeves is the one to assist you!

In November, 26 homes sold in Daphne for an average price of $173,103 or $84.29/ square foot. At 134 average days on the market, Daphne homes are among the slowest moving. There are 46 homes pending sale with an average of $235,226 or $93.81/ square foot.

Spanish Fort, with 140 homes on the market, saw just 5 homes sold in November, with the average sales price of $246,880 or $113.81/ square foot. Sixteen homes are pending sale with an average price of $276,700 or $118.82/ square foot. 

Down the highway in Fairhope, there are 411 homes active on the market, averaging $448,646 ($186.96/ sq foot). These homes have been on the market an an average of 176 days. Those 13 homes which sold in November did so after 92 days on the market. The average sales price of $182,115 ($94.07/ sq foot) is much lower than the average list price, not uncommon in the current housing environment.

School is back in session at the University of South Alabama and homes near campus are desirable!  16 homes sold in July 2009 in the Springhill / USA  area of Mobile.    The average sales price of $314,591 equated to $118.21 per square foot.  These homes spent an average of 98 days on the market prior to selling. There are currently 177 homes actively listed in Springhill/ USA, and their average prices is $432,847 or $135.99 per square foot.

In Cottage Hill, there is a large inventory of available homes, with 371 on the market.  37 sold in July for an average sales price of $159,819.  This works out to $81.69 per square foot of living area and they spent an average of 87 days on the market. There are currently 62 sales pending in Cottage Hill, with the average sold price of $157,409.

The Downtown / Midtown area of Mobile has a big inventory of 475 homes on the market, with an average asking price of $181,878 or $96.99 per square foot of living area. This is significantly higher than the price of homes which actually sold. In July, 28 sold in Downtown / Midtown for an average of $121,616 or $74.50 per square foot. 

West Mobile/ Semmes continues to be the most active area for Mobile’s real estate market. In July, 61 homes sold in this area for an average sales price of $182,996 and $90.32 per square foot. These homes sold after 92 days on the market.  There are 110 contracts pending in West Mobile / Semmes for an average sales price of $160,829 or $89.39 per square foot. Barbara Reeves, REALTOR, is an expert in these communities and is able to assist you in taking advantage of this market to find your dream home. Visit her at http://www.barbarasellsdaphne.com.

The Home Affordable Refinance program can help those whose home values have dropped

The Home Affordable Refinance program was designed to help home owners lower their monthly payments while at the same time securing lower interest rate mortgages. The program is aimed at helping home owners whose mortgage loans are more than the value of their home. The program had a value set at 105% and under the Obama Administration this number has become 125%. The Home Affordable Refinance plan is helping home owners who are underwater with their home values restructure their mortgage payments and ease their financial stress. A few highlights of the Home Affordable Refinance program are:

• A borrower must be current on his payments in order to qualify for the refinance.
• The refinancing must be completed with a Fannie or Freddie approved lender.
• The new loan would come with mortgage insurance.
• Borrowers cannot take cash out.

If you are living in an area where the value of your home has dropped below what it was when you purchased it this could be the program for you.

Check out the Making Home Affordable web site for more information and to see if you qualify.

REO property is often a bargain for the real estate investor

What is REO property?  REO (real estate owned) is property which has been taken back  by the lender.  REO properties typically sell for less than comparable real estate listings as the lender usually wants to recoup the value of the loan which is traditionally less than the valueof the property.  The differences between REO property and foreclosure or short sale property are:

• REO has already been acquired by the lender typically after a failed foreclosure sale or foreclosure auction.
• The REO is owned by the bank (or lending institution) and is listed as an asset on their balance sheet.
• The original home owner is no longer in the picture and the property is for sale.

The downside of REO property is that an REO property is typically not well-maintained by the financial institution that owns it.  The positive side of an REO is that a real estate investor or buyer can often purchase the property at a distinctively lower price.

For more information on REO property click here.