Find Austin Foreclosures

Are you looking to find a good site to find Austin Foreclosures? There are so many sites out there but you have to pay for some to get either some kind of confusing list or have to get hold of a realtor to get you the foreclosures. I have created a website for home buyers looking for Foreclosures in Austin. It is a Search site where you enter the parameters: price range, zip code, number of bedrooms, etc. and it only gives you those foreclosures that match your criteria. Easy enough? Ready, Set, Let's Search.

Please, please, please, do contact me if you have any questions regarding a property, or wish to request a showing. Call me at (512)786-SELL/7355.

IMPACT of the First Time Home Buyer 8K Stimulus Plan

Have you heard of the $8,000 Tax Credit offered to First Time Home Buyers? People purchasing a home in 2009 for their primary residence AND are first time home buyers (meaning you have not owned a home in the past 3 years or more or even never owned a home) may claim up to a $8,000 tax credit when filing their 2008 or 2009 tax returns. There has been much buzz about this tax credit, let’s talk about how this will affect people’s life:

1) DIVORCE RATES WILL BE LOWER – Couples now have an incentive to buy a home, and since most households have both spouses contributing to the mortgage together, what a great reason to stay together!

2) TAXPAYERS WILL FILE THEIR TAXES ON TIME – I want my 8K and I want my tax refund now! Who wants to wait for your tax credit until next year? If you are a first time home buyer and purchased your home before April 15, 2009, you can file for your tax credit when you file your taxes for 2008. Please check with your CPA or financial advisor about this.

3) HOME OWNERSHIP WILL START EARLY FOR MANY – Why not start your real estate investment once out of college and have a job? Many people have a trust fund that is accessible to them after college. They can use their trust fund as a down payment for their home. Start your real estate portfolio while you are young; don’t wait until after the 1st child arrives or after owning the first boat or after paying off your wedding. Start TODAY!


4) PEOPLE WILL HAVE STRONGER CREDIT – A first time home owner usually does not have a long credit history or none. By making mortgage payments on time every month, the homeowner can establish great credit history. Would it be a perfect world if all our youth started on the right foot with their credit?

5) THERE WILL BE LESS STRESS IN THIS WORLD – Find a real estate agent that will walk you thru the entire home buying process, not just from seeking your dream home, but explaining the mortgage process, make recommendations of service providers (loan processor, home warranty, home insurance, title company, etc.); and one who holds your hand thru the contract to close process. Here is what my First Time Home Buyer/Client have to say about me:

"Purchasing a home is not an easy task and can be a headache for a first time buyer.
Pearl was able to walk me through the ins and outs of purchasing a home. I'm pleased that the overall process went pretty smoothly from start to finish with no paperwork issues. I highly recommend her!" ~Thao P.

If you or anyone you know is ready to be a homeowner and want to take advantage of this $8,000 tax credit, give me a call TODAY at (512)786-SELL/7355. (Certain restrictions apply, call to see if you qualify for the 8,000 tax credit).

The impact of the FTHB plan is an opinion of the author who likes to remain positive ;)

March - This month in Real Estate for Sellers and First time Home Buyers

News for First time home buyers and Sellers putting their home in the market today. This has been brought to you by your Keller Williams real estate team.

Purchasing a home from Overseas? What I have done for my buyer

I have a buyer who is in town who needs to relocate to Austin this spring, which means, they need to find a home in the next few days. Caveat is, the husband is overseas and was not able to join us house hunting. We have narrowed down the choices to 2 homes. This home is the wife's top choice. As a buyer's agent for this couple, my job is help both spouses make the decision TOGETHER. Did you read that correctly? Well together does not only mean the husband and wife, there are also 2 children involved. How did I help the spouse and 2 children, who is currently left overseas to help with the decision? I have taken these tours myself to help the family feel the home as if they were walking the home themself (minus the chit chat of course). I am a poor narrator, it may take 20 takes before I say everything right so I decided that this was going to have to be a silent move.

Bring out the popcorn and see what the family overseas saw to help them make the decision.

Master Bedroom/Bath Tour

Second Floor: Game Room/Media Room/Front BR/Bath/Back BR

FYI, I tried to upload a couple more videos but Blogspot is giving me an error. The blog might be too large for multiple tours. Anyway, the family voted a big YAY on this home and we are currently under contract.

For you buyers out there, does your real estate agent help you be a part of the buying process when the other deciding family members are not able to be here in Austin? For those of you who are thinking of relocating to Austin, do you want this kind of service from your real estate agent? If you do, give me a call on my SELL Phone (512)786-SELL/7355 or email me at PearlJones@kw.com. I will be happy to help you with exceptional service on your next home.

Jan and Feb real estate statistics for Austin and Lakeway areas

Alamo Title of Austin has reported that in January, residential sales units were down 43.24% BUT pendings were UP 8.08% compared to January 2008. In February, residential sales were DOWN 26.32%, pending sales were DOWN 24.32% compared to February 2008. New listings are also down both months. I think sellers have come to a realization that you should only put your home in the sale market if you have to sell.





In Lake Travis ISD which includes Lakeway real estate, in January, sales are down 35% compared to last January and in February, sales are down 18% compared to last February.



If you are thinking of selling, give me a call to give you a market measure on a specific community or MLS area. If you are thinking of buying, it is absolutely a good time to buy in AUSTIN!


The information in the graph has been obtained from the Austin Board of Realtors and the information has not been verified. The graph is to be used for informational purposes only.