Relocate to Wisconsin : January 2011

  Despite all the media buzz....people pick and choose what to believe and what does or does not apply to their situation....after all we tell them, "Real Estate is Local."  And so it is...Wisconsin is not California ....New Jersey is not Iowa, Florida is not Texas....and it goes narrower and deeper...to the county, the city, the neighborhood or sub-division....choices, demands, prices, inventory, vacancies, foreclosures, short sales, vacant land, new construction, "old world charming"...all vary by area....the question that if you have been on any listing appointments at all...that may not always be verbalized...but you can hear it all the same peering into the minds of the sellers... is...

         "Why Can't I Choose

              the list Price for my House ?"

  There are agents who will let you....add your mortgage, your taxes, the cost of your improvements, sprinkle in the sweat equity from the DIY projects....mix in what your neighbor got a few years ago...and let you decide the price...and that will also let your home stay on the market for ever and ever and ever....
   It is "The Market" that decides the price of your house..."The Market".....a shroud of mystery surrounds that term...

     It doesn't matter what number the neighbor down the street sold for....or said they sold for....years ago....Or what you spent....or ...o...
the market is reflected in the RECENT SOLD prices of comparable homes.
   
        Sellers and Potential Sellers....If you are going to list your house...or have not seen a buyer for your home and have it listed.....ask your realtor....or the realtors you interview for comparable RECENT COMPARABLE SOLD homes.  You may not like the number....let the Realtor tell you what can be illustrated with sold prices.
 
      If you want a realtor in southeastern Wisconsin who will tell you the truth...what you have to hear...not always what you want to hear...call the Hansons...prompt, professional service and proven results.

   Those readers and "Rainers" who have pets can appreciate how much a part of the family our four-footed, finned, furry, scaley, feathery friends become a part of our families.  The unconditional love, sloppy kisses and companionship are unlike any other expression of affection. We wouldn't trade them for the world.. . and their devotion to us as their family lets us know that while we may not be well versed in kitten/cat, puppy/dog language...they love us as much as we do them.
      We recently had a seller doing a short sale who was doing the moving on her own and moving her loyal, friendly and wonderful canine companion too.  She found an apartment that accepted pets which of course was a requirement...it was near walking paths and convenient to her employment and everything she needed to start her life again financially, emotionally and physically. Her concern was that on moving day when movers would be coming to move the large furniture and there would be a lot of commotion....that her furry, four footed friend would find all of this very disconcerting....and we agreed. Soooo,...on moving day, we kept the dog....with Cosmo and Magic staying on a separate floor so as not to strike any fear in the furry hearts that they had been replaced by something larger and furrier. It saved our seller some concern...the cost of kennel which was not in the budget,..gave David a really "fetching" opportunity/distraction.
   How easy it is to take a part of a day...to bundle the bird, fetch the fish, capture the cat, deal with the dog...it costs you nothing and it is a huge favor to your sellers...Pay it forward...one meow, woof, splash at a time.

    W165S10941 Loomis Drive, Muskego, Wisconsin

                                                       $424,710
                                                                                     
 
     Step into this custom 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath home surrounded by 11 acres of countryside. You will appreciate the large master suite on the main floor with a spa quality tiled master bath...whirlpool and separate shower. Custom cherry kitchen cabinets, Open great room with fireplace and patio door to the huge lot.  The spacious rooms are complimented by a heated 3 car finished, attached garage. Windows everywhere overlook the 11 acre setting. Room for gardens, animals, whatever you choose and an easy commute to Milwaukee and Waukesha county employment.

      The large lower level awaits your design with egress windows and many possibilities for additional living space.  This short sale will take a little patience...but sooo worth it for the house you can call  home. Call Sally & David Hanson, experienced short sale listing agents and they will be happy to set up a showing of this custom home:414-525-0563.

    Short sales are not as common in Wisconsin as they are in some other parts of the country. Both Realtors and consumers are often in need of education in this specialized area of real estate practice.
   We often get the comment, "The bank will take whatever I write." Oh probably not.....if you are looking for a short sale as an opportunity to write "very short", that may not be an effective buying strategy....and you as the buyer, will be short an accepted offer.
   Different Realtors have different methods of practice...from different schools of thought, short sale "schools" which there is certainly no shortage of...we know what works for us....and more importantly our distressed sellers...and with honest sellers, it has worked every time.

     When an offer is written on a short sale, it is first given to the seller(s) . The seller(s) regardless of whether or not they are current with their mortgage payments, still own the house and can choose to accept, reject or counter the offer. Countering is often the posture when a buyer has written a "Let's Make a Deal" offer....even Monty Hall didn't give away everything for half price !  
   We believe in accepting offers that a market analysis combined with time on the market and our experience will be "lender acceptable."  If the offer is too low, we advise a counter offer. On some occasions some buyers believing they could get offers accepted written for half price, are not financially qualified for even close to the asking price per their own lenders... just say bye not buy.
  Yes, the bank does have the final approval for every short sale.  We believe it makes so much more sense ....and our distressed sellers appreciate that the offers the sellers accept are the offers the bank accepts.  Our thanks is doubled with tears and hugs at the closing table and the secure feeling our sellers have that they are on their way to a new life chapter which truly can be...happily ever after.

                                                          10541  West Church Street, Franklin, WI      

                                                                                           MLS  1181506
                   

                                                                                        $249,927

                                                                 It's Curbalicious !

                                                   OPEN HOUSE SAT, January 22nd  12 -2 pm          

Welcome to our fully applianced, spotlessly clean, great room sized, finished rec room with bar, refrigerator and fireplace, attached 2.5 garage, fenced in yard, ready to call home ranch....

  From the sunken great room with gas fireplace and oak surround/mantle to the eat in kitchen with  loads of counter space...you will want to call this great ranch, home.

   Three bedrooms and two full baths including a whirlpool and separate shower stall in the master suite.

Can you say Packer Party ?  Now you don't have to

just say it...be the proud host/hostess in this rec room with bar, fireplace and refrigerator ready for the gang to cheer on the green and gold....AND there are other finished rooms on the lower level as well ....and plumbing roughed in for a third bath.

     Add the great decor...fenced in yard, convenient location and you have everything you ever wanted and we know someone will want it soon....so don't dilly or dally..

Call David and Sally ..to .we'll be happy show you this terrific house !

    A question we often get from our Short Sale Sellers is: What are the tax consequences of doing a short sale?  We come from the school of "know what you don't know and refer to someone who does"....and don't hand out legal advice...suggest tax or accounting methods...however.....what we do suggest is that sellers who have done a short sale use a professional to do their tax returns if they have not done that in the past.
   Sometimes...not always....our sellers get a 1099 form from the lender or lenders who approved their short sale in the amount of the deficiency that they were not charged when the sale closed.  We give our short sale sellers as much information as we can when we list the home inclusive of handouts, web links, resources from other sources.  It is, at best, a confusing time of life with lots of activity, decisions to make, a move to prepare for....and sometimes what we said, what we gave them and links we mailed, get lost in the fray of the experience.  Months later...the 1099 arrives and we get emails and calls....how do I prepare taxes or what do I do with this 1099...I don't remember that you said we would pay taxes...
   First.....we have a list of accounting experts throughout the counties that we cover that we suggest our sellers use to prepare their return and offer any other advice that may be needed concerning their tax situation.  Next....we have learned that many accounting people...because short sales are not as common here as they are other places, are not aware of the federal government's 982 form.  This form basically is a verification that, at the time the short sale was closed, the seller was insolvent.  As a result, for the time that the government deems this form can be included with tax returns, it relieves the tax payer/short sale seller from paying tax on the amount of the deficiency.

    Know what you don't know...we don't do taxes and hope accountants don't do short sales...we do recommend that the sellers/taxpayers take a copy of this form with them to their tax preparer....just in case....they don't know.
    If you know anyone, anywhere, who is unable to pay their mortgage..please have them give us a call....we are happy to refer them to a professional from our nationwide network who can help them make an informed decision on how best to handle their situation.
     

      Everything is more fun...easier....accomplished faster....done better when you involve more than person. The old adage...two heads are better than one....we have found...that also applies to "two hearts."  We have a monthly newsletter to a number of spheres and have other marketing and direct contact to the people who have entrusted us with the sale and/or purchase of their homes and to other people who find value in the services we provide and refer us to other buyers and sellers.  There is nothing unusual about that....agents who do it consistently over a long period of time will probably tell you, as we will, this is a worthwhile effort...both in terms of the warm thank you calls and letters we receive and the people referred we are happy to help. 
     This year, we have decided to take the contact with our sphere one step further than we have in the past.  Did you ever notice that when you start a conversation, email or letter with  "I would appreciate your help...I would like your advice...."  The response is usually positively received....the person is complimented you asked for their advice and feels good about having been able to assist you.
          As many people know, one of our charities of choice is the Waukesha Womens' Center. They provide services of food, shelter, counseling and development assist women and children who are abused and work toward their development.  From their 24 hour hotline to  the "Secret Gift Shop" they had over the holidays where children could pick out presents for their mothers, they work diligently to help people who may be at their lowest ebb financially and emotionally. Their website has a section labeled "donate" that will tell you the things that they need most at any given time.

     We recently had occasion to donate some items and I asked the director if there was anything right that minute that was in short supply that we could pick up for them.  Yes....baby oil and deodorant. Introducing "Phone a Friend to Pay it Forward".... I made just one call....and said we were on our way to the Center....and know how much they would appreciate some help.  The response was warm and generous....a check that covered dozens of both items....and the opportunity for us to not only help the Womens' Center but to make someone in our sphere feel good about having given to a worthwhile cause.
 
       Phone a friend is now part of our monthly "pay it forward" activity....it is on the calendar with a rotating list of names...and people as they hear about it, volunteering to be part of the next month's program....it's easy....we know you know someone you could phone right now....and pay it forward to the charity of your choice.

 We had a grocery store in our neighborhood go out of business....it was sad to know during the holidays that people would be losing jobs....a neighborhood the convenience of having a store not far away with a bakery, good meat counter, fresh vegetables and a deli. There was an eerie emptiness as we walked thru the aisles...some with empty shelves....and a few customers taking advantage of the mega markdowns.  The competition from the large discount chains was just more than this little store could handle.

   We walked past the frozen foods and found some lonely turkeys that had not made their way to anyone's holiday dinner table....and a light went on....the Womens' Center in Waukesha has freezer space....and a need to feed the women and children who have left their homes to escape domestic violence.  We spoke with the manager who generously discounted all the turkeys that were left and we filled our trunk.....so now the Womens' Center will be able to gobble up all that protein and nutrition to start the new year !
 
    You may not have a store that is going out of business in your area....maybe one that just has an oversupply of something that a food pantry...a shelter....a home for domestic violence victims can use.....Make friends with your local grocer...pay it forward...hunger doesn't know a season....your generosity should not either...Pay it forward.

      I just got off the phone with one of my friends in Northern Minnesota. He said that since early this morning the snow waist high and is still falling. The temperature is dropping below zero and the north wind is increasing dramatically. His wife has done nothing but look through the kitchen window and staring blankly. He says that if it gets much worse, he may have to let her in!!!

 Stay Warm....Enjoy...! All the Hansons

     It is an annual event...every year at this time, the phone rings with calls from our buyers:

            "I just got a property tax bill for the whole year....and I just moved here in________(name that month)"

     Closing on a new home is a very exciting event...butterflies,  damp palms...eager anticipation of the rooms you will paint, the hardwood floors you will uncover....the buyer's mind is off in a thousand places...planting the flowers, harvesting vegetables, choosing the place for the television....and the drone of the closing agent, real estate agent or attorney who is explaining the closing statement is buzzing in the  background while the long awaited event has the distractions of the plans for the future.  Buyers nod in agreement most of the time when asked if they understand this line, that addition, this subtraction...again with the realistic mind filling thoughts  of the dream house becoming reality.  Here is the reality that the numbers tell you....someone has explained....and often get lost in the excitement of the occasion:

           Mr/Ms/Mrs New Homeowner.....

               You pay taxes on your new home from the day you close thru the end of the year.

                          That sounds simple enough....and logical....you are paying for the time you actually own the house.

                 The tax bill represents property taxes for the entire year January 1 - December 31

                            The taxing authority sends the tax bill to the person who owns the property at the address of the property.  If each tax
                            bill were pro-rated at the end of the year...part of it for the seller and part for the buyer, this would place a tremendous
                            burden on the government...allow for a huge increase in errors....and to alleviate all of that, the title company does
                            the math for you and it appears on the closing statement.

                  The taxes that represent the time earlier in the year, when the house was owned by the seller appear as a credit on the
                   closing statement.

                           Here is the part where the new homeowner has nodded politely, but forgets promptly when they are handed the keys to their new home. Let's imagine, that the closing took place June 1st and for the sake of simplicity, the property taxes are  $1/day. (Don't we wish !)    January 1 - May 31st is a total of 151 days or $151 in taxes that is owed by the sellers who owned the property during that time.
    When the new homeowner gets the tax billl, the bill is for the entire $365 even though they have only owned the house for 214 days of the year.(365- 151 - 214).
     No one expects the new homeowner to go find the seller who may have left the area...maybe it is an estate...perhaps it was a divorce...playing detective could become quite complicated. 
        Instead....on your closing statement ...the taxes are prorated and the new owner is given a credit of the $151 against the sale price of the home.  This means, new homeowner, that you were paid the portion of the taxes that the seller owed in the form of a credit....and you will then be paying the entire tax bill to the taxing authority.

    ' Hope this takes some of the confusion out of the taxing question for new home owners. You are welcome to call Sally & David Hanson for all your real estate questions in southeastern Wisconsin...we're happy to help!  May your problems be less taxing...your life fulfilling and enjoy your new home !

    Last night we celebrated the new year with friends at a favorite restaurant and we gave everyone a lottery ticket to the Mega Million multi state lottery and each person had to say what the first things that they would do with the estimated jackpot of $242 Million. Interestingly enough, on the top of most lists was to pay off their mortgage and the mortgages of family and friends. There were foundations to start....charities to benefit....a little bling here...vacation there....Checking our numbers this morning....close but not matching....and have not heard from any of the other guests to learn if we need not pay our mortgage this month.....guess not....now the jackpot is projected to go to $290 million with no one winning the big prize.  
  As we begin the new year with a great deal of positivism....(is that a word ?) we raise our glasses (we do have purple ones...!) toast all of you in Active Rain....our family, friends, the many people past and present who have honored us with their business...in many ways, we feel we have won the lottery...with the love, support and friendship of all of you.

       Our Best Wishes for a Healthy, Happy and Prosperous  2011 !

          Hansons All....

Sally, David   & our 4-footed furry "sons"    

          Cosmo & Magic