Karyn Stephan today joined The Oscar Group as our lead buyer’s agent! She is an experienced realtor and she knows The Woodlands very well!! Not only that, she’s also fluent in Spanish!

We have big plans for Karyn and we believe she’s going to be a great asset to the team.

If you’re looking for a home in The Woodlands or Carlton Woods, please give Karyn a call (832-641 0515)… she’ll be able to help you.

The Oscar Group operates as a tightly knit team of professionals. This means there’s less chance of “dropping of the ball” and ultimately means a higher level of service to the client.

The Woodlands Home & Garden Show.

Wow! It’s quite a show. I took my son, Samuel – he’s 8 years old, along. We had so much fun… he collected every business card he could find… not sure what he’s going to do with them! He also collected every little freebie available – there were some really neat giveaways.

Billy Weldon, from Texan Termite & Pest Control, kindly gave us one of his large plastic carry bags to put all the loot in. Thanks Billy! Pretty good idea… now we were advertising for Billy while we’re walking around with Samuel collecting pens, squeeze toys, cars, flash-lights, candy, etc.

I was really impressed by the high caliber of the exhibitors. And there were some really innovative products that looked like they had great potential. A number of “no clean” gutter products were there and I’m always impressed by them but I’d seen those before.

 

Daniel Jetzer from JD Coatings has what I believe is an excellent product for someone wanting to make some low-cost upgrades to an old home that they want to sell. His coatings can make plain old concrete look like beautiful brick paving and the cost is fairly insignificant when you consider the fact that you’ll make probably double that money back on the sale of the house by selling for more and selling quicker. I’m keeping this as a good idea.

Another great product I saw was one that provided decking in some sort of extruded plastic that looked like wood deck. It obviously doesn’t deteriorate and must last a very long time. I forgot to pick up their card but the product was on display along with a wood bench made with the same material and it looks really good.

I met Dionna Wright from “Doing What’s Right Construction” and was immediately impressed with this company even though I haven’t worked with them yet – I hope to have the opportunity soon though. There are two types of remodeling companies that you can deal with…. investor remodelers that work on empty homes that are about to be flipped, they do a quick job with sub-contracted crews and they get out and it doesn’t cost a fortune. OR, you can work with a company that will remodel the home you live in (or the one you’re going to live in) OR you just want a higher-quality job done. I think this is the company you might want to consider for that sort of job.

Dionna says their labor is in-house so there is none of that “unknown sub-contractor” that appears on a job. What else do I like about them? They’re local. Where I-45 joins 1488. None of this dealing with someone that has to drive up from Galveston or Katy… it’s always a hassle with the commute & accidents, flooding and who knows what else.

Their hand-out offers a 3 Day, 2 Night Giveaway to the first 50 customers to call them for a FREE remodeling estimate… What, just for supplying me with a free estimate I can get a FREE holiday?!Something sounds fishy… it’s too good to be true… or is that for real? I’ll have to see if I need any remodeling and I’m going to call up tomorrow… I need a break… wouldn’t mind going to San Diego actually… sounds like a pretty cool spot.

My good friend Ricky Pagnozzi & his beautiful wife were there with the Cutco, guaranteed for life, knives. He was doing a roaring trade – I could hardly believe my ears when he told me how many orders they’d had and that was just in one day!! He still has another day to go… Go & see Ricky if you can get the chance… and take along your Cutco knives, he’ll sharpen them for you for free.

Next year I’m going to seriously consider getting a booth at the show. What should my free gift be? I’ll have to think about that but, if you have an idea, let me know!

Seemingly taking the mortgage lending industry by surprise, the once booming subprime real estate finance market has almost instantaneously cratered since Christmas, leaving wreckage on many fronts. The damage started over a year ago with the homeowners- losing their properties to the rapidly escalating payments of their adjustable rate mortgages, which loan defaults caused massive losses to the lenders that had gone way out on long, skinny limbs to allow these consumers to buy homes they often could not afford.
 
 The days of 95 – 100% financing for buyers with weak credit or inability to prove that they actually earn the income they claim has essentially disappeared again for the foreseeable future. A report made by Reuters News Service a couple days ago estimates that this will move an estimated 1 million potential homebuyers out of the market this year compared to 2006. It could move another million homeowners into rental properties after their foreclosure.
 
The massive losses by these lenders has put many of them totally out of business in the last 90 days; even the biggest and the best have bit the dust and the ones who have not already failed, filed for bankruptcy protection, or sold to larger companies willing to continue to gamble on this risk have scaled back their operations by totally restricting their loan programs. The stock holders in some of these companies have already lost 98% of their value in the last few weeks.
 
The homeowners lost first, then the lenders and their stockholders, and now the brokers who sold these loans will be disappearing (and some might add “as well they should”). Although the lenders invested the money that funded these loans, much of the responsibility for the loan defaults lays with the loan originators that encouraged homebuyers to opt for adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) at a time when rates were so low that everyone should have been thankful and excited to lock in a permanent rate for the life of the loan. Instead, the loan originators pushed ARMs with only slightly lower temporary rates – 7% to 8% -  rather than permanent financing at 8% to 9% on these high-risk loans, telling their borrowers they could easily refinance in a year or two after their “credit improved” and get a lower rate on their new loan. These loan originators often compounded the problem and increased the risk of default by not establishing an escrow account to prepare the homeowner for the upcoming property tax bill and insurance renewal premium. When these expenses came due the homeowners were oft times ill prepared for the cash requirement and began accumulating delinquent tax liability. As the interest rate jumped 3 percentage points at the first adjustment and another one or two points in the next year, these homeowners are struggling to maintain solvency with payments on 11 to 13% mortgages and increasing property taxes and insurance premiums.
 
There is a solution for many borrowers in one of these disastrous loans if they act before their credit deteriorates. If the homeowner has managed to maintain good credit for the last year or two, it’s likely they can refinance into an FHA loan, which does not require that the borrower’s credit score has risen significantly since they made their home purchase. That program has the benefit of allowing approximately 97% loan to current appraised value and does not depend upon credit score. Of course, many lenders and most brokers do not offer this program, as FHA has strict requirements regarding who may originate this government insured mortgage, a primary reason many homeowners have these subprime ARMs- they obtained financing from a mortgage brokerage that lacked the ability to arrange an FHA loan, so the borrowers accepted the only program they were offered.

by Richard Legare

Using your home as collateral for a loan to payoff credit card or other personal debt is risky – but not for you as the borrower. The major risk lies with the lender who makes you a home equity loan. Our Texas constitution makes it very difficult for homeowners to lose their home to creditors. In fact, the risk lies with the bank or other mortgage lender, because if that lender fails to offer you adequate protection of your rights under Texas law, you, as the borrower, are not obligated to repay the loan. 

Before we go into further detail of debt consolidation loans, let me explain briefly that there are different types of home loans; not simply by lenders’ program definitions, but as a matter of Texas law. State law allows a homeowner to borrow as much money against his homestead   as a  lender   will  allow, IF the loan proceeds are used to repay a debt against the home. For example, if your home is worth $100,000, a balance of $77,000 may remain on your purchase money mortgage, but you could still borrow an additional $20,000 to build a swimming pool or garage. The $20,000 loan is called a “Home improvement loan”, and differs from a “Home equity loan”, which is the type of mortgage used to pay for something not related to the home itself. Home equity loans fall under a different Texas law. 

An example of some aspects of  Article XVI of the Texas Constitution that protect us as consumers: the loan amount, when added to all other loans against the home, cannot exceed 80% of the current market value of the property. This prohibits homeowners from borrowing  more than their home could reasonably sell for, which gives the borrower ample opportunity to come out ahead if he has to sell his home—unlike some states that allow homeowners to borrow 120% of the market value to pay unrelated debt like credit cards or vacation loans.    In   those  cases,  it is much more likely that the homeowner gets over his head in debt against his home, and the risk of losing the home may become extremely high.  

Another one of our rights as a borrower in home equity loans prevents the lender from foreclosing on the home without a court order, and yet another prohibits the lender from charging any penalty for paying off the loan before it is due.  Next posting we will look further into whether or not a home equity loan is a good business move for restructuring personal debt.

by Richard Legare 

Carlton Woods Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course
Kingscote
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Termeer & Associates	38 Kingscote Way	0.23	Interior	4/4.1/3		3,562	$875,000	Paint
Electra
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
McVaugh Custom Homes	26 Eloquence Way	1.27	Golf View	5/6.3/4	Yes	9,590	$3,650,000	Paint
King Residential Group	31 Eloquence Way	1.18	Golf View	5/6.2/4	Yes	8,280	$3,385,000	Paint
Maymont
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Jeff Paul Custom Homes	10 Winslow Way	0.56	Golf View	5/5.2/3	Yes	6,333	$2,160,000	Paint
Provence
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Leigh Custom Homes	10 Bunnelle Way	0.37	Cul-de-sac	5/5.1/3		5,497	$1,189,000	Clearing
Leigh Custom Homes	22 Hunnewell Court	0.32	Cul-de-sac	5/5.1/3		5,562	$1,189,000	Not Started
Termeer & Associates	23 Hunnewell Way	0.32	Interior	4/4.2/3		5,130	$1,250,000	Paint
Termeer & Associates	43 Hunnewell Way	0.31	Interior	5/5.2/3	Yes	5,500	$1,350,000	Paint
Cartouche
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Jeff Paul Custom Villas-G	14 Charmaine Way	0.20	Interior	3/3.1/2		3,548	$835,000	Framing
Jeff Paul Custom Villas – G	10 Frontenac Way	0.19	Interior	3/3.1/2		3,549	$841,000	Ready
Jeff Paul Custom Villas – A	27 Frontenac Way	0.19	Cul-de-sac	3/3.1/2.5		3,686	$795,000	Ready
Jeff Paul Custom Villas – D	30 Frontenac Way	0.38	Cul-de-sac	3/3.1/2		3,404	$855,000	Ready
Jeff Paul Custom Villas – C	31 Frontenac Way	0.32	Cul-de-sac	3/3.1/3		3,985	$899,000	Ready
Glensheen
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Termeer & Associates	6 Glensheen Way	0.67	Interior	5/5.3/4	Yes	7,332	$2,250,000	Ready
Termeer & Associates	10 Glensheen Way	0.8	Interior	5/5.3/3	Yes	7,971	$2,398,000	Roof
Sterling Classic Homes	14 Glensheen Way	0.81	Interior	5/5.1/4		6,985	$1,899,000	Paint
Termeer & Associates	43 Hildene Way	0.94	Cul-de-sac	6/5.1/3	Yes	6,402	$1,998,000	Framing
Gallery Grove
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Olympia Builders	26 Legato Way	1.00	Interior	5/5.3/3	Yes	6,754	$2,195,000	Paint
Pemberly
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Rohe & Wright Builders	34 Hepplewhite Way	1.10	Golf View	6/6.3/3	Yes	9,346	$3,299,000	Paint
Philbrook
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Rohe & Wright Builders	11 Philbrook Way	0.87	Interior	5/5.1/4		6,507	$1,749,000	Roof
Palmiera
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Rohe & Wright Builders	58 S. Palmiera Circle	0.39	Interior	4/3.2/3	Yes	4,978	$1,299,000	Not Started
Rohe & Wright Builders	62 S. Palmiera Circle	0.39	Interior	4/4.1/3		4,830	$1,375,000	Not Started
Rohe & Wright Builders	70 2. Palmiera Circle	0.40	Interior	4/4.1/3	Yes	5,279	$1,395,000	Ready
Fairhope
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Croix Custom Homes	59 N. Lamerie Way	0.69	Interior	5/5.2/3		5,788	$1,300,000	Not Started
CARLTON WOODS CREEKSIDE – FAZIO CHAMPIONSHIP GOLF COURSE
Section 3- Standard Estates
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Croix Custom Homes	95 S. Fazio Way	0.94	Golf View	5/5.2/4	Yes	7,025	$2,795,000	Roof
Section 5 – Standard Estates
Builder	Address	Lot Size	Lot Feature	Rooms	Pool	Sq Ft	Price	Stage
Termeer & Associates	27 N. Fazio Way	0.85	Golf View	5/5.3/3	Yes	6,973	$2,700,000	Framing
Termeer & Associates	35 N. Fazio Way	0.98	Golf View	5/5.3/4	Yes	7,393	$2,800,000	Clearing
Savoy Custom Homes	30 N. Fazio Way	0.91	Lake View	5/6.2/4	Yes	9,553	$2,750,000	Roof
Ultra Classic Custom Homes	6 Wollaston Court	0.44	Lake View	4/4.1/3		5,405	$1,450,000	Paint
Goshy Homes	11 Maroon Creek Ct.	0.43	Lake View	5/5.1/3		5,447	$1,395,000	Roof
Ultra Classic Custom Homes	11 Bay Cliff Court	0.59	Cul-de-sac	5/5.2/3		5,472	$1,375,000	Roof

I’ve been looking at this blog and realized that trying to serve two completely different animals in the same space is not going to work.

There is a huge difference between everyday people trying to buy a home or sell a home or relocating into the area and investors looking for the next big deal. 

So, what’s the solution? 

Have two… one for home buyers & sellers, & one for investors. 

The first blog will be named:  www.abouthomesinthewoodlands.com. In this blog we will discuss home buying, home selling, relocation topics, home insurance, yard maintenance, home maintenance, insect/bug issues, new homes and so on. The main theme will be around issues occurring locally in The Woodlands and related to existing or new homes.We will also be featuring a few guests that are specialists in their specific field.  The “investor” related postings have been moved from the other blog to this blog.

The second blog will be named: www.thewoodlandsinvestor.com. In this blog we will discuss investment topics near & dear to investors. Where the deals are, what types of deals are available, how do you handle a flip? And so on… We will also be featuring some specialists on this site, for instance, a home remodeler, a flipper, a wholesaler…
 

by Lance Langenhoven

The cold had us!!…. everything is down…

The number of sales in January 2007 numbered 102 closed deals. That’s 7% less than what was achieved in January 2006. 

The total volume of sales was also down from to $35,872,071 to $31, 852, 417, an 11% drop. 

The average sale price… guess what, it’s down… from $335,253 to $312,278. 

Interestingly, the average size of home is also down year on year from 3091 to 2741 square foot. In fact, it’s the smallest average for more than a year. Are we finally coming to our combined senses? Are we realizing that the smaller home is more cost effective? Who knows… we’ll see what the coming year brings.

The largest sale was for $2,350,000 for 18 S. Gary Glen in Sterling Ridge a home of 8168 square foot on 1.25 acres of land. This was the one figure that beat last January’s $1,267,000 sale on Ambassador Bend, also in Sterling Ridge.

I have a feeling that February is also going to be down on last year’s results as deals closing in February were typically initiated in January and last month was so dreary I’d be very surprised if we manage to close out February ahead of last year’s results. 

But… this month seems to have started off quite busy, I think March will be a good month for closings.
by Lance Langenhoven

Finding a site where it’s easy to find what you’re looking for is not always that easy…

One useful site (getting more useful every month!) is www.thewoodlands-houses.com. If you’re looking for a home in The Woodlands, this is a very good place to start. 

Not only do you get the generic “MLS Search” feature that most decent sites nowadays have… you also get specialized “village” searches… 

For example, you’ve heard from friends how lovely “Cochran’s Crossing” is and you want to find a home in that village, so… click on the “Cochran’s Crossing” link and up pops a window containing all the homes for sale in that Woodlands village. (The searches also contain the homes available for lease).

You can search homes in the following villages:
Cochran’s Crossing, Alden Bridge, Sterling Ridge, Panther Creek & Grogan’s Mill

For the more “exclusive” homes there’s a link for the “East Shore” community. 

The Carlton Woods link takes you to a site specializing in “all things Carlton Woods”! This site also includes the new Carlton Woods Creekside community. 

But… not only can you find all the “nice” homes… now you can also find the “foreclosures” in The Woodlands! Some of them are actually quite nice and you might find a bargain amongst the selection available… now, simply click on the little home with the $ sign in it (foreclosures) and you’ll get an instant listing of all the foreclosures in the 77380, 77381, 77382, 77384, 77385 & 77386 zip codes.

And schooling?…. yup, got it covered… actually, this was covered in an earlier blog so I won’t go on about it here but suffice it to say that you can find the school for a particular zip code & can check all the stats you want on it and then search for homes in that zip code… couldn’t be easier!!

But what about my golf? Okay, now, don’t panic… we have you covered here too… simply click on the “golf course finder” link and up pops a list of golf courses along with a map. I love the map. If you click on it you get a larger map, hold the mouse over the dots & it shows you the golf course name. When you find the one you like, click it and it shows you all the homes within that zip code..!!! Awesome!

Once you’ve found the home/s you’re interested in, give us a call and we’ll take you to see it. We can also help you see whether the asking price is reasonable or not. 

Good luck with your home hunting!

by Lance Langenhoven

You’re an investor, right?… and you’ve found a great deal. You’re buying it for 70% of the ARV (After Repair Value) and you’re keeping the rehab expenses to 10% of the ARV. This is going to leave you with 20% equity in the property so that you can make some cash in a flip or, if you don’t do that, at least you should cash-flow on a lease.

But… you work all day in downtown Houston and the rehab project you’re tackling needs some plumbing, some electrical, some sheetrock, paint, carpet & tiling work. And trying to complete this after a hard day at work or over the week-ends will leave you pretty stressed out after about two weeks of doing that!

You don’t know what else to do though as most of the quotes you get are way out there and the quotes that look realistic are supplied by people that you’re not sure you can trust. And that is a valid worry… there are many crooks out there waiting to take advantage of you (I know, I’ve been there!).

So… what to do? You don’t want to miss this good deal.

I have a solution for you. Think about calling Shannon Dies with “Fast Track Remodeling”. I found him on Craigslist and I had  a job for him that entailed:

- plumbing, sheetrock work, installing fluorescent lighting, tiling, carpeting & painting. He had to remove 2 wash bowls, tear out two big tile floors, remove a wall, fill in a door, put carpet in 4 offices, install flourescent lighting, repair numerous holes in walls, repaint a number of rooms, etc.

The top 5 reasons why I would hire Shannon again:

1. He actually answered his phone when I called. When he didn’t answer I left a voicemail and he called me back the same day!! Yup…. that’s quite rare with contractors. If you call him at 07:30 in the morning, he’s very likely to answer in person. That’s when he’s still in his office setting up the day.

2. He gave me a detailed, itemised written quote so that I knew exactly how much I was paying on each component of the job. I could easily have cut & sliced parts of the job to suit my pocket.

3. There were no “price surprises” – he did everything as outlined and I paid him what we agreed upon.

4. The complete job was completed within about 5 days. Actually, it would probably have been done in 3 but I added a paint component the day they started the job. There were some minor “punch” items remaining which Shannon completed a  few days later.

5. The part I like most though, was that Shannon’s quote for the job was so reasonable. I was very impressed by how competitive it was.

Shannon is an investor himself and has done numerous rehab projects for ”flippers” and other investors buying damaged properties. He knows his stuff. I don’t mind recommending him to you.  

Give Shannon a call ( 713-992 6997) and mention that Lance Langenhoven referred you to him.  

Here’s his website: www.fasttrackremodeling.net

Good luck with your investing!  

by Lance Langenhoven

 

Whenever you’re hunting for a new home the question comes up… well, what about the schools? Now you no longer have to wonder where to get the info…. 

Go straight to www.thewoodlands-houses.com. The Oscar Group has incorporated HAR’s super school finder into this useful Woodlands property website. 

It’s a great tool…. you can look for the schools in a particular zip code, then click on the name of the school to get numerous statistics and other information on the school. Then, this is the beautiful part, right next to all the stats, to the right of them, there is a panel in which you can search for homes that fall into that school’s catchment area. 

It’s not a perfect catchment area match (& they do have a disclaimer to that effect), but it’s probably fairly close. For final confirmation on whether a particular home falls within a particular school’s catchment area, it’s worth asking your realtor though… or just call the school!

by Lance Langenhoven