Steve Ladd's thoughts on Atlanta Real Estate & More!

Real World. Real Estate.

British Investors Still Choose Florida First

July 5th, 2007 11:41 AM

British investors still choose Florida first

LONDON – July 3, 2007 – Although British investors in American property are exploring a broader range of locations, Florida remains the favorite, says Adrian McDermott, managing director of Escapes2, a property investment company.

McDermott says California and Las Vegas have attracted interest in the last few years, but “the vast majority of people are looking in the Orlando, Fla., area because that is where you can get rental return.” Ultimately, he says, Florida is hard to beat as a vacation destination.

“I’d say 50 percent of buyers are people looking primarily for a holiday home and getting something that can contribute toward the running costs, and the other 50 percent of our buyers are investors.”

Source: Overseas News (06/26/07)

Posted by Steven Ladd on July 5th, 2007 11:41 AMPost a Comment (0)

Preapproved or Prequalified: What's the Difference?

July 20th, 2007 12:03 PM

Confusing prequalification with preapproval can mean disappointment for both a home seller and a buyer. Real estate experts say it's smart to urge buyers to become preapproved by their lender – not just prequalified.

For buyers to obtain a bona fide preapproval, they must submit a loan application with the necessary documentation and fee. After the lender verifies and analyzes the application, it will notify the applicant of how much money he can afford to borrow. Armed with that information, the buyer can confidently go home shopping.

Prequalifications are simply an estimate of what a buyer can afford. A buyer who assumes that this estimate is accurate and chooses a home based on the information may, in fact, be denied a loan when he actually applies. That results in a situation that wastes his time and can put a seller in an a bad position if they've already turned away a qualified buyer. And, of course, it wastes the real estate practitioner's time as well.

Source: Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Magazine (08/01/07)

Posted by Steven Ladd on July 20th, 2007 12:03 PMPost a Comment (0)

RSPS

July 13th, 2007 8:39 PM

Steven Ladd completes first step in acquiring Resort and Second-home Property Specialist certification

I am pleased to report, that I have completed the 1st step toward earning my Resort and Second-home Property Specialist (RSPS) certification.

The RSPS certification is a National Association of Realtors taught education course. It is designed to appeal to REALTORS in resort and second-home markets around the world who wish to distinguish themselves amongst their peers and amongst consumers.

Once the course work has been completed I will be able to take my business to the next level. As a seller of a resort property in the Orlando area, this will be a great benefit in assisting me produce more buyers for my listings.

Posted by Steven Ladd on July 13th, 2007 8:39 PMPost a Comment (0)