Bullhead City Living

I came across this article in another website and was given permission my Mick to reprint it in my Blog.  I hope you find it useful.

Cliff

 Article Written by:  Mick Bernard a Certified Credit Restoration Expert and President of Credit Strategies, a credit consulting firm based in Scottsdale, Arizona.  Credit Strategies works with Mortgage Companies, Realtors and Bankers to help their borrowers with less than perfect credit increase their credit scores so they can qualify for the best possible financing.  5 Ingredients of an Ideal Credit Score 

A lot of consumers have the mindset that making payments on time automatically equates to a good credit score.  This couldn’t be further from the truth.  Paying your bills on time is an important ingredient of your credit score; however, there is a lot more to having a high score.  Making your payments on time only makes up about 1/3 of the points in your credit score.  The other 2/3 of your credit score has nothing to do with making your payments on time.

Making your Payments on Time is the most important ingredient of having a good credit score.  Likewise, if you have a history of late payments, collections or charge offs you will not do well in this category.  The more negative items you have on your report, the more your score will suffer.  The more recent your delinquencies, the more they will impact your score.  Time will heal in this category.

The Amount of Debt you carry is by far the second most important ingredient. Your mortgages and auto loans (installment debt) are included in this part of your score, but it’s the credit card debt you carry that is really the most important part of this ingredient.  This includes anything from MasterCard, Visa, American Express, and any other revolving account you have like gas cards and even department store charge cards. The balances you carry on your cards versus your available credit calculates your “revolving utilization percentage.”  The higher your utilization percentage is, the more of a negative impact on your credit scores.  You can calculate your “utilization percentage” by adding up all of your charge card balances and dividing them by the total credit card limits you have available, then multiply that number by 100. 

  www.onlinecreditstrategies.com    

The Age of your credit history is a secondary ingredient.  Don’t confuse this with your age.  The longer your accounts have been open, the more points you’ll earn for your score.  Never try to remove old, good accounts from your credit report because that will shorten the history of your credit file.  As your accounts get older, you will gradually (automatically) earn more points.

Credit Mix is another secondary ingredient.  What types of accounts do you have?  You will do well in this category if you have a diverse list of accounts on your credit report.  The ideal mix is 3-5 revolving accounts, a mortgage account and an auto loan. You can have a really high credit score if you don’t have this exact mixture because this is a secondary category.  DO NOT START CLOSING ACCOUNTS IF YOU HAVE MORE THAN 5 REVOLVOING ACCOUNTS.  Remember the category we discussed in the previous paragraph?  Closing established accounts with a good, lengthy history can potential have a much more devastating impact on your score than having the proper mix of credit.  Best advice here:  if you have less than 3 revolving accounts, open a new account. If you have more than 5, only close an account if it has been opened for a short period of time.

New Credit Inquiries is the last ingredient and it also is a secondary ingredient.  When you apply for credit you are giving the lender permission to check your credit history and credit scores.  Each time this happens your credit report will reflect an “inquiry.”  To maximize your score in this category, only apply for credit when you really need it.

Now you have the recipe for an ideal credit score.

Want more information about how to maximize your credit score?  Call Mick today 480-502-5554 for a complimentary credit evaluation.

  www.onlinecreditstrategies.com

Article Written by: Mick Bernard a Certified Credit Restoration Expert and President of Credit Strategies, a credit consulting firm based in Scottsdale, Arizona. Credit Strategies works with Mortgage Companies, Realtors and Bankers to help their borrowers with less than perfect credit increase their credit scores so they can qualify for the best possible financing.

Short Sale vs. Foreclosure

This debate is racing across our nation. It is one of the questions I am asked the most, “Should I let my house go into foreclosure or should I do a short sale?” Everyone seems to understand a foreclosure will not only demolish their credit score , but it will also ruin their chance of getting a decent interest rate on any new financing they want to get in the next few years. A foreclosure is considered a major incident by the credit bureaus. Any major incident can have a devastating impact on your credit score. Other examples of major derogatory credit incidents are bankruptcies, charge offs, judgments and short sales, which are normally accompanied by the term “account settled.” Anytime your credit report has the term, “Settled or Settled for Less than Full Amount,” it is considered a major derogatory incident and can have a major negative impact to your scores. How much it will reduce your score is determined by many reasons some of which we can discuss and some that are kept a secret by Fair Isaac, the inventors of the FICO credit scoring system. We do know the higher your credit score, the more damaging a major derogatory incident will be. In other words, a major incident affects the people that have the furthest to fall.

Foreclosure

Most people know what this is. A foreclosure is when the bank takes back a home because the homeowner doesn’t make the payments on their home loan or mortgage. In most cases a home doesn’t go into foreclosure until a homeowner is several months behind on the mortgage. A foreclosure can have a double negative impact on a consumer’s credit score. In addition to a foreclosure listing being a major derogatory incident, there are also normally a significant number of late payments reported by the lender to the credit bureaus.  These late payments vary in severity from “30–days” late to the much more damaging “90-days” late incident.   In many cases there are additional late payments more severe than 90 days being reported, such as the 120 and 150-day late payments.   The number of the late payments and the severity of those payments will all contribute to the damage done to your credit scores.

Short Sale

Short sales are more of a mystery to consumers because there is some confusion regarding the impact they have on their credit scores. Fair Isaac has confirmed that they consider a short sale to be a major derogatory item because of it being listed as a “settled account.” Major derogatory incidents can have a severe negative impact on your credit scores. Most of the cases I’ve been involved with, the main difference between a foreclosure and a short sale is communication. During the foreclosure process the homeowner tends to be more invisible during the process. During a short -sale transaction there is constant communication between the bank and the homeowner. During that time the homeowner or the homeowner’s representative has the opportunity to negotiate with the lender. In addition to negotiating a reduced loan pay-off they could also be negotiating what the lender will report to the three credit bureaus when the transaction is closed.   If the lender reports, “Settled or Settled for Less than Full Loan Amount,” the short sale will be considered a major derogatory incident. If the lender doesn’t report the short sale as “Settled or Settled for Less than Full Loan Amount,” then this will not be considered a major derogatory incident and will not have the negative impact.  The homeowner may also choose to remain current on their home loan during the short sale process. If they remain current then they will not have the added negative impact of the late payments affecting their score.

Affects on Credit Score

The effect a foreclosure or a short sale has on your credit score is impossible to predict because of the variety of other variables impacting the scores. If you find yourself in the unfortunate situation of not being able to make your mortgage payment, do your research. Call your lender to see what options they have available before making any decisions. Call a professional; there are many different professionals that specialize in these types of transactions. The decision you make could have the largest impact on your credit score than any decision you have ever made.

Need more information? Mick can be reached by e-mail: mick@onlinecreditstrategies.com

Credit Strategies - 480-502-5554 - www.onlinecreditstrategies

The trend in the Bullhead City area real estate market remains one of lower prices fueled by foreclosures of single family homes.  The average sales price for the first 4 months of 2009 is 19% lower than the same period in 2008, with the average price of a home dropping from $185,000 to $150,000.  It seems the market has not hit bottom yet and the signs are prices will continue to fall if the expected influx of new foreclosures turns out to be correct.  For first time buyers, investors and those looking for a second home these figures could be good news.    The tax credit for first time buyers* makes this an especially attractive time to buy.  There are many bargains to be found and some think we will never see such an opportunity to buy real estate like this again.  That opportunity is apparent as the number of homes sold are up over 15% for the first 4 months of this year compared to the same period in 2008.  These are some signs that could put pressure on the decline of home prices.  With sales up and the number of new listings taken down 27%, there are now fewer homes to choose from.  In addition, we are seeing multiple offers, sometimes over list price, on well priced homes.

Land sales are showing no sign of improvement yet.  Price reductions have slowed a bit, but the number of sales are down over 42% from year ago rates.  A little good news is the average time on the market is going down and the number of new listing coming on the market has dropped considerably.

*To learn more about the first time tax credit please call or email us.  (28)754-4269 or cliffc@kw.com

The first full month of 2009 is over and the marketing trends revealed are interesting and there is one surprise.  While it is no surprise that prices are down, what is surprising for home sales is that there were as many sales for January 2008 and January 2009, with 80 sales in each monthly period.  It seemed to me that January was much busier than last year.  And it was for those of us still left in the business of real estate!  Our local board of Realtors saw a drop in the number of agents of around 35% this January.  The remaining 65% did the same number of sales as last year!!!  Overall, home prices were still down 21.5% from this period in 2008, with foreclosures and short sales continuing to put pressure on home prices.

Land and lot sales continue to be very depressed.  The number of listings sold this January were down over 35% from year ago numbers and the average price was down over 23%.  This resulted in a drop in the volume (total dollars sold) of just under 51%.  Not good news to property owners or Realtors.

Commercial and multi family sales are so irregular here that making sense of the numbers is difficult, though suffice it to say both are suffering in this market as well.

Colorado River Bluegrass Festival

BULLHEAD AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND CITY PARK

February 13th, 14th & 15th, 2009 Presented by the Aquarius Resort and The Bullhead Area Chamber of Commerce.

ADMISSION: ADULTS $15, 7-17 $5, 6 & UNDER FREE! Sunday Morning Service and Gospel Hour. Free shuttle to the Aquarius Casino and Resort. For more Information Call: (928) 768-5819 OR (928) 201-5819 or Email at: banjo@citlink.net Or you can visit the Colorado River Bluegrass Festival website.

Now only $699,000!!!

Foreclosure! 2 site built homes on almost a 1/2 acre on The Colorado River!Both are 2 bdrm/2 bath.The Riverfront home with 1922 sq. ft. of living area has a open living area that opens to the riverfront patio, leading to the deck with built-in jacuzzi overlooking the dock and The Colorado River.This homes includes 3 sided fireplace, granite counters in kitchen, tile flooring & vaulted ceilings.The Second home has a fenced front yard, attached 3 car garage, Santa Fe style decor with built in shelving & window coverings with 994 sq.ft. of living area. There is a well house on the property and a RV garage 42 x 23,with hook-ups.  Don’t wait, this home will sell if a few days.  Call Cliff @ (928)754-4269 for more details and photos.  Posted 2-1-09

To see more Bullhead City area real estate information please visit:

www.bhccliff.com

www.buybullheadhomes.com

4615 S. Calle Amigo, Fort Mohave
3bedrooms/2baths/2 car garage
Built in 1991, 1,384 Sq Ft

 A little elbow grease could really make this diamond shine. Laminate wood flooring, fireplace, pot shelves, block wall around back, french doors, indoor utility room. Buyer to verify sq.ft., utilties and flood plain. Call Cliff for more informations or photos today!
(928)754-4269

For additional Bullhead City area real estate information please visit:

www.buybullheadhomes.com

www.bhccliff.com

Todays Special
 Pool Home!!!  2030 Primavera Plz, Fort Mohave.  Built in 2000 this pool home has almost 2,300 square feet of living space this 3 bedroom 2 bath home sits on a huge 25,700 square foot lot.  Home features a highly sought after split floor plan and has a big 3 car garage.  Room for RV parking on this big corner lot in a nice neighborhood.  This is a lot of home for the money and is listed at only $165,000 ($72 square foot).  Foreclosure!  Act fast, call Cliff today (928)754-4269.  Make an offer!!!  Posted 1-31-09 

Todays Special
 Hard to find 4 bedroom home. 5370 S Tierra Linda Dr, Fort Mohave.  Nice large lot, RV parking behind fenced yard. Kitchen has beautiful concrete counters, nice sized dining room with tile floors. Living room and family room for your family’s entertainment. This is a bank foreclosure and property is being sold in AS IS, WHERE IS condition. 1,949 Sq Ft on almost a quarter acre just reduced to $139,745.  These bargain homes are now getting multiple offer within days.  Don’t wait, call today for more info!!  Posted 1-29-2009 

Call Cliff (928)234-3930 or go to http://bhccliff.com

NICE HOME, NICE NEIGHBORHOOD, GREAT PRICE!  Great two story home located in Chapparral. Features 1925 square feet, master suite located downstairs with three bedrooms up. Open floorplan, vaulted ceilings, large kitchen. Great location with attached three car garage, RV access, low exterior maintenance. Carpet’s to be cleaned and range installed. Seller will pay 3% buyer’s closing costs with acceptable offer! 1,925 SQ FT Only $159,900.  1475 Sunset lane, BHC  New listing posted 1-27-09.  Call today for more information/photos.  Let’s make an offer!!  Call 928-754-4269.  Visit http://bhccliff.com for more hot deals!!!