Bradley Pounds

Downtown Austin 2-Bedroom Condos for $210K!

2011-05-20T17:57:00Z

The 41 Waller loft condos offers downtown Austin location for a killer price! Two Bedroom units start at $210,000 and include stainless appliances, mosaic tile backsplash, stained concrete floors, all stainless Bosch appliances, washer/dryer included, beautifully tiled bathroom.

Check out photos and more info here:

http://bradleypounds.austintexasresidence.com/results.aspx?p=1&hood=1083118%2C1083096%2C1083104

Massive Price Reduction in The Colony! Luxury Home on Giant 1.5+ Acre Lot, $279999

2011-05-15T15:20:00Z

Massive Price Reduction on this home for sale inn The Colony, Bastrop TX!

140 Carriage Ct, Bastrop TX

2279 sq ft per appraisal district

$279999

http://www.bradleypounds.com/Bastrop/Texas/Homes/The_Colony/Agent/Listing_11051133.html

Four Bedroom House Under $170K --- in Scofield Farms?

2010-11-05T21:36:00Z

This four bedrooms house is the least expensive four bedroom home for sale in Scofield! Recent paint, carpet and flooring make this home shine like new! I've gotten lots of calls on this one and can't keep enough flyers in the box!

Check out some photos in below and call me at 512-736-3353 if you like to see this fabulous home for sale in Scofield Farms!

2010 Property Tax Rates for Austin area --- Download the PDF here

2010-10-20T16:16:00Z

Thanks to Paula Moore of Trinity Title for this:

Just released 2010 Property Tax Rates for Travis, Williamson, Bastrop and Hays Counties

The PDF download is below.

And remember: I'm a hard-working Realtor and I want your business! I've got a long list of super-satisfied clients and I'm never too busy to answer your real estate questions.

Contact me today:

http://www.bradleypounds.com/Contact_Me/page_163209.html

Austin homebuyer traffic is up - at least it seems that way

2010-10-20T01:21:00Z

So we don't have any official numbers on the subject but I can tell you that from my own experience, Austin-area homebuyer activity is up. That's based on my personal listings and those of the other agents that I speak to regularly. September was an absolute black hole of inactivity but that's to be expected, somewhat. (Remember that the traditional sales season ends by the second week of August. Most parents want their children settled in at a new home by the time schools starts.)

I'm really encouraged and I think that we may be starting to come around from our "tax credit hangover."

Are you interested in talking to me about the market in your favorite neighborhoods? I'm never too busy for your questions!

Here's the link to contact me:

http://www.bradleypounds.com/Contact_Me/page_163209.html

Buying Investment Property in Austin: A Primer

2010-10-19T22:38:00Z

I recently wrote some advice for person who is in the initial stages of considering a purchase of some rental property in Austin.

I realized what I wrote was a very abridged version of an update of current lending and purchasing conditions for investment property in the Austin area.

Here we go:

I have lots of practical information for you and a few suggestions. Purchasing investment property is a different mindset because it’s about the return on investment, versus all the emotional considerations involved when it comes to buying your primary residence. Because the risk is higher with investment property, I think it’s important to approach each investment property with a “guilty until proven innocent” assumption. “What are all the ways that things could go wrong at this property?” is the question we need to ask ourselves every time we look at a new listing.

So now that we’re in skeptical-negative mode, let’s talk about the tough parts of buying and owning investment property:

1) Money down: Investment property generally requires 20% down thanks to the mortgage crisis. Lots of people purchased investment property and when things got tough, they let those investments foreclose while saving their own primary residences from the same fate, so the investment foreclosure rate is higher than homesteads. Consequently, the mortgage insurance companies stopped writing policies on investment property. (Remember that for most mortgages, you have to have private mortgage insurance until you have 20% equity in the property.) So that means that the lenders won’t lend without the 20% down. (Note: there are always exceptions. I know of some 10% and 15%-down financing, but because of lack of mortgage insurers at that level, they really stick it to you on the rate. They’re called “self-insuring.”)

2) Property taxes: If you own your primary residence there in Houston, you should have what’s called a Homestead Exemption on your property taxes. It serves two functions: it gives you a rather minor baseline discount on your property tax amount every year, but it’s real value is in the cap it places on annual increases in home valuations. So when the market normalizes and your neighborhood becomes a highly desired area, your tax appraisal amount can only increase by 10% per year. With investment property, there’s no such cap. So if you buy a condo in central Austin and the valuation goes up 20% in a year, you could see a substantial increase in payment.

3) Landlord headaches: Things happen when you’re a landlord. Tenants lose jobs and stop paying rent, appliances break, roofs leaks, etc. There will also be some time between one tenant moving out and another moving into a unit where you are not receiving rental on the property.

4) Condo associations: These guys charge a monthly fee, usually between $150 and $300, depending on whether there is pool. There’s value in it: they take care of common area maintenance, landscaping, exterior insurance and maintenance, and they sometimes cover the more minor utility bills, like gas/water/trash. Each one is different. But in a condo association, at some point, you will likely receive a “special assessment” notice. If the building needs to have its siding replaced, and let’s say that in keeping the monthly dues low, the condo association did not build up a cash reserve to handle major repairs. So now there’s $50,000 in work that needs to be done, and there are 25 equally sized units. You will get a bill for $2000 and if you don’t pay it, they will foreclose on you. (If you’ve ever had anyone tell you emphatically that you should never buy a condo, this is usually the scenario to which they are referring.)

We can’t circumvent these issues but we can mitigate the risks. I can help you prepare a tax valuation appeal, where we basically use information from different sources to prove to the county that their appraised value of our property is too high. My success rate on that is very high so far. We can contract with a property management company for a very reasonable fee if you don’t want to handle tenant issues directly; they will handle repair requests and rent collection problems, evictions, etc. When it comes to condo associations, it’s all about choosing the right complex. If an investment looks appealing, then we start talking to the management company and requesting documentation about their history of assessments and the health of their financials.

Now it’s time to think about what your real goals are here: Are we looking for a property that has a positive cash flow every month, or something that may have little or no cash flow every month but the opportunity for fast and great appreciation in value? The latter would be the way to go if you are looking for an investment to cash out of and walk away with a large sum after 10 years or so of ownership. We may be able to strike a nice balance of both.

You mentioned a condo or a house. I would propose a third option. A duplex, if the location is good and it’s in good shape, can often cash flow much more than a house or a condo. The rents from each side often bear about 70-80% of what a single-family home in the same neighborhood would lease for, and of course you multiply that by the two units. There are lots of them available with existing tenants in them, so the property is generating rental income from the day you close the deal. They most often will only have one side vacant at any given time. They tend to have more long-term tenants than condos do. There are also occasional short sale opportunities (that’s a pre-foreclosure situation where the property is sold for less than the loan amount, rather than let it go to foreclosure.)

So now that we’re in skeptical-negative mode, let’s talk about the other tough parts of buying and owning investment property:

I'm a Realtor in Austin, TX and I want your business! Call me at 512-736-3353!

Want to check out homes for sale in 78704?

2010-10-18T22:18:00Z

My new super-easy map-based search makes your search for South Austin homes for sale in 78704 a breeze!

Check out this map of homes for sale in South Austin, 78704.

I want to be your Realtor!

Here's the link to contact me:

http://www.bradleypounds.com/Contact_Me/page_163209.html

Austin area receives $3.7 Million in grant funds for sustainable housing

2010-10-14T22:08:00Z

The U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development has issued a grant to Travis and surrounding counties to go toward building sustainable communities.

Duplex sales for Austin area

2010-09-21T14:46:00Z

And let's not leave out the duplexes. How are sales since investment property loans now generally require 20% down payment? Once again, Austin Title has done the analysis for us. Below is a link to the PDF file of the duplex stats, enjoy!

Call me if you'd like info on specific sales and neighborhoods. 512-736-3353. Bradley@BradleyPounds.com

August statistics are in!

2010-09-21T14:32:00Z

August statistics are in for Austin-area home sales. The news isn't of a full recovery but rather that we are closing the gap we currently have with last year's numbers. Austin Title always does such a good job with pulling these sales statistics into an easy-to-understand format. Thanks to Becky Hopkins with Austin Title for passing these along!

Download PDF copy of the report:

The Mother of All Tax Credits: MCC (Mortgage Credit Certificate Program)

2010-09-09T20:22:00Z

Well this program from the Texas State Affordable Housing Corp blows last year's $8000 tax credit out of the water...

Here are the basics - - - you get to reclaim, dollar for dollar, 35% of the interest you pay on your home loan ... with a maximum of $2000 a year. You have to meet some income requirements (see below) and you have to stay in the home for nine years or meet a set of circumstances that would otherwise cause you to move.

The income restrictions are:

$73,400 for 1-2 people

$83,300 for a family of 3+

The max sales price for the MCC is $258,690

I want to be your Realtor!

Here's the link to contact me:

http://www.bradleypounds.com/Contact_Me/page_163209.html

New networking group in Southwest Austin - Southwest Austin Business Referral Swap

2010-09-08T19:20:00Z

Hi everyone! For those of us who own our own businesses and who live in South or Southwest Austin, I've started a new professional networking group focusing on business referrals! I often get request from my clients for the names of people like mortgage lenders, handymen, pest control professionals --- you name it. The plan is to meet Thursday mornings at 8 a.m. for a coffee meeting. Location TBD! First meeting will be on October 7th. See more about the group here on the website,

http://www.meetup.com/Southwest-Austin-Business-Referral-Exchange/

I want to be your Realtor!

Here's the link to contact me:

http://www.bradleypounds.com/Contact_Me/page_163209.html

Austin TX Foreclosures for Sale --- check out some of the best here!

2010-09-07T20:21:00Z

Wow, wow, wow! After a long weekend, I was ready to get back to work. Folks get a little off track by a holiday (not to mention a tropical storm rolling into town last night,) so it'll take a few days for the phones to start ringing again. That's the perfect time for me to check out some property on my own!

Today I've been checking out the foreclosures and man, it's still good out there for anyone who's ready to take advantage of the foreclosure listings in Austin while the Austin mortgage rates are still super-low.

I can't advertise addresses and MLS numbers in a blog post like this without express permission, so let me go over some of the highlights when it comes to Austin foreclosures for sale. I've intentionally omitted any home with that is in obviously poor condition.

University Hills foreclosure, 3-bedroom --- under $170,000

Anderson Mill foreclosure, 4-bedroom --- under $150,000

Pioneer Crossing foreclosure, 4 bedroom --- under $150,000

Lamplight Village foreclosure, 3-bedroom --- under $136,000

Edinburgh Gardens foreclosure, 4-bedroom, under $122,000

Do you have questions about the foreclosure-buying process in Austin? Let me help!

Bradley@BradleyPounds.com

736-3353

New Scofield Farms listing to come on market in a month --- over 1700 sq ft for under $170K!

2010-09-07T18:35:00Z

I'm so excited - - this is a great house and it's going to move quickly at this price. It's too early to post much information to the web since it won't be in the MLS system for 30 days, but if you are interested in some preliminary details, you can email me at Bradley@BradleyPounds.com or give me a shout at 736-3353.

Why this year's low interest rates are better than last year's $8000 tax credit

2010-09-01T00:26:00Z

Last year and into this spring, a major incentive for homebuyers was the $8000 tax credit. Since the tax credits have expired, Austin home sales have dipped sharply. But here's the kick: last year the typical buyer may have gotten something around a 5.5% rate on their mortgage. Fast forward to September 2010, and you're more likely looking at a rate like 4.25%. For those of us whose brains come without built-in mortgage calculators, what does that translate to on the monthly payment?

Well, let's take a $150,000 mortgage as an example, based on a fixed 30-year note. The monthly principal and interest on last year's loan (5.5%) would be $851.68. The principal and interest portion at today's rate of 4.25% would be $737.91.

Now, let's compare that against the $8000 tax credit!

The savings at today's rate amounts to $113.77/month, $1365.24/year, or $40957.20 over the course of the 30-year note!

Now which looks more appealing?

Call me today to talk about your homebuying future!

Bradley Pounds / 512-736-3353 / bradley@bradleypounds.com