iHandy Carpenter ($1.99 for iPhone)
This is the first no weight tool kit! It offers 5 tools just in 1 App: Plumb Bob, Surface Level, Bubble Level Bar, Steel Protractor and Steel Ruler. This is great for picture hanging and those on the spot jobs where you just can’t be bother to run out to the garage and hunt down that huge level you have somewhere.

Sherwin Williams Color Snap (Free for iPhone)
This is our personal favorite! You can take any object in your life (well almost any object) and this App will match the color of that object for you with a paint color.  Get inspired and use this to help you plan out your next big design job. You can also use this App to research paint colors you already know you want and to help you put together color schemes.

Dream Home ($.99 for iPhone)
Ever wonder what that piece of furniture or latest design trend would look like in your living room? Dream Home will help you visualize all of that. It’s specially designed for you to help integrate the latest interior design trends into your life and home. Take photos, move furniture around and look at colors for the different rooms in your home.

The Home Depot (Free for iPhone)
The Home Depot just got smarter with this App. Research and purchase all your home tools and needs online. You can browse and shop for appliances, bath, building materials, decor, doors and windows, electrical and so on! Now when you’re in the store you can also scan items to obtain product information and inventory status as well.

Half of refinance applications are abandoned or rejected, as are 30 percent of purchase mortgage applications, according to theMortgage Bankers Association. All told, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) says that well over 2 million mortgage applications were rejected last year.Want to avoid falling into that number? It's tough -- especially in light of the fact that mortgage lenders have become increasingly restrictive in terms of their lending guidelines since the housing market crash.

Here, as a cautionary tale and primer on what to expect, are the top six reasons mortgage lenders reject applications.

1. Income issues. Most failed applications falling into this category have income too low for the mortgage amount they are seeking; often, a spouse's credit issues can create this problem, too, as the income the spouse plans to actually chip in toward the mortgage cannot be considered by a lender.

But increasingly, the recent vagaries of the job market are also causing this issue, as people who have changed their line of work or have changed from salaried employee to freelancer over the last couple of years can also have their home loan applications rejected based on income.

2. Muddled money matters. If the mortgage for which you're applying plus your monthly payments on credit card, car and student loan debts will comprise more than 45 percent of your total income, you could have problems qualifying for a home loan. You might also run into problems if you rely too heavily on bonuses, overtime, cash wages or rental income -- all of these can be difficult or impossible to get a mortgage bank to consider, and if they do, they might not take all of it into account.

3. Credit issues. Today, the mortgage-qualifying FICO score cutoff falls somewhere between 620 and 660, depending on which lender and which loan type you seek. More than one-third of Americans, by some numbers, have credit scores too low to qualify for a home loan. Even if your credit score is high enough to qualify, if you have any late mortgage payments, a short sale, a foreclosure or a bankruptcy in the last two years, loan qualifying could be difficult to impossible.

4. Property didn't appraise. Since the whole industry had its hand (among other things) smacked for allowing home values to skyrocket in a very short time, appraisal guidelines have tightened up -- some would say, even more than overall mortgage guidelines. So, it is increasingly common to have the property appraise for a price lower than the sale price negotiated between the buyer and seller.

This is especially common in the refinance realm, as well over a quarter of U.S. homes are now upside-down, meaning the mortgage balance owed is greater than the value of the home. (If you're trying to refinance an upside-down mortgage, consider the FHA Short Refi program -- contact your lender or get referrals to any mortgage broker who makes FHA details to apply.)

5. Condition problems. With all the distressed properties on the market, and with most nondistressed sellers barely breaking even, more home-sale transactions than ever are falling apart due to condition problems with the property. Many lenders will not extend financing on homes where the appraiser points out problems like cracked or broken windows, missing kitchen appliances, electrical problems, or wood rot.

And in the world of condos and other units that belong to a homeowners association, if more than 25 percent of units are rented (rather than owner-occupied) or more than 15 percent are delinquent on their HOA dues, new applications for refinance or purchase mortgages on units in the development are likely to be rejected.

6. Technical difficulties with application. The days when lenders just took your word for it are long, long gone. Applications with incomplete or unverifiable information are doomed.

If any of these mortgage loan application glitches arise in your homebuying or refinancing process, it's critical that you connect with your mortgage professional, be it your banker or mortgage broker, to determine what course of action to take.

In some cases, it might be as simple as buying a stove you find at Craigslist and installing it before escrow closes; but with income issues your mortgage pro will need to help you determine whether it makes sense to pay some bills down, get a co-signer, or even wait six months so your income documentation will qualify.

Tara-Nicholle Nelson is author of "The Savvy Woman's Homebuying Handbook" and "Trillion Dollar Women: Use Your Power to Make Buying and Remodeling Decisions." Tara is also the Consumer Ambassador and Educator for real estate listings search site Trulia.com. Ask her a real estate question online or visit her website, www.rethinkrealestate.com.

Nancy May - Manager of Communications
Phone: (757) 531-7960
E-mail: nancym@reininc.comdistressed

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  October 7, 2011

Positive Housing Signs Continue (Virginia Beach, Virginia – October 7, 2011)
The residential real estate market in Hampton Roads continued to post year-over-year settled sales gains as the inventory of homes for sale fell. The positive trends emphasized in August again showed promise with the number of under contract sales rising. However, the distressed homes market continued affecting the overall housing market as the median settled sales price stayed lower when compared to September 2010.

The number of homes for sale in the region dropped 16.6% in September 2011 when compared to September 2010. This is the third month in a row with year-over-year declines in the number of homes for sale greater than 11%. The current inventory level stands at 12,894 homes for sale, the lowest the level since December 2009 when there were 12,474 homes for sale. All seven major Hampton Roads cities showed declines in the number of homes for sale in September 2011 with Norfolk and Virginia Beach each dropping by more than 20% when compared to the inventory level in September 2010.

Residential settled sales for the region climbed 20.5% on a year-over-year basis in September 2011. The increase is the largest gain since January 2011 when the measured rise was 24%. Six of the seven major cities in the area experienced increases between 19% and 58%. Virginia Beach was the only city to have a decline in the number of settled sales as it was down 5.8%. The median settled sales price for these homes was down 9.2% in September 2011 when compared to those homes settled in September 2010. However, Suffolk and Newport News both experienced a slight gain in their median settled sales prices, though each was less than a 1% rise.

Under contract sales rose on a year-over-year basis 27.8% when compared to September 2010. This rise continues the recent trend of gains in under contract sales greater than 20% and bodes well for the near future of home sales in the region, in relative terms. All of the seven major cities saw large yearover-year percentage gains, however most of the major cities did not surpass their 2009 under contract sales unit levels.

Distressed homes, those that are bank owned or short sales, increased as a percentage of both homes for sale and those which settled in September 2011. The 2.6% rise in the percentage of settled sales that distressed homes comprised to 31.6% in September 2011 was the first increase greater than 1% on a month-to-month basis since February 2011 when it rose 3.1%. The percentage increase of homes in the active market rose 1% in September from August to 23.6%. However, the number of distressed homes fell by the largest number of units, 476 homes, since December 2010 when the number of distressed homes dropped 901 units from November. The decrease in the number of distressed homes for sale is a promising sign for the region’s housing market and if the distressed inventory continues to decline overall the Hampton Roads real estate market should stabilize.

September 2011 Highlights

Listings
Residential active listings decreased, 16.6% year-over-year, to 12,894 (September 2011) from 15,467 (September 2010).

Under Contract (Pending) Residential Sales
Total residential under contract sales increased by 27.8% as compared to September 2010 (1,603 vs. 1,254).

Sales
Total property sales and total residential sales increased when compared to September 2010 showing increases of 21.9% and 20.5% respectively.

Inventory
There is currently 8.8 months’ inventory of residential homes on the market in the Hampton Roads area, a 5.1% decrease from the previous month and down 12.8% from September last year.

September 2011 Summary

* Months’ Supply Inventory estimates the number of months it will take to deplete current active inventory based on the prior 12 months average sales activity.

______________________________________________________________________________

About REIN

Real Estate Information Network, Inc., (REIN) serves real estate brokers in the Tidewater / Hampton Roads area of Virginia from Williamsburg east to Virginia Beach and south to the North Carolina border. REIN is an independent MLS owned by broker stockholder members. Currently there are approximately 500 real estate firms with 610 offices, 6000 real estate agents, and 175 appraiser members using REIN. For more information visit: www.reinmls.com.

The VA funding fee is required by law. The fee, currently 2.15% on no down payment loans for a first-time use, is intended to enable the veteran who obtains a VA home loan to contribute toward the cost of this benefit, and thereby reduce the cost to taxpayers. The funding fee for second time users who do not make a down payment is 3.3%. The idea of a higher fee for second time use is based on the fact that these veterans have already had a chance to use the benefit once, and also that prior users have had time to accumulate equity or save money towards a down payment.

For purchase and construction loans, members of the regular military fall into the category of first time user or subsequent user. For first time users, no down payment requires a 2.15% fee, up to 10% down payment requires a 1.5% fee, and 10% or more requires a 1.25% fee. For subsequent users, no down payment requires a 3.3% fee, up to 10% down payment requires a 1.50% fee, and 10% or more requires a 1.25% fee.

For the category of Reserves / National Guard, first time users with no down payment requires a 2.4% fee, up to 10% down payment requires a 1.75% fee, and 10% or more requires a 1.5% fee. For subsequent users, no down payment requires a 3.3% fee, up to 10% down payment requires a 1.75% fee, and 10% or more requires a 1.5% fee.

Cash-out refinancing loans for regular military requires a 2.15% fee for first time users and a 3.3% fee for subsequent users. For Reserves / National Guard, the requirement is a 2.4% fee for first time users and a 3.3% fee for subsequent users. On interest rate reduction loans, the VA funding fee is .50% and it is 1.0% on Manufactured Home Loans.

The following persons are exempt from paying the funding fee:

• Veterans receiving VA compensation for service-connected disabilities.
• Veterans who would be entitled to receive compensation for service-connected disabilities if they did not receive retirement pay.
• Surviving spouses of veterans who died in service or from service-connected disabilities (whether or not such surviving spouses are veterans with their own entitlement and whether or not they are using their own entitlement on the loan).

Please note that the VA has the final say on who is exempt.

For more information please call 757-340-5555 or fill out the form below.

Mortgage applications rose 15.5% last week as refinancing activity surged, according to a leading trade association.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its market composite index on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ended July 15 climbed 15.5% from the prior week, which included the July 4 holiday. The index rose 44% on an unadjusted basis.

The MBA said the refinance index increased 23.1% last week. Refinancings accounted for 70.1% of all mortgage applications up from 65.6% the previous week and at the second-highest level of the year, according to the MBA.

"Ongoing turmoil in the financial markets primarily due to the sovereign debt crisis in Europe has brought mortgage rates back to their lowest levels of the year," MBA Vice President of Research and Economics Michael Fratantoni said.

He said one factor contributing to higher level of refinancings is "borrowers potentially impacted by impending decreases in the conforming loan limit may be opting to lock in fixed-rate financing now."

The MBA said the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage inched down to 4.54% last week from 4.55% a week prior. The average rate for a 15-year fixed mortgage fell to 3.66% from 3.68%.

In four-week moving averages, the market index is up 0.3%, with the purchase index down 0.3% and the refinance index 0.5% higher.

Currently, more than 8 million Fannie or Freddie loans carry an interest rate of more than 6%. Boxer introduced the Helping Responsible Homeowners Act of 2011, S. 170, earlier this year. It would eliminate the negative equity restrictions and the upfront fees Fannie and Freddie charge when evaluating current homeowners. The bill would target roughly 2 million borrowers for a refinance into today's lower interest rate loan.

"They have been so solid in their mortgage payments every month even though the value of their home is going down," Boxer said in a conference call Tuesday. "This bill would remove the barriers that kept them trapped."

But under current tax law, a loan with a loan-to-value ratio over 125% would not be allowed to be packaged into a mortgage-backed security.

An aide for Boxer said there are vehicles that could be created and that it was also possible for Fannie and Freddie to move these loans into their portfolio – portfolios that under current conservatorship agreements should be on the decline.

The bill carries the support of Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) and several industry trade groups including the National Association of Realtors, Mark Zandi, chief economist for Moody's Analytics and Bill Gross, the founder of investment firm PIMCO.

"The policy efforts implemented throughout the financial crisis have fallen short," Zandi said. "There have been many efforts and they've been helpful and they've clearly not been adequate. The cost from this bill should be very small. I think this is a very efficient and effective way to help address one of the biggest roadblocks to a recovery and do it very quickly when the economy needs it."

One of the biggest hindrances to one of those initiatives that have underwhelmed so far, the Federal Housing Administration Short Refinance program, is that Fannie and Freddie do not participate under guidance from their regulator the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Wall Street investors expressed nervousness on Tuesday about the proposal, claiming such a move could shake-up an already fragile MBS market. But Boxer claims the cost to Fannie and Freddie to refinance these loans would be offset by the millions of underwater borrowers who could walk away otherwise.

"We don't think this is going to disrupt anything. In fact, we think this will stabilize the markets," Boxer said. "What would roil the market is if these millions of borrowers walk away from their loan."

The Treasury Department is considering more changes to the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives program in order to boost short sales and deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure, according to officials administering the initiative.

In May, the Treasury hosted a HAFA summit with representatives from the mortgage industry. They included mortgage servicers, investors, real estate professionals and insurers – the direct stakeholders in a short sale decision.

A Treasury spokesperson said they are looking at making "modest changes and clarifications to program guidance," but no details could immediately be given.

HAFA launched in April 2010 to provide servicers an incentive to boost short sales and DILs for loans that fell out of the larger Home Affordable Modification Program. Through May, participating servicers started 17,781 agreements under HAFA and completed 8,541.

JPMorgan Chase (JPM: 40.34 -1.68%) started nearly one-third of the agreements already in the process.

In January, the Treasury eliminated some HAFA rules that constricted eligibility. For instance, servicers are no longer required to verify a borrower's financial information or determine if the borrower's total monthly mortgage payment exceeds a 31% debt-to-income ratio.

But through April, the top-10 servicers provided more than 113,000 short sales and DILs through their own private programs. That's nearly 10 times the amount of HAFA.

A wider HAFA program could cut into the 2.1 million trial modifications the top-10 servicers denied or canceled due to insufficient documentation, redefault or the borrower was deemed ineligible through April. Roughly 646,000 of these loans received an alternative modification, but servicers started another 307,000 and completed 136,000 foreclosures through April, according to the Treasury.

For more information on short sales, click here.

The Kris Weaver Real Estate Team is proud to welcome Maria Mistichelli to the team. Maria states: "While I considered joining several of the top teams in Hampton Roads, the Kris Weaver Real Estate Team was by far the best choice.

◦ High lead generation because of comprehensive print marketing, radio ads and a strong internet presence

 ◦ Superior coaching from an industry veteran who is leading the top real estate producers in the United States

 ◦ A dedicated support team consisting of valuation specialists, field service technicians, transaction coordinators and advertising specialists

These are just a few of the reasons why I chose to join the Kris Weaver Real Estate Team. I highly encourage any agents looking for a positive change, professional growth and a wealthier work life to join the Kris Weaver Team as well."

Join one of the top growing real estate companies in Hampton Roads!

However, how well or how much the big four can cover remain up for discussion.

On Tuesday, speakers tossed ideas back and forth at a panel titled: "Housing Finance Reform Proposals." They gathered in Washington at the annual meeting of the American Securitization Forum, a trade group representing secondary market players.

One speaker wryly referred to the unofficial title of the panel as "life without the GSEs." The future may be murky, and the present is unlikely to change in the near-term, one panelist said.

The evolution of the mortgage finance markets away from government support will become clearer as financial reform under Dodd-Frank begins to take hold. Until then, according to Alfred Pollard, general counsel Federal Housing Finance Agency, the government will continue support Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the dozen Federal Home Loan Banks.

"If the enterprises are in conservatorship we are supposed to conserve their assets," Pollard said. "We made a decision that Fannie and Freddie, and home loan banks should stick to their core businesses."

Moderator Christopher DiAngelo, partner at Katten Muchin Rosenman, said Bank of America (BAC: 10.6215 -1.56%), Citigroup(C: 38.77 -1.87%), JPMorgan Chase(JPM: 39.84 -2.09%) and Wells Fargo(WF: 36.68+0.41%) hold 70% of the private mortgage origination market. Therefore, they seem the likely option to take market share from the GSEs.

Others financing options, such as developing a covered bond market or a greater presence of private investor bases, such as from real estate investment trusts, are only going to handle a small portion of the financing, the panel said.

"A covered bond market does not solve a lot of problems," said Nancy Mueller Handal of MetLife Investments, a $45 billion investor in mortgage-backed securities, 80% of which are GSE bonds.

"There is not the investor base to fill the gap that people think. We would have very little room for covered bonds," she added.

Furthermore, investors want a stronger foundation for investments in private-label MBS. Those investors will want vertical risk retention, adequate access to representations and warranties and a third-party arbitrator assigned to deals.

"The pipes are not in place yet," Handal added.

A look at stories across HousingWire's weekend desk, with more coverage to come on bigger issues:

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is in settlement talks with former Washington Mutual CEO Kerry Killinger and at least one other top former executive after filing suit against the parties for risks they took within WaMu's home lending portfolio before the housing crisis, according to the Sacramento Bee.

The original suit named former Chief Executive Officer Kerry Killinger, former Chief Operating Officer Stephen Rotella and former Home Loans president David Schneider defendants.

The Federal Reserve Open Market Committee will hold a two-day meeting this week to discuss recent economic data and the second half of 2011.

The meeting, which will run from June 21 to 22, will be the first closed discussion of FOMC members since late April and since reports surfaced showing housing prices on a continued downward trajectory. The scheduled meet-up arrives two weeks after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke delivered a somber first-half economic update. In the report, Bernanke said high unemployment and anemic housing sales are slowing economic growth.

Looking forward, economists at Moody's Analyticsare sticking with their estimate of real GDP growth in the 2% range for the current quarter. They also expect housing prices to remain on the decline for a while, with a bottom expected sometime next year. While the analysts forecast growth for quarters three and four, they also remain wary, citing a sluggish recovery and ongoing concerns over the nation's debt ceiling.

A dispute between big banks, bond insurer MBIA and the New York State Insurance Departmentcontinued this past week, with both sides debating the meaning of internal MBIA e-mails released in court documents.

The dispute involves banking plaintiffs — including Bank of America (BAC: 10.5554 -1.17%) whom allege the New York Insurance Department and its former superintendent, Eric Dinallo, approved a fraudulent conveyance by permitting MBIA to create a second insurance firm, using $5 billion siphoned from the company's insurance subsidiary. Some of the original plaintiffs, CitiGroup and JPMorgan Chase have already pulled out of the suit, according to sources at MBIA.

The plaintiffs in a brief with an appellate court released e-mails which they believe show MBIA leadership working to influence NYID to approve the deal.

Meanwhile, MBIA responded in a statement saying: "The banks grossly mischaracterize these documents and fail to cite the overwhelming evidence in the record confirming that the NYID received unfettered access to MBIA's records and employees, and conducted a thorough and extensive review of MBIA's financial condition."

"We look forward to responding to all of the banks' misleading arguments and mischaracterizations when MBIA responds to the banks' papers on August 31," the statement said. "We remain confident that after a review of the full record the court will affirm the NYID's approval of MBIA's transformation."

The FDIC closed two banks this past week. First, the agency was appointed receiver after Florida regulators shuttered the doors of First Commercial Bank of Tampa Bay in Tampa. Shortly thereafter, Stonegate Bank of Fort Lauderdale assumed all of the banks deposits.

In addition, regulators closed McIntosh State Bank in Jackson, Ga., with Hamilton State Bank assigned all of the deposits.

JPMorgan (JPM: 40.91 +1.36%) predicted a further dip in home prices this past month, forecasting another 4% to 5% drop in home values between now and mid-2012.

In its June 2011 Home Price Monitor Report, the bank lowered its base home price forecast to a level that's 37% under peak price levels.

The financial services firm blames its lowered price expectations on a supply-and-demand imbalance, as well as anemic consumer demand and disappointing economic reports.

The good news is CoreLogic's home price index grew a slight 0.7% in April, which shows some signs of possible price stability, JPMorgan said.

But home prices still declined more than anticipated in the first quarter, reaching a new post-2006 low, the bank said.

Making matters worse, JPMorgan's Home Price Monitor report points to a 12% drop in pending home sales in the month of April.

The bank said "a looming question is when and if lending standards will ease enough to boost demand."

The banking giant canceled that line of lending, saying unpredictable home values and restrictions on the loans are making it impractical to continue in that segment.

"All current Wells Fargo reverse mortgage borrowers will continue to be serviced and funds made available," said Peter Bell, president of the trade group. "Demand for HECM loans remains strong. In fact, the HECM program has evolved to meet the changing economic times with the recent introduction of the HECM saver, a new product that reduces costs and increases consumer protections."

Reverse mortgages allow homeowners who are at least 62 years old to borrow against equity in their property without having to make monthly payments. The balance on the loan is not due until the borrower no longer occupies the home as a primary residence.

NRMLA said ongoing demand for reverse mortgages prompted the association to work with the Department of Housing and Urban Development to develop procedures to evaluate borrower income and insure the ability to pay taxes and insurance on the property after the reverse mortgage deal closes.

"It is anticipated (HUD) will be issuing a rule change in the future to provide HECM lenders with the discretion to make these necessary underwriting changes," the NRMLA said.

The nationwide average home price is already down 34% nationwide from the high in 2006 - and two separate studies released this week predict that the slide is far from over.

Housing prices have dropped every month since the federal government’s tax break for homebuyers expired last September. Overall, that’s a drop of 5% in the last year alone.

However, a new report released this month by JPMorgan and reported by the HousingWire forecasts a base price level that is 37% below peak prices - in other words, even lower than current levels. They indicate that home prices could stand to fall another 4 to 5% in the next year.

But Yale University professor, and co-founder of the Standard & Poor Case-Shiller Home Price Index, Robert Shiller, is even more pessimistic. As reported by the HousingWire, Shiller forecasts a longer-term but even greater drop in home prices - a possible decline of between 10 and 25% in real terms over the next five years.

Fundamental factors are holding home prices down; and these factors are all tied together, so will not resolve themselves soon:

• too many homeowners are underwater on their mortgages (as of April last year, over 6 million homeowners - representing nearly 8% of home mortgages nationwide - were either delinquent on their loans or in foreclosure)
• too many banks hold loans that are no longer worth the value of the collateral that secures them
• because of both of those factors, too many homes are being sold at “distressed” prices, either by the homeowners or through trustee sales

On top of these factors, the growing shadow inventory of properties (currentlly estimated to take over 3 years to clear) that will come on the market in the future also will continue to depress home prices for years to come. 

What this means for homeowners who are currently struggling to pay their mortgages is that waiting for the market to improve is a dangerous strategy. Home prices are likely to continue dropping for one to five years.

For homeowners who are already in trouble now, or who foresee financial trouble coming, this is their opportunity to take action - before home prices drop even further.

Short sales are an increasingly popular option with both homeowners and with lenders. The majority of our first-mortgage approvals come with full deficiency waivers for our homeowners, and an increasing percentage of our second-mortgage approvals also waive the deficiency balance on the loan, allowing distressed homeowners to shed all of their mortgage debt and get a clean financial start in life.

If you are a homeowner, and would like to learn more about short selling your home, please go to: http://krisweaver.com/short-sale.

Recently we had a client sell their home in Ocean Lakes in Virginia Beach to buy a larger home in Castleton, also in Virginia Beach. "Life Saver," and "So Convenient," were some of the comments that we heard from these happy clients.

Unlike having to rent a truck or paying for a moving service, we allow our clients to keep the truck for as long as they like as long as it is available. We do all of this for free.

When an opportunity comes along to make buying or selling a home in the Hampton Roads area easier, the Kris Weaver Team will be there - making life easier for our clients and raising the bar for the entire industry.

Many home buyers choose Weslyan Chase for it's neighborhood feel, multiple parks, it's relatively new design and construction, along with it's convenient proximity to many of the areas large employment centers

I listed the property during the middle of last week.   The owner, a referred client, took my recommendations with respect to pricing and a couple of fix up items /improvements.   Also the owner packed everything away that needed to be packed and did a little touch of painting.   The property showed perfectly, our pricing strategy priced the property ever so slightly under the middle of the pricing spectrum.   3 days later we are negotiating with a buyer for the home.   2 days later we are under contract at the median price and above the list price for the home.   

Proper staging and pricing made the difference with this home.  Buyer's loved it, and in the end multiple buyers became interested very quickly.

The largest differentiator today is that the buyer has far more homes to choose from.  Buyer's are picking only the best properties at the best prices.   Sellers who attempt to "stretch" are being greeted with very long market times, and frequently no sale at all.  For those who have home less than "perfect" expect to sell 5% or more under market value.  Properties that are in perfect condition priced correctly are still selling at or near full price.

Today the condition of the home for sale weighs very heavily on the ultimate price sold.  Buyers are going through homes with a fine tooth comb.  Since buyers usually buy with their hearts and not their checkbooks, that carpet that needs replacing will cost you 5X or more what the actual cost would be if you decide not to change it out.    The buyer's "emotional perception" greatly magnifies the actual cost of potential home repairs when they view a home.

Home buyer's are enjoying plentiful choices and all their closing costs usually being paid by most sellers.   They are also getting a chance to buy the choicest homes in the best spots in the neighborhood in the best condition.    Today it's a buyer's market!