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Cleveland, OH Real Estate News

By Svetlana Stolyarova, Local-n-Global Realty, Broker 216-548-4663
(Local-n-Global Realty, Cleveland and International Real Estate Solution)
It was a great weekend. Crispy Cleveland air. Deep blue sky. Walk-through with one of my buyers, the last quick look at the house before signing the final papers. Great day for taking pictures for my new listing in Mayfield Heights. And a sudden thought that this day's gone. Will never come back. Did I do all right? All my little mistakes and misunderstandings will stay forever if I don't change the things, do not apologize, do not thank. Did I mention how pleased I was working with you?  Did I tell you loudly how I enjoyed helping you find this home? Was I appreciative enough to honor your cooperation? I took these pictures of sunny afternoon in Downtown of Cleveland yesterday.  I want to thank all my friends and clients. Hope, this slide show will bring you few nice minutes. Enjoy ! 
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Did you know that a special HUD incentive now allows you to purchase a HUD owned Home in Ohio with a $100.00 Down Payment. If on a Propety Detail Page you see the following the property is included in the IncentiveThis property is eligible for NEW HOMEBUYERAND BROKER INCENTIVES when purchased byan owner-occupant.Click here for additional details.Please use the Map Below to Search for HUD Owned Properties by County. A new window will open. Once on that page you can Click on "Search Listings" and search by Zip Code, City or other Searchable fields. This County HUD Search provided byTim Bradford, Mortgage Loan Consultant, Cleveland Ohio, 216.324.8113 Tim Bradford, Mortgage Loan Consultant, Cleveland Ohio, 216.324.8113 e-mail: E-Mail Me
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By Carole Cohen, Realtor, ePRO
(Howard Hanna Cleveland City Office)
Back in the day I worked for an advertising company and we all moaned and groaned about tangled phone cords. I was always spouting off about inventing a way to hook up the receiver to the phone on a ball so the cord would stay straighter.  Of course I only whined about it, didn't try to invent it; lo and behold, we wound up with just such a land line attachment available. I realized about a month ago there is something else I wish I had invented: the Tiny URL. It eases the life of many a web user but for those of us Twitter-addicted folk, it is invaluable. I have 140 characters to say what I mean and god knows that is not easy, as those of you who know me will attest :-) So most Twitterites use the Tiny URL.Did you know where it came from and why? Once upon a time there was a young boy ...
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By Svetlana Stolyarova, Local-n-Global Realty, Broker 216-548-4663
(Local-n-Global Realty, Cleveland and International Real Estate Solution)
Dear Thinking-Of-Selling-Your-Home-Homeowners in Greater Cleveland!If you have no serious reason to sell, please DO NOT EVEN TRY! It's not the best time to "check out the market". We have more than good inventory of homes in Cuyahoga County and in all Greater Cleveland. We have too many expired listings. As a result, we see more signs "For sale by owner" than we saw in 2007. It means that people lost trust in their Real Estate agents. They are desperate to sell, though. As a professional Real estate consultant and a marketing specialist, I don't think that's a good idea to ignore the huge resources which good Real Estate marketers utilize for selling other people's properties. Few of these resources are listed below:1) Marketing to buyer's agents via MLS2) Real Estate portal Realtor.com...
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By Carole Cohen, Realtor, ePRO
(Howard Hanna Cleveland City Office)
We are real estate professionals of one sort or another right? So we always have goals. Well, some of these are work related and some aren't.  But I'm hoping you guys can relate. A fellow Cleveland blogger asked me to do this, come up with 43 things I want to do in 2008...and the point is to make these reachable goals. At first I thought og, how am I going to come up with 43 ‘things?' It turns out it wasn't hard.  I took the Really Bad Cleveland Accent - Christine Bourne challenge. You can read about the challenge (and maybe do your own list. Today I am doing the list here, I will possibly go to the ‘43 Things' site and add it, but since one of my items on my ‘to do' list is limit my social networking sites, well, dunno. Here is my list: 1.  keep meeting new people also interested in gr...
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By Mike Bigley
(APS HomeInspection Service)
Everyone should have a home inspection when buying or selling a home because it will reveal potential problems with things like the structure and condition of the house. An inspector will examine everything including the roof, plumbing, electrical systems, septic or sewer systems, heating and air conditioning units, insulation, and much more. We offer our services for Foreclosures, Rehab Homes, Home Repairs made by contractors, Insurance Inspections, Seller Inspections for home disclosures, Photography Service and New Home Warranty Inspections.Home and Commercial Property inspections are not usually required and they do add an extra expense. But it's not a corner that should be cut. Otherwise, you will risk moving into a home that can have potentially serious problems that may cause you...
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By Tim Bradford, NMLS 250013
Advantages of a Reverse MortgageThe main advantage of reverse mortgages is that they are an extremely flexible financial planning product with very few - if any - restrictions on how you receive and use the money.To many people, a reverse mortgage simply sounds too good to be true. But, there really are no catches - given the right set of circumstances, a reverse mortgage is an ideal way to increase your spending power in retirement.Key advantages and benefits of reverse mortgages include:No Risk of Default: Unlike a home equity loan, with a reverse home mortgage your home can not be taken from you. If you default on a home equity loan, you could lose your home. The Reverse Mortgage Lenders have no claim on your income or other assets. No Downside: You will never owe more than your home...
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Below is information on a Down Payment Assistance Loan Program that is available for a number of cities in Cuyahaoga County. Call for additional information. 24/7 Info Line 800-686-3600 ext 225 or Contact Tim Bradford 2007 DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE PARTICIPATING COMMUNITIES BAY VILLAGE FAIRVIEW PARK MORELAND HILLS ROCKY RIVER BEACHWOOD GARFIELD HEIGHTS NEWBURGH HEIGHTS SEVEN HILLS BEDFORD GATES MILLS NORTH OLMSTED SHAKER HEIGHTS BEDFORD HEIGHTS GLENWILLOW VILLAGE NORTH RANDALL SOLON BENTLEYVILLE VILLAGE HIGHLAND HEIGHTS NORTH ROYALTON SOUTH EUCLID BEREA HIGHLAND HILLS OAKWOOD VILLAGE STRONGSVILLE BRATENAHL VILLAGE LINNDALE OLMSTED FALLS UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS BROOK PARK LYNDHURST OLMSTED TOWNSHIP VALLEY VIEW BROOKLYN MAPLE HEIGHTS ORANGE VILLAGE WALTON HILLS VILLAGE BROOKLYN HEIGHTS MAYFIELD ...
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By Tim Bradford, NMLS 250013
Recieved today from HUD.   Looks like it is business as usual for the time being.  Check the website of your favorite DPA Program to verify they are still active.  This is to notify you that FHA is not permitted to implement the downpayment assistance rule at this time. Judge Friedman of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia issued a ruling enjoining HUD from implementing the downpayment assistance rule, which was to go into effect today.  This injunction isapplicable to everyone affected by the Rule.  HUD will provide further guidance as appropriate. To read the downpayment assistance rule (enjoined) in its entirety and for more information please visit: http://hudclips.org/sub_nonhud/cgi/pdf/4846a.pdf
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By Scott Haigh, No problem, I will take care of it!
(Howard Hanna Real Estate Services)
We just finished 1 concert in Luxembourg and 2 in Cologne. Luxembourg is a very nice banking city which obviously has lots of wealth. There are large pedestrian malls with beautiful shops. On our free day some of us rented cars to get out of the city and visit some castles. We enjoyed the rebuilt castle at Vianden and the partially-rebuilt castle in La Brouchette. I would highly recommend visiting both if you are in the area. The concert hall in Luxembourg, which we opened two years ago, has excellent acoustics but is a little boomy because of the extremely high ceiling. Nevertheless, the hall has lots of wood in it and has the classic "shoebox" shape, which is so important for a good concert hall. The concerts in Cologne were extremely well received, although the hall is not that great...
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By Scott Haigh, No problem, I will take care of it!
(Howard Hanna Real Estate Services)
We started our tour today in Washington D.C.'s Kennedy Center. The program was an early Mozart symphony, a piece by minimalist composer John Adams, called "A Guide to Strange Places" ( It should have been called a "Guide to a Strange Piece!) Anyway, the audience loved it. The concert ended with Tchaikovsky's famous Symphony #6, the "Pathetique) Kennedy Center's acoustics are not the greatest but it was a good concert and the audience was pleased. Tomorrow we head to the holy grail of concert halls, Carnegie Hall in New York, where we have 3 concerts. I'll report on that in a few days. Ohio senator Sherrod Brown arranged a tour for orchestra members of the Capitol Building, which was really interesting. We saw the senate in session, where a bill extending the "No call list" legislation w...
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By Tim Bradford, NMLS 250013
Here is a greate Program that allows you to Create PDF documents from any program or application.   It functions just like a printer.   You would be viewing a web page, Spreadsheet, Email or Word Processing document.   Instead of printing the item to paper you merely select "PDF" from your printers menu.   I have used it for years instead of faxing documents.   PDF995 ( http://pdf995.com/ ) offers a free version or you can pay $9.95 to eliminate the nag screen that pops up when you print a document.   Here is what the site says about their productPdf995 makes it easy and affordable to create professional-quality documents in the popular PDF file format. Its easy-to-use interface helps you to create PDF files by simply selecting the "print" command from any application, creating document...
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Use this Calendar as a reason to reach out to someone you have not spoken with recently.  Everyday Is a Holiday Calendar October  2007SundayMondayTuesdayWednesdayThursdayFridaySaturday Oct 1Oct 2Oct 3Oct 4Oct 5Oct 6 Homemade cookie day  Less Than Perfect Day Model T Birthday National Book It! Day World Vegetarian Day Name your car day  Tickle Me Elmo Launch Day 1997 Twilight Zone Birthday 1959 Yogi Bear's Birthday 1958 Virus Appreciation day  Captain Kangaroo Day (The show first aired on this day in 1955.) Look at the Leaves Day National Denim Day World Smile Day Leave It to Beaver Birthday 1957  National Frugal Fun Day Toot Your Flute DayNational Techies Day   National Story Telling Day Come and take it day  Garlic Lovers Day Lawyers Day Oct 7, 2007Oct 8Oct 9Oct 10Oct 11Oct 12Oct 13Cat...
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By Carole Cohen, Realtor, ePRO
(Howard Hanna Cleveland City Office)
Today I stopped at E. 71st and Harvard to buy gas. I could not pass it up, Gas USA was selling it for $2.54/gallon (and who would have ever thought that would be a bargain). While there, I snapped a photo of the diner at the corner. My Aunt Ann used to hold court there, serving the hungry factory workers on the way to begin their days (and occasionally a niece on her way to junior high). It's now called the Harvard Inn. I have no clue what it was called in the old days lol. A lady named Hattie beckoned me over to her car asking why I was snapping photos. Neither of us lives in the neighborhood anymore: she lives farther East and I live farther West. But she had good things to say and as we parted company I touched her shoulder and she informed me that now that I touched her, I would hav...
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Jim Rokakis has been our Treasurer for quite some time. I had no idea how eloquently he could write a story. The Washington Post's Outlook section featured an article he wrote today. The article is about everyone wanting the American Dream, not having enough money to get it, and then being given false hope that a loan can in fact make you a 'part of' that Dream. There are parts of the article that make me uncomfortable, because he talks about predators and that includes Realtors®. He talks about Ohio's NAR lobbying against predatory lending legislation a few years ago. Regardless of how reputable I feel I am, it's hard not to feel uncomfortable when anyone in my industry makes all of us look bad.I grew up on the outskirts of Slavic Village, the neighborhood he features. I was part of th...
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Here is the Announcement of FHASecure BUSH ADMINISTRATION TO HELP NEARLY ONE-QUARTER OF A MILLION HOMEOWNERS REFINANCE, KEEP THEIR HOMES FHA to implement new "FHASecure" refinancing product WASHINGTON - President George W. Bush today announced that HUD's Federal Housing Administration (FHA) will help an estimated 240,000 families avoid foreclosure by enhancing its refinancing program effective immediately. Under the new FHASecure plan, FHA will allow families with strong credit histories who had been making timely mortgage payments before their loans reset-but are now in default-to qualify for refinancing. In addition, FHA will implement risk-based premiums that match the borrower's credit profile with the insurance premium they pay-i.e., riskier borrowers pay more. This common-sense, r...
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I was looking for something else and saw this video on youtube.com If you have not watched it before, I think you might find it interesting. The Oversight Subcommittee on Domestic Policy takes an in-depth look at the predatory mortgages, payday loans, and foreclosures that plague inner-city America. This will be the first in a series of hearings Subcommittee Chairman Kucinich plans to hold looking at various issues afflicting urban America. Here James Rokakis, Treasurer for Cuyahoga County, Ohio, discusses the problems that such lending practices have caused for his community.
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Below is the OHFA (Ohio Housing Finance Agency) notice of Rate Change.  Before you take your buyers to this program, call your preferred lender (Hopefully me) and have them compare the pricing with their current FHA, VA or Conventional products.    Right now I am advising my clients against the OHFA program because other identical loans are available without some of the paperwork, restrictions and fees.    FIRST-TIME HOMEBUYER PROGRAM Rates, Fees and Program Requirements Effective 01/31/2008 @ 8:00 am Mortgage Rates 5.375% for loans without assistance grant 5.775% for loans with 2% assistance grant 5.750% for 4% Second Mortgage 30-year fixed rate FHA/VA/USDA RD/conventional loans are eligible 2-1 buy downs are permitted, please check Underwriting Guidelines for specific product Fees 1% ...
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As you may recall, I began this summer with tons of things to do...most importantly to get through real estate classes, take and pass the state exam, and survive!!!  First of all, I did make it through school, and I am now a graduate of Hondros College's Real Estate program.  I took the state exam and passed on my first try!!  "The Girl" did indeed go to France for 2 weeks...and I thank GOD I was in school the whole time!  I would've been a nervous wreck had I been sitting at work, staring at the computer screen and fretting about what might be happening overseas.  Luckily, she had a fantastic time, and I got lots o'goodies from my 'little girl'.  Mom's rock!!"The Boy" made it through freshman football practice, and they had their first game this past Thursday.  The Eagles won 18-6...ya...
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By Timothy Bradford
(Howard Hanna Lakewood)
So we start the week off with the knowledge that the Fed drops rates to bank's by 1/2 percent. So... what does that mean and how odes that effect my market, and my buyers. I know thqt there are a lot of circumstances that have brought my market to where it is.. but.. you know what I think has the MOST to do with it.? Confidence...
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