Indy Home Marketing - June 2009 Newsletter

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June 2009 Newsletter

Volume 3, Number 6

	Sell the Benefits of Your Smaller Home... If you're looking at the undulating real estate scene and think your smaller-than-average-home has no shot, think again. Your house is the perfect fit for a lot of people. Anyone looking to save on utilities, taxes and yard work - from first-
	time buyers to the eco-minded - is going small. Plus, the idea of average is shrinking for a lot of people as those McMansions are proving too big and expensive for a lot of budgets. So, what great things can be highlighted about your small home and how? Read more Here.

			Stronger Buyer Activity in April Boosts Existing-Home Sales According to the National Association of Realtors®. Existing-home sales - including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops - increased 2.9% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.68 million units in April from
	a downwardly revised pace of 4.55 million units in March, but were 3.5% below the 4.85 million-unit level in April 2008. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said first-time buyers continue to influence the market but there also is a seasonal rise of repeat buyers. Continued Here


	RECIPE OF THE MONTH Bruschetta with Mediterranean Tomato Topping Here's a great appetizer recipe for your next get-to-gether that your friends and family will rave about! Courtesy of: The Food Network

INGREDIENTS:

•	1 teaspoon minced garlic	•	1 lemon, zested
•	2 anchovy fillets, minced	•	1/2 teaspoon salt
•	Grated Parmesan, optional	•	1/4 teaspoon pepper
•	6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
•	20 (1/2-inch) slices French or Italian bread
•	2 tablespoons basil chiffonade, plus more for garnishing
•	3 medium tomatoes, seeded and small diced
•	1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Place the slices of French
bread on a baking sheet and lightly brush with half of the olive
oil. Season with half of the salt and half of the pepper. Bake
until lightly golden and crispy. Set aside to cool.

While the toasts are baking combine the remaining ingredients
except Parmesan in a nonreactive bowl and stir to blend. Serve
each toast with a heaping tablespoon of the tomato mixture
and garnish with additional basil and grated Parmesan,
if desired.

Servings: 4 to 6 appetizer servings, 1 1/2 cups tomato topping
Prep Time: 10 minutes; Cook Time: 10 minutes or less.

Sell the Benefits of Your Smaller Home... (Continued)

Even though you may have outgrown your home, when you list it
with us, we'll make sure potential buyers know about the home's
many benefits, including:

Lower Costs

We'll make sure your online listing includes information about the
the lower utility costs your house affords. Also, if your small home
is on a small lot, we'll research property taxes on larger lots so
we can point out how much money potential buyers will save
in taxes.

Easier Maintenance

Many first-time homebuyers and those downsizing are looking for
easy-to-maintain homes. So, we'll remind potential buyers how
much time and money they can save with smaller yards to main-
tain and fewer rooms to clean, heat, and cool. Plus, we'll show
you how to offer a low-cost Home Maintenance Warranty, which
is attractive to first-time home buyers who are used to having
a landlord take care of any necessary fixes.

Earth Friendly

We'll make "green" information obvious by noting space-saving
built-ins and cost-efficient updates to your home like new, more
energy efficient, HVAC systems, windows, insulation, etc. How-
ever, if a home is not all green in the key areas, we'll focus
on easy maintenance and low economics.

It Is Enough Space

We'll remind people who are cutting back and re-thinking all that
extra space in big homes, that your smaller home does have
enough room by helping you "stage" your home to make it
look bigger. A few simple ways to enhance the appearance
of space in a home include:

• Cut clutter, even if it means renting a storage unit or POD

while you're showing the house.

• Let in the light. If a potential buyer can walk into your house

and see all the way through it to the backyard, it will give them

the feeling of space. Open up the blinds and drapes, and wash

the windows to let in as much light in as possible.

• Sell the area. If there are shops and restaurants within walking

distance, we'll let buyers known. It shows them that there is

plenty to do outside of the house. It's not the size but the

location and function of the spaces that matter.

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Stronger Buyer Activity in April.... (Continued)

“Most of the sales are taking place in lower price ranges and
activity is beginning to pick up in the mid price ranges, but
high-end home sales remain sluggish,” he said. “The Federal
Reserve needs to help restore liquidity for the jumbo mortgage
market by buying these loans under the TALF program.”

“Because foreclosed properties will likely be released into the
market over the rest of year, it is critical that distressed homes
be quickly cleared from the market,” Yun said. “Fortunately,
home buyers are being attracted to deeply discounted prices
and are bidding up many foreclosed listings, particularly in
California, Nevada, and Florida, which will set the stage for
healthy market conditions going forward.”

An NAR practitioner survey in April showed first-time buyers
declined to 40% of transactions, implying more repeat buyers
are entering the traditional spring home-buying season. It also
showed the number of buyers looking at homes has increased
14 percentage points from a year ago. “This is consistent with
our forecast for home sales in the latter part of the year to be
10 to 20% higher than the second half of 2008,” Yun said.

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