It says home sales were up statewide in December, for the fifth consecutive month, and steady throughout 2011.

Rob Cook is a realtor for Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS in Dubuque, a real estate blogger and self-proclaimed “numbers guy.”

He pulled statistics from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), showing Dubuque is number two in the nation when it comes to high rates of house appreciation.

Those numbers show the average home in Dubuque appreciated 2.46 percent in one year, through Sept. 2011, and 8.06 percent over the course of five years. Bismark, N.D., by the way, took top marks, with a 15.99 percent five-year average appreciation.

In Dubuque, Cook said, “our average sale price right now is about $155,000, give or take, and we’ve sold just shy of 800 homes in each of the last three years in the Dubuque city: zip codes 52001, 52002, 52003.”

A map of the US from the FHFA shows each state’s average home value appreciation over the course of 12 months, from the third quarter of 2010 to the third quarter of 2011.

“The whole state’s doing relatively well compared to the rest of the country,” Cook said.

Iowa is only one of four states that didn’t experience depreciating home values. The average Iowa home over the course of that period went up 1.3 percent in value, according to the FHFA. The average Nebraska house appreciated 0.5 percent, Wyoming saw a 2.9 percent increase and North Dakota came in first place, with a 5.4 percent increase.

“When you buy a house, buy a car, buy a boat, there’s always a risk that it’s going to depreciate or not appreciate like you had planned,” Cook said.

Iowa, he said, on average, has a stable housing market.

Mel Graves is a realtor with Brissey in Dubuque and secretary and treasurer of the Dubuque Board of Realtors.

He pointed out 2011 was the first year without any tax credit incentives for home buyers, “so this is a pure year, this is just market-driven,” he said.

Graves said he has noticed a slight increase in consumer confidence.

“It seems to me that people are now beginning to say, ‘I need to make that decision I’ve been holding off on, I am comfortable that my job’s going to be there, and I’m going to go ahead,’” Graves said. “That’s significant. When they can do that, then they can go ahead and make some plans.”

He said insurance rates continue to be low, which is encouraging for buyers.

The total number of home sales in Iowa for 2011 increased 0.4 percent from 2010.

Regardless of state or national housing market numbers, however, Cook suggests buyers and sellers look at their own particular market.

“They need to be fully aware of what’s going on in their market and not pay attention so much to the national news, you know, as far as, you know, both real estate thing and the economy overall,” Cook said. “It’s a factor, but, you know, it’s kind of like what they say with the realtor ads, you know, ‘All real estate is local.’”

The Iowa Association of Realtors said, as of December, the average days on the market for a house in Iowa was 112. That’s the same as it was in 2010, according to the association.

Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS completely supports Rob’s statement and so do the numbers! Check out our latest Facts&Trends edition coming out the first week of February.  If you would like to recieve Facts&Trends please visit RuhlHomes.com.

Article provided by: KWWL.com

Likewise, buying a house in a good business environment makes a lot more sense than doing so where businesses will be struggling. So if you are thinking of moving to a state that is favorable for business this list by CNBC is a very smart tool to use.

Virginia came in as the top state. With it’s pro-business state house and proximity to Washington DC, where growth in government spending has created it’s own jobs engine, Virginia is for business lovers. Texas is in second place, with southern states Georgia, North Carolina, and Colorado rounding out the top 5. The only northeast member of the list Massachusetts comes in 6^th owing mainly to it’s educated workforce.

The remaining states on our top 10 list are heartland states; Minnesota, Utah, Iowa, and Nebraska. The worst state in the country is Rhode Island with Alaska not far behind.

So if you are starting a business, looking for a job, or interested in investing in real estate, check out this list of the …

Top 10 States for Business in America for 2011

1. Virginia
2. Texas
3. North Carolina
4. Georgia
5. Colorado
6. Massachusetts 
7. Minnesota
8. Utah
9. Iowa
10. Nebraska

Keep checking RuhlHomes.com for the most up to date information on the housing market.

Originally Published by: RealEstateBloggers.com

Ruhl&Ruhl, the largest privately-owned real estate company in Iowa, has other residential sales offices located in Bettendorf, Davenport, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Coralville, DeWitt, Maquoketa, Muscatine and Dubuque, Iowa; and in Moline, Illinois. The Burlington Office, located at 1013 S. Central Avenue, will be the company’s 11^th office.

Doris Mosley-Johnson is Ruhl&Ruhl’s Managing Broker and Eric Schlutz is Ruhl&Ruhl’s Regional Manager.

“We are excited to open an office in Burlington so we can better serve our current and future clients in the area,” said Ruhl, adding that some Realtors from the company’s Muscatine Office had already been working in the Burlington market.

The company belongs to 12 different Multiple Listing Services and properties for sale in all these markets are available to the public on their website at RuhlHomes.com. The 280 agent company has been serving families in the region since 1862 and Caroline Ruhl is the 4^th generation of Ruhl’s to lead the organization. Her son, Chris Beason, the manager of the company’s Maquoketa and DeWitt offices, is the 5^th generation.

The people at Ruhl&Ruhl are committed to making the home buying and home selling experience easy, fun and hassle free. “Our clients need sales associates they can trust who will be their knowledgeable advocates, guiding them through the home sale or home purchase process. Our people really care about our clients and strive to exceed expectations. At Ruhl&Ruhl, our people are the difference,” said Ruhl.

The public in Burlington is already somewhat familiar with Ruhl&Ruhl because the company’s Real Estate Today TV Show airs daily on KWQC at 6:55 am, just before The Today Show on NBC.

In addition to residential sales, Ruhl&Ruhl specializes in relocation services, working with top companies such as Cartus, Primacy, Prudential and SIRVA. The company manages many foreclosure properties for HUD and FNMA – and their foreclosure inventory can be accessed online at RuhlHomes.com/Foreclosures. Ruhl&Ruhl also offers services in real estate investments, new home sales, land development, builder services, farm sales, senior services, property management, home vendor services, mortgage services through 1862 Mortgage and insurance services through the Nelson Ruhl Agency.

 Ruhl&Ruhl is a family-owned company that annually sells nearly 3,800 homes in eastern Iowa, western Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin. The company started in a little German grocery store in west Davenport, Iowa, from which insurance and real estate also were sold. Now, Ruhl&Ruhl has grown to more than 280 sales associates, 52 employees and 11 offices, yet their commitment to providing service with quality, value and integrity remains firmly rooted.

 For more information on Ruhl&Ruhl, visit our new office at 1013 S. Central Avenue, Burlington, Iowa, call 319.752.9933 or visit us online at RuhlHomes.com.

Risk Based Pricing Notices are required under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), and now, because of provisions in the Dodd-Frank Act, they must include language that relates to credit scores IF those scores were used to determine the interest rate (and resultant APR) given the customer. Also, the language can’t simply be “the lower your credit score, the higher rate you will pay”. That would be too easy. You see…lower credit scores have statistically proven to have higher defaults (more risk), so charging those clients more makes sense. But in the world we live in, the government wants to inundate the customer with mumbo jumbo, and insists on a form that gives the following information:

1. The credit score used in making the credit decision;
2. The range of possible credit scores under the model used to generate the credit score;
3. All of the key factors that adversely affected the credit score. Note that the risk-based pricing notice generally may not list more than four key factors. However, if one of the key factors is the number of inquiries made with respect to the consumer report, up to five key factors may be used.
4. The date on which the credit score was created; and
5. The name of the consumer reporting agency or other person that provided the credit score.

Further, if there is more than one borrower, each receives their own, personalized disclosure.

Adverse Action Notices are basically Rejection Letters. They used to say things like “your file was turned down because your credit/income/assets/appraisal does not fit the guidelines under which we approve borrowers”. Now, when credit scores are a reason for denial the language is slightly more confusing but essentially the same 5 things stated above for Risk Based Pricing. But, the really good news is that they added up to 5 different, new forms to tell the consumer where they can inquire about the score in their “consumer report” (the new term that replaces the old “credit report”).

Who gets paid for this stuff?  More paper work, more muddied explanations, all to protect the consumer? Or to protect the jobs of the bureaucrats and law makers? Am I alone in thinking that often the efforts to protect wind up frustrating instead? Simply stated, if your credit is bad because you made late payments, you can be turned down or your may be approved and be forced to pay a higher rate. Now, if your credit score is bad because of errors in the credit report, you should be directed on how to fix it. But that’s a topic for a different day.

Sometimes through all the confusion things can seem blurry and out of site but the end result is always worth the while, and Ruhl&Ruhl wants to help get you there!  Keep checking RuhlHomes.com for the most up to date information on the housing market and to start your home search.

Provided by: KCM Blog

And the monthly Pending Sales Report, which measures the number of houses going into contract each month, has showed increases in six of the last nine months prompting Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist to say:

“Since reaching a cyclical bottom last June, pending home sales have posted an overall gain of 24 percent and demonstrate the market is recovering on its own. The index means modest near-term gains in existing-home sales are likely.”

We realize that 40% of the sales are distressed properties and that 22% of buyers are investors. Yet, that still doesn’t negate the fact that homes are in fact selling… and 60% of them are NOT foreclosures or short sales.

And Yun believes this uptick will continue:

“Based on the current uptrend with very favorable affordability conditions, rising apartment rents and ongoing job creation, existing-home sales should rise around 5 to 10 percent this year.”

Bottom Line

Homes are selling. You probably will need to offer a compelling price if you put your house on the market. But if you do, it will sell.

Keep checking RuhlHomes.com for the most  up-to-date information on the housing market.

Provided by: KCM Blog

The ongoing malaise, paradoxically, is only boosting the opportunities for investors in multiunit rental properties.

The days of buying and flipping a property for quick profit are long gone. But investors who purchase apartment buildings, perhaps as part of a retirement portfolio or estate plan, are seeing better deals now than at any time in the past decade, says Dan Fasulo, managing director at Real Capital Analytics, a real-estate research-and-consulting firm. On the cost side, housing prices are low and falling in many areas, while mortgage rates are near historic lows. On the income side, apartment rents are near all-time highs.

“As an asset class, it looks awfully attractive,” Mr. Fasulo says.

Nationwide, rents now average $991, compared with $930 in 2006, and are expected to rise to about $1,025 by 2012, according to Reis Inc., which tracks rental-performance data. In part, that is because there are fewer units: The national vacancy rate for apartments dropped to 6.2% during the first quarter of 2011, from 8% a year ago.

Rental demand should remain strong for several years, experts say. The housing-market crash and shaky job market have made more would-be homeowners gun-shy about buying, says Paula Poskon, a senior research analyst at R.W. Baird, a wealth-management company.

Demographic trends also are favorable. Roughly 3 million young adults had been living with family during the past five years, according to data from the Census and real-estate investment brokerage firm Marcus & Millichap, and housing experts estimate that they now generate about one-third of rental demand.

Still other renters have no alternative. Some 2.8 million homes were foreclosed on since 2008, with another 5 million expected to enter foreclosure or be repossessed by the banks by the end of 2012, according to RealtyTrac.com. Many of those former homeowners will have to rent until their credit score recovers, which typically takes seven years.

Such factors have sparked a bull market: Sales of multifamily units priced at $500,000 or above surged by 28% in the first quarter of 2011 from a year earlier, according to Marcus & Millichap. The dollar volume surged 44% to $11.2 billion.

The key for investors, of course, is to find a property that generates enough rent to cover the operating costs. Annual expenses, including property taxes, insurance, water, heat, maintenance and occasional repairs, shouldn’t eat up more than 40% of a property’s annual rental income, says Jim Scofield, senior investment adviser at Apartment REP, a multifamily brokerage and advisory firm in Raleigh, N.C.

Factoring in maintenance costs and other variables, an investment property should produce at least a 6% return on the initial cash investment in the first year after it is purchased, Mr. Scofield says. For example, an investor who puts down $250,000 in cash on a $750,000 property would need to clear at least $15,000 in the first year.

There are, to be sure, drawbacks to this kind of investing, from repairs to delinquent tenants. Laws vary by state, but typically tenants could end up staying for up to four months without paying rent before the eviction process is completed, says Hessam Nadji, managing director of research and advisory services at Marcus & Millichap.

Investors who don’t want to fix a broken toilet on a Saturday night can pay a property-management company to handle everything from leasing apartments to making repairs. Fees, which generally run about 5% to 6% of total annual rents, often decrease as the number of units increases, according to Jim Scofield of multifamily brokerage and advisory firm Apartment REP.

The big payoff from property investing comes when the mortgage is paid off. For a conservative investor, assuming a 15-year mortgage, the influx of extra income could arrive just in time to subsidize retirement, rising health-care costs or children’s college tuition.

That has been William King’s strategy for some time now. The 43-year-old owner of an audiovisual production company in Morrisville, N.C., has used real-estate investments to save for college tuition for his two children, ages 9 and 13, accumulating more than 20 properties.

In March, Mr. King dipped into his savings to buy a $550,000 multi-unit dwelling nearby, this time with an eye on retirement. The property generates about $50,000 a year after expenses and financing, and Mr. King plans to own it outright before he is 60. At that point, he says, it will probably yield about $80,000 at today’s rate.

For investors who want exposure to income-producing properties without getting their hands dirty, there are alternatives. Real-estate investment trusts, or REITs, pass along at least 90% of their taxable income, typically rent from tenants, to shareholders in the form of dividends. They perform better when the rental market picks up—in 2010, the average REIT returned 27.5%—and during inflationary periods, since rents tend to increases with inflation.

Investors also can pool their money—the minimum investment required is typically $250,000—into private-equity groups that in turn buy large properties, many of which are distressed, and hold them for five to 10 years with the aim of selling at a profit, says Jack McCabe, a housing analyst in Deerfield Beach, Fla., and consultant to private-equity groups.

But these options don’t offer leverage. An investor can buy a property outright with a mortgage and a down payment of around 25% to 30% in cash. Any capital appreciation magnifies the returns on that investment.

“You can’t beat the real-estate angle right now,” Mr. King says. “I’m more excited about it than I’ve ever been.”

If you have any questions about purchasing a multi-unit facility or are looking for property management please contact, Ruhl Property Solutions at 563-441-5230 or RuhlPropertySolutions.com.

Information provided by the Wall Street Journal

In these 11 cities, the median for days on the market was 160 in March, which is a positive increase of 40 percent from March of 2010.

Here is a list of the cities with the fewest median days on the market from March:

Oakland, Calif.
Median days on the market: 50
Median list price: $319,000

San Francisco
Median days on the market: 63
Median list price: $639,000

Denver
Median days on the market: 66
Median list price: $259,900

Iowa City, Iowa
Median days on the market: 66
Median list price: $187,500

Los Angeles-Long Beach, Calif.
Median days on the market: 70
Median list price: $345,000

Stockton-Lodi, Calif.
Median days on the market: 70
Median list price: $175,000

Bakersfield, Calif.
Median days on the market: 70
Median list price: $141,500

San Jose, Calif.
Median days on the market: 71
Median list price: $470,000

Anchorage, Alaska
Median days on the market: 71
Median list price: $279,975

Fresno, Calif.
Median days on the market: 71
Median list price: $170,000

Tulsa, Okla.
Median days on the market: 71
Median list price: $147,900

Please contact Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS today if you are interested in buying or selling a home, or visit RuhlHomes.com.

Some information and statistics provided by Realtor.com

1.) 90+ Day Delinquencies

Once a homeowner falls three months behind on their payments, most financial institutions count them in their foreclosure numbers. Why? Less than 2% of those who fall that far behind ever catch up in their payments. The other 98% will end up as a distressed property (foreclosure or short sale). Homeowners in this category don’t always receive a foreclosure notice immediately. In some cases, homeowners who have not paid their mortgage in 12 months have not yet received a notice of foreclosure.

2.) Homes in the foreclosure process

These homes have received a formal notice which officially starts the foreclosure process. In different states, because of court procedures, it takes varying time frames to complete this process.

3.) Homes repossessed by the bank

These homes have finished the foreclosure process and are now owned by the bank. These homes are known as REOs (Real Estate Owned).

4.) REOs placed on the market

These are the REOs that banks bring to market. Many come to market quickly. Others must be refurbished before being put up for sale.

5.) REOs Sold

Obviously, these are the REOs that actually sell.

This seems very straight forward. Why is there so much confusion?

Here’s an example. Just a few weeks ago the major daily newspaper on Long Island, NY had a headline that announced delinquencies were up to over 10% of all homes. One-in-ten homes on Long Island were 90+ days delinquent. That was a major increase from the year before. Exactly seven days later, the same newspaper headlined a story that foreclosures on Long Island were down dramatically. That seems a contradiction. Though both headlines were accurate, they led to confusion.

Let’s dig a little deeper into the data. Yes, the percentage of homes being foreclosed on has decreased. Why? The court systems in NY are now taking almost a year to process a foreclosure. There are not less homes eligible for foreclosure. They are just caught in a slow moving pipeline. Likewise, there are not a growing number of delinquencies. These homes are just not working their way through the process. The delinquency numbers would be much lower if there wasn’t a logjam in the court systems.

Bottom Line

To truly understand the distressed property situation in your market and what impact it may have on prices, contact your Ruhl&Ruhl  local real estate professional. They should be able to simply and effectively explain with the use of strong visuals (charts & graphs) what is happening in your area and how it impacts you.

Please visit RuhlHomes.com for more information.

Some information and statistics provided by: KCM Blog

“We are excited to be a part of this exciting event,” said Caroline Ruhl, President of Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS. “We have always been supporters of the Chamber and this event really showcases our support.”

Schmooza Palooza expects to bring 300 attendees for schmoozing, tasting of hors d’oeuvres from the Quad Cities’ most popular restaurants, wine and beer tasting, music and a cash raffle. Please join us!

Schmooza Palooza
Thursday, May 19, 2011
5pm – 9pm
Modern Woodmen Park
209 S. Gaines, Davenport, IA

A family-owned company since 1862, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS annually sells nearly 3,800 homes in eastern Iowa, western Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin. Caroline Ruhl is the President and owner of Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS, and is the fourth generation of the Ruhl family to lead the residential brokerage and home services company.  Headquartered in Davenport, Iowa, the company has 265 sales associates and 50 employees based in sales offices located in Bellevue, Bettendorf, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Coralville, Davenport, DeWitt, Dubuque, Maquoketa, and Muscatine, in Iowa, and in Moline, Illinois.  In addition to residential sales, Ruhl&Ruhl offers services in relocation, new home sales, farm and land sales, senior services, real estate investment, property management and mortgage services through 1862 Mortgage and insurance services through Nelson Brothers Insurance.  For more information on Ruhl&Ruhl, visit their website at www.RuhlHomes.com.

The report ranks the top 300 real estate companies in the country according to the number of transactions and sales volume. Ruhl&Ruhl ranked 92^nd in the country for the number of transactions, which was 3,889 in 2010, and 160^th in the country for our sales volume, which was $562,235,310.

Other Iowa Companies Ranked as follows:

“While business was down in most of our markets and at most competing real estate companies, business was up at Ruhl&Ruhl,” said Caroline Ruhl, President of Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS, adding that the company had 3.2% more transactions in 2010 than in 2009 and sales volume grew 2.6% from 2009 to 2010.

On average, Ruhl&Ruhl agents sold 15.5 properties per agent, as either listing or selling agents, which places Ruhl&Ruhl agents among the most productive in the country. The National Association of Realtors reports an average of 7 sales per agent nationally.

 “We are excited and proud to earn this ranking,” Ruhl said. “I have been blessed to be surrounded by the best people in our business. At the end of the day, it always comes down to having the right people.”

A family-owned company since 1862, Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS annually sells nearly 3,800 homes in eastern Iowa, western Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin. Caroline Ruhl is the President and owner of Ruhl&Ruhl REALTORS, and is the fourth generation of the Ruhl family to lead the residential brokerage and home services company.  Headquartered in Davenport, Iowa, the company has 265 sales associates and 50 employees based in sales offices located in Bellevue, Bettendorf, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Coralville, Davenport, DeWitt, Dubuque, Maquoketa, and Muscatine, in Iowa, and in Moline, Illinois.  In addition to residential sales, Ruhl&Ruhl offers services in relocation, new home sales, farm and land sales, senior services, real estate investment and mortgage services through 1862 Mortgage and insurance services through Nelson Brothers Insurance.  For more information on Ruhl&Ruhl, visit their website at www.RuhlHomes.com.