What a Fantastic Endorsement From Gary LeVox of Rascal Flatts

Recently, we were fortunate enough to be endorsed by Gary LeVox of Rascal Flatts. Here’s what he had to say about our team.

We were fortunate enough to recently land an endorsement from one of our favorite musicians, Gary LeVox of Rascal Flatts. You can check out the full endorsement in the video above, but what really stood out to us was that the message of his music and the message of our business aren’t so different after all.

“When 'I’m Moving On' won the award for ACM song of the year, it struck a chord with folks who understand the challenges that come with life’s big changes. For many, that time comes when they sell their home. If you’re moving on, you want a team that will make selling your home easy and stress-free.” - Gary LeVox

It’s always our goal to make things as stress-free as possible.

He hit the nail on the head there. It’s always our goal to make things as stress-free as possible for all of our buyers and sellers. We outsold every agent in Fairfield and New Haven County in 2016 and if we can’t sell your home at a price and deadline that we both agree to, we will buy it.

If you have any questions for us, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!

Kind Words From Danny Lyons About Carbutti & Co.

We appreciate all the kind words we receive from our past clients. Here’s one of them, WEBE 108’s Danny Lyons. 

We were recently fortunate enough to talk to Danny Lyons from WEBE 108 right in the Lyon’s Den. Danny has worked with us in the past and has a lot of nice things to say about his experience, such as:

“Jonathan’s a family man. That’s really important to me. He’s also loyal like I am. I’ve been loyal to my listeners for over 30 years and I know that if you were to hire Jonathan to be your agent, he would be loyal to you and commit himself completely to getting the job done.”

We’re proud to have Danny in our corner.

A lot of real estate companies have their phone lines set up to go to a switchboard or a team of ISAs who may or may not be able to connect you with the person you’re looking for, even if you just had a quick question. That’s not what we do, as Danny points out.

“When you call that number, I think it’s Jonathan’s cell phone. The first time I called it, he answered the phone. To me, that means a lot. To be able to get right through to the guy who has his name on the company? That’s customer service.”

Thanks to Danny for the kind words. We appreciate having him in our corner. If you have any questions for us or want to know what we can do specifically to help you with your real estate goals, give us a call or send us an email. We would love to hear from you soon.

Why HUD Homes Are Hidden Gems in Our Market

HUD homes are a great option for buyers. Here’s why.

I know, I sound like a broken record talking about HUD homes. You’re probably sick of me talking about them, but listen. The reason I’m continuing to discuss these homes is because I want to get some of you off the fence by seeing the incredible value here.

Just this morning, a three bedroom, one bathroom home came on the market in Wallingford. It’s a 3-bedroom, one-bathroom, and a one-car garage home on a half-acre lot. This home is currently listed for sale at $149,000. It’s available to owner-occupants first, meaning that if you plan on living in the property, you get the first shot at it.

Here’s the other great news about this HUD home in particular. It’s marked as insurable. That means is that HUD will sell this property to someone who is going for an FHA mortgage and insure it for only a 3.5% down payment.

If you’re a first-time buyer, you would have to be crazy not to consider jumping on these homes. Yes, they might need a paint job or new flooring, but the bones are all there. If an HUD home is marked as insurable, that means the electric, plumbing, and furnace all work, so you don’t have to worry about replacing them, unless you find something different at your inspection.

An insured HUD home is ideal.

Another great thing about HUD homes is that you can inspect them. A lot of people think they can’t, but they’re wrong. It’s true that you do have to buy these properties as-is, but an inspection can be a very useful tool in deciding whether you’re making the right decision. If you have an inspection done and find something wrong with the home you didn’t know about before, you have two options. You can either make the decision to go through with the purchase or you can back out of the deal, get your deposit back, and go buy something else.

I’m oversimplifying the process, but the truth is that it is simple for me because I’ve sold and purchased so many of them. I’ve sold and bid on hundreds of HUD homes. If you have any questions about them whatsoever or would like more details about what the process is like, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. We look forward to hearing from you!

The Latest Trends in Our Local Real Estate Market

How is the market doing in Wallingford and New Haven County? This January has been the busiest start to a new year that we’ve seen in awhile, and it looks like the spring market will be extremely busy, too. 

Here is your market update for Wallingford and New Haven County:

The median list price is at $299,900. That is the median list price, not the median sales price. Inventory has been tightening and days on market are decreasing, which is great news for sellers.

Personally, I’ve noticed that January of 2017 has been the busiest start to a new year that we’ve seen in three years. If that’s any indication of how the spring market is going to be, things are looking good.

It looks like the spring market will be an extremely busy one!

If you are looking to upgrade from your first home, now is one of the best times to do so. You will get the most house for your money because of these low interest rates. Rates are expected to rise as the year goes on, so the sooner you can buy, the better. Remember, as interest rates go up, your buying power goes down. 

One of the other things I want to point out is the market action index. The market action index tells us how the market is doing by measuring what’s for sale versus what’s actually selling. Anything 30 or below means that the buyer has an advantage in the market, while anything over 30 means that sellers have the advantage. Right now, the market action index is at 29.1, so the market is fairly balanced. However, that number is heading upwards, which is good news for sellers.

If you have any other questions about the marketplace or about selling your home, give us a call or send us an email. My team and I would be happy to help you!

Happy New Year

Happy New Year! 

 It’s the start of a new year, and I wanted to give you an important real estate tip. The spring market starts now! Even if you’re thinking about putting your house on the market in May or June, you should be speaking with a real estate professional now, to come up with a game-plan. 

If you’re thinking about putting your home on the market, please contact us for a free consultation. We’ll be happy to set up an appointment with you to go over the value of your home, and our marketing plans.

Holiday Greetings from Carbutti & Company

As the year winds down, I wanted to send you a special message. Thanks for your support this year.

I just wanted to take a moment to stop by and wish everyone happy holidays and a happy New Year.

2016 was a record-breaking year here at Carbutti & Company, and I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who supported us and tell you how grateful I am that you chose us to help you with your real estate needs. 

I am looking forward to seeing each and every one of you in 2017. God bless, have a great holiday, and I look forward to talking to you next year. If you have any questions or any real estate needs in the meantime, give me a call or send me an email. We’re always here to help.

What Renovation Loans Are Available?

Home renovation loans are great for homeowners and investors alike. You can make your home look just the way you want it with any of these products.

There is a lot of confusion surrounding renovation loans. Can you really borrow money to fix up your home and make it exactly the way you want it to be?

The answer is yes. There are some really great renovation loan products in the marketplace right now. For example, the FHA 203k renovation loan is a federally insured mortgage that allows you to use just 3.5% of your own money. You can also build in the cost of the rehab right into the loan.

There are some great renovation loan products in the marketplace right now.

Another renovation loan you might not have heard of is the Fannie Mae HomeStyle Renovation Mortgage. This program is for owner-occupants who want to fix up the home and live there.

If you are an investor, there is also a great product out there for you. You can use just 15% of your own money for the whole renovation, flip the house, and then resell for a profit.

We use a great company called Prospect Mortgage, one of the largest renovation loan providers in the country. We would be happy to refer you to them.

In fact, Carbutti & Co. Realtors will be teaming up with Prospect Mortgage to provide an informative seminar for people looking to buy a home. This seminar will help potential home buyers understand some of the in's and out's of the home buying process that you might not be aware of if you have never gone through this complex process. Click here to register for that seminar on Tuesday, December 6th from 6:00pm-9:00pm. 

If you want to find out more about these renovation loans, give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you out!