A seller left a comment about her NE side Columbus home on this site on an entry about NW Columbus:

I delete all the spam ads left here as comments too...

Nice try Bridgett.  All comments on this site are moderated. I remove all ads left here so  I deleted the comment.  I am sympathetic but I am not going to advertise a competitors listing for them.  Bridgett's  home is in the property search on this site, for any buyer who is looking for this type of home. The property is in the search on all Real Living HER sites.  Bridgett's home is probably on the majority of Central Ohio real estate websites, that's how real estate works. The information on the house is available to buyers looking for that kind of home.  The seller leaving the address as a comment on real estate blogs is NOT going to get the home sold in my humble opinion. 

If anyone is interested in a home in a particular area at a particular price will find the homes on a real estate website, or their real estate agent will email the listing to them... they aren't going to find it in the comments on a website...and rush over to find it based on an address and a brokers name...

What buyers care about a home

The information that anyone looking for a home was missing from Bridgett's  comment anyway. The home is a three bedroom, bi level with a one car garage, according to the multiple listing service (MLS).  Her home is in a neighborhood just south of Morse Rd.  It was built in the early 1970's.   Pricewise... it's between $90,000 and $129,900.  I edited out the price realizing that anyone who really cares which seller is desparate enough to comment spam real estate blogs could find the house via the property search....

Of course buyers are not in sight...

The bad news for Bridgett, it's a buyers market!  Bridgett may be waiting a LOT longer than six months for her  home to sell based on the market.  Spamming a real estate blog with a property address is probably not going to get the home sold any quicker.  The graph at the top shows the estimated time to sell a home in the ZIP code and price range based on recent (only through November 2007) sales.

The scoop on the 43224 ZIP code

There are 102 properties for sale in the 43224 ZIP code priced between $90,000 and $129,900 at the end of November 2007... In the month of November 3 homes  sold (closed) and 6 homes went under contract (Pended)...  That means there is 17 months supply of homes based on the rate of homes going under contract or as much as 34 months based on what actually closed... hopefully the TrendGraphix report for December will look more promising.... for Bridgett's neighborhood.

The table below shows for the past 15 Months what homes in ZIP code 43224 in the price range have done...  how many homes have been available (for sale) how many homes have sold (closed.. seller gets the money) how many homes were under contract (pended, some close some never do... )  

A graphic representation of the table shows:

The light green bars in the graph are homes for sale by month.  The dark green bars are homes sold.  The red line shows the homes that went under contract (pended.) 

Good luck Bridgett

The table and charts are from TrendGraphix.  The statistics are from the Columbus Board of Realtors multiple listing service.  These are single family and condominium properties combined.

Wouldn't it be great if all you need to sell a house was an address? You could post an address and people would rush right over to look at it?  That would be a sellers market...

Copyright 2008 Discover Columbus and Maureen McCabe

Central Ohio home sellers here's a quiz on FHA financing and what it means to you as a seller.

True or False

1. FHA requires "Electrical Ground Fault Interrupters (GFI)" circuits to be installed when a plug / outlet is within 6 feet of a water outlet.

True
False

2. FHA requires handrails where there are three steps or more.


True
False

3. FHA requires a termite inspection on a home.

True
False

4. FHA requires an electrical certification on a home.

True
False

5. FHA requires a roof certification on a home.

True
False

6. FHA requires a furnace certification on older homes with gravity feed or steam (registers) heat furnaces.

True
False

7. FHA requires the seller to pay for the underwriting, commitment and processing fees for the buyers loan.

True
False

8. FHA appraisal are more likely to under-appraise than a conventional mortgage loan because the appraiser has a different set of requirements.

True
False

9. FHA loans allow for carpeting and /or decorating allowances in a purchase agreement.

True
False

10. FHA requires chipping paint to be scraped and repainted on homes built after 1978.

True
False

Tabulate your answers...


and scroll down to see the correct answers for FHA financing today... in 2007






The answers to all the questions is "False."

The seller does not have to worry about certifying roofs, the electrical system, the structural system (except on manufactured housing) Or a heating system. There is not a requirement for GFI outlets to be installed. There is not a requirement that the house be tested for termites or other wood destroying insects (the purchase contract may require a termite exam but FHA does not. It is negotiated in the contract with the buyer.)

That is not to say that if the roof is leaking you don't have to disclose it. Or that if there are signs of a defect in the roof for example that the appraiser is not going to ask for a roof certification. If there is a stain on a ceiling the appraiser could ask for the roof to be certified but not all roofs, electrical systems, structural systems, furnaces, etc. have to be certified.

In the old days a house was considered guilty until proven innocent by FHA certifications to the contrary. Not anymore.

Homes built prior to 1978 the appraiser may require chipping paint to be scraped and repainted because of lead paint.

The seller no longer pays for any charges for the buyers loan other than the tax service fee ($80.)

The questions and answers were part of a quiz for a continuing education class taught by Susan McKnight, the branch manager for Real Living Mortgage in Columbus.

Contact me about offering your property to buyers with a free 1%, 1 year buydown. 30 year fiixed FHA financing with one year at a lower interest rate.