If you are thinking of buying your first piece of Macomb County real estate, you now have more options than at any other time in the history of the Detroit Metro area! Did you know…

• Bad credit is not as big a problem you think. If you have bruised or bad credit, lenders are more flexible and will help you buy. Even if you don’t have money for the down payment, there are options you can utilize.
• If you are not ready to financially commit but need to move, you have options. There are “Lease with Option to Buy” homes all over Macomb County. Sellers and even banks holding foreclosed homes are willing to offer this, just to get a small return on their homes.
• You have more buying power now. Think of it, a 6 percent interest rate on a mortgage gives you more house for the dollar. Additionally, some homes are discounted by as much as $25,000 to $100,000! These two factors working at the same time in Macomb County real estate are like pure gold in your pocket!
• You have more homes to view and compare. The inventory of homes for sale in Macomb County is staggering but it’s to your benefit. You can pick and choose the perfect home for you and your family.
• Sellers are thinking outside the box. Sellers are thinking creatively in order to get their homes sold. They are throwing in appliances, offering to pay some of your closing costs, and are willing to give a discount for new carpeting. Some sellers are even offering free vacations!

Take advantage of the unusual real estate market in Macomb County. Buy low and sell high later. It is a great investment!

For more information about buying your first home in Macomb County, contact Jeannie Sample: Your 24/7 Realtor at HomeCoach@hotmail.com, or call 810-614-2120 or 586-751-0000.

If you catch the doom-and-gloomnews on TV and in our newspapers, you would think we should see people hanging themselves from every visible yardarm in Macomb County and the metro-Detroit area. However, I am seeing new and exciting things happening this spring. The grip of winter is over and fear is lifting from people who are banding together! Putting aside their competitive instincts, other Realtors are calling me and we are working together to make things happen. We are not only thinking outside the box, but we are taking positive action.

In addition, homebuyers are peeking their heads out and making decisions again. The phones are ringing, the emails are filling up and homes are going on the market, which means more buyers are shifting.

With these facts in mind, if you are considering making a move, the time to act is now. In the dead of summer, it will be just that: dead. The Macomb County real estate market is very predictable in that regard. Sure, you will have to take less money for your home this year, but you will also get the deal of the century on your next home. There are deals out there that will simply amaze you. The key is to plan your Macomb County real estate move wisely and with care and take advantage of the spring surge.

Call Jeannie Sample for answers to all your Macomb County real estate questions: (810) 614-2120.

Macomb County has experienced no natural disaster, no terrorist attack, but residents have been hit by an economic disaster that is no less devastating. With the automobile industry and other manufacturing businesses reeling from overseas competition, job cutbacks and layoffs are eroding the local economies. Homeowners have been able to weather the storm for some time by borrowing against the equity in their homes, but even these hidden stores of wealth are beginning to run out. Without jobs and with no or lousy health insurance, the average citizen has less disposable income, and the effects are rippling through other businesses.

No doubt about it, Macomb County is in a crisis. The question is how do we recover from this crisis and return Macomb County to the thriving metropolitan area we know it can be?

The first step is to change our collective attitude. Negative, defeatist thinking has never led to improvement, and complacency has only gotten us into this mess. We need to develop and nurture a positive, can-do attitude in all of the citizens of Macomb County, young and old. ?¢‚Ǩ?ìLocation, location, location,?¢‚Ǩ¬ù is the mantra for success in real estate, but the mantra for success in our community is ?¢‚Ǩ?ìpositive, positive, positive.?¢‚Ǩ¬ù People who have no faith have to see to believe. People with faith know that they must believe in order to see. To have any hope at achieving success, we have to first believe in it.

In this slumping Michigan economy and in the real estate market that I love, however, having a positive attitude doesn?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t seem to be sufficient in and of itself. A positive attitude doesn?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t create jobs, make homes easier to sell, or pay the mortgage. Some suggest that Mr. and Mrs. Homeowner simply cut back?¢‚Ǩ‚Äùdownsize. Well, that?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s certainly good in theory, but when homeowners discover that they can?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t get enough for their home to pay off the mortgage, that option is quickly off the table. The only good coming out of all this is that the decline in housing prices will make housing more affordable for the average Joe or Joan, but that?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s little consolation right now, particularly to anyone who?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s making a living in the real estate business.

The solution, it seems, requires a community effort?¢‚Ǩ‚Äùsome grass-roots economic activism. Politicians need to encourage new business startups to tap into the local pools of talent and begin generating some well-paying jobs. We need to provide education to enable our citizens to compete in the global economy. We need to tighten our fiscal belts to keep from going belly up, but loosen them enough to keep cash flowing through local businesses and organizations. Most of all, we need to stay put and work together.

As far as offering specific solutions to recover from the current crisis, I have little to say, but I can offer some general guidelines for the housing industry. From what I have observed over the past several years, I?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢ve realized that our industry is often a cutthroat every-man-for-himself business. Real estate professionals as well and lenders have been more motivated by their own self-interests than by any commitment to build a healthy and thriving industry. Tempting homeowners with risky, interest-only loans and adjustable-rate mortgages, lenders have encouraged homeowners to strip their homes of the equity needed to secure those homes during tough economic times. Real estate professionals have contributed to the problem as well through inflated appraisals, shady contracts, back door deals, and encouraging buyers to purchase more house than they can afford.

Given the current crises, we need to stop measuring success by our own bottom lines and invest in doing what?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s best for the long-term health of our communities and the real estate industry. We must constantly remind ourselves that what?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s best for the homeowner and for our neighbors is what?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s best for us. We need to act with integrity. Times of crises test the soul and character. In these times, we need to be true to our souls and act with integrity. Our lives and the collective lives of all residents of Macomb County depend on it.