Aug
30
Carmel Realtor gets it done
Posted by searchcarmelhomes under Bargains, Deals and Steals, For Buyers, For Sellers, General Information
I have another Carmel Real Estate story to share. Jim and Nicole were living in Avon and travelling to the NE side of Indy each day for their jobs. They really wanted to live in Carmel, great schools, lots of things to do and much shorter commuting time. But sometimes what you can afford and what you want don’t always play nice together. Enter bank owned properties!
This home was located in the Woodlands, which is a one of the most popular neighborhoods in Carmel because it is so close to the interstates and so convenient to 96th street with it restaurants and shops. Keystone Mall is just a few minutes drive. Of course, the minute we put in our bid; we were in a multiple bid situation. I have written about strategies to get the deal done, so I won’t belabor the point here. Just know in the end, my clients got the home.
The home they bought was listed at $175,000 and had just over 2300 sq ft but it had an in-ground pool which made my clients (or at least one of them) giddy! It did need a lot of work; you couldn’t open the garage door into the home and have the refrigerator door open at the same time.
The woods were very dark with vinyl flooring (orange in the foyer!) and butcher block counter-tops in the kitchen for starters. See the picture to the left, don’t you love that overhead florescent light!
The home was built in 1978 and I would venture to say there had been no improvements since that time.
Jim and Nicole used what is called a 203K loan add on to their home loan. This gave them additional cash over and above the mortgaged 
amount to do the renovations with mortgaged dollars to conserve their personal cash. This is not an easy process, it requires a lender who has done these types of loans before and it requires a lot of legwork on the part of the buyer. The repairs you want made must be documented by a contractor and presented in written form with dollars attached. Then once the loan closes you can “draw” funds to cover the costs of repairs. There are limits on the amount of the loan ($35,000), but the work you can include is just about anything such as new carpet, appliances, new furnace, etc. Jim and Nicole were also able to get dollars to repair the pool.
In a few short months, the home was transformed. It doesn’t hurt that Nicole has an interior decorator living in her brain! This is the third home she has bought from me and every time she buys one, I am amazed at the transformation. She knows what is hip and yet can take those elements and create a home that exudes warmth.
So in the end Jim and Nicole have bought a home for sale in Carmel, renovated it with the bank’s money and are living happily ever after! She promised to send me the photograph of their updated kitchen so I will posts that as soon as I get it. Stay tuned.
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Cindy œin Indy Marchant – Carmel Real Estate Agent
Keller Williams Realty Indy Metro NE
Carmel IN Real Estate Website
317-290-7775
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Jul
21
Interest Rates make home buying worth it!
Posted by searchcarmelhomes under Bargains, Deals and Steals, Buying a Home, For Buyers, For Sellers, General Information
I recently refinanced my home because the rates got so low even I couldn’t resist! Many first time buyers or even move up buyers weren’t ready to make a move during the tax credit time period; but it may have worked to their benefit.
Here’s an example:
Sale price of a home is equal to $200,000
Buyer puts 3.5% down (the least amount you can put down unless you are a veteran or buy in a very rural area) making his mortgage $193,000.
At a 6% interest rate (which is what they were during the tax credit time period for the most part); the prinicple and interest would be $1,158 each month.
At a 4.5% interest rate, that same principle and interest would be $965 saving $193 each month.
It would take less than four years to recoup the $8,000 tax credit. On average people stay five to seven years in a home making buying a home now at today’s interest rates a much better decision.
If you stayed 30 years, your savings would be well over $50,000!
Here is another great reason to buy now. Sellers are very motivated because the buyer pool did dry up post April 30th and their homes are still on the market in many cases. A motivated seller combined with a low interest rate make this a perfect time to buy a new home.
As a Carmel Real Estate Agent, I can help you find a home with a pool, a home with a master on the main level, a home with a fenced yard, etc. My criteria search is broader than the general public so that we can find the perfect home for for sale in Carmel for you.
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Cindy œin Indy Marchant – Carmel Real Estate Agent
Keller Williams Realty Indy Metro NE
Carmel IN Real Estate Website
317-290-7775
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Jul
5
Top 5 Deals in Carmel Indiana Real Estate
Posted by searchcarmelhomes under Bargains, Deals and Steals, For Buyers, General Information
There are currently 882 homes for sale in Carmel Indiana, of those 132 are condo’s leaving 750 homes. Of those 750 homes, only 15 are bank owned or in foreclosure. After looking at those, I’ve found the top 5 deals in Carmel Real Estate!
- West Carmel is one of the most desirable areas in the Metro Indy area to live, and this first house is in Spring Run Estates located at 106th near Ditch Road. The address is 10905 Crooked Stick. It is a 5900 sq ft home with an additional 1860 in the unfinished basement. It has five bedrooms and 5 1/2 baths. It is on 1.5 acres of land. Listed at $435,000; the tax record is showing an assessment of $708,000. The average price per sq ft of homes sold in Carmel with at least 5,000 sq ft (always important to compare apples to apples) is $119.00; with the lowest in the past year at $85.00. This home is currently listed at $74/sq ft.
- The second choice is a home in Woodfield; which is located at 146th and Gray. I love this neighborhood so I kept it in my list; although of the five it is the least of a deal. The address is 5279 Woodfield Drive and it is listed for $419,900. It has five bedrooms and 4 1/2 baths and nearly 3,500 sq ft with an additional 1,600 of finished basement. It is on nearly 1/2 acre of land. It had pended on 6/3 after barely three weeks on the market and is now back as active. The average price of the solds in Woodfield is $112/sq ft; this home is listed at $122/sq ft. The tax assessment, however is at $461,000.
- The Enclave at Carmel is a great condo community at 126th and Keystone; most with water views. The home at 608 Melark is my #3 pick. At $176,900 it is priced at $108/sq ft while the average in the neighborhood is $125/sq ft. The tax assessement is $225,000 and it sold in 2004 for $185,000. It is a two bedroom plus and office with two full baths and is 1636 sq ft. It came on the market on 6/1/10 and was reduced last week to the $176,900. It will go quickly, let me know right away if you or someone you know wants to see it.
- I thought I would include another condo and that is at Guilford Reserve, the address is 980 Brownstone. It is listed at $174,900 and the tax assessment is $276,000. It was listed at $375,000 a year ago. Most of the condo’s in the Guilford and 116th area are in the $250,000 range. It is a two bedroom plus an office three story home. The fees are $240 per month.
- My number 5 choice is 374 Kimbrough in Parkside at Rangline and 126th. It is listed for $94,000; that alone is reason to include it. It is hard to be in Carmel for less than $100,000. Built in 1996, it is a 1141 sq ft home with two bedrooms and two full baths. It sold in 2003 in 14 days for $114,000. Their is one other home that is active in the neighborhood at $122,900. It would be a great starter home.
As a reminder, I only looked at bank owned this time. My experience with short sales is that typically they take too long to get to the closing table negating any type of deal. It is important to have a Carmel Real Estate Agent who can look at the history of a home you are considering, compare it to the neighborhood if it makes sense or to similar homes outside the neighborhood if needed and to understand the motivation of the selling party to ensure you get the best price for the Carmel home you want to buy.
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Cindy œin Indy Marchant – Carmel Real Estate Agent
Keller Williams Realty Indy Metro NE
Carmel IN Real Estate Website
317-290-7775
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Apr
25
Bank Owned Real Estate in Carmel Indiana
Posted by searchcarmelhomes under Bargains, Deals and Steals, For Buyers, For Sellers, General Information
Today, there are 12 homes that are bank owned in the Carmel Real Estate market. That surprises me, seems there would be a lot more. Could it be we are finally moving out of the distressed property season?
The most expensive is currently at 11495 Chateaux Drive. This home is assessed at $1,632,000 and is on the market for $1,290,000. It is 5,268 sq ft and then an additional 3,805 in the basement. That is one huge basement! The master at 20 x 16 is on the main level and there are an additional three bedrooms upstairs and another one in the basement.
There are five full baths (that is a lot of cleaning!) and two half baths in the home. The basement has a 20 x 16 play room and a 23 x 19 family room. HTere are three fireplaces. The back yard is over an acre.
The home is located off of 116th west of Spring Mill and carries a 46032 zip code. There is a four car garage on the home.
There is also one in Bellewood for $489,000 that has 4,313 sq ft and an additional 2,200 in the basement. I recently assisted a buyer in this neighborhood buy a home that sold for $726,000 in 2007 for nearly half of that in 2009!
The deals are still out there for bank owned homes in Carmel, call or email me for a complete list. Or you can subscribe to my bank owned list by supplying your email address. Then you will know the minute they come on the market and can make a bid and hopefully beat the dreaded “best and final” phase!
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Cindy œin Indy Marchant – Carmel Real Estate Agent
Keller Williams Realty Indy Metro NE
Carmel IN Real Estate Website
317-290-7775
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Nov
20
Carmel Indiana Foreclosure Homes for Sale
Posted by searchcarmelhomes under Bargains, Deals and Steals, For Buyers, For Sellers, General Information
I love working for Keller Williams, we are rolling out our new one click for Foreclosure Homes in Carmel Indiana that are for Sale! The Marchant Team strives to make looking for homes for sale as easy as possible with a variety of tools.
We have a Quick Search that is by price, a foreclosure by city, a Neighborhood Search and ways to search with your phone.
To see all of the functionality, take a click over to the Marchant Team Website and start trying out all the new features.
Keep in mind with a foreclosure home or short sale, it will take time to get the transaction to the closing table. Banks have so many files and do not have the trained manpower to move through this as quickly and efficiently as we would like. Also keep in mind that before the sellers went into foreclosure, they probably stopped maintaining their home making cosmetic or minor repairs likely and major repairs possible.
We have a Certified Distressed Property Expert on our team and if you have questions, we can answer them.
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Cindy œin Indy Marchant – Carmel Real Estate Agent
Keller Williams Realty Indy Metro NE
Carmel IN Real Estate Website
317-290-7775
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Aug
30
Bargains, Deals, and Steals in the Carmel Real Estate Market for September
Posted by searchcarmelhomes under Bargains, Deals and Steals, Buying a Home, For Buyers, For Sellers, General Information
Your Carmel Realtor would like to make Bargains, Deals and Steals a monthly or quarterly feature in her blog. I am going to shoot for monthly; we’ll see how I do!
I wrote my first Carmel Home Bargains post in July and gave you a summary of how I find these properties for you. I won’t repeat all of that, but I do spend quite a bit of time researching the inventory and related data to determine which distressed properties are probably the best deals.
To recap the properties from last month:
- 1267 Smokey Row was listed for $234,900 and sold for $195,000 in 19 days!
- 5275 S Woodfield Drive listed for $445,000 has an accepted offer in 29 days!
- 10725 Downing Street for $178,000 is still available; but keep in mind this was a short sale so identifying the “exact” closing date is impossible and many people may not be able to wait.
This month; I had a couple that were great and they have sold in less than a week. The one I liked the best was at Long Branch Estates for $329,000 and over 4,000 sq ft, had an offer in four days! But here are my Top 3 Carmel Real Estate Bargains:
1) 12820 University Crescent for $70,000! It was just reduced Friday from $100,000 to $70,000; this is the typcial price of the 766 sq ft units and this one is 1,544 sq ft. The other similar sq ft condo is listed at $154,900 currently. The tax record is showing $183,200. It is a Short Sale and so you will need time; a close date really can’t be determined until the offer is made and submitted. There are key questions you need to ask the listing Realtor ®, so please contact me if you have interest in this property.
2) 418 Lexington Blvd at 131st and Keystone for $129,000. It sold in 2004 for $157,000 and the tax record is just slightly below that currently. It is priced at $63/sq ft and the average listed and sold is approximately $80 a sq ft. It is also a short sale.
3)1449 Gwynmere Run in Claridge Farm at 116th and Hoover is a nearly 5,000 sq foot home with a finished basement for $382,695. The tax record is well over $100,000 more and the average price in the neighborhood is right at about $135/sq ft. So this home is priced 25% below the average. It sold for $360,000 in 1997 and $415,000 in 2002. The sellers is offering 3.5% closing cost credit if closed by 12/31/09. Any takers?
That completes my review of the homes for sale in Carmel this month that seem to be the best deals. Of course, a tour through the homes and inspection would definitely be needed to determine the best price to offer.
About 40% of my business is in representing buyers in distressed property transactions, so I do know the right questions to ask. Even better, Susan Timmerman, on my team is a Certified Distressed Property Expert. You need expert representation both in selling (i.e. education on deficiency judgements) and in buying (timing and financing options). Our team would like the opportunity to work with you!
Search homes with one local phone number
Search Carmel Indiana Real Estate by Neighborhood
Search Carmel Indiana Real Estate by Price
Cindy œin Indy Marchant – Carmel Real Estate Agent
Keller Williams Realty Indy Metro NE
Carmel IN Real Estate Website
317-290-7775
