Immaculate 4/2.5 Home For Lease in Charleston, SC!

True rocking chair front porch in one of Charleston's most desirable neighborhoods! I'On offers the quaint home-town feel and historic character of the penninsula without the expense & hassle. This home backs up to the Rookery so is very private and quiet, but is an easy 5 minute walk to the shops & dining in the town square! Steps away you can enjoy the many fabulous events that take place at the Ampitheater, and of course the extensive walking trails throughout the community are immediately accessible. I'On also boasts a private boat launch, swim & tennis facilities, numerous playgrounds, and a multitude of fabulous community events throughout the year for the whole family!

This immaculate 2500sf 4 bedroom/2.5 bath home offers a large master on the main floor with huge walk-in closet, master bath with dual vanities & garden tub, and natural light galore. The kitchen has tons of storage, solid-surface counters, breakfast bar, and upgraded appliances. Opens to living and dining area with a spacious feel which is perfect for entertaining! Enjoy a fabulous fireplace in the living room as well as gleaming heart pine floors & custom trim work throughout this beautiful home. The 3 upstairs bedrooms are a great size with ample closet space and walk-in storage in the hall...in fact, there is tons of extra storage space throughout! Nice two-car garage and plenty of extra parking available in the driveway. Great floor plan for roommates or a family! No smokers please.

$2500/month

Agent of the Month!

I was incredibly pleased to find out last week that I am the Agent of the Month in my office for October! Usually that award goes to one of the many agents in my office who have been in the business for many many many years, so I was really proud to get it barely a year after I started my real estate career. Hope this is a great sign of things to come!

Happy Clients: Dana

"After searching for over three years for the perfect piece of property, Alix helped me make my dream a reality. A home on 15 acres for horses only 11 miles from downtown Atlanta! Talk about acheiving the impossible!!!"

- Dana M.

My housewarming gift to Dana

I met Dana two years ago when I started back riding horses, a lifelong hobby that had taken a back-burner after college due to time constraints. I leased Dana's horse Vic from her for a year and she quickly morphed from my trainer into a great friend!

In early Fall 2007, Dana approached me about helping her find her dream property: acreage that she could have horses on as close to downtown Atlanta as possible. Not an easy feat on a budget! I knew because of zoning restraints, this was going to be a tough one and that I was going to have to think outside the box. The trick with finding property that is appropriate for horses is finding something with enough cleared acreage for pastures to support them which is also zoned to allow them. The trick to making it affordable is to look at property that is not currently being used/sold as horse property, as that typically comes with a premium price tag. This involved some digging on my part to make sure I really understood the various zoning restrictions and building codes, while also juggling the specific needs Dana personally had for the property.

After quite a bit of digging and several phone calls, we located what seemed like the perfect piece of property: a 5 bedroom home in Stone Mountain sitting on 15 acres of land, 14.75 of which were in a flood plain. This was ideal because the property was not valuable to a developer since it was in a flood plain, therefore keeping the price down. We went to see the property and were very pleasantly surprised! Over half the land had already been cleared and it was nice and flat; there were several existing outbuildings that could be easily converted into shelters for the horses and storage for their food & equipment; and the house was a great size and literally 15 minutes from downtown Atlanta. It was perfect!

The Atlanta Jump Club enjoys the new farm!

Unfortunately, it was also already under contract to someone else. I spoke with the listing agent and found out that the current buyers were having problems with their financing, so we submitted a very strong back-up contract and I spent the next 2 weeks calling the other agent every day trying to find out what was going on and if there was anything we could do to get our contract in first position. This property was just too perfect for what Dana needed to let it slip away. There finally came a point where the buyers were asking for another extension due to financing problems. I took that opportunity to give the other agent my hard-sell about why my client and our offer were the better option and was able to convince him and his clients not to agree to the extension and instead put ours into first place. Hallelujah!!!

Pounding in the fence posts for the new pasture!

After a scary delay due to some fairly serious title problems with the property, the attorney finally got it worked out and we closed in November '07. Dana now happily lives at "Jump Club Acres" with several horses and her dog Ripple and has made many improvements to the property including building a barn, fencing 4 pastures, and creating a riding arena. My own two dogs love to go out and visit her and run around with Ripple while Dana and I enjoy watching the horses graze from her back deck. CONGRATS DANA!!!

Well-selected Residential Real Estate Will Always Go Up In Value

According to the most recent report (2nd quarter, 2008) from the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, home prices/values in Georgia continue to rise. There has not been a 12-month period in which home values have declined in Georgia. Click here for that report.

The Consumer Bailout That Nobody Knows About

RISMEDIA, Oct. 1, 2008-

As congress considers various bailout proposals for the financial system, there is a little known ‘bailout’ for home owners that has already been enacted into law, according to Gibran Nicholas, Chairman of the CMPS Institute, an organization that certifies mortgage bankers and brokers. Section 1403 of the new housing bill that was signed into law on July 30, 2008 (HR 3221) requires mortgage servicers to modify loans for homeowners and help them avoid foreclosure as long as three requirements are met:

1. Default on the mortgage either has already happened or is “reasonably foreseeable”
2. The home owner is living in the property as his or her primary residence
3. The lender is likely to recover more through the loan modification or workout than by forcing the home owner into foreclosure

“The fact is that this law is effective immediately, and most distressed home owners are simply not aware that they have this option,” Nicholas said. Borrowers make their monthly payments to mortgage servicers, and servicers keep a portion of the payment as their profit while sending the rest to the Wall Street investors who actually own the mortgage. “This law requires servicers to act in the best interest of all their investors and obligates them to modify your loan if you can afford the modified loan terms and if they are likely to recover more for their investors by working with you than by going all the way through the foreclosure process,” Nicholas said.

When negotiating a loan modification with your mortgage lender, it is advisable to follow this four step process:

1. Make sure you are dealing with your lender’s loss mitigation and/or work out department.
2. Write a hardship letter demonstrating job loss, serious medical condition, balloon payment coming due, adjustable rate reset or some other financial calamity that will make it impossible for you to continue making your mortgage payments as scheduled. Unless you are in imminent danger of default as required by this new law, lenders are not likely to work with you.
3. Send the lender your financial statements, employment records, tax returns and bank statements demonstrating how you would be able to afford the modified loan terms under your present financial circumstances
4. Send the lender a current appraisal of your home or some documentation on recent comparable sales in your neighborhood demonstrating the current value of your home.“The key is to demonstrate how the lender is likely to recover less money through foreclosure than they would by working with you in your proposed loan modification plan,” Nicholas said.

Here is a sample letter that you can use during your renegotiation.

It may be advisable to consult with an attorney - especially if you qualify for a loan modification under the law and your lender still refuses to work with you.

For more information, visit www.CMPSInstitute.org or call 888.608.9800.