Greater Cleveland Real Estate Blog

Our company again listed and sold a house in Maple Heights, which seems to be a very good opportunity for serious investors.

It happened that exactly at the same time we wrote a letter of support to the City of Maple Heights, so our City could receive the Community Development Block Grant 2012.   

I admire the efforts which City of Maple Heights do in order to keep up with the troubles and real problems which our neighborhoods face.

It seems to be a good combination of investors' and the City's job. It makes me and our clients optimistic about investing in this strategically located and wisely governed City.

Just look at another opportunity and call us 877-770-5551 x 801.

5166 Stanley Ave., Maple Heights, OH 44137 SOLD$14,500 For more photos and detailed information, please visit: www.MapleHeightsRE.com      Home    Full Details    Photo Tour    Print Brochure    Property Map    Area Schools    Schedule a Showing    Email Property Info    Mortgage Calculator    About Me    Contact Me    Census Information    Area Amenities    Feedback Form    Walk Score    Image Library Investment opportunity in Maple Heights Maple Heights, OH - excellent chance to jump into an opportunity to bring back to life well designed home in desirable neighborhood of Maple Heights. It has many updates already completed, like newer siding and windows. Good floor plan, vaulted Great room with skylights and excellent location make this house a good choice for smart investor. Charming tree lined street in conveniently located neighborhood makes this house even more attractive. Property sold AS IS. Seller provides no disclosures. Buyer shall assume City of Maple Heights Point of Sale violations. Convenient location in minutes to I-480, shopping centers, hospitals, and major Cleveland amenities makes living in Maple Heights very attractive. Don't wait too long!   www.MapleHeightsRE.com   Features Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 2 Full Area: Maple Heights Style: Bungalow Sq. Ft.: 1,400 Lot Size: .132 acre Year Built: 1924 Svetlana Stolyarova Broker Local-n-Global Realty Office: 440-247-5388 Mobile: 216-548-HOME(4663) Email: Realty@Local-n-Global.com Website: Local-n-Global.com 24 Hrs. Hotline: 877-770-5551         Powered by AgencyLogic

Is Fannie Mae a Good Landlord? Should it be?

We all read about new governmental initiatives allowing Fannie, HUD and the banks to rent out their properties. Let me share my first experience in representing the buyers who are buying the property from Fannie Mae with the tenants in place.

      First, the sellers want tenants to stay at the house at least for 3 months after title transfer. That sounds reasonable to my clients. That sounds not bad to me. Except one little thing: I know that the City has an ordinance which requires new rental registration when either there is a change in ownership or a change in tenants. All our clients are aware of this and know that   they should be in compliance.

So, we ask the sellers's agent to provide us with the lease agreement which we receive. It's a good written agreement, nothing is unusual or odd about it. There is a high chance that new owners might want to keep these tenants if they make their payments and bring no troubles. Why not?

Surprises start when we call the City.

- Tenants in the house your clients buy are squatters! - that's exactly what I heard today from the City official.

- What do you mean? I know that there is a legitimate Lease agreement between Fannie Mae and the tenants.

- It's never been registered, house has never been inspected and certified for rent. Tenants may be in a big trouble because of these owners' negligence.

Oops!

Hopefully, these tenants will not get in troubles because we notified the seller's representative immediately, and, hopefully, they will take care of bringing their rental in compliance with local ordinances.

Hopefully, future tenants will not suffer because the big guys in Fannie just ignore local rules.

More hopefully, there will be no such thing as governmental housing. It's a private market, and let the private owners and private investors deal with the tenants, their rights and responsibilities. That's the only way to keep it alive.

Investing in Cleveland is a hot topic.

I am glad to invite you to the Investing in Cleveland Event which will take place at Local-n-Global Real Estate Center 05/05/2011 between 5:30 pm and 8 pm.

Cleveland Real Estate market 2011 presents numerous opportunities for home buyers and for Real Estate investors. Come to explore some opportunities and to network, consult and socialize with experts.

Good news for Greater Cleveland is that we have a big pool of domestic and internationl investors interested in buying Greater Cleveland Real Estate. Smart investors are attracted by low housing prices, steady rental market, great projects to revive Downtown Cleveland, including The Euclid Corridor, University Circle, Cleveland State University.

The perfect strategic location, Lake Erie with a huge supply of fresh water, great transportation system, deep cultural traditions, rich multilingual and multicultural communities, top hospitals like Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals, excellent educational opportunities, lovingly cared metroparks - all these features attract more and more people to invest in Cleveland.

I would celebrate this if it were not a huge concern over the way how people do their investments and what areas and properties they chose to invest into.  My concern is based on multiple calls and e-mails which I receive every day from potential or actual investors from all over the country and from overseas.

WARNING! It is dangerous for your money and well being to invest into properties which you've never seen before closing the deal. Even and Especially if you work with different investor's gurus who are not the REALTORS!

I feel sorry for people who base their decision to pay for investment (mostly - in big need of rehab) property certain amount of money based on tax assessed value or on Zestimates. It may look like a great deal from New York or California prospective BUT IT"S NOT!

So, I decided to start the series of simple rules for distant investors .

Rule # 1:

Work with trusted REALTOR. Good local REALTOR will be the best source of real information about the market condition, about the neighborhood, trends and development. Don't try to save on Market analysis! It may cost you much more than initial few hundred dollars.

Rule # 2:

Do your homework! Don't limit your homework to browsing the home evaluation portals. You may better order a complimentary Home evaluation at Local-n-Global.com which is based on up-to date information from the most trusted source - local Realtors.

Rule # 3:

Free cheese is only in the mousetrap! When the deal looks too good to be true, it sure is not that good. There is no such thing as a miracle on the market. Do the reality  check! If the new house is listed on public site for $1, it means only that this house is going to go to the auction. More likely, the selling price will be close to real and far far away from miracle $1. You have right to be presented by your REALTOR at the public auction.

 Need to sell or buy your Real estate in Greater Cleveland?

Call Local-n-Global Realty: 216-548-4663

E-mail to: Realty@Local-n-Global.com 

I receive more and more calls from people who are in a desperate need of renting some place to move in because their landlors's property is going to foreclosure! What a shame! Such situations show how deep is a crisis and how many people are really affected by the mess created by mortgage industry.

Mortgage boom and later mortgage crisis hit Greater Cleveland Real Estate market in muptiple ways. First of all, it "helped" to sell many of Cleveland homes which, IMHO, should've never been sold. I am talking about these crappy houses which were flipped without adding any impovements to them.

However, this kind of flipping practices is  much better than  business performed by many of unexperienced "investors" who overpaid for houses in need of rehab, paid a lot to repair them and never had a luck of selling or renting them out. As a result, we get a lot of houses looking like this one.

No wonder that we see so many foreclosed houses in a relatively good condition on Cleveland market today, which are selling for nothing. What a waste of resources!

However, the situation with mass foreclosures created another opportunity for serious investors. We have a great rental market today in Cleveland! You can buy a very decent house in nice neighborhood like South Euclid, Cleveland Heights, Shaker Heights, Mayfield Heights for a fracture of value. After a moderate repair (usually $10K-$15K) you may rent it out for $900-$1,100/month.

If you need to rent the nice house in Greater Cleveland, please consider this opportunity: 3 bedroom house in Lyndhurst for $1,250/month is offered for sale or for rent.

Looking for a solid investment? Need a trusted, honest advisor on your Real Estate investment in Mayfield Heights, Shaker Heights , Cleveland Heights, South Euclid?

Please call Svetlana Stolyarova of Local-n-Global Realty 216-548-4663 or e-mail: Realty@Local-n-Global.com.