It is 12:46 a.m. as I type this post.  I am too excited to sleep!  The United States of America has its first African-American president.  I know a lot of people do not understand what this day means to so many people like me.  I'm a double minority - I'm Black (I personally prefer the term Black over African-American), and I'm a female.  I'm not that old, 38 years young so I was not around in the 1960s for the March on Selma, Dr. King's March on Washington, etc.  I know nothing of segregated water fountains, riding in the back of the bus, or lunch counter sit-ins.  I'm a bit too young to have experienced these things. 

I have my grandfather's NAACP membership card from the 1950s which lists one of their objectives as "Stopping lynchings".  Some of my favorite music is from the 1960s and 1970s such as James Brown's "Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud" and Curtis Mayfield's "Move On Up".  I know what it is like to be discriminated against because of my color or my sex.  I live in the south - Nashville, TN.  My grandfather and his family are originally from Pulaski, TN - the birthplace of the KKK.  Growing up in the South as a woman of color, I've dealt with prejudices that some people cannot even imagine.  For so many in America, if you've never experienced prejudices or bigotry personally, you can almost for a split second think it really doesn't exist or that it couldn't possibly be that bad.

I never thought I would live to see a person of color, any color other than white as the President of the United States.  My friends and I, along with my mother cried for hours tonight.  There are really no words to describe the feeling that we have.  I liked a lot of John McCain's policies as well and I think he would have done a good job as president too.  Change has come to America.  We as a country and as a nation have a tough job ahead of us to get our economy and way of life back on track.  Is this one election going to make this probable?  Maybe not.  Will Barack Obama be able to single-handedly solve our nation's problems?  No.  All I know is that a lot of people are suffering right now.  A change in direction, a different view point, new strategies, teamwork, and a little bit of hope can take us a long way though.

It's leaf collection time in Smyrna.  For those residents who are in need of leaf removal, the Smyrna Public Works Department will be coming by soon collecting leaves to be mulched and composted.  All leaves must be in biodegradable or paper bags.  Leaves in plastic bags will not be accepted.  Once your leaves are correctly bagged, place them at the edge of your yard, not in the street.  The chipper crew will come by and pick them up as they work their way from one side of town to the other.  There is no need to call to schedule a pick-up.  This is another great weekend project that can really impact your curb appeal and help your home to stand out from the crowd.

You've seen the signs - they are everywhere.  Foreclosures are at an all time high.  Some may be in your very own neighborhood.  If you've decided that the foreclosure route is the way to go for you, do your homework ahead of time.  Determine your strategy for buying the foreclosure.

Buying on the courthouse steps:  Back in the good old days of the real estate boom, the banks might have 10-20 properties for sale at the foreclosure sale.  If you are going to the sales now, be prepared for a list of 70+ homes at any given sale.  While you can usually buy a property for the lowest price on the courthouse steps, you should double-check to see if the property has any liens or back taxes due beforehand.  Whether you check on these extra expenses or not, these bills become yours when you buy the property that day.  The buyer has no inspection period to determine the condition of the property.  The buyer also needs to have certified funds on hand because payment in full is required immediately.

Utilizing a real estate professional:  Buyers should make sure that the real estate professional whom they choose has experience in listing and selling foreclosures.  An inexperienced agent can cost the buyer time and money when it comes to dealing with the various banks and investors.  An experienced real estate professional can save a buyer this same time and money by securing information on the back taxes, if applicable, and on liens such as those from homeowner associations. 

Buying at auction:  Some of the best deals can be found at auction.  The banks and investors selling properties through auctions may sell them for 60-70% of the property value just to get them off their books.  Generally, the buyer will need at an earnest money deposit of at least 5% of the purchase price down on a winning bid.  The actual closing of the sale may take longer but most closings are completed within 60 days.  And one of the best thing with auctions is that the back taxes and/or liens are normally cleared up beforehand.

Buyer Beware.  Foreclosures can be a great opportunity to build equity and make money but a novice buyer can end up wasting a lot of time and money too if the homework is not done.  Consult an experienced real estate professional.

The recent collapse of Lehman Brothers has affected everyone from Wall Street to Williamson county.  Construction was stopped last month at Laurel Cove, which is one of the largest residential projects in middle Tennessee.  The project is on hold indefinitely as Lehman defaulted on a $121 million construction loan for Laurel Cove.  Other developers of the community state that they will fund the project themselves but the construction will be delayed until they can assume the existing Lehman loan.  Laurel Cove will contain approximately 800 luxury homes priced from $600,000 to $1 million dollars.  Five hundred lots have been sold to builders so far.  The first nine holes of the golf course, designed by Greg Norman, have been completed.  The day spa, fitness center, and clubhouse are more than half completed. 

Governor Phil Bredesen recently signed the resived Mortgage Act which has new regulations in place to protect consumers and increase scrutiny of the mortgage industry in Tennessee.  The Mortgage Act requires criminal background checks for anyone applying for a loan originator license.  The Act also allows the state to check an applicant's history in the mortgage industry through a nationwide mortgage licensing database.  Lenders are now also required to undergo educational training that includes course work on ethics.  There were 16,007 licensed mortgage originators at the end of 2007.  This number has decreased to 12,464 originators currently.

A new development is planned for Wilson county at I-40 and Beckwith Road.  Preliminary plans call for a 523-acre project that includes single family homes and townhomes, apartments, commercial office space, a town center, and a retail area.  The project also includes a city park along with community gardens and ball fields.  The development is described as being similar to Indian Lake Village in Sumner county. 

Construction has begun on a new $268 million dollar hospital in the Murfreesboro Gateway District.  The new Middle Tennessee Medical Center, which will be built on a 286-acre parcel, has gained final aproval from Saint Thomas Health Services.  The present 216-bed hospital on North Highland Avenue will be replaced with a new modern 286- bed facility.  An adjoining 120,000 square foot physicians office building will be attached to the new hospital.  The new hospital will serve as the anchor for the 400-acre Gateway District, which is a mixed-use class-A office and retail development near I-24.  The Gateway District already features The Avenue, which is the new $140 million open-air retail center which opened in October 2007. 

This is a follow-up to the blog posted in November 2007 about the proposed downtown Murfreesboro condo project.  The initial design has been modified and the project has been approved by the planning commission.  These changes include a curved roof and a corner tower element on Front Street.  The new design is two feet higher as well, topping out at 82 feet.  The plans still call for 8,850 square feet of retail space on the first floor, a three-level parking garage, and 46 condominiums.  This will be the first residential development of its size in the city's downtown area.   The design is similar to picture below.

You know the saying, "Be Careful What You Wish For"?  Well, I'm certainly well acquainted with it now.  Even though I've been in the real estate business for 11 years now, being a Realtor was not my dream career.  I've always had a really weird sense of adventure and quite a mischevious streak.  I have wanted to be the Repo Man since I was about 18 years old.  (I'm not going to tell my age but let's say that was a couple of decades ago.)  Think about - You have to track folks down who are running from you day and night.  They know you are after their car - their prized possession.  Who cares if they haven't made a payment in months???  This is the ultimate game of cat and mouse in some cases.  Then as the Repo Man, I come like a thief in the night with my tow truck and snatch the car while they sleep.  I compete with myself nightly to see how fast I can hook it and snatch it before anyone even realizes I'm in the neighborhood.  It's not even about the automobile - it's the thrill of the chase. 

Yes, I wanted to be a Repo Man for many a year so when I first learned about the REO business and doing BPOs (broker price opinion), I thought this is the closest I will ever get to being a real life Repo Man.  I get the call or the email to stake out the delinquent homeowner.  I drive by varying times of the day snapping pictures in an effort to assess the conditon of the property.  I study the neighborhoods to see how many of the other homeowners are having problems paying their mortgages too or I note how many have already lost the fight and the bank now owns their property.  With some cases, I drive by at night to see if the lights are on and if anyone is indeed home.  

When it is past the point of the homeowner being delinquent and the bank now owns the property, I play the Cash for Keys game.  I'm driving by again several times and now knocking at the door.  I'm leaving my card and notes of varying degrees of urgency instructing the homeowner to return my call.  For those that do respond to my requests, I often have offers of money to vacate their once happy homes in a matter of days.  The term "Something beats nothing" is often my phrase of choice as I try to pursuade former proud homeowners to vacate the premises with at least some cash in hand.  Then there are the rare occasions where no matter what I do or what I say, the now former owners just will not leave.  It is at this point where I have to do what I hate most as the Repo Man - schedule an eviction with the local sheriff's department.  I am then forced to witness workers remove the homeowner's worldly possession.  I think sometimes I feel as bad as the actual former homeowner as it is so gut-wrenching to watch someone be put out on the street.  I've nearly been evicted myself before so I certainly can relate to the unfortunate souls who are having to endure this humiliating process.  Thank God I have not had to do an eviction in over a year now and I certainly hope to never have to do one again in the future. 

Lately, a lot of the BPOs I have been called upon to do have been interior inspections as well as the usual driveby.  On the majority of these interior inspections, the homes have not been cleaned out yet.  In fact, a lot of them look like the former owners just left hours prior to my arrival.  Food still in the pantry, juice in the refrigerator, kids toys and clothes simply left in piles in the middle of the rooms.  At one property last week, FedEx had just left a package at the front door the day before.  From the outside, there was no hint of the disaster and devastation on the inside.  I go room by room and take pictures and make notes of the condition of the now abandoned property.  Next to the actual evictions, these properties bother me the worst.  It's as if life just stopped in an instant for these people and the American Dream is now a nightmare. 

I thought I wanted to be the Repo Man for a long time.  I think I could deal with it better if it was a car instead of someone's home.