The number of homes sold in Oakland County in July fell 15.6 percent to 1,380 from last July’s 1,636, but prices climbed nearly 12 percent.

“It’s a buyer’s market and a great time to buy a home,” said John Burt, president of the North Oakland County Board of Realtors, who owns Real Living, John Burt Realty of Lake Orion.

He also said he was optimistic the market will show gradual improvement because Michigan has been in a recession longer than anyone else.

“I think we’ve hit bottom and we’re starting to see rising prices,” he said.

The average price of a home or condo sold in Oakland County this July was $111,725 compared with $100,000 last July, according to data released by Realcomp II Ltd., a provider of real estate information.

The expiration of the federal tax credit for home buyers, which ranged from $6,500 to $8,000, fueled a decrease in sales, Realcomp II said.

However, Burt said 62 percent of homeowners in Michigan owed more money on their mortgages than what they would receive if they sold their homes.

Burt also noted that interest rates on a 30-year mortgage were close to 50-year lows. Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, for example, offered a 30-year mortgage at 4.5 percent annual interest.

A “big part” of home sales in today’s market is “short sales and foreclosures,” said Burt, who has been in the business 22 years.

Nonforeclosure sales outpaced foreclosure sales 3,248 vs. 1,978 in southeast Michigan, Realcomp II information showed.

The average days a home or condo is on the market before being sold decreased slightly by four days to 99 from July 2009 to this past month.

“(The) good (news) is we are seeing some price stability. People are seeing that houses are a good deal.”

However, a negative is that inventory exceeds demand, which usually puts downward pressure on prices.

“Our inventory is down 25.7 percent in Oakland County between this July and last,” he said.

There were 10,794 homes or condos on the market in the county this July compared with 14,530 last July, Burt said.

“I do think the housing market in southeastern Michigan will bounce back quicker because we’ve been in a recession for so long,” said Burt, noting Michigan’s double-digit jobless rate and the loss of hundreds of thousands manufacturing jobs during the past decade.

“I think we’ve hit bottom and we’re starting to rise and the numbers are supporting it,” he said.

One northern Oakland County Realtor said a relatively good housing market is not expected to occur until 2016.

“We’re not going to make money on homes like we did before,” said the Realtor, who asked not to be identified.

“Values were up a bit in July,” she said, “and we’re hoping August is better.”

Burt said that “jobs and consumer confidence” is key to a market turnaround.

In southern Michigan, home sales declined 41 percent in Detroit in July 2010 vs. last July, 1.3 percent in Genesee County, 21.8 percent in Lapeer, 5 percent in Livingston, 14.6 percent in Macomb, 40.9 percent in Sanilac, 41.2 percent in St. Clair, 34.4 percent in Tuscola and 25.1 percent in Wayne, according to Realcomp II.

Flipping A House For Cash

A lot of people these days are preaching about the buying and holding method of gaining wealth with real estate. There indeed may come a time in your life or business when you’ll want to hang onto a piece of property, although you’ll only be interested in keeping certain types of property. If you’re just starting out, flipping a house may be an ideal way to get started.

Basically, there are three ways that you can flip a house, although each one has it’s own terms, motivation, and type of property. The first method is known as retailing. What this means, is that you buy a house in bad shape, do the repairs to fix it up, then turn around and sell it. There are a variety of houses in need of repairs out there, and several ways that you can quickly flip a house to net profit. All you need to know are the techniques that will get you the most money in the least amount of time.

The second way you can flip a house is though wholesaling. Wholesaling involves finding a home for sale then flipping it to an investor for a fast, yet small profit. To do this, you’ll need to know the real estate investors in your area, the types of homes that flip the best, and how to fund your property so you can flip it to them. If you live in a big area or a city, you’ll find that using the wholesaling method of flipping houses is actually easier to accomplish. The third way to flip a house is by assigning the purchase.

Using this method, you’ll commit to buy the house. Instead of closing the deal yourself, you’ll assign it to a real estate investor – of course for a small fee. The investor will take the contract over and close the purchase themselves – flipping the house. This can be very profitable, especially if you invest in the right home. You don’t need to have your contract worded any special way to be legal, although you will need to determine the assignment fee. If you’re looking to break into the real estate market and make big bucks, you’ll need to learn all about flipping houses. Flipping houses is very profitable, especially once you have learned the basics.

The first and third methods are the best, although they will both take quite a bit of work on your part. Restoring homes isn’t easy, and you’ll need to have a team qualified to handle any repairs. Assigning the purchase may be difficult when you first start out, although it will get easier with time. If you stay at it and do your best to make a profit – you’ll be an expert at flipping homes in no time at all.

For more in-depth Real Estate information go to: www.michiganhomesalessite.com

Buying Your Dream Home

Even though it’s not easy for everyone to buy a home, it is in fact easier than ever to get a home these days with most lending agencies and banks being more liberal than ever with providing home loans and mortgages.  Even if you don’t have a lot of capital or a lot of money to put down, you can still get the home of your dreams at a very affordable price.

A lot of us think that buying a home is a tough process, needing a large down payment, although this isn’t always the case.  Buying a home largely depends on your budget.  If you put a down payment on your home purchase, it will go towards your overall purchase.  The more money you put down on a home when you purchase, the lower your monthly payments will be.

Those of us who don’t own a home live in rental houses and apartments.  This can be a worthwhile solution, although your still paying money towards your housing that you could instead be putting towards a home of your own.  Owning a home is a dream for many of us, especially when it comes to that dream home that we all hope to own one day.  Apartments and homes are great to rent – although most these days will cost you just as much as a mortgage payment – which doesn’t make any sense at all.

Instead, you can easily convert your rental payments into monthly installments towards your own home.  All across the United States, you can find of lot of banks and lenders that offer easy to get loans for purchasing your own home or real estate property at low interest rates.  With a lot interest rate, you can get the home of your dreams and enjoy low monthly payments.

Keep in mind, you need to choose a loan plan that’s best for you.  You can go through bank, through a lender, or use a service online. There are many different ways that you can go, although real estate agents seem to be the most common now days.  Good real estate agents will be more than willing to help you get a great deal on the home, at prices that are right for you.  Anytime you buy a house, you should always plan ahead, get yourself a real estate agent, and then pursue your dream home.

If you plan your budget and take things one step at a time, you’ll be closer than you think to the home of your dreams.  If you choose to keep renting and pay money toward something you don’t own – the home of your dreams will continue to slip away.  Take action now and stop renting – find the home of your dreams and put your money towards owning it instead.