Nicole Marvin, Realtor, GRI

My friend and I decided to take our children to the Greene (http://www.thegreene.com/eventscalendar.cfm) the other night to let them play in the water fountains while we chatted. I must say that I haven’t spent much time at The Greene. Several times I have had the pleasure of eating at Mimi’s Cafe (which has my favorite meal-How ‘Bout a Quiche-http://mimiscafe.com) and I know Cheryl & Co. (http://www.cherylandco.com/ ) has scrumptuos cookies. Can you tell that food is a priority for me!:) But I am not a big department store shopper, I don’t dine out a lot, or go to the movies very often. So I really haven’t found a need to visit there much.  But it was a warm night, the kids needed to burn off some energy and it sounded like a great idea.

Well, I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by how nice it was…and it’s free! They even have towel and chair service and live music. The live music was presented by two extremely talented local musicians and it made for a very enjoyable evening.  So, if you are looking for a place to take the kids, or to relax with some friends…check it out! The Greene is offering a wide variety of events throughout the end of September. You can click the link above for details.

Enjoy!

My attempt at attracting butterflies to my yard is working! This beautiful yellow and orange butterfly came to visit us the other day. It made me stop for a minute to focus in on the details of it’s wings…oh the beauty of nature!

Here is a list of some of my favorite places to visit in the Miami Valley.

• The Greene county library - http://www.greenelibrary.info/ - I enjoy ordering books and movies online and then picking them up at my convenience. They also offer many classes, story time and a relaxing environment.  
• Five Rivers Metro Parks - http://www.metroparks.org/- From Carriage Hill’s historical setting, to the butterfly house at Cox Arboretum and the Children’s Discovery Garden at Wegerzyn’s…Five Rivers Metro Parks in the Dayton area give us numerous parks to visit and explore.
• Yellow Springs - http://www.yellowsprings.com/ - Yellow Springs offers local artists, unique shops, handmade goodies, Glen Helen (for beautiful walks), and the bike path…plus so much more.
• Young’s Jersey Dairy - http://www.youngsdairy.com/ - Young’s Dairy is one of my boy’s favorite places to go. They love petting (and feeding) the goats, eating ice cream and playing on the tractors!
• 2nd Street Market - http://www.metroparks.org/Parks/SecondStreetMarket/Home.aspx- This is a great place to get fresh bread, flowers, honey and organic goodies!
• Thrift Shops - My favorites are the Goodwill outlet in Airway Shopping Center and Valley Thrift on Woodman Dr.-across from Value City. You can see more by clicking here http://www.magicyellow.com/category/Thrift_Shops/Dayton_OH.html. Dayton is blessed to have an abundance of thrift shops! If you haven’t tried thrift shopping…give it a try. You will be amazed at all of the great deals that you can find! 

So check out some of these place…and add your favorites in the comments! Have fun!

Many buyers come to me in need of buying a home with no money down. The lender may have a loan that will allow them to buy a home with no down payment out of their pocket, but the transaction will still require some money from the buyer. Even with no down payment, the buyer will still be responsible for funding their application fee, earnest money, inspection costs and homeowner’s insurance premium.

These costs will vary depending on the transaction and the price of the home. But in general you can plan on the following amounts…

1. Application Fee - $250-$395 (varies by lender and the type of the loan)
2. Earnest money - $250-$1000 (Earnest money is not mandatory. The amount is dependent upon many factors.)
3. Whole House Inspection - $179 and up (It depends on the square footage, age, levels, HVAC and bathrooms in the home.)
4. Termite inspection - $40-$50
5. Radon inspection - $100
6. Mold inspection - $75-$195
7. Well inspection - $125 for quantity (gallons per minute) and $65 for quality (info on bacteria)
8. Septic Inspection - $100
9. Lead Based Paint Inspection - I do not have information on the cost of this service
10. Structural Engineer - $200

A homeowner’s insurance policy depends on the price of the home, claims filed on that property and the buyer’s credit score. A buyer can get an idea of the premium for their new policy by calling their current insurance agent or by visiting www.directquote.com for a quote.

On average, I advise my buyer who wants to go “no money down” to plan on having $1000-$1500 set aside for their upfront expenses. That amount may be higher if the buyer is purchasing a property with a well and septic system. This information is meant to be a guide for first time buyers, and maybe even folks who haven’t purchased a home in many years. If you have any questions or need clarification on an item, don’t hesitate to email me or leave a comment.

When I am in my car, I have a tendency to listen to talk radio more than anything else. I find it very informative and prefer it over watching several news programs on television in the evening. So for years I have listened to Clark Howard on Dayton’s local talk radio station (1290 AM & 95.7 FM). He is the “Save more, spend less and avoid ripp offs” guy. You can visit his site here…http://clarkhoward.com.

Clark spoke on August 5, 2008 about the new housing bill affecting changes in housing laws for military owners. He said…

” There will be new protection for active military and veterans against foreclosures. Lenders will be required to wait 9 months — instead of 90 days — before beginning proceedings. Plus, there are new rules on interest rate adjustment. For too long, banks had unwittingly violated laws on interest rates for military. Visit Military.com to learn your rights. “

So, if you are active military or a veteran and you are facing foreclosure, keep this information in mind. If you feel that your interest rate is too high, visit the military.com site to get more information on what your rate should be . If you have additional questions for a lender, you can contact Lindsey Baab-Akers at Countrywide (now Bank of America). You can email her at Lindsey_Baab-akers@countrywide.com or call her at 937-603-1711.

Hope this helps!

The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 was signed by the President on July 30, 2008. This bill has many provisions, but one of the most important for many is the homebuyer tax credit. It is described on the National Association of Realtors website as follows…

Homebuyer Tax Credit - a $7500 tax credit that would be available for any qualified purchase between April 9, 2008 and June 30, 2009. The credit is repayable over 15 years (making it, in effect, an interest free loan).

Here is a link to the first time homebuyer tax credit chart…chart_homebuyer_tax_credit_.pdf

Here is the link to the frequently asked questions about the tax credit…hbtaxcreditqa2008.pdf

If you have any further questions, please contact me and I will help you find the answer.

Welcome to my updated website! Yay! I am very excited to share this space with you. My goal with this new layout is to provide you with an abundance of useful information in regards to real estate in the Dayton area and to address any questions/concerns/needs that you may have involving real estate. I look forward to updating you on the real estate market, answering questions for you and making you aware of changes that are taking place in our local real estate market. So whether you are looking to buy, sell, or are just needing a question answered…I am here to help! Let’s share with each other and try and learn from one another along the way. Thanks for visiting…your comments are always welcome.