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"The Greater Milwaukee Real Estate Blog"
Jeff Gramins
ABR, e-PRO
First Weber Group

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There’s An App For That!

Are you the type of person who likes to look for your new home by driving around through neighborhoods? Driving up and down streets looking for signs then wondering the prices or what amenities are offered?… [more]

There’s An App For That! There's An App For That!

Stage It Right

Most homeowners know that staging is an important part of selling your home but not everyone realizes that it can be done poorly or way overdone so that many benefits are completely lost. While it might… [more]

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What Are An Agent’s Duties?

Q: We are just starting the process of buying our 1st home. We we found a house we really liked and wanted to put an offer in on Friday (New Years Eve). She said it would just sit all weekend because of… [more]

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Pro-Active Offers

Q: Our house has been on the market for 4 months with mild interest from buyers. However, there has been on couple that have been through the house SEVEN times (4 open houses and 3 private showings). What… [more]

Pro-Active Offers Pro-Active Offers

New Listing! 2945 N 81st St, Milwaukee

2945 N 81st St, Milwaukee More Photos and Additional Info Interactive… [more]

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Quick-Fire Questions From Sellers

What happens to a sales contract overall, if I (the seller) dont agree with the addendum of sale? I think you are talking about an Amendment to the contract, not an Addendum. Addenda are usually included… [more]

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Quick-Fire Questions From Home Buyers

Do buyers pay a commission to real estate agents who represent them? In general, real estate agents are paid out of the seller's proceeds whether they are the listing agent, the selling agent or a buyers… [more]

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New Listing! 2945 N 81st St, Milwaukee

2945 N 81st St, Milwaukee More Photos and Additional Info Interactive… [more]

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You Are The Evil Bank

There are rumblings in the news today that the Obama Administration wants to force banks to modify mortgages of homeowners. The banks would be expected to drop the principle (amount you owe) and/or the… [more]

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A recession is a bad time to get divorced – especially if your home has sunk in value along with the rest of the housing market.

Last year, the divorce rate in the U.S. fell 4% after rising 7% in 2007, according to a report released last week by the National Marriage Project. While the news might cheer family advocates, it suggests something else to project director W. Bradford Wilcox: That couples with depreciated home values might be waiting to split until the market rebounds.

For most people, the house is one of their two biggest assets along with their 401(k). Right now, home values are down substantially from 18 months ago. In fact, according to Moody’s Economy.com, 31.8% of owners with a first mortgage are underwater meaning their house is valued at less than what’s owed on the mortgage. That means couples who decide to get divorced – and not live separate-but-together under one roof, an approach many have resorted to – are splitting liabilities instead of assets.

“It used to be that couples fought over the house because of continuity and stability for the children,” says Fadi Baradihi, president of the Institute for Divorce Financial Analysts. “That’s not happening anymore. Now everybody wants to run from it.”

But when a property has lost significant value, running isn’t so easy.

When it comes to the dilemma of selling or keeping the family home, the issue is if either spouse can actually qualify and refinance the home as a single, one-income household. With negative equity so prevalent today, it’s virtually impossible to get refinancing, says Leslie Thompson, a certified financial planner and partner at Spectrum Management Group in Indianapolis.

If the couple isn’t selling the house, the spouse who is staying has to refinance the mortgage – that’s the only way the bank will let the other go, says Richard Iglar, an attorney with Skoloff & Wolfe, P.C., a Livingston, N.J., law firm that focuses on matrimonial and real estate law. Otherwise, the departing spouse is liable for the entire mortgage; and, if the spouse that’s in the house misses a mortgage payment, the other is liable to pay but has no claim to any equity in house. But when there’s negative equity, it’s pretty much impossible to refinance. “It doesn’t make sense for the bank to make the loan,” he says.

That doesn’t leave a divorcing couple with many good options. Here are a few to consider.

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About Jeff

Jeff Gramins offers his over two decades of sales and service experience to assist in the purchase or sale of your home. His qualifications and credentials are backed by exemplary service and a genuine concern for your needs. Jeff's success comes from putting the goals of his clients first and foremost in his practice. His outstanding performance, marketing skills and knowledge of the market have earned him the respect of his peers and referrals from satisfied clients.

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