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Pickerington, Ohio numbers are in for the month of December 2007. Let’s see how they stack up, and then compare them for 2006 to see the change in the market.

There were 32 sold properties in December 2007, as reported by the Central Ohio Regional Multiple Listing Service. The average home sold was 2,456 square feet and was on the market for 121 days before they found a buyer. The average home was listed at $ 211,104 when it went into contract, which does not take into consideration price changes while it was listed, and the average selling price was $200,696. Some important stats to also keep in mind were that the average home in December 2007 received 95% of their asking price, and the average home sold for $81.72 per square foot.

The highest price home that sold in December was at 7103 Optimara, in Violet Meadows, for $ 515,000.

Compared to December 2006, there were some surprising changes. In December 2006, 43 homes were reported sold at an average asking price of $202,554 with an average sold price of $196,969. The average home was sold in 119 days and was 2,180 square feet. This translates into $90.35 per square foot, and the average home seller was receiving 97% of their asking price.

So what does this mean? It appears on the surface that there was little change in the prices, but that is not true. In 2006 the smaller homes were selling, while in 2007 the larger homes were selling, and they were getting less in their asking versus selling prices (97 to 95%). But the big difference was in the price per square foot where this was down 9.5% over 2006, meaning that home prices have receded 9.5% when comparing 2006 to 2007.

To wrap up the report, let’s look at the current market. There are currently 45 homes that went on the market in December 2007 in Pickerington at an average price of $214,403 at a price of $91.78 per square foot. 4 homes went for sale in December and found a buyer already, at an average price of $85.62 per square foot.

Your strategy for 2008 is to make your home as sharp as you can as the market is very competitive, and maybe prepare for a little less price for your home than you might expect. It appears as though the average home that is selling right now is priced in the mid $80’s per square foot with the selling price at about $82 per square foot. If you are then going to buy a home, this might be the year that you can get quite a deal on a home in Pickerington as it has been many years since we have seen these prices.

Reynoldsburg, Ohio numbers are in for the month of December 2007. Let’s see how they stack up, and then compare them for 2006 to see the change in the market.

There were 24 sold properties in December 2007, as reported by the Central Ohio Regional Multiple Listing Service. The average home sold was 1,806 square feet and was on the market for 80 days before they found a buyer. The average home was listed at $ 148,616 when it went into contract, which does not take into consideration price changes while it was listed, and the average selling price was $144,437. Some important stats to also keep in mind were that the average home in December 2007 received 97% of their asking price, and the average home sold for $79.98 per square foot.

The highest price home that sold in December was at 968 Mahle for $ 237,500.

Compared to December 2006, there were some surprising changes. In December 2006, 25 homes were reported sold at an average asking price of $143,232 with an average sold price of $137,551. The average home was sold in 87 days and was 1,632 square feet. This translates into $84.28 per square foot, and the average home seller was receiving 96% of their asking price.

So what does this mean? It appears on the surface that there was little change in the prices, but that is not true. In 2006 the smaller homes were selling, while in 2007 the larger homes were selling, and they were getting more in their asking versus selling prices (97 to 96%). But the big difference was in the price per square foot where this was down 5.1% over 2006, meaning that home prices have receded 5.1% when comparing 2006 to 2007.

To wrap up the report, let’s look at the current market. There are currently 26 homes that went on the market in December 2007 in Reynoldsburg at an average price of $157,923 at a price of $92.95 per square foot.

Your strategy for 2008 is to make your home as sharp as you can as the market is very competitive, and maybe prepare for a little less price for your home than you might expect. It appears as though the average home that is selling right now is priced in the low $80’s per square foot with the selling price at about $79 per square foot. If you are then going to buy a home, this might be the year that you can get quite a deal on a home in Reynoldsburg as it has been many years since we have seen these prices.

Sometimes life gets you, and your mortgage payments get behind. It is an unfortunate situation for many people, but help is available. First off, a word of caution: There are people and companies out there that prey on those in need. You may be contacted by "foreclosure specialists" and investors who will want to buy your home, and most of these options are bad. Follow my advice first off, and see if you can't save your home.

Step 1 to the process is to admit to yourself that you are in trouble. So many people won't admit it and soon 1 payment behind becomes 4 payments behind. Be realistic. If you can't make the payment take action right away. You have to understand that, contrary to your belief, your lender does not want your home back. Foreclosure is expensive for everyone and only the attorneys and investors make money. What your lender wants is for you to make up your payments, get back on track, and make a payment each month.

So now that you know you have a problem, what next? CALL YOUR LENDER ! I can not say that strongly enough as they have people trained to assist you. It will be frustrating, it will take many hours of being on hold as there are many people in the same situation they are trying to help, and yes, they are very shorthanded. You may have to write a letter as to why you are behind, you may have to have proof of medical bills or job loss, and the most embarrasing part is you may have to disclose all your bills, income, and debt. It is all a little humiliating, but not near as bad as moving from your home in the middle of the night so your friends don't see you. So, suck it up, wait the hours on hold, and prepare the paperwork they ask for. It is not an easy process or a quick process but if you can save your home, it is worth it. Repeat after me, I CAN DO THIS.

Lenders can help you get back on track. They can restructure your loans for you, add some payments you missed to the end of your loan, reduce your payments for a few months till you catch up, and provide all sorts of guidance. But they can only help you if you call and talk to them. If they have to find you by then it could be too late for help. Please call your lender and see if you can work something out.

Stay tuned here for other assistance in case this does not help.

All this talk about steroids and HGH and Credit Unions come to mind! I never think about them when I am working with a buyer for a mortgage loan, but with their increased size and strength you might look into one of them for a mortgage loan.

Credit Unions have always had some of the best rates when it comes to home equity loans and car loans, many times their everyday rate is lower than the banks' teaser rates. With their increased size, they are starting to become a player in the first mortgage field, many times with attractive rates. They have expanded their membership base by opening to many different groups, so you no longer have to have an "in" to join. First Service, originally started at the old Air Force base, is now open to anyone in Franklin County with several branches. Another large credit union is BMI, or even Kemba. These larger credit unions are also open to many more people now.

Since credit unions have different charters than banks and mortgage companies, many times their interest rates will be lower than the banks as their overhead is much lower. They are also great as a refinance option if you have a higher rate, and many offer a streamlined process with low closing costs and fast approval.

Next time you are shopping for a mortgage loan, don't overlook you neighborhood Credit Union. They just might have the best rates out there for you!

Important announcement that Countrywide, who was in financial trouble due to this whole lending sub-prime mess, was purchased by Bank of America. So what? If you have a loan with Countrywide, your terms will not change. The only thing that will change is who you make your checks to and where you mail them.

The interesting thing to me is now Bank of America is alive and well in Columbus as a mortgage loan originator, but they have no local branches here. Columbus is too big to not have a BofA presence here, so I look for them to enter this market as a bank.

They could enter the market by building new branches all over town, or they could enter all at once by buying someone local and converting them. Hmmm, lets see who might be available. Well, JP Morgan/Chase (Bank One) is probably too big to swallow. However, there is a local bank here that just bought another bank, Sky Bank, and is having a real tough time getting it to stay down. See, Huntington bought Sky and claims they did not know that Sky Bank had so many bad loans, which now belong to Huntington. Huntington is taking on water fast and they are suffering severe losses. This is a perfect time for a huge bank, like BofA, to step in and buy them up as their stock price and value is way down.

Now, that will be interesting around here. Can you imagine the new ballpark will be Bank of America Park, or the Huntington Club seats will be the BofA seats. Of course, I made all this up, but stay tuned!