Welcome to KarenUehara.com!

Welcome and thank you for visiting KarenUehara.com. Whether you are looking to buy or sell your home, we can help you with all your real estate needs. Our easy to use MLS search will provide you with access to all the current listings on Oahu.

KarenUehara.com was first developed to become the most comprehensive real estate portal in Hawaii. Our goal is to become your one stop shop for information on topics ranging from buying and selling real estate to home improvement tips. The portal environment fosters the free flow of communication within the online community and will allow people to contribute information and provide feedback on various topics. Please enjoy your stay and visit back often as we continue to update this site with new information.

Please be patient as we work towards fine tuning the various features of this site. We are still currently under construction. If you need assistance please feel free to contact us. Call Karen: 808.391-9874

1. What is the assessed value of the property? Note that assessed value is generally less than market value. Ask to see a recent copy of the seller’s tax bill to help you determine this information.

2. How often are properties reassessed and when was the last reassessment done? Generally taxes jump most significantly when a property is reassessed.

3. Will the sale of the property trigger a tax increase? Often the assessed value of the property may increase based on the amount you pay for the property. And in some areas, such as California, taxes may be frozen until resale.

4. Is the amount of taxes paid comparable to other properties in the area? If not, it might be possible to appeal the tax assessment and lower the rate?

5. Does the current tax bill reflect any special exemptions that you might not qualify for? For example, many tax districts offer reductions to those 65 or over.

Credit scores range between 200 and 800. Scores above 620 are considered desirable for obtaining a mortgage. These factors will affect your score.

1. Your payment history. Whether you paid credit card obligations on time.

2. How much you owe. Owing a great deal of money on numerous accounts can indicate that you are overextended.

3. The length of your credit history. In general, the longer the better.

4. How much new credit you have. New credit, either installment payments or new credit cards, are considered more risky, even if you pay promptly.

5. The types of credit you use. Generally, it’s desirable to have more than one type of credit—installment loans, credit cards, and a mortgage, for example.

For more on evaluating and understanding your credit score, go to http://www.myfico.com.

Pre-Approval Letter – How To Use It To Get Your Dream Home

Pre-Approval Letter – How To Use It To Get Your Dream Home
By Raynor James

When house hunting, many buyers make the mistake of waiting to contact a lender until after they have located their dream home. As a buyer, you will be in a much stronger position with a seller if you are pre-approved.

Pre-Approval Letter

To effectively house hunt, you must know the amount you can borrow from a lender. There is nothing worse than find your dream home, but failing to qualify for the amount you need for a loan. Avoid this by asking your lender to pull your credit information and to let you know what needs to be done to get a pre-approval letter. If you are going to have problems with getting a loan, it is better to know about it as early as possible.

Sometimes buyers resist contacting lenders because it’s not the enjoyable part of home buying and they’re afraid an extra credit check will reduce their credit score. This resistance is penny wise and pound foolish. Buyers who get their loan arrangements lined up at the beginning of the house buying process are really doing themselves a favor.

Much of the country is experiencing a hot, sellers’ market. It is not unusual for a seller to get more than one offer on the same day. If that happens to you, your pre-approved status can give you an edge over the competition. In fact, it can make a seller choose you over another bidder.

Presenting Your Letter to a Seller

When you tell the seller you want to buy their property, give them a copy of your pre-approval letter. They will probably recognize the value of the letter, but don’t depend on this assumption. Make sure the seller realizes the loan is already approved.

As you give the seller the letter, explain to them that you are serious about making the transaction go smoothly and, for that reason, you have already been through most of the loan application process. Point out that the lender has pulled your credit info and you’ve provided copies of W-2s, pay stubs, and all the other things the lender needed to decide that you do qualify for a loan. Tell the seller that the only remaining thing to do is to give the lender a copy of the contract that you and the seller sign, and the property needs to appraise for an appropriate amount.

Taking this approach puts you in a very strong position. The seller knows you are not just wishing; you are capable of buying his property. One of a seller’s worst nightmares is signing a contract with someone, taking his property off the market, wasting time and then finding out that the would-be buyer cannot get a loan. On the other hand, you and your pre-approval letter are dreams come true.

Put on your shining armor and get pre-approved by a lender. Once you have the letter in hand, get out there and find your dream home.

Raynor James is with http://www.fsboamerica.org - an online site providing national exposure for sellers listing properties and a database of properties for buyers. Sellers list your home for free the first month.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

First Time Home Buyer Loans Made Easy
By Paul Jesse

When it comes to firsttime home buyer loans, a little research can save you thousands of dollars over the life of your mortgage.

A wise consumer selects a mortgage lender prior to shopping for a home. You see, firsttime home buyer loans can end up costing you a lot more than you bargained for if you shop for your home first.

What often happens is you fall in love with a beautiful home that is on the outside range of what you can afford. And because you have invested interest in this particular piece of real estate you’re more inclined to go into a loan situation you can ill afford.

To make sure you can realistically afford your mortgage payments, it’s best to understand all the potential costs upfront before you fall in love with that dream home that is really outside your financial comfort zone.

It will take some research and comparison shopping in order to find both the best lender and the best in first time home buyer loans.

The loan package best suited to your needs will offer you terms you can handle now and in future. It’s important when looking for firsttime home buyer loans you take into account your future plans. For instance, are you planning on starting a family? If so, it’s important to consider the potential reduction in your family finances if you or you spouse decides to take some time off to raise the child(ren).

Further, if you have poor credit, you’ll be required to pay a higher rate of interest than those who have a good credit rating.

When it comes to first time home buyer loans, the amount of your down payment will also be taken into account when your interest rate is calculated. Think of it this way, the larger the down payment, the better the interest rate. So, before locking yourself into one of the firsttime home buyer loans currently on the marketplace, you’ll want to consider the advantages of contributing a decent down payment. This will keep both your interest rate and your payments much more reasonable.

Among the options for first time home buyer loans are variable rate and fixed rate mortgages. The first fluctuates over the course of your mortgage and the later keeps payments the same.

Another factor to consider is your debt to income ratio. In other words, the amount of money you bring in opposed to the amount that goes out. When determining your debt to income ratio you must take things like car payments, student loans and credit card balances into account.

There are programs available to assist firsttime home buyers in obtaining a loan. Talk to your lender and do some research of your own to discover the best option for you.

Remember, when shopping for first time home buyer loans no question is stupid. It’s very important that you understand the ins and outs of any mortgage loan prior to signing on the dotted line.

Paul Jesse is a retired government employee and author of numerous financial and home business articles. For more informative articles visit his site. http://www.sheamarketing.com/Firsttime-Home-Buyer-Loans

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

Does Staging Work?
By Scott Boulch

Staging can involve minimal effort on the part of a seller. Merely rearranging furniture can show a house off to advantage. For some sellers, however, staging a home for sale is a major production. It might include hiring a fix-up-for-sale decorator and renting a house full of furniture, complete with house plants and decorative art work.

Homes that are staged for sale tend to sell faster, and for a higher price, compared to listings that have not been staged. Staged homes are more appealing. You may find more demand and possibly multiple buyers for a well-staged home.

A homeowner in Oakland, California learned the hard way what a difference staging a home for sale can make. She listed her home for sale last year with an agent who told her to do nothing to get her home ready for sale. The agent insisted that it was a waste of time to fix a house up for sale because the buyers would surely want to redecorate to suit their own tastes.

After months on the market without even a nibble from an interested buyer, the home was withdrawn from the market. The owner then consulted a different agent. This agent detailed all the cosmetic improvements that needed to be done in order to sell the home.

The home was re-listed after all the suggested improvements were completed. It sold with multiple offers the first week it was on the market--the second time. It also sold for more than the list price.

First-Time Tip: Ask your agent if your home needs staging. If so, your agent may be able to help you if he or she has expertise in home decorating. If not, your agent should be able to recommend someone who can help you stage your home for sale.

Fresh flowers are a nice touch inside. Outside, use flowering plants at the front entry for added color, and to show off the yard. Don't forget to paint the front door so that it looks fresh and inviting.

Buyers like homes that are cheerful and bright. Open curtains and drapes, unless the outlooks are poor. Buy inexpensive window coverings that let light through if the windows have an unsightly outlook, or if they look directly onto neighbors.

Leave lights on when the home is shown, even when the sun is shining. Add lighting to rooms that are dark, or increase the wattage of light bulbs, if the fixtures will allow it.

Make sure that the heating or cooling system is set at a comfortable temperature. A frigid house is uninviting, and so is one that's too hot on a sweltering day.

Small staging efforts can make a big difference. Buy a new shower curtain to replace the old one that's mildewed; change out-dated cabinet pulls in your kitchen or bathrooms.

Outdoor living is important to most buyers. Stage your yard, patio or deck with outdoor furniture. The outdoors then becomes an extension of the living area. This adds value in the buyers' mind.

An unused cubby-hole can be turned into usable space with a little staging. An extra large walk-in closet can become a computer room. A sun room can be transformed into a den or home office.

When you sell a home, you're selling a fantasy. Even though the buyers won't live in your home the way it looks in its staged-for-sale condition, they'll be attracted to it because it presents a lifestyle they aspire to.

The Closing: Buyers pay for homes that look livable and inviting, even though the furnishings will be moved out with the sellers.

For More Information on Selling your home quickly visit http://www.rescue-realestate.com/ Unlike other so called We Buy Houses websites, Rescue Real Estate gives you every available option for selling your home. Simply complete our short 1 page form, and get anonymous online access to our team of specially trained REALTORS®. Then, in as little as 48 hours, you will begin to receive offers to purchase your home from our nationwide network of real estate investors. Click Here to sell your home quickly and compare agents.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

Remodel Your Kitchen or Bathroom For The Best ROI!
By Gregg Hicks

Trying to decide which home improvement project to tackle next? To start you must decide if you are remodeling to improve an area of your home that is in need of some TLC or if you are remodeling to maximize your Return On Investment (ROI). If a specific area in your home needs TLC then your decision is straight forward. However, if all areas of your home are in decent shape and you are looking to maximize your investment in your home then your decision is a little easier.

To get the greatest return on your money, without adding additional square footage to your home, you should consider remodeling your kitchen. On average a Kitchen Remodel will yield an ROI of 80-100%! This is an amazing rate of return on any investment, but the added bonus is that as a homeowner you get to enjoy the benefits of your Kitchen Remodel until you sell your home.

Another room to consider remodeling to maximize your return on investment is your bathroom. As a side note, if you live in a home with more than two bedrooms and only one bathroom you might want to find a way to add an additional full or half bath somewhere in your home. This will dramatically increase the resale of your home. If that is not an option or you already have enough bathrooms for your home consider remodeling your current bathroom. On average bathroom remodels yield an ROI of 80-90%.

One of the main reasons both the Kitchen and Bathroom have such a high rate of return is that most buying decisions (including home buying) are based on emotion. When homebuyers walk into a home that has a run down kitchen or bathroom all they think of is the time, money, and headaches they will need to invest to get the room up to their standards. On the flip side when homebuyers walk into a home that has a fresh updated kitchen it can get them very excited. They know they won’t have to lift a finger in this room to improve it, thus they can afford to spend a little more on the purchase price of the home knowing that the kitchen is already in great shape. The same principle applies to the bathroom.

You might ask yourself why all projects don’t adhere to this same principle. The answer is even though it is a sound investment to replace you roof, siding, or windows the reality is all homebuyers assume that these will be present and in decent condition. There is limited emotional value in having a new roof so homebuyers don’t get too excited about it either way. The return on investment for these projects ranges from 40-50%.

So if you want to increase the resale value of your home consider remodeling your kitchen or bathroom. After all, you may live in your home but don’t forget, if you are like most homeowners, your home is also your largest investment. Be a savvy homeowner and treat your home as an investment.

This article was written by Gregg Hicks of http://www.reliableremodeler.com which provides Internet-based home improvement information and services. Offering homeowners a simple, quick, and free way to access, qualified home improvement remodeling contractors.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

Converting Your Residence to a Rental

There can be significant unfavorable tax consequences to converting a primary residence to a rental. Too many people find out the consequences when it is too late. The time for understanding the consequences is before you consider converting the residence, not after. The consequences become greater the longer you have owned the residence and the more taxable gain or appreciation you have had on your property. The disadvantages of converting your residence to a rental when you have gains are more significant since the Taxpayers Relief Act of 1997.