I am 50 years old and loving it, your local Huntington County Realtor Andy Eckert

I am 50 years old as of Oct 21st 2016

The first 10 years of my life consisted of being born and having life saving surgery a few months later (obstructed bowel). When I was a toddler I wandered off and was mauled by a neighbors dog and underwent reconstructive surgery on my nose and lip area which is why I have such animal attraction. The rest of the decade was pretty much made up of playing, school and burning stuff behind the garage.

The next 10 years consisted of me playing sports, learning about the outdoors and having the best childhood I could hope for. I started playing sports in the back yards of friends and on Yancy street mastering Tenny Ball and football by the age of 12. We played 21 next door at Bill and Ann Lightners for hours or until Bill told us to hit the road. I was introduced to wrestling by my Uncle Jack and his sons Pete and Dave. That took the athlete in me to a whole other direction and put me on a track to big things. I excelled at sports no matter what it was and at the time felt that was all I had to look forward to as I wasn’t a good student or a diligent worker. That’s about the time God stepped in and woke me when I had my diving accident and all plans changed. I finished that decade graduating HS with a love of reading and a desire to work with others.

When I entered my 20s I was still feeling the after effects of my neck injury so sports for me became golf and chasing girls, I never became the golfer I wanted to be, but I did manage to catch my girl. I spent my early 20s working, golfing, hunting and growing up. I always stayed close to my family and friends which I still do today. When born an Eckert you have 2 choices, to be social or to move. Halfway through my 20s I got married and started a family which accelerated my growing up phase. The rest of my 20s is a blur.

My 30s is where I started getting to understand my place in life as a Father, Husband, Brother, Son and Friend but mostly a Christian. I experienced the growth of my children and the loss of my job due to recessions and another near death experience. Dealing with the job loss was the hardest but the other 2 were a close 2nd. Steph helped me trudge along and showed me that there was hope and to keep working hard which paid off.

My 40s brought me into the Real Estate business full time and an entire different approach to life. I found myself having to be my own boss which was a challenge but also allowed for me to share myself and time with others in a bigger way. I found moving my kids to college was the biggest accomplishment of my life and seeing them grow into independent pain in the butts was rewarding and scary.

I now find myself starting a new decade wishing I would have taken better care of myself but ready to see this thing through to the end. The best Birthday gift I received was a letter from one of my best friends, Lisa Fortini reminding me how valuable a good friend is no matter how far away they live or how often we see each other or talk.

I do feel blessed with my LIFE and all of YOU!!!!!!!

Buying your first house? ask the expert, Andy Eckert, Huntington County Realtor

Ask the Expert

Q I’m buying my first house.  I am pretty sure I can spend $150,000 for my house because I did some calculations online. Problem is, lenders won't give me a firm quote until I buy something. What gives?

A   Online calculators can be excellent tools, but remember there are many costs associated with buying a house. One of those is the tax rate in the area you buy. You won't know that until you pick a property. You also will have to buy Private Mortgage Insurance if you put less than 20 percent down. PMI can change your monthly mortgage payment significantly. 

    No lender can give you an estimate until you have an address of the property you hope to buy. An address is required for the Loan Estimate, a three-page disclosure document.

    Start your home search by getting pre-approved for a loan. Go to a lender and give basic information about your finances. The lender will pull a credit report and discuss your income and debt. You should have no more than 43 percent debt to income. Usually, 36 percent is preferred.

    Once pre-approved you can get an agent and shop for your home. When you do find the property you want to buy, you can apply for a mortgage by going to different lenders and getting a Loan Estimate from each. The Loan Estimate, which has to be issued within three days after you apply, will give you detailed information about the loan, including the loan amount, interest rate, monthly payments and whether these can change.

    The Loan Estimate will also tell you the amount of cash you need to close and the estimated costs to close.

    It will list fees for things you can't shop for (appraisals, for instance) and things you can shop for (pest inspection, for example).

I am Catholic and proud to say that, as your Huntington County Realtor Andy Eckert

I am a Catholic and I’m proud to say that, why?

             Because a life without a belief system is a life wasted. There is so much to gain to have FAITH, and so much to lose, to not. I was born and raised in the Catholic faith and that means I went to church more than most, because we have a ridiculous amount of Days of Obligation to attend. When I attended Catholic school I think we had mass every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday throughout the school year. We also attended mass on every Sunday as a family. During Lent we went to Church to pray the stations of the cross every Friday at the end of the school day.

What does this mean?

It means that even though I did all these events I was still a bad boy most of the time, but I believed if I was heart fully sorry for what I did than I was forgiven by God. If that was all I learned through all my mass attendance and school teachings, then I had learned enough to get me to Heaven. The hardest thing to do in life is forgive yourself for all the stupid choices we make and then ask forgiveness for those choices from God. I believe   anyone who believes in God and also thinks that they can be forgiven for their sins are my Brothers and Sisters in Christ no matter what church they attend.

This month’s News Letter is dedicated to all those that helped me along the way with advice, a good example to follow, and love. I have had 3 Parish Priests since I was baptized as a baby. Fr Gollner, Fr Perry and Fr Ron who have helped shape me into the person I am today. I was also lucky enough to have met, at the time I was in middle school, a Brother Mike. Brother Mike eventually became Fr Mike and moved back to his home state of  Wisconsin. Fr Mike and I are good friends and see each other 1-2 times a year. I found a good friend and trusted advisor in Fr Mike and Fr Ron over the years, not as a person judging me but someone who understands what my potential was. I’m thankful for their guidance and friendship and I hope I live up to their expectations of me. I suppose if they don’t see me in  Heaven then they dropped the ball, but if I don’t see them then maybe they should have been asking me for guidance…..haha

Andy Eckert, your Huntington County Realtor

Home Inspectors Save Stress and Lower Prices from your local Huntington County Realtor, Andy Eckert

HOME INSPECTORS ACTUALLY SAVE STRESS, EVEN LOWER PRICES

For buyers and sellers, having a professional house inspection can ensure a happy sale.

For the buyer, the inspection is an obvious contingency. Buyers don't want expensive surprises after sale. A home inspection reveals the systemic condition of the home, not just whether the paint is new.

Inspectors take a close look at the home's inner health in 10 areas: interior and exterior, structure, roofing, plumbing, electrical, heating, air conditioning, and ventilation, and fireplaces. Theses evaluations are detailed. For example, in the case of roofs, inspectors will study shingles, flashings, roof drainage, skylights and chimneys.

Of course, even a house with some problems can sell, but the price will reflect needed repairs. That's where the seller's inspection comes in.

A seller is just as motivated as the buyer to know what is wrong with a house because necessary, but unfinished, repairs mean a lower price at sale, or even a deal that falls through. A home inspection gives sellers the chance to fix things before the house goes on the market and it is an important part of the clean-up, fix-up process.

You might not want to put on a new roof, but repairing the flashings and roof gutters, puts your house in a solid light. Buyers might not expect a new roof, but they don't want to find leaks. There are a variety of specific things that a home inspection can look for, depending on an individual's concerns. For example, a radon inspection checks a home for levels of radioactive gas and takes between two and seven days to complete. A termite inspection looks for damage to the wood structures of a home. With homes that have a well for water, well water testing is another option; for homes with a septic or oil tank, examination of those structures may be part of an inspection as well.

A general inspection should consider the condition of the roof, the water pressure and plumbing, electrical outlets and switches, and the crawl space and attic.

Finally, if you have a home inspection, find a place to sit down and relax. Don't follow the inspector around. After all, the inspector is working for you and the report will be for you only.

A Happy Anniversary Letter to my wife of 25 years, from your local realtor Andy Eckert

Stephanie D. Eckert, formally known as Ness, my wife, my friend and my children’s best gift.

             I met Steph in High School Chemistry class, which at the time, we  didn’t have any Chemistry. I followed her gymnastics   accomplishments because she was successful early on, as was I, on with my Wrestling. I always felt she was stuck up because she   wasn’t outspoken, but quiet. I later found out that she was just shy and insecure, which surprised me after watching her be so successful with her many accomplishments.

Steph and I started dating for a short time when she was a Senior in High School. Of course the relationship was more about me, than us, so I screwed that up. At the time I personally had no idea what I wanted out of life, and girls and golf, were a past time. A few years had passed after our Graduation and I began dating different women, but soon became tired of that life style. Then for some unknown reason I was pulled to go downtown for a drink late one night. I walked in and there she was. All the bad feelings either of us had towards each other washed away, and a new life for us began at that moment. I told her that night that she was stuck with me and we never looked back.

We have Loved hard, fought often, and forgave daily over the past 25 years. I couldn’t image my life without her or our  children. Over the years we’ve grown to deal with each other’s quirks. I kid her on a daily basis, which she has gotten used to, and now she tries to give some of that back once in awhile. I feel we complement each other with my take action personality and her no job is impossible attitude.  Our home isn’t the most organized or clean but it’s always open for friends, family and strangers to visit. We love people and spending time with our family which is small on Steph’s side, but large on mine. We have learned to support each other even when we don’t agree and we both want the same things for our children; Happiness, Success and a desire to keep family close and God closer.

I am blessed to have her and my children, I love my life.

I always have time for you or your referrals.

Rentals make great investments and the Top 8 Fastest growing housing Markets, from local Realtor, Andy Eckert

Rentals gain popularity for investments

Buy land. They're not making it anymore." - Mark Twain

Property is valuable and mostly becomes more valuable as time goes on.

This idea is not lost on today's legion of real estate investors or the average person. According to the Financial Security Index Survey released in July, 54 million Americans consider real estate to be the preferred cash investment for funds not needed for more than 10 years.

It is a great time to invest in real estate with interest rates are historically low. Owning rental property is one way to invest and immediately get return on your money. The key before you start is to ask yourself what you need to make on a rental.

Enlist a real estate agent to help you analyze rental rates and apartment prices in the neighborhood. Scour the classifieds to get an idea of what rents are in the area you would like to buy. Also, learn what properties are selling for.

Before you buy, know what your costs will be for taxes, maintenance, and profit. Can you be competitive at this location and still make a profit? One landlord writing in ConsumerismCommentary.com said she must make $500 profit on each rental per month.

Pick the right neighborhood. High crime areas will cost you money, according to Consumerism Commentary.  High rent areas probably will resist rentals. Sturdy middle-class neighborhoods are often best.

One useful talent is a flair for DIY. If you like doing general repairs, you can usually save on expected expenses. If you don't have such a flair, develop ties to handy-people who are skilled and available. You might be able to hire someone on demand for a low hourly rate.

Finally, once you have done the math and purchased your rental, find the right renter with a strict application. You must make your money back on a property so your three questions have to be: Can they afford the apartment? Will they pay the rent? Will they keep the property nice? To find out, check previous landlords. Verify income. After that, run a civil and criminal background check. 

One landlord even calls the mother or father of younger people who want to rent.

The 8 Fastest Growing Housing Markets, according to NAR

   City, State                       Up     Median Price

1. Boulder, Colorado         18.5%       $ 549,600

2. Elmira, N. Y.                 17.6 %      $ 115,600

3. Springfield, Il.               17.1 %      $ 143,100

4. Port St. Lucie, Fl.          16.1 %      $ 209,000

5. Cumberland, W.Va.      15.2 %      $   94,900

6. Rockford, Il                   15.1 %      $ 109,000

7. Daytona Beach, Fl.        14.7 %     $ 172,000

8. Tampa-Clearwater, Fl.  14.2 %      $ 199,900

3 Tips for Selling a Small Kitchen & Realtors Donate to local Boys & Girls Clubs, from your local Huntington County Realtor

3 Tips for Selling a Small Kitchen

Many buyers are in search of great kitchen space. But the kitchen can be one of the trickiest rooms to stage, especially when the space is small.

If your house is lacking in kitchen space, it's important to make it look as appealing as possible.

1. Remove all clutter and appliances from the counter-tops, leaving only one or two decorative items. This will make the space appear cleaner and larger, she says.

2. Make sure the kitchen is getting plenty of light. Dark spaces appear smaller, so to open up the space make sure any windows are allowing maximum light through. If that's not possible, add appealing forms of artificial lighting to do the trick.

3. If the cabinets have seen better days, consider painting them white. White reflects light and helps make a space feel much bigger and open.

Realtors® Donate Thousands of Hours, Dollars to Local Boys & Girls Clubs

WASHINGTON (August 16, 2016) — The National Association of Realtors® joined forces last year with Boys & Girls Clubs of America to enrich the lives of Club kids and teens in communities across the U.S.

Since December 2015, a total of 188 local Clubs and 18,200 Club youth have been positively impacted by Realtors® and more than $100,000 has been donated to local Clubs by associations, members and real estate firms.

"Today's kids are our future, so when I began my NAR presidential term, I knew I wanted to involve Boys & Girls Club. I am so proud of all the passion, time and effort put forward by the Realtor® family to better the lives of the children in the communities in which we live and work," said NAR President Tom Salomone, broker-owner of Real Estate II, Inc. in Coral Springs, Florida. "Realtors® work every day to build and improve communities, so it comes as no surprise to me that our members jumped at the opportunity to get involved with their local Boys & Girls Club and volunteer their time and energy to support Club kids."   

CLICK HERE FOR FULL STORY

It's 4H Fair Time! Which includes, horse ppop, dust and elephant ears, from your Local Huntington County Realtor, Andy Eckert

This month will be full of horse poop, dust, Elephant ears and milkshakes. That’s right is 4H fair time….

We finished the horse show part and Aleah and Michael had a good fair showing. Aleah won some classes and a Grand Champion and Michael won 2 classes and a Reserve Champion. Aleah rode 3 different animals and excelled at all 3. Western Pleasure is her best events, English is her least Favorite and Contesting seems to be a lot of fun for her. Michael showed some halter and riding classes, which he did well in. I was really afraid because he doesn’t take failure well and riding isn’t easy. He came along so far in the past 45 days and I can’t thank Stephanie, Sebastian, Olivia and Aleah enough for all the instruction and support you gave him.

We now will be moving in the goats, rabbits and chickens and showing them for the next week or so. This is always a very busy time for our family with all the maintenance for animals during the fair. We will be running kids in the morning to feed and then again in the afternoon. I think we can allow them to stay during the day for part of the fair but Aleah has Volleyball practice also. It’s a good thing they learn a lot from raising and training these animals because it’s eating into my golf game.

Aleah starts her Freshman year at HNHS this Fall and she is a little nervous and so are we. I’m sure she will handle it all just fine and I just hope all the upper class boys don’t start hounding her.

Michael starts at Crestview MS this Fall and he is also excited and nervous but eager to get the show on the road. He is also excited that his sister Cassy will be coming home this Fall, it’s been way too long since she’s been at home.

Michaels Grandma and Sister Ashley spent the entire day watching him at the 4H horse show and really were proud of him and how far his riding skill has come. I kept his Mom up to date during the day while she was at work. He has a great support system.

I keep hoping Olivia lands a full time job in her field of work, maybe she will be closer to home. Sebastian just set up his apartment for next school year in Ft Wayne and will be moving at the end of the month. Jenny Hinen will be his roomy, good luck Jen.

Have a great Summer and always remember I always have time for your referrals.

God Bless

Andy

6 Steps to choosing a First Home, from your local Huntington County Realtor, Andy Eckert

6 steps to choosing a first home

First-time home buyers get a lot of good advice on finances before they buy their first home: They should be pre-approved for a mortgage, have cash on hand, and take a look a property taxes.

But before that, buyers should consider what they will look for in a home. 

Here are 6 considerations that will help you make the decision.

1 Take the long-term view. 

Young buyers should remember that their first home probably won't be their last. In fact, one way to financial success is to buy a starter home that will appreciate and then sell it later for a profit.  Use the profit to buy your next home; one suited to your needs at the moment.

2 Choose substance over style.

Granite counter tops should never be the make-it-or-break-it feature of a first home. That is just style. The best home is one that suits lifestyle needs. Put substance ahead of style every time.

3 Find the right size home.

Big is not necessarily better. In fact, a big home can be a burden for two working people. Consider the time you will spend cleaning, furnishing and decorating a home for a party of 20. 

In the same way, tiny is not necessarily better. Since a first home is rarely the last home, consider how much the home will be worth at resale. Will a tiny home be difficult to sell? Making an investment work over the long-term is a better idea than going with a trendy choice.     

4 Shun fashion.

A graceful Victorian home or the mid-century modern with potential might be the ultimate dream of a young person fascinated with architecture, but it probably isn't the best first-time buy. Think about the investment in maintenance and unforeseen problems that can crop up in an older home.

Fixer-upper shows can mislead buyers into thinking that a home that needs a lot of work is a great buy. Even for the handy-man, a fixer-upper may not be the right choice, even if the price is right. Consider how long the improvements will take, then double the estimate in time and dollars. Will that be acceptable?

5 Buy location not just bricks.

It doesn't matter how great the house, if it is located in an area with bad schools, high crime, and a run-down house next door, the house won't be worth as much at resale. Even if you don't have children, consider the school district.  A great school district increases the number of interested buyers at sale. At the same time, be open to a good location outside your preferred neighborhood.

6 Choose an expert then listen.

Find a real estate agent, then listen to his/her advice. The agent will advise you on price, negotiation, value, and possible pitfalls. There is no substitute for having a good agent on your side.

Can FHA help you buy your first home? and the Downside to Smart Homes, from your Local Huntington County Realtor, Andy Eckert

Can the FHA help us buy our first home

this year?

Maybe it can. 

The FHA has reduced its Mortgage Insurance (MI) rate, resulting in a monthly payment reduction of $80 on average, according to Bloomberg Businessweek.

"Buying a home is about more than owning a roof and four walls. It's about investing in savings and building a family and planting roots in a community."

That was the message that President Obama relayed in his January 7 speech on housing and homeownership in Phoenix, AR. His speech announced significant improvements to mortgage loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration.

"We're going to start this week laying out some of the agenda for the next year. And here in Phoenix, I want to talk about helping more families afford their piece of the American dream, and that is owning their own home."

Obama announced that FHA Mortgage insurance premiums would be reduced from 1.35 to .85 percent on both purchase and refinance loans. The upfront mortgage insurance premium (UFMIP) will however, remain at 1.75 percent.

The White House estimates more than 800,000 homeowners stand to save on their monthly mortgage costs from the reduced MI premiums. They also predicted that 250,000 potential buyers will enter into homeownership over the next three years as a result of the changes.

CoreLogic estimates the change will benefit FHA borrowers with an average of $80 per month, or $900 per year, in savings.

The President's measures are designed to address homeownership numbers r adiating from the flagging first-time buyer market.

First-time buyer participation limped into 2015 accounting for a meager 33 percent of the overall homes sold, the lowest market share since 1987 and down from 50 percent in 2010.

Downside to smart homes

 Smart homes are now a reality wit Amazon Echo and Google home. Appliances, heat, air conditioning, power, lights, security cameras -- everything can link to your smartphone. Turn on your pool heat from 50 miles away. Turn up your AC at the same time.

Of course, there are still some downsides to smart homes that are worth considering.

According to Christopher Harper at maketecheasier.com, security issues are serious. Breaches are inevitable, and security strategies must keep changing to keep up with the hackers. Your  system quickly could become outdated.  Even if it is not outdated, a hacker could send the air conditioning system into Antarctic mode at any time. You take your chances.

Smart homes also add to big data. You are letting big companies that already know a lot about you know more about you.  Afraid of big business? Afraid of big government? 

Finally, smart homes still cost a lot of money to do things like turn up the heat and turn on a light. Is it worth it now?  

Land cruisers in the outback

You think your cell phone has blackout spots. Imagine the Australian outback.  We are talking 2 million square miles of blazing heat, unpleasant snakes, and no cell service.

According to gizmag.com, what the Outback does have is Toyota LandCruisers.  Toyota has joined with other corporations and universities to set up a LandCruiser Emergency Network.

Using a mix of technology, the plan is to supply LandCruisers in the area with plug-and-play wifi devices. Every Cruiser will be a little wifi hotspot with a 15-mile range. People will connect their phones to a nearby LandCruiser that will forward the message along a chain of other LandCruisers until the message gets to a base station.  Consider how important this would be if the message were FIRE.

Hope you had a great 4th of July Holiday, from your Huntington County Local Realtor Andy Eckert

These past 30 days have proven to be busy and full of travel. My family which included all 3 kids and Steph made a trip to St Louis for 5 days. We filled the trip with a lot of walking, eating, swimming and sightseeing. I think since we all made it back still talking to each other it was a success. This was the 1^st vacation all of us have taken together since Olivia was a senior in HS (5 years ago). As our kids grow up and become young adults the environment seems altered in a way. I miss when they were small and we all went together and meandered around at a much slower pace. I think the only way it could have been better is if we would have left our cell phones in the hotel room.

We explored the Arch and went on a river tour; we also went to a St Louis Cards game, man what a stadium. We visited the City Museum which would be any kids dream come true, it offered tunnels and cages to climb for 10 stories and if that wasn’t enough they had a Ferris wheel on the top floor. There were slides from level to level and a 10 story slide which Steph and I road. We enjoyed watching our kids climb around like they were 10 years old again, Sebastian said he was going back and Olivia had red face for about an hour after we left, not sure she has done anything that exhausting for awhile. Aleah took it all in stride and just enjoyed hanging with her Big Sis and Bro.

We also walked through the Zoo which was free and enjoyed seeing what animals would come out into the blazing hot sun so we could see them; I think we all enjoyed the Penguins area the most since it was 45 degrees in there. After we finished at the zoo Olivia talked us into taking the Budweiser tour which thrilled Aleah to no end, which if you follow my posts on Facebook you would have seen. That place was amazing if you like beer which 4 of 5 of us don’t. Olivia was happy to drink our samples.

What I figured out about taking a family vacation when your kids are no longer kids is, it’s really expensive to feed them. I also found that they all have different opinions as to what we should do, it was much easier when Steph and I made all the decisions.

I enjoyed the time together and the time away from home. I hope all of you also get a chance to get away this summer. We spend too much time watching everyone’s life happen on social media vs living ourselves.

Put down your cell phones and take a walk and breath some air. You deserve it!!!!!!!!

God Bless All

Home Inspection Red Flags to watch from Andy Eckert your Huntington County Realtor

Beware of These Home Inspection Red Flags

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | MONDAY, JUNE 27, 2016

A home inspection not only allows buyers to learn more about their home, it also helps them uncover any potential problems.

Curbed.com recently featured a 14-point checklist to help home buyers during a home inspection. Here are a few items they suggest to investigate further during a home inspection that will give your buyers more confidence in moving forward. 

Read more: Home Inspector or Specialist?

HVAC system. Home inspectors will make sure the home’s heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning system is working, and they should also be able to estimate how long the home air conditioning condenser (the outside unit) should last too. They just need to check the serial number, says Nigel Turner with Total Home Inspection Services in West Milford, N.J. Many condensers last 12 to 15 years before needing replacement. 

Water drainage. "The biggest issue of any home is always going to be water disbursement," Turner told Curbed.com. "There’s the potential for damage to the foundation. If water is found to be in the vicinity of the house, you want the water to flow away from the house, not towards it." Home inspectors who use an infrared camera may be able to uncover potential water damage that lurks beneath the surface of a home too.

Roof. Learn how old it is and any potential issues, particularly if anything that you may have to one day bring up to code. Roof problems are responsible for 39 percent of home owners insurance claims, according to data from Trulia. 

Oil tank. Even if the house is heated with gas, it's still important to check and see if there's an oil tank on the property in case it once was heated by oil. A tank may still be present. Certain areas require the oil tank to be removed. Others may have just been filled with sand and gravel. Make sure you find out and to ensure it hasn’t leaked into the ground. "Make sure we sweep the whole property," Elice Shikama of RE/MAX in Franklin Lakes, N.J., told Curbed.com. "Because sometimes sellers think they only have one. They could have multiple underground tanks."

Chimney. "Chimneys can be a very costly enterprise, if there’s damage to the chimney lining on the inside, if the masonry around the chimney is faulty, corroded, or whatever it might be," Turner says.

See the entire 14-point checklist that Curbed.com offers for home inspections. 

Check out my New Commercial created by Huntington University Video Production Team, from Realtor Andy Eckert!

My Newest Commercial, Hope you Enjoy !

I am Thankful for my Faith, Family and Friends on this Memorial Weekend. From your Local Huntington County Realtor Andy Eckert

33 years ago (May 18^th 1983) my life changed forever, I being me had an accident. I was on Holiday with some friends in Michigan as we were on summer break from High school. Eckert's are hard headed and buck the system as much as they can get away with it. This lake was a summer home for a classmate of mine and the kids there liked to initiate new kids by throwing them in the lake. I thought no one was going to do that so I dove in, bad decision. I fractured my neck and was paralyzed from the shoulders down, Chad a local kid noticed I was drowning and pulled me out. He saved my life and at the time I wasn’t sure I was happy he did. That summer consisted of a life saving surgery and a boat load of rehab. It took weeks for me to be start learning to walk again and a month before I did. I spent the summer trying to fit back into my own skin because believe it or not I felt like I had no idea what my body would do next. Starting school in the fall was a challenge since I didn’t get my HALO brace off until 4 days before school started, the scariest this was walking in the hallways at HNHS hoping I didn’t get knocked over. Honestly if my parents knew how weak and unsure of myself I was I don’t think I would have been allowed to go back that year.

The next 20 years I dealt with depression and anger issues trying to get past the mistake I had made. I never quite felt I was doing with my life what I was supposed to. I lowered my head and kept my nose to the grindstone and worked through it. When I got married that helped give my life the purpose I was searching for. When Steph had Olivia I started to realize all I went through was for a reason and was a plan I didn’t control. I still to this day struggle from day to day with my past demons but I have my Faith, Family and Friends to lean on.

Now after 3 decades I have let go of “what might have been” and embraced “what still can be”

I OWE SO MANY FOLKS FOR KEEPING ME IN THE GAME, MOSTLY MY PARENTS AND MY WIFE.

GOD has always been there for me and he has shown me grace even when I wasn’t living up to my potential. I have so much to be thankful for and I am starting to realize that maybe the accident that changed my life forever may have been intended to save it. This is what and where Im supposed to be, so hold on here we GOOOOO.

God Bless and pray for all our Men and Women who serve us in the Military. This Memorial Day I remember the Uncle I can’t remember as he lost his life serving other(Thomas Parker). I also remember Ray and Kenny as they returned home to their families.

Spring is Big for Sellers and June Buyers are Heating UP! Plus Refinancing news, from your Local Huntington County Realtor Andy Eckert

Spring: The big season for home sellers

June: For buyers, the hunt is heating up

June is the month buyers begin looking for their dream homes in earnest.

And real estate agents say the game is on.

This June buyers are expected to outnumber sellers in most locales, says Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors (NAR). That means there will be lots of buyers who can't find their dream home unless they get in the game early.

Because the supply of homes is low, prices are going up. The nationwide median price for an existing single-family home was recently $213,800, or up 8 percent from last year. This year's pricing is part of a 47-month upward trend of gains, according to News Corp, which own The Wall Street Journal and also owns realtor.com, NAR's listing website. 

Lenders are saying that it's a busy borrowing season. "There's a decade of pent-up demand," says Bob Walters, chief economist of Quicken Loans. In March, he says loan volume for home purchases was at its highest level in four months, and low interest rates are also fueling a mini-refinance boom. 

The average interest rate for a 30-year mortgage was 3.74 percent for the week ending March 4, according to mortgage rate website HSH.com. In June borrowers should still be able to find mortgages at less than 4 percent, a great rate historically.

To avoid delays in closings, lenders recommends getting into the market as soon as possible. They say the number of mortgage seekers is expanding every day. Lenders are pushing for preapproval, which requires full documentation, to be submitted to an underwriter. Preapproval can save up to 10 days in the closing period and gives you an advantage when there is competition for the same house.

Refinance your home, renovate and

get a tax deduction

 For homeowners wanting to refinance, the IRS usually requires that mortgage points, or prepaid interest, be amortized over the lifetime of the loan. 

There's one exception, says Eric J. Wexler, a Rockville, Md., tax attorney and CPA. 

If a portion of the refinanced mortgage proceeds is put toward home improvements, the points  related to the home improvement amount may be deducted in the tax year of the refinance. 

That is assuming the amount falls below the $100,000 deduction limit and that other IRS requirements have been met, Wexler says.

Huntington & Allen County 1st Quarter Market Report, and why owners are overly optimistic, from your local Realtor Andy Eckert

Quarterly Market Report from the Huntington and Allen County Area.

Owners Overly Optimistic About Home’s Price

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | MONDAY, MAY 16, 2016
Owners are continuing to overestimate the value of their homes. The latest Quicken Loans’ Home Price Perception Index shows that home owners overestimated the price of their home, on average, by 1.95 percent compared to appraisers valuations in April.

Read more: In Search of Sellers
Home owners in the Midwest and East coast are overestimating their home’s value by the highest amounts, according to the HPPI.

The gap between home owner and appraiser expectations narrowed last month. In March, appraiser opinions of home values were 2.17 percent lower than home owner expectations.

“The HPPI is in a healthy trend, nationally,” says Quicken Loans Chief Economist Bob Walters. “While everyone wants their appraisals to come back showing more equity than anticipated, like some home owners in the West, the discrepancy we are seeing now won’t likely derail a mortgage transaction.”

Spring has finally Sprung and the Eckert family is enjoying it! from your local Huntngton County Realtor, Andy Eckert

This past month has been filled with a large auction in Auburn, surgery on my foot and getting ready for Olivia’s graduation. The graduation is more just planning out the trip to Bloomington and hoping she gets her diploma.

Spring has finally sprung and the grass is growing pretty quickly at the homestead, we have the baby goats growing fast and getting ready to pick up rabbits. Steph needs to find some chickens to raise for 4-H and then the Eckert farm will be full. Savannah and Sebastians horse came to live with us this week, Belle was a gift from Sebastian to his lovely lady a few years ago and now she is ready for some training and riding.

Aleah has started her Track season and finished her Volleyball season all in the same week. Steph thinks Aleah maybe a little too hard on herself when competing and needs to let mistakes roll off her more. That might be an Eckert trait or a Grandma Sherrill habit. Either way it’s hard to be at your best if every error one makes causes a lack of concentration due to the anger or embarrassment.

Michael has started his baseball season under the leadership of Terry Stoffel, let’s hope his batting improves and he starts knocking the crap out of the ball. He loves being a part of the team and the games are big deal for him. Michael wants to ride horses this year in 4-H and that training will fall on my ladies Steph and Aleah, Michael you’re in good hands.

Sebastian will be working for a Buddy of mine again this summer mowing and landscaping(Wind Landscaping) located in Allen Co. He loves working with James and being outside, he already has been offered a internship for next fall with an Insurance company. He seems to be getting all things in order for his graduation in 18 months.

My Buddy Carson Raymond Eckert had a birthday in April and will be making his 1^st Communion, that’s a lot for 30 days. I’m thinking about what to give him as a present, he is kinda attached to his Hello Kitty collection.

I’m hoping that my right foot heals quickly so I can do the left and be back on my feet midsummer. It would be awesome to walk 9 holes of golf without hurting for 3 days after. I never look forward to surgery but I finally had enough of sitting on the sidelines while everyone else was enjoying life. Plus my wife said I was an OLD man. Stephs been great helping me and Dad was my private driver for a week, damn he drives slowly. I never knew it was possible to take 30 minutes to drive from my house to my office, but he proved that wrong. A few times I had to look twice to make sure we weren’t going backwards.

Have a great spring of sun and mushroom hunting, God Bless…….

I always have time for YOU or your Referrals. 

Huntington University Students Produce Commercial for Realtors, from your local realtor, Andy Eckert

Watch my NEW COMMERCIAL


Check out our newest commercial! I'm very pleased with the outcome. Huge thanks to the students we worked with at Huntington University. Real Living Ness Bros. Real Estate & Auction Co - Huntington IN Office

Local Huntington Realtor Andy Eckert receives the Certified Auctioneers Institute (CAI) designation

In a continuing effort to enhance my business knowledge and to provide the best services possible to my customers, I have completed all the required coursework and requirements to earn the Certified Auctioneers Institute (CAI) designation.

  

One of the most highly respected educational programs in the country for auctioneers, CAI is an executive development program offering coursework in management skills, business ethics, finance, new sales techniques, marketing and more. It helps established auction professionals, like myself, provide more comprehensive and beneficial services to customers like you.

The classes, offered over a three-year span, allowed me to meet with and learn from some of the most distinguished and outstanding leaders in the auction industry. The experience has been invaluable and exciting, and has left me dedicated to further expanding my skills.

 

Part of the CAI designation includes completing 24 hours of education coursework every three years to keep my designation current. So, be assured that I will remain committed to learning and growing, and offering the most complete and valuable auction services available – for both sellers and buyers.

Less than 5% of auctioneers nationwide hold the CAI designation and I am proud to say that I am now one of them.

If you have questions about the auction industry and how my business can best serve you, as always, feel free to contact me any time.

Thank you for your continued business.

Andy Eckert