Pay Less for PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance)

Tuesday, March 16, 2010
posted by tommi

                                                   Unless you have a 20 percent equity position in your home, you will have to pony up for private mortgage insurance (PMI).  This insurance premium typicallycosts between .5 – 1.5 percent of your loan amount, per year.  ($500-$1500/year on a $100,000 loan)  The actual costs depend upon how much equity you have, your credit score and whether you opt for a fixed rate loan or for one that adjusts.

2 Ways to Pay for PMI. 

Buyers can negotiate with the seller to pay a single premium upfront or buyers can roll the premium into their loan.  The downside of rolling it into the loan is that interest will be charged on loan for the premium.   The upside is the interest paid is deductible and the buyer will pay less money out of pocket at closing.

The only way to eliminate PMI is to put 20 percent down and apply for 80 percent financing.   Waiting is the only other way to get rid of the expense.  PMI cancels as you pay down your loan and equity reaches 22 percent of the homes value.

Thank you for visiting Why 6 Percent.  Interest Rates remain unchanged today.  Good news for home sellers and buyers, alike.   Learn more about our flat fee MLS and Realtor.com program for homeowners.  Market your home like the pro’s and save thousands in commissions!

InfoBox for Real Estate. Mystery Solved.

Friday, March 12, 2010
posted by tommi

InfoBox delivers  information that homebuyers want in one sexy, smart, easy to use product.

Buy an InfoBox or InfoTube and remove the mystery about what is behind your front door.

Instant, wireless seller to buyer communication.  No software, squinting at tiny screens,  internet modems or waiting forever for downloads is required… 

Why6Percent.com  is changing real estate.    Reach millions of homebuyers and buyer agents for a few bucks and save thousands in fee’s and commissions.   Why Pay 6 Percent??

PS Check out InfoTube.net for Real Estate Facebook Page.  It’s fun, it’s cutting edge and it’s interactive.  If you like real estate, you’re going to love this!

With more than 5 million households currently behind on their mortgages, the Obama adminstration is rolling out a new program to encourage lenders to accept a short sale.   A short sale is one in which a property is sold for less than the outstanding mortgage owed to the lender.   The administration hopes the program will prevent more foreclosures, which further depress property values and harm good neighborhoods.

The  program, which takes effect April 5, 2010,  pays lenders and borrowers to complete a short sale.   Key points of the program are as follows.

  • 1.  The program compels lenders to accept a short sale offer and forgive the difference they are owed between the market value and the outstanding mortgage balance. 
  • 2.  The lender will receive $1000 for every short sale they participate in.
  • 3.  The program encourages millions of borrowers to get serious about getting rid of their homes.  It  pays homeowners $1500 in walking away cash for finding buyer for their property and closing the sale.
  • 4.  The lender will utilize real estate agents to determine the present market value for a home.  That value will set the minimum acceptable price.   The estimated value will not be shared with the homeowner.  If an offer is submitted that is equal to or higher than the estimated value, the lender MUST take it.

Pro’s and Con’s

  • 1.  For the investment pools which own most of the home loans, there is the hope of getting more money from a short sale than a foreclosure proceeding.
  • 2.  For the lender, $1000 will help offset the labor intensive short sale process.
  • 3.  For the borrower, their credit will suffer less damage.  They have the lenders assurance that they won’t be sued down the line for their unpaid balance.  And, they get $15oo to assist with their relocation.
  • 4.  For the community, short sales mean fewer empty houses sitting around waiting for the bank sale.  It is estimated as many as half of all vacant properties are ransacked, neglected, vandalized and depress the value of neighboring homes.
  • The downside is that short sales are “tailor made” for fraud.  House values are inherently subjective, which providing a wide latitude of potential conflicts.
  • Another problem is that bankers hate the very idea of accepting an offer short of what they are owed.  By nature, they don’t want to sell anything at a discount.  If they loan $200,000 …they expect to be repaid $200,000, not $150,000.

Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com   We have helped thousands of people sell their homes and save a ton of money in fee’s and commissions.  We can Help You, too!!

Uncle Sam Pays the Tab for New Windows

Wednesday, March 3, 2010
posted by tommi

Does a cold draft blow around your head while you relax in your easy chair?   Does the sound of actual street noise drown out the sound of the NASCAR race on TV?   If you answered “Yes” to either question…it might be time to replace those old, drafty, ugly, noisy, single paned, aluminum frame windows with some good looking, energy efficient ones.

Why Replacing Your Windows Pays Off…

  1. New windows improve the curb appeal and increase the value of any home.  
  2. Buyers pay up for new windows.  Numerous studies show that home sellers recoop 90+ percent of the costs for window replacement at the time of sale.
  3. Homeowners realize the energy savings immediately, while increasing comfort.
  4. Energy efficient windows are a Green home selling feature. 
  5. New models of windows are easy to clean and maintain. 
  6. Improve your view.  New glass is so clear it’s just like looking through… nothing at all. 
  7. Maybe Best of All…Uncle Sam Pays for It.   The government will pay 30 percent of the cost (up to $1500) to replace the windows in your home through December 31, 2010.  And, don’t forget to check out the additional rebates and savings on windows that are being offered in most states, cities and townships.

Tip for a Tight Budget

  1. Just replace some of the windows.  Choose the ones on the front of the home, because they improve the curb appeal.  Or, replace the windows that get hammered by the most weather, be it sun, rain, snow or wind. 
  2. Or, Roll the Dice…and, maximize the tax credit by replacing half of the windows in 2010.  Then, gamble on an extension of the credit into 2011 and replace the other half.
  3. Uncle Sam picks up a Third of your bill and smile (:

Practical Advice About Window Replacement

  1. Use a company that carries a wide range of window brands.  Make sure they use their own employee’s (not subcontractors) to do the installation.
  2. Profit from the Housing Crash.  Be a hard negotiator and get at least 3 quotes.  You can save Big on labor and materials because the housing market is slow.
  3. Replacing windows is a big, messy job.  Cover up anything important such as electronics and furniture.  Sawing and Ripping out windows is dirty business, no matter how good the installer.

Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com.   We have a program for home sellers that offers the MLS, Realtor.com and advertisement on dozens of real estate listing posts for one cheap price…and the seller keeps the commission.  Call 1-800-381-9496 or visit http://www.why6percent.com today for the details.  You will be happy that you did!!!

Find Out a Home’s History of Property Damage

Thursday, February 25, 2010
posted by tommi

If you want to learn about a homes of property damage, ask the Seller to provide a copy of their C.L.U.E. (Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange) report.  The report lists claims for property loss and damage over the last 5 years, including any claims for theft, fire, flood, hail damage, etc. for any given property address.  The report  does not include personal information like the owners name, social security number, etc. 

Why would you want one?  The report could disclose property condition information or problems that may not have been disclosed.   And, the report can tell you about problems that might affect the availablility or cost of insuring the property.

Home buyers can purchase a report about for the last 5 years of insurance claim against any address in the nation by at Choice Trust, a division of Lexus Nexis.  Homeowners, you can obtain a FREE annual property loss report that covers the last 7 years.   A similar loss report called A-Plus, can be requested from the Insurance Services Office by phoning 1-800-627-3487.

Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com.  Advertise your property on the MLS, Realtor.com and major real estate websites for one flat fee and keep the commission.

Staging Tip to Make Your Bathroom Appear Bigger

Tuesday, February 23, 2010
posted by tommi

We have a totally free, staging tip that everyone can do to make their bathroom appear more spacious and inviting. 

Open your shower curtain a little bit…  It draws the eye onward and makes the space appear larger.

Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com   The home buying season is heating up across the country.  If you don’t have your home listed on MLS, Realtor.com and all the major real estate property websites…you are missing buyers.  It’s that simple.  Contact us to list on the MLS for $399 and you keep the commission.

10 Towns for Real Estate Steals and Deals

Friday, February 19, 2010
posted by tommi

It’s our job at Why6Percent.com to have our finger on the pulse of real estate from coast-to-coast.  Recently, we have been telling you to get ready for a big home selling season this spring.

Why?  Interest rates are rising.  Job losses have slowed to a trickle.  Factory and Industrial output is up for the first time in years.   And, we feel that the Fed is holding back information, for now, on the job creation that is happening as we speak.

So, where are the best real estate deals in the country??  We have identified 10 cities that are offering up Trump-type deals of a lifetime.   CLICK HERE to see where the action will start first.

If you haven’t placed your property listing on the MLS, Realtor.com, Zillow, Google, MSN, Military.com and all the other major real estate websites…you are missing buyers.  Go to the Why6Percent.com website and sign up NOW!!Don’t wait a minute longer.  Tax Credits, Rising Rates and Gutted Home Prices are creating a stir among buyers early this spring.  You snooze…you lose…  And, we certainly don’t want that.

Pent Up Demand for Housing Explodes This Spring

Tuesday, February 16, 2010
posted by tommi

Depending on where you live, you may have never experienced a winter like this one.  I know I haven’t.  Week after week, snow, rain, mudslides and/or freezing temperatures have pounded the country.  With only 1 state out of 50 snowless, it’s easy to see why no one is attending Open Houses… Fortunately,  with February nearly over,  the crocus will soon appear and we predict that homebuyers will hit the streets enmass.  

Home Sellers Get Ready.  The nasty, record setting winter certainly put a halt to home sales, but the upside is the pent up demand it created.  People who expected some typical, nice days to tour homes after the holidays, have  found themselves stuck inside with nothing to do but watch HGTV and dream about buying a home.  We predict these stir crazy buyers will hit the streets at the first opportunity. 

$8000 Reasons to Motivate this Spring.   The $8000 tax credit for homebuyers expires in 43 Days.   To cash in on the lucrative tax credit, buyers must be under contract for a home before April 1st or they forfeit $8000 grand!!  That’s a lot of motivation to get serious in a hurry.

Cheap Money.   The Fed and Mortgage Bankers all acknowledge that interest rates will increase this spring and continue moving upward through 2010.   Buyers know that if they snooze they lose the chance to lock in a cheap, fixed rate loan and risk pricing themselves out of their dream home, entirely.

Get Ready. Get Set.  Sell.  Home sellers should prepare for a surge in buying activity this spring that has not been seen in several years.   Make every second count now by deciding on your selling strategy.  Agent? FSBO? FSBO, combined with the power of the MLS?  Whichever you chose or want to pay for,  make sure you use the internet for all it’s worth.  And, get to  know your local home market like the back of your hand.   

Why6Percent.com will make sure you are ready when the buyers show up.   Place your property on InfoTube.net for FREE exposure to thousands of buyers each week.  Advertise your home listing to every buyers agent and on every real estate website with our cheap, flat fee MLS listing, and keep the commission.  Either way you chose, act now.  You can’t afford to wait until the buyers are looking.   This is what you’ve been waiting for.

Share Your Property Information and Idea’s

Friday, February 12, 2010
posted by tommi

InfoTube.net announced some recent updates to it’s website that make it easier for homeowners to share information and property details on the internet.

Share Your Property Information with One Click

InfoTube.net has provided a direct “Share” link on every home listing.  The “Share” link automatically feeds your property listing to all major sharing websites such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, etc.  If you use social networking or RSS feed websites, simply select where you want your property listing posted and click.  It’s that easy.  (The Share Link can be located under the “Email Seller” link on every home listing.)

Sellers and Buyers Communicate, Learn and Get Advise

InfoTube.net for Real Estate has an Offical Facebook and Twitter page where you can post pictures, questions, idea’s or funny real estate stuff you want to share.  Become a Fan and Contributor Today. 

Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com!!  If you haven’t placed a FREE property listing on InfoTube.net, please do so Today.  Without InfoTube.net you miss buyers, exposure and the free assistance that is available to you.  InfoTube.net, combined with the MLS, provides a one-two punch for a knock out home sale!!!

Cut Real Estate Fee’s and Cut Foreclosures

Tuesday, February 9, 2010
posted by tommi

This article appeared recently in the San Francisco Chronical in response to growing outrage over the exorbident fee’s charged to buyers and sellers of real estate.  

Cut foreclosures by slicing real estate fees

Al Lewis

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

President Obama has often said that it would be a shame to waste this economic crisis. Nowhere is that more true than in residential real estate. Federal home-buyer tax credits up to $8,000 designed to increase home sales and reduce foreclosures are having little impact.  Sales of existing homes fell a record 17 percent in December, while foreclosure petitions are rising. Instead, let’s use this crisis to try a new approach: permanently slashing the 6 percent real estate brokerage commissions prevalent in most markets.

Unlike commissions paid for buying cars, stocks or insurance, these hidden commissions include two payouts – about 3 percent each to the seller’s broker and the buyer’s broker.  But there’s no need for two brokers in real estate transactions.  These hidden fees survive only because real estate brokerage is a cartel.  Forty years ago, you needed one broker to buy a house – today you need two.  In law and medicine, fee splitting is illegal. In real estate, it is required.

Most people would not hire commissioned brokers if they had to pay for them directly – that’s why the brokerage industry wants them hidden.  So let’s eliminate hidden fees for the buyer’s broker.   We could then drop the homeowner tax credit, since the buyer is saving three grand, and replace it with a $1,000 incentive credit.  This cash bonus would go only to home buyers whose purchase prices include a total commission of 3 percent or less (or none at all).

The selling brokers will naturally complain: “We can’t afford to split a 3 percent commission with the buyer’s broker.  That’s how much we need to make ourselves.  So buyers will have to make their own arrangements if they want assistance.”

And that is exactly the point:  Instead of allowing the 3 percent commission to be hidden in the sales price, this tax incentive would encourage home buyers to pay openly for whatever level of assistance they want, if any. Given those other options and the chance to collect $1,000, few buyers would opt to pay a 3 percent out-of-pocket commission – about $15,000 on a median-priced Bay Area home.  Faced with the prospect of paying that bill explicitly, most Internet-savvy buyers would probably opt for personal advice just a few times during the home-buying process, and pay by the hour or by the showing.

Even with only $1,000 of tax credit, these buyers will be better off financially than first-time buyers who collect a hefty home buyer credit, but who still pay hidden commissions.  And taxpayers are better off, too.  Any buyer could still opt to pay the traditional commission at closing – but would have to forgo the incentive credit.

This temporary incentive credit could permanently alter the structure of real estate brokerage, because there would be no going back once the credit expires.  As happened when stock commissions were allowed to decline, much lower transaction costs would create more transactions and hence more liquidity.  Liquid markets will allow people to sell houses more easily before they go “underwater,” thus reducing foreclosures.

Of course the real estate brokerage industry, which has strongly endorsed home buyer tax credits, will oppose this incentive credit. Fortunately, an equally powerful coalition of builders, bankers, mortgage brokers and consumer advocates will be lined up supporting it.

Much lower transaction costs would not just reduce foreclosures by facilitating transactions, but would also increase people’s net equity in their existing homes.  Homeowners would be better off and, at least in real estate, this economic crisis would not be wasted.

Al Lewis is author of “OOBonomics: 12 ‘Outside Of the box’ Ideas to Improve the Economy.”

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/02/ED4C1BP3O5.DTL

This article appeared on page A – 10 of the San Francisco Chronicle

Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com.  Our network brokers list property on the MLS and real estate websites for only $399…Why Pay 6 Percent????