Archive for the ‘Mortgages and Loans’ Category
Sellers Market 1st Quarter 2010…then ?
The Federal government leads us to believe that housing sales (number of units, not prices)will be up at least until April of 2010. But, the Fed, along with other experts, have expressed fear that home sales will dry up after early spring, when the homebuyer tax credits expire and the Federal Reserve ends their policies that are keeping loan rates cheap for borrowers. (Click here to Read the short article.)
What can you Learn from Foresight vs Hindsight this Year?
- To make the most money in 2010…Get your house clean, cleaned out, staged and priced to sell NOW.
- Do not wait until Spring is here to put your home on the market. Do it NOW!
- 90 percent of all home buyers shop on the internet, not newspapers, local or otherwise. If you aren’t marketing your property on all major websites for real estate, buyers will not find your home. There are simply too many homes for sale and buyer’s will not any waste time ferretting out information or for obscurely advertised property.
- Use photographs and video’s to show and sell your home. Add in video or snapshots of the neighborhood, nearby shopping, parks or attractions. Pictures, and especially video, create interest and a glimpse of lifestyle that buyers crave.
- Sell it yourself, but enlist the help of buyers agents. Buyer’s agents use the MLS to find property for their clients. Advertise on the MLS and offer up some commission to them, if they bring you their buyers! Bonus: If you list your home on the MLS, it will immediately stop all annoying listing calls, too.
Why 6 Percent is in the business of helping sellers market their homes on every major real estate website, search engine and the MLS with one click of your mouse. Visit our website or phone 1-800-381-9496 for details. We can put your property in front of millions of home buyers within 24 hours. Don’t delay. Act Today!!
Hope Springs for Housing in 2010
If you are serious about selling your home, then 2010 is the year for you.
- The decimated housing market is showing signs of stabilization in price and demand. Prices have actually risen for the past 6 months, through October, and overall demand has increased.
- Interest rates are at historical lows, but they have risen a half percent in the last month. Higher interest rates are a big motivator to buy now, as no one expects rates to stay this low going forward.
- The Fed extended the $8000 first-time buyer tax credit and expanded $6500 credit which includes non-first timers. This program certainly helps lure ready-buyers into the marketplace. To qualify all sales must close by June 2010.
- Homes are affordable. In markets like Phoenix, you can buy a home for $800 a month, which makes owning cheaper than renting.
While the news on real estate in 2010 is mixed, and no one is predicting a rebound in housing until 2013, the bear market is definitely in its last innings.
If you have a home to sell, there hasn’t been a better time in years. To succeed, contact Why6Percent.com to advertise your property on the MLS and real estate websites where 90 percent of the buyers are looking. It’s really that simple.
4 Good Signs for Real Estate in 2010
It’s beginning to look like 2010 is the year to buy a home.
- Cheap Prices: After a decade of steep home price appreciation, the recent crash pummeled home prices back to levels last seen in 2003.
- Low Interest Rates: 5 percent or less for a 30 year fixed rate loan mean rates are at historical lows, at least for now. Rates are expected to rise the next 4 quarters…so if you snooze, you may loose the chance to lock in at once in a lifetime rates.
- Foreclosures: Although losing a home is a life changing, tramatic experience…large numbers of foreclosures have created wonderful opportunities for buyers and investors.
- Uncle Sam: Uncle Sam is sweetening great deals on homes by handing out thousands of dollars to first time and existing homeowners who close on a home before June.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. If you have a home to sell, we can put your listing in front of millions of serious home buyers with the click of your mouse. Why Pay 6 Percent??? Visit the website for details and free marketing services.
Home Buyers Highly Motivated
According to a survey by Move.com, 12.1 percent of homebuyers intend to purchase an investment property this year, compared to only 5.6 percent of buyers polled in April.
The percentage of investors shopping for property also jumps higher when it comes to foreclosed property. 42 percent of foreclosure buyers are purchasing for an investment. 57.6 percent of foreclosure shoppers plan to live in the home they buy.
The survey also shows that 23.6 percent of investors and buyers believe that home prices are already as low as they will go. Nearly 20 percent feel a sense of urgency when searching for a bargain.
Another factor motivating home buyer’s off the sidelines is the real threat of rising interest rates. Wall Street guru’s, who agree on very little, warn that lending rates will rise in the near future. With real estate prices at their lowest levels, buyers risk much more in waiting to purchase, than they do by locking in record low rates on their loan.
Why6Percent Prediction: We believe the leading indicator of an interest rate hike will be falling unemployment claims. When unemployment claim filings fall below 500,000 per month, a rate hike is likely!
Realtors Prediction: Home sales will jump by over 13 percent in the next 6 months.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com, your home selling resource center. If you are selling, buyer’s are buying. So, don’t miss the Boat. If they can’t find your property, they can’t buy it. Call us at 1-800-381-9496 today. Our MLS and Realtor.com marketing package reaches 10 million home buyers each and every month!!!
Breaking News for Home Sellers and Buyers!!
Great news for home buyers, sellers and owners, alike. The homebuyer tax credit has been expanded to include step up buyers, who have owned a home for 5 years. It also extends the tax credit through the end of 2010.
GREAT NEWS!
It appears that Senate Democrats have recognized the tremendous value of the First Time Homebuyers Tax Credit and odds are it will be renewed soon. At this time, it is believed that the credit will allow anyone purchasing a home, by April 30, 2010, to participate and receive the full credit available.
The credit will continue until the end of 2010, but the amount of tax credit will drop by 2 percent every 90 days. The graduated benefit should help the housing market recover into and through the 2010 summer selling season.
Here is the text of the story as reported in Bloomberg News today:
Senate Democrats on Board with Credit Extension
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) says Senate Democrats have agreed to extend the first-time home buyer tax credit. The latest version extends the program to home sales signed not closed by April 30. Purchasers would have another 60 days to close the sale. The credit will also be expanded to include so-called step-up buyers who have lived in their current home for at least five years.
The credit would be cut slightly to a $7,290 cap. Income eligibility for first-time home buyers would stay the same, but it would rise for step-up buyers to $125,000 for individuals and $250,000 for couples.
Half of all Homes Sold at a Loss
Stunning News: At least one half (50 percent) of the homes sold in the US closed for less than the amount owed on the mortgage. In other words, half of all US homeowner’s were upside down, owing more money than their houses were worth.
Sadly, the national average of 50 percent was far better than a lot of regions faired. In Arizona and California, 55 percent of sales prices fell below the loan amount. In Florida, 40 percent of owners were upside down. In Michigan, 65 percent of all home sales were distressed. In Nevada, the banks lost even more money, as 61 percent of all sales were made at prices below the outstanding debt amount.
While we have seen units of sales of real estate pick up in the last four months, these sales have unfortunately been the result of deeply discounted prices. The problem for a recovery in 2010, is that another wave of foreclosures is cresting, ready to pound us once again.
To read the latest news about foreclosures and home price predictions in 2010, CLICK HERE.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. If you have a home to sell, time is not on your side. Price your property aggressively and let the world know about it. Visit our website and discover how other seller’s are reaching millions of buyers a month.
$8000 Tax Credit Expiring in 90 Days
ATTENTION HOME BUYERS!! The $8000 Tax Credit for Purchasing a Home Expires in Only 90 Days.
Banks are warning buyers that Strict Loan Underwriting and Loan Application Backlogs mean that standard loans are taking 90 days or more to close.
Please act quickly to put a home under contract and secure your financing, now. Time is running out. If you can’t close on or before the November 30, 2009, you lose $8000. Period.
Thank you for visiting Why 6 Percent.com. We can expose your property to millions of serious homebuyers and save you thousands of dollars in commisssions and fee’s. Contact us today. Time is ticking and buyer’s are waiting.
5 Smart Moves for Home Buyers
Record low interest rates, combined with deeply discounted home prices, have bottom fishers swimming frantically, in search of the perfect deal on the perfect home. But, before you strike, beware. The Top 5 Tips to Avoid getting Hooked in a bad way are Read More….
Thank you for visiting Why 6 Percent. Our network of real estate brokers can place your home on the MLS, giving you unparelled exposure, and you retain your buy owner status. Visit the site to learn more
Question About Negotiating Low Appraisal
Hello Why 6 Percent,
We are selling a home for $249,500. We agreed to pay $7000 closing costs. The Buyer is putting down $25,000. The appraisal came in $3000 less than sale price. Our Realator said this could be a deal breaker. Since the Lender isn’t lending the full price why would this be an issue?
I could understand if the Lender was lending the total sale price. They wouldn’t want to lend more than house was appraised at. I get that.
Thanks,
Terri F.
Dear Terri,
The fact the appraisal came in $3000 below the selling price of $249,500 can be a problem for the seller, buyer and lender for a number of reasons.
First, buyer’s usually hesitate to pay more for a property than the appraised amount, but there are other issues, as well.
From what you told me, it sounds as if your buyer is applying for a 90 percent loan. (Selling price $249,500 with $25,000 down). The fact the appraisal came in at $246,500 means that the lender will only finance $221,850, or 90% of the appraised amount. This means that your buyer will need to come up with another $2700 at closing to make up the $249,500 sales price.
The reason I am think that the increased cash up front may be a problem for these buyer’s, is that they are financing $7000 in closing costs. If the upfront cash wasn’t an issue for them, they would have likely written an offer for $242,500. No doubt, you would have accepted the $242,500 because that is your actual net sales price, after the closing costs are paid from the proceeds of the sale.
In order to keep the sale together, you have a few options to consider. One, reduce the sales price to the appraisal amount. Two, ask the agent’s to kick in some of the commission to get the deal to work. They probably will consider helping. Three, you or the agent can provide better comp’s to the appraiser and ask for a review of the value. Or, fourthly, buyer, seller and agents can split the difference to get the deal closed. A four way split of the $2700 would only cost under $700 for each of you, so that may be a good way to overcome this problem and get on with your life.
Thank you so much for emailing me. Please follow up and let me know how this goes for you, Terri. We are here to help.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. We have helped thousands of people sell their homes and save money. We can help you, too. Call us at 1-800-381-9496.
3 Reasons Why Interest Rates Will Stay Low
The Top 3 Reasons that Interest Rates Will Stay Low
- The collapse in commercial real estate. Property values are down 35 percent since October 2007 and the majority of minds in the business believe that values will decline another 11-20 percent.
- The continuing fall in property values makes it difficult, if not impossible, to refinance as many as $165 billion dollars in troubled loans.
- Commerical property is a significant drag on overall economic growth and recovery. The country runs a major risk of another financial crisis, if lenders suffer unexpected losses.
Fed chairman Bernake told the Senate Banking Committee, “As the recessions’s gotten worse in the last six months or so, we’re seeing increased vacancy, declining rents, falling prices, and so, more pressure on commerical real estate.”
With commercial real estate in a Danger Zone, we predict that the Fed may be forced to leave the emergency lending rates close to zero, for longer than many pundits expect.
Thank you for visiting Why 6 Percent.com. We are here to help you with all matters real estate.
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Todays Article of Interest for Real Estate: What are Homebuyers Looking for When it Comes to Location???