I attended a new home orientation the other day and as I was listening to the builder speak with the buyer about preparing his home for winter I thought this might be some good information I could share with you. Our company recently posted the following blog with reminders about winterizing our homes, enjoy!
http://athome.allentate.com/2010/11/winterize-your-home-now/
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
5 Reasons You Should Sell Your House TODAY!
Here is another interesting article I wanted to pass along from the KCM crew, one of our favorite blogs.
Selling your house in today’s market can be extremely difficult. It is for that reason that every seller should take advantage of each and every opportunity that appears. Each fall, such an opportunity presents itself. This fall, that opportunity may be just too good to pass up.Below are five reasons you should consider when pricing your house to sell in the next 90 days. Meet with your real estate agent and mortgage professional today and see whether it is the right move for you and your family.
1. Entering this time of year, the buyers are more serious.We all realize that buyers are not quick to pull the trigger on the purchase of a home today. There is no sense of urgency with the supply of eligible properties at all time highs. However, at this time of year, the ‘lookers’ are at the stores doing their holiday shopping. The home buyers left in the market are serious and are more apt to make a purchasing decision. Less showings – but to more motivated purchasers.
2. If you are moving up, you can save thousands.The Chicago Tribune stated in an article last week that sellers who want to ‘trade up’ should act now:It could be a bigger house, different neighborhood or a better school district, but it comes with a higher price tag. Do the math; this might be the right time.A home that was once worth $300,000 may now be worth $240,000 in a market where prices have fallen 20 percent. Wow, you think, the seller is taking a bath. But that seller may also be a prospective buyer who wants a house that once was valued at $400,000. With an equivalent market drop and a realistic listing price, that house may now sell for $320,000. So, in effect, the person is losing $60,000 on the sale of one home but coming out ahead $20,000 on the purchase of another.Keep in mind the spread may be even greater. There’s a smaller pool of potential buyers for more expensive homes, so sellers may be more willing to cut their price to get a deal done.
3. Interest rates just fell again – to 4.19%.Professor Karl E. Case, the founder of the Case Shiller Pricing Index in an article in the New York Times last month actually did the math for us:Four years ago, the monthly payment on a $300,000 house with 20 percent down and a mortgage rate of about 6.6 percent was $1,533. Today that $300,000 house would sell for $213,000 and a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with 20 percent down would carry a rate of about 4.2 percent and a monthly payment of $833 … housing has perhaps never been a better bargain.
4. You beat the rush of inventory that is coming next year.Every year there is an increase of inventory which comes to market from January through April as homeowners put their houses up for sale in preparation for the spring market. As an example, here is the number of listings available for sale in each of those months in 2010.January – 3,277,000 February – 3,531,000 March – 3,626,000 April – 4,029,000 You won’t have to worry about this increasing competition if you sell now.
5. You have less ‘discounted’ inventory with which to compete.This year, sellers of non-distressed properties have been given an early holiday present. With banks declaring a suspension on the sale of many distressed properties (foreclosures), there has been a large supply of discounted properties removed from competition. No one knows how long this self imposed moratorium will last. However, while it does, every homeowner has a better chance of selling their property.Bottom Line
If you are looking to sell in the near future, there may not be a more opportune time than this fall. Serious buyers, great move-up deals and less competition from foreclosures creates the perfect selling situation. Don’t miss it!
Selling your house in today’s market can be extremely difficult. It is for that reason that every seller should take advantage of each and every opportunity that appears. Each fall, such an opportunity presents itself. This fall, that opportunity may be just too good to pass up.Below are five reasons you should consider when pricing your house to sell in the next 90 days. Meet with your real estate agent and mortgage professional today and see whether it is the right move for you and your family.
1. Entering this time of year, the buyers are more serious.We all realize that buyers are not quick to pull the trigger on the purchase of a home today. There is no sense of urgency with the supply of eligible properties at all time highs. However, at this time of year, the ‘lookers’ are at the stores doing their holiday shopping. The home buyers left in the market are serious and are more apt to make a purchasing decision. Less showings – but to more motivated purchasers.
2. If you are moving up, you can save thousands.The Chicago Tribune stated in an article last week that sellers who want to ‘trade up’ should act now:It could be a bigger house, different neighborhood or a better school district, but it comes with a higher price tag. Do the math; this might be the right time.A home that was once worth $300,000 may now be worth $240,000 in a market where prices have fallen 20 percent. Wow, you think, the seller is taking a bath. But that seller may also be a prospective buyer who wants a house that once was valued at $400,000. With an equivalent market drop and a realistic listing price, that house may now sell for $320,000. So, in effect, the person is losing $60,000 on the sale of one home but coming out ahead $20,000 on the purchase of another.Keep in mind the spread may be even greater. There’s a smaller pool of potential buyers for more expensive homes, so sellers may be more willing to cut their price to get a deal done.
3. Interest rates just fell again – to 4.19%.Professor Karl E. Case, the founder of the Case Shiller Pricing Index in an article in the New York Times last month actually did the math for us:Four years ago, the monthly payment on a $300,000 house with 20 percent down and a mortgage rate of about 6.6 percent was $1,533. Today that $300,000 house would sell for $213,000 and a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with 20 percent down would carry a rate of about 4.2 percent and a monthly payment of $833 … housing has perhaps never been a better bargain.
4. You beat the rush of inventory that is coming next year.Every year there is an increase of inventory which comes to market from January through April as homeowners put their houses up for sale in preparation for the spring market. As an example, here is the number of listings available for sale in each of those months in 2010.January – 3,277,000 February – 3,531,000 March – 3,626,000 April – 4,029,000 You won’t have to worry about this increasing competition if you sell now.
5. You have less ‘discounted’ inventory with which to compete.This year, sellers of non-distressed properties have been given an early holiday present. With banks declaring a suspension on the sale of many distressed properties (foreclosures), there has been a large supply of discounted properties removed from competition. No one knows how long this self imposed moratorium will last. However, while it does, every homeowner has a better chance of selling their property.Bottom Line
If you are looking to sell in the near future, there may not be a more opportune time than this fall. Serious buyers, great move-up deals and less competition from foreclosures creates the perfect selling situation. Don’t miss it!
Monday, October 18, 2010
2010 Housing Opportunity Pulse Survey
This article was recently published by the National Association of Realtors and I thought it was interesting and worth passing along.
Americans Still Believe Buying a Home Is a Good Financial Decision
NAR's eighth annual Housing Opportunity Pulse Survey reveals that nearly eight out of 10 respondents believe buying a home is a good financial decision, despite ongoing challenges with the economy and housing market. The survey, which measures how affordable housing issues affect consumers, also found job security concerns to be the highest in eight years of sampling, with 70 percent of Americans saying that job layoffs and unemployment are a big problem in their area; eight in 10 cite these issues as a barrier to homeownership. The telephone survey of 1,209 urban and suburban adults in the top 25 metropolitan statistical areas was conducted for NAR by American Strategies and Myers Research & Strategic Services for NAR's Housing Opportunity Program.
Some key results:
Americans continue to believe that buying a home is a good financial decision (77 percent believe total strongly or not so strongly, 68 percent strongly so).
More than two-thirds of respondents (68 percent) say that now is a good time to buy a home.
Job insecurity and the lack of jobs continue to be the primary obstacle to home ownership and market recovery.
Respondents see the recession and job losses as the main reasons for the foreclosure problem, a shift from last year when they more likely to blame homeowners who bought homes they could not afford.
A majority of renters say that owning a home at some point in the future is either one of their highest priorities (39 percent) or a moderate priority (24 percent). Just 21 percent of renters say that owning a home is not a priority at all.
Frustration with banks is up: now a majority worry that banks have made it too hard to qualify for a home mortgage loan.
51 percent of respondents say foreclosures remain a big or moderate problem in their area. While there has been a significant drop in the percentage of those surveyed who say foreclosures have increased, 51 percent say that the rate of foreclosures is about the same as it was last year.
Most of those surveyed say that it is harder to sell a home in their neighborhood than it was a year ago.
Looking forward, 70 percent expect real estate sales in their neighborhood to remain about the same over the next few months. A nearly identical number (69 percent), also expect home values to remain the same.
Nearly one-quarter (23 percent) are now very concerned about the number of homes and condos for sale in their area—a number that is up 7 points from last year.
Most respondents are more concerned about the drop in home values than they are about home costs being too high. Still, cost remains the significant barrier to many who would otherwise like to buy a home.
Americans Still Believe Buying a Home Is a Good Financial Decision
NAR's eighth annual Housing Opportunity Pulse Survey reveals that nearly eight out of 10 respondents believe buying a home is a good financial decision, despite ongoing challenges with the economy and housing market. The survey, which measures how affordable housing issues affect consumers, also found job security concerns to be the highest in eight years of sampling, with 70 percent of Americans saying that job layoffs and unemployment are a big problem in their area; eight in 10 cite these issues as a barrier to homeownership. The telephone survey of 1,209 urban and suburban adults in the top 25 metropolitan statistical areas was conducted for NAR by American Strategies and Myers Research & Strategic Services for NAR's Housing Opportunity Program.
Some key results:
Americans continue to believe that buying a home is a good financial decision (77 percent believe total strongly or not so strongly, 68 percent strongly so).
More than two-thirds of respondents (68 percent) say that now is a good time to buy a home.
Job insecurity and the lack of jobs continue to be the primary obstacle to home ownership and market recovery.
Respondents see the recession and job losses as the main reasons for the foreclosure problem, a shift from last year when they more likely to blame homeowners who bought homes they could not afford.
A majority of renters say that owning a home at some point in the future is either one of their highest priorities (39 percent) or a moderate priority (24 percent). Just 21 percent of renters say that owning a home is not a priority at all.
Frustration with banks is up: now a majority worry that banks have made it too hard to qualify for a home mortgage loan.
51 percent of respondents say foreclosures remain a big or moderate problem in their area. While there has been a significant drop in the percentage of those surveyed who say foreclosures have increased, 51 percent say that the rate of foreclosures is about the same as it was last year.
Most of those surveyed say that it is harder to sell a home in their neighborhood than it was a year ago.
Looking forward, 70 percent expect real estate sales in their neighborhood to remain about the same over the next few months. A nearly identical number (69 percent), also expect home values to remain the same.
Nearly one-quarter (23 percent) are now very concerned about the number of homes and condos for sale in their area—a number that is up 7 points from last year.
Most respondents are more concerned about the drop in home values than they are about home costs being too high. Still, cost remains the significant barrier to many who would otherwise like to buy a home.
Monday, October 11, 2010
"TAX ADVICE AND CHANGES AHEAD!" - by Bobby Palmer, CPA, Guest Blogger
The SUV tax break is back!
Congress has recently approved a tax patch which contains the 2009 tax break for purchasing a new heavy SUV. As an example, if a business purchases a new $50,000 SUV and puts this vehicle into service by December 31, 2010, it can expense $25,000, the maximum for these vehicles. Then the business owner can claim $12,500 in bonus depreciation and also $2,500 in normal depreciation. This brings the total first year write off to $40,000. The SUV must have a loaded weight over 6000 pounds and must be a new vehicle.
Let’s talk tax laws that may affect Real Estate Sales:
The new healthcare legislation applied a 3.8% surtax to high incomers starting after 2012. Many news outlets are reporting this additional surtax will be applicable to the gains on all home sales. This statement is false. As we have enjoyed for years, the gain on the sale of a primary residence has an exclusion of $250,000 for singles or $500,000 for married individuals. Only the portion of the profit which exceeds this exclusion will be applicable to this additional surtax, and only if the individuals have adjusted gross income over $200,000 for joint filers or $250,000 for married taxpayers. However, profits on the sale of rental properties will be hit assuming the adjusted gross income limitations are met. For years, real estate professionals have been able to beat passive-loss rules and deduct rental losses by meeting two qualifications. Spend over 50% of their working hours (at least 750 per year) materially involved as a real estate developer, broker, or landlord. Secondly, the time spent must be documented and it must be actual time spent in this profession. In addition, if adjusted gross income is less than $100,000, a $25,000 loss is allowed. This deduction phases out when adjusted gross income reaches $150,000.
Let’s take an example of how this could work for you. A married couple purchases a rental condo for $300,000. Let’s say rental income covers the interest expense, property taxes, and all other associated expenses regarding the condo. Depreciation for this condo will be approximately $10,910 a year creating a book loss. In this example the married couple’s adjusted gross income is $100,000. The book loss created could fully go against their earned income to reduce tax liability while continuing to earn equity in the property. Let’s go one step further – after several years of renting, the couple decides they would like to sell the condo and it has gained in value. One way to exclude the gain from your income is to move into the condo for two years making it your primary residence. After two years, the gain is excluded up to the limits discussed above.
Bobby Palmer, CPA
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Great Post by one of our favorite Blogs..If HE Says It Is Time To Buy a Home, BUY A HOME!
A Great Blog Post! This is a post from earlier today by KCMBlog.com one of our favorite Blogs. It says alot and hopefully speaks to anyone that wants to buy, can buy, but is holding off for some reason. If you're not in the market, it's still a good read. If you know of anyone who is, please forward it along. The best way for us to insure the real estate market has turned the corner is to have more buyers enter the market and gobble up the high supply. Let us know your thoughts and opinions. We appreciate being your top team for the Charlotte Region. by Andy and Team BovenderTeam.com
Thursday, September 30, 2010
A Very Interesting Program! ULI Charlotte - Disruptive Demographics and the affects on the Real Estate Industry
I had the privilege of attending a great program yesterday in Uptown Charlotte on the changing demographics in the world and their impact on the Real Estate Industry. The focus was on the impact to the United States as well as he also spent some time on our home state NC. Dr. Johnson has a great slide presentation with excellent statistics to backup the forecasts. I especially enjoyed that, because we use statistics so much in our day to day work as well, and do believe the numbers tell you everything. It was not only very interesting to see how our state, our country, and the world will likely look demographically, in the years ahead. My question is what will companies and governments do to adjust and/or embrace these changes? Here's a link to Dr Johnson's presentation online below.
Here's a quick intro from the Urban Land Institute Website:Two powerful and “colorful” demographic forces—the “browning” and “graying” of America—will profoundly re-shape the residential and commercial real estate markets in the years ahead. More specifically, heightened immigration from Latin America and Asia combined with the aging of the native born population (especially the post WW II baby boom generation) will dramatically transform the age, racial and ethnic, and gender composition of the U.S. population, creating a demand of more residential and commercial spaces that reflect the consumer tastes and preferences of rapidly growing ethnic minority groups; new residential, commercial and retail spaces for an aging population; and communities that promote active living and healthy eating by design.
Speaker
James H. Johnson, Jr., PhD
Director, Urban Investment Strategies Center
Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
James H. Johnson, Jr., PhD
Director, Urban Investment Strategies Center
Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Friday, September 17, 2010
Assumable FHA Loans - Today, worth much more than you think.
When a lender mentions you have an assumable loan, what do you think? Who is going to assume my loan? Why would someone assume my loan? What exactly does that mean?
For many years rates have been very great. Lately, they've been so great, some say we may not see rates like this ever again. Well, assumable loans don't really mean much until mortgage rates go up or until you have someone looking to assume yours. And not only do they need to go up, but they need to rise enough to make the rate on the assumable loan attractive. For the last 10 years, there really hasn't been enough rise in interest rates to cause assumable loans to be desireable. Well, with every expert in the business expecting rates to rise significantly in the upcoming 12-18 months, this is about to change.
Today the current rate for a typical FHA mortgage is hovering right around 4.25%--an absolutely incredible rate. Now imagine if the experts are correct, and rates rise to anywhere around 6-8% which is exactly where they have been in recent years. That's a 2-4% difference in the rate that the assumable loan was locked in at in 2010, and the rate at which a new borrower would receive if they bought in 2-4 years from now. Now imagine you're the buyer looking for a home in 3 years (2013). You have Seller A with a great home at $300k with a typical conventional non-assumable loan. In this case you would need to get a mortgage to purchase this home like most buyers. Let's now assume the rate in 2013 for the same FHA mortgage is around 7%, which as most predict, is not unrealistic. Next, you come across Seller B that has the exact same comparable home, but he's marketing his home as having an assumable FHA mortgage option (Of course, you have to qualify for this loan just like a new loan). Seller B's home was purchased in 2010 at the 4.25% rate. Now Seller B has a 2.75% interest rate advantage over most other sellers in the market. That's approximately a $500 difference in the payment. That's a huge advantage for those buyers who are buying today, at unbelieveable rates, taking advantage of low downpayment options like an FHA loan (that are ASSUMABLE) then decide to sell in upcoming years when rates are expected to be much higher. That would almost definitely help Seller B make THOUSANDS higher in their sales price, vs Seller A.
Just another incredible advantage to buying in this great "buyer's market"! Especially with an assumable loan. ^ Andy
For many years rates have been very great. Lately, they've been so great, some say we may not see rates like this ever again. Well, assumable loans don't really mean much until mortgage rates go up or until you have someone looking to assume yours. And not only do they need to go up, but they need to rise enough to make the rate on the assumable loan attractive. For the last 10 years, there really hasn't been enough rise in interest rates to cause assumable loans to be desireable. Well, with every expert in the business expecting rates to rise significantly in the upcoming 12-18 months, this is about to change.
Today the current rate for a typical FHA mortgage is hovering right around 4.25%--an absolutely incredible rate. Now imagine if the experts are correct, and rates rise to anywhere around 6-8% which is exactly where they have been in recent years. That's a 2-4% difference in the rate that the assumable loan was locked in at in 2010, and the rate at which a new borrower would receive if they bought in 2-4 years from now. Now imagine you're the buyer looking for a home in 3 years (2013). You have Seller A with a great home at $300k with a typical conventional non-assumable loan. In this case you would need to get a mortgage to purchase this home like most buyers. Let's now assume the rate in 2013 for the same FHA mortgage is around 7%, which as most predict, is not unrealistic. Next, you come across Seller B that has the exact same comparable home, but he's marketing his home as having an assumable FHA mortgage option (Of course, you have to qualify for this loan just like a new loan). Seller B's home was purchased in 2010 at the 4.25% rate. Now Seller B has a 2.75% interest rate advantage over most other sellers in the market. That's approximately a $500 difference in the payment. That's a huge advantage for those buyers who are buying today, at unbelieveable rates, taking advantage of low downpayment options like an FHA loan (that are ASSUMABLE) then decide to sell in upcoming years when rates are expected to be much higher. That would almost definitely help Seller B make THOUSANDS higher in their sales price, vs Seller A.
Just another incredible advantage to buying in this great "buyer's market"! Especially with an assumable loan. ^ Andy
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