Real Estate Information

Mortgage Rates Drop to Record Low:

30 year fixed mortgage rates dropped to their lowest levels in 39 years according to a new survey released by Freddie Mac, the second largest mortgage finance company.

Interest rates on 15 year fixed rates and hybrid adjustable rate mortgage rates reached fresh lows as well.  While record low rates and high housing affordability helped the housing market gain ground over the last year, the sector is struggling since the popular home buyer tax credit expired on April 30th.

According to a Freddie Mac survey, the average 30 year fixed rate for conventional (non-FHA and VA) mortgages averaged 4.69 percent for the week ended June 24th and is the lowest since Freddie Mac started the survey in April 1971.  Still, Freddie Mac's data is at least a week old before they publish it and it has been another week since then.  15 year rates are below 4%. Rates do vary depending on credit, debt ratios, down payment, area of the country, property type, points paid and many more factors.

NOW is the best time to list your home!

We’re smack in the middle of prime house-hunting season! More people are looking to buy a home during the summer than any other time of year. That means your house has the greatest potential to sell during the summer. Follow these essential tips to get your home listed for sale and to make the best impression on summer buyers.

It's very important to prepare your home well for showings. The decision to buy a home is based on emotion, not logic. Fixing up and cleaning the space generates the greatest emotional response. Doing so allows buyers to imagine themselves living in your home. Leaving your kid’s toys in the floor and closets cluttered with junk makes it difficult for buyers to imagine themselves as owners.

So clean like you’ve never cleaned before! Pick up, straighten, scrub, scour and dust. Fix everything no matter how unimportant it may appear. Present your home to get a “Wow!” response from buyers.

If you aren't sure where to start or what to do please call us. We'll be happy to come by and walk through your home and give you a list of things to do to prepare your home to sell.  In the past year our clients who've had the best results selling their home quickly and for top dollar are the ones who have taken our advice gotten their home in tip top showing condition. We also work with a professional staging company who can take it to the "next leveland " of showing condition.

Service Members Get Extra Year for Tax Credit
This is a bit of good news.  Members of the U.S. military, foreign service and intelligence communities have another year to purchase a home and claim the home buyer tax credit.

Any service member who is or has been on extended duty for 90 days or more between Jan. 1, 2009 to April 30, 2010, has until April 30, 2011, to sign a sales contract and until June 30, 2011, to close on the property. Both the $8,000 first-time and the $6,500 repeat home buyer tax credits are included in the extension.

The rule that requires buyers to repay the credit if they move out of their home within three years has also been waived for qualified service members if they receive government orders to move.

This patriotic benefit is not only great for those service people who can use it , but also for our housing industry. The tax credit incentive really boosted home sales. We were working contracts up until right before midnight last Friday night, the April 30th deadline.  How many of you think it would be a good idea to extend or reactivate the tax credit? Let us know your thoughts and opinions.

As Larry and I began 2010 we really felt that it was our duty to help strengthen and develop ourselves and our team spiritually so we could better serve our clients according to our mission statement. We held a team retreat and brainstormed about all the godly character traits we could come up with and then narrowed it down to the top 12.

Each month we are focusing on a different character trait by teaching and discussing it at our weekly team meeting. So far this year we have learned about courage, diligence, honesty & integrity and this month it is faith.

With all that’s going on in the real estate market, developing these areas of our character is proving to be very helpful already. We not only desire to be the most knowledgeable and professional realtors, but we want to be filled with Godly wisdom and character to be able to serve you and all the special people you are referring to us. We don’t take this job lightly!

I'm often asked if this is a good time to buy a home. Some clients are concerned that home prices may fall further than they have already. They are assuming that the best course of action is to wait for the bottom in the market and then buy. The problem with this approach is that you don't know where the bottom is until you see it in the rear view mirror, meaning until you've missed it!

Home prices are one factor in determining your cost of ownership, but so are interest rates and financing availability. Even though interest rates have gone up in the last six months, they are still near historic lows. Since your monthly mortgage payment is a combination of paying down your principal and paying the interest owed, if home prices come down a little further but interest rates up, it could cost you even more to service a mortgage on an identical home!

While a home is a major investment, it is also the center of your personal life. It's important to live in a home that reflects your taste and values, yet is within your financial "comfort zone." To that end, it may be more important to lock in today's relatively low interest rates and low home prices, rather than to hope for a further break in prices in the future.

Please give me a call if I can be of any assistance in determining how much home you can afford in today's market.