Help with closing costs for buyers///

Hey, this could be good for some people!  Glad they're still thinking of ways to help homebuyers...

"Daily Real Estate News | April 13, 2011 | Share
Fannie Offers Closing Cost Help for REOs
Fannie Mae is trying to lure more buyers to its foreclosure properties by offering to cover 3.5 percent in closing costs for home owners who close by June 30 on its HomePath properties.

Fannie’s HomePath program provides low down payment financing on REO property sales and has no requirements for mortgage insurance or appraisals.

During the fourth quarter of last year, Fannie offered closing cost assistance and was able to recoup 55 percent of unpaid principal balance on defaulted mortgages through the sales."

Source: “To Move REO, Fannie Offers Deals to Consumers,” National Mortgage News (April 12, 2011)

http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2011041301?OpenDocument

Interest rates...

 I know the rates are still really good, but be aware of changes~

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Daily Real Estate News  |  January 21, 2011  |    Share
30-Year Mortgage Rates Inch Up
The rates on 30-year fixed mortgages increased slightly this week, with average rates rising 4.74 percent from 4.71 percent the previous week, Freddie Mac reports.

In November, 30-year rates had reached a 40-year low at 4.17 percent but have been inching upward ever since.

Here’s how other rates fared for the week:
15-year loan rates dropped to 4.05 percent from 4.08 percent.
5-year adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 3.69 percent, down slightly from 3.72 percent the previous week.
1-year ARMs were up slightly to 3.25 percent from 3.23 percent last week.


“Mortgage rates were little changed during the holiday week amid reports that inflation remains tame,” says Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. The housing construction market as well as home builder confidence still remain low, Nothaft notes.

Source: “Tame Inflation Figures Leave Mortgage Rates Mixed,” Freddie Mac (Jan. 20, 2011) http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2011012105?OpenDocument

Buying that home...

It is true that owning a home can be a great help in relieving some income taxes...  and many renters still look forward to buying someday...  so, here's an interesting article below!


Daily Real Estate News  |  December 16, 2010  |    Share
People Still Want to Own a House: Fannie Mae
The desire to own a home hasn’t been diminished by the downturn in the industry, according to a survey by Fannie Mae.
51 percent of owners and renters say that the housing crisis has not affected their overall willingness to buy a home. About 27 percent said they are more likely to buy since the crisis, presumably because of lowered prices, and 19 percent said they are more likely to rent.
In the short term, Americans are nervous about buying. About 33 percent say they would be more likely to rent their next home than buy, up from 30 percent in January. Among renters, 59 percent said they would continue to rent in their next move, compared to 54 percent in January 2010.
Other findings include:
· 66 percent of respondents say they believe that housing is a safe investment - as safe as an IRA or a 401(k) plan.
· About 50 percent say they believe that owning is a good idea, even if they plan to stay in the home less than three years.
· 86 percent identify tax benefits as a reason to buy, even though tax benefits are small or non-existent for many homeowners.
Source: Fannie Mae (12/15/2010)


http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2010121602?OpenDocument

Real Estate thoughts for Mendocino County

In looking behind and ahead, I see that we are slowly working through the worst of the downturn...  but there is still so much to go! 

I have been approached by some who wonder if the housing prices will drop again by a large percent, but in looking to the counties South of us, we see that is not likely to be the case.  Sonoma County's lowest price ranges have been stabilizing and increasing a bit (only because they reached a "false" bottom due to the foreclosures), which is a good indicator for us in Mendocino County.  Also, our own lowest price ranges have been stablizing in Ukiah and Redwood Valley, and Willits shall not be far behind... 

But, there are others who hope that when the foreclosures trickle towards a stop, we shall see prices go up again--  to that I say, IF prices go up at all, it shall be by a VERY tiny amount (unless the value is rebounding from being affected by a "false" bottom in the lowest price ranges), but that we shall have years before any significant increase in prices occurs. 

So, does one buy now or wait?  Depends on what someone is looking for, really.  If the property they want is available and suits their needs...  they can afford the payments and are not paying too "over the current market" for it, then I would say that purchasing is a good idea.  If someone is only waiting for the "real" bottom to buy, then they run a high risk of waiting until the prices do start back up...  but by that point in time, perhaps they will not find what they want before they are priced out?  All depends on the supply of homes and what is available at what time.  However, if there is nothing out there that a buyer wishes to jump at, then do not feel forced!  That is truly not the way to buy a home...  there will be other properties on the market in future, and perhaps one of those will be the "one" for you. 

Yes, the bank-owned properties offer good buys on the market, but I have also seen multiple offers and frenzies to buy that have driven the price above what I would have considered a "great buy"...  so be careful of not falling into the emotional trap of a bidding war. 

Lastly, never lose sight of what you qualify for, but more importantly what you are comfortable with!  If you qualify for $300,000 but feel more comfortable with payments at a price of $250,000...  then try to stay as close to the $250,000 as possible.  Ask your agent for sales comparisons to the property you have interest in-- but understand that the condition of these comparisons may be drastically different (they can look a lot different on paper and on the internet as compared to real life), and there may be a reason for a price difference... 

The goal should be for a positive transaction that makes all happy or at least satisfied...  and go ahead and ask questions along the way.  You are not unintelligent for needing to ask questions!  Maybe we do not always tell you, but we have to ask a lot of questions ourselves in this constantly changing market.  :)

Lending Money to Family...

Lending Money to family may be the only way to have a purchase close...  but there are positives and negatives to doing this--  I think it can truly be a win-win, but do not blindly go into this!!  Make sure you know the facts and the law, so that all can be informed and protected...
_______________________
Daily Real Estate News  |  November 29, 2010  |    Share
How to Lend to a Family Member
Carrying a mortgage for a family member can be a good investment, but it can also be tricky. Here are a few things to consider.

The lender must be comfortable with the deal. While a 30-year term is a popular bank loan, private lenders are sometimes more comfortable with shorter loan periods like 15 or 20 years. A 30-year term could be made more attractive to the lender by introducing a higher rate of interest at 10-year or 15-year intervals.

Questions to answer before agreeing to make the loan include:

▪ How will the loan be paid off if the borrower dies or is otherwise unable to complete payment or sell the property for enough to pay off the loan?
▪ What happens if the borrower goes into bankruptcy?
▪ What if the borrower fails to make timely payments?
▪ Will the lender require the borrower to escrow the property taxes and insurance?

Also, put the details of the transaction in writing and record it at the local recorder of deeds office so the borrower can’t get another loan on the property or sell the home without paying off the borrower.

Source: Real Estate Matters, Illyce R. Glink and Samuel J. Tankin (11/27/2010)
http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2010112906?OpenDocument

TAX CREDITS FOR REPEAT HOME BUYERS :)

Do check this out, especially if you are thinking of buying another primary residence before the end of April 2010!!

"Frequently Asked Questions
About the Move-Up/Repeat Home Buyer Tax Credit

The Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 has established a tax credit of up to $6,500 for qualified move-up/repeat home buyers (existing home owners) purchasing a principal residence after November 6, 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010 (or purchased by June 30, 2010 with a binding sales contract signed by April 30, 2010).

The following questions and answers provide basic information about the tax credit. If you have more specific questions, we strongly encourage you to consult a qualified tax advisor or legal professional about your unique situation."

http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/faq2.php

First Time Buyer Tax Credit expiring??

"First-time home buyer tax credit set to expire
Robert Selna, Chronicle Staff Writer

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

  
(09-29) 20:28 PDT -- The $8,000 federal tax credit for first-time home buyers is soon to expire, causing anxious house hunters to hustle and prompting a debate in Congress over extending a program that some say is central to the fragile real estate recovery.

The rebate is available to anyone who has not owned a home in the past three years. The government introduced the program in February as part of the stimulus package, and several studies estimate that by the Nov. 30 expiration date, it will have spurred several hundred thousand home sales.

The real estate industry in California and across the nation is lobbying Congress to extend the credit through next summer. Meanwhile, local Realtors and prospective buyers are eager to complete sales - which sometimes take months - not knowing whether the credit will be continued.

"The refund has had a tremendously positive impact," said James Liptak, president of the California Association of Realtors. "Home prices are down considerably, and one of the big things that has made people jump into the market is the credit." 

Critics argue that American taxpayers are simply footing a windfall for purchasers who would have bought homes anyway. Real estate industry statistics suggest that approximately 1.8 million people are expected to receive the credit. They also indicate that the rebate spurred 350,000 home sales. 

"That means that about 85 percent of the people who got the credit were already going to buy homes," said Ted Gayer, a Brookings Institution economist who focuses on housing and public finance. "The idea of a subsidy is to get people to change their behavior. This subsidy costs a lot of money and is only getting small number of people to change their behavior."

New homeowners Nicole Kitchen and her husband, Jared, said the tax rebate was a significant factor in pushing them to buy their Martinez house this summer. The credit allowed them to purchase a new washer, dryer, refrigerator, stove, television, two couches and other furniture. 

The couple amended their 2008 taxes and received the benefit almost immediately. 

"We would have had to pay for the new things with a credit card or put a smaller payment down on the house," said Nicole Kitchen, a 31-year-old teacher in Martinez. "This is a great way to boost the economy." 

The Kitchens had additional motivation for buying a house, including the fact that the couple's first child was nearly a year old, interest rates were low and prices had fallen dramatically from years past. 

Members of the House and the Senate have proposed more than 20 bills to extend and/or expand the credit.

A proposal by Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona (Riverside County), mirrors a bill sponsored by Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga. The lawmakers want to offer the tax credit for another year, increase it to $15,000 and make it available to any buyer who stays in a home for at least two years. 

Gayer from Brookings estimates that such a program could cost $30 billion. As it stands, the government is on track to spend $15 billion. 

"California needs to stimulate demand; there's a lot of inventory out there and increasing the program to $15,000 could help (decrease) some of that supply," said Calvert's spokeswoman, Rebecca Rudman. 

Others agree. They say that extending the tax incentive program is worthwhile given the importance of the housing market to the overall economy and the relatively small cost of the credit. 

The housing market is unpredictable. It slumped in August after four months of gains. Nationally, sales of existing (not new) homes dropped 2.7 percent. The Bay Area saw a 15 percent decline. 

Additional foreclosures also are on the horizon. In 2010, many option adjustable rate mortgages, which were popular in the Bay Area, will begin to readjust. When they do, borrowers will be hit with much higher monthly mortgage bills, possibly triggering the next big wave of foreclosures. 

"The economy is trying to gain traction and the housing market is a big piece of that," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Economy.com. "We are likely to have a lot of foreclosures next year, so it's good to give everyone who wants to buy a chance to buy."

This article appeared on page A - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle

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http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/09/30/MNCH19U14D.DTL&type=printable

People Still Want to Buy Homes

LOOK!! People still want to own homes out there :)
Take care,
Karena Jolley
MendoGroup team
CBMR
http://www.MendoGroup.com

"Daily Real Estate News | August 19, 2009 | Share
Study: Americans Still Want to Be Home Owners
Despite all of the bad news in the media about homeownership and mortgages, most Americans still believe buying a home is a great investment, according to a new study commissioned by Bankrate.com.

Among the findings from the study:

92 percent say that a home is a good investment for the future.
48 percent worry about losing or being unable to afford their homes.

"These results provide an interesting illustration of the public's mindset in a difficult economy," says Julie Bandy, editor in chief at Bankrate. "While nine out of 10 still believe in the American dream of homeownership, nearly half worry about losing their homes.”

Source: Bankrate.com (08/18/2009)"


http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2009081901?OpenDocument

Don't forget, you first-time buyers... if you are interested at all, now is the time!! the deadline is this year, and if not extended, that will be that for this great tax credit that does not have to be repaid (in years past, it did)... check out this article, and check in with me if/when you have questions... and want to know the local market conditions.


"First-Time Homeowners Offered Tax CreditsBy Holden Lewis, bankrate.com Published: 5/14/2009This year some first-time homebuyers will charge their down payments to the taxpayer.Buyers will be allowed to use their first-time homeowner tax credits as down payments when they get FHA-insured loans, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan announced this week. Depending on the buyer's tax-filing status and the price of the home, the tax credit can be as much as $8,000.
The National Association of Realtors hailed the announcement, and asked taxpayers to subsidize all home purchases, and not just for first-time buyers.
The decision to finance first-time homebuyers' down payments with tax dollars was a highlight of a week that saw little change in mortgage rates.
Mortgage rates have been remarkably steady in the last few weeks. The Obama administration successfully adopted a policy of driving mortgage rates down and keeping them there. Observers believe that the Treasury and Federal Reserve are keeping rates in a narrow range by buying mortgage-backed securities whenever rates threaten to rise.
Donovan boasted about the effort to keep mortgage rates low when he spoke this week before a meeting of the National Association of Realtors. "And we are taking action to further help the housing market recover," he said as he introduced the down payment subsidy.
The down payment initiative is built onto this year's first-time homebuyers' tax credit, in which qualified buyers can get an income tax credit of 10 percent of the home's price, or $8,000, whichever is less. The credit is half that for spouses filing separately, and the credit phases out for higher-income filers.
Under the plan announced by Donovan, buyers can get a piggyback mortgage or an unsecured bridge loan for the amount of the tax credit when they get a Federal Housing Administration-insured mortgage. The piggyback or bridge loan can take the place of a down payment. Typically, FHA-insured loans require a down payment of at least 3.5 percent.
Borrowers will be expected to pay off the piggyback or bridge loans when they claim the tax credit on their 2009 returns next year or their amended 2008 returns this year. To claim the tax credit, buyers have to buy by the end of 2009.
"We think the policy is a real win for everyone, ensuring that borrowers can tap into the numerous organizations that are already part of the FHA network," Donovan told the Realtors. He cited a home builders' study that claimed that the tax credit will stimulate 101,000 sales to first-time buyers, and another 59,000 home sales to people who will be able to buy homes because first-time buyers bought their homes.
By using tax credits as down payments, buyers won't have to put some of their skin in the game by shelling out their saved-up cash to make down payments.
For years, the FHA grudgingly allowed down payment assistance programs, or DPAs, to operate. DPAs were a mechanism by which home sellers could indirectly fund buyers' down payments. A seller isn't allowed to supply the buyer's down payment money.
But DPAs exploited a loophole that allowed charitable organizations to make down payments for needy buyers. The DPAs accepted "charitable contributions" from sellers, then gave equivalent "donations" to the buyers to cover their down payments.
After years of griping about higher default rates on loans that used down payment assistance, the FHA persuaded Congress to ban DPAs last October as home sales were declining precipitously. Now it appears that the FHA will let the IRS replace down payment assistance programs.
The DPA business was dominated by two nonprofits: AmeriDream and Nehemiah. AmeriDream president Ann Ashburn told Bankrate: "By setting this policy, the FHA is tacitly acknowledging the mistake it made last October when it convinced Congress to ban charitable down payment assistance. That mistake cost hundreds of thousands of Americans the opportunity to become responsible homeowners, accelerated the decline in home prices, and likely delayed the housing market's recovery."
Ashburn added, "Down payment assistance must be a long-term, privately funded program, not a short-term subsidy funded by the U.S. taxpayer." She supports H.R. 600, a bill that would allow DPAs to resume their activities.
In response to the FHA's new down payment policy, the National Association of Realtors patted itself on the back. "Last year, NAR asked Congress to pass housing stimulus legislation, which passed and is beginning to show results," the Realtors' president, Charles McMillan, said."
http://www.frontdoor.com/Home-Finance/FirstTime-Homeowners-Offered-Tax-Credits/55087


Take care, and until next time,
Karena Jolley of the MendoGroup team
Coldwell Banker Mendo Realty Inc
lic 01482063
phone 707 354 2999
www.mendogroup.com