So you’ve been searching for that perfect house to call a ‘home,’ and you finally found one! The price is right, and in such a competitive market that you want to make sure you make a good offer so that you can guarantee your dream of making this house yours comes true!Freddie Mac covered “4 Tips for Making an Offer” in their latest Executive Perspective. Here are the 4 Tips they covered along with some additional information for your consideration:1. Understand How … [Read more...]
2 Myths That May Be Holding Back Buyers
Fannie Mae’s article, “What Consumers (Don’t) Know About Mortgage Qualification Criteria,” revealed that “only 5 to 16 percent of respondents know the correct ranges for key mortgage qualification criteria.” Myth #1: “I Need a 20% Down Payment” Fannie Mae’s survey revealed that consumers overestimate the down payment funds needed to qualify for a home loan. According to the report, 76% of Americans either don’t know (40%) or are misinformed (36%) … [Read more...]
What to Expect From Your Home Inspection
So you made an offer, it was accepted, and now your next task is to have the home inspected prior to closing. More often than not, your agent may have made your offer contingent on a clean home inspection.This contingency allows you to renegotiate the price paid for the home, ask the sellers to cover repairs, or even, in some cases, walk away. Your agent can advise you on the best course of action once the report is filed.How to Choose an InspectorYour agent will most likely have a short list of inspectors that … [Read more...]
Sales at Highest Pace in 10 Years! [INFOGRAPHIC]
Highlights:45 million existing homes were sold in 2016! This is the highest mark set since 2006.Inventory of existing homes for sale dropped to a 3.6-month supply, the lowest level since NAR began tracking in 1999.The median price of homes sold in December was $232,200. This is the 58th consecutive month of year-over-year price gains. … [Read more...]
Thinking of Selling? Why Now is the Time
It is common knowledge that a large number of homes sell during the spring-buying season. For that reason, many homeowners hold off on putting their homes on the market until then. The question is whether or not that will be a good strategy this year.The other listings that do come out in the spring will represent increased competition to any seller. Do a greater number of homes actually come to the market in the spring, as compared to the rest of the year? The National Association of … [Read more...]
Buying a Home is More Affordable Than Renting in 66% of US Counties
According to ATTOM Data Solutions’ 2017 Rental Affordability Report, buying a home is more affordable than renting in 354 of the 540 U.S. counties they analyzed.The report found that “making monthly house payments on a median-priced home — including mortgage, property taxes and insurance — is more affordable than the fair market rent on a three-bedroom property in 354 of the 540 counties analyzed in the report (66 percent).”For the report, ATTOM Data Solutions compared recently … [Read more...]
How Low Interest Rates Increase Your Purchasing Power
According to Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey, interest rates for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage are currently at 4.09%, which is still very low in comparison to recent history!The interest rate you secure when buying a home not only greatly impacts your monthly housing costs, but also impacts your purchasing power.Purchasing power, simply put, is the amount of home you can afford to buy for the budget you have available to spend. As rates increase, the price of the house … [Read more...]
Have You Saved Enough for Closing Costs?
There are many potential homebuyers, and even sellers, who believe that they need at least a 20% down payment in order to buy a home or move on to their next home. Time after time, we have dispelled this myth by showing that many loan programs allow you to put down as little as 3% (or 0% with a VA loan).If you have saved up your down payment and are ready to start your home search, one other piece of the puzzle is to make sure that you have saved enough for your closing costs.Freddie Mac defines closing costs … [Read more...]
Tips for Preparing Your House For Sale [INFOGRAPHIC]
Highlights:When listing your house for sale your top goal will be to get the home sold for the best price possible!There are many small projects that you can do to ensure this happens!Your real estate agent will have a list of specific suggestions for getting your house ready for market and is a great resource for finding local contractors who can help! … [Read more...]
Will Housing Affordability Be a Challenge in 2017?
Some industry experts are saying that the housing market may be heading for a slowdown in 2017 based on rising home prices and a jump in mortgage interest rates. One of the data points they use is the Housing Affordability Index, as reported by the National Association of Realtors (NAR).Here is how NAR defines the index:“The Housing Affordability Index measures whether or not a typical family earns enough income to qualify for a mortgage loan on a typical home at the national level based on the most recent … [Read more...]
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