Affordability & Financing
But Zillow says my house is worth…
July 18, 2011 by Sasha C. Farmer, REALTOR ® · Leave a Comment
It is actually quite often that people I run into have been completely misguided about their home values. With the incredible technology and information online about real estate and home searches, people often feel that real estate websites are getting to the point where they are extremely accurate and reliable. In some large cities, evidently this is true. In Charlottesville, there still seems to be a huge void between what these websites predict about our real estate values and local market, as compared to market reality.
Zillow and Trulia seem to be the two biggest offenders when it comes to this as they offer automated home valuations that people like to use to predict their home values from year to year. Zillow’s Zestimates seem like they are based on enough data and information that they would at least be able to give you a reasonable range within which you could expect your home price to fall. However, that does not often seem to be the case.
According to Zillow themselves, almost every market area in Central Virginia has an extremely low accuracy level- check out the charts below that they provide to set your expectations!
Their self-reported accuracy level is extremely low (almost all nearby counties are a 1 out of 4 star rating) and I can absolutely attest to that!
All that being said, please do not let automated estimates of value set your expectations about your own home or homes you may be interested in buying! If you need pricing analysis and recommendations, please consult with a real estate professional- ideally me! – for guidance.
Is Now a Good Time to Buy?
October 5, 2010 by Sasha C. Farmer, REALTOR ® · 2 Comments
Time Magazine’s September 11 cover story attempts to make a strong case against homeownership in the article found here; but I have actually found my recent conversations with clients (current and pending) to present a story that is quite the opposite.
Are you still debating whether or not it is a “good time to buy”? It is never a good time to buy for EVERYONE, but right now is a GREAT time to buy for many people, and I hope the naysayers aren’t swaying people away from making a decision that could very well be right for them. If you have income/job consistency and plan to stay in the same location for 5+ years, this may be the best time to buy that we’ll see in this lifetime. In Charlottesville, we have excellent selection, competitive prices, and we’re seeing the same low interest rates that all of these experts mention.
Here is an interesting article from Steve Harney, a real estate expert who has stayed abreast of the current real state market and seems to do a good job reporting on it fairly.
“If you don’t own a home, buy one. If you own one home, buy another one. And if you own two homes, buy a third and lend your relatives the money to buy one.” – John Paulson 9/27/2010
WOW! That’s a powerful statement.
There is no question that John Paulson is a bull when it comes to residential real estate right now. Should we care what Mr. Paulson thinks? Should we listen to him? The answer to both questions is a resounding ‘YES’. Here are several reasons why.
Who is John Paulson?
Paulson is the person who made a fortune betting that the subprime mortgage mess would cause the the real estate market to collapse. He understands how the housing market works and knows when to buy and when to sell. What do others think of Paulson?
According to Forbes John Paulson is:
a multibillionaire hedge fund operator and the investment genius who made a killing going short subprime mortgages a few years ago.
According to the Wall Street Journal Paulson is:
a hedge fund tycoon who made his name, and a fortune, betting against subprime mortgages when no one else even knew what they were.
What did other financial players think of his statement?
The Wall Street Journal agrees with Paulson:
Ignore the critics. The odds have to be on his side…It isn’t just that home prices have fallen a long way. It’s also that, if you can get a mortgage, you are basically taking a reverse bet on the bond market. You could be a long-term borrower at fixed rates, instead of a long-term lender. Right now you can borrow for 30 years at around 4.3%. After the mortgage tax deduction, for some people the net effective interest rate is nearer to 3%. That’s going to prove an awesome deal if we see inflation again.
And Forbes said:
As this is the best time in 50 years to buy homes, Paulson advised his listeners to take 30 year mortgages to buy a home as “your debt and interest payments get locked in at record lows, while the price of your home will rise.”
Are others also saying now is the time to buy?
Just last week, we posted that there is a growing number of people saying that NOW is the time to buy, including:
- The Wall Street Journal
- Professor Karl Case, founder of the Case Shiller House Pricing Index
- The wealthiest families in the country and
- 70% of everyone else in America
Bottom Line
Thinking of buying a home? Are you taking advice from a friend or family member telling you that now is not the time? It may be time to listen to people who better understand the opportunities that exist in real estate today.
via If HE Says It Is Time To Buy a Home, BUY A HOME!.
I hope that if you’re considering purchasing a home, you will give me a call or shoot me an email to discuss your options and take a look at whether or not buying a new home in Charlottesville might be the right decision for you!
Great Chart On Credit Scoring; Check this out if your credit might be in danger
March 13, 2010 by Sasha C. Farmer, REALTOR ® · Leave a Comment
I really like this chart on credit scoring- I receive lots of questions from potential buyers about credit, including how they can improve their credit scores in order to prepare for a home purchase.
Whether in the market for real estate or not, these are things that everyone should be aware of pertaining to their credit. If you are interested in learning more about your credit score or looking for ways to improve it, contact me and I will connect you with a lender who can help you through your questions!
[Credit: SpendOnLife.com]
Trying to Utilize FHA Financing? Check this List of Condo Communities to See if They're Approved!
February 10, 2010 by Sasha C. Farmer, REALTOR ® · Leave a Comment
If you’re planning to utilize FHA financing to purchase your next home, you have to use a little bit of caution when considering condos in Charlottesville, as not all of them are approved for FHA financing.
Check out the link below to see whether or not the condo you’re considering is approved for FHA;
HUD.GOV Condos with FHA Financing
If the condo community you’re considering is not on this list, you may need to check with your mortgage lender to see if you will be able to come up with an alternative type of financing. Additionally, if you live in one of the condos that is not able to provide FHA financing, you should be aware that it may limit the potential number of Purchasers who will have the ability to buy your home on the resale market!
Please give me a call if I can help connect you with a lender who may be able to help you find alternative financing, or get you pre-qualified!
[Photo Credit: http://www.radrounds.com]
New Forms to Claim The First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit
January 17, 2010 by Sasha C. Farmer, REALTOR ® · 1 Comment
The new forms to submit when claiming the first time homebuyer tax credit have finally been released! Form 5405 will now be needed when submitting a tax claim, and this is likely mainly due to the large numbers of tax fraud we were experiencing in res
ponse to the First Time Homebuyer tax credit. Please be sure to file this along with your claim, so you don’t experience any sort of delay in claiming your credit!
Click HERE to directly download a copy of Form 5405 from the IRS website for yourself.
From the Washington Post coverage of the new forms…
“Form 5405, First-Time Homebuyer Credit and Repayment of the Credit” can be downloaded from the IRS web site.
First-time buyers will have to send a copy (keep your originals!) of one of these documents to back up their claim to the tax credit:
- A copy of their HUD-1 Settlement Statement, complete with dates and signed by all parties.
- Mobile-home buyers can send in a copy of their signed, dated and fully executed sales contract.
- New-home buyers who don’t have a HUD-1 settlement statment must send in a copy of the certificate of occupancy.
All of these documents need to show names, dates, addresses, signatures, and prices.
[From Local Address - New tax forms released for claiming the home buyer credit ]
The experience of my clients thus far has been that getting the credit has been fairly painless. I hope that this will continue through the extension of the credit in 2010, but I would love any feedback you may have!
[Photo Credit: The Backyard Wealth Blog]
Just in from CNNMoney; Trial Loan Modifications DO Hurt Borrowers' Credit
December 29, 2009 by Sasha C. Farmer, REALTOR ® · Leave a Comment
Only weeks ago, I published a post with updated information from an advanced education class I was taking though the CRS (Certified Residential Specialist) program for Realtors, that was discussing different types of distressed sales and loan modifications to your mortgage, and how they would impact your credit score. In that class, we learned that borrowers were being told that taking advantage of the government HAMP (Making Home Affordable) program should not negatively effect their credit score, and that we should encourage borrowers to strongly consider this option before looking down the road of a short sale or foreclosure. Today, CNNMoney exposes several stories from people who have utilized the program, and whose credit scores are mysteriously dropping.
For some, a drop would be completely expected. For those who are behind on mortgage payments and who take the new mortgage arrangement, it is reasonable to expect that their credit would have already been damaged to some extent, just from the mortgage payments that had been missed. However, many other people have been encouraged to look at the HAMP program to re-arrange their mortgage and reduce their payments, even before they are behind on a payment. It is these people who have been squeaking by, trying to make ends meet and who have been making payments, who were being told (even by mortgage officers themselves) that their credit would not be effected. One of those stories is followed in the article today;
Axelrod, a municipal employee who lives outside Chicago, entered a trial mortgage modification program this spring.
He had not fallen behind in his mortgage, but he was finding it harder to make ends meet after his overtime was cut and his property taxes skyrocketed. Told it would not hurt his coveted 750 score, Axelrod secured a $565 reduction in his monthly payments.
Eight months later, Axelrod is still stuck in the trial modification, trying to satisfy his loan servicer’s endless requests for documents.
And to his horror, his credit score has plummeted to 644.
“It’s completely destroyed my credit,” said Axelrod. “If I had known it would affect my score, I would have never entered the program.”
Representatives at JPMorgan Chase (JPM, Fortune 500), which services Axelrod’s loan, are instructed to tell applicants that entering a modification could impact their credit histories, a bank spokeswoman said.
Despite his weakened credit score, there is at least some good news for Axelrod: After being contacted by CNNMoney.com, JPMorgan Chase said his permanent modification had been approved.
[From Trial loan modifications hurt borrowers' credit histories - Dec. 28, 2009]
According to CNNMoney;
The coding alone can impact credit scores, which measure a consumer’s financial health and range from 300 to 850 under the FICO system. The severity depends on how many payments the borrower missed before entering the program. Those who were current in their mortgages could see their scores fall up to 100 points, according to the Treasury Department.
[From Trial loan modifications hurt borrowers' credit histories - Dec. 28, 2009]
For now, it sounds as though a mortgage modification may still certainly have its benefits over a short sale or a foreclosure, if you want to keep your home. However, it is important for everyone to know that for what we can tell, it does not come as “risk-free” as it may have been advertised. This is sure to be a topic we’ll be hearing about more soon, but until then, please be sure to consult your tax advisor and your attorney for advice before beginning a mortgage modification program.
[Hat tip to Lani Rosales at Agent Genius for pointing out this important article.]
According to NAR, 4 out of 10 Recent Buyers Used FHA Loans
December 23, 2009 by Sasha C. Farmer, REALTOR ® · Leave a Comment
As you probably already know, FHA loans are becoming an extremely popular loan device for purchasers in this marketplace. FHA loans used to evoke lots of negative connotations, a few of which were; lots of extra requirements, much longer time to process, and stringent and difficult home inspection standards. However, these hassles have been eliminated, and FHA loans seem to rarely differ in difficulty from pursuing a conventional loan. I expect that the use of FHA loans will only continue to grow into 2010.
According to the most recent REALTORS® Confidence Index, 39 percent of recent buyers purchased a home with a Federal Housing Administration-insured loan. REALTORS® who took part in the November survey also reported that the number of first-time home buyers continued to climb to 51 percent.
“FHA helps provide affordable mortgage financing to home owners, particularly first-time home buyers who are so important in drawing down inventory to help stabilize the current housing market,” said NAR President Vicki Cox Golder. “These recent survey results reaffirm that, despite its current challenges, FHA is a critical part of the American housing fabric.”
—NAR
[From REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-4 out of 10 Recent Buyers Used FHA Loans]
