Shopping for Your Home

Saturday, April 24, 2010

5 Costly Mistakes First-Time Buyers Make


CNNMoney.com's Les Christie has listed five common and costly mistakes first-time buyers make:
  1. Ignoring the costs of having a low credit score. Lower-score borrowers pay thousands of dollars in increased interest rates over the life of the loan.
  2. Muddying the waters by shopping for other things before closing. Lenders continue to check credit scores right up until the time of closing. Too much shopping could cause the lender to take back the loan.
  3. Scrimping on an inspection. Being surprised by the need for expensive repairs can be financially devastating.
  4. Buying without contingencies. Buyers should give themselves an out if the inspection turns up problems or the bank raises the interest rates.
  5. No money for insurance. Insurance can be surprisingly pricey. Buyers who don’t budget for it can face a nasty surprise.

BUYERS TIP
Home Buyers can now push for lower closings costs!

Closing costs (lending charges, local tax & transfer fees, title insurance, appraisal costs and other 3rd party services) are typically 3% of the cost of the property. According to Guy Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance, most buyers should be able to do better than the 3% standard. Wire transfer fees, loan application-processing fees and high FedEx charges are some fees buyers shouldn't have much trouble negotiating.


MORTGAGE RATES
Freddie Mac reported:
  • 30 year fixed stayed flat averaging 5.07%
  • 15 year fixed loans down to 4.39% from 4.4% last week
  • 5 year hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 4.03% down from 4.08%
  • 1 year ARMS rose to 4.22% from last weeks 4.13%

Questions? Comments?
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Friday, April 16, 2010

Foreclosure rates SURGE!!!


According to Realty Trac Inc., the number of homes taken back by banks jumped 35% in the first quarter of the year compared to last year's. Also, homeowners facing foreclosure rose 16% during the same period; 7% in the last three months of 2009. Rich Sharga, a Real Trac senior VP says, "We're right now on pace to see more than one million bank repossessions this year." This means that banks are wading through the backlog of troubled home loans at a faster pace...

Remember last year our Obama Administration put pressure on banks to modify home loans for troubled borrowers. This pressure, coupled with state enacted foreclosure moratoriums and the banks' issues with the handling of all the problematic loans eased foreclosures, however it's now REVERSING! "We're finally seeing the banks start to process the inventory that has been in foreclosure, but delayed in processing," says Sharga. "We expect the pace to accelerate as the year goes on."

The states with highest foreclosure rates in the first quarter were:
  1. NEVADA - 1 in every 33 homes was facing foreclosure
  2. ARIZONA - 1 in every 49 homes there received a foreclosure related notice
  3. FLORIDA - 1 in every 57 homes
  4. CALIFORNIA - 1 in every 62 homes
There is good news, the sooner we get the foreclosures out of the mix (obviously not entirely) the sooner the market will stabilize, however prices WILL RISE!!! So if you are thinking of buying, DO IT NOW while the deals are still a steal!!!

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Tuesday, April 13, 2010

HOAS getting SLICK, Floridians in "woe" & Distressed properties on the RISE


HOAS (homeowner's associations) in need of cash are using a tactic to force banks to pay association fees . The "reverse foreclosure" tactic works like this:
When a homeowner/borrower stops paying their mortgage, backs more times than not delay taking the property into foreclosure. During this delay neither the owner nor the back pay the association fees. So, to remedy this the association files its own foreclosure notice. If and when the association takes over the title, it is still not able to sell the property due to the bank's lien. So, the association goes to court, renounces the property and asks the judge to give title back to the bank. When the judge does this, the bank has the obligation of paying the fees. Touche HOAS!!!

When it RAINS it POURS!
We all know, especially us here in Florida, this cold winter was not only unexpected but not appreciated. However, that's not all Floridians had to "woe" about. Homeowners who faced foreclosure during our housing downturn were not just driven there by one factor but were victims of multiple issues that left them financially strapped, according to a study conducted by Strategic Guidance Stems. Joel Searby, their director of marketing, said “What we found in talking with people who've gone through foreclosure is that there's a 'plus-one factor,' meaning job loss coupled with other circumstances such as divorce or health problems that usually led to homeowner distress."


Are distressed sales gaining greater market share?
Yes, according to First American Corelogic, distresses properties accounted for 29% of all U.S. homes in January 2010 (average sales price $161,600). Real estate owned sales rose 22% up from December's 19% (average sales price $247,700) and short sales rose to 8% from 7% with an average sales price of $141,900.

Numbers don't lie folks prices are rising, however the ship has not sailed so
DON'T MISS THE BOAT!!!

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