EXISTING HOME SALES BY REGION

Sales are up everywhere but whether prices are up depends on where the home is located.

To see how this applies to your unique situation, please call, text or email.

The Importance of Your New Home Walk-through

Advice from the National Association of Home Builders

Before You Move In: The New Home Walk-Through

Before you go to settlement on your purchase of a newly constructed home, you and your builder will do a walk-through to conduct a final inspection.
This walk-through provides an opportunity to spot items that may need to be corrected or adjusted, to learn about the way your new home works and to ask questions about anything you don't understand.
Often, a builder will use the walk-through to educate buyers about:

• The operation of the home's components.
• The buyer's responsibilities for maintenance and upkeep.
• Warranty coverage and procedures.
• The larger community in which the home is located.

Operation of Home Components
When you buy a new appliance or piece of equipment, such as a printer or a washing machine, you usually have to read the instructions before you understand how to use all of the features. With a new house, you will receive a stack of instruction booklets all at once. It helps if someone takes the time to show you how to operate all of the kitchen appliances, heating and cooling systems, water heater and other features. Such an orientation is particularly useful because people often are so busy during a move that they have trouble finding time to carefully read instruction booklets.
Maintenance Responsibilities
Part of your walk-through will be learning about maintenance and upkeep responsibilities. Most new homes come with a one-year warranty on workmanship and materials. However, such warranties do not cover problems that develop because of failure to perform required maintenance. Many builders provide a booklet explaining common upkeep responsibilities of new home owners and how to perform them.
Should a warranted problem arise after you move in, the builder is likely to have a set of warranty service procedures to follow. Except in emergencies, requests for service should be in writing. This helps to ensure that everyone clearly understands the service to be performed.
Builder Visits During the Year
Many builders schedule two visits during the first year — one near the beginning and the other near the end — to make necessary adjustments and to perform work of a non-emergency nature. Don't expect a builder to rush out immediately for a problem such as a nail pop in your drywall. Such problems occur because of the natural settling of the house and are best addressed in one visit near the end of the first year.

Your Inspection Checklist

Create a checklist when inspecting the house. The list should include everything that needs attention, and you and your builder should agree to a timetable for repairs. Builders prefer to remedy problems before you move in because it is easier to work in an empty house. Some items may have to be corrected after move-in. For instance, if your walk-through is in the winter, your builder may have to delay landscaping adjustments until spring.  

It is important that you be thorough and observant during the walk-through. Examine all surfaces of counters, fixtures, floors and walls for possible damage carefully. Sometimes disputes arise because a buyer may discover a gouge in a counter top after move-in, and there is no way to prove whether it was caused by the builder's workers or the buyer's movers. Many builders ask their buyers to sign a form at the walk-through stating that all surfaces have been inspected and that there is no damage other than what has been noted on the walk-through checklist.

Ask a lot of questions during the walk-through and take notes on the answers. Don't worry about asking too many questions. That is how you learn. It is important to view the walk-through as a positive learning experience that will enhance the enjoyment of your new home.

As one who has built hundreds of homes, I know how critical the walk-through can be.

If you would like to discuss how this relates to your unique situation call, text or email.

FREDDIE MAC OPTIMISTIC ABOUT HOUSING. ARE YOU?

Housing Market: Freddie Mac Remains Optimistic

April 20 2015

The April 2015 U.S. Economic & Housing Market Outlook from Freddie Mac revealed that they are optimistic about the real estate market in 2015. As a matter of fact, the sub-title of the report was “Great Expectations”.

What made Freddie Mac so optimistic? Here are a few highlights from the report:

“For the remainder of the year we should see a resumption of solid economic growth and acceleration in housing activity. Notwithstanding a disappointing March jobs report the acceleration is already underway.”

“With spring upon us, housing markets are poised to accelerate and we expect the best year for home sales since 2007. Despite harsh winter weather to start the year, home sales through February are only off from the 2013 pace by 7,000 sales... Pending home sales were up 3.1 percent in February to the highest level since June 2013. This marked the fourth consecutive month for rising pending home sales showing positive momentum in general for the housing market.”

Their projections…

“By the end of the spring home buying season in June, we should be well above the pace of home sales for any year since 2007.”

“We are as optimistic about trends in housing markets moving forward as we have ever been since the depths of the Great Recession.”

Regarding prices…

“Due to strong growth, we are expecting house prices to increase 4.0 percent in 2015.”

But there were some warnings…

On available supply:

“With low mortgage rates, improving labor markets, and rising demand, one key issue for housing over the next two years will be the lack of supply of for-sale and for-rent homes.”

“Many metro areas that have seen robust job growth and population increases are facing shortages of available for-sale inventory.”

On interest rates:

“However, by the end of the year long-term interest rates should only increase modestly, ending the year at about 4.3 percent for the 30-year fixed rate mortgage.”

Note: Freddie Mac worded this as being not that crucial. However, a 4.3% mortgage rate is about a .75 increase over current rates.

Bottom Line

Things are looking good for the real estate market. If you are thinking of selling, contact me to discuss how this applies to your neighborhood.

HISTORIC MORTGAGE RATES

No I don't have a crystal ball.  But today's mortgage rates are lower than they have been in any of the last 4 decades.
Whether you are a first time buyer or looking to move-up the interest rate you can get today is truly an historic opportunity.

When you want to see how this applies to your unique situation, just call, text or email.

FINANCIAL SENS OF OWNING A HOME

Does Homeownership Make Sense Financially?

April 16 2015

Everyone knows the social advantages of home ownership. However, some question the financial benefits of owning a home. Three recent studies shed some light on the issue.

RealtyTrac recently released a report comparing home price appreciation to wage growth over the last two years. The study revealed that home price appreciation has outpaced wage growth in 76% of U.S. housing markets during that time period. By how much? Here is a graph showing their findings:

And we all know the importance of home appreciation in determining the net wealth of most American families. Merrill Lynch just issued a report covering the issue. Their findings are shown here:

It obviously makes financial sense to be a homeowner.

But, does it make sense to buy now?

The survey company Pulsenomics just issued their findings on the cost of owning versus the cost of renting. They compared historical averages to the cost you can expect to pay today.

The cost of buying is far below historical averages. Renting is another story.

To see how this applies to your unique situation, just call text or email me.

Selling Your House in 2015? Don’t Miss this Opportunity

April 15 2015

Every seller wants to get the best price for their house. We learned in high school that the best price for any item will be determined by the demand for that item relative to the supply of that item.

We have reported that the inventory of houses for sale is well below normal numbers.

There is historical evidence that the demand for housing is about to increase dramatically. Each year, more homes sell in May, June, July and August than any other four months of the year. Here is a graph of homes sales last year by month:

Bottom Line

You want to make sure your house is available for sale during peak selling season. If you are thinking of selling this year, contact me today.

Just call, text or email to see how this apples to your unique situation.

TODAY'S RENTERS DON'T WANT TO BUY? REALLY?

Evidently not all renters feel that way

If you are one of these renters wanting to buy OR if you have a home to sell to them, call, text or email me to see how this applies to your unique situation.

ASK YOURSELF BEFORE YOU BUY

3 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Buying A Home

April 13 2015

If you are debating purchasing a home right now, you are surely getting a lot of advice. Though your friends and family will have your best interest at heart, they may not be fully aware of your needs and what is currently happening in real estate. Let’s look at whether or not now is actually a good time for you to buy a home.

There are 3 questions you should ask before purchasing in today’s market:

1. Why am I buying a home in the first place?

This truly is the most important question to answer. Forget the finances for a minute. Why did you even begin to consider purchasing a home? For most, the reason has nothing to do with finances.

A study by the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University reveals that the four major reasons people buy a home have nothing to do with money:

• A good place to raise children and for them to get a good education
• A place where you and your family feel safe
• More space for you and your family
• Control of the space

What non-financial benefits will you and your family derive from owning a home? The answer to that question should be the biggest reason you decide to purchase or not.

2. Where are home values headed?

When looking at future housing values, Home Price Expectation Survey provides a fair assessment. Every quarter, Pulsenomics surveys a nationwide panel of over 100 economists, real estate experts and investment & market strategists about where prices are headed over the next five years. They then average the projections of all 100+ experts into a single number.

Here is what the experts projected in the latest survey:

• Home values will appreciate by 4.4% in 2015.
• The cumulative appreciation will be 19.3% by 2019.
• Even the experts making up the most bearish quartile of the survey still are projecting a cumulative appreciation of over 11.7% by 2019.

3. Where are mortgage interest rates headed?

A buyer must be concerned about more than just prices. The ‘long term cost’ of a home can be dramatically impacted by an increase in mortgage rates.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), the National Association of Realtors, and Freddie Machave all projected that mortgage interest rates will increase by approximately one full percentage over the next twelve months.

Bottom Line

Only you and your family can know for certain the right time to purchase a home. Answering these questions will help you make that decision.

FOR ANY HELP WITH HOW THESE APPLY TO YOUR UNIQUE SITUATION PLEASE CALL, TEXT OR EMAIL ME.

IT'S TIME TO GET OFF THE SIDELINES GET A MORTGAGE

Is Getting a Mortgage Getting Easier?

April 9 2015

There has been a lot of discussion about how difficult it is to get a home mortgage in this market. There is no doubt that the process is not as easy as it was eight to ten years ago and that’s probably good news. However, it does appear that availability to mortgage money is increasing with each passing day.

The Mortgage Bankers’ Association publishes the Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI). According to their site the index is “a summary measure which indicates the availability of mortgage credit at a point in time”. As we can see from the graph below, mortgage availability has been increasing dramatically over the last six months.

Accompanying the latest index was this comment from Mike Fratantoni, MBA's Chief Economist:

"A number of factors contributed to a loosening of credit in March: Freddie Mac's introduction of their 97 LTV program (Fannie Mae's was implemented in December) [and the] additional loosening of parameters on jumbo loan programs… Although credit remains tight by historical standards, this increase in availability, coupled with low rates and job market strength, should lead to stronger home purchase activity this spring."

Bottom Line

If you have remained on the sidelines regarding homeownership because you were concerned about your ability to qualify for a mortgage, it may be time to get into the game.

If you need a great lender give me a call, text or email

Enter for chance to win $50,000

Enter to win $50,000 and a consultation with the stars of HGTV's Fixer Upper.

homesale.com/50

SIMPLY HAPPY HOLIDAYS

TO ALL HAPPY EASTER AND HAPPY PASSOVER

WHY PRICE YOUR HOME RIGHT TO BEGIN WITH?

Selling Your House? Price it Right Up Front

April 2 2015

In today’s market, where demand is outpacing supply in many regions of the country, pricing a house is one of the biggest challenges real estate professionals face. Sellers often want to price their home higher than recommended, and many agents go along with the idea to keep their clients happy. However, the best agents realize that telling the homeowner the truth is more important than getting the seller to like them.

There is no “later.”

Sellers sometimes think, “If the home doesn’t sell for this price, I can always lower it later.” However, research proves that homes that experience a listing price reduction sit on the market longer, ultimately selling for less than similar homes.

John Knight, recipient of the University Distinguished Faculty Award from the Eberhardt School of Business at the University of the Pacific, actually did research on the cost (in both time and money) to a seller who priced high at the beginning and then lowered the their price. In his article, Listing Price, Time on Market and Ultimate Selling Price published in Real Estate Economics revealed:

“Homes that underwent a price revision sold for less, and the greater the revision, the lower the selling price. Also, the longer the home remains on the market, the lower its ultimate selling price.”

Additionally, the “I’ll lower the price later” approach can paint a negative image in buyers’ minds. Each time a price reduction occurs, buyers can naturally think, “Something must be wrong with that house.” Then when a buyer does make an offer, they low-ball the price because they see the seller as “highly motivated.” Pricing it right from the start eliminates these challenges.

Don’t build “negotiation room” into the price.

Many sellers say that they want to price their home high in order to have “negotiation room.” But, what this actually does is lower the number of potential buyers that see the house. And we know that limiting demand like this will negatively impact the sales price of the house.

Not sure about this? Think of it this way: when a buyer is looking for a home online (as they are doing more and more often), they put in their desired price range. If your seller is looking to sell their house for $400,000, but lists it at $425,000 to build in “negotiation room,” any potential buyers that search in the $350k-$400k range won’t even know your listing is available, let alone come see it!

A better strategy would be to price it properly from the beginning and bring in multiple offers. This forces these buyers to compete against each other for the “right” to purchase your house.

Look at it this way: if you only receive one offer, you are set up in an adversarial position against the prospective buyer. If, however, you have multiple offers, you have two or more buyers fighting to please you. Which will result in a better selling situation?

The Price is Right

Great pricing comes down to truly understanding the real estate dynamics in your neighborhood. Look for an agent that will take the time to simply and effectively explain what is happening in the housing market and how it applies to your home. You need an agent that will tell you what you need to know rather than what you want to hear. This will put you in the best possible position.

TO SEE HOW THIS APPLIES TO YOUR UNIQUE SITUATION, CALL, TEXT OR EMAIL ME

MAKE YOUR HOME BRIGHTER

BRIGHTEN UP YOUR HOME

Now that spring has officially arrived, it is time to put your heavy winter blankets away, open up the curtains and let the light in. If you are looking to place your house on the market or are a homeowner, here are five simple and cost effective ways to brighten up your home.

 

Swap your Light Bulbs

Switch out your yellow bulbs for bright white ones. This will make your space look crisp and fresh. Lightbulbs are measured on a kelvin or K scale – the higher the kelvin number, the whiter the glow. Look for counts between 3500 and 4100k.

Paint your walls

Nothing compares to a fresh coat of paint to brighten up a space. Going over a wall with a new coat will help light bounce off the walls and open up the room.

Remove Screens

Screens do help keep the bugs out, but they also collect dirt. You should remove screens seasonally, since during the colder months your windows aren’t normally open and you can give the screens a nice cleaning. When the warmer months roll around, return the screens to their proper windows.

Clean Your Fixtures

When was the last time you truly cleaned, not just dusted, your light fixtures? Wash down your sconces and chandeliers to get rid of months and months of dirt buildup and to allow more light in your house. Try to make this part of your seasonal cleaning.

Expand Your Curtain Rods

By expanding your curtain rods a few inches beyond the window frame, your windows will appear bigger. This will also ensure that when you draw back the curtains, the fabric won’t block any light from coming in. Another great idea is to mount the braces slightly above the window frame to give the illusion of height.

For real estate questions, please call text or emaile