The economy is improving overall and, as a result, some bright spots are showing up in the real-estate market. This “second wave” of foreclosures – combined with the fact that many people’s 401(k)s have bounced back with the stock market, and most economists agree that the bottom of the recession has hit – means that competition for these foreclosed homes is, in many cases, fierce. There’s a renewed, final dash to get in on what some perceive as the best real-estate deals they’ll get in awhile. But how do you know which foreclosure is a good buy, and which to walk by? Here are some tips to help guide you:
*Get it checked out by a pro. Perhaps the most essential point: Never go by looks alone as an indicator of whether a foreclosure is a good buy. A professional and experienced home inspector must be contracted to check out a property before making a deal on it, to determine what repairs need to be done — so they can truly assess whether it’s worth it for them. Don’t rely solely on previous inspections, even if relatively recent – a vacant home can deteriorate quite a bit in a short time, especially in an area with climate extremes.
*Don’t abandon common real-estate logic. Too many people, when shopping for a foreclosure, abandon their real-estate sense and focus on price alone. Remember, things like a sub-par location, poor light, terrible view, below-average school district, high local crime rate and other negatives might be part of the reason why a home went into foreclosure in the first place. Don’t assume that financial problems of the previous owner are the main reason for every foreclosure. The last owner may have bought the home ignoring some of the aforementioned problems, and seen value sink because of them.
*Skip – or, at least, very strongly rethink – the flip. “House-flipping,” i.e., buying at bargain-basement pricing, updating, then selling for much higher – is difficult. Even if a house looks like an incredible flipping opportunity, beware of this temptation unless you are a pro, with incredible contractor connections. Automatically triple the amount you think you’ll be spending to fix up the home. Avoid the temptation to make fast money unless you think it through and talk to your real-estate professional, a home inspector, contractors, etc. Remember to calculate your cost to purchase, hold, renovate, market and closing costs on both the purchase and sale.
*Go over the budget. A fixer-upper means nothing if you can’t afford to fix it up – and that’s especially true for foreclosures, where those fixes can cost a pretty penny. Before buying, make sure you have an ample budget to do all the repairs needed, after truly taking stock (with the help of a home inspector) of what those needs are.
*Do your homework on lenders. Good financing is still available to many qualified buyers. Just make sure, as with regular home buying, that you enlist a reputable lender. A good lender will take the time to do a review of your financial life and long- and short-term goals, to truly pick the best solution. Ask about hidden costs, rate locks, prepayment penalties, origination fees and whether underwriting is done in-house. Make sure everything is explained clearly.
*See it in person. Never buy a house without going in person to see it. Ever. Foreclosure or otherwise.
Posts Tagged ‘Cardiff Real Estate’
What to Watch Out for When Buying a Foreclosure
Tuesday, April 26th, 2011Young families and adults ages 31 to 45 are likely to lead the home buying recovery
Friday, April 8th, 2011
Generation X –young families and adults ages 31 to 45 – are likely to lead the home buying recovery as it gets underway, according to real estate experts who spoke at an educational Webinar produced by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) in partnership with Builder magazine
These potential home buyers are most likely to think it’s a good time to get off the fence – and have strong opinions about the design features their new homes will include.
At 32 percent of the population of home-buying age – generally defined as those who are at least 30 years old, the Gen X population cohort isn’t the largest, but it’s the most mobile, said presenter Mollie Carmichael, principal of John Burns Real Estate Consulting in Irvine, Calif. “They are in full force with their careers and they need to accommodate growing families,” she said.
In sharp contrast, even though they constitute 41 percent of prospective home buyers, Baby Boomers continue to wait for the market to improve, and their decisions to delay retirement also delay their decisions to downsize into a smaller home, Carmichael said.
Most of the 10,000 buyers and potential buyers in 27 metro areas that the consulting company surveyed were optimistic about a new home purchase, with between 85 percent and 89 percent saying that it was a good time to buy a home. Only 13 percent said they thought home prices would continue to fall, further evidence that it’s “not all about price,” she said. “They want something compelling, from a design or personalization standpoint,” said Carmichael.
In addition, though the average home size is shrinking, a majority of prospective buyers said they would like a bigger home than the one they have. “These are first-time buyers or younger families looking for more room to grow,” she said.
Seventy percent said that they were willing to pay $5,000 more for a green home, but those responding to the survey said that they expected new homes to already have many green technology features. They also said they would pay a premium for dark wood cabinets, a separate tub and shower and a fireplace in the living room, and more preferred a great room over formal spaces.
And while community amenities are important to Gen X buyers, 46 percent said they prefer a home in a large-lot, suburban development, versus the 21 percent looking for a traditional or “walkable” neighborhood.
Webinar panelist Heather McCune, director of marketing at Bassenian/Lagoni Architects in Newport Beach, Calif., also emphasized that design will be important in generating sales in the emerging marketplace. “The notion of ‘build it and they will come’ no longer works. Design matters,” she said.
McCune said buyers are looking for homes with a connection between indoor and outdoor spaces, even in colder climates, to create the perception of greater home size, even if the space is only usable for part of the year. They also want more storage, an open floor plan and flexibility in the garage.
“While Gen X numbers are smaller than the birth cohorts before and after them, their numbers have been enlarged by steady immigration,” said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. “Gen X may wait longer than their predecessors to establish their own household or buy a home because of the recent recession impacts, but the trends are still likely to occur as they have for past generations.”
3 Common Misconceptions That Needlessly Lower Credit Scores
Saturday, March 19th, 2011People are having to make tough financial choices today. There are 3 Common Misconceptions That Needlessly Lower Credit Scores many don’t have to do that wreck their credit scores-
Misconception 1: Paying late didn’t hurt my credit since I’m caught up now. Late payments are credit score killers. It’s great that you caught up,but it doesn’t change the fact that you paid late. Anything other than ‘paid as agreed’ on accounts on your credit report hurts your score.
Misconception 2: Dollar amounts matter in credit scores. Dollar amounts don’t matter in FICO scoring; ratios and recency do. The effect on your score is the same for a $1 late payment as a $1,000 late payment. The fewer late payments on your credit report, the higher your score—regardless of their dollar amounts.
Misconception 3: Closing credit card accounts helps your score. If you cancel a card, you may have just thrown away your chance to increase your score by continuing to build on years of positive credit. Very long term positive account history can really boost your score. It’s best for your score to keep cards open and active, using them for small purchases. Next best is to just keep them open so you can build your score back up quickly by using them later.
Don’t make a bad situation worse. In tough economic times, people often buy more on credit than they usually would. The amount they pay in interest on these purchases is largely determined by their credit scores. Poor decisions that lower scores combined with an already tight budget can be very costly, making money problems worse than they have to be.
Check with a financial and/or credit advisors regarding your specific situation.
Finding Your Way Through The Mortgage Qualifying Madness
Thursday, February 17th, 2011
A new study shows more than 70% of Americans feel getting a mortgage today is a serious national problem. Since the housing markets fall has had such a huge impact on our economy, it’s really not a shock that lenders have gone back to “old ways” of doing loans, ie…you actually have to show your income, not just state you make X amount of $$$ on your application.
Before stated income, many borrowers felt what they say they are feeling today, high levels of stress, confusion and frustration. In fact, 20.9% of the people surveyed said they felt waiting to hear if they had an approved mortgage loan was more stressful than finding out if they landed a new job.
There are several things you can do to make this process less stressful and significantly improve your chances of getting approved-
• Pay down your debt as much as you can before applying for a mortgage.
Lenders calculate the ratio of your debt to your income to determine how much you can afford to borrow. Your total debt-to-income is based on how much of your gross income would go toward all of your debt obligations, including mortgage, car loans, child support and alimony, credit card bills, student loans and condominium fees.
• Clean up your credit long before you apply for a mortgage.
Credit is critical today, not just to get a mortgage but to get the best terms. A marginal credit score can cost you tens of thousands of dollars over the life of the loan. Pull one or all of your three annual credit reports and check yourself, before you wreck yourself.
You’ll have to pay a nominal fee of $10 to $15 to each credit bureau — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — to get your credit score. Review your report for errors and omissions.
• Don’t make a major purchase on credit and don’t apply for new credit before you apply for a mortgage or at any point before your mortgage closes. Purchases and credit accounts increase your debt and hurt your debt-to-income ratio.
• Increase your down payment. The more you put down the better your rate and your chances at scoring on that loan application. If you can’t increase your money down, buy a cheaper home. Now is not the time to stretch.
• Get all your docs in a row before you apply for a mortgage. Don’t waste time or raise the ire of lenders who are tougher than ever on documentation for income, assets, financial obligations and more. When you apply, have your paperwork ready.
• Know and prepare for your cash requirements. Cash expenses, beyond the down payment can crush you. Closings costs are on the rise. They can include transfer taxes, lenders fees, title insurance, escrow, settlement and home inspection costs. Also upfront property taxes, homeowner association dues homeowner insurance and other costs could come due before you close.
Get a Realtor that will negotiate tough. Ask for a purchase price lower than the value. A lower price serves both you by lowering your loan-to-value ratio and your lender, by reducing its risk.
If you would like a complete checklist of what you need for qualifying for a mortgage as well as purchasing your new home, email me at Rob@Robdennyhomes.com and I will send you the most detailed home buying packet there is out there with no obligation or cost to you.
North County Coastal Housing Market Remains Hot
Monday, June 14th, 2010Sales of Detached and Attached homes in the North County Coastal area (Carlsbad to Del Mar) continued to climb over same period last year. Average Detached home sales were up 22% for May this year compared to May last year. Prices were slightly down at 8% and Days On Market (DOM) remained roughly the same (one day shorter at 58 this year). Attached home sales for May were up 28% over same period last year. Prices increased 8% while DOM dropped from an average of 56 days to 40. All time low interest rates, lightened bank regulations and better pricing are leading the way in todays market. If you would like a particular zip code(s) broken down and/or to learn more about what the best price you can sell or buy a home in todays market, visit www.robdennyhomes.com or email me at rob@robdennyhomes.com.
Tips For Buyers Still Looking For “A Deal”
Friday, April 2nd, 2010The California Association of Realtors (CAR) reports that 84 percent of home buyers use the internet as a significant part of the home buying process, according to its 2009 Survey of California Homebuyers.
“There is so much more information made available to us online, when you go to the actual home, it’s just a validation process for what you’ve seen online,” says Douglas de Jager, co-founder of Dothomes.com another new online listing service.
Browsing for housing on the Internet has become just about as important as having a real estate agent help find a home to buy, but the ease of finding a home on the Net does not guarantee a bargain.
The lack of uniformity in quality control, geographic coverage and search methods from one Web site to another, still often renders the online search less than complete. Plus, most buyer expectations are unrealistic, as many sellers have listened to their Realtor and already aggressively priced their homes.
Here are some things you can look for when bargain shopping-
Look for languishing listings. Heavily discounted homes are 83 percent more likely to have been on the market for 90 days or more. Most sellers will hesitate to accept a low offer if the property has been on the market for only a few weeks.
Find fixer-uppers. Heavily discounted homes are 73 percent more likely to need some fixing up. People who sell homes before fixing them up are usually more concerned about speedy selling than peak price. Get the home inspected before you buy so you know exactly what needs work.
Retreat from remodels. Heavily discounted homes are 20 percent less likely to feature a noteworthy remodel. This also means sellers who sink money into major remodels before they list could be missing out on certain buyers.
Pick properties with pared prices. Homes that are already heavily discounted are 28 percent more likely to already have price reductions. Uh, No Kidding.
Hunt homes with long-time owners. Heavily discounted homes are 52 percent more likely to have been seller-owned for 20 years or more. The longer a seller has owned a property, the more equity he has likely accumulated, and the more likely he is to make significant price concessions.
Put your finger on a flip. On the other hand, heavily discounted homes are 9 percent more likely to have been owned for less than five years. A home owner or investor in trouble may be motivated by the need to quickly reclaim capital, rather than wait for equity growth.
Don’t bank on bigger bargains from bank-owned homes. Heavily discounted homes are 9 percent more likely to be a short sale or bank-owned. Banks lower prices as much as possible from the beginning to unload distressed properties as quickly as possible, but no so much to take more of a loss than is necessary.
And after all that work, call a Realtor to see how much of your info gathering on the internet is accurate/current.
North San Diego County HomeDexTM February 2010 Summary Report
Thursday, April 1st, 2010Single-Family Attached Homes
The North San Diego County median-priced single-family attached (SFA) home increased 6.67 percent to $240,000 in February 2010 from $225,000 in January 2010, following two months of price declines. The Non-North San Diego County SFA home median price rose from $200,000 in January 2010 to $205,750 in February 2010.1
North San Diego County SFA median prices increased 32.6 percent year-over from $181,000 in February 2009, the seventh month of year-over price increases (five of which exceeded 13 percent) following 24 months of year-over declines.
The county-wide SFA home median price increased 1.9 percent to $215,000 in February 2010 from $211,000 in January 2010, and increased 16.22 percent year- over from February 2009.
The median number of days-on-market for North County SFA homes sold fell to 41 in February 2010 from 42 in January 2010. The average number of days-on- market fell to 66 in February 2010 from 75 in January 2010.2
The number of sold SFA units fell 11.21 percent from January 2010 to February 2010 in North San Diego County, and decreased 2.92 percent in Non-North County. Year-over sales decreased 9.17 percent in North County from February 2009 (after three months of year-over increases) but rose 6.15 percent in Non- North County.
SFA listings (active and contingent) in North San Diego County rose from 1,368 ending January 2010 to 1,492 ending February 2010. San Diego County (active and contingent) SFA listings increased to 4,811 at the end of February 2010 from 4,483 in January 2010. North County SFA active listings increased 5.97 percent year-over but decreased 3.9 percent countywide.
FAQ CALIFORNIA Homebuyer Tax Credit
Wednesday, March 31st, 2010The state Legislature approved and Gov. Schwarzenegger signed into law in March a homebuyer tax credit for California. Here’s what you need to know about the program.
How much is the tax credit?
The homebuyer tax credit is for up to $10,000 or 5 percent of the purchase price – whichever is less – for the purchase of a newly constructed, previously unoccupied home. There is also a tax credit of up to $10,000 for the purchase of an existing home by a first-time homebuyer.
How much money is available in funding for the program?
There is a $200 million allocation for the entire program, divided evenly between the two parts. In other words, $100 million is authorized for new construction and $100 million for existing home purchases by first-time homebuyers.
When does the tax credit begin?
The program starts May 1 and will run until the end of the year or until funding runs out, whichever comes first. A similar program in 2009 lasted less than four months before the funding was exhausted.
How does a homebuyer qualify?
Once a customer signs a contract to purchase a home, they are allowed to reserve a tax credit provided the contract is entered into on or after May 1. The state’s Franchise Tax Board (FTB) allocates the credits on a first-come, first-served basis. The homebuyer may submit a certification to the FTB upon entering into a sales contract, and must submit a properly executed settlement statement to the FTB within two weeks of close of escrow. In order to receive the tax credit, escrow must close no later than Dec. 31, 2010, unless a credit has been reserved prior to that date, in which case the home must close escrow before Aug. 1, 2011.
How does the program work?
The tax credit is paid out in equal parts over a three-year period (i.e. $3,333 for 2010, $3,333 for 2011, $3,333 for 2012). Purchasers must reside in the home for at least two years. There are no income limitations to be met by purchasers, and there is no repayment requirement unless the purchaser sells, rents out or moves out of the home before two years expire.
What about the federal homebuyer tax credit?
Unless Congress and the President choose to extend the current federal program, it will end April 30, the day before the state program begins.
How will customers know if there is still funding available?
The FTB will track and publish that information on its website at www.ftb.ca.gov. The FTB website will also have more information and all the necessary forms homebuyers will need.
ActiveRain awards members points based on participation and their individual involvement within the network and community. While there is a much more complicated and technical explanation of how the point system works, this post is to provide you a general overview of how points are earned and distributed that to ALL ActiveRain members.
ActiveRain points are earned based on a members individual activities and efforts. Points are accumulated over the duration of the Calendar week which “Starts Monday morning at 12:00am Central Time, and Ends Sunday night at 11:59pm Central Time.”
MBS Program Nears End
Tuesday, March 30th, 2010In early 2009, the Fed embarked on a $1.25 trillion mortgage-backed securities (MBS) purchase program to help keep mortgage rates low and stimulate the economy. The amount purchased varied from week to week, reaching a peak of $33.2 billion in the week of March 25, 2009. The Fed has been gradually reducing the size of its purchases at a pace consistent with a March 31 conclusion of the program, and the most recent weekly purchases have been down to around $10 billion.
As the date nears, the big question is what will happen when the MBS purchase program ends. This program is unprecedented, making the outcome difficult to predict, and forecasts vary widely. Estimates for the impact on mortgage rates from the conclusion of the program vary from an increase of one percent to no change. Those who predict higher mortgage rates point to a basic change in the fundamental supply and demand. The added demand from the Fed was widely credited with moving rates lower, and a decrease in demand would typically push rates higher. However, other economists argue that investors respond only to unexpected news. In this view, since the Fed has telegraphed the end of the program for months, there should be little reaction around March 31. The Fed itself has indicated that they expect a modest increase in mortgage rates due to the end of the program.
Obama administration revises anti-foreclosure strategy
Monday, March 29th, 2010The Obama administration’s newest foreclosure-prevention efforts, expands on the government’s marquee foreclosure prevention program, Making Home Affordable. That program was originally expected to reach as many as 4 million borrowers, but it is not on track to help so many.
To reach its goal, the administration is adding tools to help lenders reach struggling borrowers who have lost their jobs or who are “underwater” because home values have plunged and they now owe more than their homes are worth.
Administration officials said the new efforts are not designed to help all troubled borrowers, but rather those who stand the best chance of recovering. That approach, they said, should help further stabilize the housing market and the economy at large.
“We’re not going to stop every foreclosure. It wouldn’t be fair. It would be too expensive, and it probably wouldn’t succeed anyway,” said Diana Ferrell, deputy director of the National Economic Council, which advises the president.
The administration’s plan, to be implemented over several months, requires lenders to slash jobless borrowers’ payments for three to six months, adopting a strategy used by the industry and applying it more broadly.