Category Archives: Buyers

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Be ready to buy your first home

Money

First-time home buyers have it tough. The supply of homes for sale is tight, and lenders are tightfisted.

Student debt, at an all-time high of nearly $30,000 per grad, is getting in the way of saving for a down payment, says David Stevens, president and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association. But it’s a great time to get your foot in the door.

“Interest rates remain the envy of even your grandparents,” says Keith Gumbinger, vice president of mortgage publisher HSH.com. First, make your finances sparkle.

Read the turning-point checklist…

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Here’s Why Owning Your Own Home Really is a Good Investment

Home

According to a recent Gallup poll, more Americans are beginning to view real estate as a viable long-term investment. Thirty percent of those surveyed early last month took this view, up from 25% just a year ago. Gallup credited an improving housing market as being the chief driver of the change in popular opinion on this matter.

But, wait. Some experts, notably Yale economics professor Robert Shiller, disagree heartily with this view. In interviews over the past couple of years, Shiller referred to his research in which he studied home price appreciation from 1890 to 1990. He found that, considering costs of construction and inflation, homes really didn’t appreciate in value at all.

Does that mean that buying a home is a lousy move? Not at all, and here’s why…

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Mortgages may be easier to get than potential home buyers believe

Are you on the home-buying sidelines this spring because you think you won’t be able to qualify for a mortgage? Do you know what sort of FICO credit scores are being accepted by lenders at the moment — they’re lower than they were a year ago — and whether yours could now be good enough?

You may be part of the surprisingly large crowd of folks who fear the home-loan unknown. A new national consumer survey found that 56% of potential purchasers of homes say they’re out of the market because they don’t want to face the possibility of rejection by lenders. Even 30% of current homeowners believe that they wouldn’t pass muster today.

Many potential buyers think they need near-perfect credit scores to get a home loan. But lenders may be loosening their tight underwriting standards.

Read the details…

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10 Markets Where Homes Are Selling the Fastest

Family

Denver tops the list of more than 140 metros where homes are on the market for the fewest number of days, unseating Oakland, Calif., for that top spot, according to realtor.com’s National Housing Trend Report for March. Oakland had occupied the top spot for the fewest days on the market on realtor.com’s report since November 2013.

The national average for days on the market is 102 days, but in some markets, listings are typically on the market for a month or even less.

Realtor.com’s report shows the following 10 metro areas with the lowest median days on the market…

And see where Seattle is on the list!

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How Buyers Can Irk Sellers

Both parties have to come together in a transaction, and real estate professionals sometimes find themselves wedged in the middle of buyer and seller disagreements. Some sellers may accuse the home buyers of being too pushy with their demands.

Bankrate.com recently highlighted several ways that homebuyers have been annoying some sellers.

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Condo Market on the Mend?

The condo market, which has been mostly stagnant in recent years, is showing signs of revival nationwide.

“While still well below historical construction levels, the new interest in condos is attracting interest from high-level investors who are keeping an eye on the growing condo construction and conversion market, both to see if the trend may produce opportunities in more markets and to gauge its effect on apartment property pricing,” CoStar Group reports.

The condo share of total home sales is nearing pre-recession levels.

Read more…

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Pitfalls of Pocket Listings for Buyers and Sellers

Artistic BHHS Sign

The idea of selling a home without ever listing it can be appealing to many. Similarly, ringing the doorbell on the “perfect home” and finding an owner willing to sell can put a broad smile on a buyer’s face.

The risks, however, routinely make buying and selling “pocket listings” dangerous to a person’s financial well-being — particularly for sellers.

Read more…

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FHA May Bring Back ‘spot’ Condo Loans

Good news for Realtors, lenders and condominium unit owners who’ve been frustrated by FHA’s prohibition of “spot loans” in developments that haven’t obtained certification: The agency is now seriously exploring how to relax its ban and bring them back.

Officials are mum on the details and timing, but they confirmed recently that reviving this key financing option is now under active study. The main reason: FHA is under growing political and trade group pressure — NAR and the Community Associations Institute especially — to do so.

Read more…

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Where You Work Should Help You Decide Where To Buy

BHHS Photo Collage

If you’re entering into the real estate market for the first time, you’ll hear the old adage: location, location, location. That’s three of the key factors… I’m kidding but, location is, indeed, a very important concern.

However, many buyers think location is most important because of the surrounding area. So, if the neighborhood is nice, with parks, good schools, retail stores nearby, and somewhat close to freeways, it’s a good location. But what also makes it a good location is how close it is to your work.

Read more…

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3 Next-Gen House Hunting Tips for Singles

The American household has changed – big time. More and more, people get married later in life, if at all. Many even go from married to single and back multiple times throughout their lives. This all means that more and more people are buying homes while single. Many unmarried folks are buying homes to live in on their own, while others are looking for homes to live in with their children, parents or other partners – past, present and future.

If you’re embarking upon the process of buying a home on your own, here are a few things to factor into your thought process and your action plan…