If you’re considering having some remodeling done, it pays to know what will add the most value to your house. Here are some of the best ways to spend your hard-earned home improvement dollars…
Suburbanites Are Happiest, Poll Finds
City centers and downtowns may be growing in demand among millennials and retiring baby boomers, but a new poll says residents are still happiest in the suburbs.
Americans who live in suburban areas are the most satisfied with the place they live, according to the Atlantic Media/Siemens State of City Poll. Eighty-four percent of suburbanites rated their community as “excellent” or “good” compared to 75 percent of urban dwellers and 78 percent of rural residents, according to the poll of more than 1,600 U.S. adults.
Where Autumn is Hot for House Hunting
Labor Day marks the end of summer – and the end of the traditional house-hunting season. Based on properties viewed on the Trulia website for the full years of 2011-2013, home search activity jumps in March, stays high through summer, and then falls below the annual average in September and stays that way until the new year begins. Nationally, home searches for September and October combined are 6% below the annual average.
Does that mean that everyone looking to buy or sell a home in 2014 has missed the boat? Not necessarily. Every local market has its own seasonal pattern for house hunting. Comparing September and October search activity with annual averages in 2011-2013, we found markets where the autumn slowdown is slight. And there are a handful of local housing markets where autumn is actually prime house-hunting season – mostly vacation areas that are in the mountains and forests but not near the beach.
Millennials Keep Current on Mortgage More Than Other Ages
Mortgage borrowers under the age of 30 have the lowest mortgage delinquency rate of any other age group, according to a newly released TransUnion mortgage report. However, the age group also makes up the smallest share of all mortgage accounts at 4.16 percent, TransUnion notes.
“It is encouraging to see younger borrowers perform well, since their generation was significantly impacted by the recession and their loans are among the newest,” says Steve Chaouki, head of financial services for TransUnion.
Fannie Mae More Cautious On Housing Outlook
Fannie Mae economists have downgraded their housing outlook after a weak end to the second quarter, and they say that near-term indicators are suggesting only a minor improvement in the second half of the year.
“The impact on mortgage rates from the market’s expectation that the Federal Reserve would soon start tapering their securities purchases, combined to some degree with the weather effect in the first half of 2014, led to very little seasonal growth in housing,” says Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae’s chief economist. “In the first six months of the year, total sales have run below last year’s pace.”
Also, Duncan notes that “on the demand side, there appears to be a conservatism among consumers and their willingness to take on big-ticket purchases, such as homes.”
Happy Labor Day Weekend!
Here’s a link to local events in the Seattle and Puget Sound areas!
FICO Scoring Changes May Help More Qualify for Mortgages
FICO, the nation’s most popular credit-scoring system, announced it is tweaking some of the criteria used in coming up with consumers’ scores, which could help consumers save more money in qualifying for mortgages and other types of loans.
The changes include reducing the toll that overdue medical bills can take on credit scores, as well as removing other past penalties from consumers who have paid off debts that had been assigned to collection agencies. A consumer whose only major delinquency comes from an unpaid medical bill could see their credit score rise by 25 points due to the changes.
Millennials Will Move to the ‘Burbs for Good Schools
The next generation of home buyers say they will move to the suburbs if it means they can find quality schools there, according to a newly released survey by realtor.com®.
In fact, millennials – the generation born between 1980 and 2000 – are less likely than other generations to compromise on school districts when in house-hunting mode, the survey revealed. Fifty-two percent of millennials said school districts are a deal-breaker in their home search, compared to 31 percent of all buyers, the survey found.
6 Things Home Buyers Should Avoid Doing Once They are Preapproved for a Mortgage
You have done the hard part in the home buying process and chosen a lender and a real estate agent to work with. You have also gone out and found the home of your dreams! Best of all, your team has done a great job of negotiating the best deal for you.
Now, as a buyer, all you have to do is sit back and wait for your loan to close … right? Wrong!!
Why Buyers Are Annoyed With New Homes
An increasing labor shortage among homebuilders reportedly is causing more new homes to be delivered late, and buyers say they’re getting frustrated that builders don’t come back to fix common issues such as sticky doors and loose floor tiles after they move in.
“Builder tardiness” is a growing problem because the economic downturn drove hundreds of thousands of craftsmen and laborers away from housing and into other industries — and they’ve yet to return to construction, the Los Angeles Times reports. The labor shortage has become “substantially more widespread” since last year, according to the National Association of Home Builders.
“The incidence of reported shortages is now surprisingly high relative to the current state of new-home construction,” NAHB economist Paul Emrath noted in a recent report.
About two out of every three builders report paying higher wages due to the labor shortage. What’s more, nearly as many say they’ve had to raise home prices, too. Builders report that their direct labor or employee costs have risen 2.9 percent over the last six months, while subcontractor costs have increased 3.8 percent, according to NAHB.
Managing The Real Estate Details 