Did you see this article? CNBC posted an article explaining why Indianapolis is one of the 10 best cities in the US to move to right now. Read the full article here:
http://realestate.yahoo.com/promo/best-cities-to-move-to-in-america.html
This is just another example of why Indianapolis is still one of the best places to live in the US. We have very high quality of life, a vibrant city, low cost of living, a highly educated worforce, a stable economy, and the most affordable housing in the country.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Thursday, October 07, 2010
FHA Increased Fees
Did you know that on October 4th, FHA increased its annual (monthly) mortgage insurance premiums? For loans with 5% down or less the monthly premium went from .55 to .90. It also decreased its upfront insurance premiums from 2.25% to 1%. This is for 30-year loan products. For a LTV less than 95% the monthly premium is slightly reduced at .85.
What does this mean to you? While the closing costs will be less, your monthly payment will slightly increase. On a house with a $200,000 loan, it could mean a monthly increase of your mortgage payment of around $42. At the current interest rates, this means that the average buyer will be able to afford $7,000-$8,000 less house than last week. Pleast note that these are very rough numbers and are used for a basic illustration only. Please talk with a mortgage lender to find out how these changes specifically reduce your buying power. But know that your buying power just went down no matter how you slice it.
For some great tools for buyers including a great mortgage calculator and nationwide listing search visit http://www.welcome2indy.com.
What does this mean to you? While the closing costs will be less, your monthly payment will slightly increase. On a house with a $200,000 loan, it could mean a monthly increase of your mortgage payment of around $42. At the current interest rates, this means that the average buyer will be able to afford $7,000-$8,000 less house than last week. Pleast note that these are very rough numbers and are used for a basic illustration only. Please talk with a mortgage lender to find out how these changes specifically reduce your buying power. But know that your buying power just went down no matter how you slice it.
For some great tools for buyers including a great mortgage calculator and nationwide listing search visit http://www.welcome2indy.com.
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
Interest rates--How low can you go?
3.99% fixed rate conventional 30-year mortgage with no points. Seriously? Yes, I saw one of my lenders offering that last week. Crazy!! It is unlikely that they will go much, if any lower, but then we thought that was the case at 4.375% last month. The effects of the housing tax credit expiring are being felt in the Indy market and throughout the country. As an example, here are some stats from July 2010 compared to July 2009:
29% decrease in homes closed
23% decrease in pending home sales
9% increase in average sales price-yea!
1% increase in price/s.f.
6.6% increase in homes currently available for sale
11.26 months of inventory currently on the market vs. 7.48 months in July 2009
Aside from values increasing, we are seeing some sobering numbers come in. The best markets as far as lowest months of available inventory is, believe it or not Decatur Township with 7.47 months of inventory and Carmel Clay Township with 7.88 months of inventory. The worst is downtown Indy with 24.73 months of inventory!!!
What does all of this mean? Well, with such low interest rates and higher inventory and a trend of increasing housing values, this is a great time to buy a house!! Not to sound too salesy here, but we are seeing values recover, but super-low interest rates and lots of choices. If you are thinking your window of opportunity has closed, think again. Conversely, if you already own your home and you have a 30-year interest rate of 5% or more, do yourself a favor and talk with a reputable lender about whether or not it makes financial sense to take advantage of these crazy low interest rates and save some money. E-mail me if you would like some names of good lenders in the area.
29% decrease in homes closed
23% decrease in pending home sales
9% increase in average sales price-yea!
1% increase in price/s.f.
6.6% increase in homes currently available for sale
11.26 months of inventory currently on the market vs. 7.48 months in July 2009
Aside from values increasing, we are seeing some sobering numbers come in. The best markets as far as lowest months of available inventory is, believe it or not Decatur Township with 7.47 months of inventory and Carmel Clay Township with 7.88 months of inventory. The worst is downtown Indy with 24.73 months of inventory!!!
What does all of this mean? Well, with such low interest rates and higher inventory and a trend of increasing housing values, this is a great time to buy a house!! Not to sound too salesy here, but we are seeing values recover, but super-low interest rates and lots of choices. If you are thinking your window of opportunity has closed, think again. Conversely, if you already own your home and you have a 30-year interest rate of 5% or more, do yourself a favor and talk with a reputable lender about whether or not it makes financial sense to take advantage of these crazy low interest rates and save some money. E-mail me if you would like some names of good lenders in the area.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
4.375% interest rates?
Who would have ever thought that we would see a 30-year fixed conventional mortgage interest rate at the 4.375% mark? Well...we are seeing it right now. What is your current mortgage interest rate? Is it 5% or higher? Do you know what it is? If not, it would merit checking. Reducing your interest rate by around 1% could save you hundreds of $$$$ each month. It might make sense to talk with a mortgage lender and see how these low rates could positively affect your monthly payment.
Indianapolis is in the recovery mode, however we are still short of buyers out there relative to what we usually see at this time of the year. If you are thinking of buying a home, these great prices of homes coupled with the super-low interest rates could be a big win for you with being able to afford more house than you would have otherwise been able to afford, or further reduce your mortgage payment. Either way, you win!!!
Indianapolis is in the recovery mode, however we are still short of buyers out there relative to what we usually see at this time of the year. If you are thinking of buying a home, these great prices of homes coupled with the super-low interest rates could be a big win for you with being able to afford more house than you would have otherwise been able to afford, or further reduce your mortgage payment. Either way, you win!!!
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
The tax credit vacuum
Welcome to the tax credit vacuum!! We saw this coming months ago. Unfortunately, we are in it now. What I am talking about is the void of buyer activity we are currently experiencing due to the expiration of the homebuyer tax credit on April 30th. No one knows how long this is going to last, but the first-time homebuyer price range is the most affected. Here in Indy that is $200,000 and under. Homes priced above $400,000 are not doing badly and homes above $900,000 are seeing some of their best activity in years.
The sooner the unemployment rate retreats, the sooner we can set our sites on a long-term recovery. Banks and secondary markets are preparing to release their 'shadow inventor', which are the homes they own, but don't have on the market as they are waiting for the market to improve. Since they have seen signs of improvement, we are hearing that these distressed properties will be released soon, further depressing the market.
The good news is that interest rates have fallen again and as of Friday afternoon were around 4 5/8% for conventional and 4.5% for FHA with excellent credit.
Either way you look at it, it is a great time for buyers to get back in the market with inventory increasing, sellers getting frsutrated with lack of activity, and super-low interest rates, which, by the way could save you more money in the long-run than the tax credit with higher interest rates!
The sooner the unemployment rate retreats, the sooner we can set our sites on a long-term recovery. Banks and secondary markets are preparing to release their 'shadow inventor', which are the homes they own, but don't have on the market as they are waiting for the market to improve. Since they have seen signs of improvement, we are hearing that these distressed properties will be released soon, further depressing the market.
The good news is that interest rates have fallen again and as of Friday afternoon were around 4 5/8% for conventional and 4.5% for FHA with excellent credit.
Either way you look at it, it is a great time for buyers to get back in the market with inventory increasing, sellers getting frsutrated with lack of activity, and super-low interest rates, which, by the way could save you more money in the long-run than the tax credit with higher interest rates!
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
Another low appraisal
Ah, the reality of real estate today-another low appraisal. These are becoming more and more rampant and are the bain of every real estate agent's existence. On top of the added research, work, stress, and communication with the other agent and your client, what can be done with low appraisals?
First, a thorough review should be performed to determine if any mathematical mistakes were made when adding and subtracting the adjustments for the comparables.
Second, was the subject property properly 'bracketed' by the sold comps? By that I mean, did the appraiser use relevant comps, some of which were higher in price than the subject, some about the same price, and some lower in price than the subject?
Third, are the comparables the best comps to use? Were they all in the same neighborhood as the subject? If not, why not? Sometimes there just aren't enough comps available in the subject neighborhood. If the appraiser must search outside the neighborhood, then he/she should look for similar neighborhoods to the subject and adjust for location as necessary.
Fourth, are the adjustments made fair?
Fifth, were any distressed properties (short sales, foreclosures, HUD homes, bank-owned homes, etc.) used as comps? If so, did the appraiser disclose that fact and make an additional adjustment for the distressed sale, which almost always is lower than a non-distressed sale.
Sixth, is the appraiser from the area or out of the area? If out of the area, has the appraiser perfomed many appraisals in the subject's area?
Seventh, was the subject labeled as being in a 'declining market'? If so, that can be the 'kiss of death' and require a 10% down payment from the buyer. This label is VERY difficult to remove.
As for action steps, I would gather all of my information and personally call the appraiser to talk with him/her about any discrepancies. HVCC DOES allow for a real estate agent to contact the appraiser directly, just not the lender. Not all appraisers will be open to talking with real estate agents, however. Some are more receptive than others.
If the appraiser is unwilling to adjust the appraisal, your next step is to file an appeal through the lender who will take your information you have showing that you believe the appraisal is flawed and run it through the appraisal review process. This could take up to a week.
If that doesn't work, you can always order another appraisal from a different appraiser (for a fee) and see if it will come back higher.
This is just a starting point for a low appraisal issue and there are other steps, which could be taken as well if the situation warranted. It is important to note that I am NOT a licensed appraiser, but have been through this process more times than I can count. If this post helps just one person avoid losing a sale based on a low appraisal it will be worth it. Good luck!
First, a thorough review should be performed to determine if any mathematical mistakes were made when adding and subtracting the adjustments for the comparables.
Second, was the subject property properly 'bracketed' by the sold comps? By that I mean, did the appraiser use relevant comps, some of which were higher in price than the subject, some about the same price, and some lower in price than the subject?
Third, are the comparables the best comps to use? Were they all in the same neighborhood as the subject? If not, why not? Sometimes there just aren't enough comps available in the subject neighborhood. If the appraiser must search outside the neighborhood, then he/she should look for similar neighborhoods to the subject and adjust for location as necessary.
Fourth, are the adjustments made fair?
Fifth, were any distressed properties (short sales, foreclosures, HUD homes, bank-owned homes, etc.) used as comps? If so, did the appraiser disclose that fact and make an additional adjustment for the distressed sale, which almost always is lower than a non-distressed sale.
Sixth, is the appraiser from the area or out of the area? If out of the area, has the appraiser perfomed many appraisals in the subject's area?
Seventh, was the subject labeled as being in a 'declining market'? If so, that can be the 'kiss of death' and require a 10% down payment from the buyer. This label is VERY difficult to remove.
As for action steps, I would gather all of my information and personally call the appraiser to talk with him/her about any discrepancies. HVCC DOES allow for a real estate agent to contact the appraiser directly, just not the lender. Not all appraisers will be open to talking with real estate agents, however. Some are more receptive than others.
If the appraiser is unwilling to adjust the appraisal, your next step is to file an appeal through the lender who will take your information you have showing that you believe the appraisal is flawed and run it through the appraisal review process. This could take up to a week.
If that doesn't work, you can always order another appraisal from a different appraiser (for a fee) and see if it will come back higher.
This is just a starting point for a low appraisal issue and there are other steps, which could be taken as well if the situation warranted. It is important to note that I am NOT a licensed appraiser, but have been through this process more times than I can count. If this post helps just one person avoid losing a sale based on a low appraisal it will be worth it. Good luck!
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
The clock is ticking...
That sound you hear, is the clock ticking away and the end of the homebuyer tax credits. The first-time homebuyer credit and the existing homebuyer tax credit both expire June 30, 2010 and you much have an accepted contract by April 30, 2010. What does this mean? If you want 'free' money from Uncle Sam and you are considering moving in the near future, this is the time to do it. The Indy market has consistently improved and so have home values making for fewer 'deals'. There are lots of buyers in the market already and we are seeing many multiple offer situations. In many markets it is already a 'sellers' market, which is defined as fewer than 6-months of inventory.
So, get out there and take advantage of these low rates, low prices, and 'free' government money. All three will go away this year.
So, get out there and take advantage of these low rates, low prices, and 'free' government money. All three will go away this year.
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