Vancouver Wa Real Estate Blog

The first step in getting yourself in financial shape to buy a home is to know exactly how much money comes in and how much goes out.

Use this worksheet to list your income and expenses below.

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• Make sure your home is priced right. Many real estate professionals think price, price, price is just as important as location, location, location.
• Take advantage of the lack of competition and work with your real estate agent to make sure your home makes a great first impression.
• Go the extra mile to make sure exterior landscapes are well maintained. Gardens tend to look a bit bare in the cooler months. Brighten up bare garden spots with seasonal plants. Rake leaves, prune back spent plants and shrubs and keep sidewalks and driveways clear of snow or ice.
• Check your heating system as part of your pre-sale inspection. Does it make strange noises, emit odd smells or simply not work very well? If you can’t afford to make repairs in advance, get written bids and share them with potential buyers. It takes away a lot of ‘unknowns’ about potential expenses.
• Repair or reinstall storm windows, if you have them. A warm house is a definite asset during the fall and winter.
• Don’t skimp on holiday decorations. Autumn wreaths and holiday lights make homes look great at this time of year.
• Bring in the light. Wash all windows, open drapes or blinds, and turn on lamps. Buyers are attracted to light-filled homes during the darker months.
• Keep small valuables out of sight, but don’t fret too much about holiday packages disappearing from under a Christmas tree. Agents keep a close eye on prospective buyers who tour homes. Their reputation hinges on keeping your home safe.

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Upgrades can usually be expressed at full value in newer homes since they required investing additional money onto the cost of building the home. On the other hand, the amount invested in upgrading or remodeling an older home is rarely reflected in full in the final appraisal. The reason is the home had value in its original condition, and again, the value of the upgrades must be supported by comparable examples within the same marketplace.

These comparisons must be drawn from current market activity within the last six months. Some lenders may want to look at both closed and pending sales to see if there is any room for negotiation. This is a safeguard to prevent appraisers from over-valuing the home in question. It is further stated in the guidelines that appraisers can only place a value on homes that have closed escrow. However, when property values rapidly increase within a marketplace, appraisers are generally permitted to make concessions and put more weight on the evidence provided by comparisons to pending sales and listings. This allows for a “real time” appraisal.

Although there is no formal standard to speak of, most lenders give the appraiser a 5% margin of error. If the file is reviewed and the appraiser is off by 8%, there is a good chance the value will be cut by the full 8%. It is in the best interest of both the appraiser and the homeowner not to push the value up higher than the market will support, otherwise the property evaluation may be exposed to a strict appraisal review.

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Credit scores, along with your overall income and debt, are a big factor in determining if you’ll qualify for a loan and what loan terms you’ll be able to qualify for.

1. Check for and correct errors in your credit report. Mistakes happen, and you could be paying for someone else’s poor financial management.

2. Pay down credit card bills. If possible, pay off the entire balance every month. However, transferring credit card debt from one card to another could lower your score.

3. Don’t charge your credit cards to the maximum limit.

4. Wait 12 months after credit difficulties to apply for a mortgage. You’re penalized less for problems after a year.

5. Don’t purchase big-ticket items for your new home on credit cards until after the loan is approved. The amounts will add to your debt.

6. Don’t open new credit card accounts before applying for a mortgage. Having too much available credit can lower your score.

7. Shop for mortgage rates all at once. Too many credit applications can lower your score, but multiple inquiries from the same type of lender are counted as one inquiry if submitted over a short period of time.

8. Avoid finance companies. Even if you pay the loan on time, the interest is high and it will probably be considered a sign of poor credit management.

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1. Decide what you can afford. Generally, you can afford a home equal in value to between two and three times your gross income.

2. Develop your home wish list. Then, prioritize the features on your list.

3. Select where you want to live. Compile a list of three or four neighborhoods you’d like to live in, taking into account items such as schools, recreational facilities, area expansion plans, and safety.

4. Start saving. Do you have enough money saved to qualify for a mortgage and cover your down payment? Ideally, you should have 20 percent of the purchase price saved as a down payment. Also, don’t forget to factor in closing costs. Closing costs — including taxes, attorney’s fee, and transfer fees — average between 2 and 7 percent of the home price.

5. Get your credit in order. Obtain a copy of your credit report to make sure it is accurate and to correct any errors immediately. A credit report provides a history of your credit, bad debts, and any late payments.

6. Determine your mortgage qualifications. How large of mortgage do you qualify for? Also, explore different loan options — such as 30-year or 15-year fixed mortgages or ARMs — and decide what’s best for you.

7. Get preapproved. Organize all the documentation a lender will need to preapprove you for a loan. You might need W-2 forms, copies of at least one pay stub, account numbers, and copies of two to four months of bank or credit union statements.

8. Weigh other sources of help with a down payment. Do you qualify for any special mortgage or down payment assistance programs? Check with your state and local government on down payment assistance programs for first-time buyers. Or, if you have an IRA account, you can use the money you’ve saved to buy your fist home without paying a penalty for early withdrawal.

9. Calculate the costs of homeownership. This should include property taxes, insurance, maintenance and utilities, and association fees, if applicable.

10. Contact a REALTOR®. Find an experienced REALTOR® who can help guide you through the process.

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6 Tips for Home Owners Who Turn Into Landlords

Home owners who decide to rent out their properties have to stop thinking of themselves as home owners and instead consider themselves as running a small business, experts say.

Thinking like a businessperson means focusing on the monthly cost of maintenance, mortgage and taxes, as well as being aware of landlord-tenant regulations and avoiding liabilities.

Here are key issues to consider:

Set a fair rent. Setting the right price will make it more likely that a landlord will be able to keep the place rented.

Understand landlord-tenant rules. Running afoul of landlord-tenant regulations and rules regarding security deposits can be costly.

Screen applicants. Eliminating potential tenants who can’t pay or who won’t take care of the property is very important.

Lay out the rules in a lease. Widely available sample leases can help. If you have questions, ask an attorney.

Consider a property manager. Despite the expense, turning the job over to experts can help a landlord come out ahead.

Talk to the condo association. If the property is a condominium, be prepared to deal with a host of regulations.

via REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-6 Tips for Home Owners Who Turn Into Landlords.

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Credit scores range between 200 and 800. Scores above 620 are considered desirable for obtaining a mortgage. These factors will affect your score.

1. Your payment history. Whether you paid credit card obligations on time.

2. How much you owe. Owing a great deal of money on numerous accounts can indicate that you are overextended.

3. The length of your credit history. In general, the longer the better.

4. How much new credit you have. New credit, either installment payments or new credit cards, are considered more risky, even if you pay promptly.

5. The types of credit you use. Generally, it’s desirable to have more than one type of credit—installment loans, credit cards, and a mortgage, for example.

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Brush up on these mortgage basics to help you determine the loan that will best suit your needs.

·         Mortgage terms. Mortgages are generally available at 15-, 20-, or 30-year terms. In general, the longer the term, the lower the monthly payment. However, you pay more interest overall if you borrow for a longer term.

·         Fixed or adjustable interest rates. A fixed rate allows you to lock in a low rate as long as you hold the mortgage and, in general, is usually a good choice if interest rates are low. An adjustable-rate mortgage is designed so that your loan’s interest rate will rise as market interest rates increase. ARMs usually offer a lower rate in the first years of the mortgage. ARMs also usually have a limit as to how much the interest rate can be increased and how frequently they can be raised. These types of mortgages are a good choice when fixed interest rates are high or when you expect your income to grow significantly in the coming years.

·         Balloon mortgages. These mortgages offer very low interest rates for a short period of time — often three to seven years. Payments usually cover only the interest so the principal owed is not reduced. However, this type of loan may be a good choice if you think you will sell your home in a few years.

·         Government-backed loans. These loans are sponsored by agencies such as the Federal Housing Administration (www.fha.gov) or the Department of Veterans Affairs (www.va.gov) and offer special terms, including lower down payments or reduced interest rates to qualified buyers.

Slight variations in interest rates, loan amounts, and terms can significantly affect your monthly payment. For help in determining how much your monthly payment will be for various loan amounts, use the mortgage calculator located on my website @ www.crystalboldt.com

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New SBA Limit Caps ‘Goodwill’ Financing

The Small Business Administration announced that it is tightening its lending limits on the value of a business attributed to “goodwill,” the value not ascribed to bricks and mortar or other physical assets.

Beginning March 1, the SBA limited goodwill financing to 50 percent of the loan amount or a maximum of $250,000. The SBA does not directly lend money but it works with partner banks in offering loan programs.

Paul Merski, senior vice president and chief economist for the Independent Community Bankers of America trade group, calls the cap “arbitrary and random.”

“The last thing we want to do in this economic environment is to put arbitrary caps where you’re hurting the growth of the small business sector,” Merski says. “This is not a provision that is extremely well thought-out in the current environment to have capital flowing and supporting lending to small businesses.”

Other small business brokers and financiers said the change would force sellers of small businesses to finance the deals themselves if buyers couldn’t borrow from friends and family.

Source: The Washington Post (02/26/2009)

via REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-New SBA Limit Caps ‘Goodwill’ Financing.

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Buyer Tax Credit Loan Guidance Coming Soon

Detailed guidance on the federal government’s plan to provide short-term loans to borrowers using the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit is expected to be out shortly, but a spokesperson from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is writing the guidance, couldn’t give a firm release date.

HUD policy staff are “still working out the details on it,” HUD spokesperson Lamar Wooley told REALTOR® Magazine today. “So we expect it to be published shortly.”

The short-term loan program, which would effectively monetize the first-time homebuyer tax credit by permitting eligible lenders to make bridge loans collateralized by the borrower’s expected tax credit, was announced by HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan at the Real Estate Summit NAR hosted on the opening day of its 2009 Midyear Legislative Meetings in Washington last week.

The loans would enable FHA consumers to access the tax credit funds when they close on their home loans so that the cash could be used as a downpayment.

“FHA will permit trusted FHA-approved lenders and HUD-approved nonprofits, as well as state and local governmental entities to ‘monetize’ the tax credit through short-term bridge loans,” Donovan said. “We think the policy is a real win for everyone, ensuring th

 

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