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04 Friday Nov 2016
Category Archives: News you can USE!
When the rate goes up
26 Monday Sep 2016
Tags
FHA mortgage, Home Ownership Tax Benefits, Housing Market Trend, improving your credit score, tax incentives, Today's Mortgage Rates, Updated Interest Rates
It’s not “if” the rate goes up but “when” the rate goes up; it could make a big difference for some buyers. Freddie Mac predicts that mortgage rates will be at 4.5% a year from now.
If buyers can afford a home with higher interest rates, it means higher payments. Higher payments might mean they won’t have the money to spend on other things like furniture or improvements to the home or an unrelated purchase like a new car.
When the rate moves 0.50% on a $250,000, the payment goes up by $70.66 a month. If it moves 1.00%, the payment goes up by $143.74 per month, each and every month for the entire term of the mortgage which means paying over $50,000 more for the house.
The question facing every borrower in this situation is “How will you feel about having to pay more to live in the same house because you were not ready to commit?”
Then, there’s the borrower who is absolutely maxed out as to what they can qualify for or sometimes, it is a borrower who just refuses to pay a higher payment. When that’s the case, the buyer has to make a larger down payment. In the same example, a 0.50% increase in rate would require $14,873 more in down payment. That could make the purchase impossible or require the buyer to buy a lesser price home that will not have the same amenities.
Mortgage rates have been low for so long that some people think that is what they should be. There are some economists who believe that the economy will not be strong again until mortgage rates are in the 7% range.
To see how this type of scenario might affect you, go to the http://www.betterhomeowners.com/FinancialApps/RateGoesUp.aspx?AccountId=EDlpyr3ghkCnBFQdFv9dGQ&Auth=1
Pay Off Your Mortgage?
30 Tuesday Aug 2016
Posted in Finding a Realtor, News you can USE!
Becoming debt free is as much a part of the American Dream as owning a home but there certainly can be conflicting circumstances that make the decision to pay off your mortgage early unclear .
The advantages of paying off debt early is increased cash flow, less interest paid and a higher credit score. The disadvantages are lower cash flow available as discretionary funds for meals, entertainment and other things. If the ultimate goal is financial security, is it worth the intermediate sacrifice?
Whether you pay off your mortgage early is a personal decision that may be right for one person and not for another. Consider the following before you get started:
Reasons you should
- Peace of mind knowing that you don’t have a mortgage
- You’ll save interest regardless of how low your mortgage rate is
- Lowering your housing costs before you retire
Reasons you shouldn’t
- You can invest at a higher rate than your mortgage
- You have other debt at a higher rate than your mortgage that needs to be paid off
- You might need the money in the future and want to remain liquid
- You might not qualify for a mortgage currently
- You should pay off other debt with higher interest rates
- Your employer has a matching retirement plan that would benefit you more
- You have more urgent financial needs like emergency fund, life, health and disability insurance
- You expect high inflation and the value of your mortgage debt will decrease
Use this Mortgage Accelerator to determine how quick you can pay off your mortgage.
Picture This…
01 Monday Aug 2016
Posted in Helpful Information, News you can USE!
Tags
picutres of homes, professional home pictures, Selling a Home, staging a home, staging your home to sale
Listing photos may be one of the most important marketing efforts that lead to a potential buyer.
Nearly, all buyers use the Internet during the home search process. They usually start looking at homes online before they contact an agent. It’s far more efficient to screen properties by looking at the pictures that have been posted than to make appointments with each homeowner, drive all over town and waste a lot of time looking at homes that would never meet a buyer’s criteria.
There needs to be enough pictures of a property to adequately represent the home; most websites allow for at least 24 and more may be needed if it is a large home.
Take horizontal shots to accommodate the format of most listing websites.
The pictures should be well-lit so that it is easy to see all of the features of the room. Natural light is preferred over the limitations of flash.
They should be taken with a wide-angle lens so that you can see the majority of the room in one picture.
Large rooms can be taken from different angles to give the buyers a different perspective.
Rooms should be set if not staged prior to taking the pictures so they will give the buyer an idea of what the room might look like with their own things in it.
Arrange pictures in website to help buyers visualize the floorplan as if walking through it.
Think about using a tripod; professionals do to absolutely hold the camera still.
They should definitely not be “photoshopped” to modify factual elements like removing power lines.
Everyone occasionally takes a great picture but it doesn’t make them a photographer. Since the photography can be one of the most important marketing efforts, consider using a professional photographer to show the home to its best advantage.
The Right Questions are Key
11 Monday Jul 2016
Posted in News you can USE!
Tags
Baton Rouge Real Estate, Finding a Realtor, HOMES FOR SALE IN LIVINGSTON, LIVINGSTON HOMES FOR SALE, Selling a Home
Asking the right questions will lead to the answers that help you determine which agent to use for one of the largest investments that most people make…the purchase or sale of their home.
Rudyard Kipling wrote the verse “I keep six serving men, they taught me all I knew; their names were what and why and when and how and where and who.” Prefacing your questions with one of these words can help you get the information you need to make a good decision about the REALTOR® you use.
- How long have you been selling homes and is this your full-time job?
- What designations or other credentials do you have?
- How many homes did you and your company sell last year?
- What is your average market time compared to MLS and your top competitors?
- What is your sales price to list price ratio?
- When will you report to me on the progress of my transaction?
- Who can you recommend for service providers like mortgage, inspections, repairs and maintenance?
- Why do you want to work with me?
- Where are the biggest opportunities to expose my home to the largest market?
Finding the right person to represent you is a little like the person who ordered a lobster dinner at a restaurant. When the waiter brought out the meal, the lobster only had one claw. The customer asked why it only had one claw and the waiter said: “I don’t know; I guess it was in a fight.” The customer looked at him and said: “then, bring me the lobster who won.”
The Obvious Alternative Investment
24 Tuesday May 2016
Posted in News you can USE!
Tags
Baton Rouge Real Estate, Home Ownership Tax Benefits, Housing Market Trend, Relavent Real Estate News, rental investments, rentals
Rental homes can be a natural alternative investment choice for homeowners because they are already familiar with houses. Maintenance on a rental is not that much different than on your personal home. The same plumbers, painters and other workmen can be used to make repairs.
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Single family homes offer an investor high loan-to-value mortgages at fixed interest rates for long terms on appreciating assets with defined tax advantages and more control than other investments.
- High loan-to-value mortgages – most investments require that you pay cash but rental properties can be purchased with 20% down payment.
- Fixed interest rates – most commercial loans are based on a floating rate such as prime interest plus one or two percent compared to real estate loans as fixed rates for the term.
- Long terms – commercial loans are generally short-term such as six months or a year with the possibility of being renewed for another six months or a year unlike real estate where a 30-year mortgage is commonplace.
- Appreciating assets – real estate has a long-term history of going up in value.
- Defined tax advantages – many investments are taxed as ordinary income but rental real estate enjoys a non-cash deduction called cost recovery, the profits from sale are taxed at lower long-term capital gains rates or may be eligible for a tax-deferred exchange.
- Control – rental homes don’t require partners and afford the investor more options than investing in mutual funds and other traditional investments.
The demand for good rentals is strong and the rents continue to go up in most markets. There are people who choose not to buy or cannot buy a home who would prefer to live in a single family home rather than an apartment.
Cook Fresh!
28 Thursday Apr 2016
Posted in News you can USE!
Tags
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Leverage – A Maximum Advantage
07 Monday Mar 2016
Posted in News you can USE!
Leverage gives the user a maximum advantage whether it is physically lifting a large object or rapidly building equity in a home. In the case of the home, the high loan-to-value mortgage allows the profits made to be greater than simply the cash invested.
A $250,000 home can be purchased on a FHA loan with a 3.5% down payment of $8,750. If the home appreciates at 2% a year, in seven years the equity will grow to $75,920 due to the appreciation and the amortization of the mortgage. That would be a remarkable 36.2% rate of return.
It is estimated that homeowners have a 45 times higher net worth than renters. Since the obvious difference is that renters don’t own a home, owning a home is a distinct advantage. The leverage that allows a borrower to control a much larger asset with a small down payment gives them a return on the much bigger asset than on just the down payment.
Another interesting contribution is the forced savings that occurs with each payment made on the mortgage. A portion of the payment is applied to principal so that the loan will be paid in full by the end of the term, usually 30 years. The amortization on the 4% mortgage example from above has approximately $4,300.00 paid in the first year to reduce the principal which increases the owner’s equity in the home.
For people who have the necessary funds for the down payment and good credit, buying a home can be a financially stabilizing event. While research on the Internet can provide valuable information, there is no substitute for having a face-to-face meeting with a trusted professional to determine your specific facts.
18 Monday Jan 2016
Posted in News you can USE!
You are probably aware that Federal law entitles you to a free copy of your credit report annually by each of the three credit bureaus: TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax. By regularly looking at each of these reports, you can determine if there are any errors on them and be aware of your credit worthiness.
Instead of ordering all three at the same time, experts recommend that you stagger them throughout the year. This will let you look at your credit at three different times during the year instead of only once a year.
An easy way make this happens on a timely basis is to set a recurring appointment on your digital calendar whether it is on your phone, your email program or a contact manager. Make the appointment to order a free credit report from http://www.AnnualCreditReport.com a recurring event to take place every four months. You’ll order one report from each of three companies once a year.
You can record that date and the bureau you ordered the last report in the appointment’s note section so that you’ll have a history and won’t try to order the same report twice in one year.
This isn’t just for people who are trying to clean-up their credit. This procedure allows you to monitor your credit to be sure that your report is accurate. You might even discover that someone is illegally using your good credit.
Early Burnout Could be Good!
04 Monday Jan 2016
Posted in Helpful Information, News you can USE!
Tags
FHA mortgage, Home Ownership Tax Benefits, Paying off a mortgage early, Relavent Real Estate News
Most of us understand the expression “burning the candle at both ends” to mean working so hard that you burn yourself out. Normally, that wouldn’t be a good idea unless it is intentional.
If the candle is your mortgage and the strategy is to get it paid off early, being “burned out” would be a good thing. One end of the candle would be your regular mortgage payments and the other end would represent additional principal contributions.
Since the Great Recession, lenders have been reporting a higher than normal number of borrowers getting shorter term mortgages not only when the purchase the home originally but when they refinance them also. It seems like the mindset of America’s homeowner has shifted a little from the belief that they will always have a house payment.
The extra $100, $200 or $500 in your checking account isn’t earning interest. Additional principal contributions with your regular payments on a fixed rate mortgage will save interest, build equity and shorten the term of the mortgage.
Wealth management is about making financially wise choices. If having your home paid for by retirement age is one of your goals, making extra contributions regularly could get you there. Use this Equity Accelerator to see how it will affect your loan.
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