The Chonqui Family breaks ground early in 2010 for their new home! One thing to keep in mind is that the ground is frozen. We had a great time and I look forward to their new home being completed.

With foreclosures and short sales on the rise buyers and agents alike are looking for a good way to put the deal together. Most of these homes whose owners have gone through financial hardship need repairs or updating. The FHA 203(k) loan allows buyers to add in the renovation cost in a single mortgage, with only a 3.5% down payment! A HUD Approved Consultant will look at the scope of the work and how much it will cost to meet the standards and review with the buyers. The flexibility to customize the home is attracting buyers to these distressed sales and as home prices continue to fall and more people get into financial woe there is a huge market for 203(k) loans with plenty of opportunities.

Baltimore County shows a significant increase in FHA 203(k) loans from 2008.

Thank you Jay Thompson Phoenix (AZ) Real Estate for the following Home Buyer Tax Credit Poll!

Buying a home is about to get cheaper for a whole new crop of homebuyers — $6,500 cheaper.

…the White House said President Barack Obama would sign it Friday

The Senate has voted to extend and expand a popular tax credit for homebuyers that was scheduled to expire Nov. 30.

Tax credit: Ten percent of the purchase price of a primary residence, up to a maximum of $8,000 for first-time homebuyers and $6,500 for repeat buyers. First-time homebuyers are defined as people who have not owned a home in the previous three years. Repeat buyers must have owned their current home at least five years. The credit cannot be used for houses costing more than $800,000.

Deadline for qualifying: Purchase agreements must be signed by April 30, 2010, and closings must be final by June 30.

Military deadline: The deadline is extended by a year for members of the military who have served outside the U.S. for at least 90 days from Jan. 1, 2009, to May 1, 2010.

Income limits: Individuals with annual incomes up to $125,000 and joint filers with incomes up to $225,000 qualify for the full credit. Individuals with incomes up to $145,000 and joint filers with incomes up to $245,000 qualify for reduced credits.

Source: LA Times – Business|AP

Awesome App that allows home buyers to organize and share photos while house hunting! It utilizes the iPhone location finder allowing neighborhood information like schools, restaurants and the closest bar to be at the tip of your fingers.

Well it’s about time, the Senate has agreed to extend and expand the first-time homebuyers tax credit! Throughout the day I had posted some of the unfolding action and details of the plan on my Facebook Fan Page and the timely sources at Bloomberg @ 7:40PM and Associated Press @ 8:00PM pieced it all together.

What does the new plan say?

Senators agreed to extend the existing tax credit for first-time homebuyers while offering a reduced credit of up to $6,500 to repeat buyers who have owned their current homes for at least five years…

The tax credits would be available to homebuyers who sign sales agreements by the end of April. They would have until the end of June to close on their new homes…

The homebuyers’ credit would be available to individuals earning up to $125,000, or $250,000 for couples, up from $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 for couples under the current law…

Has the credit helped the economy?:

About 1.4 million first-time homebuyers have qualified for the credit through August. The National Association of Realtors estimates that 350,000 of them would not have purchased their homes without the credit.

Realtors and mortgage bankers said the credits, which are available for taxpayers who haven’t owned a home in the past three years, have helped stabilize housing sales this year.

Whats next?

The plan will need to get through the House and then off to our fearless leader. Look for updates in the days to come and once it goes into full effect if your looking to buy now is the time I wouldn’t hold your breath for round 3.

That is right SUMMER IS OVER and the $8000 Tax Credit will be too on November 30th, 2009. I am sorry to see them both go and I can’t say it enough, act now, there is still time (not much), but enough. A Realtor friend of mine (Marney Kirk) found this awesome chart from chicksblog.com today that shows just how much time, realistically, 1st Time Home Buyers have left.

My point is, it’s not everyday that you can get $8000 when buying a home and who knows if it will ever happen again in our lifetime. There are a lot of great homes on the market and even homes that I will be listing in the next couple of weeks that are prime candidates. Remember the first step is to get preapproved with a Loan Officer, my suggestion go with Baltimore’s best Lewis Hibbs of Bank of America. He will get you pointed in the right direction and is a wealth of knowledge. Next is for us to find your new home!

Now for all you moving up/down and back in, you won’t get the $8000 but with my help you will get a great deal and a great home. For those of you who have a home to sell and your home is in that 1st Time Home Buyer market then it is a great time to expose your home to the surge of buyers before November 30th, 2009. I am always available to give market ready pointers for your home and I have the right people to make your home the best on the market.

It’s never to early to start, contact me today, I always appreciate all the questions and suggestions!

For a period of time after October 1, 2009, doing FHA loans on condos will be almost impossible. This new approval process will create a bottleneck of gigantic proportions while HUD is being flooded with approval packages. Getting projects back on the approved list will be a long and slow process. And, until a condo project is approved, FHA financing is not an option. Early submission to beat the October rush is not allowed.HUD has taken HUGE losses on condo projects and is determined to stop the bleeding. Lack of proper tracking of FHA financing concentrations and abuse of the spot approval process are two major problems contributing to the current crisis.

If your thinking of buying or selling a condo, now’s the time!

Here is the IMPORTANT information that has been announced in a HUD conference call that IS NOT stated anywhere in the FHA Announcement!

• The spot approval process for condominium projects is eliminated.

• All current condominium project approvals will be invalid (with the exception of projects approved on or after October 1, 2008) and projects must be re-approved under the new options available. Going forward, all projects will require recertification every two years.

• There will be 2 approval process options:
1. HUD Review and Approval Process (HRAP)
2. Direct Endorsement Lender Review and Approval Process (DELRAP)

• HUD will only accept approval packages for review from
1. Lenders or
2. Builders/Developers.

Read more on the FHA Condo Project Eligibility Requirements

With home prices crashing and foreclosures and short sales eating up a lot of potential buyers there are still steps you can take to separate from the crowd and sell your home.

1. How about price

I know this is not a new method but how many of you out there don’t listen to a Realtor (don’t just listen to any Joe). This is the largest stumbling block for most home owners, you don’t listen. The data is right there, its shown by comparables and by making realistic adjustments. I currently have this wonderful buyer she is the best, shes patient, excited and hilarious, all she wants is a home that has around an acre for an affordable price. She fell in love with 1 of 2 homes I have shown her and this house has got to be $50k over market at $260,000. There is no way this owner is being realistic, I heard it in the agents voice, her hesitation, her unbelief that this home is priced correctly pierced through our conversation. Price your home right and it will sell!

2. How the property shows and photographs

HA! Your now thinking about the deer antlers that are hanging over your fireplace in the home you tried to sell just 3 years ago. This is very simple, make the necessary repairs and updates, HGTV is not lying! I make suggestions to my sellers on what they can do to turn their home into a quick sale, how you live and how you sell are 2 very different things. If you don’t have the small amount money it takes to get your home in showing condition then make sure you take that into account in your list price. If you do have some money, change those items as soon as possible, it makes all the difference in the world. Would you rather spend $5000 on repairs and updates then lose $15,000 on your sale price?

* Remember just because you list your home for more does not mean you will get someone to pay you more if they are even willing to offer you anything.

3. Here is a small secret

If you purchased at the peak of the market then you shouldn’t sell your home today or for a while. If you bought your home for $500,000 and now it’s worth $435,000 DON’T SELL NOW! If you don’t have to sell then why are you? If you have to sell then get real, list close to what it’s worth in today’s market. Using the same example from earlier, you could list at $447,000 but you wouldn’t want to be at $525,000 that is not a smart move. You will waste more time on the market which will result in a lower sales price. The faster you sell your home the better sales price you will get, take this as advice to heart, the first offer is typically the best offer, not always but a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush! A lot of people snuff offers when they first list their home, you need to be grateful that this buyer can get a loan and wants to purchase your home, roll the red carpet out and get the deal done!

4. 1st time home buyers

They are the market, they don’t have a home to sell and they get a nifty $8000 Tax Credit which half of them don’t know about. They are motivated by time and that the market under $500,000 is very competitive. You need buyers to be educated and that’s why I created the Maryland’s $8000 Tax Credit website, to inform as many buyers as possible before it ends. A qualified 1st time home buyer is by far the best prospect for your home if your home is under $500,000.

5. Closing costs and incentives

Besides 1st time home buyers, closing costs and incentives are your next best friend. If a buyer needs help to buy your home, you better get on board with closing costs and don’t say well I am not getting my full price so why should i help them? Well because your going to sell your home, that’s what you want right? It’s about facilitating the deal, in these tough times not many people have a lot cash to throw down or use to close on a home, a good majority need the sellers help. Incentives can be another good way to get beyond a buyers fears, you could pay the first year of HOA and/or Condo fees, hire a lawn service, fly them to Disney World, again I stress whatever it takes. Homes don’t sell themselves!