The Right Stuff
You can double your impact with the right home improvements. Upgrades and remodeling can be expensive so it pays to choose wisely. You want every dime you put into your home to be something that matters to you as a homeowner and to your potential buyer. So what projects do you tackle first?
Start with your home’s curb appeal. It’s hands down the winner when it comes to recouping your investment. Looks do matter and so if your home looks well cared for on the outside, buyers are more likely to want to see what’s inside.
Tops on exterior improvements is upscale siding replacement. You’ll recoup 88 percent of the cost. Wood deck additions and wood replacement windows will get you better than 80 percent return. Garage additions are a favorite also, especially in certain areas of the country.
Though the figures aren’t in yet, landscaping is the finishing touch for to any home’s curb appeal. Imagine a house sitting on a bare piece of property. The right plants, grasses and trees will make any home feel more warm, inviting and visually appealing. Add some accent lighting and your home will be the star of the neighborhood. And when it’s time to sell, you’ll be glad you invested in all the right stuff.
Copyright PropertySource Network 2008
Great Time To Be Buying Real Estate:
Dark clouds on the real estate horizon may have buyers running for cover. Why not take a tip from the folks who did well on the last downturn? A look back shows us that those who bought during the 1990s slowdown have done very well on their real estate investments.
During the recent ultra hot bubble, buyers would have to quickly make an offer and hope theirs was the first. For buyers, today’s market has all the right stuff. You have lots of choices and plenty of time to make up your mind. Plus builders and developers along with some sellers are often willing to sweeten the pot with a few extras. The potential for value and long term investment potential are both there at the moment. You could wait for prices to go even lower, but you could also miss out on a pocket of opportunity. Wait too long and the prime real estate may already be snapped up.
Statistics continue to prove that in terms of wealth building, nothing outperforms real estate.
Copyright PropertySource Network 2008
Foreclosure Rates Not As Bad As Media Hype?
A question must be asked: Is it as bad as the hype of our media? I have asked many clients and people passing through open houses this simple question: ‘What percentage of homes are you under the impression are in some state of foreclosure?’ The answer I receive is typically between 12% to 35%!
However all statistics show that even in the worst areas, it is not quite cracking 5%. – Terrible to be sure, but not the end of times as it is being touted as.
Minnesota in 2007 – according to the last estimates I have seen, hovered around 1%. That’s still twice that of 2006, which was about 1/2%, or .5%, but still, 1% is very different from the 12%-35% I’m hearing from people, and the feeling I get from the media coverage of the current foreclosure situation.
Why are consumers under this impression in the first place?
Is it election year news hype? Is it the nature of 24-7 news? Does doom and gloom news sell better than status quo or even good news?
I think we need to look at the phrase ‘Some state of foreclosure’ as well. In these cases it is anything from the early stages of late payments to full bank possession.
Anyhow, the article was published by the AP, but can be found on Realty Trac:
http://www.realtytrac.com
Industry Update: 2007 Was Fifth Best Year On Record
The National Association of Realtors recently released housing figures for December and for last year. In 2007 there were 5,652,000 existing-home sales, the fifth highest year on record.
WASHINGTON, DC - Existing-home sales declined in December following several months of stable activity, with total sales in 2007 at the fifth highest on record, according to the National Association of Realtors.
Existing-home sales – including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – slipped 2.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate1 of 4.89 million units in December from a pace of 5.00 million in November, and are 22.0 percent below the 6.27 million-unit level in December 2006.
For all of 2007 there were 5,652,000 existing-home sales, the fifth highest year on record; however, the total was 12.8 percent below the 6,478,000 transactions recorded in 2006.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the market is experiencing uncharacteristic weakness. “Home sales remain weak despite improved affordability conditions in many parts of the country, but we could get a quick boost to the market if loan limits are raised in combination with the bold cut in the Fed funds rate,” he said. “Home prices are lower, mortgage interest rates continue to decline and incomes are higher, but many potential buyers are delaying a purchase.”
According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage fell to 6.10 percent in December from 6.21 percent in November; the rate was 6.14 percent in December 2006. Last week, Freddie Mac reported the 30-year fixed rate dropped to 5.69 percent. “Although interest rates on jumbo loans have fallen somewhat, they remain well above conventional mortgage rates,” Yun said. “It isn’t surprising that the share of single-family homes selling for more than $500,000 fell to 12.4 percent of transactions in December from 14.2 percent a year ago.”
Total housing inventory fell 7.4 percent at the end of December to 3.91 million existing homes available for sale, which represents a 9.6-month supply at the current sales pace, down from a 10.1-month supply in November. “The fall in inventory in December is encouraging, but inventories remain elevated and buyers have a clear edge over sellers in many markets,” Yun said.
The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $208,400 in December, down 6.0 percent from a year earlier when the median was $221,600. Because home sales have slowed the most in higher cost markets, there is a downward distortion to the national median as the mix of closed sales has changed over the past year. For all of 2007, the median price was $218,900, down 1.4 percent from a median of $221,900 in 2006.
NAR President Richard Gaylord, a broker with RE/MAX Real Estate Specialists in Long Beach, Calif., said that raising the loan limit on conventional financing is urgently needed. “The most effective way to stimulate housing and minimize the potential for a recession is for lawmakers to raise the limit on conforming mortgages to $625,000, which would open safe and affordable financing to buyers in high-cost areas,” he said. “It is grossly unfair that some Americans do not have access to low-interest rate loans. This would help people as they move away from risky subprime mortgages and high-interest rate jumbo loans.”
NAR projects the higher loan limit would increase annual home sales by nearly 350,000, reduce foreclosures by 140,000 to 210,000, and increase economic activity by $44 billion. “What’s more, this would come at no cost to taxpayers – it’s a policy change that could really boost the economy,” Gaylord said.
Other projections of NAR’s analysis show raising the loan limit would reduce the supply of homes on the market by 1.0 to 1.5 months, and strengthen home prices by 2.0 to 3.0 percentage points. In addition, as many as 500,000 jumbo loans would be refinanced to lower interest rates.
Gaylord said current housing conditions vary widely. “Many local areas continue to have healthy or improving local housing markets,” he said. “For example, we saw higher home sales last month in diverse areas such as San Antonio; Syracuse; Springfield, Ill.; and Sarasota, Fla. If you’re thinking about getting into the market as a buyer or a seller, consult a Realtor® to learn about conditions in your area – they may be considerably different from the composite national picture.”
Single-family home sales declined 2.0 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.31 million in December from 4.40 million in November, and are 21.6 percent below 5.50 million-unit level in December 2006. In all of 2007, single-family sales fell 13.0 percent to 4.94 million.
The median existing single-family home price was $206,500 in December, down 6.5 percent from a year earlier. For all of 2007, the single-family median was $217,800, down 1.8 percent from 2006.
Existing condominium and co-op sales fell 3.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 580,000 units in December from 600,000 in November, and are 24.5 percent below the 768,000-unit pace a year ago. Condo sales for all of 2007 fell 11.0 percent to 713,000 units.
The median existing condo price4 was $222,200 last month, which is 2.5 percent below December 2006. In all of 2007, the median condo price was $226,400, up 2.0 percent from 2006.
Regionally, existing-home sales in the South slipped 1.0 percent to an annual pace of 1.97 million in December, and are 20.9 percent below December 2006. The median price in the South was $173,400, down 4.1 percent from a year ago. Existing-home sales in the Midwest declined 1.7 percent in December to a level of 1.16 million and are 20.5 percent below a year ago. The median price in the Midwest was $159,800, which is 3.9 percent lower than December 2006. In the West, existing-home sales fell 2.1 percent to an annual rate of 940,000 in December, and are 24.8 percent below December 2006. The median price in the West was $309,800, down 11.1 percent from a year ago. Existing-home sales in the Northeast dropped 4.6 percent to an annual rate of 830,000 in December, and are 22.4 percent below a year ago. The median price in the Northeast was $258,600, down 8.9 percent from in December 2006.
Linden Hills Neighborhood, Minneapolis
Set Between Lake Calhoun and the West side of Lake Harriet, over to the border of East Edina is a fantastic, vibrant neighborhood called Linden Hills. Originally the Southern border of Minneapolis stopped at 36th Street. Any homes South of 36th were considered ‘in the wilds’ of Minneapolis. Many of the homes built in Linden Hills were originally summer or lake homes for many of the wealthier inhabitants of Minneapolis proper, in days past.
Right between other great neighborhoods, Linden Hills boasts one of the greatest combinations of restaurants, coffee shops, bakeries, ice-cream parlors, boutiques and some of the more affordable ‘prime’ real estate within the Minneapolis metro area.
Also, Linden Hills connects directly to the walking and biking trails of Lake Harriet and Lake Calhoun which also connects to Lake of the Isles.
If you are looking for a safe, great neighborhood generally in the $300,000-$700,000 price range (obviously some reach as high as $3 million on the West side of Lake Harriet), this is one of the 3 prime neighborhoods in the entire metro area. Best of all, it still has the classy feeling of a period-neighborhood, with most homes being built between 1917 and 1935. The style of homes typically range between craftsman, Victorian, Dutch Colonial and a few total rebuilds, which usually try to maintain the integrity of the period of the other homes. Best of all, this is a neighborhood within the city where you can get silence, but yet have great neighborhood relationships. It’s difficult to live in Linden Hills and not make many great friends.
Between the active parks, neighborhood committee’s and an entire neighborhood-wide garage sale on one day, there are many things to keep you busy in this beautiful, tree-lined, old-growth neighborhood.
Linden Hills also has one of the best public schools in the entire city: Lake Harriet Community School. The lower campus is K-2 and the Upper Campus is 3-8.
Demographics: Population is about 26,000, Density is 5,917 per/sq. mile, average household income is about $90,000 with the median age being 37.
My wife and lived in and renovated a home (not the first or the last)on 45th and York; a very cute Craftsman built in the mid 1920’s. We renovated it and sold it, but our first 2 kids were born there. It has one of the best parks in the city for kids, which we frequent often.
My opinion, it is a great neighborhood for all.
Reverse Mortgages - 4 Things You Need To Know
Here is the scoop on a new, hot-commodity especially for those trying to pull equity out of their home, or adding to their income on a monthly basis (really beneficial for those in retirement, needing more income and have equity/value in their home). Also in many ways it is better than a line of credit or 2nd loan against your home. This article is from the Property Source Network:
Many older Americans are turning to reverse mortgages to supplement their income. A reverse mortgage allows the homeowner to convert part of their home’s equity into cash without having to move. If you’re house rich and cash poor, this is an option to explore and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has the answers.
It works like this. Instead of making monthly payments to your lender, the lender makes payments back to you, based on how much equity you have in your home. You must be at least 62 and use the home as your primary residence in order to quality. The proceeds are generally tax free and have little or no income restrictions.
There are substantial differences between this and an equity loan. First, an equity loan requires that you have sufficient income verses debt ratio to quality. And you’re required to make monthly mortgage payments. Income doesn’t matter with a reverse mortgage, although you are still required to pay real estate taxes, utilities and insurance. As long as you live in the home and keep taxes and insurance current, you cannot be evicted. That’s not true with an equity loan.
If this sounds appealing to you there are things you must know.
1) The amount you can borrow with this plan depends on your age and the appraised value of your home or FHA’s mortgage limits, whichever is less.
2) At the time of sale or if you are no longer using your home as a primary residence, you or your estate will repay the cash you received from the reverse mortgage plus any interest and other applicable fees. The remaining equity, if any, belongs to you and your heirs. This debt is not passed along to the estate or heirs.
3) If you outlive the loan, the lender cannot take the home away. And you can never owe more than the value of the property.
4) Payments can be made in several ways. (1) Equal monthly installments can be paid for a fixed amount of time. (2) A line of credit can allow you, the homeowner, to draw at times and in amounts of your choosing until the credit is exhausted. (3) You can schedule a combination as agreed upon by you and the lender.
HUD does not recommend that you use an outside service to set up a reverse mortgage. HUD approved housing counseling agencies are available free. All you need to do is contact them for a list of approved lenders.
Information and Copyright Property Source Network 2007