Tax credit fuels skyrocketing Dallas-area preowned home sales
12:08 PM CST on Monday, December 7, 2009
By STEVE BROWN/ The Dallas Morning News
The North Texas housing market came roaring back in November. Preowned home sales rose by 31 percent last month from a year ago – one of the biggest such increases on record. Also Online
Interactive map: Dallas-area home sales and prices
And median home sales prices were up 5 percent.
The big jump in residential transactions came as large numbers of homebuyers rushed to take advantage of the federal home buying tax credit, which has been extended.
Real estate agents in October sold almost 5,500 preowned homes through their multiple listing service, according to statistics released Monday by the North Texas Residential Information Systems and the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University.
And condo and townhouse sales were up more than 60 percent from a year ago.
November’s robust sales activity is the latest in a string of recent indicators, which show that the North Texas home market has bottomed out and is turning the corner.
Through the first 11 months of 2009, North Texas home sales are down 12 percent from the same period of last year. And median home sales prices are unchanged year to day from 2008.
November was the second consecutive month that Dallas-Fort Worth area home sales rose from the previous year – ending more than a year of consecutive declines.
Some neighborhoods that weren’t impacted by the federal homebuying incentives saw dramatic spikes in home sales last month.
In the Park Cities, preowned home sales soared 81 percent in November from a year ago.
Sales in close in North Dallas neighborhoods rose 48 percent.
And at the end of November, the inventory of unsold homes on the market fell below 6 months which is considered a balanced market.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Expanded Version of Tax Credit Will Allow More Homebuyers to Qualify
Expanded Version of Tax Credit Will Allow More Homebuyers to Qualify
RISMEDIA, November 9, 2009—President Obama recently signed an expanded version of the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit that was set to expire on November 30. “The new version of the tax credit has the potential to stimulate the housing market even more than the old version due to the fact that more people will qualify under the new rules,” said Gibran Nicholas, Chairman of the CMPS Institute, an organization that certifies mortgage bankers and brokers. “Although the tax credit remains at $8,000 for homebuyers that have not owned a primary residence in the last three years, it has been expanded to include a $6,500 tax credit for homebuyers that have lived in their current primary residence for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight years. Under the old rules, move-up homebuyers did not qualify.” Consider these three examples:
Example 1:
Jane purchased a home in 2002, lived there for 5 years as her primary home, moved out in 2007, and turned that home into a rental property. If Jane decides to buy a new primary residence today, she would qualify for the $6,500 tax credit based on the fact that she lived in the same residence as her primary home for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight.
Example 2:
Harry purchased a home in 2004, and lived there for the past 5 years as his primary home. If Harry decides to buy a new primary residence today, he would qualify for the $6,500 tax credit based on the fact that he lived in the same residence as his primary home for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight.
Example 3:
Nicole purchased a home in 2006, and lived there for the past 3 years as her primary home. If Nicole decides to buy a new primary residence today, she would not qualify for the $6,500 tax credit based on the fact that she did not live in the same residence as her primary home for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight.
The tax credit applies to homes purchased for less than $800,000 before May 1, 2010. “If you sign a binding contract to purchase a home before May 1st, you would need to close on the transaction before July 1, 2010,” Nicholas said. “It works kind of like a gift certificate that can be redeemed for cash. You simply file a form with the IRS right after you buy your home, and the IRS will send you a check for the full amount of your credit.”
The income limitation for single tax payers went up from $75,000 under the old rules to $125,000 under the new rules. For married tax payers, the income limitation went up from $150,000 to $225,000. “This means that more people will qualify for the credit – especially in parts of the country with higher costs of living,” Nicholas said. “This should help stimulate parts of the housing market that may not have been impacted by the old version of the credit.”
There are many creative ways of structuring your home purchase transaction in ways that maximize the benefits of the credit. Here are a few examples:
-The credit applies to 1-4 unit homes as long as you live in one of the units as your primary residence – you could live in one unit and rent out the others
-If two unmarried individuals buy a home, and only one of the individuals qualifies for the credit based on their income or past home ownership status, the individual who qualifies for the credit can claim the full credit. (Note: In the case of married couples, both spouses must qualify for the credit).
-The credit applies even if you have co-signers on your mortgage loan
For more information, visit www.CMPSInstitute.org.
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-11-08/expanded-version-of-tax-credit-will-allow-more-homebuyers-to-qualify/#ixzz0WTkr6IKw
RISMEDIA, November 9, 2009—President Obama recently signed an expanded version of the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit that was set to expire on November 30. “The new version of the tax credit has the potential to stimulate the housing market even more than the old version due to the fact that more people will qualify under the new rules,” said Gibran Nicholas, Chairman of the CMPS Institute, an organization that certifies mortgage bankers and brokers. “Although the tax credit remains at $8,000 for homebuyers that have not owned a primary residence in the last three years, it has been expanded to include a $6,500 tax credit for homebuyers that have lived in their current primary residence for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight years. Under the old rules, move-up homebuyers did not qualify.” Consider these three examples:
Example 1:
Jane purchased a home in 2002, lived there for 5 years as her primary home, moved out in 2007, and turned that home into a rental property. If Jane decides to buy a new primary residence today, she would qualify for the $6,500 tax credit based on the fact that she lived in the same residence as her primary home for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight.
Example 2:
Harry purchased a home in 2004, and lived there for the past 5 years as his primary home. If Harry decides to buy a new primary residence today, he would qualify for the $6,500 tax credit based on the fact that he lived in the same residence as his primary home for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight.
Example 3:
Nicole purchased a home in 2006, and lived there for the past 3 years as her primary home. If Nicole decides to buy a new primary residence today, she would not qualify for the $6,500 tax credit based on the fact that she did not live in the same residence as her primary home for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight.
The tax credit applies to homes purchased for less than $800,000 before May 1, 2010. “If you sign a binding contract to purchase a home before May 1st, you would need to close on the transaction before July 1, 2010,” Nicholas said. “It works kind of like a gift certificate that can be redeemed for cash. You simply file a form with the IRS right after you buy your home, and the IRS will send you a check for the full amount of your credit.”
The income limitation for single tax payers went up from $75,000 under the old rules to $125,000 under the new rules. For married tax payers, the income limitation went up from $150,000 to $225,000. “This means that more people will qualify for the credit – especially in parts of the country with higher costs of living,” Nicholas said. “This should help stimulate parts of the housing market that may not have been impacted by the old version of the credit.”
There are many creative ways of structuring your home purchase transaction in ways that maximize the benefits of the credit. Here are a few examples:
-The credit applies to 1-4 unit homes as long as you live in one of the units as your primary residence – you could live in one unit and rent out the others
-If two unmarried individuals buy a home, and only one of the individuals qualifies for the credit based on their income or past home ownership status, the individual who qualifies for the credit can claim the full credit. (Note: In the case of married couples, both spouses must qualify for the credit).
-The credit applies even if you have co-signers on your mortgage loan
For more information, visit www.CMPSInstitute.org.
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-11-08/expanded-version-of-tax-credit-will-allow-more-homebuyers-to-qualify/#ixzz0WTkr6IKw
Friday, November 6, 2009
TAX CREDIT HAS BEEN EXTENDED
TAX CREDIT HAS BEEN EXTENDED
The $8000 tax credit for first time homebuyer's has been extended. The program was expanded to include a $6500 tax credit on the purchase of a new home to apply to people who have owned a home for at least five years.
Income restrictions will be relaxed, meaning more people could take advantage of the program.
The bill would extend it to apply to home purchases under contract before May 1, 2010
Great news! Watch for more details.
Give us a call for all of your Real Estate needs.You can reach us directly at 817-337-5169 or on the web at www.soldteam.net
Texas Sold Team Realty, LLC
CRS, e-Pro, ABR, Luxury Real Estate Expert
Information provided by Pam Taylor with WR Starkey Mortgage
The $8000 tax credit for first time homebuyer's has been extended. The program was expanded to include a $6500 tax credit on the purchase of a new home to apply to people who have owned a home for at least five years.
Income restrictions will be relaxed, meaning more people could take advantage of the program.
The bill would extend it to apply to home purchases under contract before May 1, 2010
Great news! Watch for more details.
Give us a call for all of your Real Estate needs.You can reach us directly at 817-337-5169 or on the web at www.soldteam.net
Texas Sold Team Realty, LLC
CRS, e-Pro, ABR, Luxury Real Estate Expert
Information provided by Pam Taylor with WR Starkey Mortgage
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Existing-Home Sales Ease Following 4 Monthly Gains
Existing-Home Sales Ease Following 4 Monthly Gains
RISMEDIA, September 28, 2009—Existing-home sales in August 2009 gave back some of their strong gain in July but remain above year-ago levels, according to the National Association of Realtors®.
Existing-home sales- including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops- declined 2.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.10 million units in August from a pace of 5.24 million in July, but remain 3.4% above the 4.93 million-unit level in August 2008. In the previous four months, sales had risen a total of 15.2%.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the tax credit is working. “Home sales retrenched from a very strong improvement in July but continue to be much higher than before the stimulus. The first-time buyer tax credit is having the intended impact of bringing buyers into the market, allowing them to take advantage of very favorable affordability conditions,” he said. “Some of the give-back in closed sales appears to result from rising numbers of contracts entering the system, with some fallouts and a backlog contributing to a longer closing process, but the decline demonstrates we can’t take a housing rebound for granted.”
According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage fell to 5.19% in August from 5.22% in July; the rate was 6.48% in August 2008.
An NAR practitioner survey shows first-time buyers purchased 30% of homes in August, and that distressed homes accounted for 31% of transactions; both were unchanged from July. “The recent trend shows broad improvement in most of the country, but with an expected rise in foreclosures over the next 12 months we need to maintain a healthy level of ready buyers to absorb the inventory. An extension of the tax credit is critical to preserve incentives for financially qualified buyers to enter the market,” Yun said.
He added that many buyers had been on the sidelines during the past few years, waiting for signs of stabilization. “Now that the market is showing some momentum, we have an opportunity to achieve a more rapid and broader stabilization in home prices. Extending and expanding the tax credit also would help to keep other families from becoming upside down in their mortgages or risk foreclosure,” Yun said.
“When home prices show sustained gains, credit will become more widely available to other sectors because Wall Street will be able to price risks confidently. Stable home values will also allow more families to purchase consumer products and provide a strong boost for the broader economy.”
NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, said time is running very short for the existing tax credit. “Because it’s generally taking 60 days to close on a home after a contract is offered, buyers have little time to act to complete a purchase by the November 30 deadline,” he said. “There’s no guarantee what Congress might do, so there’s really no time to waste. Since Realtors® have unparalleled knowledge of local markets, they can also advise first-time buyers on any additional state or local programs that might be able to offer them financial assistance, and help them close on a home before the tax credit expires.”
Total housing inventory at the end of August fell 10.8% to 3.62 million existing homes available for sale, which represents an 8.5-month supply at the current sales pace, down from a 9.3-month supply in July. Unsold inventory totals are 16.4% lower than a year ago. The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $177,700 in August, down 12.5% from August 2008. Distressed properties continue to downwardly distort the median price because they generally sell for 15 to 20% less than traditional homes. Single-family home sales fell 2.% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.48 million in August from a level of 4.61 million in July, but are 2.55 higher than the 4.37 million-unit pace in August 2008. The median existing single-family home price was $177,500 in August, down 12.1% from a year ago. Existing condominium and co-op sales slipped 1.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 620,000 units in August from a spike of 630,000 in July, but are 10.1% higher than the 563,000-unit level a year ago. The median existing condo price was $179,300 in August, which is 15.7% below August 2008.
Regionally, existing-home sales in the Northeast declined 2.2% to an annual pace of 910,000 in August, but are 5.8% above August 2008. The median price in the Northeast was $241,100, which is 10.5% below a year ago. Existing-home sales in the Midwest fell 6.6% in August to a level of 1.14 million but are unchanged from a year ago. The median price in the Midwest was $149,900, down 10.4% from August 2008. In the South, existing-home sales were down 3.1% to an annual pace of 1.89 million in August but are 1.6% above August 2008. The median price in the South was $157,400, which is 11.0% below a year ago. Existing-home sales in the West declined 2.7% to an annual rate of 1.16 million in August but are 7.4% higher than a year ago. The median price in the West was $220,500, down 12.2% from August 2008.
For more information, visit www.realtor.org.
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-09-27/existing-home-sales-ease-following-4-monthly-gains/#ixzz0SVdAMpNc
RISMEDIA, September 28, 2009—Existing-home sales in August 2009 gave back some of their strong gain in July but remain above year-ago levels, according to the National Association of Realtors®.
Existing-home sales- including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops- declined 2.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.10 million units in August from a pace of 5.24 million in July, but remain 3.4% above the 4.93 million-unit level in August 2008. In the previous four months, sales had risen a total of 15.2%.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the tax credit is working. “Home sales retrenched from a very strong improvement in July but continue to be much higher than before the stimulus. The first-time buyer tax credit is having the intended impact of bringing buyers into the market, allowing them to take advantage of very favorable affordability conditions,” he said. “Some of the give-back in closed sales appears to result from rising numbers of contracts entering the system, with some fallouts and a backlog contributing to a longer closing process, but the decline demonstrates we can’t take a housing rebound for granted.”
According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage fell to 5.19% in August from 5.22% in July; the rate was 6.48% in August 2008.
An NAR practitioner survey shows first-time buyers purchased 30% of homes in August, and that distressed homes accounted for 31% of transactions; both were unchanged from July. “The recent trend shows broad improvement in most of the country, but with an expected rise in foreclosures over the next 12 months we need to maintain a healthy level of ready buyers to absorb the inventory. An extension of the tax credit is critical to preserve incentives for financially qualified buyers to enter the market,” Yun said.
He added that many buyers had been on the sidelines during the past few years, waiting for signs of stabilization. “Now that the market is showing some momentum, we have an opportunity to achieve a more rapid and broader stabilization in home prices. Extending and expanding the tax credit also would help to keep other families from becoming upside down in their mortgages or risk foreclosure,” Yun said.
“When home prices show sustained gains, credit will become more widely available to other sectors because Wall Street will be able to price risks confidently. Stable home values will also allow more families to purchase consumer products and provide a strong boost for the broader economy.”
NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, said time is running very short for the existing tax credit. “Because it’s generally taking 60 days to close on a home after a contract is offered, buyers have little time to act to complete a purchase by the November 30 deadline,” he said. “There’s no guarantee what Congress might do, so there’s really no time to waste. Since Realtors® have unparalleled knowledge of local markets, they can also advise first-time buyers on any additional state or local programs that might be able to offer them financial assistance, and help them close on a home before the tax credit expires.”
Total housing inventory at the end of August fell 10.8% to 3.62 million existing homes available for sale, which represents an 8.5-month supply at the current sales pace, down from a 9.3-month supply in July. Unsold inventory totals are 16.4% lower than a year ago. The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $177,700 in August, down 12.5% from August 2008. Distressed properties continue to downwardly distort the median price because they generally sell for 15 to 20% less than traditional homes. Single-family home sales fell 2.% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.48 million in August from a level of 4.61 million in July, but are 2.55 higher than the 4.37 million-unit pace in August 2008. The median existing single-family home price was $177,500 in August, down 12.1% from a year ago. Existing condominium and co-op sales slipped 1.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 620,000 units in August from a spike of 630,000 in July, but are 10.1% higher than the 563,000-unit level a year ago. The median existing condo price was $179,300 in August, which is 15.7% below August 2008.
Regionally, existing-home sales in the Northeast declined 2.2% to an annual pace of 910,000 in August, but are 5.8% above August 2008. The median price in the Northeast was $241,100, which is 10.5% below a year ago. Existing-home sales in the Midwest fell 6.6% in August to a level of 1.14 million but are unchanged from a year ago. The median price in the Midwest was $149,900, down 10.4% from August 2008. In the South, existing-home sales were down 3.1% to an annual pace of 1.89 million in August but are 1.6% above August 2008. The median price in the South was $157,400, which is 11.0% below a year ago. Existing-home sales in the West declined 2.7% to an annual rate of 1.16 million in August but are 7.4% higher than a year ago. The median price in the West was $220,500, down 12.2% from August 2008.
For more information, visit www.realtor.org.
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-09-27/existing-home-sales-ease-following-4-monthly-gains/#ixzz0SVdAMpNc
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
First-Time Buyers Race to Beat the Clock, Qualify for $8,000 Federal Tax Credit
First-Time Buyers Race to Beat the Clock, Qualify for $8,000 Federal Tax Credit
RISMEDIA, September 15, 2009—First-time home buyers have just 12 weeks to find and close on a home to qualify for the $8,000 Federal tax credit before the November 30th deadline. Those just beginning the process will have to beat the average time it takes to buy a home, a challenge smart buyers can meet even though it’s taking longer today to close most transactions.
Two significant challenges first-time buyers face today include the potential for a lengthy process related to search and closing if not managed carefully at every step, and intensified competition. On average, first-time buyers search 12 weeks to find a home, while closing can take up to 60 days, depending on individual circumstances and local regulations. Additionally, the tax credit has proved to be extremely popular this year, since taking advantage of the first-time homebuyer’s Federal tax credit and relevant state incentives is the most important reason motivating 10.8% of buyers today. In fact, approximately 1.14 million buyers have already filed for the credit. Many more are expected to file for the credit when income taxes are due April 2010.
Still, while time is short and competition high, historically high affordability is a major factor driving first-time home buyers today, a growing group accounting for one third of all purchases in July 2009. The National Association of Realtors’ affordability index in July 2009 was 36.0 percentage points higher than July 2008. Under these conditions the typical median-income family can allocate 15.8% of their gross income to mortgage payments, well below the traditional allowance of 25%. Interest rates, which play a major factor in affordability, remain low, at 5.22% in July for a 30-year fixed rate loan.
Realtor.com President Errol Samuelson explains, “The national median home today costs approximately 174,100. By moving quickly to find and close on a home by November 30, first-time buyers qualifying for the $8,000 tax credit can actually purchase this same home for only $166,100, an almost four and a half percent discount off of the price of a typical new home. Because affordability this year is at its highest level in 28 years, and the market offers an incredible selection of homes within reach of most first-time buyers, we expect their numbers to grow as they pursue today’s once in a generation opportunity to become homeowners.”
Samuelson suggests that by combining effective use of technology and the greater access to information it delivers with expert advice from local Realtors, today’s first-time home buyers can beat the clock and use the $8,000 Federal tax credit along with any available state-level credits to purchase a home under the November 30 deadline. “By moving quickly, being prepared to make decisions in the face of increased competition, and taking the learnings from others to reduce time without cutting corners, first-time home buyers starting today can close on time and qualify for the $8,000 Federal tax credit,” added Samuelson. “To help this important group trying to enter today’s market, Realtor.com offers tips and expert advice that can help expedite the search, negotiation, finance and closing processes so they can beat the clock.”
Tips for the first time home buyer starting their search today:
-Searching – Search While You Sleep – Since 87% of all buyers start online, you probably will too. On Realtor.com it’s easy to sign up for email alerts and create personal portfolios for homes of interest. Soon you’ll be searching while you sleep, at the office or even while you’re at an open house. You’ll be the first to know if a home you want comes up for sale or receives a price reduction.
-Negotiating - Freshness counts. You don’t have time to look at unavailable homes. Stale data on prices, time on market, features, or property values puts you at a disadvantage when negotiating.
-Appraisals - Appraisals can be a problem today; make sure the lender can deliver the appraisal on time. Your loan will not be approved if it doesn’t appraise for the agreed price, so don’t delay. If the property doesn’t appraise for the bid price, ask for a desk appraisal; you’ll receive a second look.
-Finance - Don’t let the financing process slow you down; 35% of first-time buyers find the mortgage application and approval process more difficult than what they expected. Start saving pay stubs and bank statements now. Collect your tax returns; anything proving your income qualifies you for the home you want.
-Closing - Get your insurance company and the home owner association, if applicable, to forward a cost estimate to the escrow company early. This will make it easier for them to more accurately estimate your closing costs, which in many states must be paid in cash at closing.
For more information, visit www.realtor.com.
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-09-14/first-time-buyers-race-to-beat-the-clock-qualify-for-8000-federal-tax-credit/#ixzz0RIOBnCDt
RISMEDIA, September 15, 2009—First-time home buyers have just 12 weeks to find and close on a home to qualify for the $8,000 Federal tax credit before the November 30th deadline. Those just beginning the process will have to beat the average time it takes to buy a home, a challenge smart buyers can meet even though it’s taking longer today to close most transactions.
Two significant challenges first-time buyers face today include the potential for a lengthy process related to search and closing if not managed carefully at every step, and intensified competition. On average, first-time buyers search 12 weeks to find a home, while closing can take up to 60 days, depending on individual circumstances and local regulations. Additionally, the tax credit has proved to be extremely popular this year, since taking advantage of the first-time homebuyer’s Federal tax credit and relevant state incentives is the most important reason motivating 10.8% of buyers today. In fact, approximately 1.14 million buyers have already filed for the credit. Many more are expected to file for the credit when income taxes are due April 2010.
Still, while time is short and competition high, historically high affordability is a major factor driving first-time home buyers today, a growing group accounting for one third of all purchases in July 2009. The National Association of Realtors’ affordability index in July 2009 was 36.0 percentage points higher than July 2008. Under these conditions the typical median-income family can allocate 15.8% of their gross income to mortgage payments, well below the traditional allowance of 25%. Interest rates, which play a major factor in affordability, remain low, at 5.22% in July for a 30-year fixed rate loan.
Realtor.com President Errol Samuelson explains, “The national median home today costs approximately 174,100. By moving quickly to find and close on a home by November 30, first-time buyers qualifying for the $8,000 tax credit can actually purchase this same home for only $166,100, an almost four and a half percent discount off of the price of a typical new home. Because affordability this year is at its highest level in 28 years, and the market offers an incredible selection of homes within reach of most first-time buyers, we expect their numbers to grow as they pursue today’s once in a generation opportunity to become homeowners.”
Samuelson suggests that by combining effective use of technology and the greater access to information it delivers with expert advice from local Realtors, today’s first-time home buyers can beat the clock and use the $8,000 Federal tax credit along with any available state-level credits to purchase a home under the November 30 deadline. “By moving quickly, being prepared to make decisions in the face of increased competition, and taking the learnings from others to reduce time without cutting corners, first-time home buyers starting today can close on time and qualify for the $8,000 Federal tax credit,” added Samuelson. “To help this important group trying to enter today’s market, Realtor.com offers tips and expert advice that can help expedite the search, negotiation, finance and closing processes so they can beat the clock.”
Tips for the first time home buyer starting their search today:
-Searching – Search While You Sleep – Since 87% of all buyers start online, you probably will too. On Realtor.com it’s easy to sign up for email alerts and create personal portfolios for homes of interest. Soon you’ll be searching while you sleep, at the office or even while you’re at an open house. You’ll be the first to know if a home you want comes up for sale or receives a price reduction.
-Negotiating - Freshness counts. You don’t have time to look at unavailable homes. Stale data on prices, time on market, features, or property values puts you at a disadvantage when negotiating.
-Appraisals - Appraisals can be a problem today; make sure the lender can deliver the appraisal on time. Your loan will not be approved if it doesn’t appraise for the agreed price, so don’t delay. If the property doesn’t appraise for the bid price, ask for a desk appraisal; you’ll receive a second look.
-Finance - Don’t let the financing process slow you down; 35% of first-time buyers find the mortgage application and approval process more difficult than what they expected. Start saving pay stubs and bank statements now. Collect your tax returns; anything proving your income qualifies you for the home you want.
-Closing - Get your insurance company and the home owner association, if applicable, to forward a cost estimate to the escrow company early. This will make it easier for them to more accurately estimate your closing costs, which in many states must be paid in cash at closing.
For more information, visit www.realtor.com.
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-09-14/first-time-buyers-race-to-beat-the-clock-qualify-for-8000-federal-tax-credit/#ixzz0RIOBnCDt
Friday, September 4, 2009
Happy Labor Day
Labor Day is more than just an extra day off from work or simply the last fling of summer. It's a much-deserved rest in recognition of the hard work and daily disciplines that fuel our businesses and drive our economy.
We hope you enjoy this time relaxing with friends and loved ones.
You deserve it.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Only 90 Days left to use the $8,000 Tax Credit
Did you know it can take up to 30 days to close a home using the $8,000 Tax Credit? You have even less than 90 days to use it before the end of November!
Contact us today to get your first home before November! We can help!
Friday, August 21, 2009
What Would You Do With $8,000?
What Would You Do With $8,000?
What if the government decided today that, instead of bailing out Wall Street, it was going to give every American $8,000? What would you do with the money?
For most Americans, paying off credit card debt would be a great way to use the free money. According to a Nilson Report released in April 2009, the average credit card debt per household in the US was $8,329 at the end of 2008. That money from the government would almost wipe out your debt completely. Imagine being completely debt free.
Healthcare is a big topic these days. According to the most current Census Bureau statistics, some 45.7 million Americans do not have health insurance. So, many Americans might choose to use their $8,000 to enroll their family in a healthcare program through their employer. The federal government tracks the average spending on health insurance for people with job-based coverage, and the most recent figures (from 2005!) indicate that the average individual's premiums were $3,991, while families spent an average of $10,728. Your $8,000 would go a long way in insuring your family.
Some Americans might choose to start a small business. Experts estimate that start-up costs for many new business ventures are between $10,000 - $15,000. With $8,000, a large portion of your initial investment would be covered.
If you really think about it, there are so many things you could do with $8,000. You could open a 529 college savings plan. You could add your 8 grand to the government's $4,500 Cash for Clunkers plan and buy a new car. You could take your family on an amazing once-in-a-lifetime vacation. You could open an IRA and save for retirement...
But what's the point in dreaming. The government's not giving away $8,000, right?
Wrong.
Right now, through November 30th of this year only, the government is giving qualifying first-time home buyers up to $8,000 for purchasing a home (or up to 10% of the purchase price). This is free money that you do not have to pay back. And here's the best part: if you qualify, you can get your money from the IRS this year, even if you've already filed your 2008 taxes.
There are, of course, limitations and other qualifying factors, but they are all pretty reasonable and easy to explain, and we'll be glad to discuss these with you or anyone you know who is looking to buy a home. With today's combination of lower home prices and lower interest rates, this temporary incentive from the government is really a great option for many Americans who act now to finally fulfill their dreams of owning a home.
What if the government decided today that, instead of bailing out Wall Street, it was going to give every American $8,000? What would you do with the money?
For most Americans, paying off credit card debt would be a great way to use the free money. According to a Nilson Report released in April 2009, the average credit card debt per household in the US was $8,329 at the end of 2008. That money from the government would almost wipe out your debt completely. Imagine being completely debt free.
Healthcare is a big topic these days. According to the most current Census Bureau statistics, some 45.7 million Americans do not have health insurance. So, many Americans might choose to use their $8,000 to enroll their family in a healthcare program through their employer. The federal government tracks the average spending on health insurance for people with job-based coverage, and the most recent figures (from 2005!) indicate that the average individual's premiums were $3,991, while families spent an average of $10,728. Your $8,000 would go a long way in insuring your family.
Some Americans might choose to start a small business. Experts estimate that start-up costs for many new business ventures are between $10,000 - $15,000. With $8,000, a large portion of your initial investment would be covered.
If you really think about it, there are so many things you could do with $8,000. You could open a 529 college savings plan. You could add your 8 grand to the government's $4,500 Cash for Clunkers plan and buy a new car. You could take your family on an amazing once-in-a-lifetime vacation. You could open an IRA and save for retirement...
But what's the point in dreaming. The government's not giving away $8,000, right?
Wrong.
Right now, through November 30th of this year only, the government is giving qualifying first-time home buyers up to $8,000 for purchasing a home (or up to 10% of the purchase price). This is free money that you do not have to pay back. And here's the best part: if you qualify, you can get your money from the IRS this year, even if you've already filed your 2008 taxes.
There are, of course, limitations and other qualifying factors, but they are all pretty reasonable and easy to explain, and we'll be glad to discuss these with you or anyone you know who is looking to buy a home. With today's combination of lower home prices and lower interest rates, this temporary incentive from the government is really a great option for many Americans who act now to finally fulfill their dreams of owning a home.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Tax-Free Weekend
Tax-Free Weekend
We are a week away from the back to school bell, and this weekend we will all be scrambling to get those last minute items. Shoppers can get a break this weekend from sales tax with the states annual tax holiday beginning Friday and extending through Sunday. This saves shoppers about $8 for every $100 spend. New items added to the list this year are backpacks, and most school supplies, that include binders, folders, lunch boxes, pens, pencils calculators, book bags and much more.
For more detailed information click on the link below
Texas Tax Holiday Official Page
We are a week away from the back to school bell, and this weekend we will all be scrambling to get those last minute items. Shoppers can get a break this weekend from sales tax with the states annual tax holiday beginning Friday and extending through Sunday. This saves shoppers about $8 for every $100 spend. New items added to the list this year are backpacks, and most school supplies, that include binders, folders, lunch boxes, pens, pencils calculators, book bags and much more.
For more detailed information click on the link below
Texas Tax Holiday Official Page
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Pending Home Sales up for Fifth Consecutive Month
Pending Home Sales up for Fifth Consecutive Month
RISMEDIA, August 5, 2009-Pending home sales are up for the fifth consecutive month, the first time in six years for such a streak, according to the National Association of Realtors®.
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in June, rose 3.6% to 94.6 from an upwardly revised reading of 91.3 in May, and is 6.7% above June 2008 when it was 88.7. The last time there were five consecutive monthly gains was in July 2003.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said a combination of positive market factors is fueling the gains. “Historically low mortgage interest rates, affordable home prices and large selection are encouraging buyers who’ve been on the sidelines. Activity has been consistently much stronger for lower priced homes,” he said. ”Because it may take as long as two months to close on a home after signing a contract, first-time buyers must act fairly soon to take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit because they must close on the sale by November 30.”
The Pending Home Sales Index in the Northeast rose 0.4% to 81.2 in June and is 5.8% above a year ago. In the Midwest the index increased 0.8% to 89.9 and is 11.6% above June 2008. The index in the South jumped 7.1% to 100.7 in June and is 8.9% higher than a year ago. In the West the index rose 2.9% to 100.4 but is 0.2% below June 2008.
NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, is hopeful that a recently elevated level of contract cancellations will ease. “Last month, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae clarified that appraisals should be done by professionals with clear local expertise,” he said. “This should mitigate the situation of many valuations done by out-of-area appraisers coming in below the price negotiated between buyers and sellers. Hopefully, in the months ahead, we’ll see an even closer relationship between contract activity and closed transactions.” McMillan said NAR is continuing to press the appraisal issue. “We have asked Congress and the Federal Housing Finance Agency to immediately implement an 18-month moratorium on the new appraisal rules to further address unintended consequences of the new guidelines,” he said.
NAR’s Housing Affordability Index (HAI) remains very favorable. The affordability index stood at 159.2 in July, down from record peaks in recent months but it remains 36.6 percentage points above a year ago. Under these conditions the typical family would devote 15.7% of gross income to mortgage principal and interest, well below the standard allowance of 25%. The HAI is a broad measure of housing affordability using consistent values and assumptions over time, which examines the relationship between home prices, mortgage interest rates and family income.
“A monthly rise in home prices and somewhat higher mortgage interest rates led to a modest decline in affordability in June, but it was still the sixth highest index on record dating back to 1970,” Yun said. “Because housing is so affordable in today’s market, job security and the first-time buyer tax credit are bigger factors in influencing home sales.”
A median-income family, earning $60,700, could afford a home costing $289,100 in June with a 20% downpayment, assuming 25% of gross income is devoted to mortgage principal and interest. Affordability conditions for first-time buyers with the same income and small downpayments are roughly 80% of what a median-income family can afford. The affordable price was much higher than the median existing single-family home price in June, which was $181,600.
Yun expects existing-home sales to gradually rise over the balance of the year, with conditions varying around the country. “It appears home sales are on a sounder footing and inventory is gradually being absorbed.”
For more information, visit www.realtor.org.
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-08-04/pending-home-sales-up-for-fifth-consecutive-month/#ixzz0NFTbnzEY
RISMEDIA, August 5, 2009-Pending home sales are up for the fifth consecutive month, the first time in six years for such a streak, according to the National Association of Realtors®.
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in June, rose 3.6% to 94.6 from an upwardly revised reading of 91.3 in May, and is 6.7% above June 2008 when it was 88.7. The last time there were five consecutive monthly gains was in July 2003.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said a combination of positive market factors is fueling the gains. “Historically low mortgage interest rates, affordable home prices and large selection are encouraging buyers who’ve been on the sidelines. Activity has been consistently much stronger for lower priced homes,” he said. ”Because it may take as long as two months to close on a home after signing a contract, first-time buyers must act fairly soon to take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit because they must close on the sale by November 30.”
The Pending Home Sales Index in the Northeast rose 0.4% to 81.2 in June and is 5.8% above a year ago. In the Midwest the index increased 0.8% to 89.9 and is 11.6% above June 2008. The index in the South jumped 7.1% to 100.7 in June and is 8.9% higher than a year ago. In the West the index rose 2.9% to 100.4 but is 0.2% below June 2008.
NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, is hopeful that a recently elevated level of contract cancellations will ease. “Last month, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae clarified that appraisals should be done by professionals with clear local expertise,” he said. “This should mitigate the situation of many valuations done by out-of-area appraisers coming in below the price negotiated between buyers and sellers. Hopefully, in the months ahead, we’ll see an even closer relationship between contract activity and closed transactions.” McMillan said NAR is continuing to press the appraisal issue. “We have asked Congress and the Federal Housing Finance Agency to immediately implement an 18-month moratorium on the new appraisal rules to further address unintended consequences of the new guidelines,” he said.
NAR’s Housing Affordability Index (HAI) remains very favorable. The affordability index stood at 159.2 in July, down from record peaks in recent months but it remains 36.6 percentage points above a year ago. Under these conditions the typical family would devote 15.7% of gross income to mortgage principal and interest, well below the standard allowance of 25%. The HAI is a broad measure of housing affordability using consistent values and assumptions over time, which examines the relationship between home prices, mortgage interest rates and family income.
“A monthly rise in home prices and somewhat higher mortgage interest rates led to a modest decline in affordability in June, but it was still the sixth highest index on record dating back to 1970,” Yun said. “Because housing is so affordable in today’s market, job security and the first-time buyer tax credit are bigger factors in influencing home sales.”
A median-income family, earning $60,700, could afford a home costing $289,100 in June with a 20% downpayment, assuming 25% of gross income is devoted to mortgage principal and interest. Affordability conditions for first-time buyers with the same income and small downpayments are roughly 80% of what a median-income family can afford. The affordable price was much higher than the median existing single-family home price in June, which was $181,600.
Yun expects existing-home sales to gradually rise over the balance of the year, with conditions varying around the country. “It appears home sales are on a sounder footing and inventory is gradually being absorbed.”
For more information, visit www.realtor.org.
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-08-04/pending-home-sales-up-for-fifth-consecutive-month/#ixzz0NFTbnzEY
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Trending Upward? U.S. Home Prices Improve for Fourth Consecutive Month
Trending Upward? U.S. Home Prices Improve for Fourth Consecutive Month
RISMEDIA, July 29, 2009-Data through May 2009, released by Standard & Poor’s for its S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, one of the leading measures of U.S. home prices, show that, although still negative, the annual rate of decline of the 10-City and 20-City Composites improved for the fourth consecutive month in 2009.
The 10-City and 20-City Composites declined 16.8% and 17.1%, respectively, in May compared to the same month last year. These values are improvements over April’s data, which show annual declines of 18.0% and 18.1%, respectively. After 16 consecutive months of record annual declines, beginning in October 2007 and ending in January 2009, the indices have now shown four consecutive months of improvement in annual returns.
“The pace of descent in home price values appears to be slowing,” says David M. Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor’s. “There is a clear inflection point in the year-over-year data, due to four consecutive months of improved rates of return, after the steep decline that began in the fall of 2005. In addition to the 10-City and 20-City Composites, 17 of the 20 metro areas also saw improvement in their annual returns compared to those of April. Looking at the monthly data, 13 of the 20 metro areas reported positive returns; and the 10-City and 20-City Composites reported positive returns for the first time since the summer of 2006. To put it in perspective, this is the first time we have seen broad increases in home prices in 34 months. This could be an indication that home price declines are finally stabilizing.”
“While many indicators are showing signs of life in the U.S. housing market, we should remember that on a year-over-year basis home prices are still down about 17% on average across all metro areas, so we likely do have a way to go before we see sustained home price appreciation,” Blitzer added.
As of May 2009, average home prices across the United States are at similar levels to where they were in the middle of 2003, indicating that the three years of appreciation that occurred from 2003-2006 were all given back in the following three years. From the peak in the second quarter of 2006, the 10-City Composite is down 33.3% and the 20-City Composite is down 32.3%.
In terms of annual declines, the numbers remain relatively somber with all metro areas and the two composites in negative territory, and 16 out of the 20 metro areas are reporting double digit declines. Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Phoenix, Seattle and Tampa posted their lowest index levels in May since their respective peaks. From peak to trough Phoenix and Las Vegas are the worst off, down 54.5% and 53.4%, respectively. More upbeat news is seen in the monthly data; Dallas and Denver have reported three consecutive months of positive returns. Atlanta, Boston, Cleveland, San Francisco and Washington D.C. each reported two consecutive months of positive returns. Eight of the 13 MSAs reporting positive monthly returns for May were greater than +1.0%.
For more information, visit www.standardandpoors.com.
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-07-28/trending-upward-us-home-prices-improve-for-fourth-consecutive-month/#ixzz0MfSx7bJM
RISMEDIA, July 29, 2009-Data through May 2009, released by Standard & Poor’s for its S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, one of the leading measures of U.S. home prices, show that, although still negative, the annual rate of decline of the 10-City and 20-City Composites improved for the fourth consecutive month in 2009.
The 10-City and 20-City Composites declined 16.8% and 17.1%, respectively, in May compared to the same month last year. These values are improvements over April’s data, which show annual declines of 18.0% and 18.1%, respectively. After 16 consecutive months of record annual declines, beginning in October 2007 and ending in January 2009, the indices have now shown four consecutive months of improvement in annual returns.
“The pace of descent in home price values appears to be slowing,” says David M. Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor’s. “There is a clear inflection point in the year-over-year data, due to four consecutive months of improved rates of return, after the steep decline that began in the fall of 2005. In addition to the 10-City and 20-City Composites, 17 of the 20 metro areas also saw improvement in their annual returns compared to those of April. Looking at the monthly data, 13 of the 20 metro areas reported positive returns; and the 10-City and 20-City Composites reported positive returns for the first time since the summer of 2006. To put it in perspective, this is the first time we have seen broad increases in home prices in 34 months. This could be an indication that home price declines are finally stabilizing.”
“While many indicators are showing signs of life in the U.S. housing market, we should remember that on a year-over-year basis home prices are still down about 17% on average across all metro areas, so we likely do have a way to go before we see sustained home price appreciation,” Blitzer added.
As of May 2009, average home prices across the United States are at similar levels to where they were in the middle of 2003, indicating that the three years of appreciation that occurred from 2003-2006 were all given back in the following three years. From the peak in the second quarter of 2006, the 10-City Composite is down 33.3% and the 20-City Composite is down 32.3%.
In terms of annual declines, the numbers remain relatively somber with all metro areas and the two composites in negative territory, and 16 out of the 20 metro areas are reporting double digit declines. Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Phoenix, Seattle and Tampa posted their lowest index levels in May since their respective peaks. From peak to trough Phoenix and Las Vegas are the worst off, down 54.5% and 53.4%, respectively. More upbeat news is seen in the monthly data; Dallas and Denver have reported three consecutive months of positive returns. Atlanta, Boston, Cleveland, San Francisco and Washington D.C. each reported two consecutive months of positive returns. Eight of the 13 MSAs reporting positive monthly returns for May were greater than +1.0%.
For more information, visit www.standardandpoors.com.
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-07-28/trending-upward-us-home-prices-improve-for-fourth-consecutive-month/#ixzz0MfSx7bJM
Monday, July 20, 2009
Texas Sold Team Realty CARES Blood Drive
Texas Sold Team Realty CARES Blood Drive
That is right! Cindie Stewart and the Texas Sold Team Realty, LLC Team heads to the Carter BloodCare Mobile Bus in Keller to give blood. We wanted to find a way to help our community and what way is better than giving your own blood to help our those in need.
She wasn't scared one bit! Way to go Cindie!
That is right! Cindie Stewart and the Texas Sold Team Realty, LLC Team heads to the Carter BloodCare Mobile Bus in Keller to give blood. We wanted to find a way to help our community and what way is better than giving your own blood to help our those in need.
She wasn't scared one bit! Way to go Cindie!
Monday, July 13, 2009
Take Five and Stay Alive
Take Five and Stay Alive
A Health Tip with Ingo Logé
The economy. The recession. Our jobs. Our family. War. Inflation. Traffic. Those are just some of the things that can cause stress in our daily lives. But have no fear! When the stress-monster attacks, there's something quick and easy you can do to breathe easier...one nostril at a time.
As Fitness Forever founder Ingo Logé shares in the accompanying video, "Air is invisible food." And when it comes to fitness and nutrition, Logé definitely knows what he is talking about! As a personal training and nutrition expert with over two dozen years of real-life experience, Logé's client list reads like a "Who's-Who" in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Watch the video to learn Logé's five minute breathing exercise...and then watch your stress melt away!
For more great tips from Ingo Logé, and to learn more about his products and services, visit www.myfitness4ever.com.
A Health Tip with Ingo Logé
The economy. The recession. Our jobs. Our family. War. Inflation. Traffic. Those are just some of the things that can cause stress in our daily lives. But have no fear! When the stress-monster attacks, there's something quick and easy you can do to breathe easier...one nostril at a time.
As Fitness Forever founder Ingo Logé shares in the accompanying video, "Air is invisible food." And when it comes to fitness and nutrition, Logé definitely knows what he is talking about! As a personal training and nutrition expert with over two dozen years of real-life experience, Logé's client list reads like a "Who's-Who" in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Watch the video to learn Logé's five minute breathing exercise...and then watch your stress melt away!
For more great tips from Ingo Logé, and to learn more about his products and services, visit www.myfitness4ever.com.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
July is Air Conditioning Appreciation Month
July is Air Conditioning Appreciation Month
Prepare Your Home for Hot Weather
Setting your air conditioner 5 degrees higher will save up to 20% on cooling costs.
Use fans to make indoor temperatures feel cooler, most ceiling fans use less energy than a light bulb.
Have your A/C unit serviced to cut up to 15% of your cooling cost.
Don't try to cool the great outdoors! Seal cracks, gaps, leaks and add insulation and/or radiant barrier to save up to 20% on home cooling cost.
Investments for Summer Energy Savings
Have your ducts professionally sealed to save up to $190 per year.
Install programmable thermostats and only cool the house when you're home-it can save up to $180 a year!
Replace incandescent light bulbs with CFL's or the new LED's to save on lighting AND cooling bills. 90% of the energy used by old incandescent bulbs produces heat, NOT light.
If your old AC breaks down, consider a high efficiency replacement. Replacing a 10 year old central AC unit with an Energy Star qualified model can cut 20-40% off your cooling costs.
Choose a Programmable Thermostat That's Right for You!
To decide which model is best for you, think about your schedule and how often you are away from home for regular periods of time-work, school, and other activities. Then decide which of the three different models best fits your schedule.
7 day models are best if your daily schedule tends to change, say if children are at home earlier on some days. They give you the most flexibility, and let you set different programs for different days.
5+2 day models use the same schedule every weekday, and another for weekends.
5-1-1 models are best if you tend to keep one schedule Monday through Friday, and another schedule on Saturdays and Sundays.
A/C Filters - The MOST Important Maintenance Task!
The most important maintenance task that will ensure the efficiency of your air conditioner is to routinely replace or clean it's filters. Clogged, dirty filters block normal air flow and reduce a system's efficiency significantly.
Some types of filters are reusable; others must be replaced. They are available in a variety of types and efficiencies. Clean or replace your filters every month or two during the cooling season.
Prepare Your Home for Hot Weather
Setting your air conditioner 5 degrees higher will save up to 20% on cooling costs.
Use fans to make indoor temperatures feel cooler, most ceiling fans use less energy than a light bulb.
Have your A/C unit serviced to cut up to 15% of your cooling cost.
Don't try to cool the great outdoors! Seal cracks, gaps, leaks and add insulation and/or radiant barrier to save up to 20% on home cooling cost.
Investments for Summer Energy Savings
Have your ducts professionally sealed to save up to $190 per year.
Install programmable thermostats and only cool the house when you're home-it can save up to $180 a year!
Replace incandescent light bulbs with CFL's or the new LED's to save on lighting AND cooling bills. 90% of the energy used by old incandescent bulbs produces heat, NOT light.
If your old AC breaks down, consider a high efficiency replacement. Replacing a 10 year old central AC unit with an Energy Star qualified model can cut 20-40% off your cooling costs.
Choose a Programmable Thermostat That's Right for You!
To decide which model is best for you, think about your schedule and how often you are away from home for regular periods of time-work, school, and other activities. Then decide which of the three different models best fits your schedule.
7 day models are best if your daily schedule tends to change, say if children are at home earlier on some days. They give you the most flexibility, and let you set different programs for different days.
5+2 day models use the same schedule every weekday, and another for weekends.
5-1-1 models are best if you tend to keep one schedule Monday through Friday, and another schedule on Saturdays and Sundays.
A/C Filters - The MOST Important Maintenance Task!
The most important maintenance task that will ensure the efficiency of your air conditioner is to routinely replace or clean it's filters. Clogged, dirty filters block normal air flow and reduce a system's efficiency significantly.
Some types of filters are reusable; others must be replaced. They are available in a variety of types and efficiencies. Clean or replace your filters every month or two during the cooling season.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Area Fire Works and Festivities
Area Fire Works and Festivities
Fort Worth
Jul. 4, 2009 - Fort Worth's Fourth
Come celebrate Fort Worth's Fourth, Saturday, July 4, 2009, with an evening of free music and family fun along the Trinity River behind LaGrave Field. Jet Skis, watermelon, trolley rides, water wars and Battle of the Bands hosted by 95.9 The Ranch Radio. Watch the Cats play until fireworks start around 9:30 p.m.. It all starts at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, July 4. For more information visit www.streamsandvalleys.org or call 817 926-0006
Grand Prairie
July 3 & 4, 2009 - Lone Stars & Stripes Fireworks Celebration. Enjoy two full days of exciting live Thoroughbred racing and fun activities for the whole family including pony rides, a petting zoo, bounce houses, games, clowns, and more followed by our 20-minute fireworks spectacular choreographed to music. Plus, enjoy live music by Incognito on Friday, and Maiden Texas on Saturday in our Courtyard of Champions from 5p.m. - 11:30 p.m. Gates open early at 3 p.m. each day and the first live race begins at 5 p.m. Details may be found at www.lonestarpark.com
Bedford
Jul 4, noon-11 p.m. Concert, food, family activities, a parade, and fireworks will be at the Bedford Boys Ranch at 2801 Forest Ridge Drive in Bedford. Bring lawn chairs, blankets, and coolers. No alcohol, please. Admission is free, but there is no parking at the Bedford Boys Ranch, except for those with handicap signs or plates. Park at Pennington Field at 1501 Central Drive in Bedford and catch the shuttle for $3 per person.
North Richland Hills
Jul 4, 9:30 p.m. Twenty minutes of fireworks will take off at the North Richland Hills Village Center, 6351 Boulevard 26 in Richland Hills at the intersection of Highway 26 and Highway 183 inside Loop 820.
Irving
Jul 4, 5 p.m.-10 p.m. The Irving Symphony Orchestra will put on a concert starting at 8:30 p.m. Food and beverages will be available. No coolers or alcohol permitted. Admission is free. The concert and fireworks will be at Williams Square Plaza (5215 North O'Connor Boulevard) in Las Colinas in Irving.
Plano
Jul 4, 9:30 p.m. The city of Plano will have a fireworks show at the Oak Point Park and Nature Preserve at 2801 Spring Creek Parkway. Some food and beverages will be available for purchase. Free parking will be at Collin County Community College and First United Methodist Church of Plano. Radio station KLAK 97.5 will have a simulcast during the fireworks show.
Frisco
Jun 27-28. Pizza Hut Park in Frisco plays host to Celebrate Freedom 2008. For two days, three stages will be full of Christian rock groups and speakers. VeggieTales characters, inflatable rides and slides, jump rope demonstrations, dance teams, and cheerleaders are just some of the entertainment available. Admission is free, but parking is $10-15. Pizza Hut Park is at the intersection of Dallas Tollway and Main Street in Frisco, near the intersection of Dallas Tollway and Eldorado Parkway.
Granbury
Annual 4th of July Celebration - Hometown America
Start Date: July 4, 2009 8:00 am
Location: Granbury Historic Downtown Square
Contact Name: Chamber of Commerce Contact Number: 817-573-1622 Website: www.granburychamber.com
Description: Art & Craft Booths, Hometown Parade, Tom Ward Memorial Decorated Bike Contest, Live Entertainment at the Granbury Square Plaza, rockin' Rods Car Show, Old Fashioned Games at Shanley Park, Bulls and Broncs Rodeo at the Reunion Grounds. Talley Amusements Carnival Rides and Fireworks over Lake Granbury.
Fort Worth
Jul. 4, 2009 - Fort Worth's Fourth
Come celebrate Fort Worth's Fourth, Saturday, July 4, 2009, with an evening of free music and family fun along the Trinity River behind LaGrave Field. Jet Skis, watermelon, trolley rides, water wars and Battle of the Bands hosted by 95.9 The Ranch Radio. Watch the Cats play until fireworks start around 9:30 p.m.. It all starts at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, July 4. For more information visit www.streamsandvalleys.org or call 817 926-0006
Grand Prairie
July 3 & 4, 2009 - Lone Stars & Stripes Fireworks Celebration. Enjoy two full days of exciting live Thoroughbred racing and fun activities for the whole family including pony rides, a petting zoo, bounce houses, games, clowns, and more followed by our 20-minute fireworks spectacular choreographed to music. Plus, enjoy live music by Incognito on Friday, and Maiden Texas on Saturday in our Courtyard of Champions from 5p.m. - 11:30 p.m. Gates open early at 3 p.m. each day and the first live race begins at 5 p.m. Details may be found at www.lonestarpark.com
Bedford
Jul 4, noon-11 p.m. Concert, food, family activities, a parade, and fireworks will be at the Bedford Boys Ranch at 2801 Forest Ridge Drive in Bedford. Bring lawn chairs, blankets, and coolers. No alcohol, please. Admission is free, but there is no parking at the Bedford Boys Ranch, except for those with handicap signs or plates. Park at Pennington Field at 1501 Central Drive in Bedford and catch the shuttle for $3 per person.
North Richland Hills
Jul 4, 9:30 p.m. Twenty minutes of fireworks will take off at the North Richland Hills Village Center, 6351 Boulevard 26 in Richland Hills at the intersection of Highway 26 and Highway 183 inside Loop 820.
Irving
Jul 4, 5 p.m.-10 p.m. The Irving Symphony Orchestra will put on a concert starting at 8:30 p.m. Food and beverages will be available. No coolers or alcohol permitted. Admission is free. The concert and fireworks will be at Williams Square Plaza (5215 North O'Connor Boulevard) in Las Colinas in Irving.
Plano
Jul 4, 9:30 p.m. The city of Plano will have a fireworks show at the Oak Point Park and Nature Preserve at 2801 Spring Creek Parkway. Some food and beverages will be available for purchase. Free parking will be at Collin County Community College and First United Methodist Church of Plano. Radio station KLAK 97.5 will have a simulcast during the fireworks show.
Frisco
Jun 27-28. Pizza Hut Park in Frisco plays host to Celebrate Freedom 2008. For two days, three stages will be full of Christian rock groups and speakers. VeggieTales characters, inflatable rides and slides, jump rope demonstrations, dance teams, and cheerleaders are just some of the entertainment available. Admission is free, but parking is $10-15. Pizza Hut Park is at the intersection of Dallas Tollway and Main Street in Frisco, near the intersection of Dallas Tollway and Eldorado Parkway.
Granbury
Annual 4th of July Celebration - Hometown America
Start Date: July 4, 2009 8:00 am
Location: Granbury Historic Downtown Square
Contact Name: Chamber of Commerce Contact Number: 817-573-1622 Website: www.granburychamber.com
Description: Art & Craft Booths, Hometown Parade, Tom Ward Memorial Decorated Bike Contest, Live Entertainment at the Granbury Square Plaza, rockin' Rods Car Show, Old Fashioned Games at Shanley Park, Bulls and Broncs Rodeo at the Reunion Grounds. Talley Amusements Carnival Rides and Fireworks over Lake Granbury.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Going, Going, Gone - The Key to Peace of Mind before Bidding on Properties
Going, Going, Gone - The Key to Peace of Mind before Bidding on Properties
By Paige Tepping
RISMEDIA, June 16, 2009-Buying a home is one of the most significant decisions, as well as one of the biggest investments, a home buyer will ever make. With home prices down around the country, mortgage rates at record-level lows, an $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers and a surge in home auctions, buyers must be more educated than ever in going through the home-buying process. Home buyers are looking for peace of mind right now, and Pillar To Post’s home inspections give prospective buyers just that.
According to the Associated Press, home auctions have surged 47% since 2003, which opens the door to homeowners interested in buying a home at a bargain price.
“There is a huge inventory of homes on the market right now, which is great for buyers, but it should still be ‘buyer beware,’” says Trevor Welby-Solomon, Pillar To Post’s vice president, Technical Training, Support and Development. Home buyers must be cautious, because homes sold at auction are sold ‘as is;’ therefore, professional home inspections are a crucial element in the bidding process.
With the economic climate we are experiencing today, it is easy for buyers to say that money is tight and they don’t want to spend the $350-$450 it costs to get a home inspection, but Welby-Solomon says the exact opposite is true.
“Since credit is tight and home values have dropped, it is almost impossible to go back to the lender or bank and further define a line of credit to fix items within the home once you move in,” he says. Home inspections focus on the structural element or systems of the home and look closely at items regarding the health and safety of the occupants. “In addition to checking the major structural items within the home, home inspections also cover more common elements, such as the condition of the roof covering, leaks in the basement and the major mechanical systems (heating, cooling, electrical and plumbing).
“Home inspections take away the emotional aspect of the transaction as well as provide prospective buyers with an objective, third-party opinion of the building,” says Welby-Solomon, and are especially important for buyers looking to purchase a home through an auction.
“Home inspections are used to better educate buyers about their potential purchase and whether the price of the home is actually the final cost,” he says. While it may be appealing for buyers to bid low on a home, it is a good idea to have a sense of what your final expenditure will be once the home is yours.
“Since joining Pillar To Post in 1994, home buyers and sellers’ attitudes toward home inspections have changed completely,” says Welby-Solomon. “There is a much greater awareness of the value of a home inspection, and a lot of this has come about as younger buyers are coming into the marketplace.” As younger buyers are more research- and information-oriented, they are looking for more value and want to be more educated and informed in making decisions, he says.
While there are numerous good deals to be found in today’s market, home inspections give buyers peace of mind before actually buying the property.
“Don’t be afraid to ask if you may bring a third party with you to do a walk-through of the home before the auction starts,” says Welby-Solomon. “Home inspections allow prospective buyers to not walk blindly into a home auction and end up with a money trap that you have to keep throwing money into after purchasing.”
For more information, please visit www.pillartopost.com.
By Paige Tepping
RISMEDIA, June 16, 2009-Buying a home is one of the most significant decisions, as well as one of the biggest investments, a home buyer will ever make. With home prices down around the country, mortgage rates at record-level lows, an $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers and a surge in home auctions, buyers must be more educated than ever in going through the home-buying process. Home buyers are looking for peace of mind right now, and Pillar To Post’s home inspections give prospective buyers just that.
According to the Associated Press, home auctions have surged 47% since 2003, which opens the door to homeowners interested in buying a home at a bargain price.
“There is a huge inventory of homes on the market right now, which is great for buyers, but it should still be ‘buyer beware,’” says Trevor Welby-Solomon, Pillar To Post’s vice president, Technical Training, Support and Development. Home buyers must be cautious, because homes sold at auction are sold ‘as is;’ therefore, professional home inspections are a crucial element in the bidding process.
With the economic climate we are experiencing today, it is easy for buyers to say that money is tight and they don’t want to spend the $350-$450 it costs to get a home inspection, but Welby-Solomon says the exact opposite is true.
“Since credit is tight and home values have dropped, it is almost impossible to go back to the lender or bank and further define a line of credit to fix items within the home once you move in,” he says. Home inspections focus on the structural element or systems of the home and look closely at items regarding the health and safety of the occupants. “In addition to checking the major structural items within the home, home inspections also cover more common elements, such as the condition of the roof covering, leaks in the basement and the major mechanical systems (heating, cooling, electrical and plumbing).
“Home inspections take away the emotional aspect of the transaction as well as provide prospective buyers with an objective, third-party opinion of the building,” says Welby-Solomon, and are especially important for buyers looking to purchase a home through an auction.
“Home inspections are used to better educate buyers about their potential purchase and whether the price of the home is actually the final cost,” he says. While it may be appealing for buyers to bid low on a home, it is a good idea to have a sense of what your final expenditure will be once the home is yours.
“Since joining Pillar To Post in 1994, home buyers and sellers’ attitudes toward home inspections have changed completely,” says Welby-Solomon. “There is a much greater awareness of the value of a home inspection, and a lot of this has come about as younger buyers are coming into the marketplace.” As younger buyers are more research- and information-oriented, they are looking for more value and want to be more educated and informed in making decisions, he says.
While there are numerous good deals to be found in today’s market, home inspections give buyers peace of mind before actually buying the property.
“Don’t be afraid to ask if you may bring a third party with you to do a walk-through of the home before the auction starts,” says Welby-Solomon. “Home inspections allow prospective buyers to not walk blindly into a home auction and end up with a money trap that you have to keep throwing money into after purchasing.”
For more information, please visit www.pillartopost.com.
Friday, June 5, 2009
We've Moved!
We've Moved!
Texas Sold Team Realty, LLC has moved to a new office in Keller, Texas. Come by and visit us! Keep checking in for our GRAND OPENING RIBBON CUTTING CEREMONY in July.
New Address:
424 Keller Parkway
Keller, Texas 76248
Texas Sold Team Realty, LLC has moved to a new office in Keller, Texas. Come by and visit us! Keep checking in for our GRAND OPENING RIBBON CUTTING CEREMONY in July.
New Address:
424 Keller Parkway
Keller, Texas 76248
Can You Get a Loan Today?
Can You Get a Loan Today?
Changes in the real estate and mortgage markets have prompted many, including many in the media, to wonder, "Can you get a loan today?" For an answer to this important question, YOU Magazine turned to Barry Habib, an expert in the mortgage-backed securities market. Chairman of Mortgage Success Source and founder of Mortgage Market Guide, Mr. Habib has managed a hedge fund, authored a stock advisory newsletter, owned an insurance agency, and has been an avid real estate investor for many years.
Habib says that, yes, you can get a mortgage in today's market, but you have to understand that lenders have returned to a pre-2000 mindset – a kind of "common-sense lending" that seeks long-term success versus short-term profits. There's plenty of money available, says Habib, but your mortgage must make sense in today's terms, not the looser standards permitted by lenders in 2000 and 2001.
How Did We Get Here?
In 2000 and 2001, real estate was hot – make that white hot. According to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Composite 10 Index, an index that follows home prices, values increased 21.5% from the years 1990-1999. During the first two years of this decade alone, home prices increased 23.6% for the same index. This resulted in a period of wildly loose lending guidelines that would ultimately fuel the subprime mortgage collapse in 2008.
In retrospect, it's easy to see, and even understand, the mistakes that were made during this unusual period of growth. Rapidly escalating home prices not only eased economic and personal financial woes, they invited opportunity and risk whose rewards, while hard to resist, couldn't possibly be sustained at such a high level. Nonetheless, increasing equity created flexibility that benefitted buyers and sellers alike – as long as property values continued to ascend.
During this time, borrowers with no jobs, no down payments, and poor credit histories could easily obtain financing. A host of exotic mortgage products flooded the market. And even if a borrower got into trouble, there was a multitude of options to help him or her climb out of the hole, including refinancing or even selling the property. A lot of people made a lot of money during this time.
But, as the real estate market began to turn and the economy began to suffer, home values slowed and then ground to a halt, and the true risk in the market was exposed. No longer supported by skyrocketing home values, borrowers had fewer options, lending guidelines tightened, adjustable rates adjusted, resulting in a crash in the market that is only now just beginning to turn.
What Does This Mean to Borrowers Today?
Simply put, home lending has returned to what insiders call a "full-doc world." This means lenders need proof, documented evidence that a borrower is creditworthy and likely to repay the loan. This creditworthiness is based on the four tenets of lending: the borrower's ability to pay, willingness to pay, equity in the transaction, and the property itself.
Ability to Pay
This is the documentation portion of the equation. In determining one's ability to repay a loan, it is now common for a lender to ask for recent paystubs, W-2s, and possibly tax returns in the case of a salaried employee. For self-employed borrowers and those earning commissions, tax returns for the two most recent years and a profit and loss statement for the current calendar year will likely be required. While certain exceptions may be granted, potential borrowers can further increase their chances of securing a mortgage by keeping their debt-to-income level below 45%.
Willingness to Pay
Repercussions of the credit crisis have made FICO scores more important than ever to lenders. In order to obtain the best interest rate and have a broader selection of loan programs from which to choose, potential borrowers should strive to keep their FICO score above 720.
Borrowers whose scores fall below 720 where the loan will be sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can expect risk-based pricing, which could result in either higher costs or higher rates. So, while it is possible to get a loan with scores as low as 620, programs other than Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac are probably the best path for a borrower with a lower score to take.
Equity in the Transaction
With the exception of mortgage programs guaranteed by the USDA and VA, no-down-payment loans have pretty much evaporated on a national level. Today it is expected that borrowers put a minimum of 3.5% down for an FHA loan and 5%-10% down for agency loans sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
If someone is strapped for cash, however, it is still possible in the purchase contract to negotiate with the seller to pay a percentage of the closing costs, as long as it's within the program's limitations and the property appraises highly enough for this action to be permitted.
With the exception of the President's Home Stability Plan, it is no longer possible to refinance a loan without equity in the property. However, under this plan, millions of homeowners are expected to be able to take advantage of being able to refinance at a loan-to-value of up to 105% of the appraised value.
Cash-out refinancing has also been tightened, compared to just a few years ago. While pulling equity out of a home is still possible, the costs to do so have become more expensive for homes with a higher loan-to-value. Depending on the program, cash-out transactions have generally been limited to a maximum of 85% of the home's appraised value.
The Property
Home appraisals are also being more scrutinized today to ensure the value of the home is both fair and realistic for lender and borrower alike. On May 1st, new legislation (Home Value Code of Conduct or HVCC) placed a barrier between loan originators and appraisers for loans sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (legislation does not affect mortgages guaranteed by the FHA, USDA or VA.)
For those loans impacted by HVCC, all parties involved should be prepared for potential delays. If value conflicts occur, sellers, buyers, homeowners, and real estate agents must be prepared to provide information where needed.
In locations of the country where property values have been in significant decline, additional documentation may be required by the appraiser to help the lender justify the appraised value.
In Summary
Yes, getting a mortgage may be more difficult than it was a few years ago, but don't assume that you can't get one.
Reports suggest that over $2.7 trillion in loans will be originated in 2009 – that's over $1 trillion more than 2008. Contact the professional who supplied you with your copy of YOU Magazine. With interest rates at or near all time lows, lower home prices, and the $8,000 tax credit for first-time buyers, it's worth the time and effort to find out if you can benefit from common-sense lending in today's real estate market.
Changes in the real estate and mortgage markets have prompted many, including many in the media, to wonder, "Can you get a loan today?" For an answer to this important question, YOU Magazine turned to Barry Habib, an expert in the mortgage-backed securities market. Chairman of Mortgage Success Source and founder of Mortgage Market Guide, Mr. Habib has managed a hedge fund, authored a stock advisory newsletter, owned an insurance agency, and has been an avid real estate investor for many years.
Habib says that, yes, you can get a mortgage in today's market, but you have to understand that lenders have returned to a pre-2000 mindset – a kind of "common-sense lending" that seeks long-term success versus short-term profits. There's plenty of money available, says Habib, but your mortgage must make sense in today's terms, not the looser standards permitted by lenders in 2000 and 2001.
How Did We Get Here?
In 2000 and 2001, real estate was hot – make that white hot. According to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Composite 10 Index, an index that follows home prices, values increased 21.5% from the years 1990-1999. During the first two years of this decade alone, home prices increased 23.6% for the same index. This resulted in a period of wildly loose lending guidelines that would ultimately fuel the subprime mortgage collapse in 2008.
In retrospect, it's easy to see, and even understand, the mistakes that were made during this unusual period of growth. Rapidly escalating home prices not only eased economic and personal financial woes, they invited opportunity and risk whose rewards, while hard to resist, couldn't possibly be sustained at such a high level. Nonetheless, increasing equity created flexibility that benefitted buyers and sellers alike – as long as property values continued to ascend.
During this time, borrowers with no jobs, no down payments, and poor credit histories could easily obtain financing. A host of exotic mortgage products flooded the market. And even if a borrower got into trouble, there was a multitude of options to help him or her climb out of the hole, including refinancing or even selling the property. A lot of people made a lot of money during this time.
But, as the real estate market began to turn and the economy began to suffer, home values slowed and then ground to a halt, and the true risk in the market was exposed. No longer supported by skyrocketing home values, borrowers had fewer options, lending guidelines tightened, adjustable rates adjusted, resulting in a crash in the market that is only now just beginning to turn.
What Does This Mean to Borrowers Today?
Simply put, home lending has returned to what insiders call a "full-doc world." This means lenders need proof, documented evidence that a borrower is creditworthy and likely to repay the loan. This creditworthiness is based on the four tenets of lending: the borrower's ability to pay, willingness to pay, equity in the transaction, and the property itself.
Ability to Pay
This is the documentation portion of the equation. In determining one's ability to repay a loan, it is now common for a lender to ask for recent paystubs, W-2s, and possibly tax returns in the case of a salaried employee. For self-employed borrowers and those earning commissions, tax returns for the two most recent years and a profit and loss statement for the current calendar year will likely be required. While certain exceptions may be granted, potential borrowers can further increase their chances of securing a mortgage by keeping their debt-to-income level below 45%.
Willingness to Pay
Repercussions of the credit crisis have made FICO scores more important than ever to lenders. In order to obtain the best interest rate and have a broader selection of loan programs from which to choose, potential borrowers should strive to keep their FICO score above 720.
Borrowers whose scores fall below 720 where the loan will be sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can expect risk-based pricing, which could result in either higher costs or higher rates. So, while it is possible to get a loan with scores as low as 620, programs other than Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac are probably the best path for a borrower with a lower score to take.
Equity in the Transaction
With the exception of mortgage programs guaranteed by the USDA and VA, no-down-payment loans have pretty much evaporated on a national level. Today it is expected that borrowers put a minimum of 3.5% down for an FHA loan and 5%-10% down for agency loans sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
If someone is strapped for cash, however, it is still possible in the purchase contract to negotiate with the seller to pay a percentage of the closing costs, as long as it's within the program's limitations and the property appraises highly enough for this action to be permitted.
With the exception of the President's Home Stability Plan, it is no longer possible to refinance a loan without equity in the property. However, under this plan, millions of homeowners are expected to be able to take advantage of being able to refinance at a loan-to-value of up to 105% of the appraised value.
Cash-out refinancing has also been tightened, compared to just a few years ago. While pulling equity out of a home is still possible, the costs to do so have become more expensive for homes with a higher loan-to-value. Depending on the program, cash-out transactions have generally been limited to a maximum of 85% of the home's appraised value.
The Property
Home appraisals are also being more scrutinized today to ensure the value of the home is both fair and realistic for lender and borrower alike. On May 1st, new legislation (Home Value Code of Conduct or HVCC) placed a barrier between loan originators and appraisers for loans sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (legislation does not affect mortgages guaranteed by the FHA, USDA or VA.)
For those loans impacted by HVCC, all parties involved should be prepared for potential delays. If value conflicts occur, sellers, buyers, homeowners, and real estate agents must be prepared to provide information where needed.
In locations of the country where property values have been in significant decline, additional documentation may be required by the appraiser to help the lender justify the appraised value.
In Summary
Yes, getting a mortgage may be more difficult than it was a few years ago, but don't assume that you can't get one.
Reports suggest that over $2.7 trillion in loans will be originated in 2009 – that's over $1 trillion more than 2008. Contact the professional who supplied you with your copy of YOU Magazine. With interest rates at or near all time lows, lower home prices, and the $8,000 tax credit for first-time buyers, it's worth the time and effort to find out if you can benefit from common-sense lending in today's real estate market.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Pending Home Sales Up for Three Months in a Row
Pending Home Sales Up for Three Months in a Row
RISMEDIA, June 2, 2009-Record low mortgage interest rates boosted pending home sales for the third consecutive month, with some benefit now from the first-time buyer tax credit, according to the National Association of Realtors®.
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in April, rose 6.7% to 90.3 from a reading of 84.6 in March, and is 3.2% above April 2008 when it was 87.5.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said buyers are responding to very favorable market conditions. “Housing affordability conditions have been at historic highs, but now the $8,000 first-time buyer tax credit is beginning to impact the market,” he said. “Since first-time buyers must finalize their purchase by November 30 to get the credit, we expect greater activity in the months ahead, and that should spark more sales by repeat buyers.”
The Pending Home Sales Index in the Northeast shot up 32.6% to 78.9 in April and is 0.8% above a year ago. In the Midwest the index rose 9.8% to 90.4 and is 11.1% above April 2008. The index in the South slipped 0.2% to 93.0 in April but is 3.5% higher than a year ago. In the West the index rose 1.8% to 94.8 but is 2.9% below April 2008.
NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, said there are numerous buyer assistance programs around the country. “Some states are offering bridge loans that allow first-time buyers to use the tax credit for downpayment and closing costs, but there are many other local government and nonprofit programs available to buyers, depending on location,” he said.
“Just last week, HUD announced that qualifying buyers can use the tax credit for closing costs on FHA loans, to buy down the interest rate or make a larger downpayment. Buyers who are wondering about their options should contact a Realtor®, who can advise consumers on the housing assistance programs and resources available in a given area.”
NAR’s Housing Affordability Index is in record territory. The affordability index rose to 174.8 in April from an upwardly revised 171.9 in March, and was the second highest monthly reading on record after peaking at 176.9 in January of this year. The HAI is a broad measure of housing affordability using consistent values and assumptions over time, which examines the relationship between home prices, mortgage interest rates and family income; tracking began in 1970.
A median-income family, earning $60,900, could afford a home costing $296,800 in April with a 20% downpayment, assuming 25% of gross income is devoted to mortgage principal and interest. Affordability conditions for first-time buyers with the same income and small downpayments are roughly 80% of that amount. The affordable price was well above the median existing single-family home price in April, which was $169,800.
Yun cautions that the reporting sample for pending home sales is smaller than that of existing-home sales, so it is subject to greater variability. “In addition, the relationship between contracts on pending home sales and closings on existing-home sales is taking longer than in the past for several reasons,” he said. “Mortgage processing time has increased, it is taking many months to close on those homes requiring short sales with lender approval, and some sales are falling through at the last moment.”
The total number of existing-home sales is expected to improve but with dramatic local market variation in the timing of recovery. “The market has already bottomed in some areas, but this is an unusual housing cycle with some areas improving rapidly while others languish or decline,” Yun said.
For more information, visit http://www.realtor.org.
Read more: "Pending Home Sales Up for Three Months in a Row | RISMedia" - http://rismedia.com/2009-06-02/pending-home-sales-up-for-three-months-in-a-row/#ixzz0HUUwhaAo&A
RISMEDIA, June 2, 2009-Record low mortgage interest rates boosted pending home sales for the third consecutive month, with some benefit now from the first-time buyer tax credit, according to the National Association of Realtors®.
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in April, rose 6.7% to 90.3 from a reading of 84.6 in March, and is 3.2% above April 2008 when it was 87.5.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said buyers are responding to very favorable market conditions. “Housing affordability conditions have been at historic highs, but now the $8,000 first-time buyer tax credit is beginning to impact the market,” he said. “Since first-time buyers must finalize their purchase by November 30 to get the credit, we expect greater activity in the months ahead, and that should spark more sales by repeat buyers.”
The Pending Home Sales Index in the Northeast shot up 32.6% to 78.9 in April and is 0.8% above a year ago. In the Midwest the index rose 9.8% to 90.4 and is 11.1% above April 2008. The index in the South slipped 0.2% to 93.0 in April but is 3.5% higher than a year ago. In the West the index rose 1.8% to 94.8 but is 2.9% below April 2008.
NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, said there are numerous buyer assistance programs around the country. “Some states are offering bridge loans that allow first-time buyers to use the tax credit for downpayment and closing costs, but there are many other local government and nonprofit programs available to buyers, depending on location,” he said.
“Just last week, HUD announced that qualifying buyers can use the tax credit for closing costs on FHA loans, to buy down the interest rate or make a larger downpayment. Buyers who are wondering about their options should contact a Realtor®, who can advise consumers on the housing assistance programs and resources available in a given area.”
NAR’s Housing Affordability Index is in record territory. The affordability index rose to 174.8 in April from an upwardly revised 171.9 in March, and was the second highest monthly reading on record after peaking at 176.9 in January of this year. The HAI is a broad measure of housing affordability using consistent values and assumptions over time, which examines the relationship between home prices, mortgage interest rates and family income; tracking began in 1970.
A median-income family, earning $60,900, could afford a home costing $296,800 in April with a 20% downpayment, assuming 25% of gross income is devoted to mortgage principal and interest. Affordability conditions for first-time buyers with the same income and small downpayments are roughly 80% of that amount. The affordable price was well above the median existing single-family home price in April, which was $169,800.
Yun cautions that the reporting sample for pending home sales is smaller than that of existing-home sales, so it is subject to greater variability. “In addition, the relationship between contracts on pending home sales and closings on existing-home sales is taking longer than in the past for several reasons,” he said. “Mortgage processing time has increased, it is taking many months to close on those homes requiring short sales with lender approval, and some sales are falling through at the last moment.”
The total number of existing-home sales is expected to improve but with dramatic local market variation in the timing of recovery. “The market has already bottomed in some areas, but this is an unusual housing cycle with some areas improving rapidly while others languish or decline,” Yun said.
For more information, visit http://www.realtor.org.
Read more: "Pending Home Sales Up for Three Months in a Row | RISMedia" - http://rismedia.com/2009-06-02/pending-home-sales-up-for-three-months-in-a-row/#ixzz0HUUwhaAo&A
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
From the Midwest to the Pacific, job seekers are heading to Texas
From the Midwest to the Pacific, job seekers are heading to Texas
'If you had to ride out this downturn, there is no better place than Texas. The declines here have been nothing compared to other states.’
By STEVE CAMPBELL
sfcampbell@star-telegram.com
Across the nation, unemployment is sky-high, the housing market is sucking wind and recessionary fears have frozen Americans in place.
Just don’t tell that to a stream of new residents who are "voting with their feet" that Texas is the safest place to ride out the storm and the place to be when the economy recovers.
Even in the midst of a recession, economists, demographers and relocation experts believe the Lone Star State is on the cusp of becoming The New California.
Or maybe it already is.
For people seeking economic opportunity, Texas is becoming what California has been since the Great Depression, says Los Angeles urbanist and author Joel Kotkin. Texas recently "ran the table" in a recent list of "Best Cities for Jobs" prepared by Kotkin for New Geography and Forbes. Austin, Houston, San Antonio, Fort Worth and Dallas were ranked as the top five large metro areas in the country to find a job. If that weren’t enough to get the moving van loaded, McAllen and Odessa top the mid-sized and small city categories, respectively. Among 333 metropolitan areas, Texas has a remarkable 20 in the top 100.
Relocation surveys show that Texas remains a top destination for people leaving other states. Its automobile registrations continue to climb, and the Texas housing market has avoided the double-digit declines other fast-growing states have seen. While the unemployment rate has risen in Texas, it’s nowhere near as high as most of the country, underscoring the state’s economic resiliency even as the downturn deals out its lumps.
Kotkin, a professor at Chapman University in Orange, Calif., who analyzed U.S. Labor Department statistics for his report, says Texas’ dominance at the top of the jobs list is unprecedented.
"Part of it is a function of the economic collapse of Florida, Phoenix and California. The collapse is still important in Texas, but Texas has had more balanced growth and that’s more sustainable," he said in a telephone interview while navigating an L.A. freeway.
"Part is the nature of Texas: People don’t move there for climate and scenery," Kotkin said. "They move to Texas for jobs and affordable housing. People make economic decisions to go to these places. They don’t go for perfect weather where you can surf one day and ski the next."
Selling "everything but the deer head" and leaving the Detroit area for Texas was simple math for Rodger Benton after Hewlett Packard laid him off.
"It was pretty much a no-brainer to make the move," he said. "The unemployment rate in Michigan is really high. Things are really tough up there. There’s just more opportunity here."
Jobs beget growth
Steve Murdock, who was the Texas state demographer for 25 years and director of the U.S. Census Bureau during the last year of the George W. Bush administration, says jobs attract new residents, and Texas has been driving fast for several years.
"Very few of us say, 'I think I’ll go there because there are not as many " he said. jobs and they pay less,’
Murdock, now a sociology professor at Rice University, says Texas’ growth in the last decade has "been simply phenomenal."
According to the latest Census figures released in March, Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington added 146,500 people between July 2007 and July 2008 — more than any metropolitan area in the nation. Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown added 130,000 for the No. 2 spot, and Texas had 10 of the top 25 counties with the biggest numerical gains.
Texas has lost jobs in the recession, with the unemployment rate at 6.7 percent in March, the highest mark since January 2004, according to the Texas Workforce Commission.
But that still looks good compared with Michigan (12.6 percent unemployment), Oregon (12.1), South Carolina (11.4), California (11.2) or North Carolina (10.4).
"If you had to ride out this downturn, there is no better place than Texas. The declines here have been nothing compared to other states," said Richard Froeshle, deputy director of Texas Workforce Commission.
Moving out
As the economy has soured, many people are moving to Texas for a new start.
In 2008 and the first quarter of 2009, 14.3 percent of the people leaving the once Golden State were bound for the Lone Star State, according to Relocation.com, which tracks moving trends. Other states with sizable outflows to Texas included Florida (7.9 percent), Illinois (4.7), Michigan (4.6) and New York (4.3).
Another indicator of moving patterns is U-Haul truck rentals.
To rent a 26-foot moving truck today from Los Angeles to Fort Worth would cost $2,141. Renting that truck for a Fort Worth-to-L.A. run would only cost $557. Nearly the same prices apply for moves from Detroit to Fort Worth and vice versa.
That means far more people are moving to Texas than going in the other direction, a U-Haul employee in Fort Worth said.
Julie and William Taylor of Flower Mound made that jump just before California’s housing bubble burst.
Fed up with William’s three-hour round-trip commute and the state’s declining economy, they unloaded their home in Santa Clarita in 2006 after it had doubled 1/2 years."We thought, 'We better do it now while we can.’ I had in value in 3 never even come to Texas, but we knew there were jobs here," said Julie, a stay-at-home mom with two small children. "We knew it was going to be easier for my husband to find a job [in the transportation industry]. And it was true. We feel so blessed to have gotten out when we did."
'The place to go’
Tory Gattis, who runs a software company and writes Houston Strategies, an urban issues blog, is convinced that Texas will be the "focal point" of the nation’s next historic migration trend.
"During the Dust Bowl, during the Great Depression, California was the place to go. Texas is the place to go now," Gattis said. "Sure, we are clearly losing some jobs but people are still moving here. I can see it anecdotally in the license plates around town. I see a lot of Michigan plates, California license plates, I see them from all over."
That’s playing out across the state, according to the Texas Department of Transportation, which tracks motor vehicle registrations.
In 2000, there were 17,962,300 registered vehicles in Texas and that number soared more than 3 million to 21,185,173 by the end of last year, the department reports.
"Vehicle registrations continue to climb by the hundreds of thousands in Texas despite a decline in vehicle sales," department spokeswoman Kim Sue Lia Perkes said. "This may be one indicator that Texas continues to experience a steady stream of transplants from other states despite the national economic downturn."
John McLendon sees the economy where all that rubber meets the road.
No Vacancy signs were the norm at his Oak Creek RV Park near Weatherford for years as migratory workers flocked to the drilling fields of the Barnett Shale, he said. Most of them cleared out late last year, when natural gas prices cratered and companies mothballed rigs.
Now he’s seeing a different trend. People from states hit hard by the recession are coming here in search of jobs. "I’ve seen some from Florida, Utah, Colorado, Montana — they’re from everywhere," McLendon said.
Jo Ann Royer, director of relocations for Williams & Trew real estate, say inquiries about moving to Fort Worth are coming from across the country.
"We’re seeing the whole spectrum of medical industry employees. They are coming from everywhere because the hospitals here are expanding," Royer said. "We’ve had, believe it or not in this economy, banking personnel coming in because there is a new bank on every corner in Fort Worth."
'Zone of sanity’
Jim Gaines, a research economist at Texas A&M University, says that the recession has slowed overall growth but that there are good reasons why people continue to come to Texas.
"Why do people move? Generally, jobs," Gaines said. "Right now, Texas will probably be the only state in the Union that reports more jobs than the year before — by a total of close to 154,000 [in 2008]."Those numbers will be reduced this year. But if you are an entrepreneur or want to start a business, this is the best place to do it because of the pro-business attitude of the state."
Eventually, when distressed housing markets across the country stabilize, Gaines predicts that skittish homeowners will be weighing their options. In those places, "as soon as you can finally sell, you’re going to get the hell out of Dodge," Gaines said.
Jason Saving, a senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, also believes that Texas has some "fundamental advantages" that are spurring growth, even in a recession.
First is a "very favorable business climate," and second is affordable real estate.
"These things make the state attractive to businesses and residents alike," Saving said. "I think that’s why, if you look at the migration data within the U.S., that you see so many people moving from other states to Texas."
Gattis says Texas’ cost of living is a key to its attractiveness.
"It’s not everything," he said, "but when you have more discretionary income you can buy a better house, a better car, you can spend it at restaurants. That’s income that leads to a better quality of life. "
Texas State Demographer Karl Eschbach says in tough times, people "move to where they think they can survive."
"You might move back home where you have family and a support network, or you move to where you can get a job," Eschbach said. "If I’d left Texas and then lost my job, I would be back in a quarter-second."
Mark Lowther moved fast when that happened to him.
The Texas native was a marketing manager in Seattle for Washington Mutual, the failed savings and loan which was bought by JPMorgan Chase.
His job ended May 1, and he and his wife, Michelle, a disaster contingency consultant, "jumped" at the chance to come to Fort Worth so he could join Southwest Bank as a senior vice president and marketing director.
"The real estate market here is stronger and more affordable," Mather said as movers were unloading the couple’s belongings. "You can buy a comparable house here for close to half the price what you can get on the West Coast."
Kotkin, the L.A. author, says Texas is benefitting by being in what he calls "the zone of sanity," a swath of the nation’s midsection where housing prices stayed stable.
The twin lures of jobs and affordable housing are important to young professionals planning to raise a family or start a business, he said.
That’s what Lance Marshall and Elizabeth Peirce have in mind. The 25-year-old high school sweethearts from North Texas moved to Chicago in 2005 to pursue careers after graduating from college.
Marshall managed a specialty wine store and Peirce worked for a nonprofit and then turned to waiting tables before working as a media coordinator for a fashion boutique.
"I was underemployed and I never stopped looking for a job," Peirce said. "In Chicago, the competition was incredibly fierce and the economy wasn’t very good and then it really declined last year."
When they got engaged, coming back home looked like the safe bet. In February, they moved in with her parents in Grapevine, which has "been fun and mortifying at the same time," she said.
She’s now working as a sales consultant at a bridal shop. It’s not the job in communications that she wants, but it’s a start, and she’s still hunting. Marshall is working for a wine distribution company and dreaming of owning his own business.
"I can see a lot of optimistic growth here" he said. "I want to be a 50-year-in-the-same-house kind of guy, and when I was thinking of the places to do it — it was D-FW."
Open for business
Texas’ business climate of low taxes and a low regulatory burden draws companies and workers, Saving said.
"There is something inherently entrepreneurial about Texas. It’s the nature of the state from its formation, Texas was built by people who were looking to better themselves, and that has continued ever since," he said.
Kotkin says tight business regulation is hurting California. But not Texas. "Whether you are GOP or Democrat, you can’t imagine Texas becoming anti-business," he said.
Seguin Mayor Betty Ann Matthies says that mind-set is part of the reason Caterpillar is building a 850,000-square-feet diesel-engine plant that will employ 1,400 in her town of 25,091 east of San Antonio.
"I think that Texas is known right now for trying to encourage industry to come here," Matthies said.
The city and state’s "willingness to help," along with a location with easy access to interstates and major ports were key factors in Caterpillar’s decision, spokeswoman Kate Kenny said.
"It was a good decision all around, the location, the people, the timing," she said.
An economic refuge
No one argues that the recession hasn’t bruised Texas, too.
But for people like Benton from Clinton Township, Mich., Texas feels like an economic safe zone by comparison.
When Benton, a 45-year-old staff sergeant in the Army National Guard, was notified that he was losing his job as a computer systems operator, he also learned he was going to be redeployed.
He was at Fort Hood in Texas when he was on active duty in the 1990s and he liked it. "People are friendly here," he said.
So he leapt at a chance to be stationed in San Antonio and work as a liaison in the Wounded Warrior program helping injured soldiers. "This is rewarding. I don’t plan on going back to Michigan," he said.
The auto industry’s woes stretch from Michigan into Dayton, Ohio, where Dione Kennedy, 48, was the president and CEO of a theater association. Since January, she’s held the same title at Bass Hall in Fort Worth.
"Things are very tough in Ohio," she said "Dayton is a big GM town, and a lot of industry was built around that and it has been hit hard."
And the real estate market here seemed healthy by comparison.
"Prices for homes in Ohio have been rapidly dropping and in the communities here there was no apparent downturn," Kennedy said.
She and husband Daniel, a stay-at-home dad for their young daughter, have noticed another difference.
"It seems like every time my husband talks to someone in Dayton, it’s another concern about someone about to lose a job or has a lost a job. We don’t hear that here."
The U.S. Census Bureau recently reported that because of the recession, Americans are moving at some of the lowest rates in 50 years.
But Saving, the Fed economist, believes people "will vote with their feet" and keep heading to Texas.
"Moving is costly, and it’s a hassle. It’s not something people want to do . and looking long-term, I think it’s . . unless they see a better opportunity clear that Texas is a favorable place to be from an economic point of view."
'If you had to ride out this downturn, there is no better place than Texas. The declines here have been nothing compared to other states.’
By STEVE CAMPBELL
sfcampbell@star-telegram.com
Across the nation, unemployment is sky-high, the housing market is sucking wind and recessionary fears have frozen Americans in place.
Just don’t tell that to a stream of new residents who are "voting with their feet" that Texas is the safest place to ride out the storm and the place to be when the economy recovers.
Even in the midst of a recession, economists, demographers and relocation experts believe the Lone Star State is on the cusp of becoming The New California.
Or maybe it already is.
For people seeking economic opportunity, Texas is becoming what California has been since the Great Depression, says Los Angeles urbanist and author Joel Kotkin. Texas recently "ran the table" in a recent list of "Best Cities for Jobs" prepared by Kotkin for New Geography and Forbes. Austin, Houston, San Antonio, Fort Worth and Dallas were ranked as the top five large metro areas in the country to find a job. If that weren’t enough to get the moving van loaded, McAllen and Odessa top the mid-sized and small city categories, respectively. Among 333 metropolitan areas, Texas has a remarkable 20 in the top 100.
Relocation surveys show that Texas remains a top destination for people leaving other states. Its automobile registrations continue to climb, and the Texas housing market has avoided the double-digit declines other fast-growing states have seen. While the unemployment rate has risen in Texas, it’s nowhere near as high as most of the country, underscoring the state’s economic resiliency even as the downturn deals out its lumps.
Kotkin, a professor at Chapman University in Orange, Calif., who analyzed U.S. Labor Department statistics for his report, says Texas’ dominance at the top of the jobs list is unprecedented.
"Part of it is a function of the economic collapse of Florida, Phoenix and California. The collapse is still important in Texas, but Texas has had more balanced growth and that’s more sustainable," he said in a telephone interview while navigating an L.A. freeway.
"Part is the nature of Texas: People don’t move there for climate and scenery," Kotkin said. "They move to Texas for jobs and affordable housing. People make economic decisions to go to these places. They don’t go for perfect weather where you can surf one day and ski the next."
Selling "everything but the deer head" and leaving the Detroit area for Texas was simple math for Rodger Benton after Hewlett Packard laid him off.
"It was pretty much a no-brainer to make the move," he said. "The unemployment rate in Michigan is really high. Things are really tough up there. There’s just more opportunity here."
Jobs beget growth
Steve Murdock, who was the Texas state demographer for 25 years and director of the U.S. Census Bureau during the last year of the George W. Bush administration, says jobs attract new residents, and Texas has been driving fast for several years.
"Very few of us say, 'I think I’ll go there because there are not as many " he said. jobs and they pay less,’
Murdock, now a sociology professor at Rice University, says Texas’ growth in the last decade has "been simply phenomenal."
According to the latest Census figures released in March, Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington added 146,500 people between July 2007 and July 2008 — more than any metropolitan area in the nation. Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown added 130,000 for the No. 2 spot, and Texas had 10 of the top 25 counties with the biggest numerical gains.
Texas has lost jobs in the recession, with the unemployment rate at 6.7 percent in March, the highest mark since January 2004, according to the Texas Workforce Commission.
But that still looks good compared with Michigan (12.6 percent unemployment), Oregon (12.1), South Carolina (11.4), California (11.2) or North Carolina (10.4).
"If you had to ride out this downturn, there is no better place than Texas. The declines here have been nothing compared to other states," said Richard Froeshle, deputy director of Texas Workforce Commission.
Moving out
As the economy has soured, many people are moving to Texas for a new start.
In 2008 and the first quarter of 2009, 14.3 percent of the people leaving the once Golden State were bound for the Lone Star State, according to Relocation.com, which tracks moving trends. Other states with sizable outflows to Texas included Florida (7.9 percent), Illinois (4.7), Michigan (4.6) and New York (4.3).
Another indicator of moving patterns is U-Haul truck rentals.
To rent a 26-foot moving truck today from Los Angeles to Fort Worth would cost $2,141. Renting that truck for a Fort Worth-to-L.A. run would only cost $557. Nearly the same prices apply for moves from Detroit to Fort Worth and vice versa.
That means far more people are moving to Texas than going in the other direction, a U-Haul employee in Fort Worth said.
Julie and William Taylor of Flower Mound made that jump just before California’s housing bubble burst.
Fed up with William’s three-hour round-trip commute and the state’s declining economy, they unloaded their home in Santa Clarita in 2006 after it had doubled 1/2 years."We thought, 'We better do it now while we can.’ I had in value in 3 never even come to Texas, but we knew there were jobs here," said Julie, a stay-at-home mom with two small children. "We knew it was going to be easier for my husband to find a job [in the transportation industry]. And it was true. We feel so blessed to have gotten out when we did."
'The place to go’
Tory Gattis, who runs a software company and writes Houston Strategies, an urban issues blog, is convinced that Texas will be the "focal point" of the nation’s next historic migration trend.
"During the Dust Bowl, during the Great Depression, California was the place to go. Texas is the place to go now," Gattis said. "Sure, we are clearly losing some jobs but people are still moving here. I can see it anecdotally in the license plates around town. I see a lot of Michigan plates, California license plates, I see them from all over."
That’s playing out across the state, according to the Texas Department of Transportation, which tracks motor vehicle registrations.
In 2000, there were 17,962,300 registered vehicles in Texas and that number soared more than 3 million to 21,185,173 by the end of last year, the department reports.
"Vehicle registrations continue to climb by the hundreds of thousands in Texas despite a decline in vehicle sales," department spokeswoman Kim Sue Lia Perkes said. "This may be one indicator that Texas continues to experience a steady stream of transplants from other states despite the national economic downturn."
John McLendon sees the economy where all that rubber meets the road.
No Vacancy signs were the norm at his Oak Creek RV Park near Weatherford for years as migratory workers flocked to the drilling fields of the Barnett Shale, he said. Most of them cleared out late last year, when natural gas prices cratered and companies mothballed rigs.
Now he’s seeing a different trend. People from states hit hard by the recession are coming here in search of jobs. "I’ve seen some from Florida, Utah, Colorado, Montana — they’re from everywhere," McLendon said.
Jo Ann Royer, director of relocations for Williams & Trew real estate, say inquiries about moving to Fort Worth are coming from across the country.
"We’re seeing the whole spectrum of medical industry employees. They are coming from everywhere because the hospitals here are expanding," Royer said. "We’ve had, believe it or not in this economy, banking personnel coming in because there is a new bank on every corner in Fort Worth."
'Zone of sanity’
Jim Gaines, a research economist at Texas A&M University, says that the recession has slowed overall growth but that there are good reasons why people continue to come to Texas.
"Why do people move? Generally, jobs," Gaines said. "Right now, Texas will probably be the only state in the Union that reports more jobs than the year before — by a total of close to 154,000 [in 2008]."Those numbers will be reduced this year. But if you are an entrepreneur or want to start a business, this is the best place to do it because of the pro-business attitude of the state."
Eventually, when distressed housing markets across the country stabilize, Gaines predicts that skittish homeowners will be weighing their options. In those places, "as soon as you can finally sell, you’re going to get the hell out of Dodge," Gaines said.
Jason Saving, a senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, also believes that Texas has some "fundamental advantages" that are spurring growth, even in a recession.
First is a "very favorable business climate," and second is affordable real estate.
"These things make the state attractive to businesses and residents alike," Saving said. "I think that’s why, if you look at the migration data within the U.S., that you see so many people moving from other states to Texas."
Gattis says Texas’ cost of living is a key to its attractiveness.
"It’s not everything," he said, "but when you have more discretionary income you can buy a better house, a better car, you can spend it at restaurants. That’s income that leads to a better quality of life. "
Texas State Demographer Karl Eschbach says in tough times, people "move to where they think they can survive."
"You might move back home where you have family and a support network, or you move to where you can get a job," Eschbach said. "If I’d left Texas and then lost my job, I would be back in a quarter-second."
Mark Lowther moved fast when that happened to him.
The Texas native was a marketing manager in Seattle for Washington Mutual, the failed savings and loan which was bought by JPMorgan Chase.
His job ended May 1, and he and his wife, Michelle, a disaster contingency consultant, "jumped" at the chance to come to Fort Worth so he could join Southwest Bank as a senior vice president and marketing director.
"The real estate market here is stronger and more affordable," Mather said as movers were unloading the couple’s belongings. "You can buy a comparable house here for close to half the price what you can get on the West Coast."
Kotkin, the L.A. author, says Texas is benefitting by being in what he calls "the zone of sanity," a swath of the nation’s midsection where housing prices stayed stable.
The twin lures of jobs and affordable housing are important to young professionals planning to raise a family or start a business, he said.
That’s what Lance Marshall and Elizabeth Peirce have in mind. The 25-year-old high school sweethearts from North Texas moved to Chicago in 2005 to pursue careers after graduating from college.
Marshall managed a specialty wine store and Peirce worked for a nonprofit and then turned to waiting tables before working as a media coordinator for a fashion boutique.
"I was underemployed and I never stopped looking for a job," Peirce said. "In Chicago, the competition was incredibly fierce and the economy wasn’t very good and then it really declined last year."
When they got engaged, coming back home looked like the safe bet. In February, they moved in with her parents in Grapevine, which has "been fun and mortifying at the same time," she said.
She’s now working as a sales consultant at a bridal shop. It’s not the job in communications that she wants, but it’s a start, and she’s still hunting. Marshall is working for a wine distribution company and dreaming of owning his own business.
"I can see a lot of optimistic growth here" he said. "I want to be a 50-year-in-the-same-house kind of guy, and when I was thinking of the places to do it — it was D-FW."
Open for business
Texas’ business climate of low taxes and a low regulatory burden draws companies and workers, Saving said.
"There is something inherently entrepreneurial about Texas. It’s the nature of the state from its formation, Texas was built by people who were looking to better themselves, and that has continued ever since," he said.
Kotkin says tight business regulation is hurting California. But not Texas. "Whether you are GOP or Democrat, you can’t imagine Texas becoming anti-business," he said.
Seguin Mayor Betty Ann Matthies says that mind-set is part of the reason Caterpillar is building a 850,000-square-feet diesel-engine plant that will employ 1,400 in her town of 25,091 east of San Antonio.
"I think that Texas is known right now for trying to encourage industry to come here," Matthies said.
The city and state’s "willingness to help," along with a location with easy access to interstates and major ports were key factors in Caterpillar’s decision, spokeswoman Kate Kenny said.
"It was a good decision all around, the location, the people, the timing," she said.
An economic refuge
No one argues that the recession hasn’t bruised Texas, too.
But for people like Benton from Clinton Township, Mich., Texas feels like an economic safe zone by comparison.
When Benton, a 45-year-old staff sergeant in the Army National Guard, was notified that he was losing his job as a computer systems operator, he also learned he was going to be redeployed.
He was at Fort Hood in Texas when he was on active duty in the 1990s and he liked it. "People are friendly here," he said.
So he leapt at a chance to be stationed in San Antonio and work as a liaison in the Wounded Warrior program helping injured soldiers. "This is rewarding. I don’t plan on going back to Michigan," he said.
The auto industry’s woes stretch from Michigan into Dayton, Ohio, where Dione Kennedy, 48, was the president and CEO of a theater association. Since January, she’s held the same title at Bass Hall in Fort Worth.
"Things are very tough in Ohio," she said "Dayton is a big GM town, and a lot of industry was built around that and it has been hit hard."
And the real estate market here seemed healthy by comparison.
"Prices for homes in Ohio have been rapidly dropping and in the communities here there was no apparent downturn," Kennedy said.
She and husband Daniel, a stay-at-home dad for their young daughter, have noticed another difference.
"It seems like every time my husband talks to someone in Dayton, it’s another concern about someone about to lose a job or has a lost a job. We don’t hear that here."
The U.S. Census Bureau recently reported that because of the recession, Americans are moving at some of the lowest rates in 50 years.
But Saving, the Fed economist, believes people "will vote with their feet" and keep heading to Texas.
"Moving is costly, and it’s a hassle. It’s not something people want to do . and looking long-term, I think it’s . . unless they see a better opportunity clear that Texas is a favorable place to be from an economic point of view."
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Distressed Properties and First-Time Home Buyers - The Recipe for Real Estate Recovery?
Distressed Properties and First-Time Home Buyers - The Recipe for Real Estate Recovery?
By Mary Ellen Podmolik Print Article
RISMEDIA, May 19, 2009-(MCT)-Value-conscious, first-time buyers have become key to the housing market’s recovery, and they are snapping up priced-right foreclosures despite the warts-and-all, sold-as-is condition of the properties. Half of the sales made in the year’s first quarter were to first-time buyers and almost half of all these sales were distressed properties, the National Association of Realtors reported. Distressed properties include foreclosures and short sales, which are private transactions in which a homeowner sells the property for less than the amount owed on a mortgage.
The glut of foreclosures has pushed down home values, so heightened interest in buying them benefits the immediate neighborhood and the overall housing market.
“It’s a very good first step,” said Lance Ramella, a principal at RW Real Estate Advisors in Oakbrook Terrace. “The first step is selling the most value-conscious units and those are the foreclosures. We’re not going to see any real sustainable price appreciation until we move the foreclosures off the inventory list.”
Moving homes off the foreclosure inventory list may take a while though. With the lapse of several industrywide foreclosure moratoriums, lenders nationwide are initiating foreclosure proceedings again. Government-led efforts to refinance or modify troubled loans can’t help the rising number of people unable to pay their mortgages because they’ve lost their jobs.
In Illinois, more than 7,300 homes became bank-owned during the year’s first quarter, according to RealtyTrac. It’s impossible to determine how many of them are listed for sale, or sold, at any one time because the area’s real estate listing service doesn’t require a property to be listed as a foreclosure.
To capture new interest in home sales thanks to lower interest rates and a first-time-buyer tax credit, a growing number of lenders and asset management companies that own foreclosed homes now appear more willing to drop prices. Banks used to hold fast on pricing and held back properties so they didn’t flood the market, but that has changed, said Susan Sirles Fidler, an agent at Re/Max 10 in Oak Lawn who works with lenders.
Attractive pricing is causing a noticeable increase in multiple offers. In just the past two weeks, a two-bedroom, two-bath Lincoln Park condo listed at $289,000 garnered 60 showings in two days and 20 offers; it sold for just over $330,000. A vandalized East Village penthouse that needed at least $80,000 in repairs was listed at $159,000 and sold for $245,000. In Northbrook, a foreclosed home listed at $719,000 received multiple offers and sold for $730,000.
A bidding battle on a foreclosure with potential “is not the exception,” said Henry Torn, a buyer’s agent at Chicago Realty Partners.
The uptick in interest is encouraging to lenders as well. “That’s what gives us hope,” said Sanjiv Das, chief executive of CitiMortgage. “It’s positive, healthy activity. We’re actively lending to that end of the market, the owner-occupant.”
Finding diamonds in the rough can be a test of stamina, determination and an ability to hold one’s breath. There can be evidence of vandalism, water damage, multicolor mold and squatters who didn’t have access to bathroom facilities because the plumbing fixtures were stolen.
“This is not for the faint of heart,” said Marki Lemons, an agent with Rubloff Residential Properties, who carries a flashlight into properties and keeps paper masks in her car. “You have to be patient, be non-judgmental and have some vision. You have to decide if you can stomach this.”
Others are in decidedly better shape, in part either because companies are offering departing homeowners cash for keys and a clean property or they are sprucing up the properties before they put them on the market.
“These asset managers are at a point where they’re writing checks and trusting the Realtor to get the work done and put it on the market,” said Dean Rouso, owner of Prime Property Partners in La Grange. “We’re helping the neighborhoods because instead of having this comparable property out there for $99,000, we now have a comp for $150,000.”
Not all buyers, however, find themselves on the winning end of foreclosure deals, and that is causing them to look for value in the traditional market.
By Mary Ellen Podmolik Print Article
RISMEDIA, May 19, 2009-(MCT)-Value-conscious, first-time buyers have become key to the housing market’s recovery, and they are snapping up priced-right foreclosures despite the warts-and-all, sold-as-is condition of the properties. Half of the sales made in the year’s first quarter were to first-time buyers and almost half of all these sales were distressed properties, the National Association of Realtors reported. Distressed properties include foreclosures and short sales, which are private transactions in which a homeowner sells the property for less than the amount owed on a mortgage.
The glut of foreclosures has pushed down home values, so heightened interest in buying them benefits the immediate neighborhood and the overall housing market.
“It’s a very good first step,” said Lance Ramella, a principal at RW Real Estate Advisors in Oakbrook Terrace. “The first step is selling the most value-conscious units and those are the foreclosures. We’re not going to see any real sustainable price appreciation until we move the foreclosures off the inventory list.”
Moving homes off the foreclosure inventory list may take a while though. With the lapse of several industrywide foreclosure moratoriums, lenders nationwide are initiating foreclosure proceedings again. Government-led efforts to refinance or modify troubled loans can’t help the rising number of people unable to pay their mortgages because they’ve lost their jobs.
In Illinois, more than 7,300 homes became bank-owned during the year’s first quarter, according to RealtyTrac. It’s impossible to determine how many of them are listed for sale, or sold, at any one time because the area’s real estate listing service doesn’t require a property to be listed as a foreclosure.
To capture new interest in home sales thanks to lower interest rates and a first-time-buyer tax credit, a growing number of lenders and asset management companies that own foreclosed homes now appear more willing to drop prices. Banks used to hold fast on pricing and held back properties so they didn’t flood the market, but that has changed, said Susan Sirles Fidler, an agent at Re/Max 10 in Oak Lawn who works with lenders.
Attractive pricing is causing a noticeable increase in multiple offers. In just the past two weeks, a two-bedroom, two-bath Lincoln Park condo listed at $289,000 garnered 60 showings in two days and 20 offers; it sold for just over $330,000. A vandalized East Village penthouse that needed at least $80,000 in repairs was listed at $159,000 and sold for $245,000. In Northbrook, a foreclosed home listed at $719,000 received multiple offers and sold for $730,000.
A bidding battle on a foreclosure with potential “is not the exception,” said Henry Torn, a buyer’s agent at Chicago Realty Partners.
The uptick in interest is encouraging to lenders as well. “That’s what gives us hope,” said Sanjiv Das, chief executive of CitiMortgage. “It’s positive, healthy activity. We’re actively lending to that end of the market, the owner-occupant.”
Finding diamonds in the rough can be a test of stamina, determination and an ability to hold one’s breath. There can be evidence of vandalism, water damage, multicolor mold and squatters who didn’t have access to bathroom facilities because the plumbing fixtures were stolen.
“This is not for the faint of heart,” said Marki Lemons, an agent with Rubloff Residential Properties, who carries a flashlight into properties and keeps paper masks in her car. “You have to be patient, be non-judgmental and have some vision. You have to decide if you can stomach this.”
Others are in decidedly better shape, in part either because companies are offering departing homeowners cash for keys and a clean property or they are sprucing up the properties before they put them on the market.
“These asset managers are at a point where they’re writing checks and trusting the Realtor to get the work done and put it on the market,” said Dean Rouso, owner of Prime Property Partners in La Grange. “We’re helping the neighborhoods because instead of having this comparable property out there for $99,000, we now have a comp for $150,000.”
Not all buyers, however, find themselves on the winning end of foreclosure deals, and that is causing them to look for value in the traditional market.
Monday, May 18, 2009
‘Making Home Affordable’ Program Delivers Much-Needed Relief to Homeowners
‘Making Home Affordable’ Program Delivers Much-Needed Relief to Homeowners
RISMEDIA, May 18, 2009-With the Making Home Affordable (MHA) program delivering much-needed relief to homeowners and to our economy just over two months after the release of program guidelines, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan provided an update on the program’s impact on stemming the housing crisis and keeping families in their homes and announced new options for homeowners facing foreclosure.
“In just over two months, the Making Home Affordable program is up and running, helping our economy recover and making a difference in the lives and livelihoods of thousands of American homeowners. Historically low interest rates are allowing Americans to refinance and save money, and modifications are helping homeowners avoid foreclosure,” said Secretary Geithner. “We are announcing a new program component to help homeowners obtain modifications in areas suffering from home price declines. If a modification is not possible, we are also announcing steps to encourage the quick private sale or voluntary transfer of property, which will save homeowners money and protect their financial future. These are critical steps in stemming the foreclosure crisis and stabilizing the housing market, both of which are critical to our economic recovery.”
“I can’t stress enough how important our HUD-approved counseling agencies are to the success of the Making Home Affordable program, and ultimately, to helping keep American families in their homes,” Secretary Donovan said. “That’s why HUD has requested a $100 million investment in our Housing Counseling Assistance Program for fiscal year 2010, a $35 million increase from our 2009 budget. This investment will help further support the work of our 2,600 HUD-approved housing counselors across the nation, just like those at NCRC, who play a key role in ensuring that borrowers can take part in the modification and refinancing options made available through Making Home Affordable.”
The new details on the Making Home Affordable program include:
-Foreclosure Alternatives provide incentives for servicers and borrowers to pursue short sales and deeds-in-lieu (DIL) of foreclosure in cases where the borrower is generally eligible for a MHA modification but does not qualify or is unable to complete the process, which helps prevent costly foreclosures and minimizes the damage that foreclosures impose on borrowers, financial institutions and communities. The new details will simplify and streamline the process of pursuing short sales and deeds-in-lieu, which will facilitate the ability of more servicers and borrowers to utilize the program. The program provides a standard process flow, minimum performance timeframes and standard documentation, and it offers financial incentives to servicers and borrowers to pursue these alternatives to foreclosure.
-Home Price Decline Protection Incentives (HPDP) will provide lenders additional incentives for modifications where home price declines have been most severe and lenders fear these declines may persist. To encourage the modification of more mortgages and enable more families to keep their homes, the Administration, building on insights pioneered by Chairman Bair and the FDIC, has developed an innovative payment that provides compensation based on recent home price declines. Together, the incentive payments on all modified homes will help cover the incremental collateral loss on those modifications that do not succeed. HPDP payments will be linked to the rate of recent home price decline in a local housing market, as well as the average cost of a home in that market.
Since the launch of Making Home Affordable, more than one million Americans have now refinanced, due to historically low interest rates, and thousands of underwater borrowers have refinanced under the Home Affordable Refinance Program. Fannie Mae has had over 233,000 eligible refinance applications through its refinancing program, with more than 51,000 of these having loan-to-value ratios between 80% and 105%. More than 55,000 Home Affordable Modification offers have been extended to qualifying borrowers. Additionally, servicers have mailed more than 300,000 letters to homeowners who are potential candidates for the program. The refinance application volumes and modifications underway make clear the desire of homeowners to take advantage of the Administration’s program.
Making Home Affordable, a comprehensive plan to stabilize the U.S. housing market, was first announced by the Administration on February 18. The three part program includes aggressive measures to support low mortgage rates by strengthening confidence in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac; a Home Affordable Refinance Program, which will provide new access to refinancing for up to 4 to 5 million homeowners; and a Home Affordable Modification Program, which will reduce monthly payments on existing first lien mortgages for up to 3 to 4 million at-risk homeowners. Two weeks later, the Administration published detailed guidelines for the Home Affordable Modification Program and authorized servicers to begin modifications under the plan immediately. Fourteen servicers, including the five largest, have now signed contracts and begun modifications under the program. Between loans covered by these servicers and loans owned or securitized by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, Home Affordable Modification participants now account for more than 75% of all loans in the country.
For more information, visit www.financialstability.gov.
RISMEDIA, May 18, 2009-With the Making Home Affordable (MHA) program delivering much-needed relief to homeowners and to our economy just over two months after the release of program guidelines, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan provided an update on the program’s impact on stemming the housing crisis and keeping families in their homes and announced new options for homeowners facing foreclosure.
“In just over two months, the Making Home Affordable program is up and running, helping our economy recover and making a difference in the lives and livelihoods of thousands of American homeowners. Historically low interest rates are allowing Americans to refinance and save money, and modifications are helping homeowners avoid foreclosure,” said Secretary Geithner. “We are announcing a new program component to help homeowners obtain modifications in areas suffering from home price declines. If a modification is not possible, we are also announcing steps to encourage the quick private sale or voluntary transfer of property, which will save homeowners money and protect their financial future. These are critical steps in stemming the foreclosure crisis and stabilizing the housing market, both of which are critical to our economic recovery.”
“I can’t stress enough how important our HUD-approved counseling agencies are to the success of the Making Home Affordable program, and ultimately, to helping keep American families in their homes,” Secretary Donovan said. “That’s why HUD has requested a $100 million investment in our Housing Counseling Assistance Program for fiscal year 2010, a $35 million increase from our 2009 budget. This investment will help further support the work of our 2,600 HUD-approved housing counselors across the nation, just like those at NCRC, who play a key role in ensuring that borrowers can take part in the modification and refinancing options made available through Making Home Affordable.”
The new details on the Making Home Affordable program include:
-Foreclosure Alternatives provide incentives for servicers and borrowers to pursue short sales and deeds-in-lieu (DIL) of foreclosure in cases where the borrower is generally eligible for a MHA modification but does not qualify or is unable to complete the process, which helps prevent costly foreclosures and minimizes the damage that foreclosures impose on borrowers, financial institutions and communities. The new details will simplify and streamline the process of pursuing short sales and deeds-in-lieu, which will facilitate the ability of more servicers and borrowers to utilize the program. The program provides a standard process flow, minimum performance timeframes and standard documentation, and it offers financial incentives to servicers and borrowers to pursue these alternatives to foreclosure.
-Home Price Decline Protection Incentives (HPDP) will provide lenders additional incentives for modifications where home price declines have been most severe and lenders fear these declines may persist. To encourage the modification of more mortgages and enable more families to keep their homes, the Administration, building on insights pioneered by Chairman Bair and the FDIC, has developed an innovative payment that provides compensation based on recent home price declines. Together, the incentive payments on all modified homes will help cover the incremental collateral loss on those modifications that do not succeed. HPDP payments will be linked to the rate of recent home price decline in a local housing market, as well as the average cost of a home in that market.
Since the launch of Making Home Affordable, more than one million Americans have now refinanced, due to historically low interest rates, and thousands of underwater borrowers have refinanced under the Home Affordable Refinance Program. Fannie Mae has had over 233,000 eligible refinance applications through its refinancing program, with more than 51,000 of these having loan-to-value ratios between 80% and 105%. More than 55,000 Home Affordable Modification offers have been extended to qualifying borrowers. Additionally, servicers have mailed more than 300,000 letters to homeowners who are potential candidates for the program. The refinance application volumes and modifications underway make clear the desire of homeowners to take advantage of the Administration’s program.
Making Home Affordable, a comprehensive plan to stabilize the U.S. housing market, was first announced by the Administration on February 18. The three part program includes aggressive measures to support low mortgage rates by strengthening confidence in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac; a Home Affordable Refinance Program, which will provide new access to refinancing for up to 4 to 5 million homeowners; and a Home Affordable Modification Program, which will reduce monthly payments on existing first lien mortgages for up to 3 to 4 million at-risk homeowners. Two weeks later, the Administration published detailed guidelines for the Home Affordable Modification Program and authorized servicers to begin modifications under the plan immediately. Fourteen servicers, including the five largest, have now signed contracts and begun modifications under the program. Between loans covered by these servicers and loans owned or securitized by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, Home Affordable Modification participants now account for more than 75% of all loans in the country.
For more information, visit www.financialstability.gov.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Thinking about moving to Texas? See why everyone else is moving here!
This video shows the growth and opportunity here in Texas. The stats are real and Texas is not only the perfect place to live but the perfect place to have a job. With times as they are we as real estate agents are seeing more and more out of state home buyers who are relocating to either find new jobs or their actual headquarters moved to Texas. That says a lot. We hope you enjoy this video. Click here if you have any questions.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Helping More Homeowners - Loan Modifications Increasing
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Helping More Homeowners - Loan Modifications Increasing
RISMEDIA, April 17, 2009-Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac modified nearly 24,000 loans during the fourth quarter of 2008, an increase of 76% over the third quarter. The modifications, along with the suspension of foreclosures that began November 26, reduced the number of foreclosures by nearly 27% during the quarter, according to data released by James B. Lockhart, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), as part of the Foreclosure Prevention Report for the fourth quarter for 2008.
The FHFA report details the actions Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have taken to prevent foreclosures and keep people in their homes. It analyzes data provided by the companies with adjustments to account for the impact of the foreclosure suspension. The suspension, originally set to end Jan. 9, 2009, was later extended to Jan. 31, 2009.
“Fewer homeowners are losing their homes as a result of the foreclosure prevention efforts,” said Director Lockhart. “We expect the numbers of those getting relief to grow further as the Making Home Affordable program picks up speed in coming months.”
The foreclosure prevention options include forbearance plans, payment plans, delinquency advances and loan modifications. Workout options that led to resolution of delinquent accounts, which means the account was either reinstated or removed from the portfolio, increased 15% in the last quarter of 2008.
The report shows that as of Dec. 31, 2008, of the Enterprises’ 30.7 million residential mortgages:
• Modifications represented 34.0% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions up from 22.2% of the third quarter.
• Completed payment plans represented 19.0% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions compared to 24.2% of the third quarter.
• Short sales represented 8.9% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions compared to 7.7% of third quarter.
• Deeds in lieu represented 0.8% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions compared to 0.7% in the third quarter.
As a result of increased loss mitigation efforts and the foreclosure suspensions, the overall loss mitigation performance ratio (loss mitigation actions as a percentage of mortgages for which foreclosure was likely) for mortgages serviced on behalf of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, increased from 55% during the third quarter of 2008 to 65.7% in the fourth quarter. For prime loans, the ratio increased from 45.1% to 54.2%, and for nonprime loans from 64.7% in the third quarter to 75.3% in the fourth quarter.
Suspensions gave servicers more time to work with borrowers in foreclosure who were eligible for the Streamlined Modification Program introduced in early November 2008. The impact of the suspensions caused December 2008 numbers for completed foreclosure and third-party sales to decline and for total loans, 60-plus, and 90-plus-days delinquent loans to increase.
When adjusted to account for foreclosure suspensions, the month-over-month change in the delinquency rates decreased. The month-over-month change in the 60-plus-days delinquency rate from October 2008 to November 2008 was an increase of 14.39%. The month-over-month change from November 2008 to December 2008 was an increase of 9.31%.
For more information, visit www.fanniemae.com or www.freddiemac.com.
RISMEDIA, April 17, 2009-Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac modified nearly 24,000 loans during the fourth quarter of 2008, an increase of 76% over the third quarter. The modifications, along with the suspension of foreclosures that began November 26, reduced the number of foreclosures by nearly 27% during the quarter, according to data released by James B. Lockhart, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), as part of the Foreclosure Prevention Report for the fourth quarter for 2008.
The FHFA report details the actions Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have taken to prevent foreclosures and keep people in their homes. It analyzes data provided by the companies with adjustments to account for the impact of the foreclosure suspension. The suspension, originally set to end Jan. 9, 2009, was later extended to Jan. 31, 2009.
“Fewer homeowners are losing their homes as a result of the foreclosure prevention efforts,” said Director Lockhart. “We expect the numbers of those getting relief to grow further as the Making Home Affordable program picks up speed in coming months.”
The foreclosure prevention options include forbearance plans, payment plans, delinquency advances and loan modifications. Workout options that led to resolution of delinquent accounts, which means the account was either reinstated or removed from the portfolio, increased 15% in the last quarter of 2008.
The report shows that as of Dec. 31, 2008, of the Enterprises’ 30.7 million residential mortgages:
• Modifications represented 34.0% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions up from 22.2% of the third quarter.
• Completed payment plans represented 19.0% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions compared to 24.2% of the third quarter.
• Short sales represented 8.9% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions compared to 7.7% of third quarter.
• Deeds in lieu represented 0.8% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions compared to 0.7% in the third quarter.
As a result of increased loss mitigation efforts and the foreclosure suspensions, the overall loss mitigation performance ratio (loss mitigation actions as a percentage of mortgages for which foreclosure was likely) for mortgages serviced on behalf of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, increased from 55% during the third quarter of 2008 to 65.7% in the fourth quarter. For prime loans, the ratio increased from 45.1% to 54.2%, and for nonprime loans from 64.7% in the third quarter to 75.3% in the fourth quarter.
Suspensions gave servicers more time to work with borrowers in foreclosure who were eligible for the Streamlined Modification Program introduced in early November 2008. The impact of the suspensions caused December 2008 numbers for completed foreclosure and third-party sales to decline and for total loans, 60-plus, and 90-plus-days delinquent loans to increase.
When adjusted to account for foreclosure suspensions, the month-over-month change in the delinquency rates decreased. The month-over-month change in the 60-plus-days delinquency rate from October 2008 to November 2008 was an increase of 14.39%. The month-over-month change from November 2008 to December 2008 was an increase of 9.31%.
For more information, visit www.fanniemae.com or www.freddiemac.com.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Using Technology to Your Advantage - Social Networking Connects Agents with Homebuyers
RISMEDIA, April 9, 2009-Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are among the social networking options used by the real estate industry to connect with consumers who are seeking a combination of technology and human touch. The national meeting of the Real Estate Services Providers Council (RESPRO), a national non-profit trade association of real estate broker-owners, real estate franchisers, mortgage lenders, title insurers and agencies, homebuilders, home service and settlement providers united to deliver cost efficient services to consumers through strategic alliances across the home-buying industry, found leaders sharing new strategies to reach “echo-boomers” heavily using computers to research home sales.
Sherry Chris, president and CEO of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, said 80% of consumers now use the Internet to research homes and a real estate agent to complete the transaction.
“Tomorrow’s consumer will want to visit sites with as much information as possible.” Chris said. “It will be a combination of the consumer and agent using technology. People are looking for the new opportunity, the new way and help from technology. ”
“[Real estate] companies who [also] have mortgage and title companies are going to be the survivors,” Champion Realty president and CEO Jon Coile said. “The ones who don’t are not.”
For more information, visit http://www.respro.org/.
Sherry Chris, president and CEO of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, said 80% of consumers now use the Internet to research homes and a real estate agent to complete the transaction.
“Tomorrow’s consumer will want to visit sites with as much information as possible.” Chris said. “It will be a combination of the consumer and agent using technology. People are looking for the new opportunity, the new way and help from technology. ”
“[Real estate] companies who [also] have mortgage and title companies are going to be the survivors,” Champion Realty president and CEO Jon Coile said. “The ones who don’t are not.”
For more information, visit http://www.respro.org/.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Problems With Your Mortgage? - There May be a Short Way Out
Problems With Your Mortgage? - There May be a Short Way Out
With unemployment figures reaching a 25-year high, the toll of the declining economy continues to impact hundreds of thousands of families each month, especially homeowners struggling with their mortgage. According to RealtyTrac, 303,410 foreclosure notices were served on properties in the month of December alone. This followed the 2,854,396 foreclosure filings throughout all of 2008.
For homeowners facing foreclosure, options do exist that can prevent the trauma of losing their home or facing long-term financial loss. YOU Magazine has addressed these options in previous issues. So, this month we'll focus instead on short sales, an alternative to foreclosure for struggling homeowners who do not want to stay in their homes but would also like to avoid the years of potential financial damage that a foreclosure could cause on their credit rating. If you or someone you know are looking for a "short" way out of a mortgage, keep reading and find out if a short sale is a feasible option.
Don't Be Short-Sighted
Before we dive into what a short sale is and how it can benefit some struggling homeowners, it's important to understand that you're not alone, and that just because you're struggling now doesn't mean you won't be able to recover in the near future. In today's tough economy, millions of Americans are facing challenging situations seriously affecting their finances right now that they can, and will, eventually overcome, including lay-offs, divorce, the death of a spouse, or even major losses in the stock market or their retirement investments.
That's why, before choosing to attempt a short sale, it's important to ask yourself if staying in your home is an option you'd like to explore, because there are opportunities, including a loan modification that may be a better path for some struggling homeowners to pursue. A loan modification would allow the homeowner, in many instances, to renegotiate the terms of their existing mortgage(s) to a more affordable monthly payment(s). This can be accomplished in a number of ways that bring about both temporary and permanent solutions but ultimately allow the homeowner to keep their home.
If you think that a change in your mortgage terms, like a lower rate or lower monthly payments, might help you make it through this rough patch, it's important to communicate with your lender, even if you're several months behind in your payments. Many lenders have reported that in over 50% of the cases where a homeowner is delinquent on his or her mortgage, they have been unable to reach the owner to discuss any options. Picking up the phone and placing a call is always in your best interest. More importantly, opening lines of communication with family members, in many cases, could help lighten the emotional burden that often comes along with these challenges.
When Staying is Not a Viable Option
If, however, you think a loan modification would not be appropriate for your individual needs, one solution to avoiding foreclosure could be a short sale. A short sale is an agreement from the lender(s) to allow the homeowner to sell the property for less than what is owed on the mortgage(s). An example would be an agreement to allow a sale of the home to take place for $175,000 when $300,000 is actually owed on the property.
For a lender to consider a short sale, there are a number of factors that the lender will take into consideration before an approval can be secured, including:
Current hardship, which can include a change of income due to job loss, loss of hours or salary reduction, illness, death of a wage earner, or a change in marital status.
The property is "upside down," which means the house is worth less in today's market than what is owed.
It's important to note that, unlike a loan modification, a homeowner does not have to be delinquent to be considered for a short sale. However, a hardship should be demonstrated showing that the homeowner would not be able to remain current on the mortgage in the future due to mounting financial obligations.
Why would a lender agree to sell your home at a loss? Well, in many cases, the foreclosure process results in a loss of up to 40% or more of the original mortgage balance for the lender. When borrowers and lenders work together on a short sale or loan modification, however, these losses can be reduced by roughly half, in many cases. For example, a foreclosure on a $300,000 home could cost the lender up to $120,000 or more in losses, where they might only lose $60,000 by working with the borrower. Add to that the record losses incurred on other foreclosures, and it's clear why lenders, in many cases, prefer to negotiate a solution.
Credit Benefit
Working with a lender to negotiate a short sale instead of a foreclosure can also be more beneficial to your credit as well, especially if you want to secure another mortgage in the near future when your finances are back on track. According to Fannie Mae, one of the largest mortgage insurers in the country, a foreclosure on your credit record will likely mean it will be between 3 and 5 years before you're able to secure a new mortgage. The typical timeframe to buy a new home with a short sale on your record, however, is only two years.
A short sale also has a lesser impact to your FICO score compared to a foreclosure, which is very important for obtaining future credit from everything including automobiles and consumer credit to getting reconnected with local utilities and cell phones services. Your credit score can even affect certain employment opportunities as well.
Start the Process
The first step of a short sale is to contact your lender and seek their assistance.
The second step is to enlist the help of an experienced real estate agent. An agent who is skilled at handling the negotiation process will not only minimize negotiation time, he or she will also help in limiting the time and costs of marketing the property.
Tony Sena, a real estate agent with North American Realty in Las Vegas, Nevada agrees. Sena, who is currently closing 10-15 short sale transactions a month says, "The single greatest reason for a distressed property not selling is selecting the wrong agent."
When selecting an agent, don't be afraid to ask questions about their experience. Sena says to look at the current inventory of listings the agent represents and ask:
How many of the properties are currently short sale properties?
Does the agent have testimonial letters from short sale sellers?
If an agent says they have sold a number of short sale properties, how many of the transactions were listings sold, not just where they had the buyer.
The third step is to price the house properly, according to the market. While many buyers would love to "steal" your property for the lowest price possible, remember that the lender is already going to incur a loss and they are not interested in losing more than they have to. Sena suggests initially pricing the property at the current value and then reducing the asking price every two weeks until it attracts buyers. Then, once you have an offer, the negotiations on the final price can begin with the lender.
The last step is to be prepared for challenges in both the short sale process and in the market place. Remember, you have a lot of competition out there and getting a property sold can be tough, especially in a buyer's market. However, choosing the right agent and setting the right price can assist you in not only selling it more quickly but also in minimizing the friction of having to deal with the lender directly.
Be aware that, in some cases, not all, a lender will agree to a certain price, but only if the seller agrees to accept a promissory note for some amount of the deficiency – that means money that you will be responsible for paying back. In some cases, Sena has seen lenders ask that sellers pay up to $20,000. However, while early last year the interest rate for these notes was in the range of 4% to 8%, lately Sena has seen that lenders have also been extending offers with 0% and terms of repayment up to ten years.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
The Healthiest Housing Markets for 2009
From: BUILDER 2009
Posted on: February 17, 2009 11:02:00 AM
2009's Healthiest Housing Markets
The Healthiest Housing Markets for 2009
Builder, in conjunction with Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, debuts its metric for determining markets with the best and least potential.
With most economists and builders expecting a national market decline this year, this may not seem like the best time to be selecting the "healthiest" markets in the country. Virtually every market was down last year. But a close look at the numbers reveals that some markets have way outperformed others during the last four years and are likely to continue to do so this year.
When the housing market stages its official recovery, the markets listed on the following pages are likely to lead the parade. It may take a year or more for the weakest markets--where burgeoning foreclosure sales are still pounding new home values, making building and selling new homes an exercise in futility-- to finally stage a turnaround. We'll present that list next week.
The healthiest markets have many things in common. Most of them are great places to live, either close to the ocean, mountains, or major universities. Most of them didn't have a huge run-up in prices during the boom and aren't experiencing rampant deflation during the bust.
To compile these lists, we analyzed the top 75 housing markets in the country. We ranked them based on population trends and job growth, perennial drivers of housing demand. We also examined what's happened with home prices; many of the healthiest markets have managed to hold the line on home values. And finally, we considered the rate building permits, which may be the single best ongoing indicator of builder confidence in a market. We combined all these metrics to produce a score for each market.
Here are the top 15, in reverse order.
The Healthiest Markets for 2009
15. Myrtle Beach, S.C.
2008 total building permits: 3,211
Though permit activity dropped sharply last year, Myrtle Beach remains one of the hottest markets in the country, especially when you analyze the number of permits pulled per resident. Only 263,287 people live in the Myrtle Beach metro area, which until recently had been growing its population by nearly 5 percent a year. That means builders pulled one permit for every 82 residents. A steady influx of people, many of them retirees, are drawn by close proximity to the ocean and 117 golf courses at last count. That has helped keep home prices steady; they fell only 10 percent last year to a very affordable $174,800. Most of the home building is split between Brunswick and New Hanover counties. Jobs are dependent on the tourist industry, though, and the metro area was rocked last year when a $400 million rock-and-roll themed amusement part, Hard Rock Park, opened and then filed for bankruptcy. Myrtle Beach added jobs last year, but as of December employment was decreasing at a 4.2 percent rate compared to a year earlier.
Busiest builders: Centex Homes, D.R. Horton, Beazer Homes, Bill Clark Homes, Pasquinelli/Portrait Homes
14. Wilmington, N.C.
2008 total building permits: 3,551
Wilmington has the second highest ratio of permits pulled per resident, behind only Myrtle Beach. The population here, 352,919 by Census estimates, has been growing at a 4 percent annual rate for the last five years, well above the national average. Primary residents are drawn by a four-season climate, close proximity to Atlantic beaches, and affordable housing. Median home prices, at $198,700, are just about the national average. The area gave back 1,000 jobs last year, after gaining 19,000 the previous three years. Wilmington has had a 60 percent decline in permit activity since 2005, around the national average, but its track record for population growth helps it make this list.
13. Charlotte, N.C.
2008 total building permits: 12,231
People and businesses must love Charlotte, because they are moving there at a high rate. The metro area of 1.74 million has grown its residents by 4 percent annually over the last five years, one of the highest rates in the country. They are drawn by relatively affordable housing for the east coast—median home prices are only $210,900, and they've only "corrected" downward by only 4.2 percent in the last year. A strong fourth quarter helped Charlotte record 12,231 permits last year, only a 44 percent decline since 2005. Charlotte's strength relative to other markets led the investment banking firm UBS to predict last year that it would be one of the first markets to recover from the housing downturn. Charlotte is still a single-family market, with 62 percent of the residential activity in stand-alone homes. The job market in this banking hub contracted last year, after growing 3 to 5 percent annually the previous three years.
Busiest builders: C.P. Morgan, NVR/Ryan Homes, Pulte Homes, Centex Homes, KB Home
12. Denver, Col.
2008 total building permits: 8,800
Denver has been all over the home building news of late, with Beazer and Centex leaving town, then Village Homes of Colorado declaring bankruptcy. But the market hasn't been hit as hard by the home building recession as other Western markets, in part because it didn't experience rampant price appreciation during the boom. That's partly because there's lots of land available to develop in Denver. The median price of an existing home here was still an affordable $225,100 in the third quarter of last year, down only 11.4 percent in the last year (through 3Q 08). Denver enjoys one of the highest population growth rates in the country--2 percent annually for each of the last five years. Builders pulled 8,800 permits in Denver last year, down from 20,864 in 2005, a percentage decline that's close to the national average. Denver is buoyed by a strong commercial real estate market.
Busiest builders: D.R. Horton, Richmond American Homes, Standard Pacific Homes, Shea Homes, Engle Homes. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
11. Nashville, Tenn.
2008 total building permits: 8,142
Nashville, the 20th largest home building market, operated under the radar of the national housing boom. It didn't ramp up wildly during the boom years, and it's not contracting viciously during the bust. Median home prices remain an affordable $152,100, propped up by a growing job base. Eighty percent of the residential construction is single-family. Some of the market's resilience stems from above-average population growth of about 2.3 percent a year. Back in the day, 2005, Nashville accounted for 16,654 permits; it now runs at about half that level. But that's a better performance than most major markets.
Busiest builders: Ole South Properties, Beazer Homes, Centex Homes, The Jones Company of Tennessee, Technical Olympic USA. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
10. Washington DC
2008 total building permits: 11,693
Washington D.C. showed signs last summer that it might be emerging from the downturn, then it turned south again. Even so, the area produces a ton of jobs—an estimated 35,000 in the last year—that fuel a vibrant housing market, the 11th largest in the country. Many of the jobs stem from contracts with the federal government. Washington D.C. remains a relatively unaffordable place to live, with a median home price of $332,700 in the third quarter of last year. But values have fallen only 24 percent in the last year in part because the population continues to grow—an average of 1 percent annually over the last five years. Home building patterns have changed dramatically in the nation's capital with builders mothballing subdivisions well beyond the beltway and focusing on infill opportunities. The region remains one of the worst in the nation for commuters.
Busiest builders: Ryan Homes, K. Hovnanian Homes, Centex Homes, NV Homes, and Stanley Martin Companies. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
9. Fayetteville, Ark.
2008 total building permits: 2,989
Fayetteville has made some important lists in recent years. Located in the foothills of the Ozarks and within an easy drive of Wal-Mart's corporate headquarters, it has recently been named one of the best places to live (by Kiplinger) and to do business (by Inc.). Employment, which had been strongly positive since 2005, dropped somewhat in the fourth quarter of last year. Recent layoffs at Wal-Mart's corporate office sent tremors through the market. But several Fortune 500 companies that sell products to Wal-Mart have established offices here, and they have helped Fayetteville achieve one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country, 4.1 percent in the fourth quarter. The University of Arkansas is also located in Fayetteville, and it has helped attract start-up businesses. Residents are drawn by an affordable housing stock; median prices average only $139,400, below the national average, and they've lost only 2.4 percent of their value in the last year. Builders pulled only 2,989 residential permits last year, down from 7, 449 in 2005.
8. Indianapolis, Ind.
2008 total building permits: 7,004
Builders are still pulling permits at a relatively healthy rate in Indianapolis, despite a virtually flat job market. Unlike other major markets that have become multifamily-oriented, single family still accounts for two-thirds of home building activity. Ultra-affordable housing accounts for some of the activity—the median price of a home here is only $117,900, making it one of the most affordable markets in the country. As a result, home prices have declined only 4.5 percent in the last year. At the top of the market in 2005, builders in Indianapolis took down 15,619 permits, so activity is down 55 percent, slightly better than the national average. Unfortunately, the relative health of the market wasn't enough to keep Davis Homes, one of the area's largest private builders, from going out of business last year.
Busiest builders: C.P. Morgan, Beazer Homes USA/Trinity Homes, Centex Homes, American West Development/Arbor Homes, The Ryland Group. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
7. Seattle, Wash.
2008 total building permits: 13,021
Seattle, a city of 3.4 million people, last year weighed in as the eighth largest home building market. Residential construction activity here, as measured by permits, is off only 50 percent since 2005, much better than most markets. Seattle has steadily transitioned during the last 10 years from an affordable to an upscale housing market, with the median price of an existing home reaching above $350,000. Even so, existing home prices fell only 11 percent in the last year. One of the secrets to Seattle's success is that it has added lots of jobs in recent years; and held on to them last year. Some builders there have even stepped up their land buying in anticipation of a market recovery. As the city has become more urban, the share of single family to multifamily permits has reversed; multifamily now accounts for 58 percent of activity.
Busiest builders: Quadrant Homes, Centex Homes, Murray Franklyn, Camwest Development, Polygon Northwest. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
6. Raleigh, N.C.
2008 total building permits: 11,386
Another state capital with multiple universities, Raleigh was still adding jobs at a 1.9 percent annual rate though the third quarter of last year. With a population of more than 1 million, it also has one of the highest rates of population growth of any top metro market in the country over the last five years: nearly 5 percent annually. Though the price of a median home here, $221,900, is above the national average, it is well below other cities in the mid-Atlantic and Northeast. The metro area has added roughly 68,000 jobs since 2005, and employment held steady last year. With a glut of national builders in the market, locals such as Dixon Kirby have experimented with different looks and styles to keep sales alive.
Busiest builders: Centex Homes, KB Home, Pulte Homes, Hovnanian Enterprises, Atreus Homes & Communities. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
5. Dallas, Texas
2008 total building permits: 26,145
In a year when permits declined 35 percent nationally, Dallas only experienced a 9 percent fall-off. With a population of 4.2 million, Dallas was the third largest home building market last year, as measured in permits pulled. Employers in Dallas, a popular place for corporate relocation and expansion, added 42,000 jobs last year, a growth rate of 2 percent. Existing home prices have held steady, falling a paltry 2.3 percent in the last year, Interestingly, the face of residential construction has changed dramatically in Dallas in recent years; 58 percent of the activity last year was in multifamily, compared to a five-year average of 23 percent. The relative stability of the market, though, wasn't enough to prevent Wall Homes from filing for bankruptcy earlier this year. On the other hand, former Meritage co-CEO John Landon recently started a new Dallas-based home building company.
Busiest builders: D.R. Horton, Highland Homes, David Weekely Homes, K.Hovnanian Homes, Drees Custom Homes. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
4. San Antonio, Texas
2008 total building permits: 10,261
San Antonio is another Texas market that is still adding jobs, about 15,000 last year. A city of more than 2 million people now, its population is also growing, at a 2.8 percent annual clip through the third quarter of last year. Existing home prices are barely declining in San Antonio, down only 1.8 percent in the last year, leaving the median price of an existing single-family home at an affordable $154,400, 25 percent below the national average of $200,500, according to the National Association of Realtors. The upper end of the housing market was hurt recently when AT&T announced it would be moving its corporate headquarters to Dallas.
Busiest builders: D.R. Horton, K.B. Home, Centex Homes, Pulte Homes, Fieldstone Communities. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
3. Fort Worth, Texas
2008 Total Building Permits: 10,388
Fort Worth, always operating in the shadow of higher profile Dallas, nevertheless can currently claim to have a slightly healthier housing market, based on its employment growth, relatively strong permit activity, and inexpensive housing. Now the 14th largest home building market in the country, Ft. Worth's builders pulled 10,388 permits last year, roughly two-thirds of them single-family. That may be half as many as 2005, but many other major markets showed much sharper drop-offs. The relative strength of the Fort Worth market in recent years stems from its ties to the oil and gas industries, which has fueled above-average job growth. The metro area added 17,300 jobs last year.
Busiest builders: D.R. Horton, Choice Homes, History Maker Homes, Meritage Homes, Centex Homes. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
2. Austin, Texas
2008 Total Building Permits: 14,250
Nine years ago, during the tech bust, some builders felt that Austin was too crowded and left. The bloom is back on Austin's yellow rose now; it moved up the leader board to become the sixth largest home building market last year. Job creation explains the move. While other markets lost employment, Austin added 17,400 jobs last year, 2.31 percent growth rate. It helps that Austin is home to both a major university, The University of Texas, and the state capital. Existing homes cost a little bit more in Austin than other Texas markets, roughly $190,900, but that's still below the national average. Also, Austin is one of the few metro areas in the country where median prices actually rose in 2008--1.4 percent through the first three quarters of the year. Amazingly, Austin now generates more home building activity than Chicago, which has six times more people.
Busiest builders: D.R. Horton, Lennar, KB Home, Centex Homes, Meritage Homes. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
1. Houston, Texas
2008 Total Building Permits: 42,697
They like to do things big in Houston. Now the metro area, home to nearly 5.8 million people, can lay claim to being the largest home building market in the country, with 42,697 building permits. The market is still benefiting from an influx of population and jobs and rebuilding in the wake of Hurricane Ike. Employment rose 2.2 percent last year, representing the addition of an incredible 57,000 jobs. Home building activity in Houston has only fallen 31 percent since 2005. Also, existing home prices actually rose in Houston last year, 2.8 percent, to $160,200, still a very affordable level. Roughly one third of the home building action is in Harris County, followed by Houston proper and Fort Bend County. One of Houston's largest builders, Royce Homes, shut down last year, and Kimball Hill, one of the biggest builders in Texas, closed its doors this year after it failed to find a buyer.
Busiest builders: Lennar, Perry Homes, David Weekley Homes, MHI/McGuyer Homebuilders, and KB Home. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
Posted on: February 17, 2009 11:02:00 AM
2009's Healthiest Housing Markets
The Healthiest Housing Markets for 2009
Builder, in conjunction with Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, debuts its metric for determining markets with the best and least potential.
With most economists and builders expecting a national market decline this year, this may not seem like the best time to be selecting the "healthiest" markets in the country. Virtually every market was down last year. But a close look at the numbers reveals that some markets have way outperformed others during the last four years and are likely to continue to do so this year.
When the housing market stages its official recovery, the markets listed on the following pages are likely to lead the parade. It may take a year or more for the weakest markets--where burgeoning foreclosure sales are still pounding new home values, making building and selling new homes an exercise in futility-- to finally stage a turnaround. We'll present that list next week.
The healthiest markets have many things in common. Most of them are great places to live, either close to the ocean, mountains, or major universities. Most of them didn't have a huge run-up in prices during the boom and aren't experiencing rampant deflation during the bust.
To compile these lists, we analyzed the top 75 housing markets in the country. We ranked them based on population trends and job growth, perennial drivers of housing demand. We also examined what's happened with home prices; many of the healthiest markets have managed to hold the line on home values. And finally, we considered the rate building permits, which may be the single best ongoing indicator of builder confidence in a market. We combined all these metrics to produce a score for each market.
Here are the top 15, in reverse order.
The Healthiest Markets for 2009
15. Myrtle Beach, S.C.
2008 total building permits: 3,211
Though permit activity dropped sharply last year, Myrtle Beach remains one of the hottest markets in the country, especially when you analyze the number of permits pulled per resident. Only 263,287 people live in the Myrtle Beach metro area, which until recently had been growing its population by nearly 5 percent a year. That means builders pulled one permit for every 82 residents. A steady influx of people, many of them retirees, are drawn by close proximity to the ocean and 117 golf courses at last count. That has helped keep home prices steady; they fell only 10 percent last year to a very affordable $174,800. Most of the home building is split between Brunswick and New Hanover counties. Jobs are dependent on the tourist industry, though, and the metro area was rocked last year when a $400 million rock-and-roll themed amusement part, Hard Rock Park, opened and then filed for bankruptcy. Myrtle Beach added jobs last year, but as of December employment was decreasing at a 4.2 percent rate compared to a year earlier.
Busiest builders: Centex Homes, D.R. Horton, Beazer Homes, Bill Clark Homes, Pasquinelli/Portrait Homes
14. Wilmington, N.C.
2008 total building permits: 3,551
Wilmington has the second highest ratio of permits pulled per resident, behind only Myrtle Beach. The population here, 352,919 by Census estimates, has been growing at a 4 percent annual rate for the last five years, well above the national average. Primary residents are drawn by a four-season climate, close proximity to Atlantic beaches, and affordable housing. Median home prices, at $198,700, are just about the national average. The area gave back 1,000 jobs last year, after gaining 19,000 the previous three years. Wilmington has had a 60 percent decline in permit activity since 2005, around the national average, but its track record for population growth helps it make this list.
13. Charlotte, N.C.
2008 total building permits: 12,231
People and businesses must love Charlotte, because they are moving there at a high rate. The metro area of 1.74 million has grown its residents by 4 percent annually over the last five years, one of the highest rates in the country. They are drawn by relatively affordable housing for the east coast—median home prices are only $210,900, and they've only "corrected" downward by only 4.2 percent in the last year. A strong fourth quarter helped Charlotte record 12,231 permits last year, only a 44 percent decline since 2005. Charlotte's strength relative to other markets led the investment banking firm UBS to predict last year that it would be one of the first markets to recover from the housing downturn. Charlotte is still a single-family market, with 62 percent of the residential activity in stand-alone homes. The job market in this banking hub contracted last year, after growing 3 to 5 percent annually the previous three years.
Busiest builders: C.P. Morgan, NVR/Ryan Homes, Pulte Homes, Centex Homes, KB Home
12. Denver, Col.
2008 total building permits: 8,800
Denver has been all over the home building news of late, with Beazer and Centex leaving town, then Village Homes of Colorado declaring bankruptcy. But the market hasn't been hit as hard by the home building recession as other Western markets, in part because it didn't experience rampant price appreciation during the boom. That's partly because there's lots of land available to develop in Denver. The median price of an existing home here was still an affordable $225,100 in the third quarter of last year, down only 11.4 percent in the last year (through 3Q 08). Denver enjoys one of the highest population growth rates in the country--2 percent annually for each of the last five years. Builders pulled 8,800 permits in Denver last year, down from 20,864 in 2005, a percentage decline that's close to the national average. Denver is buoyed by a strong commercial real estate market.
Busiest builders: D.R. Horton, Richmond American Homes, Standard Pacific Homes, Shea Homes, Engle Homes. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
11. Nashville, Tenn.
2008 total building permits: 8,142
Nashville, the 20th largest home building market, operated under the radar of the national housing boom. It didn't ramp up wildly during the boom years, and it's not contracting viciously during the bust. Median home prices remain an affordable $152,100, propped up by a growing job base. Eighty percent of the residential construction is single-family. Some of the market's resilience stems from above-average population growth of about 2.3 percent a year. Back in the day, 2005, Nashville accounted for 16,654 permits; it now runs at about half that level. But that's a better performance than most major markets.
Busiest builders: Ole South Properties, Beazer Homes, Centex Homes, The Jones Company of Tennessee, Technical Olympic USA. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
10. Washington DC
2008 total building permits: 11,693
Washington D.C. showed signs last summer that it might be emerging from the downturn, then it turned south again. Even so, the area produces a ton of jobs—an estimated 35,000 in the last year—that fuel a vibrant housing market, the 11th largest in the country. Many of the jobs stem from contracts with the federal government. Washington D.C. remains a relatively unaffordable place to live, with a median home price of $332,700 in the third quarter of last year. But values have fallen only 24 percent in the last year in part because the population continues to grow—an average of 1 percent annually over the last five years. Home building patterns have changed dramatically in the nation's capital with builders mothballing subdivisions well beyond the beltway and focusing on infill opportunities. The region remains one of the worst in the nation for commuters.
Busiest builders: Ryan Homes, K. Hovnanian Homes, Centex Homes, NV Homes, and Stanley Martin Companies. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
9. Fayetteville, Ark.
2008 total building permits: 2,989
Fayetteville has made some important lists in recent years. Located in the foothills of the Ozarks and within an easy drive of Wal-Mart's corporate headquarters, it has recently been named one of the best places to live (by Kiplinger) and to do business (by Inc.). Employment, which had been strongly positive since 2005, dropped somewhat in the fourth quarter of last year. Recent layoffs at Wal-Mart's corporate office sent tremors through the market. But several Fortune 500 companies that sell products to Wal-Mart have established offices here, and they have helped Fayetteville achieve one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country, 4.1 percent in the fourth quarter. The University of Arkansas is also located in Fayetteville, and it has helped attract start-up businesses. Residents are drawn by an affordable housing stock; median prices average only $139,400, below the national average, and they've lost only 2.4 percent of their value in the last year. Builders pulled only 2,989 residential permits last year, down from 7, 449 in 2005.
8. Indianapolis, Ind.
2008 total building permits: 7,004
Builders are still pulling permits at a relatively healthy rate in Indianapolis, despite a virtually flat job market. Unlike other major markets that have become multifamily-oriented, single family still accounts for two-thirds of home building activity. Ultra-affordable housing accounts for some of the activity—the median price of a home here is only $117,900, making it one of the most affordable markets in the country. As a result, home prices have declined only 4.5 percent in the last year. At the top of the market in 2005, builders in Indianapolis took down 15,619 permits, so activity is down 55 percent, slightly better than the national average. Unfortunately, the relative health of the market wasn't enough to keep Davis Homes, one of the area's largest private builders, from going out of business last year.
Busiest builders: C.P. Morgan, Beazer Homes USA/Trinity Homes, Centex Homes, American West Development/Arbor Homes, The Ryland Group. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
7. Seattle, Wash.
2008 total building permits: 13,021
Seattle, a city of 3.4 million people, last year weighed in as the eighth largest home building market. Residential construction activity here, as measured by permits, is off only 50 percent since 2005, much better than most markets. Seattle has steadily transitioned during the last 10 years from an affordable to an upscale housing market, with the median price of an existing home reaching above $350,000. Even so, existing home prices fell only 11 percent in the last year. One of the secrets to Seattle's success is that it has added lots of jobs in recent years; and held on to them last year. Some builders there have even stepped up their land buying in anticipation of a market recovery. As the city has become more urban, the share of single family to multifamily permits has reversed; multifamily now accounts for 58 percent of activity.
Busiest builders: Quadrant Homes, Centex Homes, Murray Franklyn, Camwest Development, Polygon Northwest. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
6. Raleigh, N.C.
2008 total building permits: 11,386
Another state capital with multiple universities, Raleigh was still adding jobs at a 1.9 percent annual rate though the third quarter of last year. With a population of more than 1 million, it also has one of the highest rates of population growth of any top metro market in the country over the last five years: nearly 5 percent annually. Though the price of a median home here, $221,900, is above the national average, it is well below other cities in the mid-Atlantic and Northeast. The metro area has added roughly 68,000 jobs since 2005, and employment held steady last year. With a glut of national builders in the market, locals such as Dixon Kirby have experimented with different looks and styles to keep sales alive.
Busiest builders: Centex Homes, KB Home, Pulte Homes, Hovnanian Enterprises, Atreus Homes & Communities. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
5. Dallas, Texas
2008 total building permits: 26,145
In a year when permits declined 35 percent nationally, Dallas only experienced a 9 percent fall-off. With a population of 4.2 million, Dallas was the third largest home building market last year, as measured in permits pulled. Employers in Dallas, a popular place for corporate relocation and expansion, added 42,000 jobs last year, a growth rate of 2 percent. Existing home prices have held steady, falling a paltry 2.3 percent in the last year, Interestingly, the face of residential construction has changed dramatically in Dallas in recent years; 58 percent of the activity last year was in multifamily, compared to a five-year average of 23 percent. The relative stability of the market, though, wasn't enough to prevent Wall Homes from filing for bankruptcy earlier this year. On the other hand, former Meritage co-CEO John Landon recently started a new Dallas-based home building company.
Busiest builders: D.R. Horton, Highland Homes, David Weekely Homes, K.Hovnanian Homes, Drees Custom Homes. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
4. San Antonio, Texas
2008 total building permits: 10,261
San Antonio is another Texas market that is still adding jobs, about 15,000 last year. A city of more than 2 million people now, its population is also growing, at a 2.8 percent annual clip through the third quarter of last year. Existing home prices are barely declining in San Antonio, down only 1.8 percent in the last year, leaving the median price of an existing single-family home at an affordable $154,400, 25 percent below the national average of $200,500, according to the National Association of Realtors. The upper end of the housing market was hurt recently when AT&T announced it would be moving its corporate headquarters to Dallas.
Busiest builders: D.R. Horton, K.B. Home, Centex Homes, Pulte Homes, Fieldstone Communities. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
3. Fort Worth, Texas
2008 Total Building Permits: 10,388
Fort Worth, always operating in the shadow of higher profile Dallas, nevertheless can currently claim to have a slightly healthier housing market, based on its employment growth, relatively strong permit activity, and inexpensive housing. Now the 14th largest home building market in the country, Ft. Worth's builders pulled 10,388 permits last year, roughly two-thirds of them single-family. That may be half as many as 2005, but many other major markets showed much sharper drop-offs. The relative strength of the Fort Worth market in recent years stems from its ties to the oil and gas industries, which has fueled above-average job growth. The metro area added 17,300 jobs last year.
Busiest builders: D.R. Horton, Choice Homes, History Maker Homes, Meritage Homes, Centex Homes. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
2. Austin, Texas
2008 Total Building Permits: 14,250
Nine years ago, during the tech bust, some builders felt that Austin was too crowded and left. The bloom is back on Austin's yellow rose now; it moved up the leader board to become the sixth largest home building market last year. Job creation explains the move. While other markets lost employment, Austin added 17,400 jobs last year, 2.31 percent growth rate. It helps that Austin is home to both a major university, The University of Texas, and the state capital. Existing homes cost a little bit more in Austin than other Texas markets, roughly $190,900, but that's still below the national average. Also, Austin is one of the few metro areas in the country where median prices actually rose in 2008--1.4 percent through the first three quarters of the year. Amazingly, Austin now generates more home building activity than Chicago, which has six times more people.
Busiest builders: D.R. Horton, Lennar, KB Home, Centex Homes, Meritage Homes. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
1. Houston, Texas
2008 Total Building Permits: 42,697
They like to do things big in Houston. Now the metro area, home to nearly 5.8 million people, can lay claim to being the largest home building market in the country, with 42,697 building permits. The market is still benefiting from an influx of population and jobs and rebuilding in the wake of Hurricane Ike. Employment rose 2.2 percent last year, representing the addition of an incredible 57,000 jobs. Home building activity in Houston has only fallen 31 percent since 2005. Also, existing home prices actually rose in Houston last year, 2.8 percent, to $160,200, still a very affordable level. Roughly one third of the home building action is in Harris County, followed by Houston proper and Fort Bend County. One of Houston's largest builders, Royce Homes, shut down last year, and Kimball Hill, one of the biggest builders in Texas, closed its doors this year after it failed to find a buyer.
Busiest builders: Lennar, Perry Homes, David Weekley Homes, MHI/McGuyer Homebuilders, and KB Home. Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.
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