The Federal Housing Administration rolled out details of its policy Friday that will let first-time home buyers apply an $8,000 tax credit to fund home purchases.
Until now, home buyers were only able to get that money after they bought a home, by applying for the credit–10% of the home’s price up to $8,000–on their tax returns.
The policy change means home buyers, who use FHA-backed financing, can get a short-term loan to help buy a home. The loan is repaid a few months later, after the buyer files an amended tax return and receives the credit.
A few important notes:
This is only for FHA loans, which require a minimum 3.5% down payment.
Borrowers must first come up with the minimum 3.5% themselves. The bridge loan would cover a larger down payment.
Borrowers can still use loans from certain non-profits and state and local housing finance agencies to fund the 3.5% down payment.
A handful of states, including Colorado, New Jersey and Ohio, have already launched programs providing bridge loans that allow home buyers to ‘monetize the tax credit,’ which expires Dec. 1. And Realtors and homebuilders have pushed hard for the agency to do the same. But the industry could be disappointed by the plan, announced at a builder conference Friday by HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, because they wanted to allow buyers to use the credit to fund the initial 3.5% down-payment. The FHA’s policy makes sure that buyers still have “skin in the game” by funding their initial down payment, even if they use tax credit to fund closing costs and a larger down payment.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Getting Your Remodel Off to a Good Start
Are you itching to breathe new life into an outdated or poorly-functioning kitchen? Hold on. Put down the phone. Before contacting a remodeling professional, you'll need to do a little soul-searching and research first.
"[Planning] is the first phase of any project, and sometimes it's the phase that's ignored," says Everett Collier, president of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI). "The more pre-planning that one can do, the better off they are."
1. CREATE A STYLEBOOK
If you're even thinking about a kitchen remodel, odds are you have been leafing through design magazines and watching HGTV. Both are great ways to jumpstart the process, but to get the most out of this step, you'll need to do more than turn pages and program your TiVo.
While looking through magazines, tear out photos of kitchens that appeal to you and write what you like about the room in the margin. Then slip the page into a clear sheet protector and insert that into a three-ring binder to create a stylebook.
The Internet is another source for kitchen inspiration. If you see a kitchen that interests you on HGTV, often photos of the room will be available on HGTV.com. (Start by looking at Designers' Portfolio: Kitchens). Simply print the photos and add them to your stylebook. As your stylebook grows, a clear picture of your desired style of kitchen will begin to emerge. That's helpful for you, but it's also helpful for the remodeling professional you will eventually hire.
"We like to go through [the stylebook] to get a blush of what they're after," says Sara Ann Busby, owner of Sara Busby Designs, a remodeling company in Elk Rapids, Mich.
2. DEFINE YOUR GOAL
There's obviously a reason you want to remodel your kitchen. What is it? Perhaps you want a kitchen that will help with resale in a few years. Maybe you desire a kitchen built for entertaining or one that allows several people to cook at once. This is the time to assess your needs and wants. Make notes about how you plan to use the remodeled space, then try to distill all that information into a one- or two-sentence goal such as, "My casual and open kitchen will be a place for family and friends to relax and enjoy healthy meals."
3. CREATE A BUDGET
To get a general idea of how much you have to spend on a kitchen remodel, you will need to crunch some numbers. NARI offers a worksheet that makes the math easy. Are granite countertops a must-have? How about stainless steel appliances? Do a little research into the costs of your wish list items and compare them with your preliminary budget. Are you on target?
4. SET A TIME BUDGET
When most people hear the word budget, they automatically think of money. However, when remodeling, it's also important to budget time. Is there an event on the calendar that would be affected if your kitchen was under construction? Discuss your time budget when interviewing potential remodelers.
5. HAVE REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS
Above all else make sure you have reasonable expectations when it comes to your kitchen remodel. Talk to people who have been through the process before.
"Sit down with your family and talk about what you're about to embark on," says Suzie Williford, National Kitchen & Bath Association treasurer and vice president of sales for Westheimer Plumbing & Hardware in Houston. "It's going to take a certain amount of time. It's going to have a certain amount of mess. It's going to be a financial stress, and if you don't know all this ahead of time and you go in with rose colored glasses, then that takes all the fun out of it. And, you know, it should be fun."
"[Planning] is the first phase of any project, and sometimes it's the phase that's ignored," says Everett Collier, president of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI). "The more pre-planning that one can do, the better off they are."
1. CREATE A STYLEBOOK
If you're even thinking about a kitchen remodel, odds are you have been leafing through design magazines and watching HGTV. Both are great ways to jumpstart the process, but to get the most out of this step, you'll need to do more than turn pages and program your TiVo.
While looking through magazines, tear out photos of kitchens that appeal to you and write what you like about the room in the margin. Then slip the page into a clear sheet protector and insert that into a three-ring binder to create a stylebook.
The Internet is another source for kitchen inspiration. If you see a kitchen that interests you on HGTV, often photos of the room will be available on HGTV.com. (Start by looking at Designers' Portfolio: Kitchens). Simply print the photos and add them to your stylebook. As your stylebook grows, a clear picture of your desired style of kitchen will begin to emerge. That's helpful for you, but it's also helpful for the remodeling professional you will eventually hire.
"We like to go through [the stylebook] to get a blush of what they're after," says Sara Ann Busby, owner of Sara Busby Designs, a remodeling company in Elk Rapids, Mich.
2. DEFINE YOUR GOAL
There's obviously a reason you want to remodel your kitchen. What is it? Perhaps you want a kitchen that will help with resale in a few years. Maybe you desire a kitchen built for entertaining or one that allows several people to cook at once. This is the time to assess your needs and wants. Make notes about how you plan to use the remodeled space, then try to distill all that information into a one- or two-sentence goal such as, "My casual and open kitchen will be a place for family and friends to relax and enjoy healthy meals."
3. CREATE A BUDGET
To get a general idea of how much you have to spend on a kitchen remodel, you will need to crunch some numbers. NARI offers a worksheet that makes the math easy. Are granite countertops a must-have? How about stainless steel appliances? Do a little research into the costs of your wish list items and compare them with your preliminary budget. Are you on target?
4. SET A TIME BUDGET
When most people hear the word budget, they automatically think of money. However, when remodeling, it's also important to budget time. Is there an event on the calendar that would be affected if your kitchen was under construction? Discuss your time budget when interviewing potential remodelers.
5. HAVE REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS
Above all else make sure you have reasonable expectations when it comes to your kitchen remodel. Talk to people who have been through the process before.
"Sit down with your family and talk about what you're about to embark on," says Suzie Williford, National Kitchen & Bath Association treasurer and vice president of sales for Westheimer Plumbing & Hardware in Houston. "It's going to take a certain amount of time. It's going to have a certain amount of mess. It's going to be a financial stress, and if you don't know all this ahead of time and you go in with rose colored glasses, then that takes all the fun out of it. And, you know, it should be fun."
Top 10 Home-Staging Dos
Please Do:
Set your listing price by utilizing area comparables, not based upon what you need to buy that ostrich farm.
Put personal collections away someplace safe, like a bank vault in Zurich.
Invest in a fresh coat of paint and get 150 percent green back on your investment.
Disclose everything, especially the stuff you are tempted not to.
Fix all running toilets, or risk flushing profits down the drain.
Remember that "outside" is the new "inside." Show off all of your living spaces.
Visit model homes to see how neutrality and spaciousness are made to feel so inviting.
Grind a lemon in the garbage disposal – it smells great and it's such great exercise.
Display the kind of plants that aren't injection-molded and painted in a factory somewhere overseas.
Keep your day job. Hire an agent and assist them in doing what they do best.
Set your listing price by utilizing area comparables, not based upon what you need to buy that ostrich farm.
Put personal collections away someplace safe, like a bank vault in Zurich.
Invest in a fresh coat of paint and get 150 percent green back on your investment.
Disclose everything, especially the stuff you are tempted not to.
Fix all running toilets, or risk flushing profits down the drain.
Remember that "outside" is the new "inside." Show off all of your living spaces.
Visit model homes to see how neutrality and spaciousness are made to feel so inviting.
Grind a lemon in the garbage disposal – it smells great and it's such great exercise.
Display the kind of plants that aren't injection-molded and painted in a factory somewhere overseas.
Keep your day job. Hire an agent and assist them in doing what they do best.
Top 10 Real Estate Home- Staging Don'ts
Please Don't:
1. Rationalize that a higher asking price means you will have more wiggle room. You could wind up sitting idle on the market with a house full of wiggle room.
2. Respond to lowball offers with a counter — instead, respond with an invitation to re-submit.
3. Refer to a leaky foundation as a central humidifier.
4. Make your house smell like a cherry orchard or a department store perfume counter.
5. Air your dirty laundry. This includes leaving bills and private papers out, or, of course, actual dirty laundry.
6. Take your prospects on A Complete History of The Kopecki Repairs & Renovations Tour.
7. "Clean up" by stuffing all the closets.
8. Leave unfinished DIY jobs for the buyers' honey-do list.
9. Defer yard work. Your house only gets one chance to make a first impression. Overgrown shrubs and broken gutters are the real estate equivalent of dandruff.
10. Think licks from Rex the Bulldog will help generate more offers.
1. Rationalize that a higher asking price means you will have more wiggle room. You could wind up sitting idle on the market with a house full of wiggle room.
2. Respond to lowball offers with a counter — instead, respond with an invitation to re-submit.
3. Refer to a leaky foundation as a central humidifier.
4. Make your house smell like a cherry orchard or a department store perfume counter.
5. Air your dirty laundry. This includes leaving bills and private papers out, or, of course, actual dirty laundry.
6. Take your prospects on A Complete History of The Kopecki Repairs & Renovations Tour.
7. "Clean up" by stuffing all the closets.
8. Leave unfinished DIY jobs for the buyers' honey-do list.
9. Defer yard work. Your house only gets one chance to make a first impression. Overgrown shrubs and broken gutters are the real estate equivalent of dandruff.
10. Think licks from Rex the Bulldog will help generate more offers.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
"Community" is priceless
Long Island is probably thought of as a sprawling suburb of Manhattan by most of the world. Those of us that make our homes here know better. We are instead a group of “small towns” located within commuting distance of the greatest metropolis in the world.
I am witness to this feeling everyday as I go about my life here on the south shore. It is especially strong for me on this Saturday afternoon. I just came from the 14th annual East Islip alumni lacrosse game. It is held every year in memory of a 1981 graduate who played for East Islip. His name was Craig Kohlhepp and he was taken from us by a brain tumor shortly after graduation. This game is organized by Joe Ancona, the varsity coach at East Islip High School. He was a player almost 30 years ago when the program was in it’s infancy and came back to lead the team into the upper echelons of the game here on Long Island. The game is always a great time, but more than that it is an opportunity for the alumni to get together and remember what a fine community we are all a part of.
These types of events go on all over Long Island for all kinds of reasons. It seems that each town has at it’s core a sense of community usually associated with “small towns”
Whether it be a sick child, a local project, a sports program, a music program, or any number of causes, each town comes together as a community to take care of their own.
Property value is so much more than a number on a page. The value of a strong community is priceless. That is why while it may be relatively expensive to stay here on the Island it is well worth it to most of it’s inhabitants.
Right now is the time that can open the chance for many of our young people to invest in a home and enjoy all that each community has to offer it’s residents. The time is ripe to enter the housing market and invest in the positive future that is Long Island.
Friday, May 8, 2009
Have Rates Bottomed Out?
Could mortgage rates have bottomed out?
It looks like the time to jump at these rates is TODAY
The economy shed 539,000 jobs in April, raising the 6-month total to nearly 4 million jobs lost.
And while the April data may look bad, it’s actually 10% better than what was expected.
As a result, it’s turning into a bad day to be shopping for mortgage rates.
After bottoming out early last week, conforming, 30-year fixed rate mortgages have risen in cost by as much as three-quarters of a percent. Today’s good-for-the-economy report may push costs higher still.
Now, it may seem odd to categorize 539-thousand lost jobs as “good-for-the-economy”, but it’s important to remember that on Wall Street, expectations are everything.
Investors are constantly buying and selling securities based on what they think will happen in the future. And, up until this morning, there was an expectation that 600-thousand jobs had been lost in April.
As it turns out — relative — the actual job loss data wasn’t so bad.
Now, markets are making adjustments and re-forming expectations of what’s ahead for the economy. They’re preparing for things like higher levels of consumer spending in the months ahead, and fewer home foreclosures nationwide. Both outcomes would help to spur the economy from recession.
This helps explain the stock market’s early rally, too.
For now, mortgage markets remain sensitive to whiffs of an economic recovery. In general, if there’s good news for the country, it going to be bad news for mortgage rates.
Mortgage rates are off slightly in advance of the weekend.
It looks like the time to jump at these rates is TODAY
The economy shed 539,000 jobs in April, raising the 6-month total to nearly 4 million jobs lost.
And while the April data may look bad, it’s actually 10% better than what was expected.
As a result, it’s turning into a bad day to be shopping for mortgage rates.
After bottoming out early last week, conforming, 30-year fixed rate mortgages have risen in cost by as much as three-quarters of a percent. Today’s good-for-the-economy report may push costs higher still.
Now, it may seem odd to categorize 539-thousand lost jobs as “good-for-the-economy”, but it’s important to remember that on Wall Street, expectations are everything.
Investors are constantly buying and selling securities based on what they think will happen in the future. And, up until this morning, there was an expectation that 600-thousand jobs had been lost in April.
As it turns out — relative — the actual job loss data wasn’t so bad.
Now, markets are making adjustments and re-forming expectations of what’s ahead for the economy. They’re preparing for things like higher levels of consumer spending in the months ahead, and fewer home foreclosures nationwide. Both outcomes would help to spur the economy from recession.
This helps explain the stock market’s early rally, too.
For now, mortgage markets remain sensitive to whiffs of an economic recovery. In general, if there’s good news for the country, it going to be bad news for mortgage rates.
Mortgage rates are off slightly in advance of the weekend.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Home Buyers Tax Credit
Please refer to the following link for a useful video explaining the $8,000 Home Buyer Tax Credit. This credit combined with historically low mortgage rates, and more available inventory than ever before this century make this
the perfect time to buy a home on Long Island.
click here for the video
the perfect time to buy a home on Long Island.
click here for the video
59 Woodland St. Real Estate For Sale East Islip
PRICED TO SELL!!
This updated ranch features newer siding, roof, windows, and heating system with an open floor plan, and a full finished basement. This lovely home is located close to major highways for an easy commute and is minutes from great shopping on a quiet street. It's large lot has room to expand and is perfect for the family starting out or the empty nesters.
Please visit this home on the web at this link
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