You’ve decided to take the plunge and buy a home for your family. With the banking industry in the shape it is, unless you have stellar credit, you’ll need a more sizeable down paymentthan ever before. So, how do you get the down payment for the Huntsville real estate you’ve always dreamed of?
Get Scrounging
Scour your attic, basement and storage units. Look in every nook and cranny to find items that are in decent shape, but no longer used, and have a garage sale. Sure it’s usually pennies on the dollar of what your stuff is worth. But if you’re not using it, someone else can, and you get the cash in hand. If you find items that are more valuable, sell them on eBay. Every little bit helps.
Rich Relatives?
Hey, if you have’em use’em. This is no time to feel shy about asking for a gift. Purchasing Huntsville real estate is a wise investment. Many relatives who might otherwise be unwilling to give cash for frivolous items are happy to help loved ones buy a home.
Sell Something Big
Having precious jewelry or antiques is a great asset. Consider selling items you’ve been holding onto as investments, in order to get the home of your dreams.
There are many ways to come up with the down payment and financing you need to buy Huntsville real estate. I can help. Give me a call to day at 800-803-0053 or email me at mike@movetohuntsville.com.
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 percent to 90.3 from a reading of 84.6 in March, and is 3.2 percent 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.”
Madison County/Huntsville Real Estate Sales Statistics
Madison County and Huntsville real estate saw a decrease of 26% in sold listings when compared to May 2008. The average sales price decreased by 5% to $192,015. Average price per square foot decreased by 3%. And the average list price decreased by 4%. While homes were on the market an average of 6 days less than May 2008.
This is a great time to consider buying or a home in Huntsville or Madison AL. Housing affordability is at an all-time high, interest rates are at near record lows and now first-time buyers can use their $8,000 tax credit towards a down payment.
Don’t hesitate and lose out. Give me a call and learn how you can take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers.
For more information about Huntsville AL real estate, please visit MoveToHuntsville.com or call me at 256-508-0211.
All the talk is about how the President’s stimulus plan helps out new and first time home buyers. The good news is that it also helps homeowners. You can get stimulus plan benefitsfrom your existing Huntsville real estate too. Add a little green living to your environment and you’ll be pocketing some change at the end of the year from your income tax return.
Under the stimulus plan, both eco friendly new home purchases and eco friendly improvementson existing homes are tax deductible. Now’s the time to make your home more energy efficient and get a break at the end of the year for your efforts.
Going green saves money, makes your living environment healthier, and improves the world we live in. To reap the benefits from the stimulus plan, you can make major home improvements such as adding solar power or moderate priced home improvements such as adding low flow water fixtures.
You need to make your home improvements soon to get the stimulus plan benefit. The plan only allows for the tax benefits through the year 2010. Why wait? Use this as motivation to get your projects started (and completed) now.
Here are a few additional eco friendly home improvements to consider for your Huntsville real estate:
Re-cover your roof: The color of your roof can make a big difference in how well your attic retains or refracts heat and cold.
Install an energy efficient Energy Starfurnace: Make sure it has a high SEER rating (seasonal energy efficient ratio).
With a little work and a reasonable investment, your Huntsville real estate will not only pay you back in dividends for years to come, it could get you a great tax break.
If you need more ideas for how to make your home energy efficient and get tax credits, visit MoveToHuntsville.com.
If you have been sitting on the fence and unsure whether now is the time to buy Huntsville real estate, now is the time! Housing affordability reached an all time high according to the Alabama Center for Real Estate.
The Housing Affordability index is the ratio between a market’s median income and the median home selling price. An index of 100 means a family earning the median income has just enough money to qualify for a loan for that market’s median-priced house.
According to the report, a Huntsville-area family earning the area’s median income of $67,500 has 2.27 times the income needed to qualify for a loan to purchase the median-priced home of $143,467, or an affordability index of 227. That’s a 16.7 percent increase in affordability from the previous quarter, which had an affordability index of 194.6.
Enjoy your daily paper at the breakfast bar in this 2 story, 3 Bedroom, 2.5 Bath country home on 3 acres. You have plenty of space to roam while being close to town. You’ll enjoy casual living in the engaging Great Room and large family get togethers in the classic Dining Room, both with hardwood floors. The family-friendly Kitchen is bright and cheery. The kids will love having snacks at the breakfast bar. The Master Suite features dual vanities, a whirlpool tub for soaking away life’s cares, a walk-in closet that will accommodate your entire wardrobe, and a linen closet. Outdoor entertaining is a breeze with your private deck and patio. And last but not least, relax on the spacious wrap around porch - perfect in any type of weather!
Learn more about 12032 West Ridge Drive and other Huntsville real estate by visiting MoveToHuntsville.com.
Finding a home may seem like a simple ordeal. There are ads all over the internet, and your local newspaper probably has pages of listings. So why bother working with a Huntsville real estate agent?
Your real agent isn’t going to help you just find homes for sale; they’re going to help you find the perfect home. So what does a [city] real estate agent know that you don’t know, and how can they find the best homes for sale?
Intimate Knowledge
Finding a Huntsville real estate agent who specializes in the area where you want to buy is especially helpful because they have intimate knowledge of the homes for sale. The agent also knows the locale and can give you tips about schools, crime levels, shopping and other necessities.
MLS Searches
While you can view many listings online, your real estate agent will know exactly how to manipulate the MLS to find the most desired features you want in a home.
Negotiation Skills
One of the most important things a good [city] real estate agent can do for you is negotiating your offer. There is a lot more to finding (and getting) a home than just looking through listings. Your agent will make sure all of the proper procedures are being followed, home inspectionsand title searches are getting done and time schedules are being met.
Legal Know How
Real estate agents go through hours of special training to ensure they know all the real estate laws. Going it alone makes for ample room to slip up and either negate the deal or end up in hot legal water.
Don’t take any chances on letting that prized home get away by missing a legal loophole, or just plain not finding it. If you’re looking for a real estate agent who can find your perfect home and negotiate to get the best price and terms for you, call me today at 800-803-0053 and 256-508-0211 or email me at mike@movetohuntsville.com.
Filed under:
Buyers — Huntsville Real Estate Expert Mike Manosky
Buyer’s remorse happens to most people. The fear of signing a long term deal with a mortgage company at the closing of a Huntsville real estate deal, whether it is for a family home or investment property, can be frightening. It’s important to not let that fear get the best of you for several reasons. Not only will you lose out on that perfect piece of property you’ve looked so long for, you can lose a lot more than that.
Walking away from a deal before signing can mean losing any earnest moneyyou have put down when you bid on the property. Unless you made a bid with no money to back your offer, which is highly unusual, you will lose it by deciding not to go through with the closing.
There are a few contingencies that may allow you to get all or some of the earnest money back when you walk away but only if you have listed those possibilities in the offer such as:
Not getting the financing you’d hoped for. If you don’t list that possibility as a contingency for buying a home, even if you can’t get financed, you will lose your earnest money deposit.
Not selling existing [city] real estate. Again, this only works if you included the sale of your existing real estate before final closing on the new home as a contingency.
Appraisal, title, or inspection contingencies are also good clauses to have in your offer to protect you in case you want to back out of the deal. These allow you to change your mind if the appraisal value of the Huntsville real estate doesn’t come back matching the price you are paying, inspections turn up problem areas, or the title has issues.
Don’t be fooled into thinking that you can back out of a signed contract bid because of those items if you do not list them as contingencies.
Let me help you prepare a proper real estate contract, including all contingencies. Contact me today at 800-803-0053, 256-508-0211 or email me at mike@movetohuntsville.com.
Filed under:
Sellers — Huntsville Real Estate Expert Mike Manosky
Going it alone and listing your home as for sale by owner can be exciting at first, but there is a turning point where the prospect of losing money makes it necessary to bring in help. There are several reasons to change your plan and list your home with a Huntsville real estate agent in order to facilitate a sale.
Speed
If your property has been languishing on the market for more than three months, it is no longer fresh. People will avoid it simply because it hasn’t sold. A Hunhtsville real estate agent can give your home wider exposure and get traffic moving through it again.
Knowledge
Fresh eyes on a project are helpful in any business endeavor. You can be too close to your home. You love it and see it in a positive light that can often overlook minor items that will kill a sale. Your Huntsville real estate agent can help you see the problems you didn’t even know existed.
National Exposure
As a FSBO (for sale by owner) seller, you are not able to list your home on the official MLS(multiple listing service). That exposure alone can get much faster responses and sales. Additionally, a professional real estate agent markets your home on multiple websites which gives your home a virtual Open House 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
An Earthly Advantage
Many FSBOs price their homes way over market for two reasons. First, they love their home and see certain aspects of their home as more valuable than they really are. Second, they don’t have extensive knowledge of the real estate market nor do they have the ability to do current home price comparisons. You ‘might’ know what your neighbor’s house sold for 10 years ago, but do you know what it is worth now? And even more important, do you know exactly how comparable your house is to that one? Your Huntsville real estate agent does.
If you would like more information on how a professional real estate agent can help you sell your home, please visit MoveToHuntsville.com.
The Federal Housing Administration is a primary source of mortgage financing for millions of America’s families and plays a key role in helping bring stability to the housing market. This is the message that the National Association of Realtors®. delivered to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee today. “Without FHA financing, families would be unable to purchase homes and communities would suffer from continued foreclosures and blight,” said Lennox Scott, a member of NAR’s Real Estate Advisory Board and CEO of John L. Scott Real Estate in Bellevue, Washington. In his testimony, Scott shared NAR’s belief in the importance of FHA and concern for the safety and soundness of its programs due to its dramatic growth over a short period of time.
“We believe that FHA has done a good job stepping up to today’s market challenges. However, along with the dramatic growth in market share comes greater responsibility and the need for increased infrastructure and staff,” Scott said. Over the past 18 months, FHA has handled an increase in volume four times greater than 2007 levels, increasing its market share to over 30 percent.
Huntsville/Madison County Real Estate Sales Statistics
Huntsville and Madison County saw a lower number of real estate sales than a year ago for March. Although the numbers decreased from 2008, we are seeing more activity each week. The warmer temps, green grass, and low interest rates are bringing more families back into the real estate market. The interest rates are in the 4.5-4.75% range for a 30 year mortgage. To see what you can buy at today’s rates, visit the mortgage calculator here… http://www.movetohuntsville.com/calculators.htm
There are great incentives for first-time Huntsville real estate buyers. Big tax incentives and money put into the banking and financing industries to give buyers more availability to loans makes now the best time to move when looking for a home. This environment won’t last-exactly. Some of the elements put in place are geared toward a strong future for the housing market, but many of the advantages are only good for now.
Tax Relief
First-time Huntsville real estate buyers, meaning those who have not owned a home in the past three years, are eligible for a big tax break on income taxes. Next year at tax time all buyers have to do is report the new home purchase to get $8,000 dollars back. That’s a big incentive. The drawback is it’s only good for this year. It is retroactive to the beginning of 2009 so even if you have already bought that home you can still claim it, but if you drag your feet hoping for better mortgage financing, or just a better time for your family to get a new home, you will miss out after December 31, 2009.
Affordable Housing
Right now is the time to buy because of prices, too. Thanks to the failings of the housing market, there are tons of homes for sale at prices they would not normally be listed at. If the stimulus planimproves the economy the way it is hoped it will, that won’t last. That’s great news for homeowners, but not great for those who wait to take advantage of the greatly reduced home prices.
Huntsville real estate buyers need to take advantages of all that 2009 and the current real estate market have to offer. There are great deals that will never happen again-hopefully.
If you’re interested in taking advantage of the 2009 stimulus plan, I can help. Call me at 800-803-0053 or 256-508-0211 or email me at mike@movetohuntsville.com for more information.
Get Scrounging
