5 Financial Reasons to Buy A Home

There are always many factors that go in to deciding whether or not to enter the real estate market.  

Here are a few that I have found to be sound reasons on why now might be the ideal time!

5 Financial Reasons to Buy A Home

"We have reported many times that the American Dream of homeownership is alive and well. The personal reasons to own differ for each buyer, with many basic similarities.

Eric Belsky, the Managing Director of the Joint Center of Housing Studies at Harvard University expanded on the top 5 financial benefits of homeownership in his paper -The Dream Lives On: the Future of Homeownership in America.

Here are the five reasons, each followed by an excerpt from the study: 

1.) Housing is typically the one leveraged investment available.

“Few households are interested in borrowing money to buy stocks and bonds and few lenders are willing to lend them the money. As a result, homeownership allows households to amplify any appreciation on the value of their homes by a leverage factor. Even a hefty 20 percent down payment results in a leverage factor of five so that every percentage point rise in the value of the home is a 5 percent return on their equity. With many buyers putting 10 percent or less down, their leverage factor is 10 or more.”

2.) You're paying for housing whether you own or rent.

“Homeowners pay debt service to pay down their own principal while households that rent pay down the principal of a landlord.”

3.) Owning is usually a form of “forced savings”.

“Since many people have trouble saving and have to make a housing payment one way or the other, owning a home can overcome people’s tendency to defer savings to another day.”

4.) There are substantial tax benefits to owning.

“Homeowners are able to deduct mortgage interest and property taxes from income...On top of all this, capital gains up to $250,000 are excluded from income for single filers and up to $500,000 for married couples if they sell their homes for a gain.”

5.) Owning is a hedge against inflation.

“Housing costs and rents have tended over most time periods to go up at or higher than the rate of inflation, making owning an attractive proposition.”

Bottom Line

We realize that homeownership makes sense for many Americans for an assortment of social and family reasons. It also makes sense financially. If you are considering a purchase this year, contact a local professional who can help evaluate your ability to do so."

If you, or someone you know, is considering making their first or next home purchase - I would love to walk alongside!

~Amy

Source: KCMBlog.com

RE/MAX August 2015 Housing Report!

Hi Friends!

RE/MAX National recently released their monthly Housing Report & I wanted to pass it along.

RE/MAX National Housing Report - August

Though sales in July were about 3.2% lower than those in June, an overall year to year comparison to 2014 shows that sales were up an average of about 11% nationally.  

We're continuing to see an increase in activity even here in our local Salem-Keizer market, even in the face of tight inventory!  

If you, or someone you know, is considering selling their home now is the right time to make their entrance! 

Let me know if you have any questions or how I can best help you accomplish your real estate goals!

~Amy

Amy Receives 2015 "10 Best" Realtor Recognition!

Hi Friends!

I am humbled to have been nominated & selected as one of Oregon's 10 Best Realtors.

Thank you to all of you for being part of this!  Our whole team is truly honored!

Here is a brief video that shares how Realtors are nominated & selected for this recognition:

American Institute of Realtors - 2015 10 Best

From the bottom of our hearts - Thank you!

~Amy

Selling Your Home? Price It Right From the Start!

Hi Friends!

Even with our improving market here in the Salem-Keizer area, pricing a home to sell still requires expertise & knowledge.

I came across this article in my reading recently and thought it shared some great insight on why it's wise to property price your home from the beginning.

Take a look: Selling Your Home? Price It Right From the Start! and let me know your thoughts!

And if you're curious if now is the right time to be selling your home, please don't hesitate to call! I'd love to set up a consultation in my office to connect.

As always - please let me know if you have any questions!

~Amy

Source: KCMBlog.com

Where Will Mortgage Rates Be In 12 Months?

Hi Friends!

With the ever increasing real estate market, Buyers & Sellers alike are paying close attention to any & all factors that will play into a purchase or sale process.

I wanted to share this article with you that shares some insight on where mortgage rates are expected to be by 2nd Quarter of 2016.

"Where Will Mortgage Rates Be in 12 Months?"

Keep in mind that mortgage rates are still historically low - but with the market heating up & rising projections, you won't want to miss your opportunity to take advantage!

As always, let me know if you have any questions!

~Amy

Source: KCMBlog.com

Homeowners: We Need to Sell Your Home Twice!

Hi Friends!

With our ever changing real estate market, it's important to be aware of and manage expectations as you enter a real estate transaction.

Take a look at this article that gives some additional insight on selling a property.

Homeowners: We Need to Sell Your Home Twice

"Every house on the market has to be sold twice; once to a prospective buyer and then to the bank (through the bank’s appraisal). In a housing market where supply is very low and demand is very high, home values increase rapidly. One major challenge in such a market is that bank appraisal. If prices are jumping, it is difficult for appraisers to find adequate comparable sales (similar houses in the neighborhood that closed recently) to defend the price when doing the appraisal for the bank.

With escalating prices, the second sale might be even more difficult than the first. And now, there may be a second issue further complicating the appraisal issue.

The Mortgage News Daily (MND) recently published an article titled Conservative Appraisals Increasingly Mentioned in 2015; Did Something Change?

The article revealed that there was a “flurry” of comments on their website from members expressing concern about…

“…a sudden increase in appraisals reflecting market values well below what had been expected. In some cases the low appraisals had merely required the restructuring of the loan, in others they killed the deal.” 

The National Association of Realtors revealed this month that 8% of the contracts that fell through over the last three months were terminated because of appraisal issues.

MND decided to survey their members and ask why this sudden increase in “short” appraisals could be taking place. Here is one result of that survey:

“Almost everyone we spoke to mentioned Fannie Mae's new Collateral Underwriter (CU).”

Collateral Underwriter provides a risk score on individual appraisals which will lead to a ranking of appraisals by risk profile, allowing lenders to identify appraisals with heightened risk of quality issues, overvaluation, and compliance violations. It went on-line on January 26.

Marianne Sullivan, senior vice president of single-family business capability with Fannie Mae believes that CU is not a problem for appraisers. She claimed:

“From an appraiser perspective, one of the lender's responsibilities has always been to review the quality of an appraiser, and they have been using various methods to do that forever. I don’t think appraisers will find this tool to be disruptive.”

However, some think that CU has caused appraisers to become too cautious with their appraised values. One mortgage professional in the MND article explained it this way:

"My personal opinion is that appraisers are being overly conservative in choosing comps because of CU. If CU questions the comps, adjustments, etc., the appraiser would have to do a lot of extra work to justify them. I had anticipated that CU would cause delays because of this extra work, but it seems that appraisers are one step ahead and are being ultra conservative, thus avoiding the extra work in the first place. I haven't spoken to an appraiser about it; this is just my interpretation of what I am seeing."

Ryan Lundquist, a Certified Residential Appraiser in the Sacramento area, agreed:

“One of the unintended consequences of CU may be more conservative appraisals.”

Bottom Line

We must realize that, in today’s housing market, every house must be sold twice and the second sale (to the bank’s appraiser) could be the more difficult one."

As always, let me know if you have any questions or if I can help in any way!

~Amy

Source: KCMBlog.com

NAR'S Existing Home Sales Report

Hi Friends,

I wanted to make sure I shared this info graphic with you from information shared by the National Association of Realtors regarding existing home sales.

 

If you, or someone you know, is considering getting in to this market - either as a seller or buyer - there are very significant factors to be mindful of to get you to your goal as efficiently as possible.

Please let me know if you have any questions, or if our team can be of any help to you!

~Amy

Source: KCMBlog.com