CINCY 1ST TIME HOME BUYERS

5 ways to help your agent find your dream home | Inman News

2012-09-12T13:28:00.001-04:00

5 ways to help your agent find your dream home | Inman News

All very true and very valid points!

How 1 point change in Interest Rates Effects Buying Power

2012-07-31T13:17:00.001-04:00

With interest rates being so low lately, some may wonder how exactly does that effect my purchasing power. This new chart does a great job showing that exactly.

Interest rates are hovering right around 3.5%...let me know if you have any questions!

Pre-Approved Vs Pre-Qualified

2012-06-04T15:59:00.001-04:00

The difference between the two is often brought up when I'm working with buyers. It is quite important to know this difference also.

Pre-Qualified

Simple and somewhat quick
Provide bank with general financial outlook (income, debts, etc)
Can be done over the phone/internet
Usually free of charge, and doesn't create commitment with any lender
DOES NOT pull credit

Pre-Approved

Much more involved (actual filling out of mortgage application, paying small mortgage app fee)
Credit pulled, more specific docs needed for loan officer
Lender can tell you specific amount of mortgage you can actually afford
Shows the seller you are fully committed to obtaining a mortgage, will have better negotiations than someone who is just pre-qualified

Pre-Quals are great if you are just starting to look, it helps yourself and your Realtor know what price ranges you can start to look in. Also, before you could even submit an offer on a home, at least a Pre-Qual would be needed for any seller to take you seriously. Let me know if you have any questions!

Home Inventory Down, Prices are Stabilizing

2012-04-20T13:37:00.000-04:00

http://www.realtor.org/news-releases/2012/04/existing-home-sales-decline-in-march-but-inventory-down-prices-stabilizing

The recovery is happening though not at a breakout pace, but we have seen nine consecutive months of year-over-year sales increases
Listed inventory is 21.8 percent below a year ago and well below the record of 4.04 million in July 2007.
The national median existing-home price³ for all housing types was $163,800 in March, up 2.5 percent from March 2011
Foreclosures typically sold for an average 19 percent below market price in March, while short sales were discounted 16 percent.
First-time buyers accounted for 33 percent of transactions in March

Thinking of Remodeling? These projects have the most return on value!

2012-03-26T11:48:00.000-04:00

According to the report, seven of the top 10 most cost-effective projects — nationally, in terms of value recouped — are exterior replacement projects. It deemed fiber-cement siding replacement as the project expected to return the most value, with an estimated 78 percent of costs recouped upon resale.

Vinyl siding projects were expected to return more than 69 percent of costs.
Steel entry door replacement was the least expensive project in the report, costing little more than $1,200 on average, and was expected to recoup 73 percent of costs.
Garage door replacements have seen prices fall more than 15 percent nationally and can be expected to return more than 71 percent of the cost.
A “midrange attic bedroom” is expected to return 72.5 percent of costs upon resale, in part because it is “the least expensive way to add a bedroom and bathroom within a home’s existing footprint.”
A minor kitchen remodel (budgeted at roughly $20,000) is expected to recoup 72.1 percent of costs.
A wood deck addition is expected to make back 70.1 percent of its price tag.
Among the least cost-returning projects are a sunroom addition and home office remodeling, both estimated to recoup less than 46 percent of what they cost.

Source: http://www.zillow.com/blog/2012-03-07/beware-of-value-killing-home-renovations/

$4,000 of Free Money

2012-02-17T12:11:00.000-05:00

Thinking about buying a home soon? If you could receive an extra $4,000 towards closing costs or down payment would that help? Please read the sheet below and let me know if you have any other questions, it's an awesome opportunity!

Want a Date? Buy a Home :)

2012-02-14T15:13:00.000-05:00

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- When it comes to dating, homeownership can be the ultimate aphrodisiac.

In a survey of 1,000 single people, more than a third of women and 18% of men said they would much rather date a homeowner than a renter.

Only 2% of women said they preferred to date a man who rents, while only 3% of men said they would choose a woman who rents over one that owns her home, according to the survey, which was conducted by Harris Interactive for real estate site Trulia.

Both sexes also clearly prefer it when there's no roommate in the picture; 62% of survey respondents, men and women, prefer to date singles who live alone.

I'm home! Adult children move back in with parents

And there was bad news for the growing number of boomerang kids -- the young adults who went off to college, graduated and then wound up back in their old bedrooms. It's going to be hard to find love, except (perhaps) from your parents. Less than 5% of all singles surveyed said they would date someone living in their childhood homes.

"That's a real deal-breaker," said Michael Corbett, a spokesman for Trulia. "If you're still living with your folks, you're dead-on-arrival for dating."

The home they could love

Trulia also asked which home features are the biggest turn-ons. Number one turned out to be a master bath. Men (64%) love that private sanctum almost as much as women (75%) do.

Walk-in closets were cited by 55% of men and 72% of women and gourmet kitchens got 51% of the male vote and 62% of the female. Hardwood floors, outdoor decks and home theaters also came in high on the list.

Interestingly enough, hot tubs got a lot less love from respondents. Only 26% of men and 22% of women cited the old standby in the science of seduction as an amenity they would truly want.

Those brass light fixtures send a message to buyers: C-H-E-A-P

2012-02-07T12:04:00.000-05:00

Those brass light fixtures send a message to buyers: C-H-E-A-P

Changing out your hardware could make a world of a difference in your home! Even if you aren't looking to sell and would like to do some cost-effective updating, look to get rid of the brass.

5 tips for Buying in 2012

2012-01-17T15:11:00.000-05:00

Lowe's Inside Out Home Improvement Tips | Produced by Inman News

Click the link to read a great article. I took the best chunk from of it and you can read it below:

HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Some buyers who can afford to buy today and would like to take advantage of low interest rates are holding back due to fear. There is risk involved in buying a home in today's market; prices could move lower before they improve. There is also risk if you want and need to buy and you postpone it.

We are living in unprecedented times. Home prices have dropped more during the recent recession than they did during the Great Depression. Even though another recession might be in the near future, at some point the housing market will improve.

New-home construction has been virtually nonexistent for years. When the foreclosure inventory that has overshadowed the home-sale market diminishes and the job market improves, the housing market will pick up. In areas with a shortage of inventory, home prices are likely to move upward. This is already happening in areas with significant job growth.

For some buyers, it's a good time to buy. Let's say you've outgrown your current home and need a better school district. If you can sell or rent your small home and qualify to buy a bigger house in a better location that will last you for decades, you could buy at a discount.

If you have any further questions shoot me an email at Lukeg@comey.com or hit me up on Facebook!

Thinking about buying in 2012?

2011-12-29T12:53:00.000-05:00

Found a great video making very valid points on why purchasing a home in 2012 could be a great opportunity.

Video Link

Sorry for the lack of posts, I recently bought my own place and it has been crazy the past month or so trying to get closed, moved in, and settled!

Best of luck and happy new year!

Leasing

2011-10-27T13:18:00.000-04:00

I know a good amount of my friends are currently leasing homes/condos/apartments. This makes sense for a lot of reasons, mainly, it gives you the freedom to move on after a year or whatever the negotiated length of time is.
HOWEVER, I think it is vital to pay attention to what kind of contract you getting yourself into.

Here are a few things you may not be aware of.

Leases:

Can be an oral agreement
If landlord collects more than 1 month rent for security deposit, they must deposit the extra amount (beyond what a month costs) into a separate interest bearing account and pay the lessee (you) the interest
Landlord cannot retaliate, increase rent, decrease services, bring or threaten action for possession if Tenant:
1. Complains to the government
2. Complains of Landlord obligations stated in ORC Section 5321.04 (Ohio Revised Code..see below)
3. Joins with other tenants in collective negotiations
NOTE: The landlord can increase rent for improvement costs or increased operating costs

Landlord Obligations ORC 5321.04

Comply with Codes of health, building, housing & safety
Repair to make "fit and habitable"
Make common areas safe and sanitary
Systems must be safe and working, electric, plumbing, heat, etc
If 4 or more units, provide receptacles for garbage and arrange for removal
Supply running water, reasonable amounts of hot water and heat
Not abuse access rights

If you have any questions about leasing let me know. I have handle a lot of leases this year as it is becoming quite popular with people who can't afford a home. The most important thing is being in a strong contract, I've seen people get screwed because their landlord has a contract that they (landlord) bought at Staples. The Cincinnati Area Board of Realtors has a very strong contract I use.

If you are currently looking for a place to lease, let me know, I CAN HELP, and best thing is it costs you NOTHING!

Credit Myths Busted

2011-10-24T11:15:00.000-04:00

Buying vs Renting

2011-09-16T13:13:00.001-04:00

My amazing manager at Comey sent out a great email last night pertaining to renting vs buying:

KAREN'S TIP: The Buying Tipping Point

I’ve been saying it for 3.5 years…it is an incredible time to buy…today is even more reason… Rate on 30-year mortgage falls to record 4.09 percent…lowest rate since 1951 when

Average Cost Of New House.... $9.000

Average Wages Per Year.......... $3,510

Cost Of A Gallon Of Gas.......... 19 Cents

Average Cost Of A New Car...... $1,500

Loaf Of Bread.......................... 16 Cents

LB Of Hamburger Meat............. 50 Cents

Bacon Per LB........................... 52 Cents

Eggs Per Dozen....................... 24 Cents

The average cost of a home today in the Greater Cincinnati area? $167,925 What does this mean to a prospective buyer who is currently renting? The GinnieMae Buying vs. Renting calculator says…

INTERESTING INDEED

Let me know if I can help you in anyway!

Getting Mortgage May Never be the Same

2011-08-30T14:33:00.000-04:00

Cincinnati Enquirer Mortgage Article

Future home buyers would have to put 20 percent down to get the best home loans. Eligible borrowers could owe only a minimum amount of other debt
Potentially hardest hit: First-time buyers with little cash and current owners whose home values have fallen, depleting the equity they might have built up
Under the proposed new rules, the best mortgages would be reserved for buyers who make 20 percent down payments and whose overall debt is less than 36 percent of gross income
In Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, families would need up to 10 years to save the $25,200 needed for a $126,000 home, the local median price
One exception to the new proposed rules would be loans guaranteed by the federal government, including those insured by Federal Housing Administration (FHA). They would continue to operate as today, exempt from the extra costs.

Mortgage Rates Plunging

2011-08-04T12:11:00.000-04:00

http://money.cnn.com/2011/08/03/real_estate/mortgage_rates_freefall/index.htm

There is a huge advantage of buying right now with such low rates and housing prices dipping as low as 30%!!!

Secrets to getting a mortgage with so-so credit

2011-07-06T15:33:00.001-04:00

http://money.cnn.com/2011/07/05/real_estate/mortgage_underwriting/index.htm

Key Points:

A good credit score. Borrowers usually need a minimum credit score of 620.
Enough income to afford payments. The general rule of thumb: no more than 28% of your gross income should go toward housing costs.
A loan-to-value ratio of 80%. Lenders want the home value to far exceed the mortgage balance because if a borrower defaults, the bank sells the home to recoup the loss.
The ability to make a 20% down payment, plus closing costs.
FHA loans require 580 score for 3.5% down and 500 for 10% down

To Own Or Not To Own

2011-05-11T10:30:00.001-04:00

Not sure if you are ready to purchase that home yet? Thinking about renting for just one more year? Plug some numbers into this calculator and see what you come up with. I would suggest doing an interest rate of around 5.3% and 10% down. Now you could go FHA financing and do 3.5% down, but you will also have to then pay monthly PMI on your loan, which can't be calculated with this calculator.

Own Vs Rent Calculator

Enjoy

Mortgage denied: Sometimes, for no good reason

2011-04-27T11:13:00.000-04:00

Found this article today and thought it was quite interesting.

"A quarter of all mortgage loan applicants get denied for loans, according to the Federal Reserve. Many other potential homebuyers never even try to get loans, said Jerry Howard, president of the National Association of Home Builders."

http://money.cnn.com/2011/04/19/real_estate/low_risk_mortgage_denied/index.htm

Key points from the article.....Why you could be denied a mortgage

Your debt is too high - If someone's total debt payments exceed 45% of income, the mortgage will be denied. In 2009, the limit was 55%.
The wait after foreclosure is extended to seven years from five-Despite high credit scores, ample assets and income and steady employment, lenders are not allowed to finance their Fannie/Freddie mortgages if their foreclosures happened any time within the past seven years.
Missed payments on credit card debt-They used to be okay with a missed payment or two. Now, one missed payment will hit your debt-to-income ratio, because banks will add 5% of your outstanding loan balance to the debt part of the calculation.

Closing costs..what are they and how much will they cost you

2011-04-05T14:37:00.000-04:00

When shopping for a new mortgage, you will have to pay a random assortment a fees called "closing costs". Every lender varies in how many fees and the price of them, so it is good to ask around before committing to one lender.

Fee-ed Up?
Here are just some of the costs of closing on a mortgage.

	Fee		Average cost*
	Application		$272
	Appraisal		$310
	Credit report		$28
	Document preparation		$206
	Processing		$288
	Recording		$86
	Underwriting		$236

*Based on a $100,000 loan. Not every lender surveyed charges all of these fees.

Source: HSH Associates December 2003 survey of lenders

So besides paying for a home inspection and down payment, these fees will be expected to be paid at the time of closing also!

Article: http://money.cnn.com/2004/03/22/pf/yourhome/closingcosts/index.htm

New Comey & Shepherd Lifestyle Search

2011-03-10T14:39:00.000-05:00

Link: http://www.comey.com/spatialframeset.asw

Here is a new way you can search for your new home. Comey & Shepherd have designed a webpage that allows you to look at a map and use sliders based on certain requirements (beds,baths, keywords, etc) and it will show you what is available on the market. You can also see what has recently sold. Here is a picture of what the screen looks like:

Let me know if you got any questions!

Its Not all Doom and Gloom

2011-03-07T15:18:00.001-05:00

Found this article and thought I would share. On average, still 50 homes a day are closing in the Cincinnati area!

Home sales inching up:

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Sales of existing homes recorded modest gains in January, the third straight month of month-over-month increases.

According to the National Association of Realtors, homes sold at an annual rate of 5.36 million in January, up 2.7% from December and 5.3% higher than January 2010 sales. At the same time, the median home price fell 3% to $158,000, compared to a year earlier.

It was the first time in seven months that the monthly sales total was higher than the year before.

"The up trend in home sales is consistent with improvements in the economy and jobs," said Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist.

The report was slightly stronger than expected. A consensus of experts surveyed by Briefing.com had expected sales to hit 5.23 million.

Yun pointed out that home sales have benefited from unusually favorable conditions: Mortgage rates are still very low; there's a large supply of homes to choose from; and home prices have fallen to near post-housing bust lows.

One factor holding buyers back is the still tight mortgage lending.

"Buyers have been constrained by unnecessarily tight credit," said Yun. "As a result, there are abnormally high levels of all-cash purchases, along with rising investor activity."

Interest Rates on the Riiiiiiiiiise

2011-01-28T17:27:00.001-05:00

Read a great article on Realtor.com today discussing interest rates thus far this year in 2011. They are no longer dropping, something to consider!

Mortgage Rates Continue to Climb
Mortgage rates are continuing their gradual climb upwards after reaching record lows. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 4.8 percent from 4.74 percent the previous week, Freddie Mac reports. The average on 15-year mortgage rates also rose slightly from 4.05 percent to 4.09 percent for the week.

In November, 30-year loans had reached a 40-year low at 4.17 percent and the 15-year mortgage rate was at 3.57 percent.

The average on the five-year adjustable-rate mortgages this week increased to 3.7 percent from 3.69 percent the previous week.

Meanwhile, the Mortgage Bankers Association says it expects mortgage lending to drop considerably in 2011, due to high unemployment, borrowers’ diminished credit coming out of the recession, and more lenders not willing to take on a high risk.

MBA says it expects new loans this year to decrease by 36 percent to its lowest level in more than a decade, falling to $966 billion in 2011 from $1.5 trillion this year.

Earlier in the week, MBA reported a drop in mortgage applications to the slowest refinancing activity in more than a year. Mortgage applications dropped 12.9 percent in the week ended Jan. 21, according to MBA’s seasonally adjusted index.

The index dropped 15.3 percent, which is the lowest level since January 2010. Refinancing activity has continued to decline since October from rising interest rates and tighter underwriting standards.

Source:http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2011012802?OpenDocument

Rent vs Buying in Cincinnati

2011-01-11T15:56:00.001-05:00

People will always ask, am I better off renting or actually buying? The true answer to that question is that it depends on what market you are in. Every city/state has a different housing market. That being said, in Cincinnati it is a great time to be buying.

Moody's Analytics, price-rent ratio for third quarter of 2010 is located below. As a general rule of thumb, you should often buy when the ratio is below 15 and rent when it's above 20. If it's between 15 and 20, lean toward renting.

Location	Price-Rent Ratio
Atlanta, GA	12.82
Austin, TX	21.08
Boston, MA	17.71
Baltimore, MD	17.42
Charlotte, NC	25.98
Chicago, IL	15.09
Cincinatti, OH	13.74
Cleveland, OH	11.43
Columbus, OH	15.61
Dallas - Fort Worth, TX	16.98
Denver, CO	22.08
Detroit, MI	12.32
East Bay, CA	35.06
Fort Lauderdale, FL	15.19
Hartford, CT	18.52
Honolulu, HI	34.72
Houston, TX	16.01
Indianapolis, IN	14.68
Inland Empire, CA	14.75
Jacksonville, CA	15.12
Kansas City, KS	14.4
Las Vegas, NV	13.89
Long Island, NY	21.09
Los Angeles, CA	14.99
Memphis, TN	17.92
Miami, FL	14.57
Milwaukee, WI	22.36
Minneapolis, MN	14.04
Nashville, TN	23.88
New Orleans, LA	15.66
New York, NY	15.43
Norfolk, VA	19.88
North - Central New Jersey	24.69
Oklahoma City, OK	16.11
Orange County, CA	27.14
Orlando, FL	13.1
Palm Beach County, FL	16.64
Philadelphia, PA	15.94
Phoenix, AZ	12.35
Pittsburg, PA	11.71
Portland, OR	25.74
Raleigh, NC	24.39
Richmond, VA	22.18
Sacramento, CA	15.85
Salt Lake City, UT	18.05
San Antonio, TX	17.77
San Diego, CA	21.75
San Francisco, CA	27.17
San Jose, CA	32.27
Seattle, WA	26.96
Bridgeport, CT	18.49
St. Louis, MO	14.04
Tampa, FL	13.08
Washington - Northern Virginia - Maryland	18.48
Manhattan, NY	28.34
Metropolitan Area Average	14.85
U.S.	10.42

Be glad you aren't living in San Jose! Let me know if you have any further questions about this. If you do find yourself having to rent for another year though, I can help you with that also!

Is this the year?

2011-01-03T12:34:00.001-05:00

Thinking about taking the big step this year into homeownership? Here is a nifty chart one of my loan officer at Bank of America created. Let me know if you got any questions, my loan officer is also offering $500 dollar off closing costs also if you use myself or mom in a transaction!

Best of luck in 2011!!!!! If you click on the chart you can zoom in more, sorry it's so small on here!

Relocating? I Can Help!!!

2010-12-02T11:55:00.000-05:00

As you all may know, I am currently working for Comey & Shepherd Realtors. Therefore, I have a real estate license for the state of Ohio, but I will only work Cincinnati because I know this area. However, my company is part of an amazing relocation network. This network is aptly named "Leading Real Estate Companies of the World" (Leading RE in the graph below).

So basically, if you or someone you know is either:
A. Coming to Cincinnati
B. Leaving Cincinnati
C. Neither but needs help relocating from (insert any city) to (insert any city)

I can help them, free of charge and no obligations. I would receive a tip fee from the actual agent who we set them up with, but that comes out of the agent's pocket (for giving them the lead) and not the client's. Here is a chart to show what my company has done in the past year.

Let me know if you have any questions!