Category: Uncategorized

81 Percent of First-time Homebuyers Made a Downpayment of Less than 20 Percent

More first-time homebuyers avail of a low downpayment loan compared to all homebuyers, according to the December 2016 REALTORS^® Confidence Index Survey Report, a monthly survey of REALTORS® about their sales activity and local market conditions.[1] Among first-time homebuyers who obtained a mortgage and whose transactions closed in October—December 2016, 81 percent made a downpayment of less than 20 percent.[2] In comparison, 62 percent of all buyers who obtained a mortgage and whose transaction closed in December 2016 made a downpayment of less than 20 percent.

The Federal Housing Authority (FHA) and the Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) have implemented policies to make credit more widely available for first-time buyers. In January 2015, the Federal Housing Authority reduced the annual mortgage insurance premium by 0.5 percentage points ( from 1.35 percent to 0.85 percent).  In 2015, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac also accepted mortgages with three percent downpayment.

However, the impact of these measures in attracting first-time homebuyers appears to be modest for a variety of reasons. Lack of information about low downpayment products may be one reason. In fact, NAR’s 2016 Q3 Housing Opportunities and Market Experience (HOME) Survey found that only 13 percent of those aged 34 or under believe they need a downpayment of five percent or less.[3] Additionally, although low downpayment loans are available, some buyers may want to save for a bigger downpayment to meet underwriting standards (e.g., debt-to-income ratios, loan-to-value ratios), save on mortgage insurance, or get a lower interest rate.

How To Save For A Down Payment On A House And Still Live Your Best Life — Money Matters — Trulia Blog

Follow these three easy steps to meet your financial goals while still enjoying each day to the fullest.

Having a full down payment ready to go can help you get the mortgage you want, secure a better interest rate, make your offer on a property more appealing to sellers, and avoid private mortgage insurance (PMI) costs. But there’s just one problem: Saving for a down payment can feel like an impossible goal, since 20% of the typical home’s purchase price is a large sum of money!

Don’t let panic set in. Recognize you have lots of options to save up the cash you need to buy that home for sale in Houston, TX. After all, your home-buying goal is just one part of your life. Sacrificing the quality of your days in every other area just to funnel as much cash as possible to this single financial goal isn’t sustainable. So, instead of going to extremes, look at small actions that carry a big impact. Think of saving for your down payment as a marathon, not a sprint — and you’ll find you can work toward your goal and still enjoy the life you’re living by using these tips.

1. Cut back expenses without cutting out services

Cutting costs is the obvious place to start when you want to save for a down payment. When you eliminate an expense, you can move that money over to your savings. Look at the costs in your budget you know you wouldn’t miss — and cut them today. This may not account for much, and that’s OK. You don’t need to cancel every subscription and service to save.

Next, look at what bills you’re not willing to give up. Then call those providers and explain you can no longer afford to pay your current rate. Ask what the options are. Can they provide discounts? Rate reductions? Is there another service tier with fewer bells and whistles that still covers your needs but costs less?

If that doesn’t work, start shopping around for better rates. Can you switch cellphone carriers or insurance companies? Will another service provider give you a discount or incentive to leave their competitor and become a new customer?

2. Match your savings to your discretionary spending

This savings hack can help you inch toward your goal while also helping you spend mindfully. Here’s how it works: Every time you go shopping or spend money on something you want, look at the total amount of your purchase. Then transfer the same amount from your checking to your savings.

For every discretionary purchase you make — which means things you buy because you want them but don’t need them — make a matching contribution to your down payment savings fund. This effectively doubles your purchase price since double the amount leaves your checking account.

What’s the point? This trick forces you to use and think about your money differently and prioritize your spending in a new way. If you have less cash to use (since you contributed more to savings), you’ll need to make more conscientious choices about what’s really important to you.

3. Change your home-buying timeline

Saving for a $50,000 down payment in one year is a lot harder than saving $50,000 over three years. If you want to buy a home but enjoying life today is still essential, play with your timeline. There’s no rule that you have to buy a house right now. It’s about what’s important to you. If you can think more long term, you can accomplish your savings goal and live your best life while you do it.

Here’s an easy way to figure out what your savings goal deadline should be. Look at how much money you need to save for a down payment. Let’s say your goal is to save that aforementioned $50,000 in cash for a new house. Now look at how much money you’re willing to save each month without doing anything too drastic to your budget.

Take your goal amount and divide it by the amount you can save each month. If you can save $1,000 per month and want to reach $50,000, it will take you 50 months to do so (or a little over four years).

There are many tactics you can apply to boost this monthly amount, like investing your cash instead of putting it in a savings account. (This does come with risk, and it’s possible you could lose money instead of earning a return. Talk to a financial adviser to help you evaluate your investment options.) You can also cut expenses more dramatically to save more.

But if you’re interested in maintaining your current lifestyle without making huge sacrifices or major changes, consider these actions. You can still save for your down payment and enjoy your life today.

– See more at: https://www.trulia.com/blog/save-for-down-payment-on-house-and-still-live-best-life/?cid=soc|twitter|evergreen|truliablog_bmkt&linkId=31469508#sthash.11xZr4dG.dpuf

1. Cut back expenses without cutting out services

Cutting costs is the obvious place to start when you want to save for a down payment. When you eliminate an expense, you can move that money over to your savings. Look at the costs in your budget you know you wouldn’t miss — and cut them today. This may not account for much, and that’s OK. You don’t need to cancel every subscription and service to save.

Next, look at what bills you’re not willing to give up. Then call those providers and explain you can no longer afford to pay your current rate. Ask what the options are. Can they provide discounts? Rate reductions? Is there another service tier with fewer bells and whistles that still covers your needs but costs less?

If that doesn’t work, start shopping around for better rates. Can you switch cellphone carriers or insurance companies? Will another service provider give you a discount or incentive to leave their competitor and become a new customer?

2. Match your savings to your discretionary spending

This savings hack can help you inch toward your goal while also helping you spend mindfully. Here’s how it works: Every time you go shopping or spend money on something you want, look at the total amount of your purchase. Then transfer the same amount from your checking to your savings.

For every discretionary purchase you make — which means things you buy because you want them but don’t need them — make a matching contribution to your down payment savings fund. This effectively doubles your purchase price since double the amount leaves your checking account.

What’s the point? This trick forces you to use and think about your money differently and prioritize your spending in a new way. If you have less cash to use (since you contributed more to savings), you’ll need to make more conscientious choices about what’s really important to you.

3. Change your home-buying timeline

Saving for a $50,000 down payment in one year is a lot harder than saving $50,000 over three years. If you want to buy a home but enjoying life today is still essential, play with your timeline. There’s no rule that you have to buy a house right now. It’s about what’s important to you. If you can think more long term, you can accomplish your savings goal and live your best life while you do it.

Here’s an easy way to figure out what your savings goal deadline should be. Look at how much money you need to save for a down payment. Let’s say your goal is to save that aforementioned $50,000 in cash for a new house. Now look at how much money you’re willing to save each month without doing anything too drastic to your budget.

Take your goal amount and divide it by the amount you can save each month. If you can save $1,000 per month and want to reach $50,000, it will take you 50 months to do so (or a little over four years).

There are many tactics you can apply to boost this monthly amount, like investing your cash instead of putting it in a savings account. (This does come with risk, and it’s possible you could lose money instead of earning a return. Talk to a financial adviser to help you evaluate your investment options.) You can also cut expenses more dramatically to save more.

But if you’re interested in maintaining your current lifestyle without making huge sacrifices or major changes, consider these actions. You can still save for your down payment and enjoy your life today.

– See more at: https://www.trulia.com/blog/save-for-down-payment-on-house-and-still-live-best-life/?cid=soc|twitter|evergreen|truliablog_bmkt&linkId=31469508#sthash.11xZr4dG.dpuf

1. Cut back expenses without cutting out services

Cutting costs is the obvious place to start when you want to save for a down payment. When you eliminate an expense, you can move that money over to your savings. Look at the costs in your budget you know you wouldn’t miss — and cut them today. This may not account for much, and that’s OK. You don’t need to cancel every subscription and service to save.

Next, look at what bills you’re not willing to give up. Then call those providers and explain you can no longer afford to pay your current rate. Ask what the options are. Can they provide discounts? Rate reductions? Is there another service tier with fewer bells and whistles that still covers your needs but costs less?

If that doesn’t work, start shopping around for better rates. Can you switch cellphone carriers or insurance companies? Will another service provider give you a discount or incentive to leave their competitor and become a new customer?

2. Match your savings to your discretionary spending

This savings hack can help you inch toward your goal while also helping you spend mindfully. Here’s how it works: Every time you go shopping or spend money on something you want, look at the total amount of your purchase. Then transfer the same amount from your checking to your savings.

For every discretionary purchase you make — which means things you buy because you want them but don’t need them — make a matching contribution to your down payment savings fund. This effectively doubles your purchase price since double the amount leaves your checking account.

What’s the point? This trick forces you to use and think about your money differently and prioritize your spending in a new way. If you have less cash to use (since you contributed more to savings), you’ll need to make more conscientious choices about what’s really important to you.

3. Change your home-buying timeline

Saving for a $50,000 down payment in one year is a lot harder than saving $50,000 over three years. If you want to buy a home but enjoying life today is still essential, play with your timeline. There’s no rule that you have to buy a house right now. It’s about what’s important to you. If you can think more long term, you can accomplish your savings goal and live your best life while you do it.

Here’s an easy way to figure out what your savings goal deadline should be. Look at how much money you need to save for a down payment. Let’s say your goal is to save that aforementioned $50,000 in cash for a new house. Now look at how much money you’re willing to save each month without doing anything too drastic to your budget.

Take your goal amount and divide it by the amount you can save each month. If you can save $1,000 per month and want to reach $50,000, it will take you 50 months to do so (or a little over four years).

There are many tactics you can apply to boost this monthly amount, like investing your cash instead of putting it in a savings account. (This does come with risk, and it’s possible you could lose money instead of earning a return. Talk to a financial adviser to help you evaluate your investment options.) You can also cut expenses more dramatically to save more.

But if you’re interested in maintaining your current lifestyle without making huge sacrifices or major changes, consider these actions. You can still save for your down payment and enjoy your life today.

– See more at: https://www.trulia.com/blog/save-for-down-payment-on-house-and-still-live-best-life/?cid=soc|twitter|evergreen|truliablog_bmkt&linkId=31469508#sthash.11xZr4dG.dpuf

1. Cut back expenses without cutting out services

Cutting costs is the obvious place to start when you want to save for a down payment. When you eliminate an expense, you can move that money over to your savings. Look at the costs in your budget you know you wouldn’t miss — and cut them today. This may not account for much, and that’s OK. You don’t need to cancel every subscription and service to save.

Next, look at what bills you’re not willing to give up. Then call those providers and explain you can no longer afford to pay your current rate. Ask what the options are. Can they provide discounts? Rate reductions? Is there another service tier with fewer bells and whistles that still covers your needs but costs less?

If that doesn’t work, start shopping around for better rates. Can you switch cellphone carriers or insurance companies? Will another service provider give you a discount or incentive to leave their competitor and become a new customer?

2. Match your savings to your discretionary spending

This savings hack can help you inch toward your goal while also helping you spend mindfully. Here’s how it works: Every time you go shopping or spend money on something you want, look at the total amount of your purchase. Then transfer the same amount from your checking to your savings.

For every discretionary purchase you make — which means things you buy because you want them but don’t need them — make a matching contribution to your down payment savings fund. This effectively doubles your purchase price since double the amount leaves your checking account.

What’s the point? This trick forces you to use and think about your money differently and prioritize your spending in a new way. If you have less cash to use (since you contributed more to savings), you’ll need to make more conscientious choices about what’s really important to you.

3. Change your home-buying timeline

Saving for a $50,000 down payment in one year is a lot harder than saving $50,000 over three years. If you want to buy a home but enjoying life today is still essential, play with your timeline. There’s no rule that you have to buy a house right now. It’s about what’s important to you. If you can think more long term, you can accomplish your savings goal and live your best life while you do it.

Here’s an easy way to figure out what your savings goal deadline should be. Look at how much money you need to save for a down payment. Let’s say your goal is to save that aforementioned $50,000 in cash for a new house. Now look at how much money you’re willing to save each month without doing anything too drastic to your budget.

Take your goal amount and divide it by the amount you can save each month. If you can save $1,000 per month and want to reach $50,000, it will take you 50 months to do so (or a little over four years).

There are many tactics you can apply to boost this monthly amount, like investing your cash instead of putting it in a savings account. (This does come with risk, and it’s possible you could lose money instead of earning a return. Talk to a financial adviser to help you evaluate your investment options.) You can also cut expenses more dramatically to save more.

But if you’re interested in maintaining your current lifestyle without making huge sacrifices or major changes, consider these actions. You can still save for your down payment and enjoy your life today.

– See more at: https://www.trulia.com/blog/save-for-down-payment-on-house-and-still-live-best-life/?cid=soc|twitter|evergreen|truliablog_bmkt&linkId=31469508#sthash.11xZr4dG.dpuf

1. Cut back expenses without cutting out services

Cutting costs is the obvious place to start when you want to save for a down payment. When you eliminate an expense, you can move that money over to your savings. Look at the costs in your budget you know you wouldn’t miss — and cut them today. This may not account for much, and that’s OK. You don’t need to cancel every subscription and service to save.

Next, look at what bills you’re not willing to give up. Then call those providers and explain you can no longer afford to pay your current rate. Ask what the options are. Can they provide discounts? Rate reductions? Is there another service tier with fewer bells and whistles that still covers your needs but costs less?

If that doesn’t work, start shopping around for better rates. Can you switch cellphone carriers or insurance companies? Will another service provider give you a discount or incentive to leave their competitor and become a new customer?

2. Match your savings to your discretionary spending

This savings hack can help you inch toward your goal while also helping you spend mindfully. Here’s how it works: Every time you go shopping or spend money on something you want, look at the total amount of your purchase. Then transfer the same amount from your checking to your savings.

For every discretionary purchase you make — which means things you buy because you want them but don’t need them — make a matching contribution to your down payment savings fund. This effectively doubles your purchase price since double the amount leaves your checking account.

What’s the point? This trick forces you to use and think about your money differently and prioritize your spending in a new way. If you have less cash to use (since you contributed more to savings), you’ll need to make more conscientious choices about what’s really important to you.

3. Change your home-buying timeline

Saving for a $50,000 down payment in one year is a lot harder than saving $50,000 over three years. If you want to buy a home but enjoying life today is still essential, play with your timeline. There’s no rule that you have to buy a house right now. It’s about what’s important to you. If you can think more long term, you can accomplish your savings goal and live your best life while you do it.

Here’s an easy way to figure out what your savings goal deadline should be. Look at how much money you need to save for a down payment. Let’s say your goal is to save that aforementioned $50,000 in cash for a new house. Now look at how much money you’re willing to save each month without doing anything too drastic to your budget.

Take your goal amount and divide it by the amount you can save each month. If you can save $1,000 per month and want to reach $50,000, it will take you 50 months to do so (or a little over four years).

There are many tactics you can apply to boost this monthly amount, like investing your cash instead of putting it in a savings account. (This does come with risk, and it’s possible you could lose money instead of earning a return. Talk to a financial adviser to help you evaluate your investment options.) You can also cut expenses more dramatically to save more.

But if you’re interested in maintaining your current lifestyle without making huge sacrifices or major changes, consider these actions. You can still save for your down payment and enjoy your life today.

– See more at: https://www.trulia.com/blog/save-for-down-payment-on-house-and-still-live-best-life/?cid=soc|twitter|evergreen|truliablog_bmkt&linkId=31469508#sthash.11xZr4dG.dpuf

1. Cut back expenses without cutting out services

Cutting costs is the obvious place to start when you want to save for a down payment. When you eliminate an expense, you can move that money over to your savings. Look at the costs in your budget you know you wouldn’t miss — and cut them today. This may not account for much, and that’s OK. You don’t need to cancel every subscription and service to save.

Next, look at what bills you’re not willing to give up. Then call those providers and explain you can no longer afford to pay your current rate. Ask what the options are. Can they provide discounts? Rate reductions? Is there another service tier with fewer bells and whistles that still covers your needs but costs less?

If that doesn’t work, start shopping around for better rates. Can you switch cellphone carriers or insurance companies? Will another service provider give you a discount or incentive to leave their competitor and become a new customer?

2. Match your savings to your discretionary spending

This savings hack can help you inch toward your goal while also helping you spend mindfully. Here’s how it works: Every time you go shopping or spend money on something you want, look at the total amount of your purchase. Then transfer the same amount from your checking to your savings.

For every discretionary purchase you make — which means things you buy because you want them but don’t need them — make a matching contribution to your down payment savings fund. This effectively doubles your purchase price since double the amount leaves your checking account.

What’s the point? This trick forces you to use and think about your money differently and prioritize your spending in a new way. If you have less cash to use (since you contributed more to savings), you’ll need to make more conscientious choices about what’s really important to you.

3. Change your home-buying timeline

Saving for a $50,000 down payment in one year is a lot harder than saving $50,000 over three years. If you want to buy a home but enjoying life today is still essential, play with your timeline. There’s no rule that you have to buy a house right now. It’s about what’s important to you. If you can think more long term, you can accomplish your savings goal and live your best life while you do it.

Here’s an easy way to figure out what your savings goal deadline should be. Look at how much money you need to save for a down payment. Let’s say your goal is to save that aforementioned $50,000 in cash for a new house. Now look at how much money you’re willing to save each month without doing anything too drastic to your budget.

Take your goal amount and divide it by the amount you can save each month. If you can save $1,000 per month and want to reach $50,000, it will take you 50 months to do so (or a little over four years).

There are many tactics you can apply to boost this monthly amount, like investing your cash instead of putting it in a savings account. (This does come with risk, and it’s possible you could lose money instead of earning a return. Talk to a financial adviser to help you evaluate your investment options.) You can also cut expenses more dramatically to save more.

But if you’re interested in maintaining your current lifestyle without making huge sacrifices or major changes, consider these actions. You can still save for your down payment and enjoy your life today.

– See more at: https://www.trulia.com/blog/save-for-down-payment-on-house-and-still-live-best-life/?cid=soc|twitter|evergreen|truliablog_bmkt&linkId=31469508#sthash.11xZr4dG.dpuf

 

 

1. Cut back expenses without cutting out services

Cutting costs is the obvious place to start when you want to save for a down payment. When you eliminate an expense, you can move that money over to your savings. Look at the costs in your budget you know you wouldn’t miss — and cut them today. This may not account for much, and that’s OK. You don’t need to cancel every subscription and service to save.

Next, look at what bills you’re not willing to give up. Then call those providers and explain you can no longer afford to pay your current rate. Ask what the options are. Can they provide discounts? Rate reductions? Is there another service tier with fewer bells and whistles that still covers your needs but costs less?

If that doesn’t work, start shopping around for better rates. Can you switch cellphone carriers or insurance companies? Will another service provider give you a discount or incentive to leave their competitor and become a new customer?

2. Match your savings to your discretionary spending

This savings hack can help you inch toward your goal while also helping you spend mindfully. Here’s how it works: Every time you go shopping or spend money on something you want, look at the total amount of your purchase. Then transfer the same amount from your checking to your savings.

For every discretionary purchase you make — which means things you buy because you want them but don’t need them — make a matching contribution to your down payment savings fund. This effectively doubles your purchase price since double the amount leaves your checking account.

What’s the point? This trick forces you to use and think about your money differently and prioritize your spending in a new way. If you have less cash to use (since you contributed more to savings), you’ll need to make more conscientious choices about what’s really important to you.

3. Change your home-buying timeline

Saving for a $50,000 down payment in one year is a lot harder than saving $50,000 over three years. If you want to buy a home but enjoying life today is still essential, play with your timeline. There’s no rule that you have to buy a house right now. It’s about what’s important to you. If you can think more long term, you can accomplish your savings goal and live your best life while you do it.

Here’s an easy way to figure out what your savings goal deadline should be. Look at how much money you need to save for a down payment. Let’s say your goal is to save that aforementioned $50,000 in cash for a new house. Now look at how much money you’re willing to save each month without doing anything too drastic to your budget.

Take your goal amount and divide it by the amount you can save each month. If you can save $1,000 per month and want to reach $50,000, it will take you 50 months to do so (or a little over four years).

There are many tactics you can apply to boost this monthly amount, like investing your cash instead of putting it in a savings account. (This does come with risk, and it’s possible you could lose money instead of earning a return. Talk to a financial adviser to help you evaluate your investment options.) You can also cut expenses more dramatically to save more.

But if you’re interested in maintaining your current lifestyle without making huge sacrifices or major changes, consider these actions. You can still save for your down payment and enjoy your life today.

– See more at: https://www.trulia.com/blog/save-for-down-payment-on-house-and-still-live-best-life/?cid=soc|twitter|evergreen|truliablog_bmkt&linkId=31469508#sthash.11xZr4dG.dpuf

 

1. Cut back expenses without cutting out services

Cutting costs is the obvious place to start when you want to save for a down payment. When you eliminate an expense, you can move that money over to your savings. Look at the costs in your budget you know you wouldn’t miss — and cut them today. This may not account for much, and that’s OK. You don’t need to cancel every subscription and service to save.

Next, look at what bills you’re not willing to give up. Then call those providers and explain you can no longer afford to pay your current rate. Ask what the options are. Can they provide discounts? Rate reductions? Is there another service tier with fewer bells and whistles that still covers your needs but costs less?

If that doesn’t work, start shopping around for better rates. Can you switch cellphone carriers or insurance companies? Will another service provider give you a discount or incentive to leave their competitor and become a new customer?

2. Match your savings to your discretionary spending

This savings hack can help you inch toward your goal while also helping you spend mindfully. Here’s how it works: Every time you go shopping or spend money on something you want, look at the total amount of your purchase. Then transfer the same amount from your checking to your savings.

For every discretionary purchase you make — which means things you buy because you want them but don’t need them — make a matching contribution to your down payment savings fund. This effectively doubles your purchase price since double the amount leaves your checking account.

What’s the point? This trick forces you to use and think about your money differently and prioritize your spending in a new way. If you have less cash to use (since you contributed more to savings), you’ll need to make more conscientious choices about what’s really important to you.

3. Change your home-buying timeline

Saving for a $50,000 down payment in one year is a lot harder than saving $50,000 over three years. If you want to buy a home but enjoying life today is still essential, play with your timeline. There’s no rule that you have to buy a house right now. It’s about what’s important to you. If you can think more long term, you can accomplish your savings goal and live your best life while you do it.

Here’s an easy way to figure out what your savings goal deadline should be. Look at how much money you need to save for a down payment. Let’s say your goal is to save that aforementioned $50,000 in cash for a new house. Now look at how much money you’re willing to save each month without doing anything too drastic to your budget.

Take your goal amount and divide it by the amount you can save each month. If you can save $1,000 per month and want to reach $50,000, it will take you 50 months to do so (or a little over four years).

There are many tactics you can apply to boost this monthly amount, like investing your cash instead of putting it in a savings account. (This does come with risk, and it’s possible you could lose money instead of earning a return. Talk to a financial adviser to help you evaluate your investment options.) You can also cut expenses more dramatically to save more.

But if you’re interested in maintaining your current lifestyle without making huge sacrifices or major changes, consider these actions. You can still save for your down payment and enjoy your life today.

History of Halloween – Halloween – HISTORY.com

Ancient Origins of Halloween

Halloween’s origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in). The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom and northern France, celebrated their new year on November 1. This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31 they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. In addition to causing trouble and damaging crops, Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for the Druids, or Celtic priests, to make predictions about the future. For a people entirely dependent on the volatile natural world, these prophecies were an important source of comfort and direction during the long, dark winter.

 

5 Reasons to Buy a Home This Fall | Zillow Blog

Real estate markets ebb and flow just like the seasons. The spring market starts hopping when the sun comes out, flowers bloom and winter is over. Conversely, fall signals the beginning of a slower market, which could be good for buyers.

If you’re in the market for a home, here are some reasons why fall can be a great time to buy.

Leftover spring inventory may result in deals

Home sellers tend to go on the market for the first time in the spring. They often list their homes too high out of the gate, which could mean that a series of price reductions follow during the spring and the summer months.

These sellers have fewer chances to capture buyers after Labor Day. By October, buyers are likely to find desperate sellers and prices that may, in fact, be below a home’s true market value.

Fewer buyers are competing

Families who want to be in a new home by the beginning of the school season are no longer shopping at this point. These families have exited the market, which means less competition. That translates into more opportunities for buyers.

Taking out an entire segment of the housing market provides millennial, single, and baby boomer buyers some breathing room. You’ll likely notice fewer buyers at open houses, which could signal a great opportunity to make an offer.

Motivated sellers want to close by the end of the year

While a home is where an owner lives and makes memories, it is also an investment — and one with tax consequences. A home seller may want to take advantage of a gain or loss during this tax year.

Buyers might find homeowners looking to make deals so they can close before December 31st and get that tax benefit. Ask why the seller is selling, and look for listings that offer incentives to close before the end of the year.

Homes for sale near the holidays signal a motivated seller

As the holidays approach, the last thing a homeowner wants is for their sale to be dragging on and interrupting their parties and events.

If a home has not sold by November, and it’s still sitting on the market, that homeowner is likely motivated to be done with the disruptions caused by their home being listed for sale.

Many homes don’t show as well once the landscaping fades

The best time to do a property inspection is in the rain and snow, because the home will be truly exposed for buyers. The same holds true for fall, when flowers die, trees start to shed their leaves, and beautiful landscapes are no longer so lovely.

Scratching the surface of the pretty spring home season and fall reveals home flaws, making it a great time to see each home’s true colors. It’s better to see the home’s flaws before making the offer, instead of being surprised months after you close.

Home Affordability Shows Some Improvement | Realtor Magazine

Good news for buyers: It’s getting easier to afford to buy a home.

The median price of a single-family home inched lower in August, the latest data available, while median family income edged slightly higher, according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ Housing Affordability Index. That, combined with still-low mortgage rates, prompted NAR’s affordability index to rise to its highest level since May. (The higher the number, the better indication of affordability.) NAR’s Housing Affordability Index was 157.7 in August, up from 154.5 in July. However, the index is down from one year ago, when it was 160.2.

“This year-on-year slippage reflects the well-known fact that home prices have been moving up at a rate much faster than incomes, year after year,” says Brad Hunter, chief economist for Metrostudy, a real estate research firm. “That said, homes are still much more affordable than they were during the boom, and mortgage rates are still extremely low, which helps all of the affordability measures.”

In a closer look at the numbers in August, median home prices decreased from 233,400 to $230,200. Median household income rose from $67,614 to $67,752.

“Buying a home has actually been more affordable this year than last year, despite rising home prices, thanks primarily to falling interest rates,” says Daren Blomquist, RealtyTrac’s vice president. “Just when we think interest rates are as low as they can go, they go a little bit lower, helping buyers eke a little more buying power out of their income.”

Home inspectors may report minor defects

Question: I have questions about an inspector. I’m selling my home, and the buyer wanted a home inspection. The sales agent told me they were only looking for major defects, and my home is only 6 years old so I thought everything would be all right. No. The inspector started picking on things like a window blind that has a broken slat, a sink stopper that’s not in the sink and a cracked floor tile. There were other things, but these seemed to be petty and not major defects. What should my response be?

Answer: Any response or negotiations to the buyer should come from your agent. You have a choice to either ignore the buyer’s demands or to spend a few hundred dollars, make the repairs and sell the home. Some sales contracts I have read define a major defect as any defect that costs more than $500 to repair or is a safety hazard. Since the home inspector is not a party to that contract he may list every item they deem defective whether or not it costs $2 or $2,000 to repair.

I know of inspectors who report on minor defects such as a knob missing from a gas log while others have missed the fact that a wood deck’s posts were rotting, and the whole deck was in danger of falling. Home inspectors do not always agree as to what should be reported, and major items can be missed or ignored. It all depends on the inspector’s education, training, experiences and expertise. That is why it is so important for the buyers to research which home inspector they want to hire.

The buyer should consider inspectors who are licensed (where required) and who are insured. Look for experience in the number of inspections completed, any affiliations with nationally recognized home inspector organizations, and check with the Better Business Bureau for information concerning the inspection company. If the inspector says an item is defective, he should also be able to explain why it is defective and how it is to be repaired. According to the Code of Ethics of the American Society of Home Inspectors, the inspector is to report:

1. Those systems and components inspected that, in the professional judgment of the inspector, are not functioning properly, are significantly deficient, unsafe or are near the end of their service lives;

2. Recommendations to correct, or monitor for future correction, the deficiencies reported and

3. Reasoning or explanation as to the nature of the deficiencies reported that are not self-evident. A home inspector is working for the buyer and gets paid whether or not the home sale is completed. The inspector should reveal any conflict of interest with the buyers or sellers of the property. This is the largest investment most people will ever make, and it is important to attend the inspection to learn how a house works and how to maintain the home.

 

How to price your home to sell – The Washington Post

You’ll sometimes hear people talk about the four Ps of marketing: product, promotion, place and price. When selling a house, it’s important to remember that some of those Ps are fixed and some are variable. You need to control your controllables, as the expression goes, and focus on the things that are within your power to change.

Product refers to the actual house: the number of rooms, the view, the condition. Is it staged properly? Is the front door freshly painted? Is the landscaping in good shape?

Promotion is what the agent does to let people know the property is for sale — putting it on the multiple-listing service, promoting it online, sending out a flyer, putting a sign in the yard. The more people who know your house is for sale, the more traffic you’ll get and possibly the higher the price you’ll receive because the pool of potential buyers will be bigger.

Place is the location of the home, which you obviously can’t change.

Price is one of the most important variables in play. Proper pricing can actually accelerate your marketing and can be the key to getting a property sold. If you have a house worth $400,000 but you’re willing to sell it for $200,000, someone’s going to buy it immediately. But if it’s priced at $450,000, you may never get an offer.

Here are some tips to help you set the best price for your home:

• Some people use an automated valuation model (AVM) to get a gut check on their home’s approximate worth. AVMs are computer algorithms that use a host of variables like tax records to guess your home’s value. Perhaps the best-known example is Zillow’s “Zestimate.” But it’s important to remember that AVMs are not really that accurate, especially in areas with unique properties that vary widely in size and value. It’s a Zestimate, not a “Zaccurate” value.
• Real estate agents will look at all of the same factors as an AVM, but with a human touch that will make their assessment more accurate. They can weed out properties that aren’t similar. Unlike an AVM, they don’t just consider what’s already sold but can look forward to what’s currently on the market and what’s under contract but hasn’t yet settled.
• A professional appraiser typically works for a lender and is trying to appraise the value of the asset that the mortgage will be placed on. They are only allowed to go backward and look at completed sales over the last six months to determine value. Appraisals are generally pretty accurate, but are also fairly expensive.
• Housefax is a relatively new player on the scene. It works like Carfax for automobiles, providing a report on your property’s value and history. Housefax appraisals are conducted by professional appraisers, but at half the price because they’re working directly with the homeowner. You can find them at HouseFax.com.

Once you’re ready to list, I recommend that you spend a few hours thinking like a buyer, critically assessing your home against the competition. Ask your agent to show you five competing homes without telling you their list prices. Walk through these other homes and ask yourself what you think it’s worth. Ask yourself: Is this house better or worse than mine? How does my price compare?

I also recommend that you don’t fall for the old trick of having your home’s price end in 99. If buyers can afford a $430,000 home, they’ll set their search brackets at $400,000 to $450,000. If your house is listed at $399,999, it won’t come up when they search.

Finally, remember that pricing is an ongoing discussion. Don’t just set it and forget it. If the property looks the best it can, and you’re getting a lot of showings, but you’re not getting second showings or offers, it’s not a promotion problem. It’s the price.

By the time you’ve had 30 buyers come through, you should have a contract. If you realize you’ve come out of the gate too high, don’t be afraid to drop your price. A reduced price can be a stigma, but the bigger stigma is not selling. Price it to move.

Home Buyers: Don’t Wait Forever for ‘The One’ – Real Estate News and Advice – realtor.com

When you’re dating, you can spend years searching for the perfect relationship only to—possibly—wait too long and miss out on something great. Suddenly, over your sad microwave meal and bottle of cheap red, you’re looking back on your life choices, wondering what could have been if you hadn’t been so darned picky.

Well, the same goes for house hunting. You can drive yourself crazy searching for your dream home. You’ve found houses that have come close, after all. So the perfect one is bound to appear soon, right?

Not necessarily. We know the hunt can be emotionally draining, but at some point you have to go from house hunter to home owner.

We’re not encouraging you to make a choice that will fill you with buyer’s remorse. But to borrow a line from the Rolling Stones: You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes … you get what you need.

We can’t give you love advice (and trust us, you would not want us to), but we do happen to know a few things about real estate. Here are three questions to ask yourself; the answers will help you determine whether it’s time to settle on a home that might not be what your dreams are made of.

1. Are my expectations realistic?

Everyone has a dream home. Mine is a Craftsman with Victorian high ceilings, art deco details, and a Mid-Century Modern feel. But here’s the thing. That Frankenstein of architectural styles doesn’t exist—and your dream home probably doesn’t either.

“There is no such thing as a ‘perfect home,’” says Ryan Fitzgerald, Realtor® and owner of Raleigh Realty in Raleigh, NC.

There’s always going to be something not so lovable in each house you view. The key to finding the right home is setting realistic expectations.

“You can find a home that meets almost all of what you are looking for,” Fitzgerald says.

Make a list of your dream features and amenities before you start house hunting—but be willing to let some of those features go once you start looking at properties. It helps to score each feature on a scale of 1 to 10—that way you (and your partner, if you have one) are on the same page about which amenities are deal breakers and which are simply nice to have.

2. How many properties have I viewed?

 

Once you’re house hunting, it can be nearly impossible to decide when you’ve looked at enough houses. After all, the perfect house could be listed any day now.

Go ahead and view online listings as much as you want. There’s no harm in real estate stalking in your spare time, but you should set a limit for actual viewings.

“If you go view more than eight homes [without finding anything], there’s a good chance you’re confused as to what you’re actually looking for,” Fitzgerald says. “You’re trying to piece together a home that doesn’t exist.”

If you find that you’re searching for your own Frankenstein (it won’t work, I promise), take a moment and ask yourself how many homes you’ve visited. Have you reached the (self-imposed) cap? If so, make a list of each property’s strengths and weakness, and then get ready to compromise.

3. What am I willing to compromise?

If you’ve set realistic expectations and looked at more than a few houses, it’s time to start making some tough decisions. It might feel like settling, but you’ll probably thank us later when you’re finally a homeowner.

Just make sure you’re not compromising on something you’ll regret later.

“If you’re going to compromise, do not compromise on location,” Fitzgerald says.

The real estate adage “location, location, location” bears repeating here. After all, a great house won’t matter much if you’re driving two hours to work every day or the only nearby grocery store closes at 7 p.m.

If you’re not sure where to compromise, ask your Realtor. That’s what they’re there for.

The exception to the rule

After months of searching (especially in competitive markets), you might feel the pressure to choose something—anything—just to achieve homeownership and stop throwing away your money on rent.

 

4 Important Behaviors Home Buyers Should Practice : Home & Design : Realty Today

Just like buying a certain product on the market, etiquette should likewise be applied in purchasing a real estate property. Here below are some things you should remember, as discussed in sfvrealestate, in connection to home buying.

On a positive note

Reactions are to be expected upon seeing something new and even something old, like a house for example. However, as much as possible keep those disparaging remarks within you while the seller or flippers are still around. Aside from being a rude, it would likewise give you less chance in establishing a good relationship. Take not this tip extends not only with the house or property, it likewise include the environment or neighborhood where the property is located. For we never know you might just end up living there, so better start positively and start making friends.

Scrutinize

Like any other form of business, real estate industry also has some loopholes and unrealistic sellers or buyers. You should think twice before committing and avoid deciding immediately just because the price being offered is quite low than it should be. Try to consider that there might be some defects or unwanted conditions in relevance to the property. Your attitude should likewise be the same when being offered a price that is too high for a certain property, scrutinize things. Don’t simply buy in for something that is offered at a very unreasonable price.

Contract Dates

When you finally found the one, I mean your dream house, don’t forget the agreement. As a buyer, you should not miss contractual date and other contract’s task. Not being true to those dates will make you look flaky and sometime lead you being removed out of escrow. Ask for extensions if needed.

Greed

Don’t be too greedy even to the point of asking some miscellaneous just because you are planning a home renovation. Don’t forget that though things may seem old they might still be useful, and this does not warrant you to ask anything from the seller. And remember you agreed to consider the property or house as it is upon seeing it.

The mentioned tips above are just few of the many things that you should remember in doing a real estate transaction. For you to be more guided and be saved from hassle, I suggest you get a real estate agent in order to do some of those tasks for you.  And I might have missed something important, feel free and comment below.