Yajnesh Rai

How to Buy a House in 10 Steps | Trulia

If you’re in the home buying market, knowing what to expect makes everything easier.

Buying a house is a different experience than, well, pretty much anything else. But by knowing what to expect and taking it one step at a time, you can learn how to buy a house like a pro, even if it’s your first time.

Here’s everything you need to know about how to buy a house in 10 steps:

1. 1. Hire a real estate agent.

   Finding a good real estate agent is all-benefits, no drawbacks for buyers. It costs you nothing, but will save you so much time—and you’ll have a pro’s know-how throughout the process. Agents have access to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), which gives them first glance at what’s for sale in the neighborhood you want at the price you can afford.

   Trulia can also help connect you with a Premier Agent when you click “Request Info” on any property page. Premier Agents are qualified agents who you can trust to work hard for you. You can also ask friends and family or visit a local real estate office. Prepare a list of questions to ask a real estate agent, and interview them before committing.

2. 2. Shop for a mortgage.

   Compare mortgage rates online, and look at the types of mortgages available—conventional, FHA, fixed-rate, adjustable rate—understanding the difference between these will help you figure out how to buy a house that’s right for you.

   Get mortgage pre-approval. You may have heard of pre-qualification, which gives you a general idea of how much you might be able to borrow. Pre-approval is the next step—a commitment from a lender for the amount that you can borrow. Pre-approval makes you a stronger home buying candidate—one who’s ready to close a deal quickly, which sellers love.

3. 3. Make a list of needs and wants.

   Make two lists: one of must-haves and one of nice-to-have items like the Olympic-sized swimming pool you dreamed about as a kid.

   On the must-haves include location—near work, in your favorite neighborhood, by good schools, etc.—as well as number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and whatever else you absolutely can’t (or won’t) live without. Your real estate agent can help you decide what items might best fit on which list based on homes in your market. 

4. 4. Browse online house listings.

   Take out that handy list of needs and wants and start looking around at what’s available. Use Trulia’s filters to quickly find the right listings to explore. For example, if you want your kids to go to a particular school, the school search feature allows you to search for it and find homes within the district for sale.

   The goal with online browsing isn’t just to find a potential home, it’s also to make sure what you want, what’s available, and what you can afford all line up. If not, you may need to adjust your wants and needs.

5. 5. Go to house viewings.

   Once you start seeing homes you like, call your agent and ask them to start scheduling viewings. And another, and another. Visit as many homes and open houses as you can. You can use the Trulia app to find open houses scheduled near you. The more comparing and contrasting you can do, the more knowledge you have about the market and your options. Ask your agent for advice about how to buy a house that really fits your needs.

6. 6. Make an offer and negotiate.

   Once you’re ready to start home buying, it’s offer time. Here’s where you’ll thank yourself for working with a real estate agent. They’ll help you determine the right offer to make for a particular house, including things that go beyond the dollar amount. For instance, offering an accelerated closing date or to buy and lease back to the buyer if they can’t move right away may be a smart move in some situations. When you make an offer on a house, the seller may accept it or counter-offer, and then your agent will help you decide how and if to negotiate. Once you arrive at a deal everyone likes, you’re considered under contract to buy the house.

7. 7. Get your loan approved.

   Remember back when you got pre-approved? Pat yourself on the back. Now you just have to finish things up by making it official. Let your lender know you’ve found a house. The lender will order an appraisal and give you a bunch of paperwork to fill out. Your loan now goes through the underwriting process before it’s finally approved.

8. 8. Wait for the appraisal.

   One of the ways your lender makes sure you and your house are a good bet is with a home appraisal. This is when someone does a professional evaluation of how much your home is worth. If the appraisal ends up higher than your offer, go celebrate. If it’s not, you may either have to make a larger down payment, get a second opinion, or renegotiate the price. Or you may decide to walk away from the deal.​

9. 9. Hire a home inspector.

   Being under contract means you can still back out if you learn anything unexpected about the house. And a home inspector is the one who finds any potential surprises. It’ll cost around $300 to $500 for your home inspection, but it’s well worth saving you from buying a house with a major problem. Your agent can often help you find an inspector, or you can go through the American Society of Home Inspectors.

10. 10. Close on your house.

    This is the day you get your house keys—but first, you have some serious paperwork to do. You’ll set an appointment for closing on your house, and you’ll need to bring your driver’s license, a cashier’s check for your down payment and closing costs (which range from 2 to 5 percent of the home’s purchase price) — and a lot of patience. You will sign and initial dozens of papers.

    But at the end of this meeting, you will be a homeowner. You can take your keys and go home.

3 Home Exterior Looks to Watch | Realtor Magazine

Architectural styles are getting mixed up in home exteriors, but a few trends are emerging. A recent article on Houzz, a home remodeling site, highlights some of the biggest trends in home exteriors, based on the most popular exterior photos uploaded to the site so far this year.

Out of the five trends and most popular home pictures posted on Houzz, here are three worth highlighting:

1. Front porches An inviting front porch can offer some nostalgia of sitting outside in a rocking chair or a porch swing, gazing upon the neighborhood. Every one of the most popular front-exterior photos uploaded to Houzz has shown off a front porch, the article notes.	Photo by The Fox Group – Look for exterior home pictures
2. Modern farmhouses This style blends traditional farmhouse architectural features—such as gabled roof lines, board-and-batten siding, and metal porch roofs—with a modern flair, such as contrasting colors and open floor plans.	Photo by Ecraft – Browse exterior home photos
3. Glass garage doors Garage doors are gaining more prominence in dressing up exteriors. Opaque glass garage doors are enhancing homes, including modern farmhouse styles. When double garage doors take up most of the front of the home, a glass garage door can lighten the clunky look and offer a shiny touch.	Photo by TREE – Discover exterior home design ideas

The Biggest Home Improvement Mistakes | Realtor Magazine

DIY home improvement jobs can end in disaster. And even when they don’t, projects can become time-consuming and costly. Botched DIY home improvement jobs can also lead to quarreling among loved ones, shows a new survey from Porch.com, a home improvement website. Porch.com surveyed more than 1,000 homeowners to discover the biggest sources of tension and mistakes during home improvement projects.

 

jackietrains – Morguefile

 

A third of homeowners say they tackle house projects themselves in order to save money; they also do it because they enjoy it or because the job seemed easy. Millennials spend more on DIY projects than older homeowners, devoting, on average, $405 per job.

But errors are frequent, the report found. Consumers who made errors in their DIY efforts took five-and-a-half hours longer to complete the job. For example, DIYers who erred on floor installation projects said it took them, on average, 27 hours to finish the job, more than twice as long as those who made no mistakes, according to the survey. Flooring errors were typically the most time-consuming of the DIY projects that Porch.com tracked. Flooring like hardwood, laminate, and vinyl are all installed differently, and early errors in the installation can cause major issues down the road, the report notes.

Household projects that involved electrical work also proved difficult to fix if errors were made. For example, consumers who made errors wiring or installing a ceiling fan needed more than twice as much time to complete the job than those who did it with no problems. Furthermore, basic errors when handling electrical or wiring work can lead to electrical fires and other dangers, the report warns.

DIY mistakes can be costly as well. Consumers who made mistakes on installing floors ended up costing themselves $829 more. “Hardwood can cost homeowners thousands, and poorly laid boards may need to be replaced,” the report notes. “Conversely, tiles can be laid out before any grout goes down, preventing the need to rip them out later. Accordingly, individuals who made mistakes when installing tile paid just $58 more on average.”

 

© Porch.com

 

Tackling DIY jobs can be stressful on marriages. Fights can be common, according to the survey. Of DIYers who made a mistake, 46 percent ended up squabbling with their significant other over the project. Electrical wiring projects appeared to be the biggest source of conflict. Spats over replacing electrical outlets or installing ceiling fans were frequently reported, according to the survey. “Perhaps the prospect of getting shocked increases the tension in these instances,” the report notes. “One partner might wish to plunge ahead, while the other urges them to stop in the name of safety.”

Drop in Mortgage Rates Could Put Market in 2005 Territory | Realtor Magazine

The recent plunge in mortgage rates may help the market for home loans surge to a 14-year high, according to recent housing forecasts. In the past month, mortgage rates have posted their biggest drop in a decade, with the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaging 4.08 percent last week, according to Freddie Mac’s weekly mortgage market survey.

The rate decline has enticed more home buyers to enter the market, prompting mortgage demand to reach its highest level since the fall of 2016. Mortgage applications jumped 18.6 percent last week as borrowers rushed to lock in lower financing costs. Mark Watson, director of forecasting for mortgage advisory firm iEmergent, predicts $1.2 trillion in home lending this year, which would be the best year since 2005. “We think the lower mortgage rates will create a huge push, partly from millennial buyers,” Watson told HousingWire. “That is going to support strong growth in home sales over the next several years.”

iEmergent projects a 3.9 percent increase in total home loan volume this year. That’s more optimistic than other forecasters, such as Freddie Mac, which is predicting a 1.5 percent increase in total mortgage lending for 2019, and the Mortgage Bankers Association, which predicts a 1 percent gain.

But the threat of higher mortgage rates is diminishing. The Federal Reserve announced at its January meeting that due to a slowing economy, it does not plan to raise its short-term key interest rates again this year. Therefore, mortgage rates will likely stay low for a while, which will bode well for the housing market, Watson says. “The benefits of the decline in mortgage rates that we’ve seen this year will continue to unfold over the next few months due to the lag from changes in mortgage rates to market sentiment and ultimately home sales,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.

 

© iEmergent

What’s the Average Cost of Common Home Repairs? | Realtor Magazine

Homeowners are sprucing up their homes more this year, tackling several home improvement projects. Eighty-eight percent of homeowners recently surveyed say they performed a major home repair in the last year, and more than half said they managed multiple major repairs or home improvement projects, according to a new analysis by Porch.com, a home improvement website.

Homeowners spent an average of $4,958 on home repairs and improvements in the past year, according to the study. But about a quarter of more than 1,000 homeowners surveyed said they spent more, averaging $2,501 to $5,000, and 15 percent of homeowners spent $5,000 to $10,000 on their house repairs. Which projects were the most expensive?

Repairing a floor structure topped the list, averaging more than $15,000, the study shows.

“Even the most resilient, high-quality floors will need to be replaced eventually, and you may want to start saving now,” Porch.com’s study notes. “While both the square footage and materials will play a factor in the total cost, the overall average made repairing floor structures the most expensive renovations according to the homeowners surveyed.”

Installing a fence (more than $8,000), aluminum decking ($5,600), and air conditioning ($4,400) also ranked among the most costly home improvement projects, according to the analysis.

 

 

 

Emergency home repairs are common. Eighty-eight percent of homeowners dealt with a major repair last year, costing on average nearly $5,000, according to the study.

But homeowners believe their improvements pay off. Homeowners, on average, believed their homes are worth nearly $15,000 more today than a year ago—a 6 percent increase, according to the study.

 

© Porch.com

Property Taxes Are Up Nationwide | Realtor Magazine

Homeowners are paying more for property taxes. Nationwide, the average property tax bill was $3,498 in 2018, up 3 percent compared to a year ago, ATTOM Data Solutions, a real estate data firm, reports in a new analysis. The effective tax rate was 1.16 percent in 2018 (which is the average annual property tax).

New Jersey, Illinois, Texas, Vermont, and Connecticut had the highest effective tax rates in the country in 2018, the analysis showed.

“Property taxes levied on homeowners rose again in 2018 across most of the country,” says Todd Teta, chief product officer for ATTOM Data Solutions. “While many states across the country have imposed caps on how much taxes can go up, which probably contributed to a slower increase in 2018 versus 2017. There are still many factors at play that can contribute to local property tax hikes, and without major changes in the way a community runs public services, tax rates must rise to pay for them.”

Property taxes rose faster than the national average in 58 percent of the markets tracked in the study. Of the 219 metro areas analyzed, 120—or 55 percent—posted an increase in average property taxes above the national average of 3 percent. Some of those metro areas included Los Angeles (5 percent increase); Dallas-Fort Worth (8 percent increase); Washington, D.C. (4 percent increase); Atlanta (7 percent increase); and San Francisco (7 percent increase).

ATTOM Data Solutions’ analysis covered more than 87 million U.S. single-family homes. It showed property taxes levied on single-family homes in 2018 totaled $304.6 billion, up 4 percent from 2017. Researchers analyzed property tax data collected from county tax assessor offices nationwide at the state, metro, and county levels, along with estimated market values of single-family homes calculated using an automated valuation model.

Highest Property Taxes

The states with the highest effective property tax rates in 2018 were:

• New Jersey: 2.25%
• Illinois: 2.22%
• Texas: 2.18%
• Vermont: 2.16%
• Connecticut: 2.02%
• New Hampshire: 1.99%
• New York: 1.86%
• Pennsylvania: 1.79%
• Ohio: 1.69%
• Wisconsin: 1.58%

By metro area, those with the highest effective property tax rates (among those with populations of at least 200,000) were in Binghamton, N.Y. (3.19 percent); Syracuse, N.Y. (2.89 percent); Rochester, N.Y. (2.88 percent); Rockford, Ill. (2.83 percent); and Atlantic City, N.J. (2.74 percent).

Lowest Property Taxes

Meanwhile, the following states had the lowest effective property tax rates in the country:

• Hawaii: 0.37%
• Alabama: 0.48%
• Colorado: 0.51%
• Nevada: 0.57%
• Utah: 0.57%
• West Virginia: 0.58%
• Delaware: 0.61%
• Arizona: 0.64%
• Tennessee: 0.65%
• Wyoming: 0.66%

By metro area, the lowest effective property tax rates in 2018 were in Laredo, Texas (0.35 percent); Honolulu (0.36 percent); Montgomery, Ala. (0.37 percent); Tuscaloosa, Ala. (0.39 percent); and Colorado Springs, Colo. (0.42 percent).

Feds Warn of Fake Bank | Realtor Magazine

Businesses are reportedly receiving letters and faxes from an entity called “First National Bank” that is offering lines of credit and secured or long-term loans. But federal authorities are warning that First National Bank is “not a licensed or chartered bank.”

 

© Martin Diebel/Getty Images

 

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency sent a notice to banks and other officials across the country Thursday warning that “First National Bank,” which claims to be from Minneapolis, is falsely claiming “to be a financial institution offering business banking services.”

The OCC has released a copy of First National Bank’s correspondence to one company. In the letter, First National Bank informs the business that it has prequalified for a $62,000 loan. The letter also promises to provide funding in as little as three days, as well as $25,000 to $350,000 in revolving credit, with no collateral required.

Authorities say First National Bank is using the fictitious address of 222 S. 9th Street in Minneapolis, as well as phone numbers such as (800) 491-0264 or (855) 414-9437.

The OCC is warning anyone who is contacted by the bank to not respond. For those who have, the OCC is providing a list of federal agencies to report any correspondence with the fictitious bank.

Mortgage Rates Hold Steady After Last Week’s Big Drop | Realtor Magazine

After posting their biggest drop in a decade last week, mortgage rates remain at multi-month lows—and borrowers are rushing to take advantage.The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.08 percent this week, Freddie Mac reports in its weekly mortgage market survey. Mortgage applications surged 18.6 percent last week as borrowers locked in lower financing costs, the Mortgage Bankers Association reports.

 

© Witthaya Prasongsin/Moment/Getty Images

 

“Purchase mortgage application demand saw the second highest weekly increase over the last year, and thanks to a spike in refinancing activity, overall mortgage demand rose to the highest level since the fall of 2016,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “While the housing market has faced many headwinds the last few months, it sailed through the turbulence to calmer seas with demand buttressed by a strong labor market and low mortgage rates. The benefits of the decline in mortgage rates that we’ve seen this year will continue to unfold over the next few months due to the lag from changes in mortgage rates to market sentiment and ultimately home sales.”

Freddie Mac reports the following national average mortgage rates for the week ending April 4:

• 30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 4.08 percent, with an average 0.5 point, rising from last week’s 4.06 percent average. Last year at this time, 30-year rates averaged 4.40 percent.
• 15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 3.56 percent, with an average 0.4 point, dropping from last week’s 3.57 percent average. A year ago, 15-year rates averaged 3.87 percent.
• 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages: averaged 3.66 percent, with an average 0.4 point, falling from last week’s 3.75 percent average. A year ago, 5-year ARMs averaged 3.62 percent.

Self-Employed Clients? Loan Approval Chances Just Got Better | Realtor Magazine

The two largest sources of mortgage money in the United States want self-employed loan shoppers to know that their chances of getting a home loan approved have increased.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have rolled out automated underwriting technology for lenders that take a lot of the guesswork and risk out of the approval process for mortgage applications of the self-employed.

One of the reasons lenders have been reluctant to approve loans if you’re self-employed is because it’s expensive, time-consuming, and labor-intensive to gather and analyze the paperwork needed to verify your income and gauge your risk. It’s much easier and profitable to process applications of wage or salaried employees who get a W-2 issued by their employer.

But this new technology, incorporated into the companies’ automated underwriting systems, enables lenders to analyze the paperwork quickly and accurately so they can come to a decision in a fraction of the time it used to take and with far less speculation involved.

The process potentially increases efficiency so much that even small community banks in rural areas can find it cost-effective to consider loan applications that before they might have passed on.

No process is perfect and there’s bound to be problems as glitches are worked out, but the new procedures show Fannie and Freddie are trying to remove some of the friction self-employed homebuyers face.

Buyers Desire Lawn Appeal: 5 Steps to a Healthy Yard | Realtor Magazine

Seventy-nine percent of consumers say that a lawn is an important feature when renting or buying home. Many consumers are even ranking a nicely sized yard as the second most important home feature, only behind a renovated kitchen, according to a new survey released by the National Association of Landscape Professionals.

Sizable lawns trumped other popular features like updated bathrooms, storage, and hardwood floors, according to the survey.

Younger generations are placing more value on lawns than older generations, too. A nice lawn size was the top priority among surveyed millennials, nudging out even an updated kitchen, according to the survey. Eighty-two percent of millennials say that having a lawn is important when renting or buying a home, compared to 81 percent of Generation X and 77 percent of baby boomers.

“While some may assume that trends toward urbanization or the increased use of electronics and technology have resulted in a decreased interest in lawns among younger Americans, the results of our research found just the opposite,” says Missy Henriksen, vice president of public affairs for the association.

Homeowners want a nice lawn for entertainment, the survey found. Forty-seven percent of Americans say they entertain in their yards at least once a month, and 57 percent use their yards for recreation at least monthly. The majority of Americans (77 percent) also say they relax in their yards at least once a month, and 32 percent garden in their yards.

To boost a property’s outdoor appeal for interested buyers, pass along the following maintenance tips from the NALP to your selling clients:

5 Steps to a Healthy Lawn

1. Grass cycling. This means leaving grass clippings on the lawn after mowing to help return nitrogen and nutrients to the soil.

2. Don’t overwater. Provide your lawn a deep watering every few days, not daily. Watering your lawn too frequently can lead to shallow root growth.

3. Control weeds. The NALP says April is the ideal time to apply preemergent weed control. Weeds can quickly overtake lawns, so have preventive measures in place.

4. Maintain mowers. It is important to keep your mower blades sharp. When left dull, blades are ineffective and can damage your lawn.

5. Fertilize. Adequate fertilizer provides proper nutrients that are key for maintaining healthy lawns.