What's Up? Home Prices and Sales of Existing Homes

Hi Folks,
   It's great to report this, but guess what's up? The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) just released their figures for the June 2012-June 2013 time period, and there was a 7.7% increase in home prices. The big winner was the West Coast, which checked in with a 17% gain, followed by the Mountain Region, at 11%. The slacker was the Mid-Atlantic, including New York, which was only up 2.5%. Additionally, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) released figures for the July 2012 - July 2013 time period, and the median price of a previously owned home popped up close to 14%. As for sales, the sales of previously owned homes jumped by 6.5% last month.

   Know what else? Even with these increases, homes are reasonably valued, and they still have room to increase further. Additionally, it's still cheaper to buy than rent, which also bolsters the opinion that housing prices are still undervalued.

   What's going down? Not mortgage rates. That makes buyers nervous and makes them scramble to take action before the rates increase. A perfect example that John W. Schoen points out in his article on CNBC.com, titled, "Home prices across the US defy gravity, despite rising rates", Mortgage applications for both home purchases and refinancings dropped for a second straight week as rates rose, and he cites the Mortgage Bankers Association. "Demand fell 4.6 percent in the week ended Aug. 16 as the rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage rose to 4.68 percent, matching this year's high mark.". In order for people to keep buying homes, credit needs to stay available, and the post-bubble vice-grip needs to be eased further in order to allow folks to get approved.

   So overall, this is some pretty good news !! What are your thoughts?

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Have a Great Weekend, and Happy Rent-to-Owning !
Regards,
Rob Eisenstein
HomeRun Homes - Rent to Own Homes, since 2002
"Located at the Corner of Technology and Real Estate"
Rent to Own Homes and Real Estate Blog for HomeRun Homes: http://blogging.lease2buy.com
HomeRun Homes Websites: http://www.lease2buy.com and http://www.homerunhomes.com


TAGS: #homeprices #existinghomessales #rates #mortgage applications #refinance #fixed mortgage #credit #bubble

Mortgage Anyone? To Dream The Impossible Dream?

Hi Everyone,

   Welcome to another Sizzling Summer Friday!

   Unless you've been living under a rock for the past few years (or you just don't follow the Real Estate Lending market, but if you didn't, I guess you wouldn't be reading this), you know that mortgages and lending has been tight and more stringent as opposed to the pre-housing bubble days.

   In a recent CNN Money article from Les Christie ("Secrets to getting a mortgage with so-so credit"), Christie concurs and says that, "Getting a mortgage can be tough these days -- even people with near-perfect credit have been rejected for loans". Christie points to a conference in which Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said lending standards for mortgages have tightened so considerably that "the bottom third of people who might have qualified for a prime mortgage in terms of, say, FICO scores a few years ago -- cannot qualify today."

   Is there money to lend? Christie quotes the acting commissioner for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Bob Ryan, who said that mortgage money "is flowing, it's stable, it's tightened from the boom years, but it's there.". "The belief is that you can't get a mortgage at all -- but you can," says Keith Gumbinger, of the mortgage information provider HSH Associates.".

   Christie writes about a loan officer who had a client with a 700 FICO a couple million dollars in assets, and he wanted to refinance. He was rejected! Apparently, his report showed an investment property he could not (housing bust), and had to do a short sale, and that blemish "resulted in an automatic rejection of his refinance application."

   So, are things really that bad?

   "Depends on who you ask", says Brian Willingham, a Loan Officer with FitzGerald Financial Group.

   "Lending has gotten a bad rap lately", adds Christopher A. Potter, a Loan Officer at GuardHill Financial.
  
   "Basically, these days you actually have to be able to afford what you want to buy (and disclose your true income on your tax returns).", says Willingham. Potter adds that now banks, "want to see that you can actually afford it. This is just common sense and will benefit all in the long run.". He also said that it's, "not that difficult assuming that you qualify.", and that people are so used to easy credit standards ("It used to be that all you needed was a pulse to get a loan.", adds Potter).

   Nicole Tucker, a Licensed Texas Real Estate Consultant, says that even though the requirements are tighter that several years ago, "it is not difficult to get a mortgage if a borrower has verifiable and steady employment and decent credit. You do not have to have stellar credit." Willingham continues this point, and agrees that for people with "sufficient, stable income it's a lot of paperwork but it's not "hard" to get a loan.", but adds that if your credit is "poor" and "you don't have a stable work history and stable income, it could be pretty difficult."

   So, on that note - less-than-stellar credit - is FHA still an option?

   In the article from Christie, he quotes Gumbinger as saying that "The FHA is just about as free and easy as it was in the go-go days,". Christie says that the standards are, "flexible and aimed at making mortgage borrowing easier, especially for working-class Americans.". Potter agrees, and says that the "FHA is extremely flexible with credit issues and there are plenty of lenders with "common sense underwriting". Melanie Roussell, a spokeswoman for the FHA, explained that "the agency is willing to overlook a blemish on a credit report -- even a big one -- if other factors are favorable", as written by Christie.

   Tips? Pointers?

   Paul McFadden of The Legacy Group, tells us that the most important thing is "to have all your documentation in order (income and asset information) along with a flexible attitude if letters of explanation need to be written." He summarizes the process as follows; "A borrower needs to work with a great team that would include a loan officer and possibly a realtor to make sure they are approved and their loan closes."

   Have you tried applying for a mortgage? Before or After the Housing Bubble? How was your experience?

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Have a Great Weekend, and Happy Rent-to-Owning !
Regards,
Rob Eisenstein
HomeRun Homes Blog: http://blogging.lease2buy.com
HomeRun Homes Websites: http://www.lease2buy.com and http://www.homerunhomes.com

TAGS: #mortgage #loan #credit #refinance #FHA #FICO #HUD #LoanOfficer #RealEstate

Rent, Buy, Or Rent to Own ?

Hi Folks,

   I Hope you had a safe Halloween with a lot of treats. Please forgive me if my style of writing is a little odd today, as the sugar rush is quite fierce this year. It is the First of November, and any way that I look at it, I am now a year older!

   A few months back, we covered the topic of, "Rent vs. Buy" in a separate post, and a few weeks ago, we followed up on the topic with a post titled, "Revisiting the Rent vs. Buy Debate". Molly Line of FoxNews recently ran a story titled, "Shattered Dreams: To Rent or Buy, That is the Question", of which I thought might be of interest to you.

   In the above-mentioned article, Line asks the question, "...is it really wiser to buy during a time of economic uncertainty? Or is renting a better bargain?". She spoke with some experts who point to the fact that people who are buying now have their financial "house" in order, and it would make sense for them to buy a home. On the other side of the debate, Line points to the positive side of renting, which means, "no property taxes, no upkeep costs, no paying for a new roof or dishwasher."

   Ultimately, there is no fine line that delineates a region of the country where people are just buying or renting...there are just trends (see http://blogging.lease2buy.com/2010/10/revisiting-rent-vs-buy-debate.html). The financial condition of the prospective buyer, the prospective tenant, or the prospective tenant/buyer (in the case of Rent to Own), would seem as if it would override most factors. Do they have a lot of debt? How is their credit? Do they have a job? Do they need a job? Just some food for thought.

   Please send us your comments and suggestions, as they always prove valuable for your fellow readers here.

Have a Great Week, and Happy Rent-to-Owning !
HomeRun Homes Blog http://blogging.lease2buy.com
HomeRun Homes Website http://www.lease2buy.com

To Buy at Your Best, Get Creative (Rent to Own)

Hi Folks,
   Just a quick "Hello", and to let you know that we were just quoted in a great article in a new American Express Magazine ("Currency"):

The following excerpts are from this new article:

"Markets known for rich foreclosure shopping are also ripe for those willing to rent before they buy, says Rob Eisenstein, president of rent-to-own marketplace operator HomeRun Homes..."

"It's a great strategy for potential buyers with less-than-perfect credit or insufficient savings, Eisenstein says: While you navigate the lease period, you can build credit and equity at the same time"

Additionally, we were quoted as calling rent-to-own agreements, "creative real-estate at its finest."

   Head on over to their website (located at http://getcurrency.com/article/to-buy-at-your-best-get-creative) to read the full story

Have a Great Evening, and Happy Rent-to-Owning !

Will the Housing Market Recover?

Welcome to Friday!


   Can it possibly be August? It certainly is, and folks, we are still in the midst of a housing crisis. Yes, I used the word, "crisis". There are definitely markets showing signs of recovery, as we have discussed in a previous post (http://www.blogging.lease2buy.com/2010/06/foreclosure-preventionimproved-housing.html), however, the rest of the market is struggling.

   An article recently cited the "6 Reasons the Housing Market Hasn't Recovered" (with credit to Luke Mullins of U.S. News and World Report), and the reasons were:

1) Labor market
2) Household formation
3) Foreclosures
4) Tight credit
5) Falling home prices
6) Selling your other home

   Two of these I found very interesting, and the first being "Household Formation". This is an angle that I personally have never thought about before, and might I add that it is a very good observation. What the author is saying is that basically, people cannot afford to branch out and purchase a home. People have fallen on hard times, and some have moved in with friends and family. Some couples who are looking to get married and purchase a home are perhaps holding off and staying in their rented apartment until things recover. Overall, a very good observation.

   The other point was that of, "Selling your other home". This has always been a problem, but is amplified during a market with falling housing prices, coupled with falling credit scores and income (or lack thereof). When you need to sell your home before you are able to purchase a new home, this takes it's toll. People are always looking to up size, downsize, or need to sell since they are moving. As we are seeing creative real estate options becoming more mainstream, such as Rent to Own (See our recent Blog post on this: http://www.blogging.lease2buy.com/2010/06/rent-to-own-transactions-move-into.html ), this will hopefully mitigate this factor from inhibiting our recovery.

   In keeping with our discussion, next week, there will be some important numbers released, which are the Construction Spending figures on Monday, and the Pending Home Sales Index numbers on Tuesday. Let's keep any eye on these together.

   Do you have any gripes about this market? What are your thoughts?

Have a Great Weekend, and Happy Rent-to-Owning !

Details on the FHA Tax Credit for Home Buyers

Hi All,
There has been a lot of buzz about the FHA Tax Credit Program, and for those who are not too aware of it, we wanted to list a few key points of this excellent program here:

1. Up to an $8,000 Tax Credit is available for First-time home buyers (For a newly built home or a resold home). This is confined to sales occurring on or after January 1, 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010.
2. Up to an $6,500 Tax Credit is available for "move-up" (repeat home buyers or existing home owners), who purchase a Principal Residence (Not an investment property - but an Owner-Occupied Principal Property) between November 6, 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010.

This is a very basic breakdown, but there are certain specific income limits, so be sure to check the FHA Site (http://federalhousingtaxcredit.com).

As a side note, we have been busy working on our next venture, which will be announced soon, which will extend a hand to homeowners in trouble.
Further, we have been further updating our Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace Pages and adding numerous followers and friends...which means more traffic to your Ads !

Have a Great Week, and Happy "Rent to Owning" !!