New Law Signed by President Bush Today-Relief for Homeowner’s?

COMMENTARY: ON THE NEW RELIEF LAW

The new law signed by President Bush today is supposed to help home owner’s … My opinion is that it is a bunch of “fluff” and won’t provide any real relief at all.  Please click the link at the bottom of the page to view the details of the law if you wish… but here are some of the noteworthy points of the new lawy:

If you qualify AND your current mortgage company will accept a loss… you can get a new loan at 85% to 90% of your current market value.  If you sell your house back you will get to keep, up to 50% of any gain (10% if you sell in a year, 20% in 2 years… etc until you reach 50%) The rest will go to FNMA.  This is actually able to help about 400,000 homeowner’s and starts as of October 1, but many believe (already) that banks will be cherry picking the best opportunities and that most of the eligible properties WON’T be helped b/c thier current lien holders (banks/mortgage companies) won’t allow the loss this way.  Most experts say that most lien holder’s will not have guidelines in place and most of this won’t happen until the first of next year too! 

So… does this really help?  Only a little in my opinion.  Especially, since over 2.5 million homes face foreclosure this year and it may increase if the economy gets any worse (and many experts predict it will get worse.)  If ALL 400,000 eligible homeowner’s were able to take advantage of the new “relief”, that is still only about 16% of the forclosures this year!

In the same law… the Nehemia program and other’s like it are no longer allowed.  This is Down Payment Assistance (basically, the seller contributes the downpayment to a non-profit organization aka Nehemia, and the organization gives it as a gift to the buyer) and although it has been hotly debated over the years whether or not it is a “good” or “bad” situation – it is still a BIG part of allowing first time homebuyer’s purchase a home.  Without it… it makes or current housing market even more troubling.  It will eliminate the chances of thousands of people being able to afford a home for the first time.  Now, in my opinion, was not the time to “crack” down on a service that has done nothing but help people afford homes.

There are other industry wide important issues in the new law that I’ll refrain from commenting on at this point - the creation of yet another new entity within the government with tighter reins on our financial system, a guarantee of a bailout for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, neighborhood grants, a permanent affordable housing fund, a low income housing credit, tax cuts, and… oh yeah… an increase to the statutory limit of the national debt – to 10.6 trillion (would be hard to type that many zeors… but in case you wonder what it looks like: 10,600,000,000,000 – WOW!  You couldn’t count that high in your lifetime I’m guessiong… whew!)

So… here is what I suggest -

Homeowner’s – If you CAN take advantage of the relief as a homeowner… DO IT.  It may be a long time until anything else comes along.  Please feel free to call me and I’ll help you get any information you may need.

Potential Buyer’s – Take advantage of the up to $7,500 tax credit for first time home buyer’s for buying a home from April of 2008 til July 1, 2009!  (*with interest rates on the rise… the sooner you buy… the better!)

Potential Seller’s - If you HAVE to sell – either because your are facing a potential forclosure or other reasons – SELL QUICKLY!  It is only going to get tougher to sell over the next few years.  If you are facing forclosure… CALL ME… I can potentially avert a forclosure through a short sale.  If you just need to sell… and aren’t facing forclosure - CALL ME – I can still sell your home in this market with the right marketing!

Please add your comments – I’d like to see your opinions of what the new law means to you!

Til next time… Chris

*HERE IS THE LINK TO AN ARTICLE EXPLAINING THE NEW LAW…. http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2008/07/30/provisions_of_housing_mortgage_relief_bill/

Selling from “a-far”

I have a client who lived in another state and she is tinkering around with selling a home that she has inherited recently.  She is weighing the advantages of keeping it through this tough market against the benefits of selling it now… quickly, so she doesn’t incur the tax liabilities, insurance costs, and general liabilities that comes with becoming an “accidental landlord.”

Whatever she decides is fine with me… As I say to most of my clients… “I’m not a high pressure sales-person.”  I can only give her the tools to help decide what is right for her.  If she so chooses to sell… I’m confident that I’ll be the one she turns to!

I realized that not many people understand the role of a great real estate agent!  I have completed many transactions over the last 10 years where the buyer’s or seller’s are not in this state!  This discussion involves SELLER’s… I’ll discuss BUYER’S/INVESTORS in another post!  Here are a couple of tips to consider IF you have made the decision to sell and you live in another area – away from where the property your are selling is:

1- Find a Realtor who you trust!  You can find a Realtor from many sources that are trustworthy… a financial planner that you have used for a long time, an insurance agent you’ve used and trust, a family memeber, a good friend, accountant, lawyer… All of these professionals (and family and friends) usually have contacts with a great Realtor that they do business with.

2- Use a Realtor that is capable of communicating with you over the internet and who is technologically advanced!  By selecting a Realtor who is comfortable with the newest technologies… you will gain the added benefit of a Realtor who is MARKETING on the WEB… and ALL OVER IT TOO!

3- Relax… Let your Realtor handle all of it!  Realtors are allowed to order repairs (*Up to a limited amount legally!), cleaning people, lawn people, etc. They do this every day… and can do it for you.  It will take time… just like if you were living there… so ask your Realtor up front what time frame they expect it to sell in

4- Most of all… Make sure your Realtor knows that Communication is essential to you… Ask for weekly updates via email and a phone call every once in a while.  *Great Realtors will understand and know how to set up a special site that you can log into and it will have updates of showings, feedback, market changes, etc. on a regular basis!

Basically, Find a Realtor you Trust, Who is technologically advanced, who you trust, and who will communicate with you regularly!  This will ensure a smooth, less stressful transaction.  You won’t even have to come down to sign if you don’t want to… You should be able to do a “mail away” closing.  (*You’ll just need to sign your paperwork in the area you live in and have it notarized before sending it back!  Sometimes, this will need to be done at a lawyer’s office or title company… Your Realtor or a Title Company can let you know what the laws are!)

That’s it… so don’t delay selling that house if you really want to sell it!  (*Of course, here in Florida… most people just love any excuse to come down here… so they will want to make a trip anyway!  lol)

Have a great weekend!

Chris Thompson

Amendment 1 – Homestead Portability

I just wanted to take a few moments to give my clients, customers, family and friends a few links that may help them to understand the new portability features that Amendment 1 provides.

But first, I want everyone to know some things that the media hasn’t hit on too much since Amendment 1 passed:

Amendment 1 is being challenged right now.  Based on the fact that is creates an “unfair taxation” to certain groups (first time homebuyer’s, people who bought in the last few years, etc.)  Basically, if Buyer A is a first time homebuyer and buys a home exactly like the one that Buyer B buys – And Buyer B lived in a house for say… 30 years and was able to transfer some of his homestead, under Amendment 1… Buyer B will be paying a LOT less than Buyer A.  Even if they both purchase for the same price on the same day!

This is something that will probably not be resolved for a year or 2.  But, IF it is reversed… it would be very difficult for the government to get back that “portability” advantage from anyone who takes advatage of it until (IF) it is reversed.  There is a good possibility that it could be reversed too! (*I recently saw an interview with the president of GTAR – our local board – and Rob Turner – the Hillsborough County Tax Appraiser – a couple days ago.  And he stated this thought too… almost word for word!)

What this means to you:  If you are desiring to move up, down, laterally, and you have a large, positive difference in your Assessed Value vs. Just Market Value… You may be the IDEAL candidate to make a move… NOW!  Interest rates are still historically low, Prices to BUY are the lowest they have been in 30 years, and even if you lose a little more than you want to on the sale of your house… you will reap the rewards in the end with the huge tax savings you can get right now & the low price on the purchase side! 

Anyway, if you want to look into how it works… just visit the sites below:

www.hcpafl.org  – Hillsborough County Property Appraiser’s Website

http://dor.myflorida.com/dor/property/sb4d.html  -  Department of Revenue’s Site with FAQ’s on Ammendment 1

Hope this helps!

Selling Your Home In Today’s Market

Selling your home is easy if you follow some of these simple, basic steps:

1) Determine your motivation – There are many reasons to decide to sell… moving up, moving down, relocation, illness, etc. What price you sell for is DIRECTLY tied to your motivation. Trying to price your home too high will ultimately keep you from moving on with your life. Your decision as a seller is this: “Is getting an extra $10,000, $15,000, etc. worth NOT being able to …. (what you would be doing IF you actually SOLD your house!)”

2) Price it right to begin with – (and here comes the part seller’s hate and Realtors don’t like to talk about much) AGGRESSIVELY adjust the price to the market – To attract buyer’s, To “re-attract” previous lookers, To “re-market”, To show that you are WANTING to move!

3) Stage – Stage – Stage – Curb Appeal, Stuff, Etc – ALL MATTER! (Consult your Realtor for ideas!)

4) Do a Virtual Tour – MUST – This is a 24 hour, across the globe SHOWING of your house to potential buyers!

5) Take Lots of pictures – Most Real Estate Sites sort properties by NUMBER of photos of your house… placing you near the top of the list!

6) MARKET IN THE RIGHT VENUE – Over 80% of buyers start their search on the Internet… Why would you, or your Realtor, spend any less than 80% of their advertising budget on anything else!

7) “Cross that bridge when you get to it!” – Don’t create problems when you finally do get a contract! Every contract has a potential to fall apart… This is where Realtor’s get paid! Your Realtor should be an EXCELLENT negotiator with a cool head!

That’s it! Simple! Good luck!

Team Thompson at Keller Williams Realty in the Tampa, FL area is THRIVING in today’s Real Estate Market! Our Seller’s are reaping the rewards of our Technological Savvy. We have sold over 50% of our listings (inventory) in the last month… have added that many more to our inventory… and we are getting busier every single day!Visit our website for more information on Selling your home! www.TeamThompsonFL.com

Chris Thompson Cell 813.928.4357 Email: chris@TeamThompsonFL.com