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Displaying blog entries 41-45 of 45

7 Reasons to Own Your Own Home

Tuesday, January 22, 2008
by Carol or Jim Chamberlain

1.  Tax breaks. The U.S. Tax Code lets you deduct the interest you pay on your mortgage, property taxes you pay, and some of the costs involved in buying your home.


® Magazine Online by permission of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®Copyright 2005. All rights reserved. www.REALTOR.org/realtormag

 

2. Gains. Between 1998 and 2002, national home prices increased at an average of 5.4 percent annually. And while there’s no guarantee of appreciation, a 2001 study by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS found that a typical homeowner has approximately $50,000 of unrealized gain in a home. 

3.  Equity. Money paid for rent is money that you’ll never see again, but mortgage payments let you build equity ownership interest in your home.

4.  Savings. Building equity in your home is a ready-made savings plan. And when you sell, you can generally take up to $250,000 ($500,000 for a married couple) as gain without owing any federal income tax.

5.  Predictability. Unlike rent, your mortgage payments don’t go up over the years so your housing costs may actually decline as you own the home longer. However, keep in mind that property taxes and insurance costs will rise.

6.  Freedom. The home is yours. You can decorate any way you want and be able to benefit from your investment for as long as you own the home.

7. Stability. Remaining in one neighborhood for several years gives you a chance to participate in community activities, lets you and your family establish lasting friendships, and offers your children the benefit of educational continuity. To calculate whether renting or buying is the best financial option for you, use this calculator  

courtesy of Ginnie Mae: Rent Vs Buy Calulator

 

 

 

 

 

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Questions to ask a Home Inspector

Tuesday, January 22, 2008
by Carol or Jim Chamberlain

 Reprinted from REALTOR

 

  ® Magazine Online by permission of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®Copyright 2005. All rights reserved. www.REALTOR.org/realtormag

1. What are your qualifications? Are you a member of the American Association of Home Inspectors?

2. Do you have a current license? Inspectors are not required to be licensed in every state.

3. How many inspections of properties such as this do you do each year?

4. Do you have a list of past clients I can contact?

5. Do you carry professional errors and omission insurance? May I have a copy of the policy?

6. Do you provide any guarantees of your work?

7. What specifically will the inspection cover?

8. What type of report will I receive after the inspection?

9. How long will the inspection take and how long will it take to receive the report?

10. How much will the inspection cost?

 

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Web Site Resources for Consumers

Monday, January 21, 2008
by Carol or Jim Chamberlain
 
EnergyGuide.com
Provides an easy way to assess energy use and get quick tips on saving energy.
 
Environmental Protection Agency, www.epa.gov
A one-stop shop for advice on testing for and mitigating pollutants, from lead paint to radon to mold.
 
Equifax, www.eqifax.com
A source of credit reports.
 
Experian (formerly TRW), www.experian.com
A source of credit reports.
 
Offers a list of consumer articles about home sales, financing, and maintenance.
 
Ginnie Mae, http://http://www.ginniemae.gov
Provides advice to buyers on affordability and homeownership, including calculators.
 
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Affairs, http://http://www.hud.gov/buying/index.cfm
Offers advice to buyers on finance, fair housing, and more.
 
Provides links to contractors and architects for remodeling projects for buyers and repair services for sellers. For a small charge, buyers can use the site’s Estimators to determine how much renovating a property they’re considering would cost.
 
Moving.com
Helps buyers and sellers with packing tips and timetables, online mover links, and places to store belongings so that homes look less cluttered. click here to go to Moving.com 
 
REALTOR.com
Offers consumer information for buyers and sellers as well as home listings and links to service providers. click here to go to Realtor.com
 
Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council (REBAC), http://http://www.rebac.net/hbk.html
Offers a homebuyer’s kit with useful information and checklists.
 
Trans Union Corporation, www.transunion.com
A source of credit reports.


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8 Steps To Getting Your Finances in Order

Monday, January 21, 2008
by Carol or Jim Chamberlain

1.  Develop a family budget. Instead of budgeting what you’d like to spend, use receipts to create a budget for what you actually spent over the last six months. One advantage of this approach is that it factors in unexpected expenses, such as car repairs, illnesses, etc., as well as predictable costs such as rent.Reduce your debt. Generally speaking, lenders look for a total debt load of no more than 36 percent of income. Since this figure includes your mortgage, which typically ranges between 25 percent and 28 percent of income, you need to get the rest of installment debt—car loans, student loans, revolving balances on credit cards—down to between 8 percent and 10 percent of your total income.

2. 

3. Get a handle on expenses. You probably know how much you spend on rent and utilities, but little expenses add up. Try writing down everything you spend for one month. You’ll probably see some great ways to save.

4. Increase your income. It may be necessary to take on a second, part-time job to get your income at a high-enough level to qualify for the home you want.

5. Save for a downpayment. Although it’s possible to get a mortgage with only 5 percent down—or even less in some cases—you can usually get a better rate and a lower overall cost if you put down more. Shoot for saving a 20 percent downpayment.

6. Create a house fund. Don’t just plan on saving whatever’s left toward a downpayment. Instead decide on a certain amount a month you want to save, then put it away as you pay your monthly bills.

7. Keep your job. While you don’t need to be in the same job forever to qualify, having a job for less than two years may mean you have to pay a higher interest rate.

8.Establish a good credit history. Get a credit card and make payments by the due date. Do the same for all your other bills. Pay off the entire balance promptly.


® Magazine Online by permission of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®Copyright 2005. All rights reserved. www.REALTOR.org/realtormag

 

 

 

 

 

 

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6 Ways to Afford a Home

Monday, January 21, 2008
by Carol or Jim Chamberlain

6 Creative Ways to Afford a Home

If your income and savings are making homebuying a challenge, consider these options.

1. Investigate local, state, and national downpayment assistance programs. These programs give loans or grants to cover all or part of your required downpayment. National programs include the Nehemiah program (http://www.getdownpayment.com) and the American Dream Downpayment Fund from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (http://www.hud.gov).

2. Get the seller to provide financing. In some cases, sellers may be willing to finance all or part of the purchase price of the home and let you repay them gradually, just as you do a mortgage.

3. Consider a shared-appreciation, or shared equity, arrangement. Under this arrangement, your family, friends, or even a third-party may buy a portion of the home and thus share in any appreciation when the home is sold. The owner/occupant usually pays the mortgage, property taxes, and all maintenance costs, but all investors’ names are usually on the mortgage. There are companies that can help you find such an investor if your family can’t participate.

4. Get help from your family. Perhaps a family member will loan you money for the downpayment and/or act as a cosigner for the mortgage. Lenders often like to have a cosigner if you have little credit history

5. Lease with the option to buy. Renting the home for a year or more will give you the chance to save more toward your downpayment. And in many cases, owners will apply some of the rental amount toward the purchase price. You usually have to pay a small, nonrefundable option fee to the owner.

6. See if you can qualify for a short-term second mortgage to give you the money to make a higher downpayment. This may be possible if you have a good income andlittle other debt.

 

 

 

Reprinted from REALTOR

® Magazine Online by permission of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®Copyright 2005. All rights reserved. www.REALTOR.org/realtormag

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Displaying blog entries 41-45 of 45

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