... and many more first time house buyer programs. ... First time home buyer resources: contact information for grants, First time home buyer credit. First time buyer loans. First time buyers ... First Time Home Buyer. Complete First Time Home Buyer Resources. http://www.firsttimehomebuyertax.net Wed, 22 Feb 2012 17:45:29 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.firsttimehomebuyertax.net/general/42-percent-of-home-buyers-are-unrealistic-about-home-value-appreciation.html Despite widespread volatility within the housing market and five consecutive years of home value declines, more than two in five (42 percent) of polled prospective home buyers believe home values typically appreciate by 7 percent a year, according to a recent survey by leading real estate information marketplace Zillow (NASDAQ: Z). This is an unrealistic expectation as, historically, home values in a normal market tend to appreciate by 2-5 percent a year. (1) Zillow, with Ipsos?, surveyed prospective home buyers (2), asking basic questions about the home buying process. Despite the unrealistic expectations about home value appreciation, prospective home buyer respondents seem fairly knowledgeable about the home buying process, answering questions correctly more than half the time (65 percent). However, several important parts of the process confused them. Two in five (41 percent) buyers think they are required to buy private mortgage insurance (PMI) regardless of the amount of their down payment. In fact, lenders typically require PMI only when buyers are putting down less than 20 percent of the home's purchase price. Additionally, more than half of prospective home buyers who were polled confuse appraisals and inspections. Fifty-six percent said the purpose of an appraisal was to determine if the home is in good condition, when in fact that is the purpose of an inspection. "It's troubling that we're still in the midst of one of the worst housing recessions in history, and yet prospective buyers continue to have such high expectations for home value appreciation," said Dr. Stan Humphries, chief economist at Zillow. "It's great that buyers seem to have a fairly solid grasp of the home-buying process, but since this is one of the biggest financial decisions of most people's lives, it's even more important that they understand how that investment will appreciate after they sign the papers. Over-estimation of the appreciation... articles - General Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:18:00 +0100 http://www.firsttimehomebuyertax.net/general/buyers-of-high-priced-homes-in-a-bind.html Time is short for some buyers and owners of more expensive homes to get the best terms on mortgage loans. Starting Oct. 1, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will cut the size of loans they buy from lenders. That will force many future borrowers into more expensive and harder-to-get jumbo loans. The Freddie and Fannie limits, which are generally $417,000 for single-family homes nationwide, were raised in 2008 in some high-cost housing markets to stimulate the economy. In many areas, the limits rose to $729,750 and next month they'll fall to $625,500. Limits will drop more sharply in some areas and less in others. Major lenders, including Bank of America, Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase, have stopped taking new applications for affected loans so that those in process close by the deadline. Meanwhile, borrowers with offers on homes -- who need loans at the current limits -- are "panicked to close loans" by the deadline, says Pamela Liebman, CEO of the Corcoran Group, a residential real estate brokerage company in New York City. Some lenders are "buried" given the rush to close deals before the changes and the mini-refinance boom driven by low rates, says Dean Rizzi of Guarantee Mortgage in San Francisco. He has 10 home buyers who need loans to close before the deadline. With jumbos, borrowers could see a 4.5% interest rate, for example, go to about 5%. Down payments of 20% will be the norm, says Quicken Loans economist Robert Walters. Bank of America says it will close its deals in time. It stopped taking new applications for loans affected by the changes in mid-July, spokesman Terry Francisco says. Borrowers starting the loan process now are probably "out of luck" if they want loan terms based on current limits, says LendingTree economist Cameron Findlay. The changes will affect 2% of the nation's homes, but... articles - General Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:18:00 +0100 http://www.firsttimehomebuyertax.net/general/can-you-get-home-buyer-credit.html If you bought a home last year, you may be eligible for a tax credit of up to $8,000 when you file your 2010 tax return. But before you start shopping for hardwood floors, make sure you qualify. And even if you're eligible, you'll need to take extra steps to prove that your claim is legitimate. Congress first enacted a home buyer's tax credit in 2008 in an effort to revitalize the housing market. Since then, the credit has been revised and extended several times. Here are the factors that will determine your eligibility for the credit: *When you signed the contract to buy your home. To claim the credit on your 2010 tax return, you must have signed a contract to purchase your primary residence before May 1, 2010. *When you closed. Home buyers who closed as late as Sept. 30, 2010, qualify for the credit, as long as their original contract called for the purchase to be completed by June 30. Congress added the extension because many of last year's home purchases involved short sales or homes in foreclosure, and banks have been slow to process those transactions, says John W. Roth, analyst for tax publisher CCH. *Where you lived before you bought the home. For homes purchased Nov. 7, 2009, to April 30, 2010, there are two tax credits: a first-time home buyer credit and a repeat home buyer credit. The first-time home buyer credit is worth 10% of the purchase price of the home, up to a maximum of $8,000. The law defines a first-time home buyer as someone who hasn't owned a principal residence in the three years before the purchase. The repeat home buyer credit is worth up to 10% of the purchase price, up to a maximum of $6,500. The law defines a repeat buyer as someone who has... articles - General Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:18:00 +0100 http://www.firsttimehomebuyertax.net/general/connecticut-couple-are-300th-new-home-buyers-at-symphony-village.html Wanting to be closer to their children as well as to live where the winters are milder, a couple from Connecticut recently became the 300th new home buyer at Symphony Village, the active adult community in Centreville, according to Jeff Caruso, president of Caruso Homes, Crofton, Md. The Connecticut couple, who purchased the Gershwin model, settled earlier this month and plan to relocate to Symphony Village in the coming months. "Their 'story' for selecting Symphony Village is similar to other residents who want to be close to their children and grandchildren while also living in a community that supports and encourages an active lifestyle," said Caruso. Symphony Village offers active adults ages 55-plus the opportunity to enjoy a lifestyle unlike any other with the Symphony Club, a nearly 14,000-square-foot facility, taking center stage. The Symphony Club offers a large, well-equipped fitness center, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a billiards room, business center, card room, yoga studio, and an arts and crafts room. Also available are tennis courts, a community garden and walking trails. For more information about Symphony Village, call 1-866-766-0009 or visit www.symphonyvillage.com or the Symphony Village Facebook page. To visit Symphony Village, take Route 50/301 East over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Continue on 50/301 over the Kent Narrows Bridge. Go 4 miles to 50/301 split. Take 301 North to Route 213 North, then right on Taylor Mill Road. For GPS and online map tracking, the address is 138 Symphony Way, Centreville, MD 21617. Sales Office hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays. About Caruso Homes Founded in Maryland in 1985, Caruso Homes is an award-winning home builder based in Crofton, Md., offering properties in communities throughout Maryland, including Symphony Village, an active adult community in Centreville. For information, call 1-800-570-2289, visit www.carusohomes.com, "like" Caruso... articles - General Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:18:00 +0100 http://www.firsttimehomebuyertax.net/general/first-time-home-buyers-getting-shut-out.html Many first-time home buyers are sitting on the sidelines of the U.S. housing market, hampering its ability to gain traction. Last month, 34% of existing-home purchases were made by first-time buyers, according to the National Association of Realtors. In January, they were 29% of the market, the lowest since NAR surveys started tracking them monthly in late 2008. In healthy markets, first-time buyers make up 40% to 45% of all purchasers. They play a critical role in buying starter homes so those owners can buy more expensive homes. Despite low mortgage rates and falling prices in many markets, existing-home sales have been weak for months and were down 2.8% in February from a year ago. What's keeping more first-timers at bay: Expired tax credits. Federal credits boosted home sales in 2009 and 2010 and lured some first-time buyers into the market sooner than normal, says Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. The credits expired in April. Last March, 48% of buyers were first-timers, Inside Mortgage Finance data show. "It'll take some time to rebuild that pipeline," Yun says. Lending standards. Tighter lending standards since the housing bust are edging out first-timers who can't meet credit or employment history requirements in a still-weak economy, says Guy Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance. Higher credit standards are reflected in loans bought by government-backed mortgage giants Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. Last year, loans in Freddie Mac's portfolio had an average credit score of 758, it says. That was up from 720 five years ago. Many lenders are also requiring higher down payments, says Greg McBride, senior analyst at Bankrate.com. The best terms kick in with 20% or more down. Higher down payments are driving more buyers to Federal Housing Administration loans. The FHA requires as little as 3.5% down for borrowers with good credit scores. In fiscal year 2010, FHA loans... articles - General Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:18:00 +0100 http://www.firsttimehomebuyertax.net/general/home-buyers-were-duped-by-their-local-authorities-as-well.html WE MAY be basking in an Indian summer but the skies are darkening as the chickens hatched during the Celtic Tiger come home to roost. Today, 187 families are packing their possessions and looking for somewhere to stay after the High Court ordered them to evacuate their north Dublin apartments because they are unsafe firetraps.. Priory Hall was built in 2007, when eager young people paid more than €250,000 for houses, apartments and duplexes that they bought off the plans. One reason developers justified the extortionate house prices during the 'boom' was that they were forced to pay a hefty 'development fee' to the local authority. And at the height of the boom, as former minister Tom Parlon pointed out recently, the State received more than 40% of the money involved in every housing transaction through VAT and taxes paid within the construction industry. Many home buyers also paid a percentage of the value of the property in stamp duty. So what was the role of the State and its various agents in passing these now-condemned buildings fit and safe for habitation a mere four years ago? By the way, Dublin City Council's legal department which, with the council's fire inspectors, applied for the evacuation order told the residents of Priory Hall, not to contact it for advice and to pay for their own. At least it did advise the distraught homeowners and tenants to add their names to the capital's social housing waiting list, which is already heaving with 80,000 people. When these jerrybuilt apartments were springing up all over the country, many councils were winning architectural awards for their own new civic offices. There was hardly a local authority that did not build fantastic, safe and fireproof civic offices, using the massive income they generated during the Celtic Tiger. Most of them still charge... articles - General Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:18:00 +0100 http://www.firsttimehomebuyertax.net/general/it-is-an-employers-market-for-home-loan-officers.html Mortgage loan officers are still smarting over the Federal Reserve's new compensation rules, but if anyone's celebrating it's the folks whose job is to actually hire loan officers and their wholesale counterparts, account executives. "It's a fun time to be recruiting," said Lisa Schreiber, executive vice president in charge of wholesale lending for TMS Funding in Milford, Conn. "There are so many good account executives out there right now - with 20, 25 years of experience." Schreiber's job is to hire experienced account executives whose job is to gather product from loan brokers. Lately TMS has had the pick of the lot because of the Fed's loan officer rule and a slowdown in industrywide originations and wholesale lending. When volumes fall account executives lose their jobs, which results in a buyer's market for senior sales executives. Earlier this month TMS issued a press release touting its hiring of six new account executives. These sales managers' former employers are a who's who of wholesale lending: AmTrust, Bank of America, Chase, Countrywide, U.S. Bank and Wachovia, to name a few. Even more telling is the number of years the six account executives have been in the business: 30, 28, 20, 20, 19 and 16. The lesson here may be that only the very experienced should apply. Paul Hindman, managing director of the recruiting firm Management Advisors International, said lenders are assessing their hiring needs like never before. With volumes likely to decline this year, it's all about evaluating and hiring the very best loan officer, Hindman said. "Companies can no longer afford to hire just the warm body … the right hire is critical," he said. Those bodies better have good ties to Realtors, because the market this year will be driven by home purchases rather than refinancings, said Bill Dallas, chairman and CEO of Skyline Financial in... articles - General Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:18:00 +0100 http://www.firsttimehomebuyertax.net/general/mi-homes-charlotte-introduces-interactive-app-for-brokers-and-home-buyers.html M/I Homes Charlotte has created a fun, innovative iPhone app that allows you to connect, search and share information on M/I Homes communities in Charlotte and surrounding cities. The free app is geared towards both consumers and brokers. You'll find move-in-ready homes, available plans, current promotions and pricing, and maps to any M/I Homes community in Charlotte, Stallings, Concord, Huntersville, Cornelius and Mooresville. The app includes photos of M/I Homes plans, communities, and available inventory, plus one-touch directions and easy ways to contact M/I Homes if you have questions. Follow communities you like for updates about them, get current interest rates, and find out the latest news from local real estate brokers. The more you check-in to M/I Homes Charlotte through the app, the more reward points you can earn towards items like gift cards, gas cards or movie tickets. "The app is a cross between Yelp and Foursquare for M/I communities," says Tamara Lynch, vice president of sales and marketing for M/I Homes Charlotte. "People can check in for events, interact with others, and let friends know what homes they are looking at." Brokers will be able to access events and promotions just for them, and become the points leader to win prizes. Brokers and firms can stay up-to-date on the current market leader through the Leader Board in the app. Get the free app at the iPhone App Store and in the Android Market. M/I Homes, Inc. is one of the nation's leading builders of single-family homes, having delivered over 78,500 homes. M/I Homes Charlotte is one of the top five residential builders in the region. The company builds townhomes from the $100s and single-family homes from the $120s in 11 locations in Charlotte, Huntersville, Concord, Mooresville, Cornelius and Stallings. For more details, visit www.mihomes.com/charlotte . articles - General Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:18:00 +0100 http://www.firsttimehomebuyertax.net/general/more-huedles-for-home-buyers.html UNCLE SAM IS BACKING AWAY from a big part of the homeloan business in a slow retreat that will ultimately make mortgages more expensive. The trade-off is that taxpayers won't bear the cost -- or not as much of it -- if the housing market implodes again. It will take years to wind down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the infamous failed mortgage giants now in conservatorship. But we're already getting a taste of what life will be like without them. For decades, Fannie and Freddie formed a vast, secondary market for mortgage loans by standardizing terms, then packaging loans into securities that carried a payment guarantee. Investors who bought the securities provided cash for new mortgages. It worked well until home prices collapsed and Fannie and Freddie were undone by loans that turned out to have been too risky. So far, the government has provided over $130 billion to honor their debt and loan guarantees. In a rare instance of like-mindedness across the political spectrum, most everyone agrees that Fannie and Freddie have to go. For now, the aim is to shrink the market in government-backed loans by making them less attractive relative to still-scarce private-label loans. To that end, the limits on loans that Fannie and Freddie will guarantee are slated to fall to a maximum of $625,500 as of October 1, from $729,750 now, making loans more costly in expensive housing markets. Down-payment minimums are headed toward 10% (minimums are officially 3% now, although in practice today's borrowers pay more). Recently, Fannie and Freddie raised fees for most loans with terms longer than 15 years, even for borrowers with perfect credit scores and 25% equity. The debate on how to restructure the mortgage market for the long term has just begun, and a number of proposals are on the table,... articles - General Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:18:00 +0100 http://www.firsttimehomebuyertax.net/general/new-home-buyers-get-expert-advice-from-new-construction-inspectors.html New home buyers in Ontario now have the opportunity to enlist the services of a qualified New Construction Inspector (NCI) and receive professional guidance on navigating the Tarion warranty program, The Ontario Association of Home Inspectors announced today. "The significance of this new designation is twofold," said Robin Green, President of The Ontario Association of Home Inspectors (OAHI). "It not only demonstrates the commitment of our members to ongoing training and upgrading, it demonstrates our ability as an organization to work with key stakeholders in the industry in the best interest of consumers here in Ontario." The New Construction Inspection Training Program (NCITP), a national initiative of the Canadian Association of Home Property Inspectors (CAHPI, http://www.cahpi.ca/) of which the OAHI is a provincial body, was launched earlier this year to improve inspection and reporting methods and reduce the growing number of consumer complaints related to newly constructed homes. The NCITP also recognizes the associations' mandate to enhance the technical skills and professional practice of home inspectors and maintain high professional standards through education and discipline. All parties involved in a new home real estate transaction aim to benefit - new home buyers, builders, realtors, and Tarion Warranty Corporation, http://www.tarion.com/Pages/default.aspx. Alan Carson of Carson Dunlop commented, "This rigorous program was developed by professional home inspectors working in cooperation with the Tarion Warranty Corporation. It provides a new and unique set of tools for home inspection consultants working with new home buyers. The training program and NCI designation effectively bridge the gap between professional home inspection consultants, home builders and Tarion. Congratulations to the OAHI for making this commitment to education excellence and to Ontario home buyers." Enrollment in the NCITP is voluntary and currently open to OAHI Associate and RHI members. The program focuses exclusively on inspecting newly constructed homes, either during or... articles - General Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:18:00 +0100