I'm sure you've noticed that interest rates are creeping up.....again! They werethe lowest they've been in years. Rates are still very good, but they may not stay that way for long! Another factor to consider is that housing prices are near what they were in 2003 in our particular area! Do you know someone who is fence sitting....waiting for the perfect time to buy? Yeah, most of us do. You may want to make them aware of some very interesting numbers. Point out to them the difference in owning a $320,000 vs. a $240,000 home for the exact same payment amount! Do you think that might make them sit up and take notice?
In keeping with the current trend to go "green", May is National Bike Month. In conjunction with the national event, it is also Utah Bike Month. This year the Salt Lake Bike Bonanza will debut a stylish new attraction as part of the festivities - the Cycle Style Show!
The Salt Lake City show has been patterned after European Cycle Style shows. The show will feature bicycles of all types for the 2009 season including road bikes, mountain bikes, commute to work bikes and path bikes. There will also be a variety of specialty bikes on display. A touch of Amsterdam will be added to the line up with some Dutch style bikes that allow the rider to look chic while they ride. Move over spandex biking clothes! These cycles feature chain guards and skirt guards to help keep clothing clean allowing a girl or guy to bike to work, the mall, or anyplace in style!
"We are really excited about how this event is coming together and what it means to biking in Salt Lake," said show organizer and bike advocate Tara McKee. "After researching how others around the world build momentum for biking in their areas, I found that the European cycling shows bring communities together in an exciting way. As the planning of this event has unfolded, I have become keenly aware of the love of biking in Salt Lake. Whether people enjoy road, mountain, or leisure biking, I have found that we all yearn for a community that understands the benefits for individuals and families. This event will center on our love of the sport."
The public is invited to join community leaders and cycling advocates for this FREE family event.
Friday, May 15 2009 7:00 p.m.
Gallivan Center - Downtown Salt Lake City
239 S. Main St.
Contact Suzanne Gallegos, Salt Lake City's Service First Realtor
Serving Salt Lake City, Utah and surrounding areas
Are you looking for fun yet educational family activities in the Salt Lake City area? Search no more! Here are two of Salt Lake City's unique family friendly attractions!
DISCOVERY GATEWAY CHILDREN'S MUSEUM
Completed in Fall 2006. the new Utah Children's Museum facility boasts a wealth of entertaining yet educational exhitits in the convenient shopping area of The Gateway in downtown Salt Lake City. Permanent fixtures include the hands-on Media Center where kids can interact with technology, and The Studio, which combines art, science and engineering exhibits to help kids understand and interact with the world around them. All exhibits are hands on and interactive. Open seven days a week.
While its IMAX Theatre shows and Hansen Star Theatre draw big crowds, there are also plenty of free exhibits all year long. Visitors can learn about eveything from meteorites, Mars and the moon to the solar system, stars and space stations. All presented in a colorful and exciting world-class facility. Open seven days a week.
"Utah's economy is following a path that can return the state to it's prior level of prosperity." This encouraging comment was made by Kelly Matthews, Wells Fargo economist, to a sold out crowd at the Governor's third annual Utah Economic Summit. Matthews stated that while challenges still remain, he believes the recession, now in it's 17th month, is bottoming out and Utah's economy is poised for a strong recovery.
There were a number of representatives from the business, education and government sectors present at the summit. They said that although they may not share the same level of optimism, they agree the state is better positioned than most to recover. The nonpartisan American Legislative Exchange Council recently graded Utah's economy the most competitive in the nation.
Among indicators that point to a return to prosperity is affordable housing and a trend toward activity in the housing market. While home prices in Utah have not plummeted to the same degree as in harder hit housing markets, prices have definitely come down over the past year and a half. This, combined with the current home buyer incentives, make the Utah housing market very buyer friendly.
Contact Suzanne Gallegos, Salt Lake City's Service First Realtor
Serving Salt Lake City, Utah and surrounding areas
Utah's Governor, John Huntsman, signed a bill last week allowing creation of a $6000 grant program for homebuyers purchasing a newly constructed home. There are 1,600 grants available. Salt Lake Board of Realtors President Ryan Kirkham stated that getting rid of inventory will help home builders and the construction industry get back to work. The Salt Lake Board feels this new local incentive combined with the Federal $8000 incentive will make a big difference in Utah's housing market. In fact, the SLBR says that the combination of these new incentives could pull Utah out of the recession.
"People are kind of excited about this, and there is a little bit of a buzz, and I actually think we might see things really pick up here because it's just a time where if you are thinking about buying at all, you can't pass up these opportunities its almost crazy to not take advantage of this," Kirkham said.
"This move by the state, by the legislature and the governor is really a great move because that money should drive that inventory down even lower, which is really important to help us fix this housing market. You can't have an economic recovery without housing," Kirkham said.
These incentives are also good news for the estimated 18,000 Utah construction workers who lost jobs last year as a result of the slowing housing market. According to the Governor's office there are an estimated 3,000 newly built homes available. The $6000 buyer's incentive should help drive down this inventory and give the new home market room to grow again.
Imagine this scenario: $8000 first time home buyer credit
+ $6000 new construction incentive
+ $6000 seller paid closing costs (based on 3% of $200,000 purchase price)
$20,000!!!
That's a possible $20,000 discount on your new home! WOW! Why wait???
Contact Suzanne Gallegos, Salt Lake City's Service First Realtor
Serving Salt Lake City, Utah and surrounding areas
Is it possible that new home starts and new mortgage applications were up in February? The following is economic update info courtesy of one of my fave loan guys.
The Commerce Department reported that housing starts unexpectedly jumped 22.2% in February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 583,000 units. This ended the longest streak of declines in 18 years. Economists had anticipated a 3.4% decline to 450,000 units. Leading the surge was an 82% increase in the building of multifamily homes - condominiums, apartments and townhouses - to 226,000 units in February from 124,000 in January. Housing starts for single-family homes rose 1.1% to 357,000 units. Building permits for single-family homes climbed 11% in February to 373,000, compared to 336,000 in January.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage applications for the week ending March 13 increased 21.2% to 876.9 from the previous week. Purchase volume rose 1.5% to 257.1, while refinancing applications jumped 29.6% to 4,497.6.
The Federal Reserve reported that industrial activity at the nation's factories, mines and utilities fell by 1.4% in February. Economists had expected a decline of 1.2%. The factory-operating rate was down to 67.4% of capacity in February, the lowest level on records dating back to 1948. On a positive note, motor vehicle and parts production rose 10.2% after four consecutive months of declines.
The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo housing market index in March stood at nine, the same level it was in February. The index hit a record low of eight in January. An index reading higher than 50 indicates positive sentiment about the housing market. The index has been below 50 since May 2006, and below 20 since April 2008.
On Tuesday, March 17, the Labor Department reported the producer price index, which tracks wholesale prices, rose 0.1% in February. Economists had expected a 0.8% increase.
The Labor Department reported Wednesday that consumer inflation rose 0.4% in February, the biggest one-month jump since a 0.7% rise in July 2008. The increase was largely due to an 8.3% rise in gasoline prices.
The Conference Board reported Thursday that its index of leading economic indicators fell 0.4% in February. That was slightly better than the 0.6% decline economists had expected. The index is designed to forecast economic activity in the next three to six months.
Upcoming on the economic calendar are reports on existing home sales on March 23, and durable goods orders and new home sales on March 25.
I know, I know, you thought the happiest place on earth was Disneyland. Turns out that's not the case. Utah has stolen that coveted title away from Mickey and Minnie! Who knew it could be done?
The Gallup organization and Healthways, a disease management firm, released results of a poll earlier this week which reveals their rankings, by state, of who indeed has the happiest residents. Utah came out on top! Residents of the Beehive State claim the highest satisfaction in such areas as work environment, local communities, and emotional health. Other areas that were measured included life satisfaction, work quality, healthy behavior, physical health, emotional health and basic access to necessities like food and shelter. The poll was conducted over a one year period.
Utah was followed by Hawaii and then Wyoming. The bottom states included West Virginia, Michigan and Ohio. Some have speculated that one of the major factors influencing this poll is the unemployment rate. Utah still claims the lowest unemployment rate at 4.6%. The national average is now at 7.6%. It is also interesting to note that the median income in the top three states is $50,000 - $62,000. Median income in the bottom three states is $36,000 - $40,000. Undoubtedly these numbers could affect the average residents' outlook.
According to Healthways the purpose of the study was to measure quality of life outside the typical measures which included life expectancy and poverty rates.
Congratulations Utah on making the top of yet another list!
Check out these blogs on quality of life in Salt Lake City, Utah, and the surrouding area.
There seems to be this "mindset of fear" running rampant. We the public, and all throughout the housing industry, seem to be listening to the media. We hear about all the foreclosures, about the economic problems and we worry. We're just flat afraid and it seems that we don't know if we should take the next step or not.
I'd like to share some facts that were shared with me by a favorite loan officer. Hopefully this will put a few things into perspective for you.
· FACT: Interest rates are where they were back in the 1960's, back when gas was just .35 cents a gallon and postage was only .08 cents.
· FACT: Today home prices are at record lows in most markets, back to where they were in 2003.
· FACT: There are tons of great loan programs out there: FHA, VA, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac.
· FACT: You don't need 20% down. There is still a no money down program, 3½% down programs, and even special programs like the new "HomePath" program that requires as little as 3% down and even funding for investment properties with as little as 10% down.
· FACT: If you have a job, have a paycheck stub, and have decent credit, you CAN get a home!
· FACT: When interest rates go up, they skyrocket! You could wake up tomorrow morning and lose a half a point or more. Take advantage of what's available NOW! Don't try to outsmart the market, go with what you know... today.
· FACT: First Time Home Buyers, or anyone who hasn't owned a home in the past three years, may qualify for the new $8,000.00 stimulus tax credit. (And this one DOES NOT need to be repaid!)
· FACT: The Money is there! Unfortunately the media has made it look like there's no money at all, and that's just not fair!
Your job is to get yourself educated, get the facts, learn about the new technologies available to you through your Real Estate Agent, learn and get comfortable with the process. Don't let the great opportunities of today pass you by! Consult a professional today! You may be surprised at what is available for you and your family in this market. Do It Now! Don't Wait!
Here's another bit of information that may surprise you:
February 2009 - Metrocities / Prospect Mortgage (the company my friend works with) funded over $899,000,000.00 in mortgage loans - That's almost a billion dollars!
If there truly was no money out there, how could this have been possible?
Recently Forbes Magazine ranked Utah as the top place for jobs and business in the U.S. If you are a business owner already in SLC, or a business owner considering relocating to Salt Lake City the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce offers a number of resources for you.
The Salt Lake Women's Business Center is hosting a Business Essentials seminar. The event will take place on March 11, 2009 from 8:30 - 10:00 a.m. The Featured speaker will be Monica Rafferty. She will be speaking on the importance of finding the right location for a business. Ms. Rafferty will also address the pros and cons of buying as opposed to leasing.
Ms. Rafferty's background is in marketing and strategic planning, helping business owners achieve superior results. She also specializes in Commercial Real Estate. Prior to that she spent 20 years in product management and strategic planning for such clients as American Express and Morgan Stanley Asset Management.
This seminar promises to be advantageous to local business owners as well as those considering a move or additional business location in Utah.
Forbes Magazine is well known for it's lists. They have a list for everything from Billionaires to Best Citiesfor Singles! (topics for another blog:) Forbes has become the go-to-guy on anything and everything and we have come to rely on their lists for recommendations of all kinds.
Not surprisingly, to those of us who discovered it first, Forbes SLC! That's right folks. The big boys over at Forbes think little 'ol Salt Lake City is worth bragging about! Twice Salt Lake City has topped the Forbes list in the Best City For Jobs category. Yes, you heard me right, #1 two years in a row! And just down the road about 30 minutes or so, Provo has been named #2 in the Best Business and Careers lists. This is no doubt due to the large number of technology and IT jobs. Salt Lake made the top ten list for Recession-Proof Cities - which is especially comforting in light of recent events! And, Forbes Traveler has called downtown Salt Lake's Grand America Hotel "One of the world's very best hotels".
As if all this wasn't enough, Salt Lake City recently ranked #1 in the Complete List: Best Bargains ForHouse Hunters. Now that is an exciting place to be in the current market! And, just when you think it can't get any better, our lovely little city has ranked #3 in Best Cities For Home Sellers!
These rankings are based on such things as healthy job growth (please see above -"Best City For Jobs")number of foreclosures, number of available houses on the market compared to number of potential buyers, and decline in construction. According to Forbes Salt Lake City is adding jobs at a rate faster than anywhere else, and local economic growth is attracting home buyers from all over the country. While the Salt Lake Market has been ranked #3 for home sellers, it is still a buyer's market and buyers can still negotiate price and dictate many terms of the sale. If you're considering a move to SLC I just happen to know a great realtor! (wait...does Forbes have a list for that yet?)
Here is THE inside scoop on All Things Salt Lake City, Utah! Trends, News, Hot Spots, etc...Real Estate Blogs Directory
- Directory of real estate blogs and blogs of industries affiliated with and
serving the real estate industry.
Disclaimer: ActiveRain Corp. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain Corp. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, that are written by the members of this community.
Gallivan Center - Downtown Salt Lake City
Completed in Fall 2006. the new Utah Children's Museum facility boasts a wealth of entertaining yet educational exhitits in the convenient shopping area of The Gateway in downtown Salt Lake City. Permanent fixtures include the hands-on Media Center where kids can interact with technology, and The Studio, which combines art, science and engineering exhibits to help kids understand and interact with the world around them. All exhibits are hands on and interactive. Open seven days a week. 
While its IMAX Theatre shows and Hansen Star Theatre draw big crowds, there are also plenty of free exhibits all year long. Visitors can learn about eveything from meteorites, Mars and the moon to the solar system, stars and space stations. All presented in a colorful and exciting world-class facility. Open seven days a week.
Utah's Governor, John Huntsman, signed a bill last week allowing creation of a $6000 grant program for homebuyers purchasing a newly constructed home. There are 1,600 grants available. Salt Lake Board of Realtors President Ryan Kirkham stated that getting rid of inventory will help home builders and the construction industry get back to work. The Salt Lake Board feels this new local incentive combined with the Federal $8000 incentive will make a big difference in Utah's housing market. In fact, the SLBR says that the combination of these new incentives could pull Utah out of the recession.
Recently Forbes Magazine ranked Utah as the top place for jobs and business in the U.S. If you are a business owner already in SLC, or a business owner considering relocating to Salt Lake City the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce offers a number of resources for you.
SLC!
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