jim hand's Blog

First Time Homebuyers

jim hand (Real Estate Showcase) — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 20:44:00 -0800

Since the New Year has begun I have had a significant rise in phone calls on listings. Also first time homebuyers that are anxious to take advantage of low interest rates and the tax credits that are available. I hope this continues throughout the year.

Housing Credit

jim hand (Real Estate Showcase) — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 20:38:53 -0800

Daily Real Estate News | February 9, 2009 | Share Vote's Still Out on $15,000 Housing Credit
Critics of the proposed $15,000 housing allowance amendment to the economic stimulus bill say it won't work.

The Senate version of the proposal would give $15,000 (or 10 percent of the purchase price, whichever is lower) to every buyer of a house in 2009.

The idea is to bring more buyers to the market, but some suggest that this won't happen if people are worried about losing their jobs or if they are concerned that the value of the property will decline.

Rajeev Dhawan, director of Georgia State University's Robinson College of Business, argues that the plan is an insignificant amount in the high-end market and at the lower end, it won't help those who can't afford to buy a home because they can't get a loan.

"How are those at the lower end [of the market] going to get financing?" asks Dhawan. "The banks aren't lending."

Other critics say the plan will cost too much - an estimated $75 billion if 5 million homes are sold.

Dean Baker, co-founder of the Center for Economic & Policy Research, a Washington think thank, says those homes would have been sold anyway. "It seems a total waste of government money for no reason," said Baker.

Source: BusinessWeek.com, Moira Herbst (02/06/2009)

Weather

jim hand (Real Estate Showcase) — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 10:50:36 -0800

Another snow storm headed our way for Tuesday the amount we get depends on the track of the storm.

Weather

jim hand (Real Estate Showcase) — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 10:44:33 -0800

We may get another snow storm next Tuesday how much depends on the storm track.

Foreclosures

jim hand (Real Estate Showcase) — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 10:25:17 -0800

Daily Real Estate News | January 28, 2009 | Share Fed Announces Plan to Reduce Foreclosures
The Federal Reserve will take aggressive action to renegotiate mortgages that are likely to enter foreclosure, Fed Chair Ben Bernanke said in a letter to Congress Tuesday.

Under the program, which only affects mortgages owned by the Fed, the central bank will be able to reduce what a home owner owes on a mortgage, lower the interest rate, lengthen the term on the loan, or take other steps that might persuade home owners to keep paying. Borrowers will deal directly with their mortgage servicer.

The Fed says that the mortgages most likely to be affected are those with loan balances that are more than 125 percent of estimated value of the property.

"It's a step beyond what FDIC is doing with its own portfolio," said mortgage expert Alan White, an assistant professor at Valparaiso University School of Law. "Principal write-downs are still the critical issue" in keeping borrowers in their homes.

Source: Washington Post, Neil Irwin and Renae Merle (01/28/2009)