Wow,  just when we thought that we had achieved the greatest time to buy or sell a home in years and years, there is a new program out that not only aids buyer, IT HELPS SELLERS!  Let me explain how the latest ruling from HUD is helping both buyers and sellers.

On May 29th, HUD ruled that the First Time Home Buyer credit of $8000 could be used for down payment!  This not only signals the return of zero down for loans other than USDA, the ruling un-wittingly gave the home seller a greater demand for the sale of their home without large seller contributions for closing cost, as was true under the old scenario of Nehemiah loans where the seller had to contribute to a gift fund which was returned to the buyer as a gift to be under the radar of the buyer cannot borrow the down payment.

This has given people wanting to sell but, were concern about the low return from the sale due to buyer demands for seller contributions", a reason to go ahead and sell realizing they will not have to give up thousands to the buyer in the form of closing cost contributions.

I hope you did not read the headline and thing you had missed some important ruling that was issued, but when you look at all the factors, our illustrious government may have un-wittingly help the sellers, imagine that!

Pete Stanley,

Team Stanley

www.elliscountymoves.com

 

We buy an home and we always have to do what is required.  We set up an escrow account to insure that taxes and home insurance is paid every year.  We do this because our lender requires it!

Lenders raquire you to do this because it protect them, right!

So who is protecting you and your family?  You are, or are you?

I purchased a foreclosure in 2007 and it was sad to learn that the bank owned the home because the ladies husband had died and they did not have life insurance to protect the mortgage.  So who is requiring you to protect your family in the event your not there to pay the mortgage.  Believe me, the bank does not care if your surviving partner loses the home, they just want their money.

Your state requires you to have insurance on your car.  Your car loan requires you to insure the car against damages, so why is there no requirement to protect your home from loss in the event of family trauma.

Oh yes, if you buy FHA or pay less than 20% down on your home, you have to insure the mortgage company with PMI or PPI insurance. 

Buying life insurance for the amount of your home loan is not really something you should consider an option.  You need it.

I believe this so strongly I sell very affordable life home mortgage protection insurance to those who will listen and personally, I think it should be required and placed in escrow, but I do not see that happening.

If you sell a home, the buyer will be receiving offers for insurance, and they need to follow up.  I sell insuance in every state and am licensed currently in Texas and Florida, if anyone needs help, let me know, I build programs to fit the budget and offer return of premium if they do not die.  How many times has your car insurance company given you your money back if you do not have a wreck.  Food for thought.

 

 
 
 Team Stanley, top Buyer Agents in Ellis County, Texas

 

Team Stanley Real Estate has been presenting first time home buyer seminars and presenting the benefits of the $8000 tax credit to our buyers in an effort to get them to realize that there has never been a better time to buy a home than now!  While the $8000 is certainly an attractive reason to buy now, it is simply the icing on the real cake being offered now.

While the $8000 is an immediate benefit to first time home buyers, the real benefit is in the interest rate for a 30 year mortgage, and you don't have to be a first time home buyer to get this benefit.  Everyone can benefit.

Do the math!  This week we closed a young couple on a $150,000 home with a 4.75% interest rate,  and wow, it hit me like a lead balloon.  I thought my personal home had a great rate of 6.5%  but then look at these numbers.

$150,000 for 30 years, at 7% = Monthly payments for Principal, and Interest = $997.95 per month

$150,000 for 30 years, at 6% = Monthly payments for Principal, and Interest = $899.33per month

$150,000 for 30 years, at 4.75% = Monthly payments for Principal, and Interest = $782.47 per month

Now that is a monthly savings of $215 and a annual savings of $2,586 and a 30 year savings of $77,572

Not to mention payments are cheaper than rent, interest is deductible and taxes are deductible.

Now go to the last step, assuming 20% tax bracket  and 4.5%, that equals additional savings of $9000 per year just for interest deduction and about $2000 per year for tax deduction or a total annual savings over renting of $2200 a year and $66,000 over 30 years in tax savings with which you could be buy an annuity and have a additional $185,000 or more for retirement.

Now if your not a first time home buyer and you buy a $300,000 home, double the numbers.

Now if you got it, call  or e-mail Team Stanley, lets find your home and get you started to life time savings.

Team Stanley

Pete 972-921-2047   pete@elliscountymoves.com

Mary 972-935-3991 mary@elliscountymoves.com
 

OK, winter is coming to a end and this old travler is ready to get out again.

For those of you who subscribed to my blogs because of my travel pictures and comments, I apologize, but things have been busy trying to keep a business going.

I admit I am getting the travel fever again, so I wanted to send you a picture from outside our hotel room in Mexico last summer, it kinda makes you excited to see new things again.  So lets get out and travel.

 
Posted by Pete and Mary Stanley on 04/03/2009 05:15 AM   Comments (0)   just laying around in mexico  

Would you reward poor performance on your team?

Why in Gods name would our Government give money to people who have proven they cannot manage it?

AiG, General Motors, Chrysler, what ever happened to Capitalism.  We work hard, do our job and get rewarded.

The new way is, squander your money, poorly manage your business and get bailed out by the tax payers.

If you want the economy to grow and revive, give the money back to the tax payers who put it up in the first place, they will spend the money and businesses will grow, people will buy homes, builders will build and the rules of supply and demand will again build our Great Nation.

I is amazing to me that our President is at a world economic summit and everyone is mad at us because they are blaming the US for the world problem.  They have quickly forgot that they rode the ride up by our society and economic power and now they are faced with having to do something themselves to help their own economy.

I am mad, and I think we all have a right to be.

 

 
Posted by Pete and Mary Stanley on 04/03/2009 04:41 AM   Comments (1)   i am really mad  

Via Marc Rasmussen - Sarasota FL Real Estate (Michael Saunders and Company):

Angry Realtor

Here Is What Happened

Monday January 26th - 9:43 - Tom, a Realtor in Sarasota, Florida, arrives at his office and is anxious to get to work. Afterall, he hasn't sold a home in over 2 months.

Monday - 11:24 - 11:39 - Becky lives in Wisconsin and is thinking about buying a beach front condo on Siesta Key. Her family has been vacationing on Siesta Key for the last 10 years and with the depressed real estate market Becky and her husband Joe feel that this is a perfect time to buy. She finds Tom's website and gives him a call.

Tom answers Becky's call with enthusiasm. Becky tells Tom about her desire to buy a condo on Siesta Key and that she and Joe plan to be there January 30th and 31st to look at condos.

Tom, "Have you been to Sarasota before?"

Becky, "We have been vacationing on Siesta Key for the last 10 years so we know it well."

Tom, "Great. Are you looking in any other areas?"

Becky, "Nope. We only want to buy on Siesta Key."

Tom, "What kind of condo do you want to own?

Becky, "We would like a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom, on the beach and under $700,000. We also want something in good condition because we don't want to buy a project. This will be a vacation home for us and we want to just come down and relax. Do you think we can find that Tom?"

Tom, "Sure you can. This is a great time to be a buyer. I just ran a search and there are 45 condos that match your description on Siesta Key. I will need to parse that down for you since many of them are overpriced or not in a good condition."

Tom, "Are you working with any other Realtors?"

Becky, "No. You are the only one that I have contacted."

Tom, "Great. I would be happy to help you and would appreciate it if you only work with me."

Becky is impressed with Tom's market knowledge and attentiveness so she agrees to not contact any other Realtors. 

Tom, "Would it helpful for me to email you all of the properties for sale with your requirements?"

Becky, "Yes."

Tom, "Have you arranged financing yet?"

Becky, "Not yet but we are pretty comfortable that we can get financing."

Tom, "Perfect. Let me know if you need someone to work with down here in Florida. I have some good lenders."

Becky, "Ok."

Tom, "When are you looking to buy?"

Becky, "We can buy at any time."

Tom, "Is there anything else you absolutely must have in any condo?"

Becky, "I don't think so. A 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo on the beach, not a fixer upper and a good deal under $700,000."

Tom gets all of Becky's contact information and confirms the dates of her visit with Becky and concludes the phone call.

Tom thinks in his head - $700,000 x 3% = $21,000!

Monday - 11:45 - After hanging up with Becky, Tom searches on the Sarasota MLS for Siesta Key condos to email Becky. He spends 25 minutes going through all of the listings and narrows down the list to 31 condos. He emails Becky the list of condos.

Monday - 1:54 - 3:45 - Tom is back from lunch and starts working on finding the best Siesta Key condos for Becky. He makes calls to listing agents to ask about the condition of their listings. Becky made it clear that she didn't want to buy a project.

Tuesday January 27th - 10:15 - Tom receives an email from Becky. She reviewed all of the Siesta Key condos and made a list of her favorites. Becky asks Tom some questions about a number of properties.

Wednesday - 3:23 - 3-39 - Becky emails Tom and asks about a few properties that she has seen on his website. Tom looks them up on the Sarasota MLS and reviews the units. He has seen them months ago and doesn't think that they are a good fit for Becky. Tom is happy that Becky is doing her homework prior to her arrival. She is showing buyer signals.

Thursday - 9:23 - Tom doesn't have a very busy day so he decides to preview condos prior to Becky and Joe arriving on Friday. This way he can eliminate all of the bad ones. He makes appointments to preview 15 condos later in the day. He can't preview everything on Becky's list but at least he can remove some possibilities.

Thursday - 1:12 - 3:10 - Tom previews the 15 properties and eliminates 5 of them. Tom gets back to the office and sets up showings for Friday to show Becky and her husband 10 condos. 

Friday - 10:00 - Tom meets Becky and Joe at his office. They sit down for a few minutes in the meeting room to discuss what they were going to see.

Friday - 10:08 - 1:12 - Tom shows them 10 Siesta Key condos where they find two possibilities. After the showings they are all pretty tired. Tom takes them back to the office where they agree to meet Saturday to see the rest of the condos on the list.

Saturday - 10:00 - 1:09 - Tom shows Becky and her husband 9 more Siesta Key condos. They only liked one of them. They also went back and looked at the other two possibilities from Friday. After the showings Tom dropped them off at his office. Becky and Joe were going to go back to their hotel to relax and think about it. They promise to call Tom later that day.

Saturday - 4:23 - Becky calls Tom to tell him that they are still contemplating which one to buy. Becky asks Tom if they can write an offer over the email or fax because they won't be able to do it prior to leaving. "That is not problem" says Tom.

Monday - 11:07 - Becky is back home and calls Tom to let him know that they made a decision to buy the unit in the Palm Bay Club that is listed for $649,900. She asks him to dig up some comparable sales and anymore information that he can about the property.

Monday - 11:10 - 12:09 - Tom calls the Sarasota Realtor that has the listing and asks for the sellers disclosure. He also searches the Sarasota MLS only to find one recent sale in Palm Bay Club. He has to search other nearby comparable communities to help value the property. He locates 2 other properties that are similar and that have sold within the last 3 months. He emails all of this information to Becky and Joe.

Monday - 1:15 - Becky calls Tom to review the information he sent her and ask his opinion of an offer price. They agree that $595,000 is a good starting point. They work out the terms of the offer and Becky tells Tom to type up the offer. 

Tom, "Can you email me a copy of your pre-approval letter so I can submit with the offer?"

Becky, "We don't have one but I will call our banker now."

Tom, "Ok. I will type up this offer."

Monday 1:25 - 1:58 - While Tom is typing up the offer Becky calls their personal banker, Leroy. Becky explains to Leroy about their trip to Florida and desire to purchase a condo on Siesta Key. She asks him about financing the condo. After all, he works at a large national bank that originates mortgages in Florida. Leroy asks Becky numerous questions and plans to call her back after he runs her credit report.

Monday - 2:48 - 2:56 - Leroy, "Hi Becky, I ran your credit report for you and your husband and we won't able to finance that condo on Siesta Key." 

Becky, "Why not?

Leroy, "Well. A few reasons. Your debt to income ratio is very high and you have some credit blemishes. Our lending guidelines have changed over the lst 12 months. I am sure you have heard in the news about how much harder it is to get a mortgage."

Becky, "I have but I didn't think it applied to me. Are you sure that you won't be able to give me a mortgage?"

Leroy, "Positive. I am sorry."

Monday - 3:15 - Becky calls Tom to let him know that her bank will not be able to give them a mortgage. Tom gives Becky two lenders that he works with regularly and tells her to call them today.

Tuesday 11:09 - Becky calls Tom to give him the bad news that neither lender would be able to lend her money to purchase the Siesta Key condo. She and Joe will just have to wait until their credit has improved, they lowered their debt and have more money saved up.

 * Tom is disheartened, quits the business and gets a salaried job. *

 

Here Is What Should Have Happened

Monday January 26th - 11:24 - ...qualifying questions...

Tom, "Have you arranged financing yet?"

Becky, "Not yet but we are pretty comfortable that we can get financing."

Tom, "Fantastic. The lending world has been turned upside down recently so you may want to double check that you can get financing. Also, if for some reason we get into a multiple offer situation you stand a better chance of getting the property if you have financing arranged. I have had several clients find their dream home only to be disappointed when they find out that they can't get a mortgage to buy it or they lose out to a more prepared buyer. Would it be possible for you to speak to your lender and get a pre-approval letter before you arrive?"

Becky, "Sure. I will call today."

Tom, "Great. Here is the number to two lenders down here in Florida that I use regularly."

....more qualifying questions..."

Monday - 4:45 - Becky calls Tom.

Becky, "Hi Tom, I spoke with my banker and your two lenders today and it doesn't look like we will be able to buy anything. My husband bought a new Range Rover and our savings, home value and retirement account have declined recently. We don't have good enough credit and too much debt to qualify for a mortgage. I am sorry but we cancelled our trip to come down."

Tom, "I am sorry to hear that. Well, if things change in the future and you can afford to buy please contact me."

Becky, "We will. Thank you."

* Since Tom asked important qualifying questions he only wasted a few minutes so he moves on to the next client. *

 
Posted by Pete and Mary Stanley on 02/10/2009 02:56 PM   Comments (1)  

We know that they are not going to pay any ones mortgage but consider this.  The amount of money in the stimulus package could payoff the mortgages for 90 million Americans.  In fact don't expect to get any cash as a home owner it will be consumed by banks, who are not actually loaning money at this time, unless you pay a bunch down and have a good job.

Consider these problems.

1.  If some one is out of a job, (7.5%) of Americans right now, they are not going to finance a home for you.

2.  If you don't have 3.5% down they will not finance a home for you.

3.  If your overloaded with credit card debt, they are not going to loan you money.

4.  If you have to many car payments they are not going to loan you money.

5.  If your late past 30 days on any payments, they are not going to loan you money.

6.  If your unemployed and cannot buy a home what good is a $15,000 tax credit for buying a home.

7.  If your unemployed and cannot buy a home what good is a $4% loan for buying a home.

8.  If your unemployed what good is a $15,000 tax credit for buying a home if your not paying taxes due to no income.

9.  If your a banker living on bail out money because you managed your business poorly, they will loan you money.

10.  If your a Car Company Executive living on bail out money because you managed your business poorly, they will loan you money.

11.  If you want to buy a foreclosure, you will have to put up $1000 ernest money.

12.  If you want to buy a foreclosure, you will have to buy it as is.

13.  If you want to buy a foreclosure, you will have show proof of funds.

14.  If you want to buy a foreclosure, you will have to accept is as if, even if you find black mold.

15.   If you want to buy a foreclosure, you will have to close on time or pay the bank $100 a day.

16.  If you want to buy a foreclosure, you will have to accept it without a sellers disclosure!

17.  If you want to buy a foreclosure, you will have to wait weeks for an answer to you offer.

18.  If you want to buy a foreclosure, you need to have your head examined or make a low ball offer and make it cash.

Write your Senator and tell them that jobs and income will defeat the recession, tell them to get real, put themselves in the place of some of these people and ask how they would react to a so called stimulus bill that again only helped those who have money.  When a person is naked standing on the top a a mountain in foot deep snow, can they be motivated with money or a blanket to take care of immediate needs.

 

 
Posted by Pete and Mary Stanley on 02/10/2009 02:17 PM   Comments (4)   Stimus Package in the ActiveRain Channel   stimulas package, why bother  

Yes I have been a Cowboys fan for a long time and yes I still will be a fan.  The Eagles showed The Dallas Coaches and Player what motivation and team work can do and the Cowboys showed what happens when a team is made up of a bunch of hot shots who think the team will die without them, and they play as individuals.  Who was the team leader, as for me I did not see one.  The coach just seems to sit back and say OH WELL.

I will still be a cowboys fan because the team I see out there now is not the Cowboys Team.  They are a bunch of hot shot players that have individual talent but cannot act as team.  The Cowboys Team is a legend built by Tom Landry and Tex Schram and the Jerry Jones approach will not build a team, it just puts together talent and no one wants to be a team.

As realtors we must cooperate and work together or we all fail.  I am frustated when I see realtors that do not respect fellow realtors and treat us a second cousins.  And our Mortgage Partner is as much a part of our team as each agent, so we will play together this year in our Real Estate Challenges.

Coach Landry said, "Building a plan is easy, success comes from executing the plan correctly", or something like that.

2008 was a challenging year and 2009 can also be challenging but we are making our budget plans and working on the execution plan and we are looking for the best. 

Our biggest challenge has already started and that is getting loan approvals.  This week we worked with 4 buyers and only one of the 4 got loan approval and we have 2 of them going to credit counseling and one just gave up and one got the contract completed.   Our fear is that this is the trend we will face most of the year.

 

I just want to thank Buy Owner for making my job so easy.  There is a world of opportunity picking up disappointed sellers who have gone for the advertising, paid $3000 up front,  and received a cheap metal sign with the phone number pasted on (washes off in first rain) and a blank contract that no one knows how to fill out, and good bye.  Oh yea, its on their website, if they can get the details right and someone accidentally finds it.

I just listed another this week, thanks Buy Owner.  My listing today came from a lady who had one showing in 4 months.  Kinda expensive, $3000 per showing.

We take pride in complete service that has 4 web sites, virtual tours, and e-flyer to mass audiences, Realtor Open Houses and on and on, but we do charge for our service but we earn it, we do not want a free ride.

 

 

 

About a week or so ago, I wrote a blog about the next financial crisis is going to be credit cards.  Have you seen Good Morning America this week, if you did not, it told that American Express is lowering credit limits and increasing interest rates.   And, yes the credit card King, Citibank is now in trouble, so  guess what, since the mortgage division has created the problem, the cc division will have to help, so here we go, increased interest rates, higher late fees, higher minimum payments, and so on. 

I hate to say I told you so, but I got you to read this blog didn't I. 

Rest of the story, we have only seen the tip of the ice-burg.

Pete Stanley

 
  
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Pete and Mary Stanley

Waxahachie, TX

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Keller Williams Realty - Team Stanley

Cell Phone: (972) 921-2047

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