Gov. Herbert announces second round of Home Run grants!
The Home Run program that provided grants to buyers of newly constructed, never-occupied homes has been reinstated, Gov. Gary Herbert announced on Friday. The reinstated program will provide $4,000 grants to approximately 1,950 buyers. The grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis to buyers who apply for the funds through their Utah Housing Corporation-approved lender by Nov. 30.
Unlike the original program that was only available for homes that were ready for occupancy upon closing, Home Run 2 allows buyers to receive grants for homes that will be constructed, are currently under construction or are move-in-ready but have never been occupied.
Buyers can apply for the funds through a Utah Housing Corporation-approved lender. Once the application is complete, Utah Housing will issue a grant commitment. For purchases of move-in ready homes, the commitment will expire after 10 days. For homes under construction, the commitment will be in effect until June 30, 2010, giving the builder plenty of time to complete the home.
Although the program is not limited to first-time home buyers, there are income restrictions. For singles, incomes cannot exceed $75,000, and married couples cannot have incomes greater than $150,000. For more information about the program and to find a UHC-approved lender, visit http://www.UtahHousingCorp.org and look for the Home Run 2 link.
Utah Housing Corporation launches program to monetize home-buyer tax credit!
Home buyers who use a Utah Housing Corporation loan can now use the first-time home buyer tax credit to help with their down payment and closing costs through a new monetization program called Equity Now. Under the program, home buyers will take out a first and second mortgage, which can be up to 6 percent of the first mortgage amount. Because the first-time home buyer tax credit funds are not available before a home purchase, the second mortgage will help pay for down payment and closing costs the buyer likely would have paid for with the credit.
After closing, qualified buyers will file an amended 2008 tax return to receive the tax credit. For buyers who put the full tax credit amount toward their second mortgage (up to six months after closing), Utah Housing Corporation will credit $100 to the second mortgage. For many borrowers, the tax credit will provide near-instant equity by substantially lowering or even eliminating the second mortgage balance.
To learn more about the program and eligibility requirements, visit www.UtahHousingCorp.org or talk to a UHC participating lender.
Sandy city rolls out home-buying incentive program!
Sandy city has created a new program that will provide low- and moderate-income home buyers with a $5,000 incentive for buying a new home in the city. The funds, which can be applied to down payment and closing costs, are in the form of an interest-free loan that becomes a grant after the home buyer has lived in the property three years.
Sandy plans to provide 10 loans to buyers of existing, never-occupied homes, and another 10 to buyers of to-be-constructed homes. The properties must be within Sandy city limits, must be "single-family dwellings," including townhomes and condos, and must not have purchase prices exceeding $305,000. Household incomes must be below certain limits to qualify, but the program is open to both first-time and repeat buyers.
Funding for the program comes from a portion of the tax revenue collected from the commercial buildings around City Hall, said city spokeswoman Trina Duerksen. If successful, the program may receive additional funds after the original 20 loans are awarded, she said. So far, all 20 loans are still available.
Housing affordability sees big gains in Utah metro areas!
Utah real estate is seeing big affordability gains, according to a new report from the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo. Numbers from the analysis show affordability in many Wasatch Front areas is back to levels seen in 2004, a time when Utah real estate was selling well and National City Corp. said Salt Lake had the most undervalued home prices.
The Housing Opportunity Index, which uses incomes, mortgage rates and home prices to determine affordability, is similar to a separate analysis conducted by Salt Lake City-based Wells Fargo economist Kelly Matthews. He says although average home prices are still higher today than in 2004, homes are about as affordable as they were five years ago because mortgage rates are closer to 5 percent rather than the near 6 percent rates in 2004.
Such is the case for the Provo-Orem area, which saw the biggest affordability gains in the state, according to the NAHB/Wells Fargo report. In the second quarter, 71.3 percent of the homes sold were considered affordable, only a tad off the 72.6 percent in 2004 and up significantly from the 48.5 percent last year.
Similarly, in Salt Lake, 70.6 percent of homes sold were considered affordable to those earning the area's median income, close to the 75.2 percent in second quarter 2004 and up considerably from the 54.6 percent in 2008, according to the NAHB/Wells Fargo report. St. George had the lowest affordability in the state at 57.2 percent (up from 36.8 percent last year), and Ogden-Clearfield had the highest affordability at 81.5 percent (up from 68 percent last year).
"If someone feels secure in their employment and income and needs a larger home, in actuality it's probably the best time to buy in a generation," Matthews said.
Wasatch Front home sales up for second consecutive month!
Sales of existing Wasatch Front homes were up for the second consecutive month, rising 4 percent in July, while Utah County sales increased by a whopping 22 percent, according to statistics released by the Utah Association of REALTORS® Aug. 25.
In July, Salt Lake, Utah, Davis, Weber and Tooele County REALTORS® sold 2,352 single-family homes, townhomes and condominiums compared to the 2,261 properties sold in July 2008. In Utah County, REALTORS® sold 566 existing homes compared to the 465 homes sold last year.
The statistics mirrored figures released by the National Association of REALTORS® that said U.S. home sales were up 5 percent in July compared to July 2008. On a monthly basis, U.S. seasonally adjusted home sales increased 7 percent, the first time in five years that sales increased for four months in a row.
Along the Wasatch Front, sales were down 6 percent from June to July; however, the decrease was expected because sales are traditionally slower in July and the Utah statistics are not seasonally adjusted.
The median price of homes in the five-county area in July was $205,000, down 6 percent from last year. In a separate report, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said Utah home prices decreased nearly 12 percent for the second quarter.
Weekly mortgage watch: Rates at lowest levels since May!
Interest rates on long-term home mortgages were at their lowest levels since the final week in May, according to Freddie Mac's latest survey. For the week ending Thursday, rates on 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.08 percent, down from last week's average of 5.14 percent and up from the 4.91 percent average reported in May, according to the Primary Mortgage Market Survey.
"Bond yields pushed mortgage rates slightly lower this week," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist, in a statement. "Low mortgage rates are helping to keep housing very affordable. As a result, pending sales of existing homes rose for the sixth straight month in July, a trend not seen since [the National Association of REALTORS®] began reporting data in 2001."
National Mortgage Averages - Sept. 3, 2009
Source: Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey
Rates Up/Down
Average Rates Last Week
Average Rates This Week
Average Points
30-Year Fixed
Down
5.14
5.08
0.7
15-Year Fixed
Down
4.58
4.54
0.6
5-Year ARM
Down
4.67
4.59
0.6
1-Year ARM
Down
4.69
4.62
0.6
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