best omaha realtors: Selling Your Home? Make Sure the Price Is Right!
- 04/25/16 11:17 PM
Selling Your Home? Make Sure the Price Is Right! In today’s market, where demand is outpacing supply in many regions of the country, pricing a house is one of the biggest challenges real estate professionals face. Sellers often want to price their home higher than recommended, and many agents go along with the idea to keep their clients happy. However, the best agents realize that telling the homeowner the truth is more important than getting the seller to like them.
There is no “later.” Sellers sometimes think, “If the home doesn’t sell for this price, I can always lower it later.” … (2 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Home Prices Are Up…but there is a Challenge
- 04/21/16 02:07 AM
Home Prices Are Up…but there is a Challenge
Home values continue to climb and are projected to increase by about 5% over the next twelve months. That is great news for anyone who owns a home. However, it could present a challenge for a family trying to sell their house.
If prices are surging, it is difficult for appraisers to find adequate, comparable sales (similar houses in the neighborhood that closed recently) to defend the sales price when performing the appraisal for the bank.
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) recently released information revealing just how prominent the challenge is … (1 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Buying a Home is 36% Less Expensive Than Renting Nationwide!
- 04/18/16 11:15 PM
Buying a Home is 36% Less Expensive Than Renting Nationwide!
In the latest Rent vs. Buy Report from Trulia, they explained that homeownership remains cheaper than renting with a traditional 30-year fixed rate mortgage in the 100 largest metro areas in the United States.
The updated numbers actually show that the range is an average of 5% less expensive in Orange County (CA) all the way up to 46% in Houston (TX), and 36% Nationwide!
Other interesting findings in the report include:Interest rates have remained low and even though home prices have appreciated around the country, they haven’t greatly outpaced rental appreciation.Some markets may tip in favor … (1 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Vacation Home Sales: Sales Down, Prices Up
- 04/13/16 11:28 PM
Vacation Home Sales: Sales Down, Prices Up
The National Association of Realtors recently released their 2016 Investment and Vacation Home Buyers Survey. The survey revealed many characteristics of both vacation home purchasers and investors. Today, we want to concentrate on the vacation real estate market.
The survey found that vacation-home sales last year declined to an estimated 920,000, down 18.5% from their most recent peak level of 1.13 million in 2014. However, this is still the second highest number of vacation sales since 2006.
Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist explained:
"The expanding pool of buyers amidst a dwindling number of bargain-priced properties led to tighter … (0 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Over Half of Americans Planning on Buying in the Next 5 Years
- 04/12/16 12:48 AM
Over Half of Americans Planning on Buying in the Next 5 Years
According to the BMO Harris Bank Home Buying Report, 52% of Americans say they are likely to buy a home in the next five years. Americans surveyed for the report said that they would be willing to pay an average of $296,000 for a home and would average a 21% down payment. The report also included other interesting revelations.
Those Looking to Buy 74% of those looking to buy a new home will consult with a real estate agent 59% said they will visit online real estate websites 37% will seek … (1 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Building Wealth: First Rung on the Ladder is Housing
- 04/06/16 11:03 PM
Building Wealth: First Rung on the Ladder is Housing
How Housing Matters is a joint project of the Urban Land Institute and the MacArthur Foundation. It is “an online resource for the most rigorous research and practical information on how a quality, stable, affordable home in a vibrant community contributes to individual and community success”.
A recent story they published, The First Rung on the Ladder to Economic Opportunity Is Housing, discussed the importance of having affordable housing available to as many families as possible because:
“The ladder to economic success can stretch only so high without the asset-building power of homeownership.
Home … (0 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Don’t Wait! Move Up To Your Dream Home Now!
- 04/04/16 11:45 PM
Don’t Wait! Move Up To Your Dream Home Now!
Now that the housing market has stabilized, more and more homeowners are considering moving up to the home they have always dreamed of. Prices are still below those of a few years ago and interest rates have stayed near historic lows.
Sellers should realize that waiting to make the move when mortgage rates are projected to increase probably doesn’t make sense. As rates increase, the price of the house you can afford will decrease if you plan to stay within a certain budget for your monthly housing costs.
Here is a chart detailing this point:
According … (0 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Past, Present & Future Home Values
- 03/30/16 11:25 PM
Past, Present & Future Home Values
In CoreLogic’s latest Home Price Index, they revealed home appreciation in three categories: percentage appreciation over the last year, over the last month, and projected appreciation over the next twelve months.
Here are state maps for each category: The Past – home appreciation over the last 12 months
The Present – home appreciation over the last month
The Future – home appreciation projected over the next 12 months
Bottom LineHomes across the country are appreciating at different rates. As we have mentioned before, the rate of home price appreciation across the country is due to a strong housing market reacting to supply and demand, and … (1 comments)
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best omaha realtors: The Top 5 Reasons You Should Not For Sale By Owner
- 03/28/16 11:36 PM
The Top 5 Reasons You Should Not For Sale By Owner
In today's market, with homes selling quickly and prices rising, some homeowners might consider trying to sell their home on their own, known in the industry as a For Sale by Owner (FSBO). There are several reasons this might not be a good idea for the vast majority of sellers.
Here are five of those reasons:
1. There Are Too Many People to Negotiate With
Here is a list of some of the people with whom you must be prepared to negotiate if you decide to For Sale By Owner:
The buyer who wants the best deal … (1 comments)
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best omaha realtors: 91.5% of Homes in the US have Positive Equity
- 03/23/16 11:30 PM
91.5% of Homes in the US have Positive Equity
CoreLogic’s latest Equity Report revealed that one million borrowers regained equity in their homes in 2015. The outlook for 2016 remains positive as well, as an additional 850,000 properties would regain equity if home prices rose another 5% this year.
The study also revealed: 95% of homes valued over $200,000 now have a positive equity position 87% of homes valued under $200,000 have entered a positive position The 11.5% growth in home equity in Q4 marked the 13th consecutive quarter of double digit gains Below is a map showing the percentage of homes with … (2 comments)
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best omaha realtors: The Importance of Using an Agent To Sell Your House
- 03/21/16 11:41 PM
The Importance of Using an Agent To Sell Your House
When a homeowner decides to sell their house, they obviously want the best possible price with the least amount of hassles. However, for the vast majority of sellers, the most important result is to actually get the home sold.
In order to accomplish all three goals, a seller should realize the importance of using a real estate professional. We realize that technology has changed the purchaser’s behavior during the home buying process. For the past three years, 92% of all buyers have used the internet in their home search according to the National Association … (1 comments)
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best omaha realtors: The Main Reason to Use a Real Estate Professional when Selling House
- 03/16/16 11:26 PM
The Main Reason to Use a Real Estate Professional when Selling Your House
Every homeowner hopes to accomplish five goals when selling their home:
Sell it for the best price Sell it within a predetermined time Sell it with the least amount of hassles Close on the sale the same day they move into their new home The fifth reason is the most obvious and the most important:
They want to make sure it sells.In order to dramatically increase the chances that the house sells, a homeowner should list with a real estate professional in their market. Why? Because agents have access to … (0 comments)
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best omaha realtors: The Difference An Hour Makes This Spring [INFOGRAPHIC]
- 03/15/16 12:09 AM
The Difference An Hour Makes This Spring [INFOGRAPHIC]
Some Highlights: Sunday, March 13th, we "Spring Forward" one hour for Daylight Savings Time (except for our friends in HI & AZ). Every hour in the United States, 624 homes will sell and 118 homes will regain positive equity. The median home value will also increase each hour in the United States by $1.84. … (0 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Housing Market To “Spring Forward” This Year
- 03/09/16 11:52 PM
Housing Market To “Spring Forward” This Year
Just like our clocks this weekend in the majority of the country, the housing market will soon “spring forward!” Similar to tension in a spring, the lack of inventory available for sale in the market right now is what is holding back the market.
Many potential sellers believe that waiting until Spring is in their best interest, and traditionally they would have been right.
Buyer demand has seasonality to it, which usually falls off in the winter months, especially in areas of the country impacted by arctic temperatures and conditions.
That hasn’t happened this year.Demand for housing has … (1 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Put Your Housing Cost To Work For You!
- 03/07/16 10:43 PM
Put Your Housing Cost To Work For You!
There are many young people debating whether they should renew the lease on their apartment or sign a contract to purchase their first home. As we have said before, mortgage interest rates are still near historic lows and rents continue to rise.
Housing Cost & Net WorthWhether you rent or buy, you have a monthly housing cost.
As a buyer, you are contributing to YOUR net worth.Every mortgage payment is a form of what Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies calls “forced savings.”
“Since many people have trouble saving and have to make a housing payment … (0 comments)
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best omaha realtors: One More Time, Real Estate is a Great Investment
- 03/02/16 11:17 PM
One More Time, Real Estate is a Great Investment
In a recent blog post on Marginal Revolution, economist Alex Tabarrok discussed homeownership as an investment.
Here is what Mr. Tabarrok had to say:“Housing is overrated as a financial investment. First, it’s not good to have a significant share of your wealth locked into a single asset. Diversification is better and it’s easier to diversify with stocks. Second, unless you are renting the basement, houses don’t pay dividends. Stocks do. You can hope that your house will accumulate in value but don’t count on it. Indeed, you should expect that as an investment your … (0 comments)
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best omaha realtors: 14,986 Homes Sold Yesterday… Did Yours?
- 02/29/16 10:14 PM
14,986 Homes Sold Yesterday… Did Yours?
There are some homeowners that have been waiting for months to get a price they hoped for when they originally listed their house for sale. The only thing they might want to consider is... If it hasn't sold yet, maybe it's not priced properly.
After all 14,986 houses sold yesterday, 14,986 will sell today and 14,986 will sell tomorrow. 14,986! That is the average number of homes that sell each and every day in this country according to the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) latest Existing Home Sales Report. NAR reported that sales are at an annual rate of … (1 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Mortgage Rates Again at Historic Lows
- 02/25/16 04:05 AM
Mortgage Rates Again at Historic Lows
Just two weeks ago, we posted an article discussing where mortgage interest rates may be heading over the next twelve months. We quoted projections from Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the Mortgage Bankers’ Association and the National Association of Realtors. Each predicted that rates would begin to rise slowly and steadily throughout 2016.
However, shaky economic news and a volatile stock market have actually caused rates to drop six out of the last seven weeks, and have remained at 3.65% for the past two weeks.
Rates have again fallen to historic lows yet many experts still expect them to … (0 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Thinking of Buying A Home? What Are You Waiting For?
- 02/22/16 11:17 PM
Thinking of Buying A Home? What Are You Waiting For?
With spring right around the corner, you may be wondering if you should wait to enter the housing market. Here are four great reasons to consider buying an Omaha home today instead of waiting.
Prices Will Continue to RiseCoreLogic’s latest Home Price Index reports that home prices have appreciated by 6.3% over the last 12 months. The same report predicts that prices will continue to increase at a rate of 5.4% over the next year. The Home Price Expectation Survey polls a distinguished panel of over 100 economists, investment strategists, and housing market … (0 comments)
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best omaha realtors: Homeowner’s Net Worth is 45x Greater Than a Renter’s
- 02/17/16 10:25 PM
Homeowner’s Net Worth is 45x Greater Than a Renter’s
Every three years the Federal Reserve conducts a Survey of Consumer Finances in which they collect data across all economic and social groups. The latest survey, which includes data from 2010-2013, reports that a homeowner’s net worth is 36 times greater than that of a renter ($194,500 vs. $5,400).
In a Forbes article the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) Chief Economist Lawrence Yun predicts that in 2016 the net worth gap will widen even further to 45 times greater.
The graph below demonstrates the results of the last two Federal Reserve studies and Yun’s prediction:
Put Your Housing Cost to Work For YouSimply put, homeownership is a … (1 comments)
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Selling Your Home? Make Sure the Price Is Right! In today’s market, where demand is outpacing supply in many regions of the country, pricing a house is one of the biggest challenges real estate professionals face. Sellers often want to price their home higher than recommended, and many agents go along with the idea to keep their clients happy. However, the best agents realize that telling the homeowner the truth is more important than getting the seller to like them.
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