Top 10 Reasons to Buy Now.

I came across a great article in The Wall Street Journal on some reasons to purchase a home now. Take a look and let me know what you think!
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703376504575492023471133674.html?mod=WSJ_RealEstate_LeftTopNews

Reasons to Live in Northern Colorado

Coldwell Banker has a weekly television show on Comcast Cable and this past week I had a short interview on why Fort Collins is such a great place to live. Please take the time to check it out and let me know what you think.

http://www.youtube.com/cbrbcolorado#p/a/u/1/idIRFqg1Y5c

Where are People Moving To? From?

Forbes.com has a great new interactive map published that shows where people are moving to and from for any County in the United States. If you are a real estate nerd like me, that is pretty cool. Check it out: http://www.forbes.com/2010/06/04/migration-moving-wealthy-interactive-counties-map.html?preload=08013.

Think Again Before Walking Away.

It seems to be getting more and more popular for homeowners to walk away from a house that they can still afford. People have reasoned as of late that if they are too upside down, they can just walk away. They realize that they will take a hit to their credit but that they can build it back up and purchase another home in a couple of years. Turns out, that is not the case. Banks still care if you have taken responsibility for what you agreed to do in the past. A homeowner who defaults on their mortgage because of economic hardship can sometimes qualify again in as little as two years.

"It could be well over seven or eight years before [walkaways] are able to obtain a mortgage to buy a home again," said Jay Brinkmann, chief economist for the Mortgage Bankers Association in an article for CNNMoney.com. "Credit scores are only one component of a complete credit decision," he said. "[In these cases] credit scores are not a good indicator of their willingness to continue to pay their mortgage."

These so-called "strategic defaulters" will most likely also be charged a higher interest rate than those who have not walked away even though credit scores might be similar.

Good Things Happening in Northern Colorado

Economic indicators are doing well in Northern Colorado. Fort Collins sales tax revenue incresed 27.8% year over year in April, while at the same time, building permits pulled in April totaled 28 in 2010 as opposed to just 12 in 2009. Unemployment also took a dip regionwide. Greeley unemployment dropped from 9.9% dowmn to 9% while Fort Collins/Loveland dropped from 7.1% down to 6.4%.

There is still a great tax credit out there!

Even though the government tax credit for purchasing a home has now expired, it is not too late to take advantage of another great tax credit program. It is called the Mortgage Credit Certification Program (MCC). This program allows buyers to claim up to 20% of the paid mortgage interest every year they live in the home and for the life of the loan! Here are some details:

- For the life of the loan, MCC holders may claim a dollar-for-dollar reduction of income tax liability equal to 20 percent of the paid mortgage interest on the first mortgage.

- The remaining 80 percent of the paid mortgage interest continues to qualify as an itemized tax deduction.

- MCC tax credit can be used with FHA, VA, USDA, Conventional, Home Path, CHFA programs.

Here is an example:
- $180,000 loan amount at 5% APR
- $9,000 of interest can be written off each year, this is a deduction through your taxes but not a direct credit.
- 20% of $9,000 is $1,800 that you can claim as a credit, and get that money back into your pocket!
- $1,800 per year for the LIFE OF THE LOAN! That is THOUSANDS of dollars!

Not every lender is capable of writing this kind of loan, but I work with one who can. Call me if you have any questions or want to try and take advantage of this program.

Fort Collins Econony Coming Back.

According to Moody's, the economy in Fort Collins is swinging back. The Coloradoan article states the reason is that our economy is supported by the region's largest employer - CSU - and a steady stream of college students, cutting-edge "green" companies and federal research dollars. Sales-tax collections are ticking up, residential and commercial construction is more than double the 2009 level, and new restaurants are opening. Moody's Economy.com classifies Fort Collins as one of about 200 metro areas nationwide in economic recovery. Moody's cites the city's skilled work force, relatively lower business costs and an emphasis on "innovation and budding solar energy."

Fort Collins and Other Colorado Towns Rank Again.

According to the Northern Colorado Business Report, Fort Collins was rated No. 4 on the Forbes annual list of "Best Places for Business and Careers" in a special report released April 14.

The 12th annual list looks at such things as the cost of doing business, taxes, education, crime, projected job growth, household income, unemployment, home prices and other factors. Fort Collins ranked No. 34 in cost of doing business, No. 21 in projected job growth and No. 11 in educational attainment.

Fort Collins was the top Colorado city on the national list, followed by Denver at No. 6, Colorado Springs at No. 12, Boulder at No. 14 and Greeley at No. 29.

Top 10 Cities for Buyers.

Forbes published this report recently about the top 10 cities for buyers to purchase homes in right now. I think you will agree this is good news for the greater Denver area!

Some cities are better than others for borrowers. The best cities have the lowest percentage of foreclosures and delinquencies, including a low percentage of bank-owned homes. In most of the cities on this best list, home prices are actually rising.

This kind of solid housing market motivates banks to offer lower rates and better terms.

Here are the 10 cities that Forbes ranks as the best for borrowers:
1. Kansas City, Mo.
2. Houston
3. Dallas
4. Virginia Beach, Va.
5. San Antonio, Texas
6. Boston
7. Pittsburgh
8. Denver
9. Seattle
10. Portland, Ore.

Foreclosures Down in Larimer County

The Fort Collins Coloradoan reported that Larimer County experienced the largest decline in foreclosure filings in the state in February compared to February 2009, according to a monthly metro foreclosure report released today by the Colorado Department of Local Affairs Division of Housing. In February, Larimer's foreclosure filings declined by 30.3% from a year ago. Year-to-date Larimer County has recorded 289 foreclosure filings. That's compared to 353 at the same time in 2009, an 18.1% drop, and 326 in 2008, an 11.3% decline.

Soon, FHA will be a harder loan to get for some.

According to Realtytimes.com, it's about to get tougher to qualify for a FHA mortgage. The FHA is adding more-stringent lending requirements and higher fees borrowers must pay to get the federally-insured loans. Beginning this spring, the FHA will raise mortgage insurance fees that borrowers must pay, cap the amount of cash that sellers can contribute for closing costs and require higher down payments for the borrowers with poor credit scores. The new upfront mortgage premium will cost borrowers 2.25% of the loan amount. New borrowers must have a minimum FICO credit score of 580 to qualify for FHA's 3.5% down payment loan, otherwise the borrower must put 10% down. As I learn more details on the new requirements, I will be sure to post them here.

Warren Buffet Weighs in on Housing.

This is some interesting insight from Mr. Buffet. And let's face it, anytime someone that wealthy speaks, we should all listen!

Billionaire Warren Buffett said the U.S. residential real estate slump would end by about 2011, predicting that's how long it will take demand for homes to catch up with the supply. "Within a year or so, residential housing problems should largely be behind us," Buffett wrote Feb. 27 in his annual letter to shareholders of his Berkshire Hathaway Inc. "Prices will remain far below 'bubble' levels, of course, but for every seller or lender hurt by this there will be a buyer who benefits."

The worst housing decline since the Great Depression has left one in five U.S. mortgage holders owing more than their houses are worth. Record foreclosures last year flooded a real estate market already glutted with unsold property, causing new construction to fall to the lowest in at least 50 years. The fall in homebuilding is the only fix unless the U.S. decides to "blow up a lot of houses," Buffett joked. "People thought it was good news a few years back when housing starts -- the supply side of the picture -- were running about two million annually," said Buffett, the chairman and chief executive officer of Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire. "But household formations -- the demand side -- only amounted to about 1.2 million."

Source: Bloomberg.com, Andrew Frye, (03/01/10)

Colorado 3rd in Appreciation!

Great News!! Colorado Ranks 3rd in the country for overall year-over-year appreciation at 2.76%!!

· Fort Collins Ranked 80th in the survey with an annual rate of number of -1.38% which beat Boulder, #82 at -1.45.

· Denver edged out ahead of both Boulder and Fort Collins with an overall ranking of #79 and a rate of -1.37

· Worst rate in the U.S.: Bend, OR with a -20.55 annual rate

· Best in the U.S.: Terre Haute, IN with a +3.11 annual rate.

Looking for the Tax Credit? You Need to File Paper.

As recently reported by Realty Times, electronic filing will not be allowed for homeowners wanting to file for the home buyer tax credit. The new filing rules are an effort to ward off a repeat of 90,000 taxpayers who fraudulently claimed the credit, according to the U.S. Treasury. All taxpayers (first time and repeat buyers) seeking a credit or refund, must use the new IRS Form 5405 and submit it with additional closing documents as listed on the Form 5405. If you need help with filing for the credit, call me as I have an outstanding accountant who can help you out.

More and More People Getting Loan Modifications

RealTrends reports that more than 116,000 homeowners now have permanent loan modifications, nearly doubling the number from December, according to the Administration's Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). An additional 76,000 permanent modifications have been offered, and are waiting only for the borrower's signature. In total, Over 1 million homeowners have started trial modifications and nearly 1.3 million offers for trial modifications have been extended to homeowners.

If you are in trouble with your mortgage call your loan servicer. They want to help you keep your home! As always, if you have any questions do not hesitate to call me right away.

NAR Releases 4th Quarter Stats

This week NAR released its fourth quarter 2009 housing stats revealing some solid and very positive results including:

·Home sales posted strong gains in the fourth quarter and prices rose in nearly 45% of U.S. metropolitan areas compared with a year earlier, more evidence of an improving climate in housing.

·Bolstered by low interest rates and a first-time home buyer tax credit, existing-home sales rocketed 27.2% from the fourth quarter of 2008 to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.03.

·The national median price of an existing single-family home was $172,900 or 4.1% below the median price in fourth quarter 2008. That was the smallest price decline in more than two years.

·Prices rose in 67 out of 151 metro areas in the fourth quarter compared with a year earlier.

·Sixteen areas had double-digit increases last quarter.

Homes are moving fast!

If you ever had any doubt whether the tax credit for home purchasers (both first time homebuyers and repeat buyers alike) is having any affect on the market, now you have your answer. Showings in Northern Colorado are currently at April and May numbers, meaning the spring selling season has come early this year. Buyers are out in droves, especially in the sub $300,000 price ranges, looking to take advantage of every dollar than Uncle Sam is offering. If you have any questions on the tax credit or whether you qualify, contact me and I will send you a very informative FAQ.

Remodeling? Here's the Best Bang for Your Buck.

REALTOR Magazine® has published it's annual Remodeling Cost vs. Value Report, and it has some great news! Realtors indicate that nationwide, small-scale exterior projects are the most profitable at resale! Talk about bang for your buck!· On a national level, eight out of the top 10 projects in terms of costs recouped were exterior replacement projects that cost less than $14,000.
Here are some highlights:

· Certain types of door and siding replacements, as well as wood deck additions all returned more than 80% of project costs upon resale.

· On a national level, the project with the biggest improvement from 2008 was the attic bedroom addition, recouping 83.1% of remodeling costs compared to 73.8% in 2008. The only other interior project that landed in the top 10 was a minor kitchen remodel with 78.3% costs recouped.

· Similar to last year's report, the least profitable remodeling projects in terms of resale value were home office remodels and sunroom additions, returning only 48.1%and 50.7% of project costs.

For a complete report with all of the remodels that were looked at, give me a call or shoot me an email.

A Look Back at Mortgage Rates

This is a little longer than my normal posts, but a good read anyway.

DV10JanuaryArticle

The Most and Least Popular States to Live.

Every year United Van Lines, who is a national moving company, releases a report on they call the "Annual Migration Study." In this report they publish the the states that the most people relocated to, as well as the states that the most people left. So without further delay, the results are:

States with the most inbound traffic:
1. District of Columbia
2. Oregon
3. Arkansas
4. Nevada
5. Wyoming

And the most outbound:
1. Michigan
2. Illinois
3. New Jersey
4. Indiana
5. Pennsylvania

Northern Colorado Appreciation in Site for the New Year.

The real estate data firm, First American CoreLogic, has released a report projecting that home prices in the Fort Collins/Loveland real estate market should appreciate about 2.7% by late 2010. The report also includes an estimate that values should "bottom out" sometime around March of this year.

In the same report it is anticipated that Greeley will appreciate by .88%. This is finally some positive news for the Greeley market, which has had the most struggles in the area for some time now.

This is another testament to how resilient the Northern Colorado market and economy are when compared to most of the nation. Quality of life and a broad range of employment opportunities continue to keep home values and employment healthier than most other states.