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FOREST HILL TERRACE OPEN HOUSE SUNDAY 8/9 FROM 2-4:
 814 WEST 46TH ST - $189,000

Site Updates:
Stimulus Bill Housing Components:

Homebuyer Tax Credit – See 2009 Tax Credit Document on Buyer page. This credit is for First Time Buyers (someone who has not owned a home in 3 year), but it may still have implications for your sale and purchase, particularly if you are selling to a first time buyer.

FHA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Loan Limits -The bill reinstates last year's 2008 loan limits for FHA, Freddie Mac, and Fannie Mae loans.  These limits were equal to the greater of 125% of the 2008 local area median home price or $271,050 for FHA and $417,000 for Fannie and Freddie, with an overall maximum cap of  $729,750.  For the few areas where the 2009 limits were higher, the higher limits will apply.  In addition, the bill includes language providing the HUD Secretary with the discretion, if warranted, to increase the loan limit for any “sub-area”, i.e.an area smaller than a county. The Secretary's discretion is again limited by the $729,750 cap. These 2009 limits will expire December 31, 2009.

The inclusion of these loan limit provisions in the final bill is a victory for homeowners, buyers and Realtors.  While these new limits were included in version of the original stimulus bill approved by the House, the bill first approved by the Senate did not.  NAR's Call for Action to both the House and the Senate prior to the final vote advocated strongly for the provisions which were then included in the final bill approved by both Chambers. 

Neighborhood Stabilization – Division A, Title XII of the bill provides $2,000,000,000 in additional funding for the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP).  The NSP was created by the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2089 (Public Law 110–289) to provide grants through the Community Development Block Grant program (CDBG) to states and localities to address the problems that can be created when whole neighborhoods are decimated by foreclosures. The funds can be used to purchase, manage, repair and resell foreclosed and abandoned properties. In addition, the funds can also be used by states and localities to establish financing methods for the purchase and redevelopment of foreclosed properties.  After purchase the homes must be used to assist individuals and families with incomes at or below 120% of area median income. Twenty-five percent of funds must be used for households with incomes at or below 50% of area median income.  By leveraging their expertise in partnership with others from both the public and private sector, Realtors® in many communities have been making important contributions to their local communities’ neighborhood stabilization programs.

Commercial Real Estate - Commercial real estate is impacted primarily through those provisions of the bill focused on green building and energy efficiency as well as business tax incentives. H.R. 1 provides significant funds for state energy programs, which could be used to support commerical property owners' investment in energy efficiency upgrades while commercial property owners seeking to invest in alternative energy systems for onsite power generation would benefit from the Department of Energy Renewable Energy Loan Guarantees Program.  Of particular benefit to small businesses would be certain provisions of the bill that provide tax relief in the area of bonus depreciation and capital expenditures, as well as the 5-Year carryback of net operating losses for small businesses.

Rural Housing Service

Rural Housing Service – The bill provides an additional $500 million to existing USDA Rural Housing programs.  The RHS provides both a guaranteed loan program and a direct housing loan program for those meeting the program’s eligibility criteria. The direct loan program will receive $270 million while $230 million will be allocated for unsubsidized guaranteed loans. It has been reported that this level of funding would provide for an additional 192,000 homeowners.

Low Income Housing Grants - Allow states to trade in a portion of their 2009 low-income housing tax credits for Treasury grants to finance the construction or acquisition and rehabilitation of low-income housing, including those with or without tax credit allocations.

Tax-Exempt Housing Bonds - Tax-exempt interest earned on specified state and local bonds issued during 2009 and 2010 will not be subject to the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT).  In addition, financial institutions will have greater capacity to purchase tax-exempt state and local bonds.

A Word About Refinancing Your Mortgage:

If you are looking for to refinance, I will provide you with several names of individuals I trust to take good care of my clients.

Many folks are asking me about Refinancing (refi) their mortgages, which is a great way to potentially save money in hard times.  While every loan and every circumstance is different, and I am always happy to help you wade through the particulars, here is one principle that can be applied:

Take the total amount of your closing costs on the refi and divide it by the amount you will be saving on your monthly mortgage payment.  the number you get is the number of months it will take you to break even on your refi.  If you are going to be in your current home a substantive amount of time beyond that, this might be the right move for you.  CAVEAT: if you roll the closing costs of your refi into the new mortgage, the break even month is further out as you are paying interest on those closing costs.  Your lender or accountant should be able to help you calculate that out based on the particulars of your loan.

Other options to consider:
- If you know you are going to be in your home for 15 years or more and can afford your current payment, explore with a lender what your payment would be with a 15 or 20 year convetional loan.  You will pay off your principle much more quickly and if current rates are below your existing mortgage rate, the payment difference may be minimal to none.

- Review your household budget.  If you remove some recurring monthly costs, apply a percentage of that to extra equity payments to your mortgage and do that once a month a couple of weeks after you make your normal mortgage payment.

- Review your Escrows - Make sure the tax value your locality is using to assess real estate taxes looks accurate to you.  If not, challenge the value to see if you can get it down to the right amount.  Also, get quotes for a new homeowners policy.  If you can find comprable coverage with a comprably rated company at a better rate (make sure the quote bundles in your auto policy if you are doing that currently), consider making that switch.  Escrows add up on your monthly mortgage payment, and paying attention to them can save you real money.

HOPE for Homeowners FAQs added to Seller Resources.

Tax abatement info for Richmond & Chesterfield under links.

Local News & Real Estate News pages are slowly transforming.

Get Answers to Your Questions 

Use the Contact Us page to request information & answers on these and other topics:   

Whether buying your first home, selling again or experienced in investing, you will find useful information here to begin your process. Don't stop there. Let's talk about your goals and how I can help you achieve them. The right agent not only prices your current home to the market or helps you find a new one, the right agent is critical to maximizing the value of the home sale process. Whether making a strong offer for you, powerfully negotiating on your behalf, making sense of financing and mortgage rates, or providing trustworthy referrals for your needs, the right agent gets your from start to finish with your success in mind.

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