Columbia Maryland 21045 Sales Since July 1, 2010

To find out how much your home is worth, call us at 301-785-5889 or contact us today!

Columbia Maryland 21044 Sales Since July 1, 2010

To find out how much your home is worth, call us at 301-785-5889 or contact us today!

Ellicott City Maryland 21043 Sales Since July 1, 2010

To find out how much your home is worth, call us at 301-785-5889 or contact us today!

West Friendship Maryland 21794 Sales Since July 1, 2010

To find out how much your home is worth, call us at 301-785-5889 or contact us today!

Poolesville Maryland 20837 Sales Since July 1, 2010

To find out how much your home is worth, call us at 301-785-5889 or contact us today!

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Market Update

Housing activity continues to remain above year-ago levels despite some setbacks resulting from the now-expired tax credit. Improved stability in home prices with similar levels of distressed properties seen last year offers a hopeful sign the market is holding its ground. However, the economy still has a considerable way to go to achieve its full recovery.

Consumers are saving more and being picky about how they spend their money. While a higher savings rate means less spending in the near term, this is a positive sign that households are taking control of their finances to build some cushion that can be used to pay down debt and/or support future spending.

Existing home sales marked the twelfth consecutive month of year-over-year increase in June. On a monthly basis, sales activity eased 5.1% from May. The moderation in home sales reflects “understandable swings as buyers responded to the tax credits,” according to Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. He anticipates such impact to show up in the next two months.

June’s median home price increased for the fourth consecutive month. Distressed homes, accounting for 32% of sales last month, continued holding home prices at highly affordable levels for the time being. While distressed sales hovered around the same level as a year ago, the gain in home prices is pointing to a sustained stability in the making.

Interest Rates

Mortgage rates set a new record low in July as consumer confidence softened and unemployment remained elevated. This presents a great opportunity for buyers and investors. Coupled with lowered home prices and a robust rental market, investors are finding their way to cash-flow opportunities. As recovery gains deeper roots, rates will need to rise to keep inflation in check.

Rates as of August 6.

This Month’s Video

Topics For Home Owners, Buyers & Sellers

Consumers Beware: New Credit Card Tricks

On May 22, 2009, President Obama signed into law the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act of 2009, marking a turning point for American consumers and ending the days of unfair rate hikes and hidden fees. While the new law offers significant safeguards, consumers still need to be vigilant against new practices designed to outflank the new rules.

Stay as informed as possible, read your statement , report any irregularities immediately, and watch for these tricks.

• Shortened Billing Cycle: The CARD Act requires companies to allow a window of at least 21 days from when a statement is mailed and when payment is due. Cardholders are reporting being shortchanged on billing cycle time and then being assessed late-payment fees.
  Advice: Watch out for shortened payment dates.
• Sunday Due Dates: The CARD Act stipulates if a creditor does not receive or accept payments on weekends or holidays, then the date is extended and late-payment fees shouldn’t be triggered. However, some banks say they’re open for business even when there’s no mail delivery.
  Advice: Don’t assume you are safe.
• Low-Limit Cards: The CARD Act says a card’s total annual fees can’t exceed 25% of a borrower’s credit line. However, some issuers may be evading the fee restrictions by charging an up-front processing fee that doesn’t fall under the 25% cap.
  Advice: Watch out for processing and other fees.
• False Inactive Fees: Issuers will no longer be able to charge inactivity fees or extra charges for people who don’t spend a certain amount each year, effective August 22. However, some issuers are charging an annual fee that’s waived if cardholders reach a certain spending threshold.
  Advice: Watch out for conditional annual fees.
• Rebate Offers: Some credit cards offer refunds on finance charges when customers pay on time. However, rebate offers aren’t governed by the CARD Act, and such offers can be revoked suddenly and for any reason, leaving cardholders stuck with higher charges.
  Advice: Rebates may translate to real savings in finance charges.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

Contact Kittleman Realty Group,

your local real estate expert,

for information about what’s going on in our area.

301-785-5889

Newsletter Contents

1. Market Update

2. Interest Rates

2. Video

3. Topics for Owners, Buyers & Sellers

Brought to you by KW Research. For additional graphs and details, please see the This Month in Real Estate PowerPoint Report.

The opinions expressed in This Month in Real Estate are intended to supplement opinions on real estate expressed by local and national media, local real estate agents and other expert sources.  You should not treat any opinion expressed on This Month in Real Estate as a specific inducement to make a particular investment or follow a particular strategy, but only as an expression of opinion.  Keller Williams Realty, Inc., does not guarantee and is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of information, and provides said information without warranties of any kind.  All information presented herein is intended and should be used for educational purposes only.  Nothing herein should be construed as investment advice.  You should always conduct your own research and due diligence and obtain professional advice before making any investment decision.  All investments involve some degree of risk.  Keller Williams Realty, Inc., will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on information contained in This Month in Real Estate.

May 2010 Summary:

Source: RBI

FHA mortgages have been very popular recently.  There are many reasons for this, including lower down payments, lots of options to obtain help from motivated sellers, and the ability for people with less than perfect credit to enjoy home ownership.

 Yesterday we received guidance from several lenders that FHA rules will be a-changing.  The guidelines will be tightened significantly in the coming weeks and months.  Here are some important changes that could affect your 2010 home purchase.

 *  The upfront Mortgage Insurance Premium (MIP) will be raised to 2.25% from 1.75%.  This will be effective in the Spring and the date is not known yet. 
Bottom line: you’ll pay an additional half a percent of your loan amount at settlement.

*  HUD has put in a minimum FICO of 580 for the 3.5% down payment.   This change will go into effect sometime in the summer.  Note, however, that most lenders have already raised the limit to a 620 minimum, so this is really not a big change, but there is a probability that we’ll see the minimimum FICO score with most lenders increase to 640.
Bottom line: It’s getting harder for anyone with less than pristine credit to qualify for a mortgage.

*  Seller concessions moving from 6% down to 3%.  This change will be posted sometime in February and will have an effective date in the early summer.
Bottom line note from Tom: as a buyer’s agent, this is HUGE!  I’ve had several cases over the past year of negotiating a 5-6% credit from the sellers.  If 3% is the new maximum, it’ll be harder to negotiate with the seller to lower the up-front cost of the home purchase.

 And don’t forget the TAX CREDITS that are set to expire in April!  So, to briefly recap why you need to MOVE NOW if you’re thinking of buying a new home in the coming year:

 Here’s what you can currently take advantage of:

 *  TAX CREDIT OF $6,500 to $8,000 for repeat *and* first time home buyers (if qualified).
*  The seller can pay up to 6% of the sales price of buyer’s closing costs. 
*  Upfront MIP is 1.75% (half a percent lower than it will be)
*  No minimum credit (FICO) score currently (with lenders usually requiring 620). 
*  FHA allows Non-Occupying co-signers for income only.  (FHA loans are the only loans that allow a relative to co-sign for the borrower and do not require the borrower to have any source of income.) 

I know this is a lot to digest, but I wanted to make sure all my friends have all the facts about the current market for real estate.

 Questions? Simply reply to this email or call us at 301.785.5889 today.  We’re here to help!

 (And thanks for making it all the way to the end of this important message!)

NAR FAQs About New Homebuyer Tax Credit Changes

It’s important to note the income and home purchase price limitations. 

Purchase Price: The credit is available for the purchase of principal homes costing $800,000 or less, period. 

Income: The credit would be phased out for individuals with annual incomes above $125,000 and for joint filers with incomes above $225,000.

We’ll post again when the extension is officially signed by the President.

Stay tuned!

According to the Real Estate Staging Association (RESA), marketed vacant and occupied homes once staged spent 85% and 89%, respectively, less time on the market than if they were unstaged.

Marketed vacant homes that were previously unstaged were not sold after 190 days on the market. Once staged, those homes only took 28 days to sell.

Marketed occupied homes that were previously unstaged were not sold after 57 days on the market. Once staged, those homes only took 6 days to sell.

Kittleman Realty Group provides free staging assistance to help our clients get the most money in the least amount of time.  We also have accredited professional stagers available to consult with you.

Just call 301-785-5889 and put us to work for you.  We’re here to help!

Sincerely,