Are the days of the dirty, cheap foreclosure properties going by the wayside? A trend I have been seeing in our market is that banks are starting to do their own rehabs. They are hiring subcontractors to clean, replace carpet, paint and appliances. They are starting to price homes more in line with the mainstream. This is a problem for house flippers but I think it is having a positive affect on the values of the subdivisions. This also gives them a much larger buyer pool.

How do you determine market value in today's market? I will start with some things that do not determine value. What you paid for the home, what you would like to net from the sale, what your friends or family think it's worth. In many cases certain upgrades will not help determine the value. The value is determined by active and recently closed homes, market conditions, interest rates and your terms offered as a seller. Style and condition of the home play vital roles as well.

Lenders will be facing tighter disclosure requirements with home mortgages. There are parts of me that like this and parts that  wonder if this will make closing loans in a difficult lending environment, more difficult. Good Faith Estimates are designed to protect the buyer. Forcing the lender to provide the GFE within 3 business day of application is a move in the right direction. I have seen Good Faith Estimates have decrepancies of $500- $1000. This is inexcusable. Delaying the closing 3 addition days, however,  because the APR has changed more than 0.125%, is too long in my opinion. Corrections could be made and closing rescheduled in 24 hours.  I do hope, in the end, closings will be smoother and surprises will be fewer. Only time will tell. http://tinyurl.com/ksx8lk

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RISMEDIA, June 11, 2009-The Housing Working Group of Business Roundtable, an association of chief executive officers of leading U.S. corporations, announced bipartisan proposals to help return stability and growth to the U.S. housing market.

 

The group strongly believes adoption of its proposals will have a cascade effect, creating jobs and hastening U.S. economic recovery. The group’s recommendations are to:

 

 

1. Keep mortgage interest rates at historically low levels (below 5%) for at least one year;
2. Expand the current First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit incentive from the lesser of 10% of the purchase price of the home or $8,000 to a higher limit of either 10% or $15,000 for all home buyers, remove the income restrictions and include all primary residence purchases for one full year;
3. Conduct a thorough review of current foreclosure mitigation and loan-modification programs in light of rising loan-modification re-default rates;
4. Make permanent the current temporary conforming loan limits; and
5. Continue to review and strengthen government efforts already underway to review and refine mortgage lending practices.

http://rismedia.com/2009-06-10/roundtable-releases-recommendations-to-reinvigorate-us-housing-market/#ixzz0I8Zh1HJr&D

Now that you know what you're looking for, the next step is figuring out what you can afford. A review of your income, savings, monthly expenses, and debt will be necessary. Early on in the process, you'll want to get pre-qualified for a mortgage loan, which helps determine how much you can afford. It enables you to move swiftly when you find the right home, especially when there are other interested buyers. It also indicates to the seller that you are serious and can afford to buy the property. A pre-approval is a simple calculation done by a mortgage lender that tells you the amount you'll be able to finance through a loan and what your monthly payment will be. When you find a home to buy, a pre-approval also reassures the seller that you have the financial means to purchase his or her home. Know what you can afford is the first rule of home buying, and that depends on how much income and how much debt you have. It pays to check with several lenders before you start searching for a home. The price you can afford to pay for a home will depend on several factors, such as: gross income the funds you have available for the down payment, closing costs and cash reserves required by the lender your debt your credit history the type of mortgage you select current interest rates<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />