As Lending continues to change, those of us in the Mortgage Business have to keep finding options to help put Buyer’s into homes. With Nehemiah nearing extinction (10/1/2008), I want to show you another option that still allows 100% financing on properties located in specified areas.

USDA

Guaranteed Rural Housing Loan Program

The Alternative to Nehemiah

Click Here to link to the USDA Housing Website 

• 100% Financing for Properties in Rural Areas. Rural area is not necessarily defined as a “country ” setting. It can be a home in a subdivision as long as that city if located in a rural area on the designated USDA Map.
• Mortgage Insurance. Only 2% upfront financed into the loan for an LTV of 102%. NO MONTHLY PREMIUM, meaning lower payments for the Borrower.
• Great 30 year fixed rates. 6.25% (APR 7.102%) as of 8/27/08. Be aware that rates change daily.
• Income limitations, but they are set higher than most other programs
  (see attached information). A family of 4 (2 children living at home) and paying some child care can earn up to approximately $70,000 in Stanislaus County.

Questions?

Chris Johnson
Senior Loan Officer
(209) 491-3887
E-mail Me!

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Builders Worry About Impact of Housing Bill
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Good Neighbor Finalist: Mary Bacon
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For all the agents that have taken advantage of the Trendgraphix reporting available through Zagaris Online Solutions for your CMA or personal educational purposes, I’m pleased to let you know that they will be releasing data sooner each month for trends in previous months.

Starting in September, get data for August 5 days earlier, no later than the 10th. Enjoy!

At PMZ Real Estate, we believe educated clients are smart clients. That’s why we’ve created Real Estate Trends.

Real Estate Trends is a new service offered at PMZ.com that allows you to check out the latest trends in the past 14 months in real estate. We have graphs broken up by county to give you a visual representation of how the market is doing. Trends like: Number of Homes for Sale vs. Sold vs. Pending, Average Home Sold Price per Square Foot, Days on Market and Median Price of Sold Homes and Average Prices of For Sale and Sold Homes.

Watch as we expand this service. Check out the latest in Real Estate Trends.

According to the CAR Hotline’s frequently asked questions (FAQ), the most often asked question is: Do I have to fill out a visual inspection? This is a must! No matter what side of the transaction you are on, buying or selling, an AVID (for short) will protect yourself and your clients.

Of course we don’t have a crystal ball, so we don’t have an official answer, but Residential Manager, Phil Levin, was noticing that while home prices have been falling, the amount in which they decline each month is getting smaller and smaller. ie: January we were sitting at an average home sale price of about $258,000. Now the average home sale price is $182,000. In the months between, home values have slowed their trend downward by less and less each month. In February the average home sales price was $15,000 less than the previous month. Following respectively, $14k to $9k to $7k to now about $3k. Does this signal a change in the market? Possibly. Could we see home prices rise sooner rather than later? Maybe. It’s encouraging news at any rate. Right now is still a GREAT time to buy property, so help your clients take advantage of that.

New Mortgage Law Has Buyers Scrambling
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Foreigners spent $52.2 billion on U.S. commercial real estate in 2007, double the previous year’s total.
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Trump Saves Ed McMahon From Foreclosure
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Study: Appraisal System Lacks Oversight
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Economists Predict Fannie, Freddie Bailout
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Residential manager, Paul Harmon, went to a mixer here in town and picked up some information on projected population growth in Stanislaus County. Current population sits at about 520,000. According to the California Department of Housing and Community Development, our projected population for Stanislaus County will rise to 700,000 in 2020. According to the data that Paul received, by 2040, our population will double to around 1 million. 70% of that growth will be current residence expanding into the area, 30% transplants, etc. As our county’s population grows, so will our housing needs and the need for experienced Realtors with knowledge of the area.

For San Joaquin, population estimates for 2020 stand at around 884,000 up from around 625,000.

Here are some stats The Great Valley Center has produced that are inline with the projected population growth according to the State.

New Index Says Home Prices Rising
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Households Spending Posts Upswing
Federal tax rebates are said to have helped.
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Walkability Becomes Plus for Buyers
Annual household costs typically shrink by more than $2,000 when cars aren’t necessary for daily commute.
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Market Keeps Divorcees Cohabitating
Yet one more way the longer marketing time for housing is affecting people’s lives.
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Option ARMs a Headache for Lenders
At Countrywide, more than 12 percent of borrowers are delinquent.
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West Virginia Joins in Countrywide Suit
The company shouldn’t be allowed to foreclose on mortgages that it made using inflated appraisals, the state says.
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Mortgage Applications Show Slight Dip
Interest rates moved up slightly during the week.
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The Center for media research broadcasted an email noting some interesting statistics regarding the reach of traditional forms of advertising mediums versus newer mediums. Here is a brief:

• Broadcast TV will surpass newspapers as the largest ad medium in 2008, while total Internet ad spend will surpass broadcast TV in 2011
• Consumer media use declined slightly in 2007 as some platforms near saturation, while institutional media use increased due to mission-critical information demand
• Total communications spending is forecast to expand at a CAGR of 6.1% from 2007- 2012 to $1.2 trillion, fueled by continued growth in institutional and alternative media

Read the original report here.