The Market

The Market

There are some good trends in the market with one being that the housing is recovering even with the tight credit approval we are facing.  With still low down payment on FHA at 3.5% and a 5% down on conventional, it is a good market to buy.  If mortgage accessibility opens up (it is cyclic), we may just have a booming year in sales!

Now the downside is that Washington may change their policies and require more money down, like 20%.  They may trim or take away the mortgage interest deduction which is an advantage of owning over renting.  They also add capital gains on the home sale which we have not had for some years.  All of these would greatly halt the progress in home sales.

There will still be more unequal wealth distribution according to accondomist.  Homeowners are building wealth after buying at low prices.  Renters do not accumulate wealth and the renter population is rising simply because tighter credit hinders “good” renters from becoming homeowners.  Now we are seeing an increase share of property owners as investors and as a rule, too many investors in a neighborhood will bring the neighborhood down since properties are not usually maintained as well.  Owning a home is really down right now at a rate of 65.5% of the population which is the lowest in 15 years! Homeownership has always been the avenue in accumulating wealth for people. 

If you are renting, check out the possibility of owning a home and give us a call. 

Tips For Moving With Children

Moving is a challenging and difficult experience for any family, especially those with young children. Did you know?

• One of every five American families move each year
• Most of those moves are either within the same city or to a neighboring state
• 8 million children ages 1-14 are relocated with their families annually
• Texas is the most moved-to state

But when parents decide to move, the children tend to be anxious, even upset. They need to be included in the move and be a participant to remove some of that anxiety that comes with moving.

Click here for some other hints on how to make the move easier on children.

Good News!

New legislation, the Worker, Homeownership and Business Assistance Act of 2009, which was signed into law on Nov. 6, 2009, extends and expands the first-time homebuyer credit allowed by previous Acts.

$8,000 First-time Home Buyer Tax Credit at a Glance
· The $8,000 tax credit is for first-time home buyers only. For the tax credit program, the IRS defines a first-time home buyer as someone who has not owned a principal residence during the three-year period prior to the purchase.
· The tax credit is equal to 10 percent of the home's purchase price up to a maximum of $8,000.
· The tax credit applies only to homes priced at $800,000 or less.
· The tax credit now applies to sales occurring on or after January 1, 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010. However, in cases where a binding sales contract is signed by April 30, 2010, a home purchase completed by June 30, 2010 will qualify.
· For homes purchased on or after January 1, 2009 and on or before November 6, 2009, the income limits are $75,000 for single taxpayers and $150,000 for married couples filing jointly.
· For homes purchased after November 6, 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010, single taxpayers with incomes up to $125,000 and married couples with incomes up to $225,000 qualify for the full tax credit.

The $6,500 Move-Up / Repeat Home Buyer Tax Credit at a Glance
· To be eligible to claim the tax credit, buyers must have owned and lived in their previous home for five consecutive years out of the last eight years and purchase a replacement primary home.
· The tax credit is equal to 10 percent of the home's purchase price up to a maximum of $6,500.
· The tax credit applies only to homes priced at $800,000 or less.
· The credit is available for homes purchased after November 6, 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010. However, in cases where a binding sales contract is signed by April 30, 2010, the home purchase qualifies provided it is completed by June 30, 2010.
· Single taxpayers with incomes up to $125,000 and married couples with incomes up to $225,000 qualify for the full tax credit.

For your FREE guide to see if you qualify for these programs, call our 24 Hour Recording at 1-866-927-4771, EX 112 for your FREE Tax Credit Guide or go to TaxcreditGuide.com/CollinCounty Betty Magee, Magee & Associates, 972-985-4747, Betty.Magee@HomesByBetty.com

Time to Buy!

You are still hearing that it is a great time to buy and it is. Our prices are lower even in the Dallas area where prices have not fallen as much as other areas, but still, we have great interest rates at 5%.

Who are those buyers? Are you that first time buyer or a repeat buyer? Do you fit the average?

First Time Buyers:
Have an average age of 30 years
Medium income is $60,600
Average purchase price: $165,000
Long term plans: Stay in home for 10 years
Median Down Payment: 4% which is up from 2% in 2007 (of course, 100% financing is gone)

Repeat Buyers:
Average age: 47 years old
Median Income: $88,200
Average Purchase Price: $236,000
Long Term Plans: Stay in home for 10 years
Median Down Payment: 15% (10% paid cash)

We can help either of you, as a First Time Buyer or as a Repeat Buyer. Just give us a call or email us at Betty@HomesByBetty.com and we can give you the choices you have to choose from in buying in this new Marketplace.

Why We Move?

Most Americans have moved to another community at least once in their lives probably because of pursuing economic opportunities, while only 4 out of 10 have never moved from where they were born, mostly because of family connections. The following facts were shared by a recent survey by the Pew Research Center. Three quarter of college graduates have moved, which is not true for those without a college diploma.

Where is home?
38% of Americans say the place they consider home isn’t where they are currently living!
26% said home was where they were born or raised,
22% say it is where they live now,
18% say it’s where they have lived the longest,
15% say it’s where their family comes from and
4% say it’s where they went to high school.

Where do you consider home? (Where your heart is, huh?)
Interestingly, 57% of those interviewed never lived outside their current state,
37% have never moved from their hometown,
20% have left their hometown but never lived in another state.

Which category do you fit in?
I was born in Oklahoma City and the family lived there for 6 months before moving to Arkansas for another 6 months. My Father was in the FBI and was transferred to the Rio Grande Valley to Brownsville, Weslaco, and Los Fresno. We moved to Amarillo when I was in 3rd grade and remained. After college in Lubbock and Abilene, I moved to Richardson and Dallas. Married my husband and moved back to Richardson and then to Plano in 1973 and have remained. Now how many moves is that? Who has more? (Half I don’t remember so really feel we never moved around!)