Time to Fix Your Mortgage!

If you're among the millions of homeowners that have an 

Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) that's scheduled to adjust soon, now may be a good time to refinance into the security of a fixed–rate mortgage.

Why now? 

Low Rates

Many people find that the longer they’re in their home, the easier and more comfortable the mortgage payments are to make – especially first time home buyers. 

Carriene describes the process as follows:

Fill out an application. This can be done in person, online, or over the phone.

The lender runs a credit check to get your FICO score.

It also determines your expenses and income by looking at your financial portfolio.

The bank then determines if you qualify for a loan, and if so, what kind and for how much.

Is that true for you? 

Here are a few things that are always helpful: Review your household budget. Does it need changes?  

Start an emergency fund, or continue adding to your existing fund. Make a plan to knock out at least one piece of debt. 

Make sure you’re taking full advantage of tax deductions and credits. 

Today's mortgage rates remain at historic lows. They may not be as low as they were when you got your ARM 3–, 5– 7– or 10 years ago, but they remain very attractive. In fact, we recently experienced a nine–month low for the 30–year fixed–rate mortgage.

Peace of Mind

Ninety percent of today's homebuyers choose the 30–year fixed–rate mortgage — and, with good reason. It provides you with:Affordability — With the longer term, your payments are stretched out for a longer period, lowering your monthly payment.

Stability — Since your mortgage rate will remain the same for the entire term of your loan (aside from taxes and insurance that can increase over time), your mortgage is protected from inflation and you'll enjoy the financial security of consistent payments for 30 years.

Flexibility — If rates drop or you need to refinance for other reasons, you can do so without penalty in most cases.

You may also want to explore a 10–, 15– or 20–year fixed–rate mortgage. These loans provide the same benefits as the 30–year term, but your monthly payment will be higher due to the shorter term. You will, however, build equity faster, pay less interest over the life of your loan, and secure a lower rate.

To determine if refinancing to a fixed–rate mortgage is right for your situation, lean on your lender or financial professional for guidance.  Also, check out our calculator to see how much your mortgage payments might be with a fixed–rate mortgage.

By completing a Loan Pre-Qualification you'll be on your way to locking in your interest rate and giving assurance to prospective sellers that you mean business. Pre-qualification is easy and can be done via email or over the phone.

To start the process simply contact George Andersen. Once we receive your information We can start to work with you to tailor a loan specific to your needs. 801-550-1382 

For more news and advice, head over to Precision Realty & Associates and speak to Carriene Porter a real estate professional. If you prefer a more personal touch, CALL 801-809-9866 today.

#Mortgage #UtahRealEstate #Selling #Buying

Buying and Selling at the Same Time

Mistakes to Avoid: Plenty of people find themselves buying 

and selling a home simultaneously, but knowing that others have gone through the same stress does not make it one bit easier. 

After all, the stakes are so high:

If your buyer backs out, you don't have any cash to land your next home! Or if your own purchase falls through but your current home sells, you're homeless!

It's all like walking across the Grand Canyon on a tightrope: The tiniest thing goes wrong, and you fall.

Breathe in. Don't panic.

It turns out that most buying-and-selling mistakes are easily avoidable—or at least predictable. Follow these eight tips to enter escrow with eyes wide open.

1. Waiting too long to prep your home for selling

Every home needs a little work before selling. You might need to repaint some scratched walls, fix broken decking, or add grout in a rarely used bathroom. Don't wait until the last minute to kick-start this process, otherwise you could wind up in a bind.

Take, for example, one of the clients of real estate associate Carriene Porter. He was trying to buy and sell simultaneously. Carriene Porter advised him repeatedly to start prepping the home, "but he kept pushing it off and pushing it off, despite actively looking for a new home and submitting offers."

Once the client went under contract to buy a home, suddenly he and Carriene found themselves rushing to list his existing home. When they finally finished prepping, it was already October—precisely when the market was slowing down and it became tougher to find a buyer.

"I advised him—and would advise anyone—to get the little projects out of the way," Carriene says.

2. Skipping the backup plan

When you're buying and selling simultaneously, the number of moving parts doubles. And if any of those parts gets jammed, it can throw off both transactions.

"We had to coordinate two closes and three different families moving in and out of properties," he recalls.

And with that assumption, you better have a plan in place in case everything goes wrong. Keep your emergency fund well-stocked. In a best-case scenario, you may simply need a hotel for a week, but you may also find yourself looking into short-term rentals. Have cash on hand—in addition to your down payment funds—to survive the setback.

3. Buying too big

"One of the biggest mistakes that we see that simultaneous buyers and sellers make is the same one that many first-time buyers make: They fail to get pre-approved on their new loan," says Carriene Porter at Precision Realty & Associates.

Pre-approval is essential, because it puts a stop to unrealistic dreaming by telling you exactly what size of house you can afford. 

"Buyers assume that with a large down payment and increased income, they will automatically qualify for a larger home loan," she says. "Many do, but not as large as they think or wish. They begin the search and are disappointed when they can't upgrade as much as they thought they would be able to."

Watch: The 4 Things You Must Do to Sell Your Home Fast

Volume 90%

 

4. Working with too little cushion

You know what price your house should sell for. But what if the market softens? If you're forced to take an offer that's $20,000 less than expected, there goes the down payment on your new home.

"Give yourself a cushion on what you need to sell your existing home for," says Carriene Porter at Precision Realty & Associates.

If you're hoping to use the entire sale price as a down payment on another home, move forward with the assumption your home will sell for less than expected.

5. Failing to compromise

Don't forget you're not the only human in a stressful situation. That person selling your dream home? And the buyers under contract for your current place? They're all probably stressed, too.

So keep that in mind when issues come up—for example, if the buyers need an extra week of escrow because there was an issue selling their home, or the sellers don't think they need to fix a leaky pipe for you.

"One mistake is expecting so much from the people selling the home, but not being willing to give anything to the buyers of their own home," Carriene Porter says. "A little compromise goes a long way, especially when there are two escrows (or more) on the line."

6. Using two different real estate agents

Expect this already messy process to get even messier if you're juggling agents for your listing and for buying a new home. Simplify things by using the same agent for both transactions.

"I would always prefer to handle both sides of your sale and purchase," says agent Carriene Porter. "Having control and insight over both transactions allows me to make sure that we close both homes simultaneously."

There are two instances when you should not use the same real estate agent. If you're moving out of state, look for a reputable buyer's agent in your new location. If you're remaining in the same area, you may also meet and like an agent who works exclusively with buyers or sellers — not both. In that case, ask for a recommendation within your agent's brokerage so you can, at a minimum, keep both transactions under the same roof.

7. Closing on a Friday...

While you should work with your agent to determine the best timing, you'd ideally want to finalize the sale of your current home first, and then close on your new one. Try to aim for closings within two or three days of the other—"and never on a Friday," says Carriene Porter.

That's because bank transfers can take a few days to go through. In order to ensure there's money in your account when the time comes, buffer a few days to transfer funds.

8. ...or late in the afternoon

When you're scheduling those closings, aim for the morning—especially on the sale of your current home.

"Banks usually stop wire transfers by 3 p.m. in the time zone where the property is located," says Carriene Porter. Closing in the morning allows extra time for the money to hit your account.

Ready to get your home on the Market? Carriene Porter at Precision Realty & Associates, is here to Help! Working with a real estate professionals you’re guaranteed to get the expertise and advice you need. If you prefer a more personal touch, CALL 801-809-9866 today.

#UtahRealEstate #Selling #Buying

Turnaround in Sight for Spring Season

Existing-Home Sales Plunge 6.4%, Mortgage 

Rates Blamed: The Existing-Home Sales data measures sales and prices of existing single-family homes for the nation overall, and gives breakdowns for the West, Midwest, South, and Northeast regions of the country.

Following two consecutive months of increases, existing-home sales dialed back at the end of 2018 and economists pointed to higher mortgage rates for most of last year as one of the main culprits.

However, they’re optimistic a turnaround will be in sight for home sales in the spring season, particularly given that mortgage rates have started to decrease in recent weeks.

Total existing-home sales—which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condos, and co-ops—dropped 6.4 percent in December compared to November. Sales are now down 10.3 percent from a year ago, according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ existing-home sales report, released Tuesday.

Higher mortgage rates during much of 2018 are partially to blame for the decrease in home sales at the end of the year, says Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist.

“The housing market is obviously very sensitive to mortgage rates,” Yun says. “Softer sales in December reflected consumer search processes and contract signings activity in previous months when mortgage rates were higher than today. Now, with mortgage rates lower, some revival in home sales is expected going into spring.”

In December, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.64 percent. For comparison, in all of 2017, 30-year rates averaged 3.99 percent. Mortgage rates have been inching down in recent weeks. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.45 percent last week, reports Freddie Mac.

With mortgage rates improving, home sales still face another possible threat: the partial government shutdown. However, the shutdown of the federal government did not have a significant effect on December closings, says John Smaby, NAR president. “But the uncertainty of a shutdown has the potential to harm the market,” Smaby says. “Once the government is fully reopened, I am hopeful that housing transactions will increase.”

Here’s a closer look at NAR’s December existing-home sales report:

Home prices: The median existing-home price for all housing types in December was $253,600, up 2.9 percent from a year ago.

Inventories: Total housing inventory at the end of December fell to 1.55 million, down from 1.74 million existing homes available for sale in November. Unsold inventory is at a 3.7-month supply at the current sales pace.

Days on the market: Properties stayed on the market an average of 46 days in December, up from 40 days a year ago. Thirty-nine percent of homes that sold in December were on the market for less than a month.

“Several consecutive months of rising inventory is a positive development for consumers and could lead to slower home price appreciation,” says Yun. “But there is still a lack of adequate inventory on the lower-priced points and too many in upper-priced points. ”

All-cash sales: All-cash transactions comprised 22 percent of sales in December, up from 20 percent a year ago. Individual investors tend to make up the biggest bulk of all-cash sales. They accounted for 13 percent of sales in December, down from 16 percent a year ago.

Ready to make a move we're here to Help! Working with real estate professionals like Carriene Porter at Precision Realty & Associates, you’re guaranteed to get the expertise and advice you need. 

Not quite ready to buy a home? You may qualify for the Lease with a Right to Purchase program. Call me and I'll give you the details on how you may qualify to get into the home you want, get settled and then purchase it when you are ready! If you prefer a more personal touch, CALL 801-809-9866 today.

 #UtahRealEstate #Selling #Buying

Barndominiums Offer Stylish Digs

In the last few years, savvy homeowners have developed 

innovative ways to make prefabricated metal buildings comfortable enough to settle down into for life. 

These rural homes we've come to know and love are called barndominiums.

They may not offer a ton of visual popfrom the exterior, but it's amazing how stylish and livable they can be.

The trend hit an inflection point a couple of years ago, when Chip and Joanna Gaines renovated one in Waco on "Fixer Upper."

When it landed on the market later for $1.2 million, it put a posh public face on prefab steel.

Bass was thrilled, but her neighbors, not so much. Residents near the barndominium worried that Bass's short-term rental business would affect property values, increase traffic, and generally disrupt their tranquil town. 

And apparently Chip and Joanna also were taken aback to see the home they'd spruced up being turned into a for-profit venture.

"We are going to be more strict with our contracts involving ‘Fixer Upper’ clients moving forward," Brock Murphy, a spokesman for Magnolia, the Gaines' company, said in a statement.

In other words: Chip and Jo prefer clients who will actually live in the homes.

"That’s the true intent of our show, and we want to ensure that does not get lost in this new vacation rental trend," the statement continued. "We are going to do our best to protect that moving forward."

Interestingly enough, Chip and Joanna made their own foray into the rental industry in 2016 by turning a house they'd renovated into a wildly successful bed-and-breakfast called the Magnolia House; it's currently booked solid through the year. But the difference between their B&B and the homes they've renovated on their show is in the intended use of the properties.

The Gaines' B&B is zoned and operated as a business, while the single-family homes mentioned above are zoned as residential and designed for a family.

The extra-long custom-made dining table was a key design element Joanna made sure made it into the house.

The extra-long custom-made dining table was a key design element Joanna made sure made it into the house.

Although renting out a residential property is not illegal, people who do so must often pay taxes and apply for permits from the city—and even then, they often catch a lot of flak from neighbors, as Bass did.

"Noise, overuse of common resources, security, and the insurance risk of strangers are the biggest complaints we hear from neighbors of those who rent out their homes," says Jeremy Welch, a home sharing expert and founder and CEO of bedkin.com, a company that enables home sharing for friends.

Renting out a home on a short-term basis also affects a neighborhood's housing market.

"Short-term rental rates are much higher than monthly rental rates. This can skew property values," Welch says. "For current homeowners, higher property values are generally welcome, but for renters or new home buyers, the change is almost always negative."

Will the barndominium sell for that much?

Bass decided to sell the barndominium not just over neighbor complaints, but also because the city issued her two tickets for running a business without permits. Since the home went on the market last week, "interest has been incredible, as expected," according to Jennifer Roberts, Bass's real estate agent and sister.

That might be surprising, considering that the home's $1.2 million price tag is in a different league than the median home price of $85,000 in Lacy Lakeview. But Roberts is confident that the asking price is fair.

"It's a beautiful retreat located with private lake access and a private pond," she says. "It is immaculate inside, and the sale includes every item on the property—that means furniture, linens, dishes, and televisions, too."

So if you've always dreamed of owning a "Fixer Upper" home, here's your chance! Just be sure you plan to live there, OK?

Visit Precision Realty & Associates and a real estate professionals like Carriene Porter  to learn all you need to know about the homebuying process, from A to Z.

Not quite ready to buy a home? You may qualify for the Lease with a Right to Purchase program. Call me and I'll give you the details on how you may qualify to get into the home you want, get settled and then purchase it when you are ready! If you prefer a more personal touch, CALL 801-809-9866 today.

#Mortgage #UtahRealEstate #Selling #Buying