Real Estate Information

I am happy to report that Congress has passed a bill extending the Homebuyer Tax Credit closing deadline to September 30, 2010. 

The extension applies only to transactions that had ratified contracts in place as of April 30, 2010, and have not yet closed.  There will be no gap between June 30 and the date the President signs the bill into law. 

This is really helpful for some folks who may have had list minute mortgage issues or other factors that prevented them from being able to close by the end of June. This may also benefit some people who are building homes. In some of these cases the builders may not have been able to complete the homes in time for the end of June deadline.

Over the past two years most of the no and low money down mortgage programs have gone away due to Real Estate challenges in other parts of the Country. As a result, more and more home buyers have been using FHA financing. One of the benefits of this program is it allows the sellers to pay up to six percent of the buyers closing costs and it allows the buyer to purchase a home using as little as 3.5 % of their own funds. ( This can even be gift funds )

So what's the big change? Sometime this Summer the guidelines will change and the sellers will only be allowed to contribute a maximum of THREE percent toward the buyers costs. For many buyers this will make it much more difficult to come up with the funds needed to buy their home. For some buyers it will make it impossible! Buyers need to be aware of this as it could come as a surpise if they wait to long to "make the move"

The place to start is making sure you, the home buyer, has representation. This means NEVER dealing directly with the on site sales reps or builders agent. They may be very nice people but they don't represent you! Over the years I have often had buyers referred to me who were thinking of a new home. After we had a chance to talk they would discover there was much they were never informed of. They often did not know the sales history in the area they were considering. Meaning if they needed to sell the home in the next few years they may not be able to or they would have to sell it for thousands less than they paid for it!

They did not realize how the taxes would be calculated on the their new home. They were often not aware of items in the "builders agreement" that could hurt them down the road. They did not know their options with construction financing verses end loan financing and which one may protect them more.I could go on and on. Bottom line, it costs a buyer nothing to have representation and it can cost them a GREAT DEAL not to!

When selecting an agent to represent you in new construction be SURE to ask that agent questions. Don't assume all will do the same thing or all are equally qualified. Just a few of the questions to ask should be.

a) How many buyers a year do YOU represent?

b) How often have you represented buyers in new construction?

c) What kind of things will you do to protect me during the process and after?

Again, I could go on. The key here is you don't want an agent using YOU to practice on. You want an experienced professional in your corner.

Wow...For January 2010 197 homes were sold, up 4.2 percent over January 2009.

Half of these sold in 60 days or less!

Pending home sales rose to 315 from 279 a year ago-a 12.9% increase! Even with all the crazy weather this year.

The average sales price was $187,429-an 11.4% increase over last January.

Take a look at the breakdown we have included here as well as a press release on these very encouraging numbers!

PRESS RELEASE: The Lancaster County Association of Realtors® (LCAR) today released their monthly recap of the area’s real estate market activity in January 2010, noting several positive indicators:

• Pending home sales rose to 315 from 279 a year ago—a 12.9% increase.

• New listings increased 25.9%.

• The average sale price was $187,429—an 11.4% increase over last January.

• 197 homes were sold, up 4.2 percent over January 2009.

• Half of the homes and condos that sold in January were on the market for 60 days or less. 

LCAR president Bob Rose noted, “Last year we started off slowly and then picked up in the last quarter. The January stats show a continued upswing, probably due in part to the home buyer tax credits, but also due to the overall long-term strength of our market. While Lancaster County real estate may have its highs and lows, they’re certainly not as extreme as many other markets.”

“It’s especially encouraging to see that half the homes that sold in January were on the market 60 days or less, and we hope that continues. The numbers also seem to indicate that first-time home buyers are continuing to take advantage of the tax credits, but current home owners don’t seem to be as aware of the incentive.”

When the tax credit program was extended in November, qualified homeowners who have lived in their home for five consecutive years within the last eight became eligible for up to $6,500 in tax credits. First-time home buyers who have not owned a home in the last three years are eligible for up to $8,000. The new deadline for both tax credits is April 30th to put a home under contract and June 30th to close.

“When you combine the tax credits, the relative strength and stability of Lancaster County’s real estate market, plus historically low mortgage rates and reasonable prices, we would expect to see much more activity over the coming months.” 

Contact a Realtor® for more information about the tax credit program.

LCAR, representing more than 1,500 members involved in all aspects of the real estate industry, is one of more than 1,800 location associations nationwide that comprise the National Association of Realtors®.

Every source I know says its a a done deal. Mortgage interest rates will soon be on the move up! Actions taken by the Federal Goverment to keep rates this low will be phased out starting this month. As we go through the spring and summer look for rates to increase around one percent. For the average buyer a one percent increase in interest rates has the same effect as a ten percent increase in sales price of a home!