Buying a home can unlock a door to a great tax return

Welcome back and happy New Year! It’s tax time and nobody looks forward to that.  I have some exciting news, though. Did you know that if you itemize your taxes you are able to deduct up to $1 million of total mortgage interest?

You can also deduct $100,000 of equity mortgage interest. Make sure to check with your accountant or give me a call if you have any questions.

Also, if you know of anyone who is thinking of buying, be sure to send them my way!

The 3 Must-Haves in Order to Buy a Home

Thanks for joining me today. One question I get asked frequently is: What does it take to buy a home? Obviously, there are a lot of important requirements before you can step into  your dream home, but I've boiled it down to the three most important must-haves for buyers.

1)  Credit. You've got to have a credit history. You start a credit history when opening a credit card, purchasing an item with a loan, or attending higher education and taking out student loans. Whether that credit score is good or not depends on whether your payments have been timely. And a good credit score is needed and you need a credit score of at least 640.

2)  Two year job history. A lender wants to know that you have a steady income and verify how much you will be making in ratio to your mortgage payments.

3)  Money. Of course I'm stating the obvious, but you may not need as much as you think. With the FHA loan, you can put down as little as 3.5%. That is $3,500 for every $100,000 that you borrow.

If you have any questions about how to qualify for a home or what your credit score may be, please give me a call today and thanks for watching!

Housing Price Market Update with John Bloss

You’re probably sick of hearing about how great the market is and how you need to make your move now. Has anyone ever told you why you should make your move now? Interest rates and home prices are increasing, and with each increase, there is a decrease in your purchasing power.

Are you a first time homebuyer?

Are you a first time homebuyer?

Are you a first time homebuyer? Are you thinking of buying in the spring or summer? Now is the time to come and talk to us. We can help you with a strategy and make sure you’re approved. Find out more about how we can help you get ready to buy your first home!

4 Ways to Improve Your Credit

Welcome back! For the past few videos I’ve been telling you everything you CAN’T do, but now I have a list of different things you can do to improve your credit.

•    Join a credit program. It may have a slight cost, but these programs alert you when there are any unauthorized uses on your card. Stop any damage before it starts.

•    Make your payments on time. One missed car or mortgage payment can terminate the loan process immediately.

•    Use your credit normally. Continue to use your card and pay on time as normal, just don’t overcharge.

•    Keep in contact with loan originator. If you receive a collection letter or anything that you think may affect your credit, notify your lender immediately.

If you have any questions about how to improve your credit, give me a call. Thanks for watching!

Home Prices...Hang in there!

The third quarter brought another dose of persistently disappointing home prices, with the U.S. national home price index up only 0.1% from the second quarter and down 3.9% from year-ago figures, the S&P Case-Shiller report said Tuesday.
The national index decline is not as steep as the 5.8% decline posted in the second quarter, but home prices overall are back to first quarter of 2003 levels.
The report found that the annual rate of change in 14 of the 20 metropolitan statistical areas covered by the report improved in September when compared to August.
The 10-city and 20-city composites saw annual rate declines of 3.3% and 3.6%, respectively. Between the second and third quarter the 10-city index home price index declined 0.4% and 20-city declined 0.6% during that time.
"Home prices drifted lower in September and the third quarter," says David M. Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at S&P Indices. "The national index was down 3.9% versus the third quarter of 2010 and up only 0.1% from the previous quarter.
"Three cities posted new index lows in September 2011 — Atlanta, Las Vegas and Phoenix. Seventeen of the 20 cities and both composites were down for the month," Blitzer said. "Over the last year, home prices in most cities drifted lower. The plunging collapse of prices seen in 2007-2009 seems to be behind us. Any chance for a sustained recovery will probably need a stronger economy."
Year-over-year, Detroit and Washington posted positive annual rates of change and noted an improvement in these rates compared to August. New York, Portland and Washington saw monthly gains between August and September.
"It is a bit disturbing that we saw three cities post new crisis lows," the S&P Case Shiller report said. "For the prior three or four months, only Las Vegas was weakening each month. Now Atlanta and Phoenix have fallen to new lows too. On a monthly basis, Atlanta actually posted a record low rate of -5.9% in September over August."
The relative lack of closed transactions might be exacerbating the downside, the report said.
"The relative good news is that 14 cities saw improvements in their annual rates of change, versus the six that weakened."