There’s a Difference Between a House and A Home – What Are You Buying?

You don’t have to look far to find opposing views on whether or not this is the “best” time to buy a house. Some folks say that with rates as low as they are and inventory high, it’s a great time to buy.  Others say that even if rates rise, prices will drop to offset them so that will have little impact.  Still others say that we haven’t seen the bottom of the market yet and that a large number of foreclosures are still to come, which could have the effect of depressing prices even further if they hit the market en masse.

Here’s the thing…are you looking for a house or a home?

If all you need is a roof over your head, there are plenty (and I mean plenty) of rental options out there. Lots of home sellers that grew frustrated with the slow market have decided to rent their homes instead of waiting for a buyer.

But a home…well that’s a different story.

A home is where you mark the kids’ growth on the door jambs.  A home is where you reminisce about that terrible paint color the living room used to be.  A home is where you put your personal stamp on each and every room and then stand back and allow yourself that moment of pride in what is truly yours.

When my husband and I were first married, we lived in an apartment.  White walls, white tile, white baseboards, cheap cabinets, beige carpet.  No matter what we did, how we tried to decorate it on our limited budget, it looked like an apartment.  Not to mention that we had to park in the lot and schlep our groceries up the stairs.  Or that we could hear the neighbors through the walls if they raised their voices just a little or turned the stereo up past 2 on the volume control.  It was just an apartment.

Later in our married life, we had the chance to rent a house.  It had a yard, but we weren’t allowed to add a gate for easier access.  It had pink carpet that we couldn’t change.  It had hideous floral wallpaper that I just had to live with.  It was a house, but it still wasn’t our home.

When we were first able to buy a home of our own, it was in the 1980s. Rates were outrageously high, but we either didn’t know or didn’t care.  All we knew was that we wanted a home of our own to raise our daughter in.  A place where we could choose to paint a wall at whim – or even just knock the darn thing down if we wanted to.  It had nothing to do with a return on our investment, it had nothing to do with resale value, it had nothing to do with a long term plan.  It was nothing more than the desire to give our family the same thing we had grown up with.  A real home.

Over the years, we’ve owned a couple more places. Each time we moved, we left a piece of ourselves behind.  Whether in a garden that we toiled in or in a basketball goal cemented next to a driveway, there were traces of the fact that we lived and loved and laughed and played within the walls of those properties.  Our current home (dubbed the money pit when we started renovations years ago) has a collection of memories that bond the family together, even the older children who have since moved out and onto their own.  Each year, the Christmas tree gets placed in the same spot, the Easter eggs get hidden in the same irises in the garden, the grill gets pulled out to the same spot for summer BBQs and the orange tree in the back corner of the yard provides sweet fruit.  We look back and laugh and remember all of the good times we’ve had here and look forward to the memories yet to be made.

So, are you looking for a house or a home?

---

For more information about home buying or selling on the West Bank of New Orleans, or relocating to or from NAS JRB New Orleans, please contact the West Bank Living Team. It would be our pleasure to have the opportunity to assist you with any of your real estate needs and have a little fun while doing it!

The Countdown is On

With less than 60 days left before the tax credit expires, first time home buyers who want to take advantage of the credit are quickly running out of time to find a home and get it under contract before the April 30th deadline.

Yeah, I know…we’ve said this before. But the difference is that this time we haven’t heard even a peep about the possibility of an extension.  It looks like this is really the end of Uncle Sam handing out rewards for home purchases and those buyers who are sitting back and taking their time in finding a home may end up leaving $8,000 on the table that could have been in their pockets.

Take into account low rates, a large selection of West Bank homes for sale and the tax credit and I can’t remember a time that it’s been more advantageous to be a home buyer.

Of course, you should still decide whether you are really ready to be a home owner before making a such a large purchase. If you are, and you want to take advantage of the tax credit, then you truly don’t have any time to waste.

Need a little help getting started with that home search? Tell us what you are looking for and we’ll get a free list of homes that match your wants, needs and budget to you right away.

---

For more information about home buying or selling on the West Bank of New Orleans, or relocating to or from NAS JRB New Orleans, please contact the West Bank Living Team. It would be our pleasure to have the opportunity to assist you with any of your real estate needs and have a little fun while doing it!

What Are You Giving Up for Lent?

In a city with such strong Catholic traditions, it’s impossible to not hear that question today (Ash Wednesday). I have friends that are giving up chocolate, sugar, carbs, cussing…and one jokester who decided to give up cooking and cleaning

In keeping with the spirit of the season between Mardi Gras and Easter, here are a few suggestions for what home buyers and sellers on the West Bank of New Orleans might want to give up this year:

Home Seller Suggestions

Give up making your home hard to show.  We’ve talked about this before, but when you are selling your home  it is critical to make it easy for agents to get their buyers in.  Have a plan for what to do with your pets during showings, for keeping the house neat and tidy for those last minute appointments and allow a lockbox to be installed for ease of access.

Give up overpricing. Take a fresh look at the comparable sales in your neighborhood and make adjustments as needed.  I know you love your house…..but buyers are looking at the numbers and if you don’t fit within them, their response will be “Next!”

Give up thinking that you shouldn’t help with buyer closing costs.  A large percentage of the homes sold on the West Bank last year included seller contributions towards closing costs.  It is no longer an anomaly to receive a request for assistance in an offer, and if you are not willing to keep your eye on the bottom line, you may be spending a much longer time on the market.

Home Buyer Suggestions

Give up working with several different real estate agents.  Choose one professional to assist you in finding the right home.  It’s no secret that we all have access to the MLS and the listings that meet your needs.  Truthfully, if most agents find out that you are working with others, you may find yourself without an agent at all.

Give up making extremely low offers.  While the market has changed in the last few years, most home sellers are not desperate and some of them are insulted by offers that are pennies on the dollar.  The exception to this rule is dealing with bank owned properties, because banks don’t get insulted….but they do compare multiple offers and accept or counter the highest and best.  If you are just fishing for a bargain, you might be losing out on some terrific deals because you felt you had to offer far below what might be a realistic asking price.  Ask your agent for comparable sale information before you decide on an offer price.

Give up asking for the sun, the moon and the stars after a home inspection.  No house is perfect.  Louisiana purchase agreements even state that offers are made based on the apparent condition of a property.  A home inspection is to allow you to uncover hidden problems with a home, not to provide a basis for beating up a seller who may just tell you to take a hike.

More home buying tips

More home selling tips

    

---

For more information about home buying or selling on the West Bank of New Orleans, or relocating to or from NAS JRB New Orleans, please contact the West Bank Living Team. It would be our pleasure to have the opportunity to assist you with any of your real estate needs and have a little fun while doing it!

What West Bank Home Buyers and Sellers Need to Know About the New FHA Guidelines

This week, David Stevens, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Commissioner, announced policy changes to how FHA loans will be handled later this year.  We don’t have specific dates or all of the fine print yet, but here is the gist of the changes:

The upfront Mortgage Insurance Premium (MIP) will be increased from 1.75% to 2.25% of the loan

This cost is typically rolled into a home buyer’s loan, increasing the monthly payment.  The additional half percent MIP charge will result in negligible changes in payment amounts for most borrowers.  This change is expected to go into effect in the spring.

New borrowers will now be required to have a minimum 580 FICO (credit) score in order to take advantage of the 3.5% down payment program

This is change is unlikely to impact very many buyers simply because the majority of lenders have been requiring a minimum 620 FICO for some time now.  If, however, a lender is making loans to borrowers with credit scores of less than 580, the down payment requirement will be increased to 10%.  These changes are expected to be put into place this summer.

A reduction in the allowable amount of seller assistance to FHA borrowers

Currently, the maximum seller contribution towards closing costs and pre-paids is capped by FHA at 6% of the purchase price.  The new guidelines will reduce this amount to 3% of the purchase price.  This change is also expected to be put into place this summer.

Of the three changes, the reduction in the amount of seller assistance is most likely to impact buyers in the New Orleans area.  FHA loans made up 43% of the single family home sales on the West Bank of New Orleans in 2009.  53% of the FHA borrowers received some type of seller assistance with their purchase.  Of buyers receiving seller contributions in 2009, a whopping 64% received in excess of 3%.

Now, this does not mean that none of the sales would have taken place under the new guidelines.  There were many that were just over the 3% threshold that I’m sure would have still closed if the new rules were in place.  However, there were a substantial number of buyers who appeared to get almost all of the money needed to close (except the down payment) in the form of seller assistance.  These are the buyers that may be pushed out of the market in 2010 as they will be forced to save longer and have more of their own cash invested in their home purchase.  Don’t get me wrong…I don’t think that having more of a financial stake in a home purchase is a bad thing, as it tends to result in buyers who are truly ready to be home owners.

What’s the possible impact on West Bank home sales?

For buyers, this means you will need more cash on hand for your FHA home purchase.  Not only do you need the 3.5% down payment, but the cap on seller contributions towards your closing costs and prepaids (taxes, hazard insurance, flood insurance, lender fees, etc) means that you must have a larger amount of money saved before attempting to purchase a home.  For some people, this will result in a longer waiting time until you can buy.

For sellers, this could possibly mean a decrease in the number of qualified buyers for your home. A smaller pool of buyers equates to a reduction in demand.  A reduction in demand usually equates to lower selling prices.

If you have been waiting to put your home on the market until later in 2010, my recommendation is to do it as soon as possible – before these changes go into effect, since we do not know what the fall out might be.  This advice only applies to those sellers that fall within the current FHA loan limits.

• For more details, read the entire HUD release here

As always, your lender is the best source of detailed mortgage advice for your particular situation.  If you need a referral to a local FHA lender, please contact the West Bank Living Team and we would be happy to help you.

---

For more information about home buying or selling on the West Bank of New Orleans, or relocating to or from NAS JRB New Orleans, please contact the West Bank Living Team.

It would be our pleasure to have the opportunity to assist you with any of your real estate needs and have a little fun while doing it!

Buyer Etiquette: Dos and Don’ts When Touring Homes for Sale

I met with a seller this week who was upset.  Not with me, but with a family that had viewed their home with the kids in tow.  Apparently, during the showing no one was watching the 4 year old as she darted from room to room, touching and moving things all along the way.  The owners were forced into the role of babysitter to protect their belongings from sticky little fingers because neither the parents nor the agent was paying attention. 

Unfortunately, this happens all too often.

Before you begin your West Bank home search, here are a few dos and don’ts to remember when visiting:

DO

Try to schedule appointments ahead of time.  “Honey, stop the car!” usually doesn’t work.  As a matter of fact, I counsel all of my sellers to turn away people who just show up at the door, instructing them to call and schedule an appointment at a time that works for everyone.

Take off your shoes if they are wet or muddy.  I’ve been on the receiving end of the wrath of an owner who came home to mud tracked all across their freshly cleaned carpets.  If your shoes are wet or dirty, please take a moment and remove them before entering someone’s home, just as you would want them to do in yours.

Remember that you are a guest in someone’s home and respect their belongings. While they may have the most beautiful collection of ______ (whatever it is that caught your eye), take a look but don’t touch approach when touring.

Keep an eye on the kids.  Better yet, leave them at home if possible.  House hunting is pretty boring when you are a child and the temptation to play with toys or explore a new space is almost more than they can resist.

DON’T

Make yourself at home on the furniture.  It’s not included in the sale and some owners are funny about strangers coming in and lounging on the sofa that they painstakingly fluffed the pillows on before your visit.

Eat or drink while touring a home.  Leave the food and drinks in the car.  Spills happen and I really, really don’t want to be the one calling your agent to tell them they owe me for having the carpet or upholstery cleaned due to an accident.

Bring your pets with you to a showing.  If you can’t possibly travel without Fifi, please be prepared to leave her in the car while you look.  Not everyone is a pet lover and some folks are highly allergic to the hair and dander that is left behind.

Use the bathroom facilities without permission.  In some vacant homes, not all of the utilities may be on and the time to find that out that there is no running water is not after someone has already taken a potty break.

 

Related Articles:

Home buying tips

---

For more information about home buying or selling on the West Bank, or relocating to or from NAS JRB New Orleans, please contact the West Bank Living Team. It would be our pleasure to have the opportunity to assist you with any of your real estate needs and have a little fun while doing it!

Next Page »