Blog

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Monday, June 27, 2011

I am moving my blog to a word press site and will not be blogging at this site starting today June 27th. The new sites address is: realestatemarbles.com/tomwitzel. I hope to see and interact with you at that site!

Interest Rates

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Friday, June 03, 2011

The fed is scheduled to end their QE2 program which could raise interest rates, if you are thinking of purchasing a home and would like to lock in your interest rate for 5 years contact me at 303-808-2206 and I can put you in contact with one of the lenders I work with.

Zig & Zag

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Thursday, May 05, 2011

The progress of the housing market recovery is definitely on a zigzag trajectory. Zigging upward were new home sales, up a strong 11.1% in March, hitting the 300,000 threshold annual rate. The supply of new homes dropped to 7.3 months and the inventory fell again, to its lowest level since 1967. Also zigging up 5.1% were March Pending Home Sales, which measures contracts on existing homes and point to continued gains in existing home sales come April & May.

But the path to progress in the housing market recovery zagged downward in the pricing area. The FHFA index of prices for homes financied with conforming mortgages slipped 1.6% in February. The Case-Shiller index of home prices in the top 20 metro areas dropped 0.2% for February (seasonally adjusted). But observers were expecting a bigger decline. The good news for buyers is that home prices are now down to 2004 levels and there are phenomenal deals to be had in many markets.

Rick Stonich of Megastar Financial helped contribute to this article.

Now Is The Time To Buy A Home.

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Wednesday, May 04, 2011

In this article from RISMedia they agree with me that the time to purchase a home is now!

RISMEDIA, May 4, 2011—With home prices dropping, minimal interest rates and the cost of rental properties on the rise, now may be the time for renters to seriously consider buying a house, according to HouseSavvy.

When the housing bubble burst in 2006, the cost of buying a house was considerably higher than renting that same house in most areas. Today, the opposite is true in many states, particularly those hit hardest in the housing crash—namely Arizona, California, Florida and Nevada and right behind them, Illinois, New York and New Jersey.

Rental cost has remained on the high side in many communities within these states, making it more monetarily advantageous for renters to buy a home that has dropped in value from the highs of five years ago, to the tune of the national average of 30%. Combine the decrease in home prices, high rental costs and historically low interest rates, and the time may be ideal for renters to consider buying.

To further underscore the advantages to buying, consider a recent study by Deutsche Bank that reported the share of income Americans are now paying to own their homes is 9.8% after mortgage, taxes and insurance payments—down from 17.2% at the housing bubble's peak. Conversely, the study further says that in 28 out of the country's 54 major markets, it's now less expensive to pay a mortgage and other major housing costs than to rent the same house.

For those on the fence when it comes to buying or renting, conducting an analysis is not difficult. Start with the total cost to rent a home or apartment—"total" means not only the rent, but any related cost such as tenant's insurance, and maintenance and/or association dues. Use that number as a starting point or base for comparison.

The next step is to determine the cost of buying comparable housing; for this a little research is necessary. Look at the houses for sale in your price range and find out the price similar homes have been selling for recently. A local REALTOR® can help in this regard. Once the price of the home has been determined, ask the REALTOR® what you can expect in the way of real estate taxes, utilities and insurance cost for a home at this price.

Lastly, talk to a local bank or mortgage broker to ascertain the availability and cost of the mortgage needed to buy the home.

Ultimately, real estate is local in nature. National, regional and municipal markets are all "macro markets" comprised of thousands of micro markets specifically made up of communities, neighborhoods and price ranges, where market conditions can vary significantly from the macro markets in which they exist. Even in distressed market areas, healthy micro markets do exist.

Rent vs. Buy

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Tuesday, May 03, 2011

I hope you had a great weekend. Trulia just came out with their rent vs. buy map for the 50 major cities in the country and in the Denver area it is cheaper to own a home than renting, however in New York it is cheaper to rent than own a home. Call me at 303-808-2206 if you would like to talk about purchasing a home in the Denver metro area.

A Sure Thing?

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Thursday, April 28, 2011

I was listening to the radio this morning and the host indicated that Americans are not buying houses in numbers as in the past because buying a house is no longer a sure thing. Well folks I don't know of anything that is a sure thing in life. I do know this  purchasing a home gives you a sense of security, a place to raise your family, an increase in long term wealth. I still think many people look at purchasing a home the same way they look at purchasing a stock; something that they will hold short term and then sell and make a profit. Homes are not meant to be thought of in the same way as a stock,  homes and real estate in general is something you keep for a period of time 5, 7, or even 10 years and then sell and take your profit!

Housing Numbers

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Wednesday, April 27, 2011

INFO THAT HITS US WHERE WE LIVE...The housing recovery isn't yet a success, but last week gave us a few good reasons to keep plugging along. First came March Housing Starts, bursting UP 7.2% to a 549,000 unit annual rate. February starts were also revised UP 6.9%. Then we found out new Building Permits surged 11.2% in March to a 594,000 annual rate and were revised UP 3.3% for February. Starts and permits are still down over 13% from a year ago, as residential construction has dropped to only 2.3% of GDP, its lowest level on record. But economists say it won't go much lower, and that's what these latest numbers are signaling.

We also had Existing Home Sales UP 3.7% in March and off only 6.3% compared to a year ago. The median existing home price rose for the month and is down just over 5% for the year, while average prices are off just over 3% from 12 months ago. Looks like existing home prices are stabilizing. Finally, the supply of existing homes dropped to 8.4 months in February. Some experts see existing home sales getting back to an annual level around 5.5 million units, but caution that the recovery will be volatile.

The information above was provided by Rick Stonich from Megastar Financial.

Energy Efficient Loans from FHA

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Tuesday, April 26, 2011

This article is courtesy of RISMedia.

RISMEDIA, April 26, 2011—Eighteen national, regional and local lenders will participate in a new two-year pilot program that will offer qualified borrowers living in certain parts of the country low-cost loans to make energy-saving improvements to their homes. Backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), these new PowerSaver loans will offer homeowners up to $25,000 to make energy-efficient improvements of their choice, including the installation of insulation, duct sealing, replacement doors and windows, HVAC systems, water heaters, solar panels, and geothermal systems.

U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan and U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced the participating lenders during a tour of a family-run company that offers home energy audits and upgrades in Long Island, New York.

“We believe the market is right for a low-cost financing option for families who want energy-saving technologies in their home,” says Secretary Donovan. “PowerSaver hits on all cylinders by helping credit-worthy homeowners finance these upgrades, cut their energy bills and boost the local job market in the process. While FHA and these lenders are jumpstarting this pilot, we hope its success will lead to a growing private sector interest in making these types of loans.”

Secretary Chu announces, “we are breaking down barriers and making energy efficiency more accessible and more affordable. It’s the right thing to do for our environment, for our economy and for the pocketbooks of American families.”

The remodeling industry cites surveys that point to a growing demand among homeowners interested in making their homes energy efficient. Yet options are still limited for financing home energy improvements, especially for the many homeowners who are unable to take out a home equity loan or access an affordable consumer loan. Initially, the PowerSaver pilot program is estimated to assist approximately 30,000 homeowners to finance energy-efficient upgrades though higher market demand may increase this impact. According to HUD projections, more than 3,000 jobs will be created through this pilot program and the impact may be larger if market demand for the loan program increases over time.

Participating lenders are largely selected based on their commitment to work in partnership with established home energy retrofit programs provided by states, cities, utilities and home performance contractors. These markets include, but are not limited to, areas of the country participating in the Energy Department’s Better Building Program.

PowerSaver loans will be backed by the FHA but require these lenders to have significant “skin in the game.”FHA mortgage insurance will cover up to 90 percent of the loan amount in the event of default. Lenders will retain the remaining risk on each loan, incentivizing responsible underwriting and lending standards.

PowerSaver has been carefully designed to meet a need in the marketplace for borrowers who have the ability and motivation to take on modest additional debt to realize the savings over time from home energy improvements. PowerSaver loans are only available to borrowers with good credit, manageable debt and at least some equity in their home (maximum 100% combined loan-to-value).

HUD developed PowerSaver as part of the Recovery Through Retrofit initiative launched in May 2009 by Vice President Biden’s Middle Class Task Force to develop federal actions that would expand green job opportunities in the United States and boost energy savings by improving home energy efficiency. The announcement is part of an interagency effort including 11 departments and agencies and six White House offices.

For more information about HUD and its programs visit www.hud.gov.

Housing Starts Improving

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Monday, April 25, 2011

In this article from RISMedia builders are starting more houses.

RISMEDIA, April 25, 2011—Nationwide housing starts rose 7.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 549,000 units in March 2011 from an upwardly revised number in the previous month, the U.S. Commerce Department recently reported. This gain was represented in both the single- and multifamily sectors, and was mirrored by substantial improvements in building permit issuance for the same period.

"While the overall rate of new-home production remains quite low and is still being weighed down by significant uncertainties among both home builders and buyers, this latest report is encouraging," said Bob Nielsen, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Reno, Nev. "It means that some builders are cautiously beginning to re-stock their extremely thin inventories of new homes in anticipation of gradual improvement in consumer demand as the economy slowly inches toward recovery."

"The modest improvement in new-home production and permitting in March is in line with our forecasts for incremental gains through the spring buying season," said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. "While our builder members continue to experience a great number of challenges with regard to competition from foreclosed and short sale properties, low appraisal values and tight credit conditions, they have noted slight improvements in interest among qualified buyers, and they need to be ready to meet the demand as it materializes."

Gains in new-home production were seen across the board in March, with upward movement registered in both the single- and multifamily sectors as well as three out of four regions. On the single-family side, a 7.7% gain to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 422,000 units partially offset a big decline in the previous month. Multifamily starts also gained back a portion of the ground they lost earlier, with a 5.8% increase to 127,000 units.

Regionally, housing starts posted double-digit gains of 32.3% in the Midwest and 27.6% in the West, as well as a 5.4% gain in the Northeast.

Meanwhile, issuance of building permits, which can be an indicator of future building activity, rose by an impressive 11.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 594,000 units, more than offsetting the previous month's decline. Single-family permits rose 5.7% to 405,000 units, while multifamily permits rose 25.2% to 189,000 units.

Housing Market Improving

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Thursday, April 21, 2011

With home sales increasing in three of the past four months and prices rising in many U.S. markets there is reason to be hopeful about housing, RE/MAX CEO Margaret Kelly said in a live interview on Bloomberg TV Wednesday morning.

"We're going to bump along the bottom, but I think the worst is over," Kelly told host Margaret Brennan during the "On Business" program

Kelly noted several encouraging elements of the March RE/MAX Housing Report, which surveys housing data in 54 metro areas. IN an astonishing 53 of 54 markets, homes sales March over February increased by double digit percentages.

Also, 35 of those cities experienced month to month increases in price, continuing an early 2011 trend. In January, the number was zero; in February it had risen to 17.

Although housing must still work through a "glut of foreclosures...one bite at a time," Kelly cited heavy investor activity as a sign that price bottoms have been reached in many places.

"I'm cautiously optimistic," she said.

The information is courtesy of RE/MAX International.

Does Buying Really Make Better Sense Than Renting?

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Monday, April 18, 2011

I seem to get that question more often these days due to the falling housing prices. I think you need to ask yourself why you began to consider purchasing a home. the Fannie Mae national housing survey suggests that four of the biggest reasons people buy a home has nothing to do with money. People want a place to raise & educate their children, a place where their family will feel safe, to have plenty of living space and to have control over that space.  What non-financial benefits will you and your family gain from owning a home? The answers to that question should be the reason you decide to purchase or not. Don't allow money to be the only factor in making a decision that's right for you.

New Bill For Short Sales?

written by Tom Witzel

Last Updated: Friday, April 15, 2011

A new bill to improve the process for approving short sales is now before congress. The bill would impose a deadline of 45 days for lenders to respond to short sale requests. The current short sale process can take months and most buyers are not willing to wait that long for a decision from the lenders and servicers and thus many properties end up going into foreclosure.

Ron Phipps the president of The National Association of Realtors said " As the leading advocate for homeownership and housing issues, Realtors want to help homeowners avoid foreclosures by facilitating a short sale when a family is absolutely unable to keep their home; however that can only happen if lenders and servicers approve short sales in a reasonable amount of time," Phipps also said " Streamlining short sale transactions will reduce the amount of time it takes to sell the property, improve the likelihood that the transaction will close and reduce the overall number of foreclosures. This benefits sellers, lenders, buyers and the entire community."

Some of this information was taken from an article from RISMedia.