Homebuyers have 58 days to obtain a written, binding contract to qualify for the housing tax credits. First-time buyers and buyers who have not owned a primary residence for the past 3 years qualify for an $8,000 tax credit (or 10% percent of the sales price, whichever is less) so long as they are under contract by April 30, 2010 and close on the home by July 1, 2010. Homebuyers who have owned a primary residence consecutively for 5 of the previous 8 years qualify for a $6,500 tax credit. The home being purchased in either scenario must be a primary residence.
Income limits are very generous for those who buy between now until April 30, 2010:
$125,000 – single (Additional $20,000 phase out)
$225,000 – married (Additional $20,000 phase out)
While the $8,000 tax credit is getting a lot of use, Realtors are seeing very few existing homeowners taking advantage of the $6,500 tax credit.
The housing tax credits were extended under the H.R. 3548 Worker Homeownership and Business Assistance Act of 2009
DHW asks: Will you take advantage of the housing tax credits?
“Contract activity for pending home sales fell after a surge of activity in preceding months to beat the original deadline for the first-time home buyer tax credit but remains comfortably above a year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors®.
The Pending Home Sales Index,* a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in November, fell 16.0 percent to 96.0 from an upwardly revised 114.3 in October, but is 15.5 percent higher than November 2008 when it was 83.1.”
There is no greater rivalry than that of Realtor v Appraiser. Red Sox v Yankees? Not even close. Alien v Predator? Yawn.
Animosity between real estate agents and appraisers is nothing new. However, in recent months appraisers have been undercutting sales prices with increased regularity. Much of the conflict has to do with the rising number of foreclosures selling at discount prices. Approximately 40 percent of the homes to sell last year were either foreclosures or short sales. Adding to the drama, buyers are placing a 30% premium on non-foreclosed homes, according to zillow.com.
Appraisers admit that it is getting tougher to determine a home’s worth in today’s market. Some real estate agents, however, blame the appraisal cuts on cost cutting measures taken by lenders. Oftentimes, lenders will use an in-house appraiser or outsource to an out-of-area, low-cost appraiser. Either way, these appraisers may not be familiar with the markets they are hired to gauge.
The silver lining
With appraisal cuts on the rise, this may be a sign that some markets are beginning to stabilize. In a declining market, it becomes easier to find comparable sales for an appraisal. As prices rise, appraisers have a tougher time finding sales that support the higher prices. It’s just one of the growing pains that come with a recovering market.
DHW asks: Are you seeing a rise in appraisal cuts in your market?
Despite the increase in real estate sales in 2009, commissions earned by real estate brokers and agents reached a seven year low. The National Association of Realtors reported that nearly 75% of homes sold last month were $250,000 or less. Housing tax credits and foreclosures are expected to lower the national median home price to $172,700 this year. This will be a record drop of 13% percent.
DHW asks: Would you consider a career in real estate?
According to the National Association of Realtors, November home sales skyrocketed 7.4 percent. Analysts were predicting an increase of 2.9 percent. The housing tax credits are credited with the spike in sales.
There are 129 days until the housing tax credits run out. For more details about the housing tax credits, visit our Housing Tax Credit page.
DHW asks: Do you think homes sales will continue to exceed expectations?
The National Association of Realtors released guidelines for the new Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA) program. The government’s program is designed to streamline the short sale process for qualifying homeowners.
DHW asks: Have you sold your home as a short sale? If so, how was your experience?
The National Association of Realtors reported its seasonally adjusted index of sales agreements inched up 3.7 percent from September to October to 114.1. Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters predicted the index would sink to 109.5.
The housing industry’s index represents offers written and accepted for existing properties. All parts of the country saw a year-over-year increase in pending home sales.
Housing tax credits and record low interest rates are credited with boosting sales. First-time homebuyers qualify for a tax credit of up to $8,000, while those who have owned their current home for at least five years qualify for a tax credit of up to $6,500. Buyers must have a signed sales agreement by April 30, 2010, and close by the end of June 2010 to qualify.
DHW asks: Will you take advantage of the houisng tax credits?
During a speech to the National Association of Realtors in San Diego, FHA Commissioner David Stevens said his agency is not headed for the same fate as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or the subprime sector. Concerns about the FHA’s financial well being were raised last week when it was revealed in an independent audit that the agency’s funds were below legal guidelines.
The Commissioner sought to minimize these concerns, reporting the agency had $31 billion in capital – an increase of $3.5 billion from a year ago.
Stevens went on to say that the FHA is “the only participant in home financing services in the U.S. economy that hasn’t needed a bailout, hasn’t needed (funds from the government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program), hasn’t needed special assistance and is still completely self-sustaining.”
The AP reports the FHA has insured almost 25 percent of all new loans made in 2009. Eighty-percent of these loans represent first time home buyers.
Stevens rejected comparisons between the FHA and the subprime market. “Nothing could be further from the truth,” he said, stressing the FHA has far more stringent underwriting guidelines for the loans it insures.
As the unemployment rate has risen, so have FHA’s losses. According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, approximately 17 percent of FHA borrowers are at least one payment behind or in foreclosure. This compares with 13 percent for all loans.
The FHA does not make loans. It insures against default, taking much of the risk away from lenders. FHA loans have grown in popularity in recent years as credit markets have tightened up. The agency’s 203K rehab loan is also growing in popularity as more first-time home buyers purchase foreclosures.
DHW asks: Do you think the FHA is at risk of needing a government bailout?
As any good Realtor will tell you, price moves a home. But sometimes Realtors (as well as sellers) are afraid to take their own advice. As housing evaluations have dropped around the country, listing prices have been slow to follow. To get the job done, and your home sold, a price reduction might be in order. However, nothing beats pricing a home correctly from the start. Even with price reductions, you may never fully catch up the the market. No groundhog has popped its head up to officially declare the housing decline over.
Here is a slide show of cities leading the country in price reductions.
Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, predicted on Friday that home prices will rise in 2010. If his prediction holds true, home prices will see their first increase in four years.
Yun pointed to the current price-income ratio of 2.4 as evidence of pent-up demand in the market. The price-income ratio accelerated from a norm of 2.6 in 1984-2001 to 3.3 in 2005. This means the price-income ratio has dipped below its pre-bubble rate.
The housing tax credit extension is also seen as a contributing factor to rising homes prices next year.
DHW asks: Do you think home prices will rise in 2010?