Mar

25

What’s A House Buy Nowadays

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In some areas of the country home values have dropped by as much as 22% (in isolated areas even more).

So as a buyer, how do I know if I’m getting a deal of a house buy or just paying retail?

First of all you need to establish what similar homes are selling for in the area which you are looking.  You may need to contact a realtor to look at solds (records of sold houses) in your area.  You will want to look for comps based upon the features and square footage of the house in question.  For instance if you are looking for a three bedroom, two bath bungalow with a two car garage and a finished basement then you will want to compare solds that are comparable to those features and see what the prices are for homes sold within the last six months.  Any older than that and you are looking at perhaps higher or lower values that don’t reflect the current prices available now.

Frankly, I would never trust a listing price.  For example a house next door to me sold for around 60K two months ago.  They did some repainting and installed some copper where thieves had removed it in the basement.  It is now listed for $167,000.  That is what the house was worth three years ago.  It’s now worth around 80K.  Even at that price it is no longer a house buy.

In some neighborhoods you can value houses by looking at what a fair market rent would be for the house.  So If a house would rent for $1000 then you might say that the P and I payment should not be over $1000.  That formula might work in an area where fifty to 65% of the homes are rental homes.  At today’s interest rates that may mean the house is worth around 120K.

If you want a house buy you should be shopping to find undervalued houses.  You could tell your Realtor that you are willing to buy a house with some fixin’ needed or that you are looking to purchase a short sale home.  That’s is a home that was almost foreclosed upon but was sold to an investor with a discounted mortgage.

Not all short sales are deals.  Back two or three years ago mortgage companies were too lenient on  appraisals and financed homes at much more than the mortgage would support. I have seen seventy thousand dollar homes with mortgages of 170,000 on them.
When the seller sells on a short sale the bank will certainly not discount down to 70K for the new buyer.  Who cares if the mortgage was discounted 50k if the house is still overpriced by fifty thousand.

Your best bet might be to hook up with an investor.  Tell them you want to get a house buy.  Tell them you want a house at least ten thousand below what it should sell for in this market and what kind of house you are looking for.  An investor will go out and find a deal for you and then tie it up so you can come in and purchase his option.  There is one thing that needs to be done to make this plan happen.  You need to be ready with your financing.  That means pre-approved with a commitment letter for the price range you are shopping in.

That’s how you get a house buy.

Mar

19

New First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit

Filed Under First-Time Buyers | 1 Comment

If you are looking for a house buy, this is your time. The new first time first time home buyer credit is a significant boost to your wealth creation. But you have to take advantage of it this year.

The real economic question is, Why buy now?

According to the National Association of Realtors, housing prices have dropped between 7 to 22% from 2007 values, depending on where in the country you live. The coasts have experienced greater losses. On a median priced home of $200,000 that’s $30,000 on average of potential equity.

Believe me, with all the fiat money the Fed is pumping into the 2009 economy we WILL see inflation. As soon as the economy starts to pick up inflation will eat any of the real growth. The government is doing everything it can to create an ever bigger crises requiring even more legislative action to take control of private industry. Watch out for benevolence. It will cost you dearly.

Frankly the houses won’t be worth any more but the dollar will be worth between 3 and 7% less next year than it is worth now. Once again on a median priced home that’s about $10,000 right there. So if you don’t buy now you will get five percent less for your money in the near future (even next year). Put on top of that the lowest interest rates we have seen in thirty years and you have yourself a real buyers market.

The Government has one-upped W’s $7500 tax write down by replacing it with a one time real $8000 tax credit. I call it a real tax credit because this is the first time I remember the government actually paying you to buy a home.

Here are the details.

  • The first time home buyers tax credit applies to all buyers but it is only a real keeper (if the home is not sold within three years) if you are buying for the first time. All others have to pay it back gradually. So for those of you making less than $75k as a single or $150k as a couple you’re in. You will have to complete the purchase and move in this year to qualify.
  • Buyers who bought last year still qualify for the $7500 home owner credit of last year.
  • The $8000 first time home owner’s credit is a real tax credit. This is not only a subtraction from any taxes payable on April 15th of 2010 but if your tax payable total is somehow less than $8000 the government will actually send you a check for the difference.
  • As far as home values and the credit goes, you will get the lesser of these two: either 10% of the home value or $8000.

So let’s do a real example.
You’re buying a home for $170,000 and putting down $5000 so your mortgage payment at 5% interest is $886. The approximate income you need to be making without other debts is about $3000 per month. That’s $36, 000 per year. Your federal tax bracket is 28% so taxes owed is 10,080.

Let’s say you have two children and your wife is a full time homemaker. Your credits for the children are $1000. This does not include the standard deductions which are subtracted from your gross income. But just your credit puts you at 8,080 in taxes due. So if you buy that house you pay no taxes or get all you paid in 2009 back in 2010.

That would certainly buy some new drapes. In reality, you’ll find that after all of your deductions the government will actually be paying you to buy a house.

So if you are just considering your options I would say do all you can to make that purchase this year. You’ll get the lowest prices, beat inflation, get a great interest rate and get that new first time first time home buyer credit.

Go buy now!
If you are one of our members you also get a great deal on a house buy.

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