“ The Federal Tax Credit may be over… but, the savings for Teacher’s are still around! Save up to $2,000 at closing with the Homework’s Program! ”
Senate Approves Tax Credit Extension, Expansion
Daily Real Estate News | November 5, 2009 | Senate Approves Tax Credit Extension, Expansion
The Senate yesterday passed legislation to extend the $8,000 home buyer tax credit to May 1, 2010, for first-time buyers and add a $6,500 tax credit for repeat buyers if they’ve lived in their home for five of the past eight years. Home prices are capped at $800,000.
The legislation was included in a bill to extend unemployment benefits and is expected to be passed by the House today or tomorrow. President Obama is expected to sign the legislation when it’s sent to his desk.
Under the bill, income limits are expanded to $125,000 for individuals and $225,000 for joint filers.Individuals with incomes up to $145,000 and joint filers with incomes up to $245,000 qualify for reduced credits.
Households who have binding contracts in place by April 30 will be allowed an additional 60 days to complete their transaction. The deadline for members of the military serving out the U.S. for at least 90 days between Jan. 1, 2009, and May 1, 2010, has been extended one year.
Taxpayers can claim the credit on their federal income tax returns. If the credit exceeds their tax bill, the government will issue a check. Taxpayers will be able to claim the credit on their 2009 income tax return for purchases made in 2010.
Our Educational Series Workshops continues TONIGHT ( October 13th) from 6pm - 8pm as we will show you how to conduct a highly effective Buyer Consultation meeting.
It’s so easy to just meet a potential buyer at a property or allow them to control the buying process. In this workshop we will show you how to:
- Set up the initial meeting
- Use a well flowing checklist to ensure you cover all the major points
- Get them to use your preferred lender
- Get the Buyer Agency Agreement SIGNED that day or at your next meeting with your buyer(s)
- See if they are truly motivated to purchase now or if they’ll be wasting your time
This is a free workshop to the first 25 who reply via this email or call me at 301.476.7700x213 to reserve your seat. Light snacks and refreshments will be served and the workshop will be held at:
3919 National Drive - Suite 310 - Burtonsville, MD 20866
Don’t take your Buyer Consultations for granted - you can make or break your chance for a sale at this important meeting. This inital meeting with your potential buyer will give you the credibility to gain the trust needed to secure them as an acutal client.
Hope to see you tonight.
Gary
Educational Series
This Thursday (April 23rd) we will be joined by settlement attorney, Craig A. LeVine, to cover a few popular contingencies and a not-so-popular (but very important to know) condition. Craig will cover, in detail, the:
Financing Contingency
Appraisal Contingency
Home Inspection Contingency
MD non-resident Seller Withholding
This may seem elementary to some of you but in these challenging times it is crucial to fully understand even the most commonly used contingencies. We will cover these topics in great detail and discuss how purchasers and sellers are looking at them in this market.
This workshop is free to the first 25 who respond and will be held from 9:30am - 11:00am this Thursday at:
3919 National Drive - Suite 310 - Burtonsville, MD 20866
A light breakfast will be served starting at 9:10am. Please reply via this email or call me at 301.476.7700x213 to reserve your seat.
Hope to see you Thursday.
Educational Series
How To Correctly Price Homes in This Market
We have done this class before and it has been asked for many times since. This Thursday (March 12) from 9:30am - 11:30am we will cover this topic in tremendous detail to help you show your sellers what the True Market Value of their really is.
When you leave here you will have an undstanding how to:
Effectively use the comprable sales
Use various methods to find the true market value for your listings
Price your listing correctly to ensure the best chance of a quicker sale
Teach your sellers the value of pricing the home aggressively
Get price drops
This workshop is free to the first 25 who register and a light breakfast will be served starting at 9:10am. It will be held at:
3919 National Drive - Suite 310 - Burtonsville, MD 20866
Please reply via this email or call me at 301.476.7700x213 to reserve your seat. We had standing room only last time we did this so please hurry and reserve your seat now.
I hope to see you on Thursday.
Gary
Benefiting From the Bust
Wave of Foreclosures Can Be an Opportunity for First-Timers, Investors
By Alejandro Lazo
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, February 21, 2009; Page F01
Keith and Cynthia Antaya spent the years of the housing boom renting, unable to fathom how they could afford their own digs during the market’s dizzying escalation.
As Fairfax County Public Schools employees, he a special education teacher and she a school psychologist, renting seemed more in line with their income than paying a mortgage.
Then came the crash, and a wave of foreclosures sent home prices tumbling, particularly in once-fast-growing markets such as Northern Virginia’s western suburbs. Suddenly homeownership was a possibility for the Antayas, who focused their hunt on foreclosed properties. After a five-week search, the couple decided on a Woodbridge house that cost about $200,000. It needed some new paint and new floors but was otherwise in good condition.
To Read the Entire Article Click » Here.
America’s Best and Worst Housing Markets
Forbes: Matt Woolsey (02/24/2005)
As the housing downturn wears on, some cities are stabilizing and some aren’t.
In Las Vegas, the weakest market in the country, prices continue to drop.
“I don’t know what those guys were drinking when they thought all this building made sense. If it does work out soon, then there’s some force out there in the universe that I’m not aware of,” Steve Cesinger, chief financial officer at Dewberry Capital, an Atlanta-based real estate investment firm.
Forbes magazine analyzed monthly declines as well as year-over-year declines in home prices. It also looked at how many months of equity homeowners have lost. With these figures in mind, it determined the 10 best and the 10 worst U.S. housing markets. Here they are::
10 Best
New York City
Washington, DC
Charlotte, N.C.
Portland, Ore
San Diego
Denver
Boston
Dallas
Los Angeles
Seattle
10 Worst
Las Vegas
Phoenix
Detroit
Minneapolis
San Francisco
Chicago
Cleveland
Atlanta
Tampa
Miami
National and DC Homebuyer Tax Credit Comparison
National Homebuyer Credit
Purchased principal residence 1/1/09-11/30/09
Did not own a principal residence during 3-year period ending on date of purchase
Cannot claim if modified AGI- adjusted gross income is $95,000 or greater ($170,000 if MFJ-married filing jointly). Phase out begins at $75,000 ($150,000 MFJ-married filing jointly)
Maximum Credit $8,000 ($4,000 if MFS-married filing seperately)
No repayment (unless such residence is sold within 36 months after purchase)
Home must be in U.S.
DC Homebuyer Credit
Purchased principal residence in 2009
Did not own a principal residence in D.C. during the 1-year period ending on date of purchase
Cannot claim if modified AGI $90,000 or greater ($130,000 if MFJ-married filing jointly). Phase out begins at $70,000 ($110,000 if MFJ-married filing jointly)
Cannot claim if claimed D.C. First-Time Homebuyer Credit in any prior year
Cannot claim if eligible for First-Time Homebuyer Credit or if previously claimed the D.C. First-Time Homebuyer Credit
Maximum Credit $5,000 ($2,500 if MFS-married filing seperately)
No repayment
Home must be in D.C.
What’s in the Foreclosure Prevention Plan
Daily Real Estate News | February 19, 2009
The Obama administration yesterday released its long-awaited plan to stem foreclosures. It’s organized into three categories:
1) Help for homeoners making their payments but at risk of default and foreclosure. Homeowners with a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loan would be eligible to refinance as long as their mortgage doesn’t exceed 105 percent of the home’s current market value. Currently owners need to have at least 20 percent equity. Potential impact: 4-5 million households.
2) Help for homeowners already in default and in need of loan modification. For lenders that voluntarily agree to lower a borrower’s payment so that it makes up no more than 38 percent of the borrower’s income, the government would share the cost of lowering the mortgage burden to 31 percent of income. Incentives to lenders to participate include a $1,000 payment. Borrowers can receive up to $1,000 as an incentive to stay current on their new mortgage. Still in the works is a proposed provision that would allow bankruptcy judges to require loan modification (known as a cramdown) as part of a household’s restructuring. That provision requires legislation by Congress. Estimated potential impact: 3-4 million households.
3) Doubled resources to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. To encourage investors to buy the secondary market companies’ mortgage-backed securities, the government explicitly backstops them to up to $400 billion, twice the current amount.
The plan does not provide help to investors or to homeowners who are in trouble with a second home, nor does it apply to homeowners whose mortgage is part of a private-label mortgage security that is not backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
“The administration’s proposed plan, combined with provisions like the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit in the just-enacted American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, will help minimize foreclosures, shrink housing inventory, stabilize home values, and move the country closer to an economic recovery,” says NAR President Charles McMillan.
Source: REALTOR® Magazine Online
Stimulus Advances With Tax Credit Changes
Daily Real Estate News | February 12, 2009
The $790 billion stimulus package hammered out by House and Senate conferees late yesterday afternoon drops the repayment feature on the home buyer tax credit.
The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS ® has sought removal of the repayment requirement because it discourages buyers from taking advantage of the tax credit.
The legislation also extends the effective date of the tax credit, which is for up to $7,500, to September 1 from June 30. Households that purchase in 2009 using financing assistance from state and local mortgage bonds will be permitted to use the credit as well.
Other provisions reportedly in the bill that could help housing markets and communities include…
To Read the Entire Article Click » Here
NAR: Senate Stimlulus, Treasury Plan Good Start
Daily Real Estate News | February 11, 2009
The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® praised the Senate for passing its stimulus bill that expands the homebuyer tax credit, an important housing component that will help shrink housing inventories, bring stability to home values, and move the country closer to an economic recovery.
The bill now heads to conference committee to reconcile differences between the Senate and House versions. Congressional leaders hope to have the bill ready for President Obama’s signature by the weekend. NAR will continue to press the need for housing stabilization measures with Congress and the Obama administration to make housing a primary component of the government’s economic recovery plans.
To Read the Entire Article Click » Here.
