November 2008

New Trend Shows Home Sellers Looking to Save on Real Estate Services

Before the information superhighway and the recent economic woes, homeowners looked to REALTORS® for every aspect of the home selling process. With less disposable income and home prices dropping, sellers have neither the cash nor the mood to pay for any unneeded services when it comes to selling their houses.

Plano, Texas (PRWEB) November 20, 2008 -- The answer for many sellers needing to sell their homes with less out of pocket will be to sell on their own with just a few key services from their chosen real estate agent. Most sellers are aware of the primary marketing tool of being listed on the local Multiple Listing Service system (MLS). This allows the vast majority of area REALTORS® to see the details, pricing and pictures of the house when searching available homes for a potential buyer. This is one of several services that help expedite a home sale and can be found at http://www.AssistingTexasFSBO.com.

Click here to read the entire media release at PR Web or click here to download the release in PDF format.

Source: Gina and Tom Branch via PRWeb Newswire

Rent-to-Own Becomes The Way To Buy For Many

McClatchy Newspapers

MINNEAPOLIS ? Like so many people, Kris Weber, 37, never imagined she'd be in this prickly place at this time in her life.

Five years ago, the dental office manager was married and living in a suburban Minneapolis seven-bedroom, two-bath family home that she and her husband had bought from his parents for about $260,000. His three nephews and a niece lived with them on and off. Between their two jobs, they paid their bills and had a little left over for the movies and trips to the zoo.

Today?

Ms. Weber is getting divorced, the house is on the brink of foreclosure and she's downsized considerably, living with her dog and cat in a two-bedroom, one-bath twin home in a neighboring town.

But she's not renting. She's "renting-to-own," an increasingly popular option for people such as Ms. Weber who, because of a shaky economy coupled with what she calls her own poor financial choices, no longer qualify for a mortgage.

Rent-To-Own Becomes The Way To Buy For Many

Source: McClatchy Newspapers via Dallas Morning News

Closing Costs

Everyone knows that in most cases you?ll need at least a small down payment to purchase a home ? but that?s not all. You?ll also need to come to the transaction with money for closing costs, which can be sizeable...

Closing Costs

Source: Texas Association of REALTORs(R)

Plano Housing Corporation Offers Down Payment Assistance

The Plano Housing Corporation (PHC) has funds available to eligible buyers that can be used with conventional financing. To qualify for the program:

- The buyer must have sufficient credit and job history to qualify for a mortgage

- The buyer must be a first-time homebuyer (there are some exceptions)

- The buyer must complete the City of Plano's Homebuyer Education Seminar

- Each adult resident in the household must be a legal resident

- The buyer must intend to occupy the home as a primary residence

- The buyer must meet certain income guidelines

This program can be used to purchase any home in the city limits of Plano. Typically, a "soft second mortgage" will be filed. The soft second mortgage requires no payment by the buyer as long as the first mortgage remains current. The soft second mortgage goes away in 5-15 years depending on the amount of down payment assistance provided.

The Plano Housing Corporation has another program available until the end of the year that does not require a second mortgage, only a deed restriction. Again, this deed restriction expires in 5-15 years depending on the size of the down payment assistance.

For more information about this program, please contact us at 214.227.6626.

Source: Collin County Association of REALTORs(R)

Ask George and Chuck - Are Some Sellers Exempt From Disclosure Requirements?

Dear George: I heard that some property owners are exempt from providing a seller's disclosure to potential buyers. Is this true?

Answer: Yes, there are exceptions. A seller of a single residential property is not required to provide a purchaser with a disclosure notice when the transfer is...

Click here for the complete answer.

Source: Texas Association of REALTORs(R)

Yun: Housing Can Save the Economy

The depth of the current recession depends on the housing market?s recovery.

"And housing?s recovery will depend on stabilizing prices and inventory absorptions,? NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun told a packed theater here Friday.

If housing prices stabilize, the current recession could be mild and recovery could come in the second half of 2009. Without stabilization, the recession could drag on until 2010, he said.?Economic conditions are worst than in the last two recessions, so the current downturn could be deep and prolonged, said Yun.

The good news, said Yun, is that even if the recession is prolonged ? housing doesn?t necessarily follow the economy.?

Housing demand is driven more by affordability and mortgage rates than economic performance, he said. ?Even with the 6 percent current unemployment or the 9 or 10 percent that could come with a severe recession, most people will have jobs and will buy homes if the pricing incentives are there,? said Yun.

More positive news is that home sales?although not prices?showed their first uptick in three years during the last quarter. ?We are beginning to come back, but recovery won?t happen until inventories are reduced from their current 10-month levels back to a more normal six months.

Fannie and Freddie also need to continue to fulfill their public mission of lending in difficult markets to keep mortgage rates low, Yun said.

But even more critical to a housing recovery are stabilizing home prices. Only then will new buyers get back into the marketplace and underwater buyers be able to consider moving up, he added.

A federal housing stimulus package for home buyers and the promised federal actions of buying troubled loans are also need to support home markets, he said. He urged members to make their congressional representatives aware of the need to help housing.

Source: Mariwyn Evans via the National Association of REALTORs(R)

Real Estate is Texas' 3rd Most Important Private Industry

Texas is best-known for its oil well and high-tech business.

But real estate is a close third, a new report by Texas A&M University's Real Estate Center found. Real estate is the third-most-important private industry in Texas, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The real estate industry accounts for almost 8 percent of the state's gross domestic product, A&M's new report says.

Only manufacturing, at 13.4 percent, and mining and energy, at 9.8 percent, rank higher.

The report also says that more than a half-million Texans work in the real estate business, almost 4 percent of total employment.

The A&M analysts estimate that for every $1 million of revenue made by the Texas real estate industry, more than 10 jobs are generated.

Source: Steve Brown - The Dallas Morning News

Consumers Want Federal Oversight of Lending

More consumers are open to the federal government stepping up its role overseeing mortgage and lending practices, according to the 2008 National Housing Pulse Survey, an annual survey released today by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®.

More than half (56 percent) of those surveyed said they favor the federal government taking a more active oversight role, while 38 percent prefer that private companies oversee their businesses. That is a marked shift from the 2007 survey, which showed respondents were more evenly split on the issue of government involvement.

Click here for the entire article.

Source: National Association of REALTORS®