February 21, 2010
Weekly update on Santa Clara Mortgage Rates, Housing Trends and top Economy news.
The week that was:
Freddie Mac in its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® reported that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.93 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending February 18, 2010. The 5-year adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 4.12 percent this week, with [...]
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February 19, 2010
Interest Rates on the Way UP!
By Brian Madigan LL.B.
The interest rate environment in North America has been low. The US Federal Reserve has maintained the discount rate at 0.50% since June 2006.
Now, the rate has now increased to 0.75%. This comes in response to the improvement in financial market conditions. The new rate will take [...]
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February 19, 2010
I absolutely hate being late, if only because I hate waiting on others. So, on the rare occasion when I am late, I always feel really guilty.
This morning, much to my chagrin, I was a few minutes late to work. I could blame it on traffic or the deluge of red lights I stopped at on [...]
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February 18, 2010
Aliso Viejo Short Sale Experts
This market summary is for all property listings, short sales and bank REO sales statistics in Aliso Viejo, California. This report was generated by the short sale specialists at the Short Sales ASAP group, who are number one in terms of the volume of short sale property listings sold and closed [...]
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February 18, 2010
Market Reaches New Highs (Mid February 2010) Toronto
By Brian Madigan LL.B.
Here is the latest report from the Toronto Real Estate Board:
“Greater Toronto REALTORS reported 3,555 sales through the Multiple Listing Service during the first two weeks of February.
This represented a 74 per cent increase compared to the 2,044 sales recorded during the same period in [...]
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February 18, 2010
Negotiate in the Offer to Lease
By Brian Madigan LL.B.
That’s simple enough advice. It’s easy to follow. And, no one gets hurt.So, what’s the problem? No one wants to do it. It’s too costly, it’s too time consuming and it’s too much trouble.
OK, if you’re going to take that approach,then you’d better leave yourself some “outs”.
The [...]
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February 18, 2010
Laguna Hills Short Sale Experts
This residential real estate study is generated by the specialists at the ShortSalesASAP group, who are experts in short sale negotiations, marketing and sales for property owners in Laguna Hills and elsewhere in south Orange County. The two tables below show statistics for properties Active for Sale, Pending in Escrow, and [...]
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February 17, 2010
Maybe you’ve landed a job in another city. Maybe your dream house has gone up for sale, and you need to be able to move on it quickly or it’ll belong to someone else forever. Maybe you can’t afford your mortgage payments anymore and need to move to a smaller house. Whatever the reason, many [...]
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February 16, 2010
Ladera Ranch Short Sale Experts
This analysis is brought to you by the experts at the ShortSalesASAP group, who specialize in short sale negotiations, marketing and sales here in Ladera Ranch . This article will report the statistics for Active for Sale and Sold standard listing properties, short sales and bank owned REO’s. Currently, there are [...]
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February 16, 2010
The Olympics are on and TV is all about competition right now. We as a country are keeping track, counting our Gold, Silver and Bronze. It’s fun to watch the daily competition as it becomes a nice diversion from the daily troubles. Watching others succeed despite the odds is so positive and uplifting!
When we are [...]
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February 16, 2010
Warning Buyers about Noisy Neighbours
By Brian Madigan LL.B.
Do you have to warn buyers about noisy neighbours? Actually, it depends upon where you live. If you live in Ontario, you can keep this to yourself. But, one little problem, your agent may have to tell.
Listen, this is a mess! It is very difficult to solve. I [...]
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February 16, 2010
It took me some time to realize that short Sales were simply Loan Mods that were turned down. It is exactly the same paperwork with the only difference being that your Hardship letter in a Short Sale is try to prove to the lender that the client can’t make it ………….thus, they should agree to [...]
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February 16, 2010
I have been answering a lot of questions from uninformed first time buyers on websites Like Homeresearch.com and Trulia.com, these sites have realtors who will answer real estate questions. The majority of questions are regarding if one house or another is available. They do not have a Realtor nor are they pre-approved……So I am writing this for [...]
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February 16, 2010
Government Limits on Mortgage Financing
By Brian Madigan LL.B.
The Government of Canada has been concerned about the current level of interest rates.
The difficulty is that borrowers might qualify now for mortgages that in a few months they may not be able to afford. Both Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance and Mark Carney, the Governor of the [...]
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February 16, 2010
We got hit with another snow storm here in Cincinnati yesterday (and continuing today). While I was able to make it into work after slip-sliding up the highway, it got so bad that all of us at DotLoop had to leave around noon.
As I posted before, snow days are by no means non-work days, and [...]
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February 15, 2010
How to Avoid the Exit Tax
By Brian Madigan LL.B.
It’s bad enough to be finished with your lease, and have no equity, but what about paying thousands of dollars just to leave? This is an exit tax!
In a lease, it’s often called the “restoration and removal” clause. You have to read it carefully. Often, it will [...]
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February 14, 2010
Real Estate Futures (Toronto and GTA)
By Brian Madigan LL.B.
Betting on the real estate market is as easy as picking up brochures in the model home.
Let’s assume that you believe that the real estate market is going up. If you buy a house you will have to pay for it in 2 or 3 months. But, [...]
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February 13, 2010
ORES Real Estate Index for January 2010
By Brian Madigan LL.B.
Here is the “ORES REAL ESTATE INDEX” which tracks the average resale prices of single family homes and condominiums in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). It also tracks certain benchmark comparisons such as the price of oil and gold, as well as the Consumer Price Index.
In [...]
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February 12, 2010
In an article published today by “Mortgage News Daily” entitled “Fed Exit from MBS Program on Course as Planned” it is quite obvious that the Fed Chairman will exit the buying of Mortgage Backed Securities. That leaves very little doubt that mortgage interest rates are bound to climb. When or how high is the $1.25 trillion [...]
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February 12, 2010
This month, 2010 Census forms will be mailed to every resident in the United States and Puerto Rico. Under the U.S. Constitution, a national census must be completed every 10 years in order to get a clear picture of changes in the nation’s population and demographics. The goal is to count everyone residing in the [...]
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February 12, 2010
DotLoop was once again featured in Cincinnati’s Business Courier. Click here to view the article, or click on the image for a larger version.
dotloop.com
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February 10, 2010
Another couple of inches of snow fell on our fair town overnight, and much of the city is still under some degree of snow emergency. Last night, I was looking out the back window as the wind spun the snow around and it looked like a bakery gone awry.
It seemed [...]
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February 9, 2010
Consumers want choices when examining neighborhoods, one size does not fit all when it comes to buying a home.
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February 9, 2010
Do You Believe Real Estate Headlines?
By Brian Madigan LL.B.
Well, let’s have a look at a recent headline in the Toronto Star:
“Existing home sales soar 87% in ‘crazy’ January”
The article that followed commenced:
“The deep-freeze of January is usually a signal for realtors to take a winter cruise or perhaps a vacation in the Caribbean. But not [...]
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February 9, 2010
Mark Green Interviewed For Piece On OpenForum.com
Mark was recently interviewed for an article on OpenForum.com about the value of joining industry associations. Click above to read how Mark describes putting a lot of time and effort into building relationships within his associations and really trying to make a difference in the industry.
David Orsini’s Article Featured [...]
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February 9, 2010
I am writing this blog in my pajamas, eating a bowl of Rice Krispies. It seems cars don’t drive very well in thick snow.
When I had snow days as a kid, I remember getting up early and turning on the radio to see if my school was closed or not. I would listen intently to [...]
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February 8, 2010
Real Estate: The Calendar Cycle for 2010
By Brian Madigan LL.B.
Year after year, we are faced with the same cycle, repeated time and time again.
Let’s have a look at the last few years and see if we can determine any patterns?
We’ll look at the ORES Real Estate Index for single family homes in the Greater Toronto [...]
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February 8, 2010
Well we finished the first month of 2010 and I have been evaluating my life plan for 2010. Most of us set at least a few goals going into the year and it is very easy to get off track almost immediately if we don’t put action behind our goals.
I don’t know about you but [...]
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February 7, 2010
In order to get FHA financing on a condo in Orange County, the condo project needs to be approved for financing by FHA. Not all projects are approved, so it is important to narrow the property search to those condo’s that are if you have a desire to take advantage of the benefits of FHA [...]
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February 6, 2010
Being environmentally conscious doesn’t mean you have to install solar panels or grow all of your own food. There are plenty of quick and easy ways to green your home that will save you money rather than cost you money, and that don’t require a whole lot of effort on your part.
Here are some of [...]
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February 5, 2010
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You can play in the snow with your family without having to drive all the way to Lake Tahoe or Reno.
At Leland Meadows you can have fun in the snow. They have inner tubes that have tow straps on them so you can be towed up the hill and then you slide down. So much easier for us [...]
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February 5, 2010
Real Estate Agent ~ Disclosure Issues
By Brian Madigan LL.B.
There are basic rules that apply to realtors concerning disclosure. Everyone who is permitted to trade in real estate under the Real Estate and Business Brokers Act, 2002 is subject to both the common law and the RECO Code of Ethics.
Organized real estate, and that means registrants [...]
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February 5, 2010
How does the Idaho FHA Reverse Mortgage Loan Work?
The Idaho FHA Reverse Mortgage, also known as a HECM (Home Equity Conversion Mortgage), is a loan made to a person age 62 or older. There are no income, credit or health requirements associated with the loan. The amazing thing about the Idaho FHA Reverse Mortgage is [...]
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February 5, 2010
Boise, Idaho Reverse Mortgages are great for senior retirement living !
A Boise, Idaho FHA Reverse Mortgage Senior Home Loan is a great way for anyone over the age of 62 to enjoy their retirement and not have to stress as much about money. With a Reverse Mortgage it frees up the options available for anyone [...]
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February 5, 2010
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The FHA has come up with some new rules when it comes to their loans.
Beginning April 2010, the up front mortgage insurance will increase from 1.75% to 2.25%
There will be no more spot appraisals. So it will be harder to get an approval on a condo.
This is a big one. Effective for all case numbers issued [...]
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February 5, 2010
The Mortgage Rates for a 5 Year adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) sank to 4% (and lower in some cases)* for Santa Clara county homes. The rate improvements yesterday has opened up terrific opportunities for home owners and First Time Home Buyers. This is is best suited if:
You are a First-Time Home buyer and would like [...]
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February 5, 2010
Beazer Homes, the Atlanta based homebuilder has posted a $48.1 million profit in its first fiscal quarter.
That is obviously hugely encouraging after enduring a loss of over $80 million in its prior fiscal year. Beazer has a $101 million tax gain to thank for their successful first quarter, as they cater primarily to first time [...]
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February 5, 2010
Pending home sales rose slightly in December, increasing 1.0 percent from the previous month, according to NAR. The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) was 10.9 percent above December 2008. In November, the index had fallen 16.4 percent after several months of surging activity.
The index in the Northeast rose 2.3 percent in December and was 14.9 [...]
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