New changes to FHA loans

There are some changes coming up in FHA that you should know about.  As you may or may not be aware, FHA has implemented numerous increases to their monthly MI and the Up Front MIP since 2009.  They are doing it again and so FHA continues to be the "loan of last resort".  Since the increases started, my lenders have been consistently avoiding FHA for borrowers who have other options, since it is more expensive.  FHA is notorious for changing this stuff at the last minute, but for now here is what we expect...

(There are some slight variations to the bullet points below for 15 year FHA loans or if clients put more than 5% down, but that is a VERY small percentage of FHA borrowers, so these are the changes most borrowers will experience)

• The monthly MI will increase to 1.35% of the loan amount (divided by 12) for most FHA loans.  So a $200,000 30 year fixed FHA loan will have monthly MI of $225.00 (about double conventional)  - This will be effective with all FHA case numbers pulled after April 1, 2013
• The Monthly MI will not be able to be dropped under any circumstances for the life of the loan. It doesn't matter if they pay the loan down or if the home doubles in value, borrowers will still have to pay monthly MI until they sell, refinance, or pay the loan off.   This will be effective for all FHA case numbers pulled after June 3rd, 2013.

The Up Front MIP will remain the same at 1.75% of the loan amount and is still non refundable for any reason.  


Information compliments of one of my favorite lenders, Mark Moore. Thanks, Mark!

Georgia Housing Starts 2013 on a High Note!!!

Housing Indicators for January show a good start for Georgia in 2013. GAR just released the January report.  Some key findings include:

• New Listings decreased 9 percent
• Pending Sales were up 21 percent
• Inventory Levels shrank 32 percent
• Median Prices rose 28 percent
• Average Prices rose 18 percent
• Months Supply of Homes for Sale decreased 37 percent
• Days on Market decreased 13 percent to 89 days

I know this jives with my personal experience as well: inventory is down, prices are up, and houses are flying off the market!  All of my listings from the past 90 days have sold in under a week, most for list price (or higher!).  So if you have been on the fence about selling your house, now is the time and I would love to help!

It's that time of year again: Homestead Exemption

If you purchased a home in 2012 as your primary residence, it is time to file for your Homestead Exemption!

A homestead exemption is a reduction in homeowners' property taxes. Once granted, this exemption is automatically renewed each year as long as you continually occupy the home under the same ownership. The home must be your legal residence for all purposes including the registration of your vehicles and the filing of your income tax. You cannot file for homestead exemption on rental property, vacant land, or on more than one property.

*If you previously had Homestead Exemption on another property, you must also contact that county to remove it before you can apply for Homestead on your new property, even if you no longer own the other property*

Different counties have different deadlines for filing, but most are April 1st. CHECK YOUR COUNTY TAX ASSESSOR WEBSITE TO VERIFY YOUR DEADLINE AND FILING REQUIREMENTS.

Here are some links to counties in the Metro Atlanta area for your convenience:

Fulton County

DeKalb County

Cobb County

Gwinnett County
Walton County

2012 Reflections

As we near the end of the year (where has the time gone?!), I wanted to try to put down some of my thought about 2012. I'm going to gloss over my precious Yellow Jacket's sub-par season so far and just focus on real estate.  =)

 This past June marked one full year at my new office, RE/MAX Around Atlanta, and it has been my most successful year to date!  Andrew and I have loved working with our new brokers and getting to know all the new agents in our office.  In particular, I have found that their systems for processing paperwork and managing listings has helped me make my business run more efficiently so I can spend more time focusing on the important stuff: my clients.

Speaking of my clients, they are the BEST!  I have had the pleasure of working with some fantastic new folks while also helping out many returning clients.  I have now been a Realtor for 5 years so many of my clients that I worked with in the first few years are starting to cycle back through as they expand their families, change jobs, and begin new life experiences.  There is nothing as gratifying to me as when a past client comes back to me to help them with their real estate needs again.  It validates that I am doing my job correctly, providing great service, and making lasting relationships.

Over the past several years I have experimented with various technology and marketing systems to help my clients, and I feel that in the past year I have really honed in on the most effective techniques.  I am using the most current and state-of-the-art technology available to make sure my sellers have the very best visibility on the web, while also providing a fantastic tool for following up after showings to get invaluable feedback from other agents and their clients.  For my buyers, I now provide access to their very own website which allows them to search all the available listings using much better search criteria and much more current data than what is available to the general public.

Historically, my listings sell in just 86 days and for over 96% of their list price (the Atlanta average is 6+ months). With my new systems in place, those numbers have gotten even better!  My last two listings were both previously listed with another agent for over 6 months, with no offers.  Once I took over, they both sold quickly (one in 35 days, one in just 3 days!) and for almost full price.  The combination of the services I provide, along with my experience and dedication to getting the very best deal for my clients, is truly unparalleled and it shows in my results!

The media has been touting a lot of doom and gloom with regards to the real estate market over the past year, but I say, “What bad market?”  There has never been a better time to buy with prices still low and interest rates rock-bottom.  But this is also a great time to sell: inventory is dropping and there are a lot of buyers out there!  If you – or any of your friends or family – have been thinking about buying or selling, please give me a call, I would love to help!

My daughter is keeping hope alive for the season!

UNDER CONTRACT!

Under Contract in under a week!  

This adorable ranch has been beautifully maintained and is walking distance to Smyrna Market Village!