Category

Financial news

Oct 28
0

US House prices vs Bonds…

By | Buyers, Financial news, Sellers, Sonoma County info | No Comments

The moment someone buys a home, that is the moment inflation on housing expenses stops. While rents go up, your mortgage payment remains the same  (in case of a 30 year fixed), for the coming 30 years. During the time that your mortgage payments stay the same, home prices fluctuate. However, over the long haul home prices do go up. If you doubt my statement, ask your parents/grandparents how much they paid

for their home way back when. When we lived in Leerdam (Netherlands), we lived in an older home, built in 1927, these homes initially sold for 27 guilders. At the time we bought it, you couldn’t even buy a washing machine for this amount 😉 Conclusion: Buying home is also a great long term investment vehicle.

But it is always good to diversify. Recently I spoke with Matt Schweifler, a great local financial planner about this subject. He mentioned an other ‘safe’ great investment vehicle: bonds. When you buy a bond you receive interest every year and you have a guaranteed return of your investment at maturity date of the bond. Between the moment of purchase and the moment of maturity, the value of the bond will fluctuate, but at the end there is the guaranteed return on investment…

What do these 2 have in common? The value of your home, matters only when you either buy or sell. In case the home values in your area go up, this is great, but realistically this only matters when you decide to sell. The same is the case when you buy a bond, between the date you buy it and the date you sell, the value may go up, may go down but that only matters in case you decide to sell before the maturity date.

BTW. How much time did you spend on planning your last vacation? How much time do you spend each year planning your retirement? While Real Estate is a great investment vehicle, you really need other investment vehicles too…

Mirjam

 

Sep 03
0

USDA, Clint Eastwood and first time home buyers

By | Buyers, Financial news, Sonoma County info, Windsor | No Comments

When you see the acronym USDA you might think of meat, or farmers. USDA stands for United States Department of Agriculture. This organization is to support and improve the economy and quality of life in rural America. One way is through the USDA home loan program: a great mortgage for first time home buyers with limited income and very little down payment. It is a great alternative for the more expensive FHA loan programs: less down payment, no mortgage insurance.

When I think of rural areas, I think of the old western movies with Clint Eastwood, not necessary Sonoma County. And yet there are a lot of areas in Sonoma County eligible for the loan product. Because it is a low income program, only the ‘cheaper’ properties will qualify. Last year I was able to help a young couple buy their first home on Wall Street in Windsor. They love where they live and their monthly payment is much lower than when they would be renting.

Per October 1, 2012 this program is changing. In Sonoma County: Windsor, Healdsburg and Sonoma will no longer be eligible. The program will also become somewhat more expensive. Currently USDA loans don’t require mortgage insurance, only an upfront guarantee fee of 3.5%, this fee is added to the total loan balance and financed into the loan. Per Oct 1, the upfront fee will lower to 2% but there will be a new annual fee of 0.3% of the balance of the loan. This annual fee will be added to the monthly programs.

It’s still a great alternative for low income buyers in rural areas. It’s always best to talk to your lender about this program, for more information, please feel free to contact Seliga Financial :  707-577-8737

Mirjam

 

 

Oct 16
0

C.A.R. Mortgage update from this morning…

By | Buyers, Financial news, Foreclosure, Sonoma County info | No Comments

Just wanted to share this information… great info for buyers!

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are offering financing incentives for buyers of foreclosed homes owned by Fannie and Freddie.  Home buyers have until Oct. 30 to apply for Freddie Mac’s SmartBuy program, which started in July, and offers up to 3.5 percent of a home’s sale price to help cover closing costs.

To qualify, the home must be a principal residence and must be selected from Freddie Mac’s HomeSteps Web site (www.homesteps.com/homeshoppers.htm) for its foreclosed properties. Loans must close by year’s end.  The HomeSteps properties also include two-year warranties on major appliances and electrical, plumbing, and air-conditioning and heating systems.

Fannie Mae’s HomePath program (www.homepath.com) is an ongoing program and offers more incentives than Freddie Mac’s.  Through participating lenders, Fannie will offer mortgages to buyers who make a down payment of 3 percent.  The buyers do not have to secure private mortgage insurance, a common practice with nearly all lenders.  Home buyers also can negotiate for Fannie Mae to offer closing-cost assistance.  Unlike Freddie Mac’s program, Fannie’s assistance level is not capped.  Under the HomePath program, the average participating homeowner has received payments equivalent to 3.75 percent of the loan’s value.

The homepath program is also a good option for investors to consider.No matter what the media tells us, today is a great time to buy property in Sonoma County!

mirjamnew.jpg

Sep 05
0

Rental Scam Advisory from our local MLS®

By | Buyers, Economy, Financial news, Foreclosure, Sellers, Sonoma County info | No Comments

Yesterday we received a ‘Red Alert’ email from our local MLS board about the Rental Scam on Listed properties. The PressDemocrat had an interesting article about the subject earlier this week.

There is a rental scam taking place in which listed properties are advertised on Craigslist and other online classified services for rent, when the property is not for rent at all.  The ads run for a very brief period of time.

 How can you protect your listings from being a part of the scam?
Some brokers have removed the address of their listings on the internet.  While this hides the address from the scammers, both the buying public and the seller could be disadvantaged.
Monitor classified advertising internet sites like Craigslist to watch for ads using your listing information “for rent”.
Put a “NOT FOR RENT” rider on your signs.

The FBI’s guidelines for the general public to avoid being victimized.

  • Only deal with landlords or renters who are local.
  • Be suspicious if you’re asked to only use a wire transfer service.
  • Beware of e-mail correspondence from the “landlord” that’s written in poor or broken English.
  • Research the average rental rates in that area and be suspicious if the rate is significantly lower.
  • Don’t give out personal information, like social security, bank account, or credit card numbers.

Should you have your property listed, please follow the advise your Realtor gives you. He/She is made aware of the problem and knows how to handle this. So far we do not know of people being victimized in Sonoma County and right now it is a major nuisance.

Enjoy the rest of this wonderful weekend, it’s a bit breezy still sunny and warm.

 mirjamnew.jpg Mirjam