Dothan, AL

Down payment assistance programs are winding down. Beginning October 1, pretty much every homebuyer will need at least 3.5% as a down payment if they want to buy a home. As discussed a couple of weeks ago, the end of these programs will mean about 10% fewer buyers looking for homes here around Dothan. It also means what is already a tough market for sellers is going to get even tougher. There is really no other conclusion one can draw but to say that elimination of DPA programs is going to adversely effect the Dothan real estate market.

Legislation has been introduced that would bring back these programs. H.R. 6694 would regulate the programs instead of eliminating them. What can you do? Visit Rally for Home Ownership for information on contacting your legislators. Let them know you support down payment assistance and that right now is the wrong time to be eliminating something that means so much to our economy.

Here is a video that really brings to light the real reason for eliminating DPA’s. HUD wanted them gone.

h/t Jonathan Dalton of All Phoenix Real Estate and Jay Thompson, the Phoenix Real Estate Guy

Scariest sentence in the English language – “I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.”

Tags: down+payment+assistance, FHA+home+buyers

This article was originally posted on DothanHomeSearch.com

The new home market here in the Dothan area seems to be gaining some traction, after a dismal 12–18 month down period. There were 28 new residential construction permits issued in July, up from 21 in June. Here is the trend over the last twelve months. Inventory of new construction homes on the market is down, which is another sign of a turnaround. There are currently 215 new construction homes listed in the Dothan area MLS, down from 221 last month. The median price of these listed homes is $195,400, which is about $60,000 above the overall market median. There were 15 sales of new construction homes in July according to data from the Dothan MLS, with an average price per square foot of $101.45 and average days on the market of 133 days. If you have an interest in building or purchasing a new construction home, give me a call or use the contact form. As a Certified New Homes Specialist (CNHS), I have extensive training in the new home market and would be happy to consult with you on your real estate needs.

Tags: Dothan+real+estate, Dothan+new+construction

It didn't get much coverage in the media, but Houston County quietly set property tax millage rates for 2008 at last Monday's county commission meeting. Rates for this year will remain the same as last year at 21.5 mills for the county assessment (A mill is equal to one-tenth of a cent). In 2007, there was an increase of two mills passed along to Houston County property owners to meet a requirement by the state of at least 10 mills for all Alabama public schools. Before last year, Houston County collected eight mills for local schools. Who gets the highest property tax bill every year in Houston County? Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Plant gets a bill for over $9 million every year. That is over 40% of all property taxes collected in the county last year.

So how do our property tax rates compare to other states? Alabama has some of the lowest property tax rates in the country, second only to Louisiana in median property tax rate per $1,000 of property value (Click here for the report).

This gives us a good opportunity to discuss how property taxes are calculated in here in Houston County. The surrounding counties of Dale, Henry, Geneva, and Coffee are likely calculated the same, but their millage rates may vary slightly. For our example, we will assume a property is homesteaded, or in other words, is the primary residence of the taxpayer.

The accessed value needed to calculate the amount of property tax due is figured by taking 10% of the appraisal value, as determined by the county. Next, multiply your accessed value by your total millage rate, which is 33 mills if you live in the city limits of Dothan, Ashford, Columbia, Gordon, Webb, Kinsey, Taylor, Rehobeth, or Madrid, or 28 mills if you don't.

Now let's do with math with a median priced home inside the city limits of Dothan.

• $133,000 tax appraised value X 10% = $13,300 tax assessed value
• $13,300 X 0.033 (millage rate from above) = $438.90 property taxes.
• Actually, you get to take off $49 on homesteaded property, so the total property taxes due would be about $390 per year on a median priced home.

For non-homesteaded property, multiply the appraised value by 20% instead of 10%, and don't deduct the $49.

As with anything the government does, there are lots of exceptions and exemptions. We'll try to cover some of those in a later post, but you can ask a specific question by commenting below if you like. Property is appraised in Houston County annually in late summer, before the tax year starts on October 1.