About Fairfield County, CT

The Juniper Ridge neighborhood offers buyers vintage homes only 2 miles from I-84. With city services and a small private Lake (Lake Wackawanna), this neighborhood offers peaceful streets and charming well maintained cape cod and colonial styled home Many of the homes in this neighborhood were built before 1960 and sit on about .3 of an acre lots.  Enjoy ice skating in the winter and sitting by the lake in the summer time. Home prices range from the mid $200,000 for small homes needing some work to the high $400,000 for updated larger homes.  The Juniper Ridge neighborhood students do attend the Pembroke Elementary School,  Broadview Middle School and the nearby Danbury High School.

FHA Changes the Rules for Buying a Stamford Home for Sale (Well really ALL homes :) )

The FHA, or Federal Housing Administration, has helped many a homeowner buy a Stamford home for sale by providing mortgage insurance through FHA-approved lenders. However, a change in policy, announced in January, may make it harder for those with poor credit.

Before we talk about FHA's change in policy, let's cover a few of the basics about the FHA and how it might help you buy a Stamford home for sale.

What is the FHA?

The FHA is a government agency that provides mortgage insurance to approved lending institutions. It assists homebuyers by providing mortgage insurance to lenders to cover most losses that may occur when a borrower defaults. This encourages lenders to make loans to borrowers who might otherwise not be able to get a loan.

What is an FHA Loan?

An FHA loan is a loan provided by an FHA-approved lender and insured by the FHA. In other words, the FHA guarantees that a lender won’t have to write off a loan if the borrower defaults – the FHA will pay. Because of this guarantee, lenders are willing to make mortgage loans.

An FHA loan might help you get a mortgage by providing:

• Lower down payments
• Lower closing costs
• Easier credit qualifications

Now let's talk about the changes FHA is making…

The Future of FHA Loans

Until recently, the FHA has managed to weather the real estate turmoil rather well. In fact, the turbulence surrounding other lenders had potential homebuyers flocking to take advantage of FHA loans. However, even FHA's bank account is starting to suffer. In order to shore up capital reserves and keep 34 million families in their homes, the FHA is changing the rules.

Before the changes, borrowers were required to pay a down payment of 3.5% of the cost of the home. Now, borrowers with a credit rating below 580 will be required to pay at least a 10% down payment. As well, the good upfront mortgage insurance premiums of 1.75% are increasing to 2.25%. The FHA is now trying to get Congress' approval to raise the annual premiums from 0.55%, although the amount it will seek is still unknown.

What This Means for You

If you’re interested in buying a Stamford home for sale, but haven’t because you’re waiting for the market to bottom out, you may end up losing out on a great deal. With almost record low mortgage rates, home values lower than they’ve been for eight years, the first-time and upgrade homebuyer tax credits and a wide selection of homes, there may never be a better time to buy.

Whether you want to use an FHA loan or a traditional loan, I can help you cash in on this great buyer's market. Call me today at 203.667.0897 or email me at nicole@thepropnet.com

Short Sales in Newtown, CT - as of 2/8/10. Back in September 2008, we posted a blog titled "Short Sale - What is It?". We think this is useful information as we frequently explain what a short sale is to both buyers and sellers. Our intention is to update you every 2 months about the short sale activity in Newtown, CT.

As of today, the short sale market in Newtown looks like this:

• 16 are Actively listed for sale
• 2 are under deposit
• 8 are pending sale
• 1 closed in January
• 1 closed in February

The price range of the actively listed short sales in Newtown range from $129,900 to $579,900.

If you would like a list of the short sales in Newtown, CT, just email us and we'll forward it to you ASAP.

If you would like to sell your home and feel it might be a short sale, please contact us - we can help. Anything you tell us will be held in confidence and will not be shared with anyone else.

Bob & Richelle Ward, Realtors, ABR
Prudential Connecticut Realty
www.connecticuthomesforsale.com
Cell - (203) 470-9818

Recap of Short Sales in Newtown, CT 2009 So several times during 2009, we posted blog entries about the status of short sales in Newtown, CT. With the advent of the New Year, we thought a short recap would be in order.

So here's how short sales in Newtown shook out for the year:

# of short sales sold in 2009: 10
# of short sales that were pending sale at year end: 5
# of short sales still actively listed at year end: 18

Below are links to our 2009 short sale posts:

# of Short Sales - January 2009
# of Short Sales - March 2009
# of Short Sales - May 2009
# of Short Sales - July 2009
# of Short Sales - September 2009

All information is direct from the multiple listing service (MLS). Recap of Short Sales in Newtown, CT 2009

To get a list of the short sales in Newtown, CT, just send us an email and we'll forward it to you ASAP.

If you need to sell your house and feel it might be a short sale, please contact us - we can help. Anything you tell us will be held in confidence and will not be shared with anyone else.

Bob & Richelle Ward, Realtors, ABR
Prudential Connecticut Realty
www.connecticuthomesforsale.com
Cell - (203) 470-9818

Danbury, Connecticut Real Estate Update
December, 2009

Closed home sales in Danbury, Connecticut:

Single Family Homes:
There were 22 single family home sales closed in Danbury, CT.

The median closed real estate sales price for single family homes in Danbury was $284,000.

On average, these homes sold for 94.3% of their most recent list price.

Days on Market averaged 225 days of market time.

This compares with 18 closed sales in December, 2008, with a median closed sales price of $287,500.

*** What is interesting to note is that 18% of these sales were either short sales or bank-owned foreclosure sales.

Condos:
There were 26 condominium sales closed in Danbury, CT.
The median closed sales price was $247,000.
On average, these homes sold for 97.3% of their most recent list price.

This compares with 18 closed sales in December, 2008, with a median closed sales price of $215,750.

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Currently available homes for sale in Danbury, Connecticut:

Single Family Homes:
Currently, there are 227 single family homes for sale in Danbury, CT.
List Prices range from $96,900 for a bank-owned fixer to $1,995,000 for a large Candlewood Lake waterfront home with guest house.

Condos:
Currently, there are 199 condos available for sale in Danbury, CT.
List prices range from $63,323 - $729,900.

Danbury, Connecticut, a former military depot during the American Revolution, is a diverse community of about 78,000 residents that borders New York State to the west and the southern shores of Candlewood Lake. Several lake communities border Candlewood Lake, and typically offer a private beach for residents, boat docks and other amenities. Danbury enjoys a convenient commute location to lower Fairfield County and Westchester County, New York. Danbury is situated just about an hour by car to Hartford, Connecticut and New York City.

This Market Report prepared by:
Don Fabrizio-Garcia, REALTOR
Connecticut Real Estate & Appraisals
203.746.1199
Connecticut Real Estate and Homes for Sale

Data compiled from the Greater Fairfield County MLS and believed to be accurate