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Newnan, GA

A complete step-by step guide for purchasing HUD Homes in Georgia. Part Four of Seven: How to bid on a HUD home?

Richard Weisser - Coweta Fayette Real Estate - Newnan homes for sale: Real Estate Brokerage in Newnan, GA

Bidding on HUD HomesIn Part 3 of this series How do you find a HUD home in your area that is for sale? we discovered that the best way to find a suitable HUD homes is to engage a real estate buyer's agent that is proficient in the HUD buying process.

Once you have found a HUD home that is suitable for your needs, it's time to consider making an offer. In the state of Georgia, HUD uses a blind bidding process that allows each potential buyer to enter a bid prior to a clearly defined bid deadline.

Before having your buyer's agent enter your bid, you need to do several things. First and foremost, you need to read and understand the property inspection report prepared by the HUD inspector. The inspector evaluates the condition of the property in order to establish an appraised value.

Finally, before you decide on a final bid price to offer, it is imperative that you ask yourself this question:

Is it more important to you to get the house or to get a good deal?

That's a fair question, and it is an important one. Some buyers fall in love with a house, and want to ensure a good chance of entering a successful bid. Other buyers are more intent on getting a deal on a house, and that overrides their desire for any particular property.

As long as a buyer is willing to lose the house, a low bid can be proffered. But if a buyer really wants the property, one must seriously consider the HUD appraisal price as at or near the market value.

In Georgia, a licensed real estate agent must be used to enter a bid for an owner-occupant HUD property. And remember that experience is counts.

The most valuable asset that a HUD buyer can have in the bidding process is the assistance of an experienced real estate professional that has successfully entered winning bids on behalf of their clients!

Next: Part 5, What happens after your HUD bid is accepted? Previous: How do you find a HUD home in your area that is for sale?

A complete step-by step guide for purchasing HUD Homes in Georgia. Part Three of Seven: How do you find a HUD home in your area that is for sale?

Richard Weisser - Coweta Fayette Real Estate - Newnan homes for sale: Real Estate Brokerage in Newnan, GA

John Oliver Cabin in the Great Smoky Mountains...NOT a HUD home!In Part 2 of this series Why should you purchase a HUD home? Many of the reasons for purchasing a HUD home were identified and listed.

Now we'll discuss how to go about finding a HUD property for sale. First and foremost, you should engage a good buyer's agent that is experienced and knowledgeable about HUD properties in your area. These agents understand the idiosyncrasies of HUD sales, and can help you find a suitable HUD property that is available in your area that is suited to your needs.

After entering into a brokerage agreement, your agent can assist you with setting up an account on a HUD contractor website. The website will allow you to search available HUD properties online, and will also permit you to download the inspection reports performed by HUD inspectors. Additionally provided is information about needed repairs, and a escrow amount that will be allowed to be rolled into your loan to complete the noted repairs.

The website will also clearly indicate the bid deadline period. Please be aware of this deadline when you are contacting your agent regarding a showing of a HUD home.

In Georgia, all HUD trained agents have a key that will open any HUD house offered for sale by HUD.

New HUD homes for sale are added daily, so it's important to stay informed on a daily basis. Once again, an experienced agent will make certain that you are aware of all HUD properties matching your criteria!

And once you find the property that is just right for you, it will be time for your agent to enter a bid on your behalf. The process will be discussed in the next installment of this series.

Next: Part 4, Bidding on a HUD home for sale. Previous: Why should you purchase a HUD home?

A complete step-by step guide for purchasing HUD Homes in Georgia. Part Two of Seven: Why should you purchase a HUD home?

Richard Weisser - Coweta Fayette Real Estate - Newnan homes for sale: Real Estate Brokerage in Newnan, GA

NOT Newnan area HUD homes, for illustation only!In part one of this series: What is a HUD Home? we discovered that a HUD home is a foreclosed property that had an FHA loan associated with it that was guaranteed by the United States government. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) actually takes title to the property.

Now in part 2 of the series we'll discuss the reasons as to why a HUD home may be a good purchase opportunity for a buyer:

First and foremost, HUD homes are priced in such a way as to encourage competitive bidding on the property. So many are priced below the average market price in a given neighborhood and can be genuine bargains for a potential buyer.

And even if the HUD home needs minor repairs, they can be are identified as "escrow" repairs by the HUD inspector, which means that money will be put into escrow to accommodate the repairs. In some cases, a home that needs extensive repairs may fall into a different category, but that's for another article!

Five Dollar BillNow here are some more great reasons to buy a HUD home in Georgia: All homes that qualify for FHA 203B financing can be purchased for only $100.00 down! That's right, only one hundred dollars down. Also, many of the homes qualify for a $1000.00 buyer's bonus. And since HUD pays up to 3% of closing costs, you can literally walk out of closing with a new home and a check!

And did I mention that first-time homebuyers could qualify for up to an $8000.00 refundable federal tax credit and up to an $1800 Georgia Income tax credit? That's more compelling reasons to purchase a HUD home now!

So if you can buy a HUD home at a below market price, and pay little or no money down, what are you waiting for? Call a HUD sales experienced real estate agent today!

Part 1: What is a HUD Home? Part 3 soon: How do you find a HUD home that is for sale?

All content, including text, original art, photographs and images, is the exclusive property of Coweta Fayette Real Estate, Inc., and may not be used without the expressed written permission of Coweta Fayette Real Estate of ERA United Realty Newnan Georgia. All information is believed to be accurate but is not warranted, Copyright 2003-2009. Richard Weisser 770-827-6225.
Learn more about Coweta County and Fayette County Georgia Real Estate, and to search the entire Georgia MLS for free with no registration required visit CowetaFayetteRealEstate.com! Photos of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Get the latest GA Foreclosure List Updated Daily! We Do HUD bids in Georgia! 770-827-6225

When a house shows the tell-tale signs of entering the twilight zone, it can be a long wait before it shows up on the "other side!"

Richard Weisser - Coweta Fayette Real Estate - Newnan homes for sale: Real Estate Brokerage in Newnan, GA

lawn of a Newnan area abandoned house.You can spot them right away by the "natural" look of the lawn. As the beautiful wildflowers appear where there was once green grass, it becomes very apparent that something about this property has changed.

It is neither motivated by the embracing of the notion of "going green" and getting back to nature nor by a desire to save the planet. Rather, it is the after effect mandated by a true lack of the "green" that is necessary to maintain a mortgage, let alone a manicured lawn.

There is a "twilight zone" of time that occurs between the time a house is abandoned, and the time it appears back on the market as an REO property or HUD home. It's the time when everyone asks the question "what the heck is going on over there?"

Some attempt to penetrate the depths of the bowels of giant corporate banks in a futile attempt to extract what little flecks of information they can mine from that unseemly underworld of chaos and confusion.

Others prefer to wait and let nature run its course.

After all, no one in their right mind would just let a house sit there are decay, would they?

Photo The lawn of an abandoned house in the Newnan Georgia area.

All content, including text, original art, photographs and images, is the exclusive property of Coweta Fayette Real Estate, Inc., and may not be used without the expressed written permission of Coweta Fayette Real Estate of ERA United Realty Newnan Georgia. All information is believed to be accurate but is not warranted, Copyright 2003-2009. Richard Weisser 770-827-6225.
Learn more about Coweta County and Fayette County Georgia Real Estate, and to search the entire Georgia MLS for free with no registration required visit CowetaFayetteRealEstate.com! Photos of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Get the latest GA Foreclosure List Updated Daily! We Do HUD bids in Georgia! 770-827-6225

DIRECT versus GUARANTEED Income limits for USDA Rural Housing Loans

08-13-09
Jeff Wilmoth
Jeff Wilmoth: Loan Officer in Newnan, GA


Ok, so I’m having a conversation with a Loan Officer for another mortgage company yesterday and I get this idea that maybe I should help our community by providing a better understanding regarding some of the “do’s and dont's" surrounding the USDA Rural Development Loan. 

During this phone conversation, I quickly realized that the scenario provided was based on a misunderstanding of the difference between DIRECT versus GUARANTEED Income limits. DIRECT USDA Loans are loans that are entirely underwritten directly at the local USDA office, similar to going to the DMV in terms of service. The DIRECT USDA Loans are generally reserved for very low income borrowers. GUARANTEED USDA loans are typically underwritten by direct lenders with a “second look”/underwriting review from the local USDA service center. That’s the abbreviated explanation between DIRECT versus GUARANTEED USDA Loans. There’s more to it, but an entirely different discussion…
The USDA Guaranteed Rural Housing (GRH) Program offers greater flexibility for your clients in terms of income limits. The new 2009 income limits for the USDA Guaranteed Rural Housing (GRH) Program offers an easy to understand 2 tier system. The 1st tier provides an income limit for household sizes of 1-4 persons and the 2nd tier provides an income limit for household sizes of 5-8 persons.
Here are the Base Income Limits for all non-high cost counties:
1-4 Person                           5-8 Person
 $73,600                                $97,150
So, regardless of whether we have a buyer purchasing a home in a high-cost (metro areas) or non-high cost county (“the sticks”), the benefit here is that all 1-4 person households would qualify based on the 4 person limit and all 5-8 person households would qualify based on the 8 person limit.
 
Wait a minute, it gets better…
For those serving markets located within high-cost counties of Georgia, such as Coweta, Spalding, Fulton, Carroll, Heard, Henry and even Pike County, to name a few, we have the Maximum Adjusted Income Limits.  Because those counties mentioned are considered part of the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta Metropolitan Statistical Area, the income limits are increased to allow for the higher cost of living. A Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) is generally a county or group of counties with a combined population of at least 50,000.  In addition, adjacent counties are included in a metro area according to commuting patterns.
The Maximum Adjusted Income Limits for counties included in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta Metropolitan Statistical Area (high-cost counties) are…
1-4 Person                           5-8 Person
 $82,450                               $108,850
So, depending on the buyer’s debt ratios, with those income limits you can buy a lot of home in Metro Atlanta! 
Knowing that most of us are control freaks, I’m sure many may assume that everything is dead if your buyer’s annual income exceeds the maximum income limits. However, there are a few ways to help those whose annual income may exceed the maximum limits. For example, for each resident of the household that is under 18 Years Old, Disabled or a Full Time Student, there is a $480 deduction to the annual income. In addition, the program allows for adjustments regarding various child care expenses.  The most important factor regarding whether or not your buyer qualifies is that you should not assume anything and rely on the experts. By allowing the loan officer to “spend some quality time” with your buyer, you are increasing your odds of a much smoother transaction. 
Also, unlike other home loan programs, there are no loan limits with the USDA Guaranteed Rural Housing (GRH) Program. Please share this information with your fellow Realtors and Builders!
Hope this helps…