About Barry County, MI

A few months ago I was traveling in the area of Dowling, Michigan which is North of Battle Creek, in Barry County. It is mostly a rural area, and I was heading up there to show a house and check on a listing I had in the area as well. It was one of those days when I was ahead of schedule, and I drove past this fence alongside the road, and standing there on the fence was this vulture.

I thought to myself 'Well, that is something you do not see everyday. Might make a nice shot for the blog.' So I turned around and crept back down the road, and took some photos.

He did not seem to like having his picture taken, and soon took off. Vultures are very large birds, and have an impressive wing span. This bird really looked like he did not have any predators that he was concerned about hunting him.

Anyway, I thought it was interesting enough to include here. It is not often that I get a chance to get an up close shot of one of these birds. I know, some people look at this bird and say 'Ewwwwwww'. However, you have to admit, the red contrast against the black is unique. However, I suppose it is a face only a mother vulture could love...

A Qualified Mortgage Consultant Can Outline Your Options

Renters Have Much to Gain by Pursuing Home Ownership

By Anthony Mosley, Loan Originator NMLS#130260
Van Dyk Mortgage Corporation

– Buying a home vs. renting is a big decision that takes careful consideration, as most mortgage consultants will agree. But the rewards of home ownership are great. For many years, purchasing real estate has been considered an extremely profitable investment. It is an achievement that offers a sense of pride, financial stability and potential tax advantages.

Yes, there are certain responsibilities associated with owning a home. Landlords will often argue the benefits of renting, and for obvious reason. If you are renting, you’re helping them make their mortgage payment.

The numbers are staggering if you look at it this way. If you are paying $1,000 per month for an apartment, and you know your rent will increase 5% every year, then over the next five years you will pay your landlord $66,309. If you are currently renting a house, you may be paying much more than that each month. Either way, you gain no equity by shelling out this monthly housing expense and you certainly won’t benefit when the property value goes up!

However, if you were to purchase your own home or condominium, you would be on your way toward building equity. By choosing a fixed-rate loan program, you can have the comfort of knowing that your monthly mortgage payment will never go up. In fact, you would have the option of refinancing to a lower interest rate at some point in the future should interest rates drop lower than the rate you’d currently be locked in at, and this would cause your monthly mortgage commitment to go down.

And not only would your own home give you added space, your own back yard and overall privacy—home ownership would also give you some tax advantages. Depending on your tax bracket, owning a home is often less expensive than renting after taxes. Interest payments on a mortgage below $1 million are tax-deductible, and your mortgage consultant should help you evaluate the tax advantages of various loan scenarios, and share this information with your tax consultant to glean feedback on your behalf.

To find the loan program that is right for you, your mortgage consultant will need to evaluate your monthly household income, current assets and savings, as well as any monthly obligations you may have for credit card payments, car payments, child support, etc. These prequalification factors, along with the report of your credit score, will determine how much house you can afford and what interest rate you will pay for financing. It is also important to let your mortgage consultant know what your future goals are, because this will help narrow down which loan option is the best fit for your long-term needs.

There are many different types of loan programs available, including "low"
down payment mortgage programs. The most common and beneficial loan for
people buying their first home is the FHA loan, which only requires a 3.5%
down payment. In addition, FHA allows a seller to cover up to 6% of a
buyer's closing costs which really helps decrease the amount of money it
takes to buy a home. Many people also don't know that FHA allows the lowest
credit scores of any loan available today, only needing a 620 score in
most cases.

If there is any time to buy it is NOW! Why? Because home prices are low today. Low home values are surely not good for people selling homes but they are great news for people wanting to buy a home. Don't miss this opportunity to take advantage of the current market before home values rise.

See your options now! http://www.anthonyhomeloan.com/Default.aspx

In February I was traveling back from an appointment in Barry County, just north of Battle Creek, and I spotted some wild turkey in a field.  I turned around on the road I was on, and went back and took this video that I posted below. 

I find that as I travel around Southwest Michigan as a Realtor, I come across a lot of different wildlife at times, but wild turkeys always facinate me.  Perhaps it is because they appear more elusive than other birds and animals. 

So I edited this video a little last night, and posted it on my YouTube channel to share with the world.  I also included a still of another turkey I photographed about a year ago as the opening segment in the video.  I hope you enjoy it.  It is very short.

Turkey anyone?

Should your property tax be a tax relief item?

For most of us the ability to write-off our property tax payments on our income tax filing is very important. What isn't part of the discussion is the impact of the proposal to eliminate the housing property tax write-off, some are saying it could save the economy.

I tend to read and listen to as much information concerning our future as possible. One of my media imputs, without a plug, is my XM Radio. I can listen between appointments, change to various news media outlets and get a more well rounded spin on the propaganda!

The currently proposed elimination of this deduction is for those with a million dollars or more in taxable value. That takes 99% of the American Tax Payers out of the discussion, from losing the deduction.

If the debate runs true to form, those not affected will let the issue become an obscure discussion in a corner. Not being affected is less than an accurate assessment. So wondering what the outcome will be, since it will have little perceived impact on their life, may or may not happen.

The real issue is where will the cost be shifted? If wealthy people have to pay more in one place they increase income (charge more) in another place to make up for the expense. So when you look at the discussions of only charging the wealthiest Americans an increased tax do you really think it will come from their pockets?

I am not being cynical but realistic. These are smoke screens...tax shifts or should I say revenue shifts. It didn't take long for the health care providers to see that the health care bill was going to increase costs for them and starting making fiscal adjustments to "shift" cost burden to the consumer.

It didn't take long for employers to see that by eliminating their health care for employees and pay a fine it would lower their business expense.

It was reported the elimination of this tax write-off could generate nearly a trillion dollars. The words, " could generate" is another foggy distant way of getting those not affected on board with the proposal as good for America.

Until we have something, as "Nancy Polosi" said so eloquaintly, "you'll have to pass the bill to read it" we are in a wait and see mode.

Keep an eye open for the tax code changes it may affect you more than you think!