Are you looking for Stillwater homes for sale? Recent MLS statistics show that transactions are up significantly over last year. Whether you are a Minnesota first time home buyer, moving up from a previous home or an investor, today is a great time to be looking for a home in Stillwater. With a combination of record low interest rates and reduced property values, housing payments haven’t been this affordable in decades. You will want to understand the 3 basic types of properties listed for sale.

Foreclosures in Stillwater

Foreclosures often represent a great value for today’s home buyer. When a bank owns the home they want to sell it quickly as they are responsible for maintenance, utilities, and property taxes There is a lot of competition from home buyers today when a foreclosure comes up for sale at a good value. It is not uncommon to see multiple offers on a Stillwater foreclosure, sometimes driving the price above the list price.

Short Sales in Stillwater

Short sales can be a good opportunity for home buyers who do not need to move within the next 6 months or so. When a seller has a home on the market as a short sale, this means they will not be able to pay off the entire loan they have on it when they sell the home. This means that after they receive your offer you will need to wait while the seller negotiates with their bank to forgive a substantial part of their debt.

Traditional sales from a home seller represent at least half of the homes on the market today. These properties are often great values in part because there has been a property owner there to take care of any the necessary maintenance on the home. A traditional home seller will tend to be more apt to pay all of your closing costs as well. If you are looking for a well-maintained home where you can move in quickly with great financing terms, a traditional home sale is the way to go.

Stillwater Community Info

Stillwater, MN is located in Washington County and is a pleasant twenty minute commute from St. Paul. Tucked in by the St. Croix River Stillwater is often referred to as the birthplace of Minnesota. While traditionally a popular day-trip destination to enjoy its historic features, there has also been growth in new housing on the outskirts of the city in recent decades. Whether you are looking for an older home or new, Stillwater is a great place to consider home. If you want to learn more about buying Stillwater please call me to start your search.

Get Preapproved Today

The first step in the home buying process is to get preapproved for mortgage financing. This means that you meet with a local mortgage lender who will review your financial situation. In this discussion they can tell you what types of MN first time buyer programs you might be qualified for. This critical first part can be done over the phone and most lenders will arrange to talk with you when you're off work, even in the evenings or weekends.

Casey Anderson
Sales Executive, Licensed Realtor in Minnesota
IBR Realty
caseyanderson@ibrrealty.com
Cell 651-245-1820
Woodbury, MN 55125
With a focus on Woodbury real estate and surrounding communities.

First Time Homebuyer Real Estate Stillwater MN

Home Sales Statistics Stillwater MN 2011

One increasingly common mortgage option in Stillwater for home buyers is available through lenders who offer loans guaranteed by the Veteran's Administration. This type of financing has increased nationally by about 20% over the last couple of years due in part to the increasing number of our veterans returning from the service. Additionally with the loss of other options for zero down payment loans in Minnesota, the VA offers a benefit that offers eligible buyers a unique opportunity to buy their home with no down payment.

Many veteran home buyers misunderstand the fact that they may use their VA financing benefit multiple times. As a result veterans do not necessarily need to be a first time buyer in order to use their VA benefit. This can be a perfect solution for veteran's who own homes and who want to sell their existing home to buy another but who don't have a lot of equity in their home. Since Minnesota VA loans do not require a down payment they can sometimes afford to sell their home without receiving any proceeds from equity in order to buy the next.

Stillwater Veterans First Step: Determine Your Eligibility

Veterans must determine two things to see if they will be eligible for a VA mortgage. First they ought to see if they will be eligible for a Certificate of Eligibility through the VA. They can apply for the Certificate online or through their mortgage lender. There are several categories for eligibility and I encourage veterans to check with the VA or to research their eligibility online

While VA mortgages require no down payment, there still are closing costs in Minnesota which the veteran is responsible for. To address this issue, the VA allows the buyer to negotiate with the seller to pay up to 4 per cent of the purchase price towards their closing costs. This is an extremely common strategy used to buy Stillwater real estate today and most sellers have been prepared to pay these costs as long as they can arrive at the net sales price they need in order to sell the home.

Are You Eligible for a VA Loan? Get Preapproved!

The second thing a veteran must determine is if they qualify for mortgage financing. I encourage all Minnesota veterans to get preapproved for MN VA loans before we go out shopping for Stillwater homes. When you go through the preapproval process the banker will review your financial scenario to determine if you meet the requirements for a VA loan. This critical first step is usually done at no charge and can be done within a few days. In fact many MN VA lenders will do this right over the phone.

Community Info About Stillwater

Stillwater, MN is located in Washington County and is a relaxing commute from Saint Paul. Situated within the St. Croix River bluffs, Stillwater, MN is commonly referred to as Minnesota's birthplace. While many folks make a day-trip here to enjoy its historic features, there has also been growth in new housing on the outskirts of the city in recent decades. Whether you are looking for an older home or new, you will find Stillwater, MN a great place to call home. If you want to learn more about buying Stillwater please call me to start your search.

If you want to buy a home in Stillwater using VA financing please just give me a call. Whether you currently own a Stillwater home or are looking to buy your first home, Stillwater VA loans are a great way to buy a home in today’s market. With rates at record lows combined with lower property values many veterans have found that it is cheaper to buy than to rent!

Casey Anderson
Sales Executive, Licensed Realtor in Minnesota
IBR Realty
caseyanderson@ibrrealty.com
Cell 651-245-1820
Woodbury, MN 55125
With a focus on Woodbury real estate and surrounding communities.

Stillwater Rental Homes: Should I Rent Or Buy A Home?

If you are looking for Stillwater rental homes, pause for a couple of minutes and consider the difference in renting homes versus buying one. Since it is more expensive today to rent homes than to buy one isn’t it at least worth it to consider saving some money by buying Minnesota real estate?

Stillwater rental homes, of course, typically have the advantage that you can get be released of a lease arrangement in about one year's time. I want you to remember that this advantage comes at a cost, however, , in that your rent payments will often times exceed those of a house payment. In addition, the security deposit for the rental may actually be more than the entry cost required for buying a home when considering all of the down payment assistance programs available for MN first time home buyers. Finally, perhaps the real cost in renting a homes is the fact that you are helping someone else buy their home with your rent payments helping to make the payments of your landlord.

Benefits To Stillwater Rental Stillwater

Still, the advantages of renting may be worth it to rent if you are planning on moving again to a different city at the end of your lease. I tend to think that if you buy a home today you should plan on staying in it for a few years while the market develops.

Benefits To Buying Stillwater homes for the First Time Home Buyer

With all of the programs available to the MN first time home buyer today, it is hard to know where to start in terms of listing the benefits. The State of Minnesota now offers special loan programs through its Minnesota Housing Finance Agency to offer reduced interest rates as well as down payment assistance. Additionally many communities today offer additional down payment assistance loans or grants that both reduce what you need for cash to close as well as reducing your monthly payment.

First Step: Get Preapproved

The first step in the home buying process s to get preapproved for your home loan. This simply means that you talk with a local lender who will review your financial situation. In doing so they can tell you what types of Minnesota first time buyer programs you might be qualified for. This first step can usually be done right over the telephone and most lenders will arrange to talk with you when you're off work, even in the evenings or weekends.

Stillwater, MN

Stillwater, Minnesota is the county seat of Washington County and is a nice 20-25 minute commute from Saint Paul. Tucked in by the St. Croix River Stillwater is commonly referred to as the birthplace of Minnesota. While traditionally a popular day-trip destination to enjoy its historic features, there has also been a fair amount of new construction growth on the outskirts of the city in recent decades. Whether you are searching for an newer home or old, consider Stillwater a great place to call home. If you are thinking about buying Stillwater please call me to start your search.

If you have not yet thought of buying a homes I would like the opportunity to discuss with you about the benefits of both renting versus buying a home. My consultation is free and am glad to talk with you about the differences.

Casey Anderson
Sales Executive, Licensed Realtor in Minnesota
IBR Realty
caseyanderson@ibrrealty.com
Cell 651-245-1820
Woodbury, MN 55125
With a focus on Woodbury real estate and surrounding communities.