Camdenton, MO

New Conventional Mortgage rates for Residential Real Estate

March 19, 2009

SERVICE RETAINED LOANS

30 YEAR RATE 4.625% APR 4.691%

20 YEAR RATE 4.625% APR 4.716%

15 YEAR RATE 4.375% APR 4.489%

RURAL DEVELOPMENT 4.750% APR 4.817%

100% LOAN - 30 YR. FIXED

SELLER CAN PAY ALL OF BUYERS CLOSING COSTS

INCOME GUIDELINES AND 2.00% USDA GUARANTEE FEE APPLY

**NOW ACCEPTING MORTGAGE PRE-APPLICATIONS ONLY @ www.fnb-lakeozarks.com**

**Quoted rates are subject to change without notice**

**Document origination fee of $250.00 on all loans unless otherwise stated**

**Loans in excess of 80% loan value require private mortgage insurance, which will increase the

Annual Percentage Rate over the life of the loan**

Winter weather stalls real estate showings for a few days.

Aside from a few cold days here and there, the Lake of the Ozarks area has had a fairly mild winter this year.

But this week we finally got to experience some of the delightful aspects of winter with our first snowfall of any significance. Today by noon all my neighbors and myself had shoveled our drives, cleaned off our cars, and taken a few minutes to talk about the weather - wondering how many more days until Spring.

But I, for one, am really appreciating a quiet day at home catching up on so many of the chores that are left for these types of quiet days.

Before this weather pattern moved in, I had been as busy these past few weeks as I generally am during the summer months with new listings and working with motivated buyers. We can all hope that the confidence I’m experiencing - in both buyers and sellers - continues and inspires others in the several weeks to come.

(This post originally appeared on my website: www.PostcardsFromTheLake.com )

Many religions offer ceremonies for spiritually clearing homes.

Having lived in New Mexico for many years, with its convergence of so many rich cultures and traditions, I have attended a number of house-warming ceremonies in which homes were blessed and cleared of any possible negative energies.

I recalled some of those practices today in conversation with a couple who were interested in a home for sale, but who didn’t like the idea of buying a home in which the former owner had passed. They hadn’t heard of house blessings before and so I offered to research some of the customs I have witnessed, and write about them.

From what I have experienced personally, whether the ritual is conducted by a Catholic priest, some Buddhist monks, a Shaman, or the homeowners themselves (as may be encouraged by theEpiscopalian church), the essence of the ritual remains the same: utilizing a combination of prayers, candles, incense, chants or holy water; negativity and evil are driven away while a spirit of peace, happiness, protection and well-being are welcomed in.

Home blessings are are also conducted in other traditions lesser known to those of us in the Midwest: Hindus may perform a fire ritual, a Qigong Master will attempt to restore the balance of chi, and from Hawaii there remains the enduring tradition of asking God to remove all suffering, to bless the home and to insure happiness.

Of all the videos I found of house blessings and clearings, perhaps the most unusual and unexpected story came from Ohio, in which a scientist hired a new age spiritualist to find and clear negative energies from a home that simply could not seem to make it to closing. (We’ve all been in that place, I suppose, where we’re ready to try anything, as crazy as it sounds.) Reportedly, two days after the clearing, the house went under contract for $15,000 more than had ever been offered before - and it closed.

As a potential home buyer said to me this afternoon, “Even if it helps me to mentally get past the idea of someone having died in that house, a house blessing may well be worth exploring.”

First National Bank in Camdenton posts lowest rates in 37 years!

Every cloud has a silver lining, and here is the upside to our down market:

First National Bank in Camdenton has posted interest rates below 5% for fixed rate loans including USDA first-time home buyer loans. These rates are the lowest recorded since Fannie Mae began its weekly survey 37 years ago. This means that it’s a great time to consider refinancing (In addition to interest rates, it’s important also to weigh the refinancing costs and the tax impact from reducing your mortgage interest deduction.)

It also means it’s a great time to buy. Local lenders are lending even after many of the nationwide lenders have said “no”. Plus housing prices are roughly 10% less than this time 18 months ago.

Will prices and rates continue to fall? That’s the $24 question. But the problem with waiting for prices to bottom out is: one never knows where the bottom is until it’s past!

If you’re considering refinancing, or would like to talk to a lender to see how much a home you may qualify for, give me a call and I’ll be happy to send you a contact list for local banks.

(This post originally appeared at: www.postcardsfromthelake.com)

Short term real estate forecast for the Lake of the Ozarks is anyone's guess.

In a typical market, it's always easy to predict home-buying patterns in and around the Lake of the Ozarks and to advise homeowners accordingly.

Typically, at the first sign of spring, inventories will begin to swell in anticipation of the busiest season. By mid-summer, even though inventories are lower, homeowners and agents will begin to consider price reductions, as they ready their properties for the savvy end-of-season bargain hunters.

From Mid-November thru February agents would be spending more weekends at home finishing long-neglected projects, getting their records ready for tax season, and flying south to enjoy a couple weeks at their favorite beachfront resort.

That's the way it tends to go in a typical market. But this, of course, is no typical market.

I spent much of this weekend reading market forecasts throughout the US, listening to interviews of economists, and reading the discussions online between realtors. Such a wide range of expectations I found ranging from the cheerful optimists to Chicken Little's "the sky is falling!". I opened my computer this morning with no stronger a sense of what our local market will look like in a few months than I had prior.

I honestly can't say whether home prices will continue to fall, or if they will begin to stabilize.

I can't predict whether banks will be lending in April, and if so, at what interest rates.

When clients ask me, "Should I list my home now, or wait?", I have no charts and graphs (and certainly no consensus) to rely upon.

And so I'm left to simply continue doing as I always have: gathering and providing the most recent market information available for their particular property - and based on those numbers, strongly recommending they price their home competitively.

Armed with good information, and depending on their needs, my clients will decide what is best for them.

I don't believe in offering the rosiest of scenarios, or promising anything just to put another sign on a lawn for advertising. At the same time I understand well the importance of a positive and enthusiastic outlook. But it's important to balance a positive outlook with realistic expectations.

Giving my clients the best market data available pertinent to their property and situation, and then marketing it aggressively and effectively once listed, continues to be the best ways I can assist them in such uncertain times.

[This article originally appeared at: www.PostcardsFromTheLake.com ]