Jerry LaRose, ABR, GRI, e-PRO, CLHMS Winter Garden FLorida, Orlando, Windermere FL Real Estate

As you may know, the January 29^th 2008 Presidential Primary election Voters said ‘Yes on 1' Property Tax Amendment 1, Which lowers property taxes statewide. The property tax amendment allows buyers to take their Save Our Homes tax savings with them when they move. One of these changes allows homestead property owners to transfer up to $500,000 of their Save-Our-Homes benefits to their next homestead.

What is Portability?

• Portability

The ability to transfer the benefit of the homestead property assessment limitation (defined in FS 193.155) described as the dollar value difference between market value and assessed value, or a percentage thereof, from an existing homestead to a newly homesteaded property.

MARKET VALUE(MINUS) ASSESSED VALUE = PORTABLE AMOUNT

You can visit my Website at JerrySellsOrlando.com to view what it means to you. Click on: Property Tax Amendment. You can also use the Portability Calculator to determine your current Save-Our-Homes portability dollar amount, how the dollar amount is transferred to a new homestead, and the estimated tax dollar savings that may occur. I also have a link to the: Orange County Property Appraiser Homestead Portability Calculator.Call Jerry for your Real Estate Needs 407-580-7011, JerrySellsOrlando.com

Are you in the market for a Central Florida home for sale? Or are you looking for a Central Florida real estate agent, Orlando Realtor to sell your home?

Central Florida Real Estate Specialist and sell 1 home every 3 weeks. Will yours be next?

Buyers - Free MLS Search and Area Information
Sellers - Free Home Value Report and Marketing Proposal
Please Visit Our Website
JerrySellsOrlando.com

Or call us 407-580-7011


We sell Single Family Homes, Holiday Vacation Villas, Luxury Estates, Land, Commercial Property, Hotels, Condominiums, Retail Sites, Office Buildings, New Home Construction, Lofts, Retirement Communities, Executive homes, Custom Home Builders, Master Planned Developments, Gated Community Residences, Golf Course Resort Homes, Re-sales, and Investment Properties.

We serve Buyers, Sellers and Investors. Our clients are local residents, relocating families, retiring persons, UK British visitors, International and second home owners.

We provide Multiple Listing Service MLS listings, Free opinions of value and market valuations for sellers and Free property search reports for buyers.

Areas - Communities

Central Florida, Greater Orlando, the Walt Disney World Area, Apopka, Windermere FL , Davenport, Orange County Fl. Orlando, Apopka, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, Davenport, Winter Park, Lake Mary, Altamonte Springs, Longwood, Montverd,e Ocoee, Oviedo, Dr. Phillips, Metrowest Celebration, Disney World Area, Keene's Pointe, Isleworth, Lake Butler Sound, Stoneybrook, StoneyBrook West, Bella Collina, Alaqua Lakes Reunion, Summerport, and More!

About Jerry:

Member:

ABR - Accredited Buyers Representative

GRI - Graduate of the Realtors Institute

e-PRO - Certified Internet Professional

CLHMS - Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist

ORRA (Orlando Regional Realtors Association)

FAR (Florida Association of Realtors)

NAR (National Association of Realtors)

Until l993, mortgage lenders had traditionally relied on underwriters to determine if a borrower was worthy of a mortgage loan. The underwriter would mail out employment and bank verifications, order a credit report and review each piece of information when it was received. The underwriter or loan committee would meet to determine if the borrower met the guidelines established for the type of loan he was applying for. This process would often take weeks or even months to gather the information and make an underwriting decision. In today's fast paced market, lenders want to be able to make decisions within 24 hours, if possible. So lenders have had to change the way mortgage loans are underwritten.

One of the first changes made to speed up the underwriting process was to accept verifications of employment through pay stubs, rather than written verifications through the U.S. mail. Likewise, bank statements have replaced the need for written bank verifications. Court papers and canceled checks are often used as proof of additional income sources such as child support or alimony. Next, credit reports started coming with credit scores.

Credit scoring is an numeric way of weighing various financial factors, like income, debts, job history, credit history, and other factors, which can help predict the likelihood of the borrower defaulting on the mortgage. While there are a number of credit scoring models used, most lenders seem to use the Fair, Isaac & Co. (FICO) score that ranges from 450 to 900. The lower the score the higher the risk. Credit scoring is now part of the credit report that the lender gets when a borrower applies for a mortgage.

The formula for the Fair Isaac creditworthiness score deals only with financial information about a borrower and doesn't consider such factors as place of residence, age, race, sex or nationality. The score is developed by giving weight to the following areas: Record of timely payments on loans-35%, the amount and type of outstanding debt-30%, length of credit history-15%, the mix of credit accounts-credit cards, department stores, finance companies, bank loans-10%, number and types of accounts opened recently-10%.

While the credit scores have some merit, there are different systems of scoring and the borrower may actually have three different credit scores at the three major credit bureaus. This is why FNMA recommends that lenders obtain credit scores from two of the three major credit bureaus and compare the scores. The lower score is used when only two scores are obtained. The middle score is used if all three credit bureaus are used.

While the credit score is only a tool to help lenders determine their risk, FNMA conducted tests on one million loans and found that one in eight borrowers with a FICO score below 600 were either severely delinquent or in default. On the other hand, borrowers who had a FICO score of 800, only one in 1300 borrowers were severely delinquent or in default.

While individual lenders are allowed to set up their own requirements for credit scores and there are no established guidelines, most lenders seem to generally agree on the following grading system:

CREDIT SCORE RATING

760-850 A++ This category is reserved for superior financing options such as 125% loans.

700-759 A+ This category is reserved for 100%, 103% & 107% conventional financing.

660-699 A This category entitles borrower to the "prime interest rate".

620-659 A- This category is where "subprime loans" may begin, depending on all facts.

580-619 B This area is definitely "subprime", the lower the score, the higher the rate.

579 & below C-D This is the lowest category that most "subprime lenders" offer mortgages.

When a borrower's credit is in the "A" range they are entitled to the going rate on 30 year fixed rate mortgages and high ratio loans such as 95% conventional loans. If their credit scores are in the A+ or A++ categories, they may be entitled to even higher ratio loans, such as 100%, 103% or 107%, which requires less cash outlay. "A-" borrower's pay .5%-1.0% interest more than the going rate for 30 year fixed rate mortgages. "B" borrower's pay 1.0%-2.0% more than the going rate for 30 year fixed mortgages. "C" borrower's pay 2.0%-3.0% more than "A" borrowers and so on.

As you may know, the January 29^th 2008 Presidential Primary election Voters said

‘Yes on 1' Property Tax Amendment 1, Which lowers property taxes statewide. The property tax amendment allows buyers to take their Save Our Homes tax savings with them when they move. One of these changes allows homestead property owners to transfer up to $500,000 of their Save-Our-Homes benefits to their next homestead.

You can visit the Orange County Property Appraiser Website at: http://www.ocpafl.org/

to view a powerpoint presentation on the Portability and click on the Portability Calculator to determine your portability and tax amount.

To view full story CLICK HERE