Christopher Pagli - REALTOR/ABR

Below Is A Letter I sent To The Members Of My Real Estate Group On Facebook. If You Are On Facebook, Search For The Group Westchester, NY, Real Estate Updates And Info. Feel Free To Join And Enjoy The Very Useful Information I post.



I want to wish everybody a happy and safe new year. I also want to thank everybody for supporting the group. Hopefully you are finding the info and updates useful. My goal is to pass on only the most pertinent information rather then repeat the sensationalism from the media and fill you inbox with negativity. You will always get the real deal here.

The new year should be very interesting, now that many plans to revive the economy are starting to take effect. In 2008 we saw alot of new, safe mortgage programs develop to help those "under water" and new buyers. The lending guidelines have changed drastically and the banks are looking for excellant credit scores, large down payments, and healthy reserves in the bank (to name a few). The underwriters are looking more closley at files which can delay the process but for good reason. The banks are investing in the purchasers ability to repay a loan, now more then ever they want to make wise investments.

The "First Time Home Buyers Credit" will be in place until July 1009 (if you missed the post, scroll through the group page), The Jumbo loan limits are going to reset to $625,000 for Westchester County beginning Jan 1, 2009, and interest rates are at lows we haven't seen since the early 90's. Westchester is also seeing some stabilization with pricing and sales. Although sales are still down compared to last year they have gone up each quarter since January 2008. Even on a national level, areas like Florida, Nevada, and California are staring to see some of their inventory shrink. This is due to the fact that prices have dropped so much that many buyers can afford to enter the market again.

Thankfully Westchester is generally a high cost area. We haven't been in the slump as long as the rest of the country, so we should see a rebound much quicker then the rest.

I'm staying positive in these times as should you. The media has shed so much negativity over the past year and I want you to know that there is hope and deals are still being made.

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any and all of your real estate needs. I'm always available if you know anybody looking to buy, sell, or just have a question.

Sincerely,

Christopher Pagli

Associate Broker

Legends Realty Group

914.406.9023

For all that don't know, a Jumbo loan is a loan that is larger then the regular conforming loan limit of $417,000. Fannie and Freddie raised the amount to help stimulate buying activity. Jumbo rates are traditionally 1% higher then regular loans. For anybody needing a loan hire then $417,000 they would have to get a second loan usually at a hire rate. Since Westchester is a high cost area the loan limit will reset from $729,500 to $625,000 as of Jan 1 (read below) This is still good and it changes from state to state and market to market. Hope this helps.

The deadline for getting what is known as a conforming jumbo loan is closing. As of Jan. 1, the maximum for loans that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are willing to buy will decline from $729,750 to $625,500 in the nation's priciest areas.

Also, beginning Jan. 1, underwriting standards for these loans will rise, requiring that most buyers put down 20 percent and have a debt-to-income ratio as low as 30 percent, according to the trade publication Inside Mortgage Finance.

Observers say this makes it more likely that home prices in these upper ranges will fall, pushing down prices for less-costly properties in the process.

The Real Estate Bubble has Burst...Mortgage Meltdown...Home Sales Thud to Five-Year Low! These are the dramatic headlines that dominate the national conversations about the housing market, but what does all of this mean for the first-time homebuyer?

The reality is that housing sales have slowed across the country, but the interest rates remain historically low -- 6.35 percent doesn't look bad compared to the 10 percent we saw in the early '90s and 17 percent in the '80s. The combination of these two factors can easily translate into great opportunities for first time homebuyers to maximize their purchase power by taking advantage of the changing market conditions.

The shifting market provides buyers with broader housing inventory to choose from as well as the opportunity to do more due diligence before making a final purchase decision. There is also increased opportunity to negotiate with both motivated sellers and new construction developers. With low interest rates buyers are able to leverage significant borrowing power to find a home that meets their needs while maintaining or in some cases reducing monthly housing costs and positioning themselves well for future wealth building.

There are some key factors to consider when deciding if it's the right time to make the commitment to home ownership:

Compare current monthly spending on rent with the costs of owning. This is a valuable exercise that can make the decision-making process a more logical one. When making the rent vs. buy calculations make sure to take into account the principle reduction you will experience in a fix rate amortizing loan as well as the immediate and long term tax benefits of home ownership. Engaging an experienced lender in your market can also be a significant asset in this phase. The lenders expertise will assist first-time homebuyers in uncovering potential resources and assets that facilitate the home buying process.

Look at local market trends rather than national trends. Median home sales in your area could range from $141,510 in Memphis, Tenn. to $825,100 in San Francisco, Calif. and the supply and demand ratio will vary just as drastically. When tracking the market, you'll need to look at the local sales trends and average pricing to determine what is happening, and what you can afford. Although a significant amount of information is available through the Internet, this is the stage where a Realtor in your area can provide great insight about the market conditions. It is important to identify an agent that is experienced with the areas where you are focusing the search.

Research the Community Based Lending Programs and First-Time Homebuyer Programs available in your market. Some programs offer 100 percent financing, below market interest rates or down payment/closing cost assistance. Many of the programs only require attendance at a home buying seminar, so six hours on a Saturday could save you thousands on mortgage expenses. These programs are often locally based and another area where a local real estate agent and lender can be of assistance.

Decide how long you plan to stay in the home and look at appreciation in your market. The key in all of this is to have a long term perspective. The days of homes values doubling or tripling in a few years are gone, but those who buy well located quality property with a three to seven year time horizon (depending on the market) are bound to continue to realize the significant benefits of home ownership.

Ultimately the decision on whether to stop renting and make the move to home ownership should be made based on personal finances and local market conditions. Engaging a talented team of real estate professionals will allow first-time home buyers to navigate the home buying process and be better positioned to take advantage of the market shifts that can create long-term benefits to buyers.

When people need to know something, where do they go? Right. The Internet. And more specifically, they go to the search engines. In fact, overall, a whopping 85% say they find websites via search engines, according to SEO News and 82% of all homeowners look to the Internet according to NAR. Everyone is hooked up to the Internet in some way or another.

Pay or Play
There are two ways to be seen on the major search engines. Many business owners are using "sponsored links" or "pay-per-click" to buy their way to the top of the search engines. However a recent study at Penn State shows that consumers use the "pay-per-click" only 15.8 percent of the time. So here's your question of the day . . . can you afford not to have 84.2 percent of the market? And if you don't have a website at all, can you afford not to even be in the game?

Bet on "Bots"
How do search engines work? They index your website by sending out "bots" (short for "robots") to search the Internet for websites. Once they find a website, they examine the content on each page and record all the text and where it was found on the page. They then follow each link on your website and record all that data and where it was found as well. All this data is stored on enormous servers that compile it in complex mathematical algorithms that allow it to decide what will be relevant when a search is made.

Are You Relevant?
Here's the important part. When your prospect types in a search into the search engine, that search engine looks throughout it's database for the most relevant pages and/or sites. Your website's rankings are based upon how relevant the search engine thinks you are to the person's search. So the question is, how can we make this more than a guessing game?

So How's It Work?
Ugh! Advanced SEO takes days to do properly, but it can be summarized into what I would call the standard seven major steps:

1. Keyword Phrase Research
You can do everything else with regard to SEO properly, but if you have the wrong keyword phrases, I'm afraid that it is all for naught. Optimizing for the best keyword phrases is the most important aspect of SEO. Keyword phrases are those phrases that your prospect types into the search engine. Maybe they are looking for "luxury homes in Denver" or "Miami short sales". There are sophisticated tools that exist, but a good free tool can be used from Google at https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal.

2. What's Your Title?
Of everything that you do to your website, the Title code is one of the most important things. However more than this, the search engines count these words with extra credit in their algorithms. You may use something like Selling Luxury Homes and Condos in Denver, Cherry Hills and Littleton. Google will read up to 66 - 69 characters and Yahoo will read up to 110 - 120. The search engines will mix and match these words in various order.

3. Describe Your Website
Another very important part of your website is the description meta tag. By placing your keyword phrases here, you are further helping the search engine know what your website is all about. Description meta tags (and Title meta tags for that matter) should be found on each page of your website. But here's a caution: don't buy into template websites that automatically stuff the same title and description into every page.

4. Content is King
In SEO, content is king since that is how the search engines know what your site is all about. So this is where you will want to place those excellent keyword phrases that you have found. Search engines will penalize you for "stuffing" your keyword phrases and viewers will find it odd to read. A good rule of thumb is to use one keyword phrase for every 200 to 300 words in your text. Make sure the text reads normally and flows well.

5. Chapters Beget Sub-Topics
Just as a book has chapters and sub-topics, so too should a website have main headings and sub-headings. Just like your title, the search engines give extra credit to these areas as they describe in more detail what the page is all about. The "heading" tag is called an H1 tag and a series of sub-headings are called H2 tags. The use of heading and sub-headings also helps your viewer read your content easily, making more sense out of it and making them stay longer.

6. Oh Say I Can't See
You may have been told that search engines can't read graphics, java script or multimedia slide shows and that is true. However there is a bit of code called ALT tags (Alternative Text Tags) that will tell the search engine's "bot" what this photo represents. Normally if you hover your mouse over a graphic, you should get a text box that pops up with a description. This can also be used to place a small piece of your keyword phrases. Be careful not to over use this by writing paragraphs.

7. Links, Links and More Links
If you have a link in your website, the "bots" will follow it. So let's learn about what kind of links are valuable to driving your website higher in the search engines.

a. Internal Links and Site Maps
You should love internal links as they are the easiest way to increase your Page Rank (Google's way of calling you important). Page Rank is counted by the number and quality of links that come to your website. However internal links from let's say your Testimonial Page back to your Home Page actually counts as an inbound link as it is coming into the Home Page from another page.

b. Outbound Links
A new algorithm change has been that of outbound links. But not to any other website but to highly reputable websites such as .edu sites (colleges and universities) and .gov sites (government).

c. Inbound Links
When someone else links their website to yours, it is called an inbound link. Search engines like to see others who value your website so much that they link to your website. More importantly, reputable websites that link to yours give you even more ranking power. Be careful of "link farms" or some who promise you the moon if you do a "link exchange" with them.

Remember that you are up against stiff competition, and when you do a search on the Internet, those websites that come up first did not get there by chance. These concepts will get you in the game. Get your feet wet. If you find that you still don't have the results that you desire, then it's time to go to the next level. It's time to stop getting your Formula One race car tuned by your local garage mechanic and get into the race with a well qualified Formula One racing team that can lead you to the checkered flag