Debby Thompson- Homestead Realty REALTOR® Wisc

As I have experienced the same that the buyers are out. I have been telling my buyers, that have been waiting on the side lines, that ones the sellers know they do not have to give up as much and that their homes are being shown it will be a whole different situation. Sellers need to price their homes understanding that if they think they are going to get prices like we saw a few years ago probably not. The values have dropped and it will take a while to get back there but they will not have to keep lowering the price or giving up so much to a buyer. So if you are looking and have found something that you like you may not want to wait because it will not sit there forever like we have seen. It could be gone. So as I have been saying the buyer are back and things are heating up in Milwaukee and spring has sprung even though we are still below freezing. Check out my web site I have some good deals on homes sellers have priced to move. www.debbyrealtor.com

Why do I need a teacher to help me buy a home?

In todays market there is so much to know when you are looking for your first home. Everyone thinks it is just finding the perfect home for them. But there is a lot more to the processes. You want to work with someone that help you understand the whole processes.

Yes it is ture that you need to find what will work for you. All the normal stuff number of bedrooms and baths. What you would like in a home, attached garage, dishwasher and so on.

But do you know what type of loan you are getting? That might make a difference in what you are looking at. It is a lot harder to work backwards then knowing this up front. In today's market when of the areas that is hard to get a loan is on a condo. Many lenders are not loaning on a condo right now. So if you have spent all you energy on finding that perfect one and then to find out you can get a loan on it is heartbreaking.

What is a home inspection all about? I always tell my buyers they are working for you. You need a good inspector that will tell you about the place you are in love with. They may find something you were not aware of. In Wisconsinif we go back to the sellers with an issue at that time the seller can decided they do not want to go through with the sale. So as a buyer if you are asking for something that is small and they seller decides that this is not something they want to fix the deal can be over. So you have to think what is really important to you. They are looking for major issues. Not that a light plate in not on. Make sure you under stand this processes before you go back to the seller. Even though you have agreed on a deal this can reopen negotiate on this final deal. Did you get a good deal to begin with? A seller does not have an unlimited case resource. However if you are the seller and something has come up on the inspection report and this deal falls though then you have to disclose it on your real estate condition report.

Also in Wisconsinif you do an inspection does not mean you can do testing for radon or lead base paint. This also must be included in the offer to purchase.

This is just some of the things you need to know. When purchasing your first home make sure you work with someone that explains things to you.

Work with an agent that is also a teacher. They will help you determine who does what in the processes.

You have a lot of people involved in the transaction. So it helps tp know what their roles are and what they will be doing for you.

As the seconds ticking by and spring just around the corner is it the right time to enter the real estate market... That is the burning question on everyones mind. Will price keep dropping or are we at the bottom. Will the president save the housing market? Or will it get worse. Where oh where did I put that crystal ball to find the answer.

Yes there are deals to be had. Many of the sellers that need to sell are working with the buyers. They are paying their closing cost. Or bring their price down. The financial industry keeps making it harder for them to get loans. So at this time we all are working together to get that home sold.

You may ask why is my home not selling. I went to talk with a couple that home was in risk of foreclosure. They had really fixed up the inside of their home. New kitchen, hardwood floors updated bath. But the roof need to be replaced the basement needed major work and the garage was about to fall down. I explained to them that they had really done a nice job on their home. But a buyer would not be able to get a loan on the home with major repairs that needed to be done. So as the clock was ticking on the foreclosure they were trying to come to grips with their situation.

Homes in the Milwaukee area are even seeing more then one offer come in on a property. No one thought this was going to happen for a long time. But if it is a great home at a great price the buyer are lining up to make an offer. So is the market bad. Some may say so. I am not that sure.

So is it time to buy? That is the $1,000,000 question. Happy house hunting to all you buyers out looking.

How much money are you going to need to buy a condo?

Right now I am working with 3 buyers looking for a condo in the Milwaukee area. The have found condos they like but to get financing right now is really become the problem. If a buyer is looking for FHA financing they have to find a condo that is on their list. In Cudahy there is only one condo complex that is on the list. My lender is telling me it could take up to 90 days to get a spot approval for this condo. In the past we had WEDHA loans. However WEDHA no longer has any money.

As a first time home buyer they look to purchase a condo for cost reasons. I also have a student coming to the Milwaukee Medical College that wants to go FHA. Right now to purchase most condos you need 5% down. Lenders are telling me that they can see having to put 20% down coming soon on a condo.

Yes back in the day everyone had to put 20% down to purchase a home. Do you think that is where we are going back to? At that time they only way you could get a home with nothing down was using your GI bill.

So as the government is telling us that they want homes to sell it is getting harder by the day to get financing.

Craig A. Kramer said from Wells Fargo "Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac came out with new loan level price adjustments(LLPA). It used to be that whether your credit score was a 650, 700, or 800, everyone got the same rate and costs. Due to the recent mortgage crisis, Fannie and Freddie have now started to charge higher fees to people with credit scores under 740. I would like to give you an example,

lets assume that your loan to value is 80% and the loan amount is $200,000. If your credit score is 740 or above; you qualify for the best rate with no extra Fannie or Freddie fees. If your credit score is 720 to 739, you will now have to pay a .25 fee(equates to $500), if your score is 700 -719, you now pay .75($1500), if your score is 680 - 699 you pay 1.5%($3000), 660 - 679 you pay 2.5%($5000), and 620 - 659 you pay $6000. So, for a consumer that has a 695 credit score if they want the same rate as the person with a 740 score not only do that have to pay the same costs associated with the loan, you now have to pay an extra $3000 in delivery fees!!!!! If you can recall, late last year Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac where placed in conservator ship by the US government so basically the government is in charge. The government including all politicians want mortgage rates to drop so people can refinance to lower rates which in turn lowers their mortgage payment which than gives the consumer more money to spend to get the economy going. So, on the one hand, they want lower rates but then on the other hand new charges are added which will prevent many people from being able to refinance. This is a classic example of it sounds good in the media but in reality very few consumers are qualifying for the best rates. Now, if your score is 695 but you don't want to pay the additional $3000 in costs, you can elect to take a higher interest rate which will increase your rate by about 1% from the best rates available. Unless these fees are reduced, it is becoming more and more difficult for mortgage rates to move into the middle to low 4% range since fewer and fewer people qualify for the best terms. If we can get an announcement that these fees are going to be reduced or eliminated, we should see mortgage rates drop and a refinance boom will be upon us. So, please do not get upset with your loan officer when you see these additional fees."

WOW this is the email I got from one of my loan officers that I use. Where is this all going.

Last time I looked the money tree was picked.

Here are link to the last forth quarter data for house in the state of Wisconsin

Wisconsin housing data

You can see what is happening in all the counties through out Wisconsin. Click on the link on the area where you are looking for the information. Then the county you are wanting information on.

You will note in Milwaukee county sales of units sold have not been this low in the past 10 years. However pricing is 2004 and 2005. Our price have not fallen like the rest of the country.

You will note that Waukesha county is is also running with about the same percentage as Milwaukee.

You may ask why? Well Wisconsin does not have as big of highs and lows like other states.

Here is a press release for the Wisconsin Realtors Association

For the month of January Milwaukee Metro MLS had 5174 New listings 32038 active listings 939 sold properties and has 34.12 months of inventory.

So if you are thinking about leaping into the home market now might be a good time for you. If you are a buyers tired of sitting on the side lines waiting for something to happen. Go ahead and take the leap.