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Most Home Buyers Have No Regrets

09-03-10
Guy Adams


A study from Bankrate found that 90 percent of owners do not regret buying their home.

The findings also revealed improved mortgage awareness, with only 8 percent of home owners in the dark about what type of loan they have -- down from 26 percent two years ago.

The poll of 1,001 randomly selected home owners in August showed that 79 percent had fixed-rate financing, and this type of mortgage was used by almost 90 percent of respondents who make more than $75,000.

Source: Realty Times, Broderick Perkins (09/02/10)

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Michigan: Free Land in Exchange for Jobs

09-03-10
Guy Adams


Michigan’s Muskegon County, on the banks of Lake Michigan, is fighting its 14.9 percent unemployment rate by offering free land to companies that will guarantee 25 or more full-time jobs at one of two industrial parks.

Besides land, companies that locate in the parks will pay no property taxes until 2012 and receive discounts on water and other utilities for three years.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, A.D. Pruitt (09/01/2010)

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Investment Property: Four Considerations

09-03-10
Guy Adams


Real estate entrepreneur Ryan Moeller offers these four tips for anyone considering a consumer real estate investment:

1. Don’t count on appreciation. Appreciation is a bonus.

2. Watch the loan-to-value ratio. Ideally, the total cost of the purchase, fees, and repairs should be no more than 70 percent of the appraised value of property in good condition.

3. Maximize annual return. Aim for properties that can be rented for at least 1.5 percent to 3 percent of the purchase price. For example, plan to pay no more than $50,000 for a property that can be rented for $750 per month.

4. Have an exit strategy. Seek properties that are attractive enough to have value no matter what happens to the market – as rentals, for sale to other investors, or for sale to somebody who plans to live there via conventional financing or lease purchase.

Source: BiggerPockets.com, Ryan Moeller (09/01/2010)

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HUD: Communities Get First Look at Properties

09-03-10
Guy Adams


State and local governments and nonprofit organizations will get a jump on investors as part of a new program announced Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan.

The National First Look Program is a partnership between lenders and communities to encourage neighborhood stabilization by giving public entities and community organizations the right of first refusal on properties that are likely candidates for renovation as affordable housing or targets for demolition to make way for new low-cost housing.

“This agreement helps us level the playing field to give communities a better chance to stabilize these neighborhoods,” Donovan says.

The First Look opportunity will last five to 12 business days. After that the financial institution will sell the home on the open market. Participating lenders represent 75 percent of the mortgage service companies, including Bank of America and Wells Fargo.

Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (09/01/2010)

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Fed Governor: Turn REOs into Rentals

09-03-10
Guy Adams


Federal Reserve Governor Elizabeth Duke, speaking at a conference on vacant housing, called for more alternatives for the disposal of REO properties besides traditional homeownership.

She advocated considering increased rental housing, lease-purchase deals, and converting foreclosed owners to renters.

"Homeownership, long promoted by federal policy and facilitated by local housing organizations, cannot and should not be the only alternative to REO properties," Duke said. "Even in the best of times, homeownership limits mobility in the labor market."

Source: Reuters News (09/01/2010)

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