Portland, Oregon First Time Home Buyer Seminar
and the
$8000 Tax Credit
On December 1, 2009, the $8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit is set to cease. In order to receive this credit, the home purchase must be finalized. This means that we have roughly 90 days in order to get pre-approved, find a home and get it through underwriting. While this sounds like a lot of time, it's not.
If you are at all interested in purchaing an Portland Oregon home, and are a First Time Home Buyer, and want to take advantage of an $8000 cash refund from our government, then you need to make it to our Oregon First Time Buyer Seminar on the $8000 Tax Credit.
Scheduled over 3 consecutive Tuesday evenings, and costing just $25 for an individual or $40 for a couple, you will learn what to look for in a property, what to expect in our market, the various types of mortgages available in Oregon for First Time Home Buyers. You will receive a 'game plan" and work book to help you move forward. We will analyze your credit report and documentation and by the end of the 3 week course, you will receive a pre-approval decision letting you know how much home you can afford to purchase.
If you are a First Time Home Buyer and motivated to purchase an Oregon Home before now and December 1st, 2009, the date the $8000 Tax Credit is set to expire, you cannot afford to miss this important seminar.
Oregon First Time Home Buyer Seminar
and the
$8000 Tax Credit
On December 1, 2009, the $8000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit is set to cease. In order to receive this credit, the home purchase must be finalized. This means that we have roughly 90 days in order to get pre-approved, find a home and get it through underwriting. While this sounds like a lot of time, it's not.
If you are at all interested in purchaing an Oregon home, and are a First Time Home Buyer, and want to take advantage of an $8000 cash refund from our government, then you need to make it to our Oregon First Time Buyer Seminar on the $8000 Tax Credit.
Scheduled over 3 consecutive Tuesday evenings, and costing just $25 for an individual or $40 for a couple, you will learn what to look for in a property, what to expect in our market, the various types of mortgages available in Oregon for First Time Home Buyers. You will receive a 'game plan" and work book to help you move forward. We will analyze your credit report and documentation and by the end of the 3 week course, you will receive a pre-approval decision letting you know how much home you can afford to purchase.
If you are a First Time Home Buyer and motivated to purchase an Oregon Home before now and December 1st, 2009, the date the $8000 Tax Credit is set to expire, you cannot afford to miss this important seminar.
Following is the monthly "Planning for Eldercare" article from the National Care Planning Council, of which I am a member. This month's article focuses on local and state senior services. Read the article to find a link to services per state and for a link to Oregon Community Aging Services and Service Centers.
There is a lot of good information in this article, so I encourage you to read it and pass it on to those you feel would benefit from it.
Larry
Community Aging Services and Senior Centers
Community Aging Services and Long Term Care
There are many private, religious and government organizations across the country that provide supportive services for older people. Many of these services center around helping people stay in their homes and avoid having to go to live in an institution or perhaps move in with family. Because of the emphasis on helping people remain independent, many community aging programs could be viewed as long-term care programs. In fact it's probably just a matter of semantics; long-term care and community aging services are just two sides of the same coin. Other community services may provide socialization or training opportunities. Community aging programs might include:
Private support groups might be the Red Cross, women's auxiliaries or foundations. Many religious communities support activities for their elderly members as well as nonmembers. Both private and religious groups often provide services for free to people with little income and few assets. They may, however, charge people for services who have adequate income or assets. Many of these groups may also operate nursing homes and assisted-living facilities.
Senior centers are often the focal point for all aging services in a community. Experts or contact people are housed in senior centers and can provide many services in the center itself or refer out to other organizations that can help. The community served meals or congregate meals in senior centers are a means for attracting older people into the centers. Seniors can then be exposed to the many services that are available.
Government support for aging services comes from the Older Americans Act, passed in 1965. This act, over the years, has produced a large network of care providers and local government managers called Area Agencies on Aging. This network also includes federal agencies, state agencies as well as local area agencies and is called the "national aging network".
The National Aging Network
The Older Americans Act establishes an effective interrelationship between the federal government, State aging units and local service coordinators called Area Agencies on Aging. All three centers of service, the Federal, the state and the local engage in detailed future planning in order to accomplish their jobs. Input at the local level is received from diversified advisory boards representing stakeholders in the elder community. Community meetings and feedback from patrons of senior centers are also used in the planning process. Over the past 44 years, a great deal of thought and energy and research has gone into devising a delivery system that is both efficient and cost effective. In fact, the 29,000 service providers nationwide providing care under the act are the largest single network of long-term care providers in the country.
Local agencies on aging represent geographic areas in a state that can be serviced effectively by that local unit. Area agencies on aging normally contract with local for profit or nonprofit or public providers to deliver benefits. An agency may be allowed to provide directly, supportive services, nutrition services, or in-home services if it can prove a case for providing these services more effectively. An agency may also provide directly, case management services and information and assistance services depending on the methods used for such services in that state. Agencies may also use employees from cooperating or sponsoring counties or cities to staff and administer programs such as senior centers. Much of the work performed comes from dedicated volunteers who are both individuals and employer sponsored teams. This entire aging network system seems to work very well in accomplishing the goals of the Older Americans Act.
Why Is the Older Americans Act Important?
The decade from 1960 to 1970 was a period of social unrest and change. We lived through an unpopular war which resulted in student protests and mass demonstrations. Hippies, it seems, were everywhere and we were experiencing the so-called sexual revolution. It was a exciting time when civil rights were being extended to all Americans.
During this same period a number of organizations were lobbying Congress for the rights of older Americans. An outcome of this effort was not only the 1965 creation of Medicare and Medicaid but also the passage of the Older Americans Act. The act was designed to protect elderly Americans, including Indians, from unfair discrimination in the workforce as well as providing protection and services to help older people stay independent and remain in their homes.
Although the initial emphasis was directed more towards civil rights and recognition of the dignity of the elderly, over the years, new provisions of the Older Americans Act have become more focused on providing long-term care services for older Americans. These benefits are designed to help frail, memory-impaired, disabled, poor and socially needy elderly remain in their homes and avoid the cost of elder care institutions. And more recently, funds were provided under the act to support caregivers of the elderly and elderly grandparents babysitting or raising minor children at home.
The OAA provides benefits to all Americans over the age of 60. And employment benefits are available for all Americans over the age of 55. The act itself stipulates re-authorization or amendment on an ongoing basis and since 1965 the OAA has been changed and updated 14 times. The year 2005 is designated as a re-authorization year and Congress is busily working on additions to the act. Because of the constant additions, the Older Americans Act has become a giant mishmash of thousands of words, redundant sentences and hundreds of rules and procedures. It's our guess that the complexity of the act probably requires states to hire attorneys to run their aging departments. Notwithstanding, members of the care community who provide administration and services with the Older Americans Act work around the complexity of its rules in serving the aging community.
Funding for the services required under the OAA is provided by Congress yearly. These funds are then distributed to states, territories, the District of Columbia , Indian tribes and native Hawaiians on a formula basis which provides minimum funding levels to small population groups and sparsely populated states and proportional funding levels based on state elderly populations of the majority of the other states. Because of its large elderly population, as an example, California receives almost 10% of the money. And because of its high proportion of older people, Florida is next. Ten states receive 52% of the money.
Funds are provided in the form of grants for various programs authorized under the act and states have some limited latitude in administering these monies in local areas. Certain of the mandated programs require matching funds from state and local governments. Other program funds do not require matching dollars. Many states chip in additional funds to maintain their programs and these funds often exceed matching requirements. States, counties and cities recognize the value of these services and are often generous in providing additional funds, buildings, office space and other in-kind economic benefits. For every dollar provided by Congress local governments provide about two dollars in direct money, in-kind services from volunteers, community voluntary contributions and cost sharing funds.
The federal appropriation for 2005 was $1,369,028,000 and the breakdown for specific spending categories is listed below. Notice that over half of the dollars goes towards nutrition services which are typically weekday meals provided in community settings or delivered at home as well as incentive programs to help the elderly maintain proper nutrition.
Find your state Area Agencies on Aging or State Aging Services
Link for Oregon State Agencies on Aging or State Aging Services
Senior Citizen Centers
The first Senior Center in the country opened in 1943 in the Bronx, New York and was called the William Hodson Community Center . By 1961 about 218 senior centers had opened all across the country. The first Senior centers were operated by cities or nonprofit or religious organizations. Funding came from government, community donations and fees from people using the facilities. In the early days some federal funding came from Title XX of the Social Security act but funding for Title XX has been decreasing and much of that money today is being used for other programs. In 1972, the Older Americans Act was amended to provide funding for senior centers as this was considered to be an important piece of the aging network. Today, there are estimated to be about 15,000 senior centers across the country serving about 10 million older Americans annually. About 6,000 of these centers receive part or all of their funding through the Older Americans Act.
Senior centers act as a focal point for older Americans to receive many aging services. They are a vital part of the aging network. For Area Agencies on Aging, the senior center has become a place where many AAA services can be provided, where outreach and targeting can occur and where feedback can be received from the elderly. The most common services offered at a senior center are:
Larger senior centers in major cities may offer additional specific services because they serve a large and diverse group of patrons. Here are some examples:
Most elderly people are aware of senior centers in their neighborhoods but for those who are not familiar with the program, senior centers are listed under that title in the Yellow Pages.
For more information about community resources go to the National and State Care Planning Councils websites http://www.longtermcarelink.net/a15state_councils.htm
Link for Oregon State Agencies on Aging or State Aging Services
Sherwood has been and continues to be a desirable place to live. It has seen some of the fastest growth in the state of Oregon, and most of it has been residential homes. People moved to Sherwood to live, not necessarily to work. With the economy tanking, many homes went into foreclosure and people moved out. This left us with a lot of stagnant properties that until recently, weren't moving.
But there seems to be some positive news according to Zillow.com. Below is a chart of their estimated Sherwood Oregon home values from June of 2008 through May 2009. From what I have seen, we can expect even better numbers for June and July.
| Zillow Home Value Index Sherwood Oregon |
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| Type | Current | Month Over Month | Quarter Over Quarter | Year Over Year |
| All Homes | $264,600 | 0.30% | 0.14% | -13.75% |
| Single Fam | $272,400 | 0.43% | 0.37% | -12.71% |
| Condo | $176,700 | 0.93% | 0.86% | -13.04% |
| Two Bed | $178,000 | 0.12% | -1.39% | -18.69% |
| Three Bed | $247,300 | 0.05% | -0.36% | -13.99% |
| Many Bed | $380,100 | 0.61% | 0.74% | -11.21% |
It's interesting to note that the hottest markets in Sherwood are the condo and the 4+ bedroom market. The condo market doesn't surprise me, but the 4+ does. I guess this just shows that those with money are able to take advantage of market opportunities. The market that is still seeing the slowest growth is the 3 bedroom home. These are often just out of price of First Time Home Buyers. This segment also seemed to have been hit especially hard by foreclosures and short sales..
But the good news is that each of these segments has seen positive month over month growth.
A question though is if a recent rise in Foreclosures filed will affect these values.
Buyers, you better get busy!! 100% financing is still available through the USDA Guaranteed Rural Home Loan program, as well as 3.5% down with the FHA. For more information on both of these programs click on the above links.
The $8000 Tax Credit is disappearing in a few months, so there is no better time than now to buy a home!!
Whether you are a First Time Home Buyer, or moving up to your next home, call me to get started, or click here to fill out a short form and I'll call you right back..
I work with some of the best Sherwood Realtors.
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My mission is to give you a mortgage experience where you are at ease, can trust that your best interests are being looked out for and feel comfortable referring friends, family and clients to me.
The loan process can be intimidating. For most of us it's the largest financial transaction that we will face. While rates and fees are important, knowing that you can trust your loan officer is invaluable.
For all of your Oregon Mortgage needs, whether for an Oregon home purchase, refiance, home rennovation or Reverse Mortgage, call me, your Oregon Loan Officer.
My goal is to take the fear out of the transaction. I do this with open communication, a fair rate/fee structure and the committment to you to look out for your best interests. I don't like surprises and you shouldn't have to put up with them.
When integrity matters most, call me.
While I utilize the internet and am able to lend in many states, my focus is on the Oregon Real Estate market. My specialties are Senior Financing, USDA, FHA and Rural properties. I am also a real person with an open door that you can walk through any time. I live and play in Sherwood, Oregon and my office is located in Newberg, Oregon. Most of my Oregon home loan business comes from the greater Portland, Oregon area, but I have helped clients like you from all over Oregon including Sherwood, Newberg, McMinnville, Albany, Beaverton, Corvallis, Tigard, Happy Valley, West Linn, Lake Oswego, Tualatin, Bend, Salem, Eugene, Prineville, the Dalles and Southern Oregon. Many of my home loan and refinance clients have been "rescued" from other lenders that you see online, on tv, or hear on the radio. What makes me different is that I am local, and I truly care about you and your goals. Most of my business comes from referrals from past clients or from business partners who know that I will look out for their clients best interest. I make the same commitment to you, my future client, to treat you with honesty, integrity and complete professionalism. After all , my next Oregon home loan or refinance referral could come from you. Please take an opportunity to browse our site American Nationwide Mortgage. If you are a senior, you can start at American Nationwide Reverse Mortgage. I guarantee that you will find lots of helpful home loan and mortgage related information. An educated home buyer will make a wise decision, and that isn't always based on the cheapest rate. The rate is only one part of your decision; the other aspects of your home loan decision often will save you much more money in the long run. If you have any questions, or are ready to move forward with your Oregon home loan, let me know. I look forward to helping you make your home purchase or refinance loan an excellent experience! Larry Morris CMPS Your friend in the mortgage business.
Copyright © American Nationwide Mortgage Company, INC. Equal Housing Lender. This is not a commitment to lend. Restrictions apply. All rights reserved. Some products may not be available in all states.
Oregon License # ML-3259 | WA License # 510-LO-51175
Sarah and Tom McNicholas "Larry, ...We want you to know how much we appreciate all you did to help with the purchase. Thanks for helping everything go smoothly. We'll definately pass on a good recommendation to anyone we know who is house hunting...."
Kameron Manyrath
"As someone who looks to purchase a home, I have the fortune to come across Larry Morris, a Senior Mortgage Consultant, at Integrity Lending during the time when I was sending out requests for Good Faith Estimates from the various loan brokers.
...I was very happy because not only did Larry deliver what he promised, but he also helped me lock in a 45-day 5.625 rate at little or no cost. ...he was the only broker proactive enough to e-mail me and suggest that we lock the rate before it climbs up any more. ...I would highly recommend Larry to those who consider purchasing or refinancing a home. I have the utmost confidence that he will do his best to deliver a rate and to ensure a smooth transaction as he did with my first home purchase."
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