Nelya Calev

In January I posted a survey of median prices of houses sold in the areas for the different Bellevue high schools. Now that some time has passed by, I thought it would be interesting to take a look at the prices again to see how they have changed. Of course, I cannot include the International School because it is by lottery. Data was obtained using this method and consists of the median house price sold.

By the way, you can see a map of the high school boundaries here.

Clearly prices have fallen significantly in Bellevue, though I am not sure the percentages are entirely accurate as some sold properties may not be on the site. I plan to continue these charts in the future, but for that sake I thought it would be interesting to take a look at the median prices for active homes.

These results do seem to indicate that lower priced homes are what is selling, while the market is oversaturated with higher priced homes. This makes sense from what I have been seeing. Most of my listings lately have been reasonably priced and have sold quickly. I know many other agents with higher end properties that have had trouble selling.

Recently I wandered over to the Robinswood park area of Bellevue and had a look around. This is a very nice and decently priced area of Bellevue that is very close to the I-90 entrance. Homes in this area are very reasonably priced and in a recent search I found homes between $349,000 and $774,000. Right now the average home there seems to be hovering around $500,000 - which places it around average for East Bellevue.

The pride of Robinswood is the park.

This is a very nice park with something for everyone including a sports field, pond, children's playground, and baseball field and stands. There is also a tennis center close to the park.

Homes in Robinswood are generally a bit older - many from the early sixties when much of East Bellevue was constructed.

Robinswood uses Spiritridge Elementary, Tillicum Middle School, and Sammamish High School. Not far from Robinswood are Phantom Lake and the Lake Hills Greenbelt Park.

The neighborhood is quiet and there seems to be a good sense of community. As it is a well established neighborhood with few newer houses, neighbors most likely know each other well.

This is an ideal neighborhood for first time home buyers as well as for those who have young children. Like most of Bellevue, it is close to almost everything but it is especially close to the I-90 entrance - enabling quick access to Seattle and elsewhere.

No Points No Closing Costs or Zero Points Zero Points Zero Closing Costs Loans are loans that were designed to be marketed and sold. The marketing concept goes something like this: "No Points! No Closing Costs! No Hassles!". Ads for Zero-Zero loans can be found all through the Internet and the Sunday Real Estate section of your local newspaper. They are designed to attract consumers looking to refinance their current mortgages. In reality this type of strategy is best for only a small percentage of the people who refinance their loans.

There is no great trick to Zero-Zero (0/0) loans; just remember you never get anything for free, everything usually comes with a cost and a cost free loan is no different. With a Zero-Zero programs there are closing costs, they're the same as any other loan but the difference is that the lender pays them. They don't do this to be nice, they do it because they receive a higher interest rate on the loan and therefore are paid more from the investor. To the bank it doesn't matter if you pay points and closing costs or they pay it, they receive the same income either way.

Are the No Points No Closing Cost option the best option for you?

Look at the No Points-No Closing option as just one of a few options for each program. Each offering offers a lower rate as the costs increase.

The Key to evaluating the Zero-Zero option is the same as evaluating any other option: compare the payment and the costs and determine your break-even point.

What will the loan cost you and what will the monthly payment be?

Armed with the answers you can see if the Zero-Zero is really a good program for you.

In most cases by paying points and closing costs you will make up the costs in approximately 5 years due to the lower monthly payment associated with the lower rate.

Example

Based on a 30 year fixed rate for a $200,000 mortgage

What program should you choose?

Your choice is option 2, paying $5000 in points and closing costs and obtaining a 1.00% discount in the rate or paying an extra $ 63.52 per month and avoiding costs with option 1.

Solution

If you divide the cost by the monthly savings we get a break-even point of about 6 years


If you plan on staying in the property more than 6 years you should pay the points and the closings costs. Using this strategy will save you $64 per month for every month you have the mortgage over 6.5 years. If you plan on staying in the property less than 6 years then the Zero-Zero option would be the most cost efficient.

This type of analysis should always be done when comparing programs.

Note For Refinancing

Paying points and closing cost doesn't mean that you have to pay the costs out of pocket. In almost all cases you have the option of rolling any costs into the loan amount. By rolling the closing costs in the loan the end result is that no single refinance option has more out of pocket expenses than any other. In most cases even with 2 points and closing costs added to your loan amount you will still have a lower monthly payment than you would receive with the Zero-Zero option.

Again if you have any questions about your current Mortage Program Please contact Scott Wilkerson at (425) 891-1674

Shaun Donovan, HUD secretary announced that FHA will allow the $8,000 tax credit to be used for down payment at a NAR conference yesterday. We do not expect any details on the program from HUD until next week. His comments seem to have traveled through the real estate industry very quickly and we are getting a lot of questions already on it. I will share more information as I learn it.

The following are the most common mistakes I see from agents not accustomed to working with REO properties. From my experience, the majority of agents make at least one of these mistakes, so I hope this list is helpful.

1) Agent only remarks on MLS do read it. Many listing agents will have directions on how to write an offer

2) Financing preapproval: Proof of all cash funds required with all offers. You may black out the bank account numbers for cash offers. Some banks I work with requires all buyers to get preapproved from their loan officer. They do not require the buyers to borrow through them, but want to make sure there are no problems down the road. Don't ask for more than 20 days financial contingency

3) Bank will direct title and escrow: leave it blank or enter "sellers choice" when writing an offer.

4) Earnest money:Do include a copy of the earnest money deposit with your offer. Write the check to selling brokerage initially. No promissory notes

5) Legal description: Print it out from MLS and submit it with your offer

6) Don't check the wrong box under seller disclosure: The sellers (the bank) have never seen the house and can't disclose anything to you. Inspections and or pre-inspections are always encouraged

7) Offer expiration date: This is my favorite. Please allow at least 3 business days for the offer expiration date.

8) Contingent offers: No offers contingent on the sale of another house, or the closing of a pending offer

9) And or Assigns offers: Not allowed under any circumstances

10) Not being friendly and cooperative. I think this one applies to any transaction. Don't step on agents toes. Really, it won't get you anywhere.

There will be part two to this blog on what to expect after offer is submitted. I hope this list will help you.