Christiansburg, VA

FHA 203K Loan / Lender - Smooth Transaction Guarantee! - Christiansburg, Virginia

Brent Kluge & Group is the leading FHA 203K lender in the Mid Atlantic for a reason... Service!
What you get when you finance your FHA 203k renovation project with Brent & Team:

• 16 Years of Renovation Mortgage Finance
• Communication & Clarity on Process, Costs and Expectations
• Experience looking out for your best interests throughout the entire process
  
• We check your renovation numbers to ensure you are NOT being overcharged!
• Brent Calls Balls/Strikes with all parties to PROTECT YOUR INTERESTS.

Check out Brent's website for further details:

Check Out our list of Satisfied Customers and what they have to say about Brent Kluge & Group.


The FHA 203K mortgage requires action early in the process to set the stage for proper transaction flow...


A phone call for a discussion about your project costs nothing... but you could save thousands.

Looking to buy a house in Southwest Virginia? Perhaps you've been looking at homes in Christiansburg, or in Radford, and you just don't think you can afford it. I'd remind you that the opportunities are there for buyers right now for two reasons - (1) the inventory available, and (2) the rates that local lenders are willing to lend at. Let's look at the numbers ...

Assuming a house is priced at $150000, and the interest rate is 5.00% (the current USDA rate), here's how your monthly payments would break down on a home in Christiansburg purchased for $150000 with NO MONEY
DOWN:

Principal & interest: $805.24
Prop Taxes (estimate): 114.83
PMI (None with USDA): 0

Total Payment: $920.07

Imagine - a $150000 mortgage for less than $1000 a month. And it's important to note that this is a USDA loan, with a secure 30-year fixed rate and NO prepayment penalty. STILL think you can't get a loan? I promise you that it's still easier than you think. Contact me, I'll help you search for your best option with local lenders who have money to lend.

This can work well for many buyer profiles, but what one buyer often has a job, credit and no money? Recent college graduates. Virginia Tech and Radford alum, let's see how we can make this work for you!

Ever been in a candy shop? You know, the type where there are candies of all sizes, shapes and colors lining the walls? The shops where you shove a big metal shovel the size of Delaware into a barrel of assorted candies, and you come up with all different types of sweets?

Yea - that's what the real estate market is like right now.

It's not that it's a huge surprise ... the winter is always slower than normal, so we were prepared for that. I can't say anyone saw bailouts of the banks, the construction folks, the auto makers, the pizza bakers and the professional matchmakers, but needless to say here we are.

See how I did that, the whole rhyming thing and all? I know - Eminem I'm not. Nor am I fan of bailouts of irresponsible mismanagement, but that's a story for another day.

Buyers, if you: (1) have a job, (2) have money to put down and (3) have good - notice I didn't say excellent - credit, our current real estate market will be like walking into that candy shop and taking your pick of everything that's available. I don't mean that you'll get it for pennies on the dollar, but the opportunities are there to pick up excellent values right now. Think about it - if a property is listed now, between the Thanksgiving and Christmas time frame, don't you think that Seller is serious about selling his or her home NOW? I do, and my Sellers are. And it's important to note that when I say you need money to put down I don't mean ten's of thousands of dollars. There are lenders here locally, right now, offering great rates on FHA and other buyer programs that are requiring as little as 3% down, not to mention the free money - yes, free money, not additional loans - that localities like Blacksburg are offering qualified buyers.

Let me post the latest absorption rate numbers for the New River Valley market now, and then check in with folks that might need to sell their home in the next few months. When it comes to absorption rates, we're looking at how long it would take to sell the existing residential inventory in a particular area, if nothing else came on the market until supply was exhausted. Anything over 5 months is typically a buyers' market, and anything less than 5 months is typically a seller's market.

Sellers, the market's not in your favor now when you look at the numbers above. 28, 54, 64 months worth of inventory? An average of more than two years worth of inventory is a scary thing when you're putting your home on the market, but remember it's not taking EVERYTHING that long. The average for the NRVLiving Team in 2008 is 101 days, or just over 3 months. Some have taken less, some will take more, but we're doing our best to expose our listings in every effective way possible. That being said ... selling right now isn't for everyone. If you bought a townhouse in Christiansburg last year for no money down and expect a 10% return, it might be a good idea to rent for the home for a while. Those are products that are having difficulty selling in today's market, and will need some time to settle out. Nevertheless, there ARE ways to get it sold ... not the least of which includes patience. There is a lot of uncertainty right now, and it's going to take patience and carefully executed marketing to reach buyers who are ready to execute.

At the halfway point of the year, I wrote a post looking at what the market was doing up to that point, and compared it to the year prior. The results were striking, and I'm working on a follow-up for the entire 2008 year that I hope will be helpful. There will be some in the real estate market who will be happy they held off selling, and others that will regret not buying, but the time is not right for everyone. Be patient, find an agent who is studying and demonstrating they know the market they're serving, and grab that shovel - there's candy to be had.

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Perhaps. From Blacksburg Alert today:

The Town of Christiansburg in conjunction with Blacksburg Transit, the Town of Blacksburg, Virginia Tech, and Montgomery County* are working together to increase public transportation and commuting options within the Town of Christiansburg. The first step in this process is the completion of a survey that will be mailed to Christiansburg residents to determine the use/need of expanded bus service in the Christiansburg area.

The bus survey offers a unique opportunity for each citizen to contribute and help design the future of bus service in Christiansburg. The results of this survey, which will be sent to every household in the Christiansburg area, will serve as the foundation for the new service; hence every response is critical. Christiansburg Town Manager Lance Terpenny, commented "The great thing about this survey is that it allows our citizens to contribute to the planning process; ultimately building their own service."

The survey will be mailed early October 2008, with the estimated implementation of the routes set for late 2009.

For further information regarding the survey contact Erik Olsen, Transportation Planner at (540) 961-1185 or email eolsen@blacksburg.gov.

* Survey funded by the Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Montgomery Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO)

Christiansburg residents ... be on the lookout for these surveys. Better public transportation options are likely going to be more and more important to our communities in the coming years.

Somehow, when Vanilla Ice was spewing the lyrical genius that was "Ice Ice Baby" (I couldn't write that without chuckling, have you seen these lyrics?), I've got to imagine this wasn't what he was referring to when he spoke of the wind blowing his hair ...

The Roanoke Times' Lerone Graham tried out one of these low-speed vehicles recently; I'm certainly no fan of the idea, and I thought some his quotes were telling enough to give Councils who are considering allowing them on public streets pause. Consider:

"Because the E-Merge has no doors and is lower to the ground than normal-size vehicles, I felt exposed when vehicles would fly past me."

"... most of the time they will do about 18, which is only a little more than half of the speed limit."

"Though it was a very routine turn, a person in a sport utility vehicle who was several hundred feet behind me in the same lane soon had to brake to keep enough distance from me."

Photo Credit

They have no exterior protection for passengers, only do half of the maximum speed posted on the streets they're allowed to drive on, and will be passing hazards for even the most attentive of motorists. Still smells of dumb, to me.

What's an insurance agent think of the plan? I asked Jon Hannah of State Farm Insurance what his thoughts were, and this was his response in an email ...

"As long as these vehicles are maintained with the proper equipment, according to state law, and are being operated in areas that allow these types of vehicles, per the Virginia Code, we have no issue with them being used. However, vehicle owners should make sure they are properly licensed and insured. I would encourage them to contact their agent, or any State Farm agent, for information about their insurability."

"Safety in any vehicle is a concern regardless of the size or how fast it goes. A recent Virginia Tech study showed that 80% of all vehicle accidents and 65% of near accidents involved driver inattention. I would encourage readers to log on to www.statefarm.com or www.drivesmartva.org for more information on driving safety."

Rule of thumb? Be careful. My hope is that the Christiansburg Town Council sends this one back to the golf course, but if they don't, be sure to call Eric Johnsen and get that thing insured. And don't be bothered by helmet hair - it's for your own protection.