| |  | Your Guide to Nyack and Rockland County
Move-to-Nyack.com is a real estate website that provides comprehensive professional services and advice for buyers, sellers and veterans in the greater Nyack/Valley Cottage area, and all of Rockland County. | |
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John Kovencz
Better Homes and Gardens/ Rand Realty
46 South Broadway
Nyack, NY 10960
Mobile: 914-523-2953
Email: john@movetonyack.com
Let's have a discussion on the Rand Blog:
www.randrealty.com
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| Thank you for visiting my online real estate resource and I hope you find it to be a useful tool in your search for real estate and that it answers some of those questions you might have about the process. Whether you are a first time buyer, an experienced investor or selling your home, you will find this combination of current, clear information, exceptional service and solid expertise, invaluable when the time comes for you to make that all important decision. Welcome to Nyack/Valley Cottage and Rockland County.
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RECENT NEWS:
August 31, 2010
The Return of the Home Buyer Tax Credit?
Reports this week indicated that the Obama administration might be considering reviving the Home Buyer Tax Credit. Apparently, the dismal July housing numbers have spooked people in the administration, and raised concerns that federal incentives for home purchase might have expired too early.
The spark for this speculation was HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan's appearance on CNN yesterday. When asked about whether the tax credit could be revived, he didn't rule it out. He didn't indicate that the idea is firmly planted in the administration's economic plan, but he did say that "we're going to be focused like a laser" in trying to revive the housing market.
It's probably premature to talk about this as a real possibility. First, it's clear that the housing industry is not going to overtly push for a tax credit. As I understand it, NAR and Realogy, which were the main forces pushing for the extension and expansion of the credit last November, made a promise that they would not go back to the well again if they did get that extension. So they're not going to break that promise.
Second, I'm not sure that the current environment in Washington is conducive to getting anything done, much less an extension of the tax credit that could cost up to $30 billion.
And third, I'm not sure that it's even a good idea. For every commentator that thinks that an extension of the credit would spur home sales, you have lots of observers who think that the credit simply shifts purchases around and doesn't actually pull people off the sidelines and into the market. Certainly, the robust April numbers, followed by the weak July numbers, supports the idea that any extension of the tax credit would create a mini-bubble in the market that would effectively distort the normal seasonal rhythms.
August 24, 2010
www.bloomberg.com
Interest Rates at historic lows, refi's are up, but purchases are down.
Another week, another series of reports on interest rates hitting historic lows. It's almost become a cliche, because we keep expecting rates to go up, and then they go down again. We haven't seen anything like this in the history of the industry.
We saw it again this week. According to the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Survey, 30-year fixed mortgage rates hit the eighth consecutive historic low, now at 4.44%, down from 5.29% a year ago. And according to our rates at Rand Mortgage, today's rate is around 4.375%.
Just to put that in perspective, a monthly payment at that rate would be about $500 per $100,000 borrowed. So you can borrow $150,000 for about $750 a month, or $300,000 at $1,500 a month. If rates were where they were last year, that $150,000 would cost you $832/month, and $300,000 would be $1,664/month. So the average borrower in the area borrowing $300,000 is saving almost $2,000 a year.
The rates are having their expected impact on refinancings, with applications for homeowners refinancing their mortgage up 13% from last year, but we're not really seeing any impact on the housing market. Essentially, even with the cheap money, home buyers are leery of the economic situation, and we're probably also seeing a slowdown caused by the Home Buyer Tax Credit sucking summer transactions into the spring.
Fannie Mae Launches “Know Your Options”
For those of you who might need advice about avoiding foreclosure, a new site put out by Fannie Mae outlines the choices available to homeowners who are struggling with their mortgage payments, and provides guidance on how they can contact and work with their mortgage company to find solutions. Good information on the site, at www.knowyouroptions.com.
www.knowyouroptions.com
The Home Buyer Federal Tax Credit Has Come and Gone
The Treasury Department estimates that the credits helped 1.8 million people buy homes.
An extension was not in the cards, in one shape or another there has been a government tax credit for a couple of years now and it did its job. The goal was to sure up the housing market quicker then if it was left on its own and it worked.
To the credit of the current administration I could not have asked for any more then what they have done. By keeping mortgage rates in check and handing away free money to those who bought now they have corrected a market they was declining fast.
Many say that the people who bought because of the credit would have eventually bought without it is probably right, but at the expense of our economy. The average buyer might have tried to wait the market out to see values continue to drop and might have bought in the coming years but that would have had such a downward effect on the housing market that the economy would have had a longer period of depression then what was felt over the past couple of years.
The credit came with a huge cost to the American tax payer but I believe it was well worth it. For the average person the largest investment they make in a lifetime is their home. The shelter over their heads, the place they raise their children turns into their biggest retirement vehicle. At a cost of $12.6 billion today could have cost 10 to 100 times that if home values continued to drop and housing lost its credibility in the future.
On of the major lessons learned from this last housing cycle is that the government sees the value in housing and understands what it means to the overall economy. We witnessed government involvement on a huge scale to help solve the housing dilemma and increase confidence in the industry.
Now that the credit has come and gone what happens next?
Mortgage rates are still at near all time lows and housing affordability is still at all time record lows. So the conditions are still right for the potential buyer. As time goes on we will look back to this point in history when people did extremely well in the real estate market that will benefit them and their retirement plans.
www.standardandpoors.com
www.realtor.org
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