Grant money is available!

Purchasing a home in Clearfield city limits and also in all of Davis County just got a whole lot easier!  Grant money for 2015 (loan closing must happen before December 31, 2015) is currently available and on January 1, 2016, MORE grant money will be announced and available. 

Grant Money available!

Income limits are generous and the Grant money is forgiven (doesn't need to be paid back) after 7 years!  FREE money to be used for down payment or closing costs in conjunction with any fixed rate mortgage loan program!

I have the Grant application forms, reserve your Grant money today by calling me today!

Rate Lock recommendation continues after Fed announcement

Lock!

Rates moved up quickly today causing lenders to increase rates by .125%-.25% (FHA and Conventional loans respectively).  Much of the information released today was misleading because what happens on Thursday and Friday isn't reflected in their reports.



For options and rates call me.  The move up could be something temporary and as the markets settle, December's most likely target identified by the Fed yesterday could be the new line in the sand and best rates in 28 weeks could still be available for awhile longer.  :)

Here's the link to the excellent article to explain more about why it's important to have a close relationship with your loan originator who can call you BEFORE rates go up and you can lock your rate BEFORE the markets change: Reports are too slow, too late

Why home ownership makes sense financially

A recent Harvard Study (The rent crisis is about to get a lot worse) conducted to explore the cost and benefit of renting vs buying found that the number of  households which could be spending at least half of their income on rent could increase 25% (increasing to 15 million households) over the next decade.

Eric Belsky is Managing Director of the Joint Center of Housing Studies at Harvard University. He also currently serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Housing Research and Housing Policy Debate. Last year he released a paper on homeownership - The Dream Lives On: the Future of Homeownership in America. In his paper, Belsky reveals five financial reasons people should consider buying a home.

Here are the five reasons, each followed by an excerpt from the study:

1.) Housing is typically the one leveraged investment available. 


“Few households are interested in borrowing money to buy stocks and bonds and few lenders are willing to lend them the money. As a result, homeownership allows households to amplify any appreciation on the value of their homes by a leverage factor. Even a hefty 20 percent down payment results in a leverage factor of five so that every percentage point rise in the value of the home is a 5 percent return on their equity. With many buyers putting 10 percent or less down, their leverage factor is 10 or more.”

Rate lock recommendation and increases in home value benefits

Investors should not be too quick to write off an interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve in December, despite market expectations increasingly looking to early next year as more likely, the former executive vice president at the New York Fed said today.



Rates continue to hover at a 28 week low and best execution for 30 year fixed rates at 3.75%-3.875% for borrowers with top tier scenarios.  I am recommending locking at these current rates for purchase and refinance as the market weighs in on China and other world economies to predict the direction the Federal Reserve will take in timing of the anticipated rate hike.

Home values continue their steady upward climb and my experience with multiple offers on correctly priced homes in the purchase market continues.  The highest success of offer acceptance in a competitive home sale market which we currently have is for clients who have a FULL credit approval letter, backed by a 3 bureau merged credit report, an Automated Underwriting System approval and supported with my underwriting teams review of income and asset documentation.

Mortgage rates and home values are also helping borrowers drop Private Mortgage Insurance on their conventional loans with a refinance to a new loan at lower 15 year rates and FHA borrowers convert their FHA loans to a new conventional loan with lower rate and no monthly mortgage insurance.

Call me at 801-540-5108 and we can review your purchase or refinance options!

Rents are going through the roof!

Rent costs are rising quickly!

Single family rentals account for 13% of the overall housing stock (up from 9% in 2005) and rents are heating up!  Rents are higher than they should be given the underlying real estate values. 

As a result of the higher cost of rent relative to overall household income, first time home buyer's who have now entered the market (first time home buyer home purchases are the highest this year since 2009) are discovering the value of purchasing rather than renting. 

With appreciation in home values ticking along at 4% per year nationally (and regionally 6-8% and higher in some hot selling neighborhoods), coupled with historically low interest rates, and home financing is once again available to home buyer's with good credit, reasonable debt obligations and little or no down payment. 

Purchase a home today because all the stars are lining up!

With after tax rates for home financing in the 3% range, home buyer's today are using their home purchase as a financial leveraging tool and will payoff debt that has a higher interest rate, like credit cards, student loans, department store cards and car loans, and paying off their mortgage LAST.


If a home purchase can again be viewed as an investment (steady appreciation) and as a financial leverage tool (payoff higher interest rate debt first and your mortgage last), the only thing we need to add to the equation is a beautiful house to buy for fun and financial success to begin!

Call Marty Qualls at 801-540-5108 for help with any of your mortgage questions.