CONFORMING LOAN LIMIT FOR U.S. TO REMAIN AT $417,000 IN 2009 The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today announced the conforming loan limit will remain $417,000 for 2009 for most areas in the U.S. but specified higher limits in certain cities and counties. The conforming loan limit is the maximum size of loans that Fannie […]
You do not have to use an agent to buy or sell your house, but it sure makes things a whole lot easier. If you are a buyer, hiring an agent is a no brainer because you do not have to pay for the fees – the seller does. And sellers can greatly profit from […]
With the concern for our futures energy everyone needs to start doing their part to help our planet by making some changes in the way we utilize energy! Don’t think that the little things you can do to your home and lifestyle won’t make a difference because every little bit will help. Some new homes […]
Passed in early August, this housing bill promises to impact the real estate market in several different ways. First, it will allow about 400,000 homeowners who owe more than their homes are currently worth to refinance into federally backed loans, and provides incentive for these homeowners’ current mortgage lenders to simply erase the loan balance […]
In a short sale, a homeowner sells their home for less than they owe, and the mortgage holders agree to forgive some or all of the debt secured by the property. Until 2007, a homeowner who liquidated her home through a short sale was charged income tax on the forgiven debt. Talk about kicking you […]
From my point of view, there are three recent real estate laws every home buyer, home seller and homeowner should be aware of and the first is: 1. The Economic Stimulus Act of 2008. Why do you care about this one? Because it temporarily increased FHA and conforming loan limits to $729,250 in high-cost-of-living areas […]
Late last year, the federal government started responding legislatively to the upheaval in the housing market. Some argue that the resulting laws have been too little; others feel they are too late. My guess is that with the upcoming election, we have only just begun to see how the federal government will intervene in this […]
The federal government has now intervened to provide support for the economy and restore investor confidence by potentially risking hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars. While allocating taxpayer money to support illiquid mortgage assets of questionable value is hardly ideal, it will likely prevent the failure of a major facet of the U.S. financial system. […]
The recent decline in property values has created many challenges for real estate agents and homeowners alike, but a “Short Sale” could be the key to a happy ending. One of the biggest misconceptions about short sales is that they are difficult and not profitable. As a result, many agents avoid them. In fact, while […]
In some areas, foreclosures are increasing, housing inventories are higher than normal, and even well-qualified borrowers cannot receive mortgage loans. Many homeowners and home buyers also are becoming increasingly concerned about when the housing market will reach bottom. Although some areas, such as the Inland Empire and the Central Valley, appear to already have experienced […]
