The Importance of Pre-Approval

Pre-Approval - What is it?

"Pre-approval" means you have met with a loan officer, your credit files have been reviewed and the loan officer believes you can readily qualify for a given loan amount with one or more specific mortgage programs. Based on this information, the lender will provide a pre approval letter, which shows your borrowing power. You can visit as many lenders as you like and get several pre-approvals, but keep in mind that each one carries with it a new credit check, which will show up on future credit reports.

Although not a final loan commitment, the pre approval letter can be shown to listing brokers when bidding on a home. It demonstrates your financial strength and shows that you have the ability to go through with a purchase. This information is important to owners since they do not want to accept an offer that is likely to fail because financing cannot be obtained.

How do you get pre-approval?

Real estate financing is available from numerous sources, including lenders in in the finance section of Realtor.com, mortgage companies that have worked with local REALTORS® and in some cases, individual REALTORS® themselves. Based on his or her experience, the REALTOR® may suggest one or more lenders with a history of offering competitive programs and delivering promised rates and terms.

The loan officer will carefully review your financial situation, including your credit report and other information. The lender will then suggest programs which most-closely meet your needs. For instance, a first-time buyer may qualify for state-backed mortgage programs with little money down and low interest rates, while a repeat purchaser (someone who has bought a home before) with more equity (money invested in the home) might want to get a 15-year loan and the lower overall interest costs it represents. Typically, first-time buyers opt for the traditional 30-year loan, with either a floating interest rate or a fixed rate of interest over the life of the loan.

Click Here for to contact Sander Harth for more information on Pre-Approvals.

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From: Realtor.com

Choosing the Right Real Estate Agent

Choosing a real estate agent is one of the most important decisions a home buyer or seller can make.  Before the home shopping season gets underway, here are some tips to help find an agent that’s right for you.

1. Research

Do some legwork. Literally. Take a walk or drive around your neighborhood and check out the for-sale signs.  Does one company dominate the area? Are there fliers or other marketing materials available? Most importantly, do SOLD signs go up after days, weeks, or not at all? 

Stop by open houses to view other homes on the market. This is a great way to see the agent in action, and meet them in a casual setting.  Are they friendly, informative and professional? How do they respond to other people coming to the open house?

2.  Check Out Ratings and Reviews

Online agent ratings and reviews are the next best thing to a personal referral.  Knowing the experience that lots of  other people had with a particular agent is valuable information to have.  Zillow allows you to search a specific area to find the agents with the highest ratings and best reviews. OR, after you’ve walked around your ‘hood and gotten a few business cards at open houses, you can search for agents by name and read their reviews.  Either way, online research should be a part of  the process.

3. Interview Multiple Agents

Buying or selling a home is one of the biggest financial events of your life so take the time to interview at least three agents before deciding whom to hire. You want to find someone who demonstrates knowledge of your area and expertise in the buying/selling process,  that is, familiarity with all the technicalities such as title, appraisals,  financing, negotiation, inspections, etc.  Above all else,  make sure you’ll feel comfortable having this person guide you through an overwhelming and stressful process.

4. Ask the Right Questions

There are hundreds of  things you can ask during the interview process.   Separate the good agents from the great ones by comparing the answers you get to these questions:

How many deals did you complete last year?

How many of those deals were in the area I am interested in?

How will you prioritize and strategize for my needs?

If you are a buyer,  find out how the agent will search for homes for you, how many homes you can expect to see before finding the right one, who will come up with pricing, and how multiple offers are handled.

If you are a seller, ask how the agent will market your home both on and off-line, how many photos are typically posted with a listing, what kind of photo equipment will be used (for high-quality photos), where your home will be advertised and how often? Finally, can this agent tell you what current buyers are looking for in a home these days? See other questions to ask a real estate agent.

5.  Set Communication Expectations

One of the most common complaints from buyers and sellers is about the agent’s lack of communication. Make sure you’re on the same page from the get-go.  Discuss how the agent will keep you informed and how often you expect to hear from them.  If you prefer email but the agent is most responsive to phone calls, you may not be a good fit for each other. Or, if you know you’re going to have lots of questions about the process and expect quick responses,  but the agent’s MO is bi-weekly updates,  you may want to find another agent.  It doesn’t matter how fantastic your agent is if your communication styles don’t mesh.

From Zillow.com

Five Predictions for the 2013 Real Estate Market

Happy 2013 Everybody!

Make sure to check back often for new blog posts throughout the year! And don't forget to "Like" my Facebook Business Page.

Five Real Estate Market Predictions for 2013

1. Rising home prices: The slow pace of new-home construction over the last few years is beginning to push prices up, a pattern that is expected to continue through 2013. The amount of new construction is not at the level necessary to keep up with housing demand, which is another reason for the low amount of housing inventory on the market. Top forecasters for The National Association of Realtors (NAR) project home prices to rise 5% this year.

2. Rising rents as more young professionals enter the market: Top analysts expect that there is a shadow demand in the rental market- meaning that the 3-5 million young people, mostly in their twenties and thirties, who have been living with their parents and waiting for the economy to improve - will begin looking for their own rental properties this year. As they begin to get jobs, they are going to be creating a more competitive demand for condos and single family rental homes. This means, for those looking to find new rentals this year, good luck! You better have all your finances and paperwork ready to go as to place yourself in a more competitive position when looking for rental properties. It should be noted that a recent Zillow analysis found that buying beats renting in 59% of markets after three years or less!

3. Fewer foreclosure bargains: The chance to grab bargain foreclosure properties may be fading this year. Sales of foreclosed homes dropped to 11% of all sales in June of 2012, down from about 28% in March of 2011. This drop is in part because the Federal House Financing Agency (FHFA), the FDIC, and banks have been selling off distressed home loans in bulk to purchasers who agree to work out new terms with borrowers rather than foreclosing on them. Another reason foreclosures have dropped is because the equity position of thousands of borrowers has improved thanks to the rise in home prices this past year, righting many upside-down loans. 

4. More short sales: A short sale is a deal in which a lender allows for a home to sell for less than the borrower owes them on the mortgage. This is preferable for the lender because they don't have to go through the expensive and time-consuming foreclosure process, although they may lose some money on the loan. On Nov. 1, the FHFA issued new rules on short sales for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Among other measures, these new rules reduce the documentation that borrowers have to show to prove they have faced financial hardship, and borrowers now aren't necessarily required to pay the difference between what they owe on the mortgage and the final sales price of their house. 

5. More first-time home buyers: Consulting firm Deloitte & Touche predicts that growth in the 2013 real estate market will come from the demand in single family homes, likely driven by first-time home buyers. A NAR survey of buyers and sellers from 2011 to 2012 also showed an increase in first time home buyers, and the trend is expected to 
continue.