Archive for Mortgages
If You Do not Buy a House in Dallas Texas Now, You are Stupid or Broke
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Have you read this article yet? It was featured in Business Week. My first thought, wow! what a blunt and harsh statement! But the writer, Mark Roth, uses this headturning title to get your attention to make excellent points for those who are on the fence. Namely that interest rates are at an all time low, in fact, the lowest in 40 years. He noted that in the late 70s, rates hit a high of 18%! Can you even imagine buying a house at 18%? I personally can’t fathom it as I bought my first house with an FHA loan while I was in college for 7% in 2001. In the 80s, when rates dropped from 12% to 9%, my parents practically danced their way to the 1st refinance of their home. Generation X’ers probably would never dream of purchasing a home above 7% given all we have ever known are super low rates hovering between 5-6%. Mr. Roth points out the history of previous interest rates as well as the impact of rates on one’s purchasing power. I happen to agree with his prediction that as the economy becomes more stable, interest rates WILL rise to hedge inflation. My prediction has been that by this time next year, rates will have risen 1-2% at a minimum. In Dallas Texas, the average sale is $250,000. Assuming a 5% down payment at 5% interest on a 30 year fixed, your monthly principal and interest payment would be $1275. If rates rise to 7%, your payment increases to $1580/month. Some buyers may be on the fence because they fear prices may drop further. Consider this. If there is a 10% decrease in price and the $250,000 falls to $225,000 in one year, but you wait to purchase and the interest rate rises to 7%, your payment will be $1422. You spend more money per month plus at the higher interest rate, you pay more interest over the life of the loan. Real estate appreciation is always a cycle and as the economy stabilizes, values will level out. Steve Harney is already analyzing data this is happening in many markets and that this will occur by 2014 in many states. Making a home purchase is still a decision that should be weight carefully and is not for everyone. One important consideration will depend on how long you plan to stay in the home. Mark Roth summed up the article, “What I’m trying to impress upon everyone is that |
if you are planning on being a homeowner now and/or in the foreseeable future, or if you are looking to move your family into a bigger home, then pay more attention to the interest rates than the price of the home. If you have a steady job, good credit, and the down payment, then you really are being offered the gift of a lifetime.”Dallas Home buyer tax credit
Posted by: | Comments$8,000 First-time Home Buyer Tax Credit at a Glance
- The $8,000 tax credit is for first-time home buyers only. For the tax credit program, the IRS defines a first-time home buyer as someone who has not owned a principal residence during the three-year period prior to the purchase.
- The tax credit does not have to be repaid.
- The tax credit is equal to 10 percent of the home’s purchase price up to a maximum of $8,000.
- The tax credit applies only to homes priced at $800,000 or less.
- The tax credit now applies to sales occurring on or after January 1, 2009 and or before April 30, 2010. However, in cases where a binding sales contract is signed by April 30, 2010, a home purchase completed by June 30, 2010 will qualify.
- For homes purchased on or after January 1, 2009 and on or before November 6, 2009, the income limits are $75,000 for single taxpayers and $150,000 for married couples filing jointly.
- For homes purchased after November 6, 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010, single taxpayers with incomes up to $125,000 and married couples with incomes up to $225,000 qualify for the full tax credit.
The $6,500 Move-Up / Repeat Home Buyer Tax Credit at a Glance
- To be eligible to claim the tax credit, buyers must have owned and lived in their previous home for five consecutive years out of the last eight years.
- The tax credit does not have to be repaid.
- The tax credit is equal to 10 percent of the home’s purchase price up to a maximum of $6,500.
- The tax credit applies only to homes priced at $800,000 or less.
- The credit is available for homes purchased after November 6, 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010. However, in cases where a binding sales contract is signed by May 1, 2010, the home purchase qualifies provided it is completed prior to July 1, 2010.
- Single taxpayers with incomes up to $125,000 and married couples with incomes up to $225,000 qualify for the full tax credit.
100 Billion pieces of SPAM email sent a day.
Posted by: | CommentsOh hey… Before I begin this blog post, I wanted to treat you to some crazy facts about email:
- There are more than 100 billion pieces of SPAM email sent around the world every single day!
- The number of spam email messages sent around the globe each month numbers in the trillions!
- More than 80% of all that SPAM is sent by fewer than 200 individuals
- Despite the crushing number of SPAM messages sent each month, email continues to deliver a higher Return On Investment than any other form of marketing
Ok, Now that I got those interesting numbers out of my system, let’s get back to the regularly scheduled blog post! Did you know that email is still considered the #1 highest return on investment form of marketing in the world? Here are some facts you need to consider that can help you with your own email mortgage marketing efforts:
- The best days to send email are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday
- The best time of day to send email is after 9:30 but before 2:00
- Never use red colored font in a professional email (Sets off SPAM flags)
- Keep your subject lines shorter than 35 characters whenever possible
- “Long term prospects” (Those who are not in the market for at least 6 months) should get 1 email per month, whereas shorter term prospects should get emailed 2 – 3 times per month
- Send usable information free of blatant advertising
- Add your Twitter and FaceBook profile links to your email signature (If you have professional profiles setup)
Those are some pretty impressive numbers: a $43.08 return on investment for every dollar spent! Where else can you get those types of conversions? Direct mail? Magazine ads? Radio? Hiring telemarketers? Nope…
Use the tips I provided above, and and you will see an improvement in your own email marketing efforts. But there’s one more tip I have for you that absolutely must be observed:
- Use a permission based email list only! Do not SPAM! -
It’s far easier than you imagine to build a permission based email list. It doesn’t need to be a long and drawn out process. If you make use of a marketing-grade auto-responder system, all of your follow-up efforts will be automated and save you a truck-load of time, while delivering fresh, warm leads to you on a regular basis as the prospects begin to convert and respond to your efforts. I generally grow my own email list by 250 – 300 fresh emails per month. Would you like to do the same?
Let me show you how.
Is paying off your mortgage early a good idea?
Posted by: | CommentsThis message came to me today from;
Da
Home Buyer
Allen, TX
I am in the process of paying off my mortgage and had a quick question on the below math.
I have around $75000 left on my 15 year mortgage with 3.75% APY after Tax Deduction. And, five years ago I had invested in a Certificate Deposit of $75000 for 5% APY. The CD is getting matured next month and looking at CD rates, the best out there is around 2.00% for 1 Year.
So, if I keep paying mortgage (3.57% after Tax) and invest the $75000 in a CD for 2 % (1.6% after Tax), then I am losing around 2.15% interest. Am I doing the math correctly? Is this as simple as it sounds.
So, to me it makes sense to repay the mortgage. Also, in this market, I don’t have any interest in investing in stocks, mutual funds, bonds, etc. ”
Here is my response;
Good Morning Da:
Congratulations of having the ability of choices. The choice of paying off your mortgage sounds appealing on the surface. However, with out a few more questions being able to help make the best choice advice is difficult.
1, Is the payment on your current mortgage causing you any financial stress?
2, What is your age and when do you plan on retiring?
3, are you financially set up to retire when that time comes?
4, What tax bracket are you in today?
5, What would you do with the money you are using to make the mortgage payments with today after you pay off the mortgage?
6, Have you looked into other investments that do not have market risks that stocks, bonds or mutual funds have?
We really need to better understand your situation to offer advice.
Case in point.
I have a mortgage client that inherited more than enough money to become debt free mortgage included. He could have paid off his mortgage early.
We refinanced home out of the second lien and into a lower payment, paid off the non-tax deductible debts he had and the rest we put into a small term life insurance policy just enough to pay off the mortgage and the rest into an annuity that will never lose principle plus share in the market up-turns. He was in CD’s and as you he did not see the returns being above inflation.
Today he can rest assured that if he dies his wife and child are taken care of with a paid off mortgage and his money is making a return higher than CD’s with no market risks.
If you would like to discuss these or other options send me an e-mail I am a licensed Insurance agent as well and a Mortgage Banker.
The Dems and how the mortgage crisis started.
Posted by: | CommentsWe need to get these people out of Government like Barney Frank. They have caused the mortgage melt down. This is causing all the new crazy regulations on Home loans.
Watch these videos;
The last administration tried to stop Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from lowering the standards but the Democrats Frank, Dodd, Cuomo, Boxer, Clinton, Pelosi and the rest stopped them from tightening guidelines and made this all happen.
Single family home sales are up
Posted by: | CommentsSingle family home sale are up – but why? Federal Reserve loses lawsuit and must show the country where all the money has gone. Swiss cooperates with IRS – No more tax free Swiss bank accounts and it’s time to pay! How Does this effect purchasing a FHA Home in Dallas? to learn more about the Dallas FHA Loan and housing market send me a note and I’ll send you my insiders guide to the Dallas home market white paper. (e-mail link at bottom of page)
Watch the video for more detail
http://www.thinkbigworksmall.com/mypage/player/tbws/15029/975408
So if you want more information on buying a home in Dallas give me a call or e-mail Jerry@DallasFHAloans.com
http://www.thinkbigworksmall.com/mypage/player/tbws/14856/975408
Great information on what FHA said about HVCC appraisals. So if you are looking for a FHA loan in Dallas you may want to watch this.
Getting the Best interest rates on Dallas FHA Loans
Posted by: | CommentsMost people think there is “one rate” out there for Dallas FHA loans and everyone gets the same interest rate. I wish this was true, it sure would make my job easier.
First interest rates are set for each type of loan available, conventional, FHA, VA, USDA, refinance, cash out. Then by how long you want to finance, 30, 15, 10 year fixed and then ARMS Adjustable Rate Mortgages.
Once you know the type on loan then we need to know the loan amount, loan to value (LTV) if escrowing taxes & insurance.
Finally, we need to know your credit (FICO) score and debt to income (DTI)
Each of these items layer risk to the mortgage company and add to the interest rate.
Example: a 30 yr fixed term FHA loan of at 96.5% LTV for someone with a 720 FICO might get 5.25% rate but someone with 620 FICO on same loan due to being a higher risk might get 6.00% . Yet tomorrow all interest rates worsen and the 720 person is now 5.5% and our 620 person is 6.625%. Then again rates could improve and now the 720 person can get 5.00% and the 620 person get 5.375% Also, keep in mind all FHA loans have upfront Mortgage insurance premiums of 1.75% and monthly Mortgage Insurance of 0.55%
There is one more thing to remember, you can buy down your interest rate with points. A point is 1% of the loan amount and in the above case the 620 person could buy his rate down to exactly what the 720 person got with maybe 1-2% points. Then again, each could take a higher rate so that all the fees are paid for by the mortgage company. The average fees on a loan are about $3000.00 give or take. so a higher interest rate could cover these cost.
So, when you co-worker says they got 6.25% or 5.25% on their loan last month unless you know all the details for that day and all about them, you just don’t know what you could get. When looking for a Dallas FHA Loan please give me a call or e-mail me at jerry@DallasFHAloans.com