New Tax Credits Announced!!!

This year, a special government plan allowed and $8000 tax credit for
first time home buyers. After that success, the government is now
giving not only $8000 tax credits to first time home buyers but also a
$6500 tax credit to those who have lived in the same house for at
least five of the last eight years!
So if you have been thinking of upgrading or downgrading your home,
there is not a better time than now!
The tax credit effective date is Nov 6^th 2009 (the day President Obama signed the bill) to
April 30 2010; therefore you will want to act quickly to take
part in the program.
As with all government programs, there are some details you will want
to be aware of:

• income limit for the $8000 first time home buyer credit is $75,000 single/$150,000 married
• income limit for the $6500 current home owner credit is $125,000 single/$225,000 married
• to be eligible for current home owner credit, owner must have lived in primary residence being sold for minimum 5 consecutive years in the last 8 year period
• for current home owner and first time home buyer credit, binding contract must be written by April 30, 2010 and closing by July 1, 2010
• for current home owner credit, home being purchased must be less than $800,000 (no limit for first time buyer)
• current home owners must attach documentation of purchase to tax return
• dependents are ineligible for the home owner credit

This is a great deal I strongly encourage those sitting on the fence
to take advantage of! With the offer, I know there will plenty of
great deals for those who want to move! Contact me at 469-835-0540 or mike@teamtobin.com
and can get you set up on a home search today!

Paying Down Your Mortgage (Free Advice from a Lender)

If there is one question I get from current home owners the most, it would be 'What is the best way to pay down my mortgage?'. With all the choices, it can be a tough decision. I spoke with one of my preferred lenders, Mark Olson on the subject and he told me this.

We all want to save money. The obvious way is to just spend less. But sometimes you can only sustain the super-frugal lifestyle for so long before your family revolts. Your mortgage can offer you a less painful and somewhat subtler way to achieve your long-term savings goals.

Making additional monthly principal payments on your mortgage is one of the best ways to save money over the long term. Let’s look at an example, a $100,000 30 year fixed-rate loan at 5.5%:

The monthly principal and interest payment on this loan is $567.79 and as a 30 year loan it would pay off completely in 360 months. If the homeowner paid just $100 per month toward principal reduction, the loan would instead pay off in 254 months. The extra costs would therefore be 254 times $100 or $25,400. The savings however would be 106 months times the $567.79 or $60,185.74. That is a savings or almost $35,000. An extra $200 per month yields even bigger savings. The loan would pay off in 199 months and the total savings would be over $51,614.

It’s not hard to see that a larger loan balance with larger monthly (additional) principal reducing payments will lead to even bigger savings. So if you want to save more money, long-term for retirement or college funds, then look no further than your mortgage.

If you are going to purchase or refinance a home or if you have questions about your mortgage or financial matters, you can contact Mark Olson at Fairway Mortgage. His number is 972-899-5153 and his email address is marko@fairwaymc.com.

Taxing Texas home owners...VOTE NO to Prop. 2 and 3

On November 3rd, there will be Propositions 1, 2, and 3 allowing the State of Texas to start taxing Residential Homeowners. For homeowners if these laws are passed, you will be taxed by the State. We are already taxed by the County, the City, the Hospitals, and the school districts, we don’t need to be taxed by the state as well. Make sure your voice is heard!
I received a flyer from the Secretary of State, Hope Andrade, listing the Propositions that are up for election in November. I called to question them before sending this message out to my homeowner friends... PLEASE VOTE "NO" to Prop. 2 and 3 (HJR 36), unless you want to pay taxes to the State also.
Proposition 2: The proposed amendment would appear on the ballot as follows: "The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to provide for the ad valor em taxation of a residence homestead solely on the basis of the property's value as a residence homestead."
Proposition 3: The proposed amendment would appear on the ballot as follows: The constitutional amendment providing the uniform standards and procedures for the appraisal of property for ad valor em tax purposes."

What are you doing for Christmas?

What happens when you think about Christmas and being in your lovely home on a tree lined street that you just purchased? Celebrating your first wonderful Christmas in your very own home with the décor you put up and the memories you are making in your first home. How does it feel to think about the fact that you will be able to save $8000 on your 2009 tax bill? I know I would love to save $8000 on any bill this year, how about you? You could use the extra money to pay off some bills, take a trip or add some hardwood floors to your new home.
Now what happens when you think about Christmas in that apartment you have been in for the last year always thinking about buying your first home but never making pulling the trigger. None of your own décor, not much room for the big tree you saw on the tree lot. Well my friend time is running out and the $8000 tax credit is set to end on December 1st of this year. You will need to be closed on your new home before that date, if you are not you will not be able to take advantage of the $8000 tax credit. Email me now to find out how you can spend Christmas in your very own home and take advantage of the $8000 tax credit.

As a Buyer: How do you deal with competing offers?

This post refers to standard 'homeowner to homeowner deals, not (REO) bank owned properties--they will more often than not say there are multiple offers when there are none.
You have found the perfect home, crunched the numbers and decided make an offer. But---when your agent submits the offer, you find out that there are multiple offers. At this point, you are told by your agent that the listing agent has told you to submit your highest a best offer.
First things first, you need to take all things into consideration and decide how much you are willing to pay for that home, regardless of how many offers are on the table. It is important not to get caught up in the competition aspect of producing the 'best offer'. Once you have made a decision about how much you are willing to pay for the home, submit that offer and be ready to deal with what happens. Do you’re very best to remove all emotion from your offer. This is a business deal. Treat it as such. You may not get the home because someone else might be willing to pay more for it, but if you get into the bidding war then you will pay more that you normally would have--and it may be more than you can really afford.
On top of increasing the home price, you might also want to consider other options in your offer, including a shorter or longer period before the closing date, paying more in closing costs or taking some issues such as dirty carpets as is. A motivated and agreeable buyer may have better luck than a picky buyer with a higher offer. Many times, getting rid of the hassle is as valuable as the higher price.
Good luck with your home search and remember the next time you hear someone talking about how they would like to sell their home I would really appreciate an introduction. My email is mike@teamtobin.com

How much is my home worth

Here's something you realtor will rarely tell you--the value of your home is not what you want or even what you need. The value of your home is determined by what a typical buyer will pay for it. So you have to ask yourself what the typical buyer will pay for your home, and how you can increase your odds of getting the most money possible for your home.
The first thing you need to do is get a good market analysis of your home. A market analysis is best done by a Realtor or appraiser who really knows the area. If times are tight, most realtors will offer a 'comp' (market comparison) for free. A comp will give you a general idea of the price. To be more accurate, you can hire an appraiser who will give you a solid market analysis for a fee. The fee may seem like a lot but if it gets your home priced right and sold quickly, worth it's weight in gold! An appraiser will come to your home and take the cold hard look at it with zero emotional attachment. After you settle on a selling price for your home you need to make it the best home in the neighborhood, aka “best in class”. You may have some great wall paper that you just love from the 1970’s but it will most likely turn off buyers. Fix everything you can because it will cost you more if you don’t. Always Always Always bring your best house to the market. If you have any question in your mind about this take a drive to your nearest builder model and take a good look at it. Notice that the carpets are clean, walls are freshly painted and the home is decorated. It is their business to sell homes quickly and it should be yours too.

What is the Income Limit for the $8,000 Tax Credit?

Just the other day I was talking with a client and she asked me about the $8000 first time home buyers tax credit. A friend of hers told her that the tax credit for a couple was limited to an income of $75,000. I gently told her that that is not the case, the income limit for a couple filing jointly is $150,000 and the tax credit its self is 10% of the cost of the home. So the purchase price of the home must be $80,000 or more to reach the maximum $8000 tax credit.

The nice thing about the tax credit is that you do not have to pay it back if you stay in the home for 3 years.(If you do sell your home within 3 years of the purchase then the money will be “recaptured” at the time of the sale. )

The last thing she wanted to know was will the program be extended beyond December 1^st of this year. I have not heard a yes or a no on that one and I would not bet either way, my best advice for her is get into a home now and take advantage of this historic offer, and very low rates. If you would like to take advantage of the tax credit then send me an email (mike@teamtobin.com) or check my website for contact information and I will show you how.