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Buying A Home Category

How savvy are you about mortgage financing or refinancing?

May 14

filed under: Buying A Home, Real Estate, Refinancing

Home refinanceWell according to a recent Mortgage Marketplace Survey done by Zillow, many of you may not be as savvy as you think you are. I am not going to quote the percentages of how many of you are not savvy in the various financing areas that the survey covered, but choose instead to briefly enlighten Read the rest of this entry »

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Rent Vs. Buy, Interest Rates and Warren Buffet

Apr 22

filed under: Buying A Home, Market Conditions, Real Estate, Selling A Home

Today I thought it would be a great time to talk about interest rates and when is the right time to buy a property. Hand in hand with this comes the topic of the monthly cost of renting vs. owning. I was going to use some charts and graphs that came to my attention just recently to aid me with this post, but I’m afraid they were just too big for me to reduce down, and if I had, you would need a magnifying glass to read them.

In their stead I’m going to provide you with some of the highlights of those charts. Should you want to see the actual charts shoot me an email to azhowardharris@gmail and I will get them off to you. In the meantime here are the facts that were represented.

  • In 2012 through the first quarter of 2013 Mortgage interest rates were the lowest since 1993.
  • In charting the interest rates for the last 200 years it is easy to see that constant fluctuations over the course of years clearly evidences that rates are bound to increase.
  • Median home prices have gone up approximately 3.5 times in 32 years
  • Because rates are near historic lows, the payment for an average home is about the same as 30 years ago (Freddie Mac)
  • Average rent is up 4 times in 32 years (Zillow).

There was also some compelling information that compared1981 to 2013

Oct-81 Feb-13
Median Home Price $69,600 $246,800
Interest Rates 16.63% 3.53%
Monthly Payment $967 P&I $1,115 P&I
Monthly Rent $315 $1,350

At the end of all of the charts was this quote from Warren Buffet.  “ I would buy a home and finance it with a 30 year mortgage, it’s a terrific deal”.  Now I don’t know how you feel about Mr. Buffet, but he does seem to know what he is doing when it comes to making some good, sound financial decisions.

In conclusion, if any of this information begins to make you think that now just may be the time to move forward on that thought you had to buy your first home or perhaps sell your existing home give me a call (480 586 0339).  I would love to talk with you at a time that is convenient for you. Obviously there will be no obligation on your part, I am available at any time.

 

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Eight Things You Need To Know About Your Credit Score And Purchasing A Home?

Nov 04

filed under: Buying A Home, Real Estate

Credit scores are a key part of the home buying process! It’s important to understand how credit scores work and why they are such an important factor when you go to purchase a home.  Whether you are a first time home buyer, college graduate or have struggled in this economy, your credit scores are going to play a big part in whether or not you have the ability to purchase a home.

Here are some frequently asked questions along with answers regarding credit scores that I think you will find very helpful.

What makes a good credit score? Read the rest of this entry »

Written by TJ Harris // 6 Comments »

What Are You Missing Out On When Searching For Homes On Zillow or Trulia?

Oct 17

filed under: Buying A Home, Real Estate, Yada Yada

Listen its no big secret you may go to online sites like Zillow and Trulia when trying to see what homes are for sale in your geographical areas of interest that fit your predetermined search criteria. The question is  are are you seeing “all” the homes for sale? Are you seeing new listings as soon as they come on the market? Read the rest of this entry »

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Is This Property A Good Investment? Do You Think The Price Will Keep Going Up?

Oct 01

filed under: Buying A Home, Market Conditions, Real Estate

We are back to a shortage of inventory, market demand is strong and buyers are back wanting to take advantage of buying a property while prices are still great, but have definitely been rising for the past few months. Interest rates are incredibly low and buyers want to be on the “upswing” side of the market.

Working with buyers as long as I have, it usually never fails that a good 40% of them will ask Read the rest of this entry »

Written by TJ Harris // 1 Comment »