by rtdosen | Dec 19, 2014 | Ryan Dosen Real Estate Articles
Holiday Home Wish List By Ryan Dosen Many of us will be hard at work this week fulfilling holiday wish lists. Lots of gifts to buy. Not a lot of time left to get them. And when we think about holiday wish lists, we’re usually contemplating things like cookware, cologne, and clothes. We may not think of home enhancements as things we should be longing for in lieu of other holiday luxuries, but these improvements can be enjoyed now and also pay dividends when it comes time to sell. The Demand Institute recently released the results of a 10,000-household survey that outlined the top items on Americans’ home wish lists. Detailing the so-called “Satisfaction Gap,” the Demand Institute helped shine some light on the gap “between what Americans have and what they say they need or want” in their homes. 1. Energy Efficiency Energy efficiency is becoming increasingly important to Americans and it tops our home holiday wish list. The Demand Institute reports that the average household spending on home electricity has jumped 56 percent since 2000. With energy cost increases far outpacing wage growth, the Institute says that “a desire for energy efficiency will drive renovations, maintenance, and new technology use….” 71 percent of surveyed households felt that having a “very energy efficient” home “with low monthly utility costs” was important, while only 35 percent of people responded that they were satisfied with their home’s current energy efficiency. This 36 percent “Satisfaction Gap” was the largest revealed in the survey. Whether it means installing programmable thermostats, replacing old appliances, sealing leaks, or simply changing their energy...
by rtdosen | Dec 16, 2014 | Ryan Dosen Real Estate Articles
3 Percent Down Conventional Home Loan Financing for First-Time Home Buyers By Ryan Dosen Cash-strapped first-time home buyers caught a big break this week. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced that they are adopting programs that will allow first-time home buyers to put as little as 3 percent down towards the purchase of a home. Similar programs are offered through the FHA, but the backing of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will make the terms much more favorable for well-qualified first-timers. This new 97 percent loan-to-value program officially becomes available on December 13, 2014. “First-Time” Home Buyers? Government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are allowing “first-time” home buyers to qualify for their new 3 percent down programs. Fannie and Freddie define “first-time” home buyer as someone that has not owned a home in the last three years. So, you may qualify as a “first-time” home buyer even if you’ve previously owned a home. Fannie Mae will also let you qualify as “first-time” home buyers if one, but not both buyers qualify as a first-timer. Conventional Loans and Financing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s new 97 percent loan-to-value program (the previous max was 95 percent loan-to-value) is only for conforming or conventional loans. Fannie and Freddie set various standards for loans that they will back or buy from banks. Loans that meet these standards are considered conforming or conventional. When a bank issues a loan, it can keep the loan on its own books or potentially package the loan with other loans and sell them off. The selling off of loans enables banks to stay...
by rtdosen | Dec 5, 2014 | Ryan Dosen Real Estate Articles
Americans Spending Too Much on Housing By Ryan Dosen CNNMoney.com recently reported that too many Americans are spending too much of their money on housing. Some are stretching their dollars to get the nicest homes they can possibly afford. Others are struggling with low wages, underemployment, bad credit, and/or high rental costs that could be unsustainable, individually and societally. 40 Million “Cost Burdened” Americans The Demand Institute, a non-advocacy and non-profit division of The Conference Board, is a think tank that focuses on understanding how consumer demand changes in industries, countries, and markets. The Institute recently surveyed 10,000 U.S. households and found that nearly 40 million Americans are spending more than 30 percent of their income on housing payments, property taxes and other home expenses. Even worse, 49 percent of renters are finding themselves in this “cost burdened” zone. Another study released this summer by Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Study reported that housing costs are near record highs and that 28 percent of renters are “severely” cost-burdened with housing costs eating up at least half of their incomes. Debt-to-Income Ratios When qualifying you for a loan to purchase a home, a bank will look at your debt-to-income (DTI) ratios. There are two DTI ratios that are relevant when trying to qualify for a mortgage: front-end ratio and back-end ratio. Local mortgage expert Karen Jackson of Waterstone Mortgage in West Chester says that the front-end ratio is the percentage of monthly gross income that is taken up by just the new projected monthly “PITI” (principal, interest, taxes, and insurance) payment. The back-end ratio is the percentage taken...
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