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The Home of 2015

What will the home of the future look like? The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) took a took an educated guess at its recently-concluded annual convention.

Changes will come much faster over the next decade than they have in the past, due to the pace of technoloical advances. Overall, homes will be "greener" than today and there will be increasing emphasis on access for persons of limited physical ability (a trend that has already started as the baby-boomer generation greys).

The average square footage is likely to be in the same 2,400 sf. range that is found in today's new homes. The family room will replace the living room (which will either vanish or become a library, "retreat," or parlor). Ceilings throughout the first floor will be 9-feet high, with the second floor being 8-9 feet. More homebuyers will opt for three-car garages and for larger doors that admit SUVs.(So much for green!)

Source: MortgageNewsDaily.com

Help Your Realtor Sell Your Home, Part 1

Potential buyers are committing to a significant amount of debt when they decide to buy your property. Your job is to help them view it as their dream home. here are some proven tips and techniques...

First impressions count!
“Curb appeal” increases what someone may be willing to pay for your home. Potential buyers not only want to be impressed with your home, they want everyone else to be, as well. Make sure that your lawn, yard, garden beds, and driveway are well-kept and tidy, because appearances matter.

Cleaning
This is the most cost-efficient ways to spruce up your home. Make sure you scrub your home from floor to ceiling. Wash your windows, vacuum your carpets and drapes, and dust thoroughly. Remove dust, grime and fingerprints from all surfaces. Cleaning your light fixtures: can make a huge difference in the lighting in your rooms. Also, make sure your house smells good and is free of odors.

Tomorrow, I'll discuss additional tips to help your Realtor sell your home.

Refinancing ARMs Harder These Days, says WSJ

With rates on many homeowners' adjustable-rate mortgages rising, says the Wall Street Journal Online, some borrowers who would like to refinance into a new loan are finding they can't.

In some cases, that is because their loan carries a prepayment penalty, which would force them to come up with thousands of dollars if they refinance in the first few years.

Other borrowers, says the publication, are getting caught short by a changing housing market -- one in which home prices have flattened and lenders are beginning to tighten their standards after a long period of making mortgages easier and easier to get.

The challenges are greatest for homeowners whose credit has declined since they took out their last loan and for those who have little if any equity.

To read the entire article on Yahoo Finance, click here.

8 Big Mortgage Mistakes

MSN Money has a list of 8 of the most common (and costly) mortgage mistakes. They are:

• Not fixing your credit
  
  
• Not looking for first-time home buyers' programs
  
  
• Not getting pre-approved for a loan
  
  
• Borrowing too much money
  
  
• Not shopping around for rates and terms
  
  
• Paying junk fees
  
  
• Not planning for closing costs
  
  
• Not having enough cash on hand after closing
  

To read the entire article, click here.

More from Freddie Mac

During Q4 2006, 84% of new mortgages that were the result of refinancing were "cash out" loans. This resulted in $70.7 billion in equity pulled out of American homes in a three-month period.

Refinancing itself accounted for 46% of all mortgage loans during the fourth quarter.

A Freddie Mac spokesperson speculated that

"many families found it cost effective to cash-out equity through a new first mortgage, even though it raised their [interest] rate. With the prime rate at 8.25%, a home equity loan or line of credit based on that rate may not make sense if the financing need is large (like a major home improvement or college tuition payments) and will be paid back over several years."

Source: Mortgagenewsdaily.com

So How's the Real Estate Market Doing?

Freddie Mac issued its "February Economic Outlook" on February 8.

In addition to its usual economic forecasts, the report spotlighted defining moments of the 2006 market. Those that should interest residential homebuyers and sellers include:

• US Census Bureau inventories of new homes have begun to decline: down to a 5.9-month supply at year's end (compared to 7.2 months in July). However, keep in mind that these figures on new home sales are recorded at the point that sale contracts are signed. If a contract is cancelled, it is neither reflected in revised figures nor do these units return to inventory. (Cancellations were running as high as 30% last fall.)

  
  
  

• Excess inventories may continue to weigh on home prices over the long term and sellers are only reluctantly lowering prices as they slowly recognize the new reality of a buyers market.

  
  
  

• Single family starts in December 2006 were off 30% from their peak, but sales of new and existing homes were down 18% and 14% respectively. The decrease in new homes on the market may eventually -- maybe over as much as a year -- ease the inventory glut.
  
  

* Source: Mortgagenewsdaily.com