Posted on 8th March 2011 by Anthony in Home Values | Industry News
Arizona, Arizona home affordability, Arizona mortgage rates, buy a home, buy a home in maricopa, buy a home in maricopa arizona, Home Affordability, Home Opportunity Index, Maricopa, Maricopa AZ, maricopa az real estate, Maricopa real estate, NAHB
Home affordability reached an all-time high in 2010’s last quarter. Unfortunately for home buyers in Arizona , it’s been a different story since, however. If you are looking to buy a home in Maricopa the time is now, before the total index keeps rising. Arizona mortgage rates and Maricopa real estate affordability is still very low from the birds eye view. Maricopa az real estate is a good investment.
As mortgage rates cratered, and with home values soft, the Home Opportunity Index reached its highest level in 20 years. The index is published by the National Association of Home Builders.
Close to 74 percent of the new and existing homes sold between October-December 2010 were affordable to families earning the national median income of $64,400. It’s the 8th straight quarter in which the Home Affordability Index surpassed 70 percent.
Prior to 2009, the HOI rarely topped 65 percent. In Maricopa and Casa Grande homes are selling for less than new home builders can build them for.
That said, though, as with everything in real estate, home affordability is a local event. For example, take the Elkhart/Goshen area of northern Indiana. 97 percent of homes sold there last quarter were affordable to families making the area’s median income.
This level of affordability is likely related to state capital Indianapolis, a perennial top-scorer itself.
For the second straight quarter — and the 22nd time dating back to 2006 — Indianapolis led all major metropolitan areas with a 93.5 affordability rating.
Meanwhile, on the opposite end of the home affordability spectrum, the “Least Affordable Major City” title went to the New York-White Plains, NY-Wayne, NJ area for the 11th consecutive quarter. Just 25.5 percent of homes were affordable to households earning the area median income.
It’s a a 6-point improvement from Q2 2010, however.
The rankings for all 225 metro areas are viewable on the NAHB website but regardless of where you live, it’s important to remember that rising mortgage rates this year have made homes less affordable in all markets across the United States. We won’t see a repeat record in this quarter’s HOI once it’s calculated and published.
Home buyers in Maricopa have lost 10% of their purchasing power since November, and mortgage rates look poised to rise even more.
If your plans call for buying a home later this year, consider moving up your time frame. The long-term costs of homeownership are rising, and affordability, therefore, is falling. Remember that when Arizona mortgage rates rise, your buying power goes down. The time to buy a home in Maricopa is now. Maricopa real estate will only get pricier, so if you are looking to buy a home in Maricopa, talk to a lender and get the ball rolling.
Posted on 7th March 2011 by Anthony in Homebuyer Tax Credit | Industry News
Arizona real estate, first time home buyer, home buyers, IRS, Maricopa, Maricopa real estate, military, military personel, military tax credit, real estate, Tax Credit, tax credits
Maricopa real estate may have just gotten beter for select few. For certain members of the military, and for certain federal employees, there’s just 2 months remaining to get use the federal home buyer tax credit. If you fall into this category and live in the city of Maricopa or Casa Grande contact a local Prudential One Realty agent to discuss what options you may have.
Eligible persons include members of the uniformed services, members of the Foreign Service, and intelligence community employees who served at least 90 days of qualified, extended duty service outside of the United States between January 1, 2009 and April 30, 2010.
Spouses of persons meeting the above criteria are eligible as well. If you fall under that category for Maricopa real estate then you may still qualify.
The federal home buyer tax credit ranges up to $8,000 for first-time home buyers, and up to $6,500 for existing homeowners. Existing homeowners must have lived in their “main home” through 5 of the last 8 years to be eligible.
Claiming the federal tax credit is a two-step process. First, eligible persons must be under contract for a new home on or before April 30, 2011. The home’s closing must then occur on or before June 30, 2011.
The IRS does not make date exceptions.
Furthermore, both the buyer(s) and the subject property must meet certain minimum eligibility requirements:
- The home may not be purchased from a parent, spouse, or child
- The home may not be purchased from an entity in which the seller is a majority owner
- The home may not be acquired by gift or inheritance
- Each buyer must meet tax credit eligibility standards
- The home sale price may not exceed $800,000
- Buyers may not earn more than $125,000 as single-filers; $225,000 as joint-filers
The complete program description is published on the IRS website.
Another important note is that the IRS is giving eligible buyers a tax credit as opposed to a deduction. This means that a taxpayer qualifying for the full $8,000, and for whom the “normal” 2011 federal tax liability is $8,000, will have zero federal tax liability in 2011.
For additional information regarding your tax credit eligibility, call an accountant. Speaking with a tax professional is often worth the cost. For more information about Maricopa real estate or to get a home loan in Arizona click here.
Posted on 4th March 2011 by Anthony in FHA Mortgages | Industry News
Arizona, arizona financing, buy a home in Ariozna, buy a home in maricopa, FHA, get a mortgage arizona, homes for sale maricopa arizona, homes for sale marixopa, Maricopa, Maricopa Arizona, Maricopa real estate, MIP, Mortgage Insurance
For the third time in 12 months, the FHA is changing its mortgage insurance costs. You should check with your mortgage lender about these insurance premiums when you look to buy a home in Maricopa. These changes will take place i April and will affect Maricopa real estate and nationwide.
Effective for all case numbers assigned on, or after, April 18, 2011, annual mortgage insurance premiums (MIP) will increase 25 basis points.
The change will add $250 to an FHA-insured homeowner’s annual loan costs per $100,000 borrowed, and applies to all borrower’s equally. Current borrowers are unaffected. So if you are already in the process to buy a home in Maricopa and you have secured your FHA loan, then there would be no increase.
To understand the FHA is to understand why premiums are rising. During the past 5 years They have played a major role in Maricopa real estate most people that wanted to buy a home in Maricopa during this time bought using FHA backed funds.
As an institution, the Federal Housing Administration plays a much larger role in the U.S. housing market today than it did just 5 years ago. According to its own records, the FHA’s percentage of purchase money business in Arizona and nationwide expanded from 4 percent in FY 2006 to 19 percent in FY 2010.
Rapid growth like this has strained the FHA’s capital and, indeed, in its official statement, the they allude to this, stating that the MIP increase will “significantly strengthen” its reserves. By law, the FHA must maintain a certain minimum level of reserves.
Mortgage insurance varies by loan term, and by loan-to-value and, beginning April 18, 2011, the new insurance premiums are as follows:
- 15-year loan term, loan-to-value > 90% : 0.50% per year
- 15-year loan term, loan-to-value <= 90% : 0.25% per year
- 30-year loan term, loan-to-value > 95% : 1.15% per year
- 30-year loan term, loan-to-value <= 95% : 1.10% per year
To calculate your monthly mortgage insurance premium, multiply your starting loan size by your insurance premium, and divide by 12. The truth is that this is small in comparisonm to Maricopa real estate prices, and the overall picture still looks very good for buyers of Maricopa real estate. If you are looking to buy a home in Maricopa, or need a loan for your real estate purchase click here.
There is no change planned to the 1 percent upfront mortgage insurance premium charged by the FHA.
Posted on 1st March 2011 by Anthony in Pending Home Sales
buy a home, buy a home in arizona, buy a home in maricopa, Maricopa, Maricopa Arizona, Maricopa real estate, NAR, Pending Home Sales, pending sales, PHSI, real estate
After a strong run to close out 2010, the market for home resales softened a bit in January. This could be great news for people looking to buy a home in Maricopa Arizona. Maricopa real estate was strong to end out the quarter with strong home sales, but the first of the year has steadied out. But with this news , the time to buy a home in Maricopa Arizona is now!
On a seasonally-adjusted basis, the Pending Home Sales Index dropped 3 percent last month, and December’s figures were revised downward for a loss, too, according to the National Association of REALTORS®.
A “pending home sale” is defined as a home under contract to sell, but not yet closed.
The forward-looking index is now at a 3-month low on a national level, but still well ahead of its rolling 6-month average.
Unfortunately, national data isn’t overly helpful for buyers and sellers of real estate. The National Association of REALTORS® knows this, of course, and makes an effort to get more granular, supplementing the Pending Home Sales Index report with a region-by-region breakdown.
Between December and January, only the South Region increased in sales volume. The Midwest led the losers:
- Northeast Region: -2.4%
- Midwest Region : -7.3%
- South Region : +1.4%
- West Region : -5.2%
Maricopa real estate is in the west bracket, down, but still selling a high volume of homes. Even still, however, regional data remains too broad to be practical. The South Region, for example, is comprised of multiple states with thousands of cities and town. The housing market dynamics of a specific neighborhood in a specific regional city will differ from that of another neighborhood in another regional city.
Real estate data must be local to be relevant.
Overall, then, what may be most telling from January’s Pending Home Sales Index is how weather can influence results.
Most of the country faced drastic weather conditions in January, ranging from raging snowstorms to bitter cold. Events like that tend to put a damper on home sales, a contributing factor in why the number of new contracts fell.
Another reason is rising mortgage rates. Conforming and FHA rates rose week-by-week in January, robbing home buyers of 10% of their purchasing power. This, too, can slow down purchase activity as buyers adjust their expectations.
Looking forward, we should expect the Pending Home Sales Index to resume rising. Inclement weather doesn’t kill demand; it just delays it. And mortgage rates have settled somewhat. These two factors should help release pent-up demand just as the Spring Homebuying Season gets underway.
As more buyers enter the market, negotiation leverage will shift to home sellers, pressuring Queen Creek home prices higher. The lowest prices of the year — and the cheapest financing — could be what you see today. If you are looking to buy a home in Maricopa Arizona, or are looking to get a loan for Maricopa real estate please visit www.pru1re.com.
Posted on 25th February 2011 by Anthony in New Home Sales
Arizona real estate, Department of Commerce, foreclosure, foreclosures, home sales, Home Supplies, housing stats, Maricopa, Maricopa Arizona, maricopa county, maricopa foreclosures, Maricopa real estate, Mortgage, new home information, New Home Sales, new homes Arizona, New homes Maricopa, Pinal County
Not all housing reports are sunny, it seems.
In its monthly New Home Sales release, the U.S. Department of Commerce showed a 13 percent drop-off in annualized new construction sales between the months of December and January. Maricopa real estate has had some new homes built and for sale in the recent months. There is no doubt that foreclosures in Maricopa have driven the Maricopa real estate market. New homes in Maricopa have been competative, but foreclosures and bank owned property are driving the home sales here in Maricopa, Arizona.
This has been one of the biggest one-month drop in New Home Sales since May 2010.
In addition, the supply of new homes for sale spiked higher to 7.9 months last month. ”Home supply” is defined as the amount of time it would take to sell the complete “for sale” inventory at the current pace of sales.
In December, the supply measured just 7.0 months,
Don’t fret the news, however. For buyers of new construction in Maricopa , falling New Home Sales figures can be terrific. Weaker markets put pressure on the nation’s home builders to sell their respective homes more quickly. To reach that goal, builders often discount prices and/or offer free upgrades to buyers. If you are looking to buy a new home, this may be the time to make a move to get qualified, and start looking for your new home in Maricopa.
Some of that action may already be in effect. It is evedient by the amount of Foreclosures in Maricopa that have been recently purchased.
Despite falling volume, the Maricopa New Home Sales report showed that new homes are selling faster than in recent months. The median time required to sell a newly-built home dropped to 7.8 months in January – a figure well below January 2010’s reading of 13.9 months. Locally the months of inventory has fallen to about 5 months, but there are more maricopa foreclosures that are being released on the market, thus the housing inventory will go up moderately.
It suggests that builders are getting better at locating buyers, and moving property.
Therefore, if you’re shopping for a new construction and see one worth buying, get to it. Not only will the home likely sell soon if it’s priced right, but an increase in mortgage rates will make the home more expensive to finance.
Every 0.250% increase to rates adds $15 monthly per $100,000 borrowed. For maore information about Maricopa real estate or Maricopa foreclosures please visit www.pru1re..com.
Posted on 24th February 2011 by Anthony in Existing Home Sales
Arizona, buy a home in maricopa, buy a home in maricopa arizona, Distressed Sales, Existing Home Sales, home inventory arizona, Home Supplies, homes for sale in maricopa, homes for sale maricopa, Housing Data, Maricopa, Maricopa real estate, real estate, real estate broker
Home resales rose another 2.7 percent last month, according to the National Association of REALTORS® monthly Existing Home Sales report. Maricopa real estate has been steady compared to the national averages. Here in Maricopa there still have been steady foreclosure activity, and prices for Maricopa real estate have been steady. The invenotry has been going down, but it seems to be inching up.
An “existing home” is a home that’s been previously occupied and is not considered new construction.
The number of existing homes sold on a rolling 12-month basis is now at its highest point since May 2010, the month before the federal homebuyer tax credit ended. It’s also up some 40% since July 2010, the month after the tax credit ended.
But that’s not the biggest story in the Existing Home Sales report. The precipitous decline in home inventory deserves more attention.
At the current pace of sales, the complete, national home resale inventory will be sold in 7.6 months. This is close to 5 months faster as compared to last year’s peak, and well below the 2-year home supply average of 9.0 months. There more buyers in the market, it seems, and fewer homes from which they can choose. The inventory here in the city of Maricopa has gone down in recent months. In September there was 7.2 months of inventory, recently that number has gone down to 5 months of inventory. For Maricopa real estate this has been a significant drop, but dont be fooled, there is more inventory coming in the next 6 months to the city of Maricopa.
Total home resale inventory is down to just 3.38 million homes nationwide — the fewest in 12 months.
There were other interesting statistics in the official Existing Home Sales report, including a break-down of purchases by buyer-type.
- First-time buyers accounted for 29% of purchases, down from 33% in January
- Repeat homebuyers accounted for 48% of purchases, up from 47% in January
- Investors accounted for 23% of of purchases, up from 20% in January
In addition, distressed sales — foreclosures and short sales — made up 37 percent of the market.
Over the next few days, more housing data will hit the wires and it’s expected to show similar strength to January’s Existing Home Sales report. With falling supplies and a growing base of move-up buyers, home prices in Queen Creek and around the country are expected to rise in the coming months ahead. For more information about Maricopa real estate or to get a home loan please visit www.pru1re.com.
Posted on 17th February 2011 by Anthony in Homebuilders | Industry News
Arizona, Arizona real estate, foreclosures, Housing Starts, Mainstream Media, Maricopa, Maricopa Arizona, Maricopa real estate, new home starts, real estate
Homes for sale in Maricopa have been dominated by foreclosures. Maricopa foreclosures have held the market down, and the newest news for single family starts, means that Maricopa may have an opportunity to slowly sell these homes for sale in Maricopa. 
Annualized Single-Family Housing Starts dropped 1 percent in January to 413,000 units nationwide, it’s lowest reading almost 2 years.
A “Housing Start” is defined as a home on which construction has started.
Maricopa real estate has never been more affordable. In Maricopa foreclosures have driven the market, and anyone who wants to buy a home in Maricopa, the affordability is at an all time high. Now, if you had only seen the Housing Starts story in the headlines today, you wouldn’t have known that single-family starts fell at all. It’s because of how the story is being reported.
Most commonly, newspaper headlines are reading something similar to “Housing Starts Jump 14.6%” with the lead paragraph making mention that “housing starts are at their highest levels in 4 years”.
It’s a true statement, but it’s misleading, too.
This is because, despite the Census Bureau reporting Housing Starts by property type — single-family, multi-family, and apartments — the media often lumps them into a single data set. For home owners in Maricopa, it is only good news that the single family starts are down. Maricopa Arizona has been and will be a heavy foreclosure real estate market, and the less amount of New homes they build, the quicker we will sell the homes for sale in Maricopa.
It’s a categorization that helps investors in homebuilder stocks, but it does little for everyday Maricopa home buyers. The huge majority of buyers aren’t buying multi-units or whole apartment buildings — they’re buying 1-unit homes.
Here’s how January’s Housing Starts broke down by type:
- Single-Family Homes : Down 4,000 units, or -1%
- 2-4 Unit Homes : Negligible change
- Apartment Buildings : Up 46,000 units, or +80%
Clearly, the surge in Housing Starts can be attributed to the rapid rise in the 5-unit-or-more sector. Single-Family Starts were weak, by comparison.
Even with all of this noted, however, we can’t even be certain that the January Housing Starts data is accurate anyway. A footnote in the government’s report shows that, although single-family starts are said to have decreased 1 percent, the data’s margin of error is ±8.6%.
This means that the true Single-Family Housing Starts reading may be anywhere from -9.6% to +7.6%. The data is throw-away. Housing Starts may have actually increased in January, but we won’t know until revisions are offered later this year. For more information about Maricopa real estate, or Foreclosures in Maricopa please visit www.pru1re.com. Need a loan to buy a home in Maricopa? Click here
Posted on 8th February 2011 by Anthony in Company News | Mortgage Rates
Adjustable Rate Mortgages, Arizona, arizona loans, arizona mortgages, ARM, LIBOR, Maricopa, Maricopa Arizona, Maricopa AZ, maricopa az real estate, maricopa lending, maricopa loans, Maricopa real estate, Mortgage Rates, mortgages
If your ARM is due to adjust this spring, your best move may be to allow it. Don’t rush to refinance, evaluate all of your options for your Maricopa mortgage, including staying with your adjustable rate – your rate may be adjusting lower. What to do with your financing is a key question when investing in Maricopa real estate. The reason that they are adjusting lower?
It’s because of how adjusted mortgage rates are calculated.
First, let’s look at the lifecycle of a conventional, adjustable rate mortgage:
- There’s a “starter period” of several years in which the interest rate remains fixed.
- There’s an initial adjustment to rate after the starter period. This is called the “first adjustment”.
- There’s a subsequent adjustment until the loan’s term expires. The adjustment is usually annual.
The starter period will vary from 1 to 10 years, but once that timeframe ends, and the first adjustment occurs, conventional ARMs enter a lifecycle phase that is common among all ARMs — regular rate adjustments based on some pre-set formula until the loan is paid in full, and retired. These can be very beneficial for certain types of buyers of Maricopa real estate. They can also be very hurtful if not used properly. When applying for Maricopa mortgages be aware of what your goals are.
For conventional ARMs adjusting in 2011, that formula is most commonly defined as:
(12-Month LIBOR) + (2.250 Percent) = (Adjusted Mortgage Rate)
LIBOR is an acronym for London Interbank Offered Rate. It’s the rate at which banks borrow money from each other. It’s also the variable portion of the adjustable mortgage rate equation. The corresponding constant is typically 2.25%.
Since March 2010, LIBOR has been low and, as a result, adjusting mortgage rates have been low, too.
In 2009, 5-year ARMs adjusted to 6 percent or higher. Today, they’re adjusting near 3.000 percent.
That’s a big shift.
Therefore, strictly based on mathematics, letting your ARM adjust this year could be smarter than refinancing it. You may get yourself a lower rate.
Either way, talk to your loan officer. With mortgage rates still near historical lows, Maricopa homeowners have interesting options. Just don’t wait too long. LIBOR — and mortgage rates in general — are known to change quickly. If you are looking into Maricopa real estate, or shopping to apply for a Maricopa mortgage, contact Prudential One Realty at 520-836-1001, or visit www.pru1re.com . We look forward to serving your real estate and mortgage needs.
Posted on 4th February 2011 by Anthony in jobs
Arizona, Arizona real estate, arizona unemployment, buy a home, homes for sale maricopa, homes for sale maricopa arizona, homes maricopa, Maricopa, Maricopa Arizona, Maricopa real estate, Mortgage Rates, Non-Farm Payrolls, Unemployment Rate, unemployment statistics
Americans are getting back to work. Sort of. This is good signs for the Arizona real estate market, and for people looking to buy a home in Maricopa Arizona. With the information released by the BLS, it shows that we are on a slight recovery both nationwide, and in Arizona.
This morning, at 8:30 AM ET, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its Non-Farm Payrolls report for January 2011. More commonly called “the jobs report”, the government’s data showed a large decrease in the number of working Americans as compared to December, but a sizable drop in the Unemployment Rate. According to the group Arizona is at 9.1 , which is around the national average, and heading in the right direction.
The job growth figures were much lower than consensus estimates:
- Expected job growth in January : +148,000 jobs
- Actual job growth in January : +36,000 jobs
January’s Unemployment Rate surprised analysts, too, but not in a bad way, falling from 9.4 percent in December to 9.0 percent last month. This is the nation’s lowest Unemployment Rate in nearly 2 years.
Today’s jobs report is rough news for home buyers and rate shoppers for Arizona real estate. Shortly after the report’s release, Wall Street is attributing the low jobs number to “bad weather” and is choosing to focus on the strong Unemployment Rate instead.
U.S. stock futures are now rising ahead of open, an increase that will come at the expense of the bond markets. Indeed, mortgage-backed bonds are losing this morning already.
Conforming mortgage rates are expected to start the day at least +0.125% from Thursday’s close and, if momentum continues, could tack on an additional +0.125% before today’s closing bell.
The government’s report is an excellent example of how important jobs data can be to home affordability — especially in a recovering economy. Arizona real estate affordability is at an all time high, with some areas going down in value up to 80%, this truly is the time to buy a home in Maricopa Arizona.
The economy shed 7 million jobs between 2008 and 2009 and fewer than 1 million of those were recovered in 2010. It’s a data point Wall Street watches closely because more working Americans means more consumer spending, and more consumer spending means more economic growth. Consumers account for 70% of the U.S. economy, after all. This along with housing drive the overall U.S. economy.
More workers also means more taxes paid to federal, state and local government, and, in theory, fewer loan charge-offs from banks. These, too, keep the economic engine moving forward, spurring more spending and job growth.
If you have not yet locked a mortgage rate, consider locking one today. On the heels of today’s jobs data, 30-year fixed rates will scratch at their highest levels of the year. Mortgage Rates are still afforadble, and Arizona real estate is just as affordable. For more information on Arizona real estate, or to buy a home in Maricopa Arizona please visit www.pru1re.com.
Posted on 3rd February 2011 by Anthony in Mortgage Guidelines
Arizona, arizona mortgage, Arizona real estate, arizona real estate market, credit score, Federal Reserve, finance, home buyers, Home buyers in Arizona are finding that applying for a loan has become aomewhat easier. That is great news for maricopa real estate, home loans, Maricopa, maricopa mortgages, Maricopa real estate, Mortgage Approvals, mortgage lending
Mortgage lending appears to be loosening. At least for now. In Arizona Michael Chavez, with Prospect mortgage, says he has the ability to process some 580 credit score loans for some Arizona mortgages. Those are great signs for the Arizona real estate market. Although the documentation, and rate may be higher, this is a great opportunity for Arizona home buyers.
In its quarterly survey of member banks, the Federal Reserve asks senior loan officers around the country whether their “prime” residential mortgage guidelines had tightened within the last 3 months. Which is the same case for Arizona mortgages, and mortgages throughout the country.
A prime borrower is one with a well-documented credit history, high credit scores, and a low debt-to-income ratio.
Of the 54 responding banks, just 2 said its guidelines had tightened during the period October-December 2010. That’s less than 4 percent. And, by comparison, 95 percent of banks said guidelines remained “basically unchanged”.
The remaining banks reported a loosening.
It’s a positive sign for the housing market, and for home buyers in Maricopa and nationwide. If banks have stopped raising the hurdles of home loan approval, in theory, more would-be buyers will be approved. If we could get the first time home buyers aprroved again in Maricopa, we would have a thriving market for Maricopa real estate.
It’s much tougher to get a home loan versus 5 years ago. Delinquencies and defaults have changed how banks review loan applications. Today’s underwriters are more conservative with respect to household income, total assets and overall credit scores.
Even as compared to January 2010, approval standards are higher :
- Minimum credit score requirements are higher
- Downpayment/equity requirements are larger
- Maximum allowable debt-to-income ratios have been lowered
Although mortgage rates remain low, qualification standards do not. Based on last quarter’s banking survey, however, mortgage applicants in Arizona may find approvals easier to come by soon. Low rates don’t matter, after all, if you’re not eligible to get them.
The housing market is strong and lending looks to be loosening. It should help fuel the demand for homes in 2011, which will push supplies down and lead prices up. For homeowners that qualify, therefore, the best time to purchase a home may be sometime this spring. If you need an Arizona mortgage talk to a home loan expert like Michael Chavez. For full access to Arizona real estate searches click here
