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Clock Is Ticking for First Time Home Buyers
With mortgage rates at record lows, bargain home prices and the $8,000 first-time home-buyer credit set to expire Nov. 30, the clock is ticking for first time home buyers to take advantage of what's deemed to be the best buyer market in the history of real estate.
We may never see rates this low again. What has caused rates to stay artificially low? At the beginning of this year the Federal Reserve announced they'd be purchasing Mortgage Backed Securities from Freddie Mac, Ginnie Mae and Fannie Mae. This bailout ends on Dec 30, 2009 and rates are expected to jump after this date.
Case in point, don't miss the boat! You must close on a home by Nov 30th, 2009 to take advantage of the tax credit. A typical home purchase takes 30 days from the time you find a house until closing. The average time it takes buyers to find a home is 3 months.
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Say Goodbye to FHA
Condo Spot Approvals
In case you needed another reason to begin your home shopping, starting Oct 1, 2009 FHA will cease doing "spot approvals" on non-FHA approved condominium complexes. A spot approval is done for home buyers when a condo complex is not already FHA approved. Should a non-FHA approved complex meet certain FHA guidelines, a buyer used to be able to get a "spot approval" to get a loan on that complex. Beginning Oct 1, 2009 this is no longer effective.
Any condo complexes that are already FHA approved are not affected by this bulletin nor are home buyers not utilizing an FHA program to get their loan.
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With a 3.5% down payment, or $8750 on a $250,000 home, a buyer's monthly mortgage payments would approximate $1700/month or less (includes taxes). This is based on a 5.25% interest rate and good buyer credit rating. The following is a list of real estate priced $250,000 and below. It just might be cheaper than your rent!
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