Last week there was some very HUGE news in the mortgage industry with the U.S. Government bailing out both Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac as they were facing financial issues in today’s hurting mortgage industry.

Short Term - This was a must for the mortgage industry. If the government wouldn’t have stepped in and bailed out these two giants, what could have happened otherwise would have been catastrophic. High fives should be going around the house with this news. This is going to give our conforming industry back the stability it needs to continue funding loans and driving in new business. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see a drop in interest rates down to the 5.500% range and rally back and forth for some time because of this huge take over.

Folks, please also note that this is not the end of the mortgage crisis. All this is really going to do is allow us to still continue to move forward with the same crisis we were already facing in our mortgage and economic economy. Why is this good news then? Because if what could have happened if the government would not have bailed these giants out would of destroyed or us. Imagine for just a bit if the conforming lending had just the same if not worse restrictions on it as the jumbo loans do now. This could have and would of shut us down and caused worldwide effects.

So Short term, this is great news because we can continue to move forward. What we have to keep our eye on is the long term effects. There are still major companies in economic shambles and the government can’t help them all out. What will happen to these companies, and how will that continue to affect our economy?

Regards,

Fred D. Williams, Jr.
Mortgage Advisor
Mid Valley Financial Service
(559) 256-3645

Are you currently in the process of looking to purchase a home for the 1st time? Do you have clients that may be struggling to come up with the down payment to purchase a home? If so, you need to be aware of one of the many benefits that will take effect due to the H.R. 3221 Bill that was singed by President Bush on July 30, 2008.

Within the H.R. 3221 Bill there is a provision that allows first time home buyers to have up to $7,500 as a tax credit for purchasing a house. The max is $7,500 or 10% of the purchase price, which ever is less. So as long as you have a purchase price over $75,000 your tax credit will be $7,500. This $7,500 tax credit is looked at as a loan and will need to be paid back over a period of 5 years. The exciting part is it is less than $42 a day and it is interest free money.

There are income restrictions on this money if you are single or married. If you are single you will not qualify for the full $7,500 if you make more than $75,000 a year. If you are married your combined income can not exceed $150,000. If for any reason your income does exceed these amounts when filed, your tax credit will be reduced from the full possible amount of $7,500.

You will need to pay your tax credit back in full if you decide to rent out the property while you still owe on your tax credit. They only way to get out of not paying this money back is if your number expires and you were to pass way.

Take advantage of your tax credit today by getting a loan from a family member! If you can’t wait until tax time to get your tax credit Perhaps a family member would be willing to gift you a down payment for your purchase today (with possible interest) and pay them back in full once the tax credit is recieved at tax time. If this is a plan that they decide to go with, please make sure to talk to a CPA who has possibly filed there taxes in the past. If they are an individual that usually has to pay on there taxes, they better be prepared to not get the entire $7,500 tax credit or what ever is due to them (Uncle Sam gets his slice of the cake before anyone). So if you were to file your taxes in 08′ and it turns out that you owe $1,500 and you were also expecting a tax credit  of $7,500. Your amount due to you will drop to $6,000. 

So if you are going to borrow from a family member with the anticipation to pay back at tax time, be sure that you know where you stand with your CPA.

I hope that this has shed some light on the new tax credit that is coming our way from the H.R. 3221 bill. 

Regards,

Fred D. Williams, Jr
Mortgage Advisor
Mid Valley Financial Services

The St. Regis Residences, a planned 632 foot tower at the Venetian Palazzo will have 398 residences and willl be situated between The Venetian and Palazzo on the famous Las Vegas Strip.  The $600 million condominium project is expected to be completed in 2010.  According to the Las Vegas Review Journal, “Residences will range from 1,700 square feet to more than 10,000 square feet for a duplex villa with private pool. Total sales for all units could reach as much as $2 billion.”

I will be following this project and will keep this blog updated with the progress of The St. Regis Residence.

Looking to purchase a Las Vegas Home or High Rise Condo in the near future?  If so, make sure you are completely aware of the Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions of the homeowner’s association (HOA).  Many homeowner associations can regulate where you park, what you can plant in the front yard and even what color your home can be.  On the other hand homeowner associations help maintain your property value.

HOA fees for Las Vegas High Rise Condos can be very expensive.  Usually the HOA fees for the high rise condos cover the costs of maintaining amenities like swimming pools, spas, clubhouses, workout facilities, entry gates, concierge services, insurance, garbage etc…

Just remember if you choose a Las Vegas Home or Condo that has an HOA, you are giving up some rights in exchange for the protection of your property value.

When you are looking for up to date Las Vegas Real Estate News do you use the major real estate news sites like Inman.com, Rismedia.com or RealtyTimes.com or do you look for a local source?  Do you search through Las Vegas Real Estate Blogs looking for a site that caters to recent real estate market updates?

From my experience it is difficult to find quality up to date information on your local real estate market.  Sites like Inman.com, Rismedia.com and RealtyTimes.com cater to a national real estate market which means local articles are few and far between.  Many of the local sources talk about different aspects of the entire market which might be what you are looking for but most of the time its not.  Many web surfers already have an idea what they are looking for and they usually have to spend many hours combing through the different Las Vegas Real Estate blogs to find it.  I would suggest doing specific searches, for example, say you are interested in the high rise condo market.  I would do a search for “Las Vegas High Rise Condo Market” to gather the exact information you need.

It is almost impossible not to notice Panorama Towers as you drive down Interstate 15 in Las Vegas.  Panorama Towers is located on the west side of Interstate 15 on Dean Martin Drive and Harmon, directly across from Project City Center.  The third Panorama Tower is currently under construction.

Panorama Towerscomprises of two 33-story towers with each tower containing over 300 units.  The third tower that is under construction is slated to be a 44 story tower.  The luxury units range from 700 to 4,400 square feet.  Amenities include Spa and Fitness Facilities, Valet and Concierge Services, Pool and Jacuzzis and much much more!

According to the Las Vegas Review Journal in late 2007 ”developer Satoshi Nakayama paid $10 million for a 10,500-square-foot gray-shell penthouse on the 34th floor of Panorama Towers.”  Mr. Nakayama has plans to spend an additional $5 million to build out the unit.  Guess you can say that the Las Vegas High Rise Condo Market is doing alright when you have someone paying $10 million for a unit?

If you haven’t seen one of these units, I encourage you to make an appointment and take a tour of Panorama Towers and don’t be surprised if you run into Panorama Tower residents Leonardo DiCaprio or Pamela Anderson.