According to the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, over 30% of homes for sale are Short Sales.  A successful short sale is where the Lender/Bank agrees to take less than what is owed.  The homeowner usually has to show some type of hardship in order to get approved to do a short sale.  A hardship could be the loss of a job, divorce, or job relocation.  Some Lenders/Banks won’t approve a short sale unless the homeowner is at least 1 month behind in payments.

Short Sales are definitely not “short”!  Short Sales usually take anywhere from 90 days to 180 days to get approved.  The reason why most short sales don’t close successfully is because buyers don’t have the patience to wait that long for the transaction to be approved.  There are a few things that can be done by the listing agent to help improve the chances of the short sale getting approved and in less time.

If you are interested in selling your home and you owe more than it is worth, we should talk about doing a short sale.  We can be reached at 702.376.0088 or you can complete our contact form.  Click on the link for more information on Las Vegas Short Sales.

Everyone tells you to stop renting and purchase a home. It’s a sound, financial decision, they tell you. It’s a great investment, they cry. Wanting to buy a home and being prepared to buy a home are completely independent of one another, however.

Your desire to purchase a piece of Las Vegas real estate can easily become overshadowed by your inability to purchase one. Before calling a real estate agent, there are a few, important questions to ask yourself:

• Do I have a steady job? This is one of the first things a lender will want to know when you apply for a mortgage. Keeping a job for at least two years, or staying in a similar field for the same length of time, shows a lender that you are a good credit risk and that you’ll be able to pay your bills with a steady source of income.

Bottom line: if you’re in the market to purchase a home, now is not the time to change jobs. And if you haven’t achieved a steady work history, you’ll need to work on that before applying for a mortgage.

• How is my history of paying bills? A good credit history is a must when applying for a mortgage, as a lender needs to see a steady history of paying bills. And that doesn’t just mean your car and credit card payments. What about utility bills? Medical bills? Student loan bills? If any of these have fallen by the waist side, immediately get them up to date and establish at least six months worth of on-time payments before applying for a mortgage.
• How much debt am I carrying? Although you may be managing your debt and paying your bills on time, a lender will look at your “debt ratio,” which is essentially the ratio of money going out on loans and credit cards and money coming in through your salary. If your debt ratio exceeds a certain percentage (lenders vary on this), you’ll need to pay down some of your debt before applying for a mortgage.
• Do I have enough money saved for a down payment? Gone are the days of no-money-down mortgages. With the current credit crisis, most lenders require at least 10 to 20 percent down. Once again, if you haven’t achieved this, take another six months or so and continue to save money toward a healthy down payment.

Provided by the writing team of Richard Soto. Richard is a real estate broker who works in the Dallas Texas real estate, Alamo Heights real estate & Bexar County real estate markets.

Las Vegas has been named one of five “mega-politan” areas. These places are considered newly recognized super regions that combine two or more metropolitan areas into a single economic, social, and urban system.

Many experts predict that Las Vegas will continue to grow but will have to come up with solutions for water resources, education and infrastructure.  Las Vegas is already experiencing a construction boom on the Las Vegas Strip.  There are numerous projects under construction but none come close to the massive project on the south end of the Las Vegas Strip called City Center.  Project City Center is a project that consists of condos, hotels, casinos and retail district sitting within a 76 acre area.  You can easily say that Project City Center is a city within a city!

Even though home prices are still dropping in the Las Vegas Valley, you can rest assured that home prices will begin to stabilize very soon.  The reason I say that is because many foreclosures that are placed on the market for sale are receiving multiple offers.  When homes receive multiple offers, it usually means the property is priced below market value.  You can see why Las Vegas real estate is a great investment!

Las Vegas is poised for a strong come back in the years to come!  If you are looking to buy your first home or an investment property, you can’t go wrong with choosing a home in Las Vegas!

This past weekend I spent some time with a couple that just got married and are looking to purchase their first home.  They both have really good credit, high paying jobs and can afford a size-able down payment.  They have been approved for a FHA Loan Amount not to exceed $250K.  Even though they can afford a loan balance of $250K, they prefer to stay around the $175K price range.  Very smart!

A few of the Las Vegas Homes they picked out to see were short sales and required I call to confirm with the seller to make sure we could see the property.  All together there were 5 properties that were occuppied and required I called.  So following the request of the listing agent, I called all 5 properties well in advance of the times that we wanted to view the homes.  Out of the 5 properties, all but 1 of them gave me grief about the time we wanted to view the property.  I politely said to the sellers, I have a qualified buyer that wants to view your home today at this time, if you can’t work it in your schedule, I appreciate your time but I will not have my buyer work around your schedule and come back another day that is more convenient for you!  I mean come on, do you really want to sell your home?

We ended up seeing 3 of the 5 properties that were occuppied.  The other 2 would not let us see it at the times we were in the area?  I surmised that they really didn’t want to sell their home!

A piece of advice to sellers, we are in a buyer’s market, you have to be a little flexible when it comes to selling your Las Vegas Home.  If your home is priced right, you are going to have buyers that want to see your home at different times throughout the day and if you really want to sell it, you are going to have to allow these buyers to view your home.

We have been seeing a trend of foreign nationals investing in the Las Vegas Real Estate Market.  With the dollar at an all time low, foreclosures at an all time highand Las Vegas Real Estate prices at levels we haven’t seen since 2003-2004, foreign nationals are finding great investment opportunities in Las Vegas.  The majority of the foreign nationals that we have been working with of late are from Canada.

I was speaking with a Canadian client the other day and it appears that there is alot of media coverage in Canada about the which real estate markets are ripe for investing in the United States and Las Vegas is at the top of the list.

According to Dan Green with “The Mortgage Report,”

Foreign national mortgages are still available in the United States

Downpayment requirements are low — 10 or 20 percent, depending

Interest rates are reasonable and are not “monthly adjusting”

There’s no forbidden property types — condo, condotels, and multi-units are all okay

Even though Dan Green has stated that there are some programs that require as little as 10% down, I haven’t seen or heard of these programs.  The best I have found for any of my clients was 25% down.  But with lender guidelines changing almost daily, I would recommend that you speak with a local Las Vegas Loan Officer like Mark Madsen.

If you are thinking of investing in Las Vegas Real Estate, take advantage of the home prices while you can as we all know, home prices will eventually rise!  You can begin your search for homes for sale in Las Vegas by clicking on the link below:

Las Vegas Homes for Sale

If you are like most Las Vegas real estate agents in today’s marketplace, you are likely seeing your listings sit on the market longer. So, what are able to proactively do about your increased inventory?

1. Educate your sellers on the conditions of the market. It is up to you to help them understand market dynamics so that you can price their home aggressively. This will not only keep their price consistent and competitive with other homes on the market, but will also eliminate frustration and anger on their part when their home doesn’t sell.
2. With tip number one in mind, stay empathetic and understanding to your client’s concerns, worries and fears, and instead of arguing with them on who’s right and who’s wrong (which can be a losing battle with a stubborn client), show them market information so you can work together to re-evaluate their situation and make the right moves to get their home sold.
3. Use open houses to personally invite the neighbors and to do a neighborhood tour. Word of mouth is a powerful tool, and if you show the neighbors your client’s listing, you could very well achieve a word-of-mouth recommendation that will get your client’s home sold.
4. Stage your client’s home and make sure it sparkles. Clean, clean, clean should be your mantra. Also concentrate on arranging furniture to show off the home’s features and amenities, and encourage your clients to clear out clutter and give the home a good, deep cleaning. A clean, welcoming home will always sell faster than a dirty, disorganized or cluttered one.
5. Remember to change your attitude towards the market. If you remain positive and look for creative ways to sell your homes, then the buyers will find you! Remember that there are still buyers out there, and it is up to you to find them! Never stop looking for opportunities!

Author Bio:

VIP Realty specializes in Dallas real estate, with office that also service the San Antonio real estate and Highland Park real estate

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

If your a homeowner that purchased a home a few years ago using the 100% purchase financing, because of the fall in home values you’re probably one of the many that fall into the issue of being whats called “Over Encumbered”. This basically means that you owe more on your house than what it is worth.

Now with the credit crunch and the lenders tightening up a lot of their guidelines, this may have you in a position where you are not able to refinance so your stuck with only few options:

Sell/Short Sale
Foreclosure

You need to know that the government has been working to put organizations in place to proctect you and with the passing of HR 3221 you will likely see more. Here are just a few organizations that perhaps you should look into if you are having trouble making ends meet on your mortgage and you fear that you may lose your piece of California:

1. HUD HELP FOR HOMEOWNERS FACING LOSS OF THEIR HOME
2. HOPE NOW ALLIANCE
3. HUD-APPROVED FORECLOSURE PREVENTION HOUSING COUNSELORS
4. HUD’s “TIP’S FOR AVOIDING FORCLOSURE”
5. UNDERSTANDING FORECLOSURE PREVENTION OPTIONS
6. DEBTADVICE.ORG
7. RELIEF OPTIONS FOR FHA LOANS

I hope that the information will guide you towards security giving you and your family the information that you deserve to know.

Regards,

Fred D. Williams, Jr.
Mortgage Advisor
Mid Valley Financial Services
(559)256-3645
fredjr@mvfs.com

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

Las Vegas Home prices have dropped throughout 2008 and the trend could continue through the fall and winter.  As more and more foreclosures hit the market, banks will continue to offer these homes at prices below market value in an effort to get them off of their books.  So with that in mind, you have to determine if it’s the right time for you to sell your Las Vegas Home.

If you determine the time is right to sell because of divorce, loss of job, job relocation or any other reason, it’s important to understand the Las Vegas Real Estate Market.  Unless you purchased your home before 2003 or put a substantial amount down, it’s unlikely your home has any equity and is most likely worth less than you owe.  This means, you have two options:

1. You can pay the difference that you owe at close of escrow
2. You can attempt to sell your home as a short sale

You have the option of selling your home and paying the difference at close of escrow but that amount could be substantial!  Not only do you have to factor in the difference between the offer amount and what you owe but also have to include real estate commissions, closing costs and taxes.

Selling your home as a short sale is not guaranteed!  A short sale is when your lender agrees to accept an offer for the purchase of your home at a price less than what is currently owed.  A short sale usually requires some type of hardship like divorce, loss of job or job transfer.  A short sale package has to be completed and submitted to your lender for approval and this can take anywhere from 3 weeks to 16 weeks!  Having an experienced Las Vegas Real Estate Agent that specializes in Las Vegas Short Sales is a must if you decide to sell your home as a short sale.

If you can afford to hold off on selling your Las Vegas Home in this market, I highly recommend it!  The Las Vegas Rental Market is doing very well and you have a greater chance of renting your home than selling.  Having an experienced Las Vegas Property Management firm representing you is important.  With so many homeowners losing their home to foreclosure, they are being forced into the rental market.  Completing a credit check is very important to determine the potential credit risk of your tenants.

Obviously your situation will play a key decision on whether you can afford to rent your Las Vegas Home instead of selling it in this real estate market.  Feel free to contact us at 702.376.0088 to discuss your situation or visit us on our website at www.SenaSellsVegas.com.