Our mild, sunny California weather has finally arrived for spring! Below I have put together some financial and real estate market updates about what is happening in our greater Sacramento area. Current Rate Trends & Financial Markets Rates are slowly rising (and sometimes slightly falling) once again. However, financial markets are still filled with uncertainty including the Fed … [Read more...]
6 Springtime Home Maintenance Chores to Protect and Improve Your Home
As the warmer weather approaches, it's a great time to tackle some home maintenance projects to help keep your home top condition. Many of these tasks can be done easily, even if you're not particularly handy. #1 Clean Downspouts and Gutters While cleaning downspouts and gutters may not be the most glamorous task, it's an essential one that is much easier to do in dry weather and can prevent … [Read more...]
Bubble or No Bubble? What History Tells Us About the Likelihood of a Housing Crash This Year
In a recent Gallup poll, only 30% of respondents said it was a good time to buy a house. Concerns about a housing bubble are rising. However, comparisons to the 2008 collapse reveal many differences. In 2008, deregulation lead to subprime borrowers buying adjustable-rate mortgages that ended up becoming unaffordable. Today, ARMs are regulated to prevent the same problem from reoccurring. One … [Read more...]
I Want to Buy a House. Will Home Prices Ever Return to Normal?
House prices are sky high right now and that is leaving potential buyers wondering if the market will ever return to a normal state. One of the biggest things that you should be paying attention to when buying a home is that you want a home you will be happy with for at least five years. When you are trying to build wealth, real estate is a great option but it's not the only option. Finally, you … [Read more...]
Barbara Corcoran’s advice to first-time homebuyers: ‘Get in the game’
Barbara Corcoran is best known for her role on the TV show Shark Tank but she is also one of the best investors in the world. The advice that she has for first time homebuyers is pretty simple, and that is to get in the game and buy your first home. Barbara explains that once you have your first home, you can start to upgrade over and over again in order to make a profit. However, without that … [Read more...]
The Pros and Cons of Waiting Out the Hot Housing Market
There are quite a few different pros and cons that come from waiting out the hot housing market. There is a bunch of pressure on people who are trying to buy homes right now as the supply is continuing to dwindle. However, you can't let the fear of missing out be the driving force for you buying your home. You need to also realize that the fed just raised interest rates so your mortgage will cost … [Read more...]
New California program lets first-time homebuyers borrow down payment at 0% interest
There is a new program that was developed in California that will let first time homebuyers borrow the down payment for a house with a 0% interest rate. The program is called the Forgivable Equity Builder Loan and will help provide a loan of up to 10% of the purchase price of the home. Gavin Newsome talked about the program in April and how the housing affordability crisis needs to be tackled. If … [Read more...]
Aspiring home buyers shift expectations in hot housing market
There is a current shift that is going on in the housing market as there are not many homes currently available, and the ones that are available have sky high prices. Jasmine Nazarett was looking to buy a home because the price of rent is also extremely high. She was a first time buyer so there was nerves throughout the process but she saved up money from not having to pay her student loans. … [Read more...]
Easy Cost Free Way to Make a Home Purchase Offer Shine
In today’s market, meeting with a lender before looking for a home is an absolute MUST. Deals happen fast these days and sellers may have several offers to choose from. Many sellers won’t settle (because they don’t have to) for an offer with less than stellar financing support and verification. In many cases, a pre-approval or pre-qualification is simply not enough for sellers to feel confident … [Read more...]
Good news for home buyers? Fannie Mae chief economist says the U.S. housing market has finally turned a corner. Here’s why.
Single-family home sales fell by 16.6% in April to their lowest annualized rate in two years. In addition, March new home sales were revised significantly downward. The chief economist at Fannie Mae said the housing market has turned. Rising mortgage rates - they have gone up by 200 basis points since the end of 2021 - have been the cause. A report issued by Realtor.com indicated that sellers and … [Read more...]