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Buying Handling an Appraisal Gap An appraisal gap describes the difference between the sales price and the lower amount of the appraisal required by the mortgage being obtained by the buyer.  It becomes an issue if the seller is not willing to lower the price or the buyer is not willing to pay the difference in cash. Looking at the issue […]
Buying Make your home offer the most appealing Sales in March 2023 were down 2.4% month over month and still down 22.0% year over year according to the NAR Housing Snapshot.  The median sales price dipped 0.9% to $375,700 and there are 2.6 months supply of homes on the market compared to 2 months a year ago. “Inventory levels are still at historic lows, […]
Buying Protect yourself with a new construction inspection Builders of new homes offer or are required to warrant their work for a specified period.  Municipal inspections are generally required during different stages to “ensure the life, health, safety, and welfare of the public” but even if something is missed, the ultimate responsibility for building to code belongs to the builder, even if the […]
Buying Higher Interest Rates May be the Help You Need Like opening and closing a faucet increases and decreases the water flow, lowering interest rates increases home sales and raising interest rates decreases home sales. When home sales increase during periods of limited inventory, demand increases and prices go up.  Contrarily, when home sales decrease, demand could lessen and prices moderate. There is opportunity with higher […]
Uncategorized Shopping Mortgage Rates Nobel Prize recipient, Richard Thaler, in his research into seemingly irrational economic behaviors, “found that consumers generally search too little, get confused while evaluating complex alternatives, and are slow to switch from past choices, even if it costs them.” “Why are consumers leaving money on the table?” Based on this behavior, a borrower securing a mortgage […]
Buying Tell Me More About Closing Costs There are fees and expenses associated with mortgages that must be paid by the closing date for closing costs, and pre-paid items, in addition to the down payment.  These amounts can vary according to the type of loan, mortgage company, customary practices of the area, and the terms of the contact. According to Freddie Mac, the […]
Buying A Lesson on Housing from the 80’s Doing nothing may be a lot more costly than doing something.  With rates twice what they were in 2021 and the first half of 2022, many buyers are sitting on the sideline.  For some, it has to do with not being able to afford the home they want at today’s mortgage rates and for others, it is […]
Buying Make Your Home Offer the Most Appealing Sales in February 2023 were up 14.5% month over month and still down 22.6% year over year according to the NAR Housing Snapshot.  The median sales price dipped 0.2% to $363,000 and there are 2.6 months supply of homes on the market compared to 1.7 months a year ago. “Inventory levels are still at historic lows, […]
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Buying and Selling A New Perspective on the Housing Market The housing market in 2021 and part of 2022 was anything but normal.  Mortgage rates were at all time lows and may never reach those levels again.  Double-digit appreciation drove prices to new heights.  Low inventories fueled by high buyer demand made multiple offers a normal expectation. As we look at the market snapshots provided by MLS in […]
Buying Rethinking Backup Offers Like with any professional, there are tools and techniques available to help with particular situations.  They might be more popular at certain times and might even be put aside or forgotten at others. For real estate professionals, one of those is the backup offer. In a situation where there are multiple offers, the seller can accept any […]
Selling Get the Buyer Incentives to Act Now   Sellers, who last year, were not willing to make any concessions, are much more likely to do so this year due to the softening of the market because of inflation and higher mortgage rates affecting affordability for buyers. Concessions can take place in different forms.  A seller could offer to pay the buyer’s closing costs […]
Buying When do you lock your mortgage rate? Locking your interest rate protects you from increases due to market conditions.  Locking early safeguards your budgeted payment.  By locking the rate, if the market goes up, you get the lower rate; if it goes down after the lock, you may be able to pay a fee and lower the rate. Knowing when to take the lock […]
Buying Getting Comfortable with the New Normal Mortgage Rates he biggest shock to homebuyers is the soaring mortgage rates of 2022 that doubled in one year resulting in approximately 15 million mortgage ready buyers displaced from the market due to affordability issues. As of February 23, 2023, the 30-year fixed rate mortgage was at 6.5%.  While that is twice as high as it was on […]
Buying Playing Monopoly Is Good Homework If you’ve ever been in a Monopoly game after most of the properties have been purchased and developed, it can be a relief to land on Free Parking, knowing the dice must rotate to the next player giving you a respite from paying rent.  Like the game, in real life, it would be nice to avoid […]
Buying When do you lock your mortgage rate? Locking your interest rate protects you from increases due to market conditions.  Locking early safeguards your budgeted payment.  By locking the rate, if the market goes up, you get the lower rate; if it goes down after the lock, you may be able to pay a fee and lower the rate. Knowing when to take the lock […]
Buying Get the Buyer Incentives to Act Now Sellers, who last year, were not willing to make any concessions, are much more likely to do so this year due to the softening of the market because of inflation and higher mortgage rates affecting affordability for buyers. Concessions can take place in different forms.  A seller could offer to pay the buyer’s closing costs or […]
Uncategorized Compare Before Deciding on the Standard Deduction The TCJA of 2019 dramatically increased the standard deduction so that many homeowners benefit from taking that rather than itemizing their deductions.  Taking the standard deduction may result in a larger deduction even if you have no expenses that qualify for claiming itemized deductions. Another thing reinforcing taking the standard deduction was low rates at the […]
Uncategorized Negotiate a Buydown to Get into a Home Now   If you are a prospective homebuyer, things have changed in the past year.  Most notably, mortgage rates have more than doubled which has created an affordability gap that has taken approximately 15 million buyers out of the market. Inventories are growing but it isn’t because more people are deciding to sell their homes; it is […]
Buying If you’re on the sidelines, at least get ready… If you’re on the sidelines to buy a home, there are things you can do to be ready when you do get back in the game. Improve your credit score to qualify for the best mortgage rate available which are reserved for those with the highest scores.  Get a copy of your current credit reports from […]
Buying and Selling Bergen County 1 family and condo/co-op stats 2022 vs 2021 from NJMLS
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