Under the new rules, lenders and mortgage brokers are required to give consumers the standard estimate form within three days of receiving a loan application. The Good Faith Estimate form requires lenders to combine all of the bank’s fees into one “origination charge,” enabling consumers to compare one lender’s fees with another’s. Lenders also are prohibited from increasing the origination fee from the estimate.

Some additional charges, including title services and recording charges, can increase by as much as a combined 10 percent. Estimates for other charges, such as homeowner’s insurance and other services provided by third parties selected by the borrower, aren’t subject to such limits. Read more here http://bit.ly/7VYfmt

A  recent real estate report indicates that consumers may be taking their time house hunting this winter, which some economists believe could lead to a “double dip” in home prices. A recent report from the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (NAR) showed that its pending home sales index declined 16 percent in November to a reading of 96, the first decline after nine consecutive months of gains.                             

KEEP THIS IN  MIND

 NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) is a barometer of future sales. Typically, there is a one- to two-month lag between the signing of a sales contract and the close of escrow. Although government incentives, low interest rates, and affordable home prices have lured many buyers, especially first timers, to the market, historically sales decline during the winter months and begin to rise in the spring.  Because of the government’s efforts to stimulate the housing market, some economists believe that housing prices will decline once the incentives come to an end. However, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®’ (C.A.R.) closely watched “2010 California Housing Market Forecast,” projected that the median home price in California will rise 3.3 percent to $280,000 in 2010 compared with a projected median of $271,000 in 2009.

 According to C.A.R.’s Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young, unlike the rest of the nation, home sales in California already bottomed out more than two years ago, and the median home price reached its trough in February 2009.

 Although home buyers should not focus solely on future home price appreciation, according to data collected by C.A.R. over the last 40 years, homeowners who purchase a median-priced house, live in their home for at least five years, and sell it at the current median price, have averaged an annual rate  of return of more than 11 percent.

Get a locally grown Christmas Tree!

In 2006 the Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County was honored to accept a conservation donation that permanently protects Fred and Pat Frank’s 60 acres of farmland, oak woodland habitat and nearly a mile of Graves Creek in Atascadero. 

The protected property includes a tree farm. If you are looking for a locally grown Christmas Tree, consider supporting the Frank family by purchasing your tree from Hidden Springs Tree Farm in Atascadero. Not only will your purchase support a sustainable multi generation family business on protected land, but 100% of your money stays in our community. That’s a whole new way of saying Happy Holidays in San Luis Obispo County-by supporting local people and local land.

STREET GANGS IN HELENA , MONTANA?
It is gangs like these that the people of Helena have to put up with. A bit different from the problems in other cities…
It proves that every State has their own “unique” gang problems.? They roam the streets and yards night and day . . . . .?? and you CAN NOT(legally) shoot them!!!

First-Time Homebuyers (FTHBs): First-time homebuyers (that is, people who have not owned a home within the last three years) may be eligible for the tax credit. The credit for FTHBs is 10% of the purchase price of the home, with a maximum available credit of $8,000.

Single taxpayers and married couples filing a joint return may qualify for the full tax credit amount.

Current Owners: The tax credit program now gives those who already own a residence some additional reasons to move to a new home. This incentive comes in the form of a tax credit of up to $6,500 for qualified purchasers who have owned and occupied a primary residence for a period of five consecutive years during the last eight years.

Single taxpayers and married couples filing a joint return may qualify for the full tax credit amount.

What are the New Deadlines?

In order to qualify for the credit, all contracts need to be in effect no later than April 30, 2010 and close no later than June 30, 2010.

Tax Credit Versus Tax Deduction

It????s important to remember that the tax credit is just that??? a tax credit. The benefit of a tax credit is that it????s a dollar-for-dollar tax reduction, rather than a reduction in a tax liability that would only save you $1,000 to $1,500 when all was said and done. So, if a first-time homebuyer were to owe $8,000 in income taxes and would qualify for a tax credit of $8,000, she would owe nothing.

Better still, the tax credit is refundable, which means the homebuyer can receive a check for the credit if he or she has little income tax liability. For example, if a first-time homebuyer is eligible for a tax credit of $8,000 but is liable for $4,000 in income tax, she can still receive a check for the remaining $4,000!

Higher Income Caps

The amount of income someone can earn and qualify for the full amount of the credit has been increased.

Single tax filers who earn up to $125,000 are eligible for the total credit amount. Those who earn more than this cap can receive a partial credit. However, single filers who earn $145,000 and above are ineligible

Joint filers who earn up to? $225,000 are eligible for the total credit amount. Those who earn more than this cap can receive a partial credit. However, joint filers who earn $245,000 and above are ineligible.

Maximum Purchase Price

Qualifying buyers may purchase a property with a maximum sale price of $800,000.

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Remember, the new tax credit program includes a number of details and qualifications. For more information or answers to specific questions, please call or email me today.

In addition, you may be able to benefit from additional housing related provisions, including the following:

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Tax Incentives to Spur Energy Savings and Green Jobs

This provision is designed to help promote energy-efficient investments in homes by extending and expanding tax credits through 2010 for purchases such as new furnaces, energy-efficient windows and doors, or insulation.

Landmark Energy Savings

This provision provides $5 Billion for energy efficient improvements for more than one million modest-income homes through weatherization. According to some estimates, this can help modest-income families save an average of $350 a year on heating and air conditioning bills.

Repairing Public Housing and Making Key Energy Efficiency Retrofits To HUD-Assisted Housing

This provision provides a total of $6.3 Billion for increasing energy efficiency in federally supported housing programs. Specifically, it establishes a new program to upgrade HUD-sponsored low-income housing (for elderly, disabled, and Section to increase energy efficiency, including new insulation, windows, and frames.

Expanding Housing Assistance

This provision increases support for several critical housing programs. It includes $2 Billion for the Neighborhood Stabilization Program to help communities purchase and rehabilitate foreclosed, vacant properties.

As

Most people cannot believe that even though their property values have gone down over the last couple of years, their property taxes have stayed the same or gone up. In fact, property taxes have risen more than twice the rate of inflation this decade. What can you do? Appeal your taxes. Fewer than one in fifty homeowners do, even though 60% of properties are overvalued right now according to the National Taxpayers Association. Depending on how far you are forced to make an appeal, expect to spend from 5 to 20 hours on it.If you are going to appeal your property taxes, here is what to do:

1. Learn the system. Different taxing authorities use different methods to calculate your home’s value. Some look at recent sales of similar homes. Some look at costs to rebuild. Others use a combination of methods. Call your assessor’s office and ask how it pegs value.

2. Get your assessor’s evidence. Ask for the evidence the assessor used to value your home. Get the home’s property card, which lists basic details like the number of bedrooms, lot size, and square footage. Are these even correct? When the assessor revalues property every few years, they usually hire an outside consultant who looks at thousands of homes in a very short period of time. The assessor’s file should contain a worksheet that the consultant filled out during the inspection with addresses of homes he compared with yours. Are those properties a good match??

3. Build your case. Since you only have 60 days or less from the time your annual assessment was mailed (usually in late spring or summer) to file an appeal, you will have to start gathering evidence to help your case in advance. You’ll need recent comparable sales or assessments (get some from the multiple listing services, check public title records, and have a real estate agent help you) that shows that your house has been valued too high. Look up your neighbor’s home valuation at the assessor’s office too. Your ideal comparable should be of the same square footage and age of your home and have the same lot size. You should have at least 5 comparables, although 10 is better. Once you have the comparables, put together a spreadsheet with the following information: address of the comparable property, sales prices and dates of sale, price per square foot, description of what makes the comparable similar or different from your home, photograph of the exteriors, photos of your home, and a map of all properties.

4. File the appeal and meet with the assessor (if possible). Ask to set up an appointment with the assessor. Sometimes this is possible and other times it is not. At a minimum, hand deliver all your evidence and get a receipt or send it by certified mail. You should hear back within two weeks to a month. If you don’t, follow up with the assessor’s office.

5. You win / you lose. If you win your appeal, your tax bill will be adjusted. If your appeal is denied, you can appeal again. If your appeal is denied again, you may need the services of a lawyer and an appraiser and you should plan to go to court. If the lawyer takes the case on a contingency fee (they get part of the savings as their fee) and you can get the appraisal for around $400, it may be worth the effort because often the appeal, which goes from the assessor’s office to a state board, will simply be settled as the state board wants to close as many cases as possible. So try it. It can save you money.? Used with permission from Carol Rodoni, Real Estate Unleashed.

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California consumers can get a free copy of their credit reports once a year from the three nationwide companies that compile these financial profiles, Equifax, Experian and Trans Union.One way to make the most of this opportunity is to order a report from just one of the three credit bureaus, then wait four months to order a report from another and, four months later, order a report from the third credit bureau.? By repeating this process annually, you can monitor your credit report regularly, at no cost.?

Some key steps to cleaning up and repairing your credit include the following. Begin by taking action. Deliberate action over time can help repair your credit there is no quick fix.? Check your credit history by law you are entitled to a free credit report once every 12 months. Yoiu have the right to disput the incorrect information and have the file corrected. If an investigation does not resolve your dispute, you can ask the credit reporting agency to include a written statement about the disputed information in your file and have your notice included any time information from your file is furnished. Check out all the information at the Office of the Attorney General website!

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The Board of Supervisors approved nearly $1 million in engineering contracts. This is part of the effort to draft the report on the environmental impact that the construction of a sewer would have on several sites in the coastal community of Los Osos. The town of Los Osos relies almost entirely on septic systems to dispose of waste.

In October 2007 property owners overwhelmingly approved? a 127 million assessment to pay for a sewer. The total 4 million loan could start being repaid when the county starts selling bonds by September and property tax assessments will appear on the 2090-10 property tax bill.

Part of the $4 million loan will go toward conducting a survey and establish a plan to help disadvantaged property owners pay for the waste treatment plant. That plan is part of the county’s effort to secure a $10 million grant from the Department of Water Resources and State Water Quality Control Board to help offset the cost of the sewer for low-in-come property owners.

Have you heard of SLO Greenbuild? They?are a?non profit organization with a? a holistic approach to the design , construction, ?and operation of structures.? It has three primary goals. 1.Healthy living environments 2Resource conservation and 3.Energy efficiency. Consisting of local builders, architects, engineers, landscape architects and other?members of the community providing educational resources for anyone interested in learning how to incorporate greener building techniques into their project. Sample materials are available at the County of San Luis Obispo permit center. Anyone can sign up for a free peer review of their project by SLO Greenbuild. Peer review will incorporate suggestions and a check list for including green technology into a project.

SLO COUNTY-FREE SECONDARY DWELLING HOUSE PLANS PROGRAM

The San Luis Obispo County Planning Department worked with the local chapter of the American?Institute ?of Architects, Workforce Housing Coalition, and the builders exchange to put on a design competiton?among local licensed?architects to come up with a well designed secondary dwelling. Ten winning home designs were chosen out of 29 submittals. Plans were then reviewed by structural engineers and energy consultants for compliance with codes, and then processed through the Building Department for plan check. Stock plans for a secondary dwelling will have reduced building permit ?fees as well.

The winning house plans will soon be available to the public at no charge (other than coping costs) for those properties who qualify for a secondary dwelling. Free house plans?must be used for secondary housing only. At this time this program is available to the residents of the incorporated areas of San Luis Obispo County.

Now you have found the home of your dreams be sure to protect it with the right homeowners insurance. Linda Osty 13yr+ Broker/Agent of Osty Insurance ?located in the Village of Arroy Grande explained why it’s important to contact an agent early in the process of buying a home . For most of us our home is the single largest investment we will ever make. Homeowners Insurance provides coverages for damage to your home and other structures on your property such as a shed or detached garage. In order to prevent surprises buyers should check the disclosures for insurance claims filed on the property you are purchasing especially within the last three years.??The agent will at least do a drive by inspection and there could even be a required interior inspection to see the condition and anything that might create a future claim. An example would be the roof. The roof is not leaking todays but it is not raining today! The?insurance inspection may also uncover? attractive nuisances such as concrete cracks where someone might trip and fall , or pool areas are they fenced or not and? do they have a pool? cover.

Unintentional acts are covered under personal liability. Have you heard of the Mike Tyson test? If you bite someone you are not covered. If your dog bites someone you are covered but only the 1st time.Finally in the event someone is injured on your property or you damage property that belongs to others you could be legally liable for the injury or damage. A homeowner policy provides personal and liability insurance to financially protect you should this ever occur.

Enjoy the benefits of Homeowners liability insurance even if you rent or own a condominium.If you rent or own you still need coverage for your household contents and personal belongings and personal liability.There are specific policies designed for those who rent or own condominiums.