Intown Atlanta Real Estate News
Good News Regarding Real Estate
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Economists aren’t always right, but on this at least they agree: A new Wall Street Journal survey of forecasters found 44 believe the housing market has reached its bottom; only three don’t!
Housing is still far from healthy despite the Federal Reserve’s efforts to resuscitate it by helping to push mortgage rates to extraordinary lows: 3.62% for a 30-year loan, according to Freddie Mac’s latest survey. Single-family housing starts, though up, remain 60% below the 2002 pre-bubble pace. Americans’ equity in homes is $2 trillion, or 25%, less than it was in 2002 and half what it was at the peak. More than one in every four mortgage borrowers still has a loan bigger than the value of the house, though rising home prices are reducing that fraction slowly.
Still, the upturn in housing is a milestone, a particularly welcome one amid a distressing dearth of jobs. For some time, housing has been one of the biggest causes of economic weakness. It has now—barely—moved to the plus side. “A little tail wind is a lot better than a headwind,” says economist Chip Case, the “Case” in Case-Shiller.
In our case, Fourteen West has experienced a significant ‘up-tick’ in business! Through June 30th, we have helped 39+% more families buy a new home when compared to the same period in 2011! Our listing inventory has also risen 32% above last year!
Thank you to all who have come to trust and appreciate our attention to YOU, and the prompt, professional, yet personalize service we provide.
- Scott Askew
Posted in: Intown Atlanta Real Estate News
Home Affordable Refinance Program
Saturday, May 12, 2012
So have you heard about the government created refinance program that is named after a musical instrument (HARP)?
Actually, it’s not related to a musical instrument at all but is an acronyn for Home Affordable Refinance Program. Unfortunately, even loan officers are not clear about its meaning. The reason for that is that each lender or loan servicer seems to go by and operate under their own interpretation of how the program is supposed to work.
For example, some loan servicers are not participating at all, because they no longer originate loans and thus do not offer the program to customers that are sending them their monthly mortgage payments. Other small lenders that do originate loans but that do not sell directly to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac are not able to offer the full benefits that the federal government intended.
In addition, lenders that do offer the program may not offer all of its features. For example, some lenders can offer HARP to customers with Freddie Mac loans but may not offer it to loans insured by Fannie Mae.
For customers whose loan servicers are participating in HARP, the main benefit is that the program allows them to refinance and lower their interest rate, even though their loan balance may be greater than their house is worth in today’s market. The problem with that idea, however, is that although they may qualify from the equity or lack of equity standpoint, they still have to qualify based on credit and income and debt ratio consideration. That aspect of the program knocks out a lot of self-employed or commissioned earners if they are making less money now than they did when they took out the loan originally.
A further complication to HARP loan approval is the existence of mortgage insurance on the original loan or a second mortgage, which has to be subordinated. The subordination possibilities depend on the second mortgage loan servicer and their guidelines.
Although the federal government allows unlimited loan-to-value on this program, some loan servicers are limiting the LTV to 105 per cent or up to 125 per cent of the appraised value. Some lenders are requiring new appraisals under the program while some are allowing an automated value to be used to determine the LTV.
So there you have it. A simple idea, that of allowing homeowners to reduce their interest rates and monthly payments, but a complicated and cumbersome process that only the federal government could have created. Thus a lot of would-be qualifiers for this program are singing (or strumming) the HARP blues.
- Sam Thompson
Sr. Loan Officer & Renovation Specialist
Posted in: Intown Atlanta Real Estate News
The Definition of Value
Friday, March 23, 2012
Check this out -
In 1989, you paid:
67 cents for a loaf of bread
97 cents for a gallon of gas
$15,350 for the ‘average’, new, car
$94,000 for the ‘average’ house
And your mortgage rate was 10% which caused your mortgage payment to be $825
In 2011, you paid:
$2.78 for a loaf of bread
$2.84 for a gallon of gas
$30,000 for the ‘average’, new, car
$166,100 for the ‘average’ house
And your mortgage rate was 4.45% which caused your mortgage payment to be $837
Prices seemed to have stabilized in the markets we serve.
YES!, now is the time to buy! The value is very clear!
- Scott Askew
Posted in: Intown Atlanta Real Estate News
City of Atlanta Vacant Housing Registration
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
As you may have heard, mandatory registration of vacant properties located in the City limits of Atlanta began February 1, 2012. Any residential building or dwelling subject to registration that is not registered by April 1, 2012 is in violation of the Atlanta Housing Code. Thereafter, any residential building or dwelling that becomes vacant for more than 30 days must register within 30 days of vacancy.
Here are some Questions/Answers for Vacant Property Registration in the City of Atlanta which should help everyone understand the process:
Who/What must register
Q. Do commercial, industrial, or institutional properties have to register?
A. No. Only residential buildings or dwelling must register, such as a single‐family home, a duplex, a multi‐family building (apartment) but not condominiums.
Q. I own a single‐family house which is currently occupied by tenants. Do I have to register?
A. No. Only vacant residential buildings or dwellings must register.
Q. I own an apartment complex with multiple buildings containing multiple dwelling units. Some buildings are completely vacant. Other buildings are fully or partially occupied. Do I have to register all or some of the buildings?
A. So long as a building containing multiple dwelling units with common ownership has at least one unit occupied, no registration of that building is required. However, each building containing multiple dwelling units with common ownership, all of which are vacant, must be registered.
Q. I own a single‐family house that is for sale but has been vacant for more than a month. Do I have to register?
A. Yes. Regardless of ‘for‐sale’ status, any residential dwelling that is vacant for more than 30 days must be registered by the owner.
Q. I own a condo which has been vacant for more than 30 days. Do I have to register?
A. No. The vacant property registration ordinance exempts condominium units created pursuant to the Georgia Condominium Act.
Q. I own in fee simple one or more vacant dwelling units in a multi‐family building that was subdivided by plat filed in the county land records. Do I have to register?
A. Yes. Unless the unit(s) was created pursuant to the Georgia Condominium Act, you must register each vacant unit of a multi‐family building which you own in fee simple.
Vacancy defined
Q. What does “vacant” mean?
A. Vacant means a building or dwelling which is lacking habitual presence of human beings who have a legal right to be on the premises, or at which substantially all lawful business or construction operations or residential occupancy has ceased for more than 30 days. Evidence of utility non‐usage or service disconnect shall be considered evidence of vacancy. If a building or structure containing multiple dwelling units with common ownership has at least one unit
occupied with evidence of utility usage, it is not considered vacant.
Q. Where do I go to register?
A. You can register and pay the registration fee: (1) online at http://www.atlantaga.gov/vacantproperty, (2) by mail, or (3) in person at 55 Trinity Street, Suite 3450, Atlanta, Georgia 30303 To get a copy of a blank registration statement, visit http://www.atlantaga.gov/vacantproperty.
Registration Statement
Q. What information is included in the registration statement?
A. The registration statement includes the property information for the registered building; the name, street address (but no post office box), telephone number and email address of each owner of the property; the name, street address, telephone number and email address of the owner’s agent for purposes of contact as well as receiving notices and summonses. This agent must reside or have an office in City limits. If the property owner resides or has an office in City limits, he may designate himself as agent.
Cost to Register
Q. How much does it cost to register?
A. The registration fee is $100 per vacant residential building. So, for example, if you own an apartment complex with four residential buildings and two are completely vacant, the fee is $200.
Q. The Ordinance speaks of a $250 registration fee. Does it apply to my property?
A. The $250 fee applies at the time of renewal (12 months after initial registration) if the building is both vacant and in violation of any provision of the housing, building or fire code at the time of renewal.
Duration of registration
Q. Once I register, how long does the registration last?
A. Twelve months from the registration date.
Q. At the end of the twelve‐months, must I register again?
A. Yes, you must file a renewal registration for successive twelve‐month periods as long as the residential building remains vacant at the time of renewal(s).
Q. I previously registered my vacant residential building but it is now occupied. What do I do?
A. If at any time during the twelve‐month registration period the residential building becomes occupied, the owner must file an amended registration statement within 5 days of occupancy notifying the Office of Code Compliance of such occupancy and requesting removal from the registry. The Office will remove the building from the registry within 30 days of the filing of the amended registration statement unless it has reason to believe the building is vacant.
Changes in ownership/agent after registration
Q. I recently acquired a building for which a registration statement was filed by the previous owner five months ago . Must I do anything?
A. Yes. As the new owner, you must file an amended registration statement, at no cost, within 20 days of becoming the owner, and provide new ownership information and any other information that has changed from the initial registration statement.
Q. I am the owner that filed the original registration statement but my contact and/or agent information has changed. Must I do anything?
A. Yes. You must file an amended registration statement, at no cost, within 20 days of the change in the information provided in the initial registration statement.
Duties post‐registration
Q. Once I register, is there anything else I have to do for the next twelve months with respect to the vacant residential building?
A. Yes. Within 30 days of registration, you must secure the building from unauthorized entry in accordance with the Housing Code standards; post a sign affixed to the building indicating the name, address and telephone number of the owner and the owner’s authorized agent; maintain the building in a secure and closed condition and maintain the sign until the building is again occupied. However, compliance with these requirements of Ordinance 10‐O‐1457 does
not excuse compliance with other applicable code requirements, such as the Atlanta Housing Code.
DISCLAIMER. The answers above are intended to provide guidance for commonly asked questions. However, they do not cover every scenario and do not replace Ordinance 10‐O‐1457 which controls.
Posted in: Intown Atlanta Real Estate News
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