According to the announcement last week FICO is changing the way they score credit reports for the purposes of lending for home buyers!
Excellent news for borrowers. I heard through the grape vine that it will now not account for medical related derogatory credit. That is great news!
Link to the announcement from the Realtor Association:
http://www.realtor.org/news-releases/2014/08/new-credit-scoring-calculation-will-improve-access-to-homeownership-say-realtors
Can't wait to see it in action!
Hope you are having an excellent day!
Sabrina
Sabrina Martin-Shamugia
Realtor (R)
Keller Williams Realty East Valley
sabrina.azre@gmail.com
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Friday, July 25, 2014
What is Home in Five? How does it help me buy a HOUSE?
The Home in Five Program is a Grant program that will issue
a grant to home buyers for 5% of the purchase price of the home they are
buying.
What does that mean?
Let’s look real quick at an example. Of a home contract
price of $200,000.00, the grant will be issued, through your lender, to cover
5% or $10,000.
Wow! That is a lot of money! Where does it go?
Well there are certain things that this money is allowed to
go for. Down payment is the majority of it, and of course the program fee and
another fee that the government charges for you to use the program. It usually ends
up to be about 2% of the grant that is issued to you.
What? That is crazy!
Yes, I know, but it is our government. That is how they
work, they give it to us, then they take it right back. But the trick is to
have a savvy Realtor that knows how to get you in with the least money out of
pocket.
So how is that accomplished?
Well, for instance, if your Realtor was wise, they would say
to you. “Pay your inspection fee and your appraisal fee with your own funds,
from a debit card or check that comes straight from your account, like cash.” When
you do this, these funds are able to come back to you from the left over money
from the grant.
What? OMG! This is weird.
Yes, but that is the government. So if you want those monies
back at closing, make sure you pay with cash on hand and can prove it.
So what kind of program should I be qualified for through a lender for
this grant program?
The Home in Five program is eligible for all VA, FHA and
USDA housing programs. Even if they are at 100% LTV (LTV is lender speak for Loan
to Value or for normal people like you and me, the purchase price). Now be careful! If you are going FHA or VA and
are looking at condos and townhomes, you need to purchase one that is approved
by HUD. Make SURE your Realtor knows this and verifies this before you go out
looking or look at listings of homes, the MLS (or Listing Database your realtor
searches from is not always correct!). Otherwise you could be facing an
emotional catastrophe when you find out that your financing does not apply for
this and you will have to bring in a mountain of money you don’t have or don’t
want to put down.
What about opening escrow, can I get my escrow money back?
Opening escrow, again, you must use your own funds, they can
even be gifted funds from family and friends. An example told to me was that a
boyfriend can use a payday advance to gift to his girlfriend to open escrow,
even if he goes and pays the escrow himself for her, the money is considered a
gift and can be credited back to the buyer at the closing provided the funds
are left over.
What about closing costs and pre-paids? What are those?
Closing costs are all the fees that are associated with the
purchase of the home and the transfer of the title, hoa, and other fun stuff
that you will see along the way. Pre-paids are the impound accounts that the
escrow will collect to pay for things like your taxes, insurance, etc. Now if you have a savvy Realtor (wink, wink)
she can negotiate for these to be paid for by the seller, as she does her
homework. And most HUD programs allow for up to 6% of the purchase price to be
contributed to the buyer from the seller for closing costs and pre-paids exclusively.
(That is usually more than enough to
cover these costs)
So how much can I buy on this?
Well it is limited to $300,000 purchase price and this
program is only good in Maricopa County, sorry Pinal. But there are some other
programs for Pinal County, you just have to know who to contact, people like
me! ;)
If you would like to ask me more about this please contact
me!
I love to talk about this and how we can get you into your home
with literally almost nothing!
Well, nothing the government way, you fork it out first,
then they reimburse you!
Hope you are having an excellent day! I look forward to
working with you!
Sabrina
Sabrina
Martin-Shamugia
Realtor ®
Keller Williams Realty East Valleysabrina.azre@gmail.com
Monday, July 14, 2014
Home Buyer 101: The Process
Being new to the home buying process is not thing new, many people do not know much about it unless they are active in the industry. So don't worry! When you hire a professional, they will walk you through every step of the process and explain what to expect before you even start!
So to give you the low down on how to do things the correct way and what to expect along the way here we go:
Step 1: Hire a Real Estate Professional- you want to make sure that you get along with this person, and enjoy their personality. It is important that you want to speak with this person as they will be the one to keep you on track through the entire process. Above all make sure that they are familiar with the area in which you are wanting to buy.
Step 2: Get prequalified! The lender that you choose to work with will take a look at your financial situation and let you what price range you are at and how you can best structure your financing to fit your needs and situation. Put some faith in them! Never be afraid of what they will see, even if you have a "credit problem" nothing is completely unworkable as long as you are willing to take the necessary simple steps it takes to complete the financial process! And after you have begun the process, do NOT go out and do any other pulls on your credit, or changes in finances such as buy a new car, take out a personal loan, apply for credit at the local Home Depot or Lowes to buy the washer and dryer you want, or move or transfer money without being directed by your lender. This could cost you your home as the underwriters who approve the loan do check your credit for changes right before closing! make any and all other purchases after CLOSING!
Step 3: Before meeting with your Realtor, you need to make a wish list. Make sure that you decide what is completely necessary, what is desired but not a necessity, and what is not acceptable. Remember, no matter how vast the selections can be, you need to be able to narrow down your search to the acceptable and the desired so that when you go out looking you can make sure that you will find a home that will make you and your family happy and fit your needs!
Step 4: Make an offer! When you find the home that you want to live in, you will be excited, and want to make an offer! Due to the excitement, I recommend that when you first meet with your realtor you go over the documents that are going to be used in your transaction. This will give you time to go over them on your own, get familiar with the terminology and ask questions! Your offer will reflect what you and the lender spoke about and the figures you were given. You offer also depends on what the listing (asking) price of the home is and what you think it is worth based on the comparables provided to you by your realtor.
Step 5: For your Protection! Get a HOME INSPECTION! After your offer is accepted you as the buyer in Arizona have a 10 day inspection period. It is at this time that you should be hiring a home inspector and an inspector for any other important issues that concern you, like for mold, air conditioners, roof or foundations, as there are many specialists that do these inspections based on what your primary concerns are. This is a cost you should be prepared to pay for out of pocket.
Step 6: An appraisal! The lender you chose to work with will help you order this task to be done. It is required for the funding of your loan, and may be a cost that you pay for up front depending on how your lender has structured the financing. But this is the giant step that needs to be done before the closing! Almost there!
Step 7: Go to CLOSING: The tile or escrow company that is chosen to help with the transaction is where you and the seller will go and sign your closing documents. What is a tile or escrow company? They are the third party handlers of the money that is involved in a real estate transaction. They are also responsible for making sure that the title of the home is clear with not one "cloud" or mistake on it, so that the title can be transferred to you the buyer in an clean and orderly fashion. The title or escrow officer in charge of your transaction will make sure that the lender sends the funds plus your down payment, and escrow deposit from your earnest money and in return will pay the lender, any liens against the home, such as taxes, create your own impound accounts for your taxes on the home, and any other accounts such as an HOA if applicable, or mortgage insurance if you should have any.
Step 8: Meet your Realtor for your KEYS! Once the title and escrow company are finished with the disbursements of the funds and everything is recorded with the country registrar, you are officially the new owner of the home! CONGRATULATIONS! Move into your new home!
For more information or to get started buying or selling your home, give me a call right away!
Have a wonderful day!
Sabrina
Sabrina Martin-Shamugia
Realtor (R)
Keller Williams Realty East Valley
sabrina.azre@gmail.com
So to give you the low down on how to do things the correct way and what to expect along the way here we go:
Step 1: Hire a Real Estate Professional- you want to make sure that you get along with this person, and enjoy their personality. It is important that you want to speak with this person as they will be the one to keep you on track through the entire process. Above all make sure that they are familiar with the area in which you are wanting to buy.
Step 2: Get prequalified! The lender that you choose to work with will take a look at your financial situation and let you what price range you are at and how you can best structure your financing to fit your needs and situation. Put some faith in them! Never be afraid of what they will see, even if you have a "credit problem" nothing is completely unworkable as long as you are willing to take the necessary simple steps it takes to complete the financial process! And after you have begun the process, do NOT go out and do any other pulls on your credit, or changes in finances such as buy a new car, take out a personal loan, apply for credit at the local Home Depot or Lowes to buy the washer and dryer you want, or move or transfer money without being directed by your lender. This could cost you your home as the underwriters who approve the loan do check your credit for changes right before closing! make any and all other purchases after CLOSING!
Step 3: Before meeting with your Realtor, you need to make a wish list. Make sure that you decide what is completely necessary, what is desired but not a necessity, and what is not acceptable. Remember, no matter how vast the selections can be, you need to be able to narrow down your search to the acceptable and the desired so that when you go out looking you can make sure that you will find a home that will make you and your family happy and fit your needs!
Step 4: Make an offer! When you find the home that you want to live in, you will be excited, and want to make an offer! Due to the excitement, I recommend that when you first meet with your realtor you go over the documents that are going to be used in your transaction. This will give you time to go over them on your own, get familiar with the terminology and ask questions! Your offer will reflect what you and the lender spoke about and the figures you were given. You offer also depends on what the listing (asking) price of the home is and what you think it is worth based on the comparables provided to you by your realtor.
Step 5: For your Protection! Get a HOME INSPECTION! After your offer is accepted you as the buyer in Arizona have a 10 day inspection period. It is at this time that you should be hiring a home inspector and an inspector for any other important issues that concern you, like for mold, air conditioners, roof or foundations, as there are many specialists that do these inspections based on what your primary concerns are. This is a cost you should be prepared to pay for out of pocket.
Step 6: An appraisal! The lender you chose to work with will help you order this task to be done. It is required for the funding of your loan, and may be a cost that you pay for up front depending on how your lender has structured the financing. But this is the giant step that needs to be done before the closing! Almost there!
Step 7: Go to CLOSING: The tile or escrow company that is chosen to help with the transaction is where you and the seller will go and sign your closing documents. What is a tile or escrow company? They are the third party handlers of the money that is involved in a real estate transaction. They are also responsible for making sure that the title of the home is clear with not one "cloud" or mistake on it, so that the title can be transferred to you the buyer in an clean and orderly fashion. The title or escrow officer in charge of your transaction will make sure that the lender sends the funds plus your down payment, and escrow deposit from your earnest money and in return will pay the lender, any liens against the home, such as taxes, create your own impound accounts for your taxes on the home, and any other accounts such as an HOA if applicable, or mortgage insurance if you should have any.
Step 8: Meet your Realtor for your KEYS! Once the title and escrow company are finished with the disbursements of the funds and everything is recorded with the country registrar, you are officially the new owner of the home! CONGRATULATIONS! Move into your new home!
For more information or to get started buying or selling your home, give me a call right away!
Have a wonderful day!
Sabrina
Sabrina Martin-Shamugia
Realtor (R)
Keller Williams Realty East Valley
sabrina.azre@gmail.com
Sunday, July 13, 2014
Why MEET a Realtor FIRST before LOOKING at any HOMES?
What an excellent topic! That is such a good question!
Meeting with a Realtor first can help you understand the
buying process before you even begin. This will assist in making what might
seem like a huge big deal and transform it into a very simple and organized
process. Not to mention letting you in on what the different steps are and how
they fall into place with your transaction.
So, what should you expect to talk about when you first meet
your Realtor?
Answer:
That is such a good question; there are many things that you
will want to discuss with a Realtor. The big thing that I personally like to go
over with clients in that first meeting is all of the different disclosures and
verbiage that are new to home buyers. This gives an opportunity to the buyer to
examine the paperwork that goes with an offer on a home so that they are
comfortable with the terms being used and how it looks before they even have to
sign it.
Then what do I ask the Realtor that I meet with?
Answer:
Anything and everything that comes to mind! Your Realtor is
there to help you through this process. Meeting before you go out and see a
property will make sure that you can focus on the transaction process and
understand the forms that you are expected to read and sign at each stage in
the process. I personally recommend my clients to bring a list of questions in
with them so that I can answer all of their questions up front.
Some examples
of questions you might ask will probably look like this:
1.
What happens during the purchase process? Are there any out of pocket costs?
2.
Agency? What the heck is that?
3.
What is the contract versus just an offer?
4.
What is an addendum and why would it be used?
5.
What are SPUDS? My friend talked about that with
their purchase.
6.
What is a BINSER and how can it affect my
contract?
7.
Lead based paint? Does that still exist? Does it
apply to me?
8.
Can I have a copy of all these disclosures upfront
so that I can review them before we go looking at the homes I want?
Your Realtor should be happy to provide you with a copy of
the documents that are going to be used in your transaction up front.
Why, you ask?
That answer is simple:
When you go out on that housing tour and you find the home
of your dreams, you are going to be way to excited to listen to all of the fine
details that your Realtor is explaining to you. Let’s face it! It is the house
of your dreams and at that point you will sign anything to MOVE IN!
If you have any questions at all I am happy to answer them,
in person or via email, text or phone!
I am a phone call away at all times!
Hope you are having an awesome day!
Sabrina
Realtor (R)
Keller Williams Realty East Valley
sabrina.azre@gmail.com
Saturday, July 12, 2014
Interested in buying a NEW HOME??? BUYER BEWARE! DON’T GO IN ALONE!
Working with a Buyer’s Agent will help you get the best
price on a new home in the neighborhood you want!
Come look at all the inventory just waiting for you to pick which one you want! Warning: Do not go to into a New Home Builder without Representation! Bring a Realtor with Your INTERESTS on their mind, not the Builders.
Email or text me what you are looking for and where and I will set it up for you right away!
Come look at all the inventory just waiting for you to pick which one you want! Warning: Do not go to into a New Home Builder without Representation! Bring a Realtor with Your INTERESTS on their mind, not the Builders.
Email or text me what you are looking for and where and I will set it up for you right away!
New home builders are more than likely to negotiate on a spec home price with a Buyer’s Agent involved and looking out for YOU the buyer.
Give me a call or shoot me an email anytime! I am happy to assist!
Sabrina
Sabrina Martin-Shamugia
Realtor (R)
Keller Williams Realty East Valley
sabrina.azre@gmail.com
Friday, July 11, 2014
How is it possible to BUY a house with NO Money DOWN?
Great question! And the answer is yes!
Depending on how you structure your loan with your financial officer, and your realtor, you can in fact buy with no money for a down payment.
The NEXT question you should ask:
What would my payments look like?
The answer:
Talk to a Loan officer. While as a realtor I have tools to help you quickly estimate what that would look like, the best way is to actually speak to a Loan officer as they can advise you how it would look financially.
The NEXT question you should ask?
How much money would come out of my pocket?
The answer:
Great question! This is what most buyers don't ask. 1st there is the Home Inspection. This is a service that the buyer is expected to pay for up front. The cost can vary depending on which company you use, but it is about 100-150.00 This is so recommended and with some loan programs it is required. So make sure to budget for this. Then there is the Appraisal fee: This runs anywhere from 400-500.00 so make sure to budget for this too.
The NEXT question you are probably asking right now!
What? How is that no money down?
The answer:
In the real estate world the term "no money down" is in reference to the amount of money that you put into the purchase of your home in addition to the loan to purchase the home. Your financial officer or Loan officer can explain this and how your loan will apply.
The NEXT question you NEED to ask.
What is an earnest money deposit?
The answer:
In real estate offers, it is good to put some money up front to show the seller that you are serious about buying their property. The general rule of thumb is 1% of the offering price on the home. Although it is okay to change this to different amounts based on your comfort level. But all in all, it is to show how serious you are about buying this home.
The NEXT question you NEED to ask!
What should I do now to get into a home of my own with little out of my pocket?
The Answer! CALL ME! Call me now and I will help walk you through this step by step. Even if you have a home you need to sell first, I can help with that as well. I have years of knowledge in this business and can put that to work for you. Also accept this gift included in this ad. Print it out and bring it in or email it to me.
I will be happy to help you contain your costs so you can use your money to make your home your own.
Contact me today!
Sabrina Martin-Shamugia
Realtor (R)
Keller Williams Realty East Valley
sabrina.azre@gmail.com
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