Fremont Real Estate Blog

A client I worked with this last weekend, got me to thinking about how I should look at this problem. It’s all going to boil down to what you think will happen with: Your income stream (job security, ability to get another job, if your company decides it needs to downsize, etc.) Mortgage Interest Rates Property Values Obviously, renting is the safer, securer option for you right now, but the benefit of owning is that you fix your housing costs (since a 30 yr mortgage is major component of your home ownership costs, taxes are limited to increasing at 2% (California’s Proposition 13), and insurance rates have actually come down the last 2 years). I don’t think pricing will move up the next year. However we don’t know where interests maybe. One concern out there is that interest rates will be higher in the future because of money the government is printing right now will cause inflation. So the big benefit of buying today is that rates are low, and pricing is also very good. Take a look a...

The White House Blog does a great job going over the basics of the plan. http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/09/02/18/Help-for-homeowners/ Key take aways March 4 – further details will be provided Lenders will be self evaluating their portfolios to see who’s eligible, if you don’t hear from them, than contact them. The program is focused on lowering the interest rates, not writing off loans The loans need to be owned by Freddie or Fannie (you can find out by contacting your lender after March 4) (max loan would be $729,750 than??) Even if your loans exceeds 80% of the value, Fannie and Freddie will refinance (I assume what they mean is that there won’t be an MI fee, or other risk based fee for going beyond 80% in LTV) Maximum Loan-To-Value (LTV) is 105% 2 nd mortgagee lenders have to agree to subordinate (i.e. no consolidation, terms of 2 nd don’t change unless they you negotiate separately with them) Primary residences only (1-4 units okay) Interest rate you get is a 30 yr fixed at ...

Always ask that the seller provide a NHD, Environmental, tax and clues report disclosures from Disclosures Source, because they update their subscription to the source database each year. Sunil Sethi www.sunilsethi.com

Just in released by CAR. I like that amendment from Senator Maldonado (R-Santa Maria), who cast the final vote needed, that shuts off any payments to legislature for failing to pass a timely budget in future years. However, I was hoping they’d they would have fired 20% of the government workers, and given the legislature a 20% pay cut as well – why not, that’s what every other firm is doing when they don’t have cash to pay the bills. Thursday, February 19, 2009 Brought to you by the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® Feb. 19, 2009 Dear C.A.R. Member: Following several months of debate and delays, our state representatives in Sacramento delivered a 2009-2010 budget to Governor Schwarzenegger today. The governor is expected to sign the budget as presented. Although details are sketchy, the budget appears to raise existing sales tax levels by 1 percent, and places a 0.25-percent income tax increase across the board. Under provisions included in the new budget, the vehicle li...

However, as you should know by now, just because it was signed doesn’t make it effective immediately. Here’s what needs to happen before you can get a $729,750 loan (sent by one of my wholesale lenders) IMMEDIATE ATTENTION REQUIRED… Recently, the President signed into law the new stimulus bill – called the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 . For conventional and FHA loans , the Act temporarily reverts the current loan limits back to the loan amounts/levels allowed in 2008 with the Economic Stimulus Act . Three things must happen before LENDER can accept loans with higher loan amounts: 1. The Agencies (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) and FHA must determine whether pricing, policy and/or delivery requirements will be changed. 2. The Agencies and FHA must communicate their requirements to mortgage lenders. 3. LENDER must identify impacts caused by the Agencies’ and FHA’s requirements and implement the changes. Watch for additional information in the future about dates and s...

California Association of Realtors, sent me this brief on President Obama’s plan to help solve the mortgage crisis. Wednesday, February 18, 2009 Brought to you by the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® Feb. 18, 2009 Dear C.A.R. Member, Earlier today, President Obama unveiled the Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan, which will offer assistance to as many as 9 million homeowners, while attempting to prevent the destructive impact of foreclosures on families and communities. The plan contains three main components, and only applies to primary residences. The loans referenced in the plan cannot exceed Freddie Mac/Fannie Mae conforming loan limits. I’ve outlined the plan in greater detail below. The first component is directed toward homeowners suffering from falling housing prices who still have equity in their homes, but no longer have the 20 percent equity needed to refinance. Under the plan, homeowners who have conforming loans owned or guaranteed by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae w...

I’ve been getting this question a lot, so here’s a great Summary and a detailed FAQ on the first time home buyer tax credit at the National Home Builders Association Site. http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/2009/faq.php Sunil Sethi www.sunilsethi.com

The new version passed includes An $8000 tax credit for homes bought after Jan 1 2009 and before 12/31/09 Also the conforming limit goes back to $729,750, that’ll help a raise prices again. Friday, February 13, 2009 Brought to you by the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® Feb. 13, 2009 Dear C.A.R. Member: Late this evening, the U.S. Senate passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 by a 60 to 38 vote. Earlier today, the stimulus package passed the U.S. House of Representatives in a 246 to 183 vote. Today’s votes followed several days of negotiations by the House, Senate, and White House, with the final tab for the stimulus bill coming in at $787.2 billion. On the housing front, the good news is that the legislation resets the conforming loan limit cap at $729,750, up from $625,500. Numerous counties in California experienced a marked decrease in their conforming loan and FHA limits on Jan. 1, and the stimulus bill reinstates 2008 loan limits through Dec. 31, 2009. T...

It used to be that the difference between a no-cost and cost refinance was about a .25% however today the difference can be as high as 1%. So consider both options in deciding which way to go. The math basically involves determining how long it’ll take to recover your upfront costs. If it’s less than 2-3 yrs, and you plan to stay in the home for at least 5+ yr, than consider paying the costs.

I've noticed that the parents are taking greater interest in trying to help offset some of the budget cuts, schools will need to be more creative in asking for help from parents to help provide teachers the support they need to help teach their kids. Sunil Sethi www.sunilsethi.com -----Original Message----- MORE CUTS REQUIRED BECAUSE OF STATE BUDGET MESS UNION CITY (Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009) * The Board of Education of the New Haven Unified School District, forced to deal with the local impact of California*s financial crisis, will be asked Tuesday night to accept a recommendation for $5.9 million in reductions in the proposed budgets for 2009-10 and 2010-11 * on top of $4 million in cuts and internal borrowing for the current budget recommended earlier this month, and on top of $7 million in cuts made last year. *When you consider the compound effect that the reductions we*re recommending now will have in future years, the cumulative impact of these cuts will be $17.6 million,* Su...

C.A.R. GREEN TIP OF THE WEEK: MORE ON RECYCLING PLASTIC BOTTLE CAPS Because plastic bottle caps are made from a different grade of plastic (one that requires more heat to melt) than the actual bottles they seal, they should be removed before being placed in a recycling bin. Otherwise, someone at the recycling center will have to manually remove the caps. For this reason, many municipalities do not collect the caps. Check with your municipality and, if it doesn't accept the caps, contact earth911.org to find a location that does.

The analysis seems right. I don’t think we’ll see the mystical beast of 4.5% 30yr fixed interests rates, the way the govt is spending money, which has to be financed.

Car is becoming a landlord, hopefully not a slumlord. CAR just passed this to me: FANNIE, FREDDIE EXTEND EVICTION SUSPENSION THROUGH FEB. 28 Fannie Mae announced Friday it will extend its suspension of evictions from Fannie Mae-owned single-family properties through Feb. 28. The suspension applies to all single-family properties, including owner-occupied properties that have been foreclosed upon as well as foreclosed properties occupied by renters. Freddie Mac also issued a similar announcement suspending evictions through Feb. 28. The company this month began implementing its National Real Estate Owned (REO) Rental Policy that allows qualified renters in Fannie Mae-owned foreclosed properties to stay in their homes. The new policy applies to renters occupying any type of single-family foreclosed properties at the time Fannie Mae acquires the property. Eligible renters will be offered a new month-to-month lease with Fannie Mae or financial assistance for their transition to new housin...

There are so many programs being announced by the government, HUD’s housing counselor’s are supposed to be a resource for those in need of guidance. I don’t have any feedback from anyone having talked to one, but if you are having problems paying your mortgage, I would give them a call to see what they say. Good luck. This info was passed to me by CAR: Are you looking to work with a U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-approved counselor. For a list of HUD-approved counselors in California, visit the HUD Web site at http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hcc/hcs.cfm?webListAction=search&searchstate=CA . Sunil Sethi Fremont Real Estate Realtor

Don’t pay anyone to do this. This was just passed to me by CAR as well: PROPERTY TAX REDUCTION SCAM ALERT The Los Angeles County Assessor's office is alerting homeowners that various private companies are sending mailings to property owners offering their services to pursue a reduction in the owner's property taxes. The companies may charge hundreds of dollars to file for a reduction in value on behalf of the property owner. Some companies also are imposing late fees if the application is received after an arbitrary deadline. Solicitations from private companies offering to pursue a reduction in property taxes must clearly indicate that they are NOT a government agency and that their services are NOT approved or endorsed by any government agency. Failure to provide such notice is a violation of California law. In 1978, California voters passed Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment that allows a temporary reduction in assessed value when a property suffers a "decline-in...

If your home value is less than the assessed value, here is the form to appeal your assessed value. Remember the Assessed Value on January 1, 2009 is used to derive the property tax you pay for the period covering July 1, 2009 – June 30, 2010. Alameda County Appeal Form Contra Costa County Appeal Form Santa Clara County Appeal Form San Mateo County Appeal Form San Francisco Country Appeal Form – contact the assessor’s office http://www.sfgov.org/assessment/ or call (415) 554-6778. Remember you win both ways, if you get a lower assessed value you pay less property tax, but if the value is higher than you think, you have more equity. -Sunil Sunil Sethi, Realtor, Mortgage Broker, MBA, CPA Taking You Forward Story of the Hotdog Salesman Show and Sell Realty/SMA FINANCING 38350 Fremont Blvd. #202, Fremont, CA 94536 www.sunilsethi.com This is a great time to buy! These REO deals will disappear in another 8-11 months.

New Indian Restaurants in Fremont. I saw their sign go up last week, so Id ecided to try it out. The menu selection is large so I asked them wha t their special dishes were. Based on that I tried their dahi chat papdi and hari paranta. The chat was crispy, the dahi fresh, and mint chutney and other ingredients were well put together. Their Hari Paranta (spinach, aloo and some other vegetables), was unmemroable. The place itself was very clean and the staff is courteous. I don't see myself returning, since I still like Chatpatta corner better for chat. Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

I spent about 1hr researching what's happenning in other realty markets across California and the US by reading realtor blogs. I read a lot of observations about how transaction volume is increasing. Anecdotically, what was often sited was that escrow officers are busy again. This is exciting news, becuase it means we may have reached a bottom in pricing. I feel in west union city this has happenned. San Ramon is still declining, but it looks close to bottom. The properties tha are languishing are obviously over priced and the sellers need to realize they need to lower them to get them sold.