By Administrator on February 20, 2011
The results are out for the top 10 areas in Las Vegas, Henderson and North Las Vegas where buyers are buying in the month of January. The way Las Vegas real estate is subdividedby the Association of REALTORS is not the way most people would look for real estate for reference have a look here at the Las Vegas real estate area map.
We have transitioned from the seasonal decline to the busy season. The Las Vegas real estate market is normally influenced by buyers investing their tax refund checks, and when the Clark County school session ends to hunt for a home before the new semester begins.
Las Vegas real estate buyers and investors are surprised to know that 51% of all Las Vegas homes sold in January were purchased using cash, the higher this number gets the less of an advantage the cash buyers have. Investors have lost some advantage already as some of the homes on the market favor the owner occupant, in most cases the first time buyers. The “first look program” is designed to prevent investors from buying up all the best homes and shutting out the first time buyer market. Primarily the institutions doing this are Fannie Mae, Feddie Mac, and in a modified manner the Department of Housing and Urban development (HUD).
The areas where Las Vegas real estate buyers are buying are:
- 103 (North las Vegas)
- 504 (South West Las Vegas)
- 405 (North West Las Vegas)
- 303 (South East Las Vegas)
- 505 (South West Las Vegas)
- 502 (South West Las Vegas)
- 606 (Henderson)
- 204 (East Las Vegas)
- 102 (North Las Vegas West)
- 503 (South West Las Vegas)
If you are researching areas to buy, regardless of what you read online, these are the areas where people are buying. Area 103 has communities such as Aliante, Waterfall, and El Dorado. Area 504 has Southern Highlands and Mountains Edge. It is not surprising that some of the largest developments of newer homes are in the most sold areas.
Although financing in some parts of the country continues to be dificult to obtain, current programs in Las Vegas have had to adapt. Investors in most of the country cannot obtain financing over a certain limit of homes, however lenders here have adapted and there a now loans for people that thought they had been capped off. Low credit scores, as low as 580 can buy, there are 100% financing loans, there are now loans for high rises, there are even loans for people who have had a recent foreclosure.
Posted in Las Vegas Homes, Las Vegas homes for sale, Las Vegas real estate, Las vegas sales statistics |
By Administrator on January 15, 2011
Homes in Las Vegas will begin to see more and more buyers as the January through July crowd begin to focus on their new home. Many of them will go do their taxes and use that refund check to buy their home by using those funds as a down payment. As most Las Vegas homes buyers do, they will go online and find all the information they need to buy the home, in fact, they may even find their dream home online as well.
That was the easy part, and it is what I call begining backwards.
Las Vegas homes for sale buyers should actually begin with the loan, they should start working with a REALTOR and a lender they can trust. Up until now the biggest purchase that most buyers have made prior to looking for Las Vegas homes for sale was a car. When buying a car buyers would identify the vehicle they wanted, find where they sold that vehicle and they would go to the dealership to find financing. Very few would go to a bank to get financing or their credit union. Once approved they would drive off from the lot with their choice of car. Las Vegas home buyers prior to that where trained to instant gratification with consumer credit cards in which they went to the store, applied and where granted what they seeked, and shopped while they where approved. These bad habbits, can cost a new home buyer their home.
Buyers will be told not to touch their credit, but invariably their bad habbits will kick in. Las Vegas homes buyers will have their “approval” in hand and it’s like money in the bank, based on their past experience with credit. Buyers will find Las Vegas homes for sale and place an offer, the offer will get accepted and they will open escrow. They may even get as far as signing for their new home, and never receive the keys…
Las Vegas homes buyers bad habbits will come to haunt them, buyers think that once they have the letter in hand, they are done with the process and they have their Las Vegas homes for sale guaranteed.
They will do the following things:
- Buy with their cards miscelaneous items because they can’t use the cash in the bank.
- Go to the furniture store and apply for credit for furniture for the new home.
- Their score was better than they thought so they now go to get a car.
- They payoff and close some of their credit cards.
- They take a new job that pays more.
If you did any of the above while shopping for a home you may not be able to buy a home anymore here’s why.
Your Pre-approval, or if you actually received an appraval, was based on the picture they took of your credit and its history, any change from that may cause you to be inneligible.
Here are examples:
- Increse your debt on your existing cards may cause your score to go down.
- Applying for any credit will trigger an inquiry and may doom your purchase.
- I’ve had many instances that the buyers ended up with a great new car and without a garage to store it in. Car dealerships will send your request to multiple banks to see which bank gives them the best deal, I’ve seen dealers pull credit as much as 78 times in just one visit.
- You may have been given an approval letter because of the credit lines you have; closing them may and probably will lower your score.
- Changing jobs, even if better can cause you damage or even reject your loan.
The lender on the day you sign will pull your history again, verify your employment that day as well as also investigate cash deposits made into an account over a certain dollar amount.
Follow your lenders instructions and pay close attention to your credit, you will not have your home if you do any of the above changes, no matter how good your intentions are.
It is crucial that you work with experienced lenders and experienced agents to locate your Las Vegas homes for sale, such as those from The Becerra Group, contact us and we will guide you every step of the way. 702-776-1092.
Posted in For Firefighters, For Police, For Teachers, Las Vegas Homes, Las Vegas homes for sale, Las Vegas real estate | Tagged clark county firefighters, henderson police, henderson real estate, homes for police, homes for teachers, las vegas homes, las vegas real estate, north las vegas police, north las vegas real estate |
By Administrator on January 5, 2011
The begining of a new year brings with it renewed hope, and new laws.
The energy audit of Las Vegas Real estate for sale has gone into effect 1-1-2011, it is specifically NRS 113.115 and it states very simply that the seller must provide the buyer with an energy audit of the property they are selling. There are exceptions and they range from having to do complete it, to not needing to do one at all which we will cover later on.
There had been a great push to make an energy audit of Las Vegas real estate for sale mandatory before the closing of the real estate. The final law says that it is not mandatory, but the form has to be completed.
The seller will have to complete a 4 page form provided by the State of Nevada Energy and Energy Efficiency Authority. The seller is not required to hire anybody to complete the energy audit can be completed by the seller. If the seller decides to have someone else complete the form for them, the seller may hire an ” inspector” that is certified by the Real Estate Division of the State of Nevada, and the Department of Business and Industry and as outlined by NRS 645D.040. The form provided also specifies that completing the form does not represent a guarantee or serve as a guarantee.
Who has to complete the Form?
The seller of Las Vegas real estate for sale
Who doesn’t have to complete the form?
The seller again is listed here and is where the confusion is, but here are the specific clarifications:
- Sellers that have obtained the property by means of foreclosure process ( They did the foreclosure)
- If the buyers of Las Vegas real estate and sellers are co-owners
- Person or company that is selling the property is doing it in absence of the seller due to relocation
- Buyer and seller agree waive it.
- An energy audit has been completed in the past 5 years Then you can provide the buyer with it.
In all situations the buyer and seller have to use the form provided, and it cannot be modified. There is an area at the bottom of the form where both buyer of Las Vegas real estate and seller can agree to waive the audit.
Although it remains to be seen what if any value some of the state of the art homes that are built in the valley will gain from completing this energy audit, but some of the homes in the valley have been built with solar panels, and some are additionally energy star certified. Looks like it may be time to dust off those certificates builders were giving out for new energy star certified Las Vegas real estate for sale.
Posted in energy audit, Las Vegas Homes, Las Vegas real estate |
By Administrator on December 20, 2010
Many Las Vegas home buyers will find themselves with higher interest rates when they start looking for homes in January in the Las Vegas area as rates have begun to creep up. Higher interest rates translate into a reduced purchase power of Las Vegas real estate. How so?
A home buyers purchasing power is dictated in part by their monthly payment, and as interest rates go up their purchasing power is inversely affected. This means that at 4% interest rate you could purchase a $100,000 Las Vegas home with a monthly payment of 477.42 and at 4.9% you can purchase a $90,000 home in Las vegas with a monthly payment of $477.65, the payment on both would be about the same, but you now get less house. Why is this even something you should know?
Many home buyers have been either waiting for interest rates to go down even more, or for the Las Vegas real estate they want to make a home have the price reduced even further, but with interest rates on the rise they now have to wait for the price to go down as they may not be able to buy that home they wanted.
All publications and media don’t expect interest rates in Las Vegas to go up in an unusual manner, but the increase that has taken place is enough to make Las Vegas buyers a bit nervous as their dream home has moved a bit further away. Those that are currently in escrow are hurrying to get things closed before their rate lock expires and they have to pay more interest, or even worse, if they bought at the limit of their credit, they may not be able to close all together and may have to begin the buying process all over and locate a different less expensive Las Vegas homes.
The calculations I made above are examples, but you also have to consider that additionally you will have to pay for insurance and taxes, and those will make your payment rise. If you need to talk with a knowledgeble lender or just have a question dont hesitate to contact me.
Posted in Las Vegas Homes, Uncategorized | Tagged henderson real estate, las vegas home, las vegas homes, las vegas real estate, north las vegas real estate |
By Administrator on December 18, 2010
New guidelines have emerged for what is officially called the Good Neighbor Next Door Program from HUD (department of Housing and Urban Deveolpment), the program itself is not new but how it works has changed.
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Homes purchased through this program are purchased at a discount of up to 50% of the list price of the home. The list price itself is determined from an appraisal that is ordered for the property. The buyers are given up to three percent of the purchase price that can be applied to to what are called “customary” closing costs. Homes can be purchased if and when the homes qualifiy for fha financing for as little as $100.00 down. HUD homes have a termite report, an inspection report and an appraisal provided to the buyer free of charge (some lenders may require a new appraisal and or termite report). If you’ve red the old guidelines you’re probably scratching your head asking yourself what’s new.
The new part of the program is that there is no longer gambling involved. A lottery system used to be used to determine who would get these homes, and that person would be allowed to purchase the half off home. The new guideline for this part indicates that the home will be awarded to the person or persons that give HUD the “highest net”, what does this mean? keep reading we’ll have an example.
Another change that was made was that the properties in the old system could be purchased directly from HUD without representation, meaning without an agent. The new guideline specifies that the property has to be purchased through HUD registered agents such as us.
An example of how this program works is as follows:
- Buyer works with a HUD registered agent
- Buyer locates property that qualifies under the Good Neighbor Next Door program
- A bid is placed (can be below , at or above list price)
- Closing costs are requested.
- A total or “net” to HUD is calculated (item 3- item 4)
- Upon bid expiration buyer that has the highest net to HUD is awarded the home.
Once the home is awarded, HUD will reduce the price by 50%. That means that if the home is listed for 150,000 and the winning bid was for 140,000 the final sales price will be 70,000, and that will be what you will finance or pay for the home.
There is a catch, a silent second will also be attached to the home. This means that you will make payments, considering you financed, on the 70,000 in the example above. There will be another note for the other half that will also be attached to the home. This is to ensure that you live in the property for three years and occupy it as your primary residence. No interest is paid on the second, and no payments are due, unless you violate the occupancy requirement. The second will cease to exist after 3 years when the occupancy requirements expire.
This program is intended for for first responders and teachers and is intended but not limited to North Las Vegas police department, Las Vegas Metro police department, Henderson Police department, Clark County Firefighters and Clark County School district as well as nationwide.
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Posted in For Firefighters, For Police, For Teachers, Las Vegas Homes | Tagged clark county firefighters, clark county school district, henderson hud homes, henderson police, homes for firefighters, homes for police, homes for teachers, las vegas hud homes, las vegas metro police, North las Vegas hud homes, north las vegas police |
By Administrator on December 12, 2010
Clark country residents in the entire county including Las Vegas property tax, Henderson property tax and North Las Vegas property tax have received a notice of assessment for their property taxes.
Most Clark county residents see the decline in values of their property, and hear about it on the news and begin to wonder if their clark county property taxes are keeping up with the declines, in some cases yes, but in most cases the real estate tax is not. This may be particularly true if you’ve been in your Las Vegas home a few years.
The value at which you are assessed at is determined by a percentage of what the assessor, assessed your real estate.
If you are paying a mortgage, this over assessment in Clark county property taxes can affect your monthly payment. You are probably contributing to an impound account with your payment. This payment contributes to this impound account one twelfth of the annual taxes in your monthly payment and is one of four items that compose your monthly payment. Once your real estate is reassessed, and if your property taxes are lowered you can contact your bank to have your monthly payment lowered as well. The bank will do this free of charge, since they now don’t have to collect as much in taxes to pay for them, this will result in a lower monthly payment for you.
If you are an investor, and your Clark county property is not owner occupied, as most are not, the margin of error could be even greater as investment properties in Clark county are assessed at a higher rate. This can effect your income stream, and decrease what goes into your pocket.
We can help you determine, by means of comparable properties sold, the approximate real estate value of you property, we can direct you to the appropriate persons to contact and instruct you on what to ask for in order to get your Clark county property taxes reassessed. The process is free, the confidential consultation is free and the list of comparable real estate is free. The information and the list will be of great value and will be helpful later during the appeals process of your Clark county property taxes.
The reassesment of Clark county taxes are of extreme urgent nature and has a fast approaching deadline. The Clark county property tax appeal process can be completed by the homeowner and only requires time.
Left unattended may cause you to pay for more than your fair share of property taxes for the next year, so contact me today.
The deadline is strict, and will pass soon. You cannot appeal the property tax after this deadline passes and will have to wait until the next Clark County property tax year.
Contact me today, I’d rather start saving you money today.
We can also talk with you about your options if you are in a mortgage and you feel you are under water, call or email us for a confidential evaluation and an explanation of your options.
We have worked with homeowners, first time buyers and non profit groups for many years, trained other agents and have provided free classes and advice to all homeowners whom ask.
*we are not appraisers, only licensed appraisers can determine the value of a property. Contact an appraiser if you need an appraisal. BB49BAXZKTFQ
Posted in Clark county property taxes, Las Vegas Homes | Tagged clark county, clark county assessor, clark county property taxes, county tax assesor, henderson property taxes, henderson taxes, las vegas property taxes, las vegas taxes, north las vegas property taxes, north las vegas taxes, taxes on property |
