Thinking of Buying a Home, Horse Property? Be Prepared

A solid game plan can help you narrow your homebuying search to find the best home for you.

When looking for your new house, make sure to take into consideration how long you plan to stay there.

House hunting is just like any other shopping expedition. If you identify exactly what you want and do some research, you’ll zoom in on the home you want at the best price. These eight tips will guide you through a smart home

buying process.

1. Know thyself

Understand the type of home that suits your personality. Do you prefer a new or existing home? A ranch or a multistory home? If you’re leaning toward a fixer-upper, are you truly handy, or will you need to budget for contractors?

2. Research before you look

List the features you most want in a home and identify which are necessities and which are extras. Identify three to four neighborhoods you’d like to live in based on commute time, schools, recreation, crime, and price. Then hop onto REALTOR.com to get a feel for the homes available in your price range in your favorite neighborhoods. Use the results to prioritize your wants and needs so you can add in and weed out properties from the inventory you’d like to view.

3. Get your finances in order

Generally, lenders say you can afford a home priced two to three times your gross income. Create a budget so you know how much you’re comfortable spending each month on housing. Don’t wait until you’ve found a home and made an offer to investigate financing.

Gather your financial records and meet with a lender to get a prequalification letter spelling out how much you’re eligible to borrow. The lender won’t necessarily consider the extra fees you’ll pay when you purchase or your plans to begin a family or purchase a new car, so shop in a price range you’re comfortable with. Also, presenting an offer contingent on financing will make your bid less attractive to sellers.

4. Set a moving timeline

Do you have blemishes on your credit that will take time to clear up? If you already own, have you sold your current home? If not, you’ll need to factor in the time needed to sell. If you rent, when is your lease up? Do you expect interest rates to jump anytime soon? All these factors will affect your buying, closing, and moving timelines.

5. Think long term

Your future plans may dictate the type of home you’ll buy. Are you looking for a starter house with plans to move up in a few years, or do you hope to stay in the home for five to 10 years? With a starter, you may need to adjust your expectations. If you plan to nest, be sure your priority list helps you identify a home you’ll still love years from now.

6. Work with a REALTOR®

Ask people you trust for referrals to a real estate professional they trust. Interview agents like Carol at Sunflower Homes & Equestrian to determine who have expertise in the neighborhoods and type of homes you’re interested in. Because homebuying triggers many emotions, consider whether an agent’s style meshes with your personality.

Also ask if the agent specializes in buyer representation. Sunflower Homes certainly knows all about properties for sale in the Palm City, Florida area. 

7. Be realistic

It’s OK to be picky about the home and neighborhood you want, but don’t be close-minded, unrealistic, or blinded by minor imperfections. If you insist on living in a cul-de-sac, you may miss out on great homes on streets that are just as quiet and secluded.

On the flip side, don’t be so swayed by a “wow” feature that you forget about other issues—like noise levels—that can have a big impact on your quality of life. Use your priority list to evaluate each property, remembering there’s no such thing as the perfect home.

8. Limit the opinions you solicit

It’s natural to seek reassurance when making a big financial decision. But you know that saying about too many cooks in the kitchen. If you need a second opinion, select one or two people. But remain true to your list of wants and needs so the final decision is based on criteria you’ve identified as important.

Check out this Website for EASY SEARCHING. I made it easy for you.

THINKING OF CHANGING YOUR LAUNDRY ROOM?

Contemporary Laundry Room design by Edmonton Design-build Marcson Homes Ltd.

Take a little time to go to http://www.houzz.com and get creative with over 2,700 ideas of LAUNDRY ROOMS. There are so many ideas that you can enjoy without even creating a project of your own. Why purchase magazines and hope to get the idea you want for your house. Save you money and just click on and join the website. I am just a consumer looking for the exact ideas that I like. I can say that I have found so much information about design, what to do and how I can change my own home or make a suggestion to a friend or real estate client. Stop and take a look. But before that, take a look at this kitchen that just happens to be one of my listings. This laundry is a prep room for the kitchen, pantry and and laundry. Oh! there is another laundry on the second floor. It is really cute. It is all decked out in black and white tiles.

Few Respond to Foreclosure Review Offer

WASHINGTON – May 21, 2012 – Months after the first invitations were mailed, only a small percentage of eligible borrowers have accepted a chance to have their foreclosure cases checked for errors and maybe win restitution. By April 30, fewer than 165,000 people had applied to have their foreclosures checked for mistakes – about 4 percent of the 4.1 million who received letters about the free reviews late last year, according to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The reviews were agreed to by 14 major mortgage servicers and federal banking regulators in a settlement last year over alleged foreclosure abuses. So few people have responded that another mailing to almost 4 million households will go out in early June, reminding them of the July 31 deadline to request a review, OCC spokesman Bryan Hubbard says. If errors occurred, restitution could run from several hundred dollars to more than $100,000. The reviews are separate from the $25 billion mortgage-servicing settlement that state and federal officials reached this year. Anyone who requests a review will get one if they meet certain criteria. Mortgages had to be in the foreclosure process in 2009 or 2010, on a primary residence, and serviced by one of the 14 servicers or their affiliates, including Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Citibank and Wells Fargo. More information is at independentforeclosurereview.com. Even though letters went to more than 4 million households, consumer advocates say follow-up advertising has been ineffective, leading to the low response rate. Many consumers have also grown wary of foreclosure scams and government foreclosure programs, says Deborah Goldberg of the National Fair Housing Alliance. “The effort is being made” to reach people, says Paul Leonard, the mortgage servicers’ representative at the Financial Services Roundtable, a trade group. “It’s hard to say why people aren’t responding.” With this settlement, foreclosure cases will be reviewed one by one by consultants hired by the servicers but monitored by regulators. With the $25 billion mortgage settlement, borrowers who lost homes to foreclosure will be eligible for payouts from a $1.5 billion fund. That could mean 750,000 borrowers getting about $2,000 each, federal officials have said. For more information on that, go to nationalmortgagesettlement.com.

CountryHomesofFlorida.com - Properties of Carol Barron-Cross with Sunflower Homes & Equestrian LLC in Palm City, FL

This great looking home is JUST PENDING  and listed by Sunflower Homes and Equestrian, LLC, Carol Barron Cross, Broket

Carol can assist you with your  real estate needs

CountryHomesofFlorida.com - Properties of Carol Barron-Cross with Sunflower Homes & Equestrian LLC in Palm City, FL
http://www.mysunflowerfarmfl.com/

Here's the Scoop on Home loan rates

                  Sunflower Homes and Equestrian Listed this Palm City Home in Stuart West. It is PENDING SALE. 

The world is certainly more connected than ever these days, and that's true well beyond the Internet. If you've been wondering what's been going on...and what things mean for home loan rates...here's the scoop from Sunflower Homes and Equestrian, Broker, Carol Barron Cross.

Http://www.mysunflowerfarmfl.com 

A Recap of News at Home
First, it's important to remember that when our economy is struggling, our Bond Market usually benefits as investors seek a safe haven for their money. And since home loan rates are tied to Mortgage Bonds, our home loan rates are sometimes at their best when our economy is struggling. In a way it makes sense...in times of economic struggle, good home loan rates can help kick start our economy in other areas.

The housing market is one of the main areas in our economy that is still struggling. New Home Sales, Existing Home Sales and Housing Starts all fell in March. And in April, the Fed noted in its statement from their Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting that the housing market remains "depressed."

In addition, recent reports in the manufacturing sector were also disappointing, as both the Empire State Manufacturing Index and the Philly Fed Index came in below expectations. The same is true in the labor market, as recent Initial Jobless Claims readings have spiked sharply higher...and well above the 350,000 range seen in recent weeks.

But not all the news has been disappointing: Retail Sales in March rose by a nice 0.8%, as consumers bought all kinds of products across the board. And when stripping out autos, sales still grew. This adds to the increasing trend seen in January and February and is a good sign for our economy, as consumers don't spend when they aren't feeling optimistic about their financial situation.

The direction of economic reports here will certainly impact the markets and home loan rates in the weeks and months ahead, and it's something to watch closely.

News to Note from Overseas
Our Bond Market–and therefore home loan rates–also often benefit when the global economy is struggling, as investors overseas see our Bond Market as an ultra safe haven for their money. This has happened throughout recent months as Greece and several other countries in Europe have been facing a debt crisis. What's more, there is growing and very justified concern about Spain's ability to pay down debt, meet new budget deficit targets, and avoid a bailout or debt restructuring. And let's not forget that besides Spain and Greece, we still have France, Portugal, and Ireland to deal with in future months and years.

There will likely be more safe haven trading into the relative safety of the US Dollar and US Bonds (which will benefit Mortgage Bonds, to which home loan rates are tied) as the uncertainty out of Europe escalates. And more bad economic reports here in the United States could increase trading into the safety of our Bonds, just as more good economic news here would likely benefit Stocks at the expense of our Bonds and home loan rates.