Home Appraisals

With every real estate transaction that is funded with a loan, an appraisal is ordered to justify the value.  This is to help protect the interests of the Buyer and the Lender.  An Appraiser is hired to look at the property and compared it to others that have sold recently in the area.  A value is then placed on the property.  Once complete, the appraisal is then sent to an Appraisal Management Company to review the appraisal and compare it to the MLS Listing and the County Records. 

All parties want an appraisal that is at or above the purchase price.  If the value of the appraisal is less than the purchase price, the Lender will not fund the loan.  In this case, the appraisal can be challenged if there is an error and the price adjusted.  Otherwise, the Seller will need to sell the home for less, the Buyer will need to pay a larger down payment, or the sale fails. 

Homeowners who remodel or update their homes significantly without getting the proper local permits may have difficulty selling.  The change may cause a red flag for the Appraisal Management Company who may not approve the appraisal.  At which point the Homeowner would need to get the updates permitted, or the home would need to be reappraised without the updates.  These two options are not ideal.  To save time and money it is best to get permits during construction.

Thank you, Craig Walker with Cascade Mortgage for help with this video.  Craig may be reached at 206-999-5600 or visit www.cascademc.com/content/cw.

Tax Credit Extended

Below is the content from an email I received from the Washington REALTOR Association about the Tax Credit Extension. I hope you find this information helpful.
-Andrew


Great News For Washington Homebuyers!

President Obama signed the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 into law today. The legislation greatly expands the First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit by making more first time homebuyers eligible for the credit and now includes homebuyers that are not first time homebuyers. This new legislation is a huge victory for you, the Washington REALTORS and the National Association of REALTORS.

First Time Homebuyers
The current law is extended until April 30, 2010. Buyers have until that date to have a signed purchase agreement. There is an additional 60 day grace period to complete the financing. More first time homebuyers are eligible because the new law raises the annual income limits from $75,000 to $125,000 for singles and from $150,000 to $225,000 for married couples.

Current Home Owners
Over 60 percent of current home owners will be eligible for a tax credit of up to $6,500 if they purchase a home by April 30, 2010. These homebuyers must have lived in their home for five consecutive years over the previous eight years to qualify. Qualified homebuyers can get the credit if they purchase a home for $800,000 or less as their primary residence between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010. The income limits are the same as the First Time Homebuyer listed above.

Please see the links below for details regarding the new legislation:
Frequently asked questions regarding the new Homebuyer Tax Credit.
A chart comparing the original Tax Credit with the new, expanded Tax Credit.
Press Release (11/06/09) Washington REALTORS & the new Tax Credit.
REALTORS helped State Leaders Express Support

Letter of Recommendation from a First Time Home Buyer

To Whom It May Concern:

If you are contemplating taking the steps towards buying or selling a home, whether you are a first time buyer or a veteran homeowner, I strongly recommend you give Andrew Parker a call.

Recently, I experienced the pleasure of buying my first home. When I first started looking the whole process seemed rather daunting, and for good reason. Buying a home is not to be taken lightly; there are a lot of moving parts and it will most likely be the biggest investment you ever make. As such, I wanted everything to go as smoothly as possible. After looking online and scouring the papers I decided to get serious and called Andrew. I had met Andrew through volunteering and knew he was a trustworthy, friendly, experienced and intelligent realtor that would really work for me. I also specifically sought out Andrew because I knew he was not someone that would rush me to a decision.

Let’s just say I was thoroughly pleased with my choice. Andrew always provided me with up-to-date information on relevant houses in my price range and in the areas I was looking. In the houses we toured, he pointed out the good and the bad of each, making sure I had all the information I needed to make my decision. This was extremely helpful, as there were many things that can only be known with experience and I would have missed. When it finally came time to start signing papers, he talked me through each page and made sure I understood what I was signing before we moved on. He answered all my questions in a timely manner, returned all my calls and emails promptly and acted as a great liaison between the others we interacted with during the process.

When the dust settled, I was the owner of a great house and couldn’t be happier. Andrew definitely surpassed my expectations and can expect a call from me if I ever need his expert services again! I hope you give him a call, too.

Sincerely,

Nate Lemberg