Posts Tagged ‘home buying’
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Monday, April 25th, 2011
 More new homes now will come with energy labels that estimate monthly energy bills, allowing buyers a different way of shopping for homes. The energy labels have been compared to the miles-per-gallon ratings available for cars, which give insight into a car’s fuel efficiency. Likewise, more builders now will give new-home buyers greater insight into how much the home will cost them in utilities–so they have a better gauge to judge the upkeep costs of a home.
Environmental efficiency has become an increasingly important factor in home buying decisions due to rising energy costs. Energy efficient appliances and energy efficient lighting were “very” or “somewhat” important to a majority of home buyers, and heating and cooling costs were at least “somewhat” important to 88 percent of buyers, according to the 2009 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers by the National Association of REALTORS®.
PulteGroup Inc. and Residential Energy Services Network also have teamed up to roll out energy efficiency labels on PulteGroup homes this year. The homes will be tested using the RESNET Home Energy Rating System Index, a measure of energy performance that is recognized by government agencies.
“Providing clear, visible energy ratings for homes makes sense for today’s energy-conscious consumers who want to save on their utility bills and reduce their carbon footprint,” says Steve Baden, executive director, RESNET. “Marketing the energy efficiency of homes is a winning proposition for home buyers, builders, and the environment.”
While these labels apply to new homes, the USA Today recently reported that the U.S. Department of Energy is developing a home energy score for existing homes, which it plans to launch nationally this fall.
By Melissa Dittmann Tracey, REALTOR® Magazine
As always, we here at Prudential Snyder & Company Realtors are here to assist you with any of your Ann Arbor home buying, home selling, rental or other Ann Arbor area real estate needs. We cover Chelsea Homes, Dexter Homes, Ypsilanti Homes, Saline Homes, and the entire Washtenaw County area as well as Western Wayne County, and parts of Livingston, Lenawee, Oakland, and Monroe Counties.
Call us at 734-747-7500 or 734-747-7700 weekdays, or 734-660-0105 evenings and weekends. We’re also available via email at info@prusnyder.com or online at www.prusnyder.com anytime. Choose Prudential Snyder and Company for the best Ann Arbor Realtors!
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Tags: chelsea homes, dexter homes, energy bills, energy labels, energy ratings, energy-efficient, home buyers, home buying, home energy score, saline homes, shopping for homes, Washtenaw County, ypsilanti homes
Posted in Ann Arbor Real Estate |
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Wednesday, April 20th, 2011
 Banks are increasingly telling borrowers that if they want to buy a home, they need to come with a higher down payment. Banks are requiring higher down payments in order to help mitigate the bank’s risk as home prices continue to fall. Plus, banks say larger down payments discourage delinquencies.
The Obama administration recently called for gradually increasing down payments to a minimum of 10 percent on conventional loans that can be bought or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The median down payment in nine major U.S. cities rose to 22 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010 on properties purchased through conventional mortgages–the highest in median down payment since the data started being tracked in 1997, according to a Wall Street Journal and Zillow.com analysis.
In the late 1990s, median down payments once averaged 20 percent in the nine metro cities Zillow analyzed, but in 2001 started inching downward as banks began requiring little or no down payment in some cases during the housing boom.
Now banks want more, believing that the more a buyer has invested, the less likely they are to default.
Borrowers who can’t afford the higher down payments are seeking assistance elsewhere, such as loans for veterans or those backed by the Federal Housing Administration (which require 3.5 percent down payment), or loans by the United States Department of Agriculture for rural areas.
Source: “Banks Push Home Buyers to Put Down More Cash,” The Wall Street Journal (Feb. 16, 2011)
As always, we here at Prudential Snyder & Company Realtors are here to assist you with any of your Ann Arbor home buying, home selling, rental or other Ann Arbor area real estate needs. We cover Chelsea Homes, Dexter Homes, Ypsilanti Homes, Saline Homes, and the entire Washtenaw County area as well as Western Wayne County, and parts of Livingston, Lenawee, Oakland, and Monroe Counties.
Call us at 734-747-7500 or 734-747-7700 weekdays, or 734-660-0105 evenings and weekends. We’re also available via email at info@prusnyder.com or online at www.prusnyder.com anytime. Choose Prudential Snyder and Company for the best Ann Arbor Realtors!
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Tags: ann arbor home, down payments, federal housing administration, home buying, home selling, housing boom, loans for veterans, wall street journal
Posted in Ann Arbor Homes, Ann Arbor Real Estate, Chelsea Homes, Dexter Homes, Saline Homes, Ypsilanti Homes |
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Tuesday, April 12th, 2011
A home warranty can be attractive to home owners or buyers who are looking at purchasing a property. These service contracts can cover all of a home’s major systems, such as the furnace or air conditioner, and will cover needed repairs if the appliance breaks or damaged.
Some sellers are offering a home warranty to try to lure buyers.
But not all home warranties are the same. Experts say you should carefully weigh costs, policy allowances, and customer feedback before making a decision so that you ensure you’re getting the best deal. Home warranties cost about $250 to $500 a year.
Here are some more tips from experts in shopping for a home warranty:
▪ Find customer reviews. Web sites, such as homewarrantyreviews.com, provide reviews of home warranty companies. You also might check how each company is rated with your local Better Business Bureau.
▪ Check for extra fees. Will you have to pay a fee for service calls?
▪ Check the coverage allowance. Are there any exclusions to coverage? Will the allowance cover the entire cost of a broken appliance or just some of it? For example, if you have older appliances and mechanicals, will the home warranty cover the full cost of replacing it or just the depreciated value? If the policy only covers the depreciated value when a 20-year-old furnace dies, for example, the reimbursement may not be enough to buy a new one. Also, verify what appliances are included in the coverage. Some companies will allow you to add coverage for swimming pools, while others won’t.
Source: REALTOR®Mag
As always, we here at Prudential Snyder & Company Realtors are here to assist you with any of your Ann Arbor Area home buying, home selling, rental or other Ann Arbor real estate needs.
Call us at 734-747-7500 or 734-747-7700 weekdays, or 734-660-0105 evenings and weekends. We’re also available via email at info@prusnyder.com or online at www.prusnyder.com anytime. Choose Prudential Snyder and Company for the best Ann Arbor Realtors!
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Tags: Ann Arbor Real Estate, better business bureau, buyers, home buying, home owners, home warranties, home warranty, homes selling, purchasing a property, rental, service contracts
Posted in Ann Arbor Homes |
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Friday, April 8th, 2011
 Ann Arbor Area Real Estate Series – Five Tips for Spring Cleaning
Spring is here and for those selling a home or getting ready to put their house on the market, there’s nothing quite as beneficial as doing a great “spring cleaning” job to not only make your home look great, but to get rid of some of that clutter that could distract someone coming to see your home.
Here are five spring cleaning tips that can help you sell your home:
- Curb appeal becomes as important as ever when the weather turns nicer and buyers are more likely to spend time outside looking at the exterior of the house and the property. Make sure to have a well-maintained lawn with all the leaves gone, the grass mowed and the hedges trimmed.
Spruce things up by buying some inexpensive, yet colorful flowers and spread fresh mulch in flowerbeds. Fill in any bare spots on your lawn with sod or seed. Make sure to also clean your gutters, wash your welcome mat and put away any rakes or winter shovels that clutter the yard.
2. The phrase “I don’t do windows” should never apply when selling a home. While a REALTOR® may tell you that homes show better with the blinds or curtains up, this will not be true if the windows are dirty. A clean window brings more light into a room and allows buyers the chance to see what the view will be when they look out of their potential new home. It’s important to clean both the inside and outside of all windows until they are streak free and spotless. This includes all sliding glass doors, garage windows and outside doors.
3. Pay close attention to the “little” things that might draw the eye of a prospective homebuyer. Go around your home with a pad and pencil and inspect each room for things such as small holes in the wall where a painting used to hang, outlets that are missing a cover or doorknobs that are loose and squeaky. Also, be sure to check all of the caulking around sinks, faucets and tubs, as well as any grout in tile counters or bathtubs. As you take the time and the small amount of money to fix these items you reduce the reasons for someone not liking your home.
4. Power wash your driveway, walkway, siding and deck. You don’t need to invest in the money of buying a new power washer as they are easy to rent from stores such as Lowe’s. Power washing removes layers and years of dirt and grime from stone and cement, including mildew stains from the winter. Power washing the porch, a fence or deck clears away all the dirt and debris and makes the home instantly seem cleaner. If the outside of your home looks dingy, you may be setting the impression that you didn’t keep up the home itself well, so make sure to have everything looking top notch.
5. One of the first pieces of advice you will get from your real estate agent is to reduce clutter in your home. Spring cleaning is the perfect excuse to get rid of things you don’t really need. Go through all your closets and bag up all the clothes that don’t fit, are out of style or you simply don’t wear anymore and donate them to a charity. Take your old books, the kids’ toys they no longer play with and those kitchen knickknacks and hold a garage sale. A de-cluttered home is always more attractive to the homebuyer.
As always, we here at Prudential Snyder & Company Realtors are here to assist you with any of your Ann Arbor Area home buying, home selling, rental or other Ann Arbor real estate needs.
Call us at 734-747-7500 or 734-747-7700 weekdays, or 734-660-0105 evenings and weekends. We’re also available via email at info@prusnyder.com or online at www.prusnyder.com anytime. Choose Prudential Snyder and Company for the best Ann Arbor Realtors!
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Tags: Ann Arbor Area, home buying, home selling, real estate needs, rental, selling a home, spring cleaning, your home
Posted in Ann Arbor Real Estate |
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Thursday, March 24th, 2011
ANN ARBOR REAL ESTATE SERIES-FHA MORTGAGES FOR BORROWERS WITH LOW CREDIT SCORES
 Late last year the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) criticized the banking industry for requiring a borrower to have a credit score of 650 before approving a mortgage loan.
On January 15, 2011 Wells Fargo launched a new policy which accepts borrowers with credit scores as low as 500. Those applying for a FHA mortgage with a credit score of 500-579 must make a down payment of at least 10%. Borrowers with a credit score of 580-599 must make a down payment of 5%. Borrowers can not use gifts or other down payment assistance to make their down payment. Borrowers with a credit score of 600 or higher only need to make a 3.5% down payment.
Borrowers with credit scores below 650 may also want to consider using a local lender. They often place emphasis on components of the loan applicant’s financial history other than credit score. How long the applicant has been with their employer? Do they make regular deposits into savings accounts? Questions like these help to provide a more detailed assessment of the high risk applicant’s ability to afford a mortgage.
As always, we here at Prudential Snyder & Company Realtors are here to assist you with any of your Ann Arbor Area home buying, home selling, rental or other Ann Arbor real estate needs.
Call us at 734-747-7500 or 734-747-7700 weekdays, or 734-660-0105 evenings and weekends. We’re also available via email at info@prusnyder.com or online at www.prusnyder.com anytime. Choose Prudential Snyder and Company for the best Ann Arbor Realtors!
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Tags: Ann Arbor Area, Ann Arbor Real Estate, credit scores, federal housing administration, fha, home buying, home selling, mortgage loan, Realtors, rental
Posted in Ann Arbor Real Estate |
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Tuesday, March 8th, 2011
 Sellers whose Ann Arbor homes have lingered on the market for months–or years, in some cases–are banking on this spring to turn the tide.
Foreclosures and short sales are still flooding the market, which means many sellers are still up against big inventories and some big bargains that may pull away buyers.
As such, more real estate pros say it’s time to have tough conversations with sellers about slashing their sales price of their home, particularly if it hasn’t garnered any traffic in recent months or years. After all, spring usually brings out more buyers, as home shoppers look to buy and move before the next school year.
“We have had a problem with sellers who are nostalgic for the way it was,” says Ron Phipps, a Warwick, R.I., real estate professional and the president of the National Association of REALTORS®. He says what home owners could fetch for their home during the housing boom is not practical today. “You have to be where the market is, not where it was,” Phipps says.
Phipps suggests encouraging sellers to check out the competition by visiting open houses or viewing online virtual tours of similar homes for sale to see how the seller’s house compares in price and appearance.
“You have to be very realistic about what is keeping your home from selling,” Phipps says. “Sometimes it may actually be the person in the mirror, if your expectations are not realistic. Ultimately, there is a price at which all things sell.”
Source: “Longtime Listings Try Again in Spring,” Associated Press (March 1, 2011)
As always, we here at Prudential Snyder & Company Realtors are here to assist you with any of your Ann Arbor Area home buying, home selling, rental or other Ann Arbor real estate needs.
Call us at 734-747-7500 or 734-747-7700 weekdays, or 734-660-0105 evenings and weekends. We’re also available via email at info@prusnyder.com or online at www.prusnyder.com anytime. Choose Prudential Snyder and Company for the best Ann Arbor Realtors!
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Tags: Ann Arbor Area, Ann Arbor Real Estate, home buying, home selling, Prudential Snyder, Sellers
Posted in Ann Arbor Real Estate |
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Thursday, March 3rd, 2011
ANN ARBOR REAL ESTATE SERIES-Shopping Tips for Buying a Home Warranty
Home warranties can be attractive to home owners or buyers who are looking at purchasing a property. These service contracts can cover all of a home’s major systems, such as the furnace or air conditioner, and will cover needed repairs if the appliance breaks or damaged.
Some sellers are offering a home warranty to try to lure buyers.
But not all home warranties are the same. Experts say you should carefully weigh costs, policy allowances, and customer feedback before making a decision so that you ensure you’re getting the best deal. Home warranties cost about $250 to $500 a year.
Here are some more tips from experts in shopping for a home warranty:
- Find customer reviews. Web sites, such as homewarrantyreviews.com, provide reviews of home warranty companies. You also might check how each company is rated with your local Better Business Bureau.
- Check for extra fees. Will you have to pay a fee for service calls?
- Check the coverage allowance. Are there any exclusions to coverage? Will the allowance cover the entire cost of a broken appliance or just some of it? For example, if you have older appliances and mechanicals, will the policy cover the full cost of replacing it or just the depreciated value? If the policy only covers the depreciated value when a 20-year-old furnace dies, for example, the reimbursement may not be enough to buy a new one. Also, verify what appliances are all included in the coverage. Some companies will allow you to add coverage for swimming pools, while others won’t.Source: REALTOR®Mag
As always, we here at Prudential Snyder & Company Realtors are here to assist you with any of your Ann Arbor Area home buying, home selling, rental or other Ann Arbor real estate needs.
Call us at 734-747-7500 or 734-747-7700 weekdays, or 734-660-0105 evenings and weekends. We’re also available via email at info@prusnyder.com or online at www.prusnyder.com anytime. Choose Prudential Snyder and Company for the best Ann Arbor Realtors!
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Tags: Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor Area Home, ann arbor real, home buying, home owners, home selling, home warranties, rental
Posted in Ann Arbor Real Estate |
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Monday, February 14th, 2011
ANN ARBOR REAL ESTATE-Home Ownership Offers Plenty of Tax Benefits
While renting offers zero tax breaks, buying a home offers several tax benefits that can make homeownership more affordable. While Real estate professionals, are not tax professionals they can ensure clients have the information they need to understand all of the tax benefits of home ownership.
The following is a few of the tax benefits to home ownership, according to Stephen Fishman, an author and lawyer who specializes in small business, tax and intellectual property law.
▪ Home mortgage interest deduction: Home owners can take an itemized deduction on interest paid on a mortgage or mortgages of up to $1 million for a principal residence and/or second home. This deduction could potentially reduce the cost of borrowing by one-third or more.
▪ Property tax deduction: Home owners can deduct from their federal income taxes the state and local property taxes that you pay on the home.
▪ Deductible home buying expenses: Several closing costs in a home purchase are also deductible, such as loan origination fees (points), prorated interest on a new loan, and prorated property taxes paid at settlement.
▪ $250,000/$500,000 home-sale exclusion: Home owners who have lived in their home for two of the prior five years prior to its sale do not have to pay income tax on the majority of their profit – $250,000 for single home owners and $500,000 for married homeowners who file jointly.
▪ 14 days of free rental income: Home owners can rent the home up to 14 days during the year and pay no tax at all on the rental income.
Source: “The Tax Benefits of Homeownership,” Inman News (Feb. 4, 2011)
As always, we here at Prudential Snyder & Company Realtors are here to assist you with any of your Ann Arbor Area home buying, home selling, rental or other Ann Arbor real estate needs.
Call us at 734-747-7500 or 734-747-7700 weekdays, or 734-660-0105 evenings and weekends. We’re also available via email at info@prusnyder.com or online at www.prusnyder.com anytime. Choose Prudential Snyder and Company for the best Ann Arbor Realtors!
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Tags: Add new tag, Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor Area, Ann Arbor House, home buying, home mortgage interest deduction, home ownership, home selling, homeownership, rental, tax benefits, tax benefits of home, tax breaks, tax deduction
Posted in Ann Arbor Real Estate |
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Thursday, February 3rd, 2011
An energy efficient home is one that uses substantially less energy than the average American Home. These “high-performance” homes are more comfortable and healthy, a great added benefit for the owner. A truly efficient home starts off using 30% less energy than the average home, and can increase in some cases to being a home that creates more energy than it uses.
 The Home Energy Rating System, or HERS scale, is a convenient measure of the efficiency of a home. The scale goes from zero to a theoretical maximum of 500. Like a golf score, lower is better, with a zero being a zero-energy home (one that averages zero net energy use over the course of a year), and a score of 100 being the average new home built to energy code minimum. Each point added represents a 1% increase in energy efficiency. Older, leakier homes with minimal insulation can score well over 200 on the HERS scale, and these homes can benefit the most from a basic home retrofit.
A well-insulated home with geothermal heating and cooling and efficient mechanical and electrical systems can score in the low 40′s, while the addition of solar panels can bring this down into the 20′s. These are homes that cost very little to operate, sometimes as low as $40 or $50 per month. Generous federal and utility company incentives for renewable energy can make these “deep green” upgrades have a payoff period of less than 12 years, while a more basic retrofit package can have a payoff period of 7 years or less.
The real benefit of an energy efficient home lies in its comfort and healthy air quality. This is something that has to be experienced to understand the difference. Our customers tell us they can feel the better air quality, and could not go back to living in a home that was not upgraded. With up-front low-interest financing programs and generous incentives, there has never been a better time to realize the benefits of an energy efficient home!
Information courtesy of Meadowlark Energy.
As always, we here at Prudential Snyder & Company Realtors are here to assist you with any of your Ann Arbor Area home buying, home selling, rental or other Ann Arbor real estate needs.
Call us at 734-747-7500 or 734-747-7700 weekdays, or 734-660-0105 evenings and weekends. We’re also available via email at info@prusnyder.com or online at www.prusnyder.com anytime. Choose Prudential Snyder and Company for the best Ann Arbor Realtors!
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Tags: Add new tag, Ann Arbor House, average home, create more energy, efficient home, geothermal heating, HERS, home buying, Home energy rating system, home selling, Real Estate, rental
Posted in Ann Arbor Real Estate |
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Wednesday, January 19th, 2011
ANN ARBOR REAL ESTATE SERIES-MOLD: WHAT YOU SHOULD AND SHOULD NOT DO TO TAKE CARE OF IT
It is true that bleach will sanitize most anything but stay with the non porous surfaces when using it. It works great for solid surfaces like counter tops and appliances but it is very non effective when used on porous surfaces like building materials. Not only is it not effective but it can become an inhalation hazard if used incorrectly. OSHA actually recommends not using chlorine bleach for mold remediation due to these facts. The best way to remediate mold is to remove the affected material from the site using controlled methods. Then the cleaning process can began with antimicrobials that are designed for killing mold on contact.
Antimicrobials are products that have been used for years in hospitals and public facilities for killing germs and other contaminants like mold. Most antimicrobials that are used by professional remediation companies need a contact wetting time of at least 10 minutes before they become effective. Bleach becomes very ineffective before the 10 minute time is elapsed. Its effectiveness is related to its shelf life - the longer it is stored the less effective it becomes. Therefore it is not a good product to use in conjunction with mold remediation projects. There are many products on the market that are very effective for mold remediation. These products are also safer for the environment and the occupants of the home.
Another reason not to use bleach is that it is very corrosive to metal objects. There have been countless times that we have viewed corrosions on HVAC ducts, copper piping and electrical wiring caused by cleaning using bleach. Bleach can eat through metal objects if given enough time. The next time that you are in a home that was professionally remediated for mold, take a close look at the metal objects in the basement. If you see corrosions on the HVAC system, the nails in the structure, electrical connections or the copper piping it has probably been cleaned with bleach or other corrosive chemicals. If this is the case it would be wise to have everything wiped down to help prevent any further problems from occurring.
Attic mold is a common occurrence with many homes. Its cause is sometimes overlooked. Sometimes improper venting can be the culprit. An ideal attic is designed to have air flowing in through the soffit vents and up through the ridge vents. Of course other designs are possible but this is the simplest of examples. An attic is greatly affected by heat. If the attic temperature gets too hot the surfaces can condensate causing mold to grow. This can also degrade the shingle life. As the mold grows it will soften the plywood and cause it to degrade. An average roof lifespan is usually between 15 to 25 years depending on design. Many roofs are replaced before their time due to this simple fact. Here are some red flags to look for during an attic inspection:
- Check the nails in the attic – if they are rusted the attic has condensation.
- The temperature in the attic should not be 15 degrees or so different than that of the out side temperature. If so then additional venting may be needed.
- Check the soffit vents – Do they have baffles? Baffles are used to help create an air channel for proper venting to occur. If there are none installing baffles could help.
- Also make sure the attic hatch is insulated – This is sometimes overlooked and can cause heat from the home to enter the attic space. Along with it costing more money to heat the home throughout the year it could be causing the attic to condensate.
If mold is growing in the attic it more than likely is not a health concern due to the way an attic is designed to vent. An attic is designed to vent to the outside of the home and not to the inside of the home. Dealing with it properly can help save money on costly roof replacement in the future.
Information courtesy of RemTek Environmental
As always, we here at Prudential Snyder & Company Realtors are here to assist you with any of your Ann Arbor Area home buying, home selling, rental or other Ann Arbor real estate needs.
Call us at 734-747-7500 or 734-747-7700 weekdays, or 734-660-0105 evenings and weekends. We’re also available via email at info@prusnyder.com or online at www.prusnyder.com anytime. Choose Prudential Snyder and Company for the best Ann Arbor Realtors!
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Tags: Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor House, attic mold, home buying, home selling, mold, mold remediation, Prudential Real Estate, Prudential Snyder & Company
Posted in Ann Arbor Real Estate |
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More new homes now will come with energy labels that estimate monthly energy bills, allowing buyers a different way of shopping for homes. The energy labels have been compared to the miles-per-gallon ratings available for cars, which give insight into a car’s fuel efficiency. Likewise, more builders now will give new-home buyers greater insight into how much the home will cost them in utilities–so they have a better gauge to judge the upkeep costs of a home.
