More and more ‘old millennials’ (25-36) are realizing that homeownership is within their grasp now!

Moving Up to Your Dream Home? Don't Wait!

Mortgage interest rates have risen by more than half of a point since the beginning of the year, and many assume that if mortgage rates rise, home values will fall. History, however, has shown this not to be true.

Where are home values today compared to the beginning of the year?

While rates have been rising, so have home values. Here are the most recent monthly price increases reported in the Home Price Insights Report from CoreLogic:

• January: Prices were up 0.5% over the month before.
• February: Prices were up 1% over the month before.
• March: Prices were up 1.4% over the month before.

Not only did prices continue to appreciate, the level of appreciation accelerated over the first quarter. CoreLogic believes that home prices will increase by 5.2% over the next twelve months.

How can prices rise while mortgage rates increase?

Freddie Mac explained in a recent Insight Report:

“In the current housing market, the driving force behind the increase in prices is a low supply of both new and existing homes combined with historically low rates. As mortgage rates increase, the demand for home purchases will likely remain strong relative to the constrained supply and continue to put upward pressure on home prices.”

Bottom Line

If you are thinking about moving up to your dream home, waiting until later this year and hoping for prices to fall may not be a good strategy.

Renters Under 50 Want to Buy a Home!

Every year, the New York Federal Reserve publishes the results of their Survey of Consumer Expectations (SCE). Each survey covers a wide range of topics including inflation, labor market, household finance, credit access and housing.
One of the many questions asked in the housing section of the survey was:

Assuming you had the financial resources to do so, would you like to OWN instead of RENT your primary residence?

Over three-quarters of respondents under the age of 50 said that they would prefer to own their home, rather than rent. While only 52.6% of those over 50 would prefer to own. The full breakdown can be found in the chart below.

When renters were asked what the average probability of owning a primary residence at some point in their future was, 66.4% of those under 50 believed that they would eventually own their home, while only 23% of those over 50 did.

Bottom Line

Many had wondered if young Americans had lost their desire to own a home, but for those renting now, that dream is still alive.

It's not uncommon to have a misunderstanding about what is or is not included in the sale of a home or condo

Help Wanted: Relocation Necessary

Currently, 6.7 million unemployed people in the U.S. are actively seeking work, while the country has 6.3 million job openings. Theoretically, we would have no unemployment if the job seekers filled those open spots. The real world, however, is more complicated. We have a labor force largely deficient in the skills needed to fill many of the vacancies. In other cases, there aren’t enough workers willing to relocate to an area where they could be hired.

One industry suffering from such labor-market friction is construction. Home builders can pretty much find a buyer and pocket a tidy profit for any home they build. But they cannot build as many homes as they’d like to because of the difficulty in finding skilled construction workers. The average hourly wage for a nonsupervisory worker in construction is $27.36, or $57,000 a year. 

The work is physically demanding, and that might be part of the problem behind the worker shortage. But there’s a skills gap, too. We’re beginning to see some good ideas to close that gap—in Tennessee, for example, some laid-off workers can get skills training free of charge at the community college—but more initiatives are needed.

Another problem is mobility. Americans aren’t moving as much as they did in the past. A generation ago, about 20 percent of Americans moved to a different place in a given year. Only 11 percent relocate today, and many don’t leave their county. Fewer than 2 percent of moves cross state lines.

Migration is in America’s DNA. Think of 1930s Dust Bowl farmers forced to seek opportunity in the West and the 20th century manufacturing boom that attracted African Americans from the South to the North. Think of Italian and Irish immigrants making the arduous transoceanic journey to escape poverty and Chinese immigrants who came to build the railroads. From a jobs perspective, a return to the country’s roving roots wouldn’t be a bad thing. Jobs are available, but people must go to them.

3 Tips for Making Your Dream of Owning a Home a Reality

5 Ways Tax Reform Has Impacted the 2018 Housing Market

Starting late last year, some predicted that the 2018 tax changes would cripple the housing market. Headlines warned of the potential for double-digit price depreciation and suggested that buyer demand could drop like a rock. There was even sentiment that homeownership could lose its coveted status as a major component of the American Dream.
Now that the first quarter numbers are in, we can begin to decipher the actual that impact tax reform has had on the real estate market.

1. Has tax reform killed off home buyer demand? The answer is “NO.”

According to the Showing Time Index which “tracks the average number of buyer showings on active residential properties on a monthly basis” and is a “highly reliable leading indicator of current and future demand trends,” buyer demand has increased each month over the last three months and is HIGHER than it was for the same months last year. Buyer demand is not down. It is up.

2. Have the tax changes affected America’s belief in real estate as a long-term investment? The answer is “NO.”

Two weeks ago, Gallup released its annual survey which asks Americans which asset they believed to be the best long-term investment. The survey revealed:

“More Americans name real estate over several other vehicles for growing wealth as the best long-term investment for the fifth year in a row. Just over a third cite real estate for this, while roughly a quarter name stocks or mutual funds.”

The survey also showed that the percentage of Americans who believe real estate is the best long-term investment was unchanged from a year ago.

3. Has the homeownership rate been negatively impacted by the tax changes? The answer is “NO.”

Not only did the homeownership rate not crash, it increased when compared to the first quarter of last year according to data released by the Census Bureau.
In her latest “Z Report,” Ivy Zelman explains that tax reform didn’t hurt the homeownership rate, but instead, enhanced it:

“We have been of the opinion that homeownership is most highly correlated with income and the net effect of tax reform would be a positive, rather than negative catalyst for the homeownership rate. While still in the early innings of tax changes, this has proven to be the case.”

4. Has the upper-end market been crushed by new State and Local Taxes (SALT) limitations? The answer is “NO.”

In the National Association of Realtors latest Existing Home Sales Report it was revealed that:

• Sales between $500,000 and $750,000 were up 4.5% year-over-year
• Sales between $750,000 and $1M were up 15.1% year-over-year
• Sales over $1M were up 17.3% year-over-year

5. Will the reforms in the tax code cause home prices to tumble over the next twelve months? The answer is “NO.”

According to CoreLogic’s latest Home Price Insights Report, home prices will appreciate in each of the 50 states over the next twelve months. Appreciation is projected to be anywhere from 1.9% to 10.3% with the national average being 4.7%.

Bottom Line

The doomsday scenarios that some predicted based on tax reform fears seem to have already blown over based on the early housing industry numbers being reported.

Helpful tips for inexperienced homebuyers to consider when purchasing a home that needs work

Consider these tips to help your offer get accepted

Home Inspections: What to Expect

So you made an offer, it was accepted, and now your next task is to have the home inspected prior to closing. Oftentimes, agents make your offer contingent on a clean home inspection.

This contingency allows you to renegotiate the price you paid for the home, ask the sellers to cover repairs, or even, in some cases, walk away. Your agent can advise you on the best course of action once the report is filed.

How to Choose an Inspector

Your agent will most likely have a short list of inspectors that they have worked with in the past that they can recommend to you. HGTV recommends that you consider the following 5 areas when choosing the right home inspector for you:

1. Qualifications – find out what’s included in your inspection and if the age or location of your home may warrant specific certifications or specialties.
2. Sample Reports – ask for a sample inspection report so you can review how thoroughly they will be inspecting your dream home. The more detailed the report, the better in most cases.
3. References – do your homework – ask for phone numbers and names of past clients who you can call to ask about their experiences.
4. Memberships – Not all inspectors belong to a national or state association of home inspectors, and membership in one of these groups should not be the only way to evaluate your choice. Membership in one of these organizations often means that continued training and education are provided.
5. Errors & Omission Insurance – Find out what the liability of the inspector or inspection company is once the inspection is over. The inspector is only human after all, and it is possible that they might miss something they should have seen.

Ask your inspector if it’s okay for you to tag along during the inspection, that way they can point out anything that should be addressed or fixed.

Don’t be surprised to see your inspector climbing on the roof or crawling around in the attic and on the floors. The job of the inspector is to protect your investment and find any issues with the home, including but not limited to: the roof, plumbing, electrical components, appliances, heating & air conditioning systems, ventilation, windows, the fireplace and chimney, the foundation, and so much more!

Bottom Line

They say ‘ignorance is bliss,’ but not when investing your hard-earned money into a home of your own. Work with a professional who you can trust to give you the most information possible about your new home so that you can make the most educated decision about your purchase.

Helpful tips on how to protect your home from burglary

With a home burglary occurring every 15 seconds in the U.S., it’s wise to be protected in case your residence falls victim to theft.

Common-sense home theft prevention tips

• Store lock boxes or safes in a hidden area of the house. The basement or lowest level is recommended to reduce the risk of heat damage from a fire.
• Keep all personal information (passports, financial statements, etc.) in a locked, fire proof safe or a safety deposit box.
• Close curtains or blinds to prevent thieves from taking inventory of your personal belongings and seeing the home's layout.
• Store ladders, tools and any other outside objects that can be used to assist in home entry in a locked shed or garage.
• Keep garage doors closed and locked. If the garage doors have windows, put the garage door release cord away from those windows.
• Replace worn keypad entry devices. After extensive use, the combination of numbers and letters could be visible, providing criminals with information that can be used to gain access to your home.
• Change the home's entry device access code periodically to prevent wear.
• Make sure the home’s address is visible for police, firemen and paramedics for easy identification of the home.
• Don’t post the family name on the mailbox or on the house.
• Don’t talk about vacation plans in public areas, such as the beauty shop, shopping mall, car rental office - or even on social media.
• Secure a wireless network at home. Computer access could allow cyber criminals easy access to confidential personal information.
• Before placing anything in the garbage, do the following:
  • Shred all papers.
  • Destroy old computer hard drives.
  • Break down all boxes for high value equipment. Brand names on boxes alert thieves to items inside the house.

5 ways to help protect your home from thieves

• Home security system – Deter thieves with noise or an automatic call to the police.
• Proper outside lighting – Thieves may choose to bypass a well-lit home.
• Strong exterior doors – Solid wood or metal provides stronger protection against break-ins.
• Block windows for the basement or locked window well covers – Use these to keep thieves from seeing or entering your basement.
• Locks for pet doors – Make sure your pet door isn’t a point of entry for a thief.

Home burglary statistics and cost

• A home burglary occurs approximately every 15 seconds in the United States.
• On average, a home burglary results in a dollar loss of about $1,600.
• About 30% of all burglaries are classified as "unlawful entry," meaning the burglar was able to gain entry without using force – often through an unlocked door or window.
• Nearly 66% of all burglaries are residential, and of those, 62% occur during the daytime, between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., when no one is likely to be at home.
• Only 13% of reported burglaries are solved by the police.
• About 30% of private homes have security systems. Homes without security systems are two to three times more likely to be broken into.

6 Lessons That Home Sellers Can Learn from Star Wars

1. First Impressions are Important

Obi-Wan: [in reference to the Death Star] “That’s no moon. It’s a space station.”

Han Solo: “It’s too big to be a space station.”

Luke: “I have a very bad feeling about this.”

What first impression is your home giving? Did you know it only takes 15 seconds for a buyer to form an opinion of your home? That’s pretty much the walk from their car to your front door. That says a lot about curb appeal!

So, is your curb appeal saying “well maintained”, “greatness lies inside”, or “we blow up entire planets for a living”? If it’s the latter, we have some talking to do. For tips on preparing your home for sale, check out our Seller Guide.

2. Let the Professionals Do the Work

Luke Skywalker: [on first seeing the Millenium Falcon] What a piece of junk!

Han Solo: She’ll make point five past lightspeed. She may not look like much, but she’s got it where it counts, kid. I’ve made a lot of special modifications myself.

Han Solo won the Millennium Falcon from Lando Calrissian in a bet during the Cloud City Sabacc Tournament. Afterwards, he started adding his own enhancements to the ship. The jammer that Solo installed was so powerful that the first time the unit was tested, it disrupted the information relays inside the Falcon itself just as an Imperial ship was launching. Luckily, it made the Falcon shut down making it unnoticeable to the Imperial ship. This was just one instance when Solo’s “special modifications” put him in a bind.

If you’re a handy person and have done a lot of the work around your home to keep it maintained, that’s great! Just know that anything done without a permit when one was required could get you in trouble with the county, the extent of which fully depends on the circumstances. Also, any repairs requested during the Due Diligence Period should be done by a professional. This isn’t just for the buyer’s peace of mind, but to cover you, as well. You don’t want to be held liable for repairs that were not done correctly. If the professional makes the mistake, they are the ones who have insurance and will have to correct it.

3. Being Caught Off-Guard Could Cost You a Hand and a…

On Cloud City, Luke Skywalker is caught off-guard by a trap set by Darth Vader. He enters into the epic duel that will eventually lead to the loss of his hand and the revelation that Vader is his father. It isn’t the news about his father that leads him to lose his hand, but rather his belief that he knows all he needs to in order to defeat Vader when, in fact, Vader is holding back revealing the extent of his abilities the whole time.

As a home seller, it’s important you aren’t caught off-guard by any “traps” set by your home…figuratively speaking, of course. You may have made it a priority to maintain your home’s condition throughout the time you owned it, but you just never know when something may break. Ordering a home warranty when you list the property will help to alleviate the costs of repairs for yourself and the buyers. 2-10 Home Warranty will cover your home without any upfront payments as long as your home is listed. If something breaks, rather than paying hundreds or thousands of dollars for the repairs, you pay a small deductible. This is covered in more detail in their brochure.

4. Don’t Let Your Emotions Rule You or You May End Up Going to the Dark Side

Chancellor Palpatine convinced Anakin Skywalker to give in to the dark side of the force by telling him about a Sith Lord who could stop people from dying. This is exactly what he wanted to hear – that it could help him save his wife, Amidala, from dying, as he had seen in his visions. Instead, his very act of giving into the dark side led to the death of his wife in a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Now, we’re not saying you’re going to become an evil Sith Lord, but we highly suggest you don’t believe everything you’re told. Some agents will tell you exactly what you want to hear in order to get you to list your home with them, but when it comes time to produce results, you may find there aren’t many. So, make sure you’re asking the right questions and requesting testimonials before you hire anyone. A good agent might not tell you what you want to hear, but they’ll tell you the truth.

By the way, the original headline for this section was “Do Your Research or You May End Up Kissing Your Sister”. Yeah, not quite the same effect.

5. Do or Do Not, There is No Try

During his training of Luke in The Empire Strikes Back, Yoda provides one of the most famous quotes from the Star Wars Trilogy – “Do or do not. There is no try.” His intent is to teach Luke to commit himself completely to his training. “Trying” is committing to an excuse before he fails or succeeds. He either raises his ship into the air or he doesn’t.

When you list your home for sale, you need to fully commit to it. Sellers that don’t want to take the time to work on the presentation of their home or frequently decline showings will not see the offers that other comparable homes do. If your home doesn’t look maintained, buyers will undervalue it. If you often decline showings, not only will you possibly be turning away your buyer, but Realtors will deem you difficult to work with and may choose not to add you to their clients’ list of homes. Then, your home will sit on the market for months and that also can hurt the sale of your home, because Realtors and buyers will see the history of your home, question the reasons for it not selling, and probably avoid it, even if you take it off the market for a few weeks. You truly need to give it your all from the first day of listing or you might as well not list.

We know the potential selling price is a big driving force for homeowners. If you aren’t sure what other homes are selling for in your neighborhood, you can find out on our home values website (it’s automated and free) or you can call us and we’ll do a Comparative Market Analysis, which is your most accurate choice.

6. You Must Unlearn What You Have Learned

Yoda is chock-full of great wisdom. If you watched the clip above, you heard Yoda say, “You must unlearn what you have learned.” This is another quote from Luke’s training on Dagobah in The Empire Strikes Back. At this point, Yoda is telling Luke that he needs to relearn his way of thinking. Of course, that’s easier said than done.

If you’ve sold a home in the past (over 2-3 years ago) or are taking advice from a friend or family member who has, one might say you need to unlearn what you have learned, because there have been so many changes. New laws, new technology, and new buyer habits have made selling a home a whole new ball game. There was a time when selling a house only required a 4-6 page contract. A basic contract today is 16 pages or more (even oil rights are covered), and only increases depending on the age of your home and the current state of your finances (if you need to short sale it). Then, add in the fact that 90% of buyers start their home search online and you quickly realize that marketing the home is no longer just placing an ad in the local newspaper or holding an open house.

When sellers list with us, we walk them through the whole process from signing the paperwork to marketing.

SOURCE: https://thecameronteam.net/6-lessons-that-home-sellers-can-learn-from-star-wars/

MAY the Fourth Be With You!

The "Force" is strong in this room! May the Fourth be with You! When sellers list with us, we walk them through the whole process from signing the paperwork to marketing. If you’re thinking of selling your #Atlanta area home and would like to know more about how we can help you get it sold, give us a call at 404.918.3772 or send us a message.

4 Reasons Why Today's Housing Market is NOT 2006 All Over Again

With home prices rising again this year, some are concerned that we may be repeating the 2006 housing bubble that caused families so much pain when it collapsed. Today’s market is quite different than the bubble market of twelve years ago. There are four key metrics that explain why:

1. Home Prices
2. Mortgage Standards
3. Mortgage Debt
4. Housing Affordability

1. HOME PRICES

There is no doubt that home prices have reached 2006 levels in many markets across the country. However, after more than a decade, home prices should be much higher based on inflation alone.
Frank Nothaft is the Chief Economist for CoreLogic (which compiles some of the best data on past, current, and future home prices). Nothaft recently explained:

“Even though CoreLogic’s national home price index got to the same level it was at the prior peak in April of 2006, once you account for inflation over the ensuing 11.5 years, values are still about 18% below where they were.” (emphasis added)

2. MORTGAGE STANDARDS

Some are concerned that banks are once again easing lending standards to a level similar to the one that helped create the last housing bubble. However, there is proof that today’s standards are nowhere near as lenient as they were leading up to the crash.
The Urban Institute’s Housing Finance Policy Center issues a Housing Credit Availability Index (HCAI). According to the Urban Institute:

“The HCAI measures the percentage of home purchase loans that are likely to default—that is, go unpaid for more than 90 days past their due date. A lower HCAI indicates that lenders are unwilling to tolerate defaults and are imposing tighter lending standards, making it harder to get a loan. A higher HCAI indicates that lenders are willing to tolerate defaults and are taking more risks, making it easier to get a loan.”

The graph below reveals that standards today are much tighter on a borrower’s credit situation and have all but eliminated the riskiest loan products.

3. MORTGAGE DEBT

Back in 2006, many homeowners mistakenly used their homes as ATMs by withdrawing their equity and spending it with no concern for the ramifications. They overloaded themselves with mortgage debt that they couldn’t (or wouldn’t) repay when prices crashed. That is not occurring today.
The best indicator of mortgage debt is the Federal Reserve Board’s household Debt Service Ratio for mortgages, which calculates mortgage debt as a percentage of disposable personal income.
At the height of the bubble market a decade ago, the ratio stood at 7.21%. That meant over 7% of disposable personal income was being spent on mortgage payments. Today, the ratio stands at 4.48% – the lowest level in 38 years!

4. HOUSING AFFORDABILITY

With both house prices and mortgage rates on the rise, there is concern that many buyers may no longer be able to afford a home. However, when we look at the Housing Affordability Index released by the National Association of Realtors, homes are more affordable now than at any other time since 1985 (except for when prices crashed after the bubble popped in 2008).

Bottom Line

After using four key housing metrics to compare today to 2006, we can see that the current market is not anything like the bubble market.

WARNING! It will soon be illegal to hold your phone while driving in Georgia - http://2wsb.tv/2w7P7pe 

Decatur Arts Festival 2018

May is arts month in Decatur! A full spectrum of FREE events leading up to the Decatur Arts Festival on Memorial Day Weekend. See 'em all at

http://decaturartsfestival.com .

#decaturartsfestival #lanternparade #art #music

5 Reasons to Hire A Real Estate Professional

Hiring a real estate professional to guide you through the process of buying a home or selling your house can be one of the best decisions you make! They are there for you to help with paperwork, understanding the process, negotiations, and helping you with pricing (both when making an offer or setting the right price for your home).

How Much Has Your Home Increased in Value Over the Last Year?

Home values have risen dramatically over the last twelve months. In CoreLogic’s most recent Home Price Index Report, they revealed that national home prices have increased by 6.7% year-over-year.
CoreLogic broke down appreciation even further into four price ranges, giving us a more detailed view than if we had simply looked at the year-over-year increases in national median home price.
The chart below shows the four price ranges from the report, as well as each one’s year-over-year growth from February 2017 to February 2018 (the latest data available).

It is important to pay attention to how prices are changing in your local market. The location of your home is not the only factor that determines how much your home has appreciated over the course of the last year.

Lower-priced homes have appreciated at greater rates than homes at the upper ends of the spectrum due to demand from first-time home buyers and baby boomers looking to downsize.

Bottom Line

If you are planning to list your home for sale in today’s market, find a local agent who can explain exactly what’s going on in your area and your price range.