Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Tuesday, September 26, 2017 10:34:00 AM | Comment on This Post
More Than Half of All Buyers Are Surprised by Closing Costs
According to a survey conducted by ClosingCorp, over half of all homebuyers are surprised by the closing costs required to obtain their mortgage.
After surveying 1,000 first-time and repeat homebuyers, the results revealed that 17% of homebuyers were surprised that closing costs were required at all, while another 35% were stunned by how much higher the fees were than expected.
“Homebuyers reported being most surprised by mortgage insurance, followed by bank fees and points, taxes, title insurance and appraisal fees.”
Bankrate.comgathered closing cost data from lenders in every state and Washington, D.C. in order to share the average costs in each state. The map below was created using the closing costs on a $200,000 mortgage with a 20% down payment.
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Monday, November 07, 2016 12:00:00 PM | Comment on This Post
NAR Reports Show Now Is a Great Time to Sell!
We all realize that the best time to sell anything is when demand is high and the supply of that item is limited. The last two major reports issued by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) revealed information that suggests that now continues to be a great time to sell your house.
The report announced that pending home sales (homes going into contract) are up 2.4% over last year, and have increased year-over-year now for 22 of the last 25 consecutive months.
Lawrence Yun, NAR’s Chief Economist, had this to say:
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Thursday, November 03, 2016 12:27:00 PM | Comment on This Post
Think All Millennials Live in Their Parent's Basement? Think Again!
According to the Census Bureau, millennials have overtaken baby boomers as the largest generation in U.S. History. Millennials, or America's youth born between 1982-2000, now represent more than one quarter of the nation’s population, totaling 83.1 million.
There has been a lot of talk about how, as a generation, millennials have ‘failed to launch’ into adulthood and have delayed moving out of their family’s home. Some experts have even questioned whether or not millennials want to move out.
The great news is that not only do millennials want to move out… they are moving out! The National Association of Realtors (NAR) recently released their 2016 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers in which they revealed that 61% of all first-time homebuyers were millennials in 2015!
The median age of all first-time buyers in 2015 was 31 years old.
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Wednesday, November 02, 2016 9:17:00 AM | Comment on This Post
How Long Do Families Stay in a Home?
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) keeps historic data on many aspects of homeownership. One of the data points that has changed dramatically is the median tenure of a family in a home. As the graph below shows, for over twenty years (1985-2008), the median tenure averaged exactly six years. However, since 2008, that average is almost nine years – an increase of almost 50%.
Why the dramatic increase?
The reasons for this change are plentiful. The top two reasons are:
The fall in home prices during the housing crisis left many homeowners in a negative equity situation (where their home was worth less than the mortgage on the property).
The uncertainty of the economy made some homeowners much more fiscally conservative about making a move.
However, with home prices rising dramatically over the last several years, over 90% of homes with a mortgage are now in a positive...
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Thursday, October 27, 2016 11:37:00 AM | Comment on This Post
Percentage of Homeownership by Decade and by State
There has been a lot of talk about the falling homeownership rate in the United States. In December 2004, the homeownership rate reached an all-time high of 69.4%, while the current rate is 62.9%. When comparing these two figures, there is some room for concern regarding the difference.
However, today we want to shine some light on the issue by:
Showing what historic homeownership rates have looked like over the last 130 years.
Breaking down the current percentages by state.
Historic Homeownership Rates:
Current Homeownership Rates by State:
All of the states that you see in blue on the map above...
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Wednesday, October 26, 2016 11:22:00 AM | Comment on This Post
What to Expect When Home Inspecting
So you made an offer, it was accepted, and now your next task is to have the home inspected prior to closing. More often than not, your agent may have made your offer contingent on a clean home inspection.
This contingency allows you to renegotiate the price 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.Realtor.comsuggests that you consider the following 5 areas when choosing the right home inspector for you:
Qualifications – find out what’s included in your inspection & if the age or location of your home may warrant specific certifications or specialties.
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.
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Wednesday, October 19, 2016 12:34:00 PM | Comment on This Post
Starting to Look for a Home? Know What You WANT vs. What You NEED
In this day and age of being able to shop for anything anywhere, it is really important to know what you’re looking for when you start your home search.
If you’ve been thinking about buying a home of your own for some time now, you’ve probably come up with a list of things that you’d LOVE to have in your new home. Many new homebuyers fantasize about the amenities that they see on television orPinterest, and start looking at the countless homes listed for sale with rose-colored glasses.
Do you really need that farmhouse sink in the kitchen in order to be happy with your home choice? Would a two-car garage be a convenience or a necessity? Could the man cave of your dreams be a future renovation project instead of a make or break now?
The first step in your home buying process should be to get pre-approved for your mortgage. This allows you to know your budget before you fall in love with a home that is way outside of it.
The next step is to list all the features of a home that you would like, and to qualify them as follows:
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Friday, October 14, 2016 11:41:00 AM | Comment on This Post
Do You Know the Cost of Renting vs. Buying?
Some Highlights:
Historically, the choice between renting or buying a home has been a close decision.
Looking at the percentage of income needed to rent a median priced home today (30%) vs. the percentage needed to buy a median priced home (15%), the choice becomes obvious.
Every market is different. Before you renew your lease again, find out if you could use your housing costs to own a home of your own!
Louisville Real Estate follows this national trend - rent will continue to climb each year- your can find well priced homes here and stop renting
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Wednesday, October 12, 2016 11:04:00 AM | Comment on This Post
The Role Access Plays in Getting Your House SOLD!
So you’ve decided to sell your house. You’ve hired a real estate professional to help you with the entire process and they have asked you what level of access you want to provide to potential buyers.
There are four elements to a quality listing. At the top of the list is Access, followed by Condition, Financing and Price. There are many levels of access that you could provide to your agent to be able to show your home.
Here are five levels of access that you could give a buyer with a brief description:
Lockbox On the Door – this allows buyers the ability to see the home as soon as they are aware of the listing, or at their convenience.
Providing a Key to the Home – although the buyer’s agent may need to stop by an office to pick up the key, there is little delay in being able to show the home.
Open Access with a Phone Call – the seller allows showing with just a phone call’s notice.
By Appointment Only (example: 48 Hour Notice) – Many out-of-town/state buyers and relocation buyers visit an area they would like to move to and only have the weekend to view homes. They may not be able to plan that far in advance, or may be unable to wait the...
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Monday, October 10, 2016 10:11:00 AM | Comment on This Post
3 Questions to Ask Before Buying Your Dream Home
If you are debating purchasing a home right now, you are probably getting a lot of advice. Though your friends and family will have your best interest at heart, they may not be fully aware of your needs and what is currently happening in the real estate market.
Ask yourself the following 3 questions to help determine if now is actually a good time for you to buy in today’s market.
1. Why am I buying a home in the first place?
This truly is the most important question to answer. Forget the finances for a minute. Why did you even begin to consider purchasing a home? For most, the reason has nothing to do with money.
For example, a recent survey by Braun showed that over 75% of parents say “their child’s education is an important part of the search for a new home.”
This survey supports a study by the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University which revealed that the four major reasons people buy a home have nothing to do with money. They are:
A good place to raise children and for them to get a good education
A place where you and your family feel safe
More space for you and your family
Control of that space
What does owning a home mean to you? What non-financial benefits will you and your family gain from owning a home? The answer to that question should be the biggest reason you decide to purchase or not.
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Friday, October 07, 2016 11:18:00 AM | Comment on This Post
Some Highlights:
The interest rate you secure for your mortgage greatly influences your monthly housing costs.
In the 1980s, 30-year fixed mortgage rates averaged in the high 12s making the monthly principal and interest payment over $2,000.
Interest rates are still at historic lows; this is a great time lock in your housing cost and protect yourself from increasing rents, or refinance your current mortgage.
We have several great lenders to get you pre-approved for a new home
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Thursday, September 01, 2016 11:26:00 AM | Comment on This Post
Home sellers ask Premier Homes Realty everyday what they can do to improve their home for sale. The simple response is always presentation and staging. The one thing we try to explain to the sellers is that the presentation does not always have to be expensive. The pictures here show a before and after of a bathroom at one of our clients homes. The total cost of the updating was less than $200. Home staging and presentation do not have to cost $1000’s of dollars. Do not make any major updates until you talk to us.
As you can see in this picture the bathroom appears dark – the lighting does not give a great presentation and the floor color blends and does notpop. The overall bathroom is in great shape with the clean white pedestal sink. The room just needs a better presentation.
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Wednesday, May 11, 2016 5:58:00 PM | Comment on This Post
This week The Premier Homes Team visited the Verbena Cafe in Norton Commons. Verbena Cafe is a hot breakfast/lunch spot on Meeting St. in the heart of Norton Commons Business District. Verbena is open for Breakfast and Lunch Tuesday-Sunday. For more details the webiste can be found here Verbena Cafe
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Monday, May 02, 2016 4:27:00 PM | Comment on This Post
This week begins Derby in Louisville and there is no better place to visit than the Chow Wagon on the Riverfront. There is live music daily and plenty of food choices- just bring a lot of money.
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Tuesday, April 12, 2016 10:02:00 PM | Comment on This Post
This weeks featured busines is Breakout Louisville- located at 1805 Cargo Ct Jeffersontown Ky 40299. This was an intense experiance for The Premier Homes Team - but we were able to BREAKOUT!
Posted By Timothy Mattingly on Wednesday, February 17, 2016 3:22:00 PM | Comment on This Post
The January market for Louisville continues a several month trend of tightening inventory and increases in average sales prices. Listings in the Louisville market are down over 13% from prior year and prices are up about the same amount. This is really looking like a sellers market- with many more buyers than sellers. When the market transitions to favor sellers- prices increase and a fear of a bubble begins to take shape- much like in 208-2009 when prices exceeded value.
We could also be seeing a tightening of the market due to sellers still holding on to those homes they struggled to keep in 2010 and 2011 when the market crashed and foreclosures and short sales flooded the market. Some of those same home owners are still a bit upside down despite the increase in average sales price since that era saw 18% increases in prices followed by a 20+% decrease. The Louisville market generally lags the national market in price increases and supply but in this current market Louisville is outpacing the nation in price increases.
Where will this lead? If home owners continue to hold onto their homes we will see steady price increases for the homes listed. We will also start to see fewer buyers enter the market and continue to rent (even though rent prices are up double digits as well) increase. Once these buyers settle into the rentals there will be fewer homes sold.
...
![Do You Know the Cost of Renting vs. Buying? [INFOGRAPHIC] | MyKCM](https://s3.amazonaws.com/kcmmedia/2016/10/12105930/20161014-Rent-vs.-Buy-STM-1046x1354.jpg)
![Mortgage Rates by Decade Compared to Today [INFOGRAPHIC] | MyKCM](https://s3.amazonaws.com/kcmmedia/2016/10/04151710/20161007-Mortgage-Rates-STM-1046x785.jpg)
The January market for Louisville continues a several month trend of tightening inventory and increases in average sales prices. Listings in the Louisville market are down over 13% from prior year and prices are up about the same amount. This is really looking like a sellers market- with many more buyers than sellers. When the market transitions to favor sellers- prices increase and a fear of a bubble begins to take shape- much like in 208-2009 when prices exceeded value. 
