Mortgage Rates Expected to Drop

For credit worthy buyers, there's more good news if you are planning on purchasing a new home- according to the Wall Street Journal, interest rates are expected to drop again. There may not be a better time to buy with high inventories, arresting price increases and very attractive interest rates in the horrizon. If you have been fence-sitting on buying a house, will a lower interest rate entice you to purchase a home?

/http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123783885610917083.html

Bad News/Good News

Here are a couple articles from USA today- one with a US map of the mortgage crisis hot spots. Good news- Elko County remains in the lowest catagory for foreclosures inspite of being in the vacinity of areas with high rates . A nice article follows regarding the bright side of human nature noting increased incidents of kindness and charity in these times of ecconmic tribulation.

Has anyone reached out to you in times of difficulty or have you been in a position to lend support of some sort to others who are facing tough times? Do you worry about our local ecconmic conditions and if so, has it affected your spending?


http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/2009-03-05-foreclosure_N.htm#uslPageReturn


http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-03-09-gooddeeds_N.htm

Obama Proposal For Foreclosure Prevention

It will be interesting to see if this passes and if so, how it impacts those struggling to pay their mortgage.


http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/markets/obamas-foreclosure-prevention-plan-faces-hurdles/

3 Magic Words To Forestall Foreclosure

ABC News has a story on a way to forestall forclosure. Check out the method below...what do you think of it? Would you use it if you were being foreclosed on?

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=6945801

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=6897985

Approved Stimulus Package Tax Credit for 1st Time Home Buyers

The new stimulus package has been passed and the proposed tax credit incentives were reduced down to $8,000. The link below gives the complete details for qualification of the tax credit.

http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/2009/


Here is the information in a chart form:

http://email.c21.com/imgs/obboi/FirstTimeHomebuyer_Consumer_Guide.html

Want IRS details? See below:

http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=206291,00.html

Here is the link to see the new IRS form that will be used for claiming the tax credit

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f5405.pdf

It appears to be quite straight forward- not too much extra paper work..can you believe that?

Do you think the tax credit will make a difference, both for potential home buyers, as well as for the US economy? If you were/are buying your first home, would this incentive be enough to nudge you into home ownership?

USDA Rural Development- Mortgage Rates Decrease

The following information came from the Elko Independent, Feb. 10th 2009 issue:

According to Kay Vernatter, the NV director for UDSA, interest rates have been reduced to 4.375% (down from 5.375) for their Direct Loan Program.

The Section 502 direct loan program is available to eligible very-low and low income households to purchase homes in the certain rural areas, of which Elko County is part of. Financing for this program can provide up to 100% loan to value and no down payment is required. Applicants must have an acceptable credit history and debt to income ratios with eligibility based on household size and income.

To view eligibility requirements and income limits, visit:

http://eligibility.sc.egov.usda.gov/eligibility/welcomeAction.do

Tax Tips

This link gives some good information on items that can lower your tax liability, several of which involve buying a home. Put it on your "favorites" list on your computer to help you in your financial planning.


http://finance.yahoo.com/news/10-new-tax-laws-you-need-to-brn-14221646.html



I understand that the senate has approved an amendment for the proposed economic stimulus bill to increase the tax credit up to $15,000 for ALL home buyers. I will post more as info becomes available.

http://www.usnews.com/blogs/the-home-front/2009/02/05/senate-adds-15000-home-buying-tax-credit-to-stimulus-bill.html



Here is the current tax credit info & benefits. The current credit is only for 1st time home buyers and the cap is for $7,500, so you can see that the one they are working on now will increase the benefits significantly and offer them to a greater number of home buyers.

http://taxes.about.com/od/deductionscredits/qt/homebuyercredit.htm