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The deadline to take advantage of the first time home buyer tax credit is approaching quickly. In my previous post I mentioned that the NAR (National Association of Realtors) was lobbying Congress to extend the program. As it stands any purchase transaction must close by the 30th of November to take advantage of the tax credit.
In the past week U.S. Senate leaders have moved closer to extending and amending the current tax credit. While the bill is still being worked on the current state of the bill that was headlined in Bloomberg news would be slightly lower than the present $8,000 tax credit in place. It would be reduced to $7,290 and would be in effect for home purchases that are under contract prior to April 30th and homebuyers would have an additional sixty days to close.
The income eligibility would remain the same $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 for couples. The current version of the bill would also allow for step-up buyers and not just first time homebuyers.
In the past several months sales of existing homes have increased mainly in fact to the expiration of the first time home buyer tax credit. LoanClassroom is committed to keeping you up to date on this matter as it materializes.
Contrary to what you may have been accustomed to before and what you knew was the process before is no longer the case today. If you have not applied for a mortgage in the past 3-6 months things have changed.
How things work now are more of a staggered process. Take for example a refinance. After you have submitted your information and income etc. to your bank or lender and completed all the necessary paperwork you have a three day wait time to go over all the initial disclosures. During that three day time no other work can be done also no fees except for a credit report can be collected if your bank or lender charge for that.
After that three day period your bank or lender can now order your appraisal. Once the appraisal is back you have three days to review your appraisal. Assuming the rest of your loan is already all set once the three day period is up to review the appraisal you can schedule a closing.
If we are talking about a real estate purchase the same time frames and waiting periods hold true. So basically things these days are designed so that you fully understand the process. It also means that things these days are taking a bit longer than they used to. At my company Eversley Capital Mortgage LLC in Norwalk, CT depending on the loan and the investor we use time frames are still at about a three week turn time from start to finish. For some types of loans that time frame is closer to four weeks but keep in mind there is a total of six business days right from the start where nothing is basically getting done so all in all three to four weeks in my opinion is better than most.
It is that time of the year in Connecticut and New England, the time of the year where the first couple of cold snaps should have you thinking about winterizing your home. I can assure you that tackling this job now while there are still 50-60 degree days is better than it being in the 20’s or 30’s and downright cold outside. Here is a useful checklist of things to consider and look at before winter hits.
*Furnace- call the HVAC tech or oil-company that you use and have it checked
* Fireplace- if you have a wood burning fireplace now is the time to clean and inspect the chimney and flue.
* Doors and Windows- taking out the screens and putting in the storm windows if you have them is a good idea. Also checking for any drafts that can be fixed before it is really cold
* Basement- if you have a basement and it has window wells installing plastic shields on them might be a good idea at this time
* Vacation- if you are heading south for some sun when you leave the house make sure the heat is set to a minimum constant temperature of at least 54 degrees. You would hate to come home from a vacation to burst pipes.
* Smoke/Carbon Monoxide Detectors- need to be checked and the batteries replaced. Your furnace produces carbon monoxide so having these detectors ready and working is important
*Garden Tools- drain and store the hoses. Also any gardening tools should come in for the winter.
*Yard Tools- draining the gas from your lawnmower or tractor is important. You may also want to get them serviced now for the spring season.
*Snow removal- buying salt or ice melt now ahead of any storms will leave you prepared. How many of us forget and then look for it when the first storm comes and every store is sold out.
As if the homeowners in the lovely state of Florida did not have enough to be worried about with the housing and mortgage markets they can add whether or not their home was built using Chinese dry wall to the list of problems.
The dry wall in question was imported during a four year span from 2004-2008. There was enough imported to the US to build tens of thousands of homes with Florida getting the lion share of the material. So there is a good chance if you have a new home built within that time frame your home may contain Chinese dry wall.
The problem is that the dry wall emits sulfuric fumes and corrodes pipes. The worst part is insurance companies not only will not accept claims if your home is found to have Chinese dry wall but they are dropping and opting not to re-insure homeowners.
The state of Florida is not alone. The majority of the dry wall was used in the South. The government is currently investigating the problem and there may be some sort of relief program established. LoanClassroom will update any links or news that becomes of this story.
The last time I talked on this topic was the first week of August and up until then and including July of this year we had 69 banks that had been seized. That total now stands at 98. Nearly 30 banks in two months have been shuttered.
The talk now is the need to address raising capital for the FDIC. Earlier this month the FDIC had approved to turn to the banks themselves to pre-pay their dues into the fund to raise capital. The next elephant about to enter the room is the commercial mortgage market. That will weigh heavily on the regional banks and could further stress an already stressed out FDIC insurance fund.
Below is the list of recent failures since my last article:
70) First State Bank, Sarasota, FL Cost to the FDIC $116 million
71) Community National Bank of Sarasota County, Venice, FL Cost to the FDIC $24 million
72) Community First Bank, Prineville, OR Cost to the FDIC $45 million
73) Dwelling House Savings and Loan Association, Pittsburgh, PA Cost to the FDIC $6.8 million
74) Colonial Bank, Montgomery AL Cost to the FDIC $2.8 billion
75) Union Bank, National Association, Gilbert, AZ Cost to the FDIC $61 million
76) Community Bank of Arizona, Phoenix, AZ Cost to the FDIC $23.5 million
77) Community Bank of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV Cost to the FDIC $781.5 million
78) ebank, Atlanta, GA Cost to the FDIC $63 million
79) First Coweta Bank, Newnan, GA Cost to the FDIC $48 million
80) CapitalSouth Bank, Birmingham, AL Cost to the FDIC $151 million
81) Guaranty Bank, Austin, TX Cost to the FDIC $3 billion
82) Bradford Bank, Baltimore, MD Cost to the FDIC $97 million
83) Mainstreet Bank, Forest Lake, MN Cost to the FDIC $95 million
84) Affinity Bank, Ventura, CA Cost to the FDIC $254 million
85) First Bank of Kansas City, Kansas City, MO Cost to the FDIC $6 million
86) InBank, Oak Forest, IL Cost to the FDIC $66 million
87) Vantus Bank, Sioux City, IA Cost to the FDIC $168 million
88) Platinum Community Bank, Rolling Meadows, IL Cost to the FDIC $114.3 million
89) First State Bank, Flagstaff, AZ Cost to the FDIC $47 million
90) Corus Bank, N.A., Chicago IL Cost to the FDIC $1.7 billion
91) Brickwell Community Bank, Woodbury, MN Cost to the FDIC $22 million
92) Venture Bank, Lacey, WA Cost to the FDIC $298 million
93) Irwin Union Bank, F.S.B., Louisville, KY
94) Irwin Union Bank and Trust Company, Columbus, IN Cost to the FDIC $850 million between both institutions
95) Georgian Bank, Atlanta, GA Cost to the FDIC $892 million
96) Warren Bank, Warren, MI Cost to the FDIC $275 million
97) Jennings State Bank, Spring Grove, MN Cost to the FDIC $11.7 million
98) Southern Colorado National Bank, Pueblo, CO Cost to the FDIC $6.6 million
The title on the shore is a bit misleading when you read about a 12×24 bayside house but after reading the article and seeing the pictures of the home I have to say it was one of the cooler strange homes I have come across. It is no beachfront mansion. It is almost like a floating boat house yet stable and no swells.
In the article a couple on the Jersey shore transformed and old lobster net house into their vacation home. This is worth the read, enjoy.
That is the state of the current job market. The September job report was higher than analysts’ had expected. The consensus was for 175,000 jobs lost and that number came in substantially higher at 263,000.
While the numbers are getting smaller from this time last year there still is no clear picture to any improvement. This time last year we looking at 400,000 and more lost jobs per report and those numbers have come down yet it does not mean things are improving. The un-employment rate set yet another milestone at 9.8 percent.
Employers will shy away at new job hiring if there is no clear economic picture or direction and there is not one. That could ultimately mean the un-employment rate passing the 10 percent threshold and beyond before it gets better.
As of September 5.4 million Americans have been un-employed for six months or more and presently job searchers outnumber job openings at more than 6-1. Construction and manufacturing continue to carry the largest number of job losses.
It is kind of crazy when you think about it. We have a double edged sword here as far as a recovery goes. The economy will not get any better until there is stability in the job market and the job market will not improve until there is clearly a better economic picture. Ultimately it may be a long and slow recovery, one that is longer than most experts want us to think.
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