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Why Your Kitchen Features Matter

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Why Your Kitchen Features MatterIf you are interested in purchasing a house in the near future, you need to pay close attention to your kitchen. The kitchen is considered to be the heart of the home, and you need to make sure the kitchen is laid out appropriately. You need the kitchen to match your expectations, but you also need to pick a kitchen that will help you maximize the value of your home if you decide to sell it down the road. What are a few of the most important examples of kitchen features you need to pay attention to?

The Cabinets 

Always take a close look at the cabinets. Look at the inside of the cabinets for signs of water damage, and make sure the cabinets are aligned appropriately. If the cabinet doors do not open and close properly, it can be a significant problem when you are trying to cook in the kitchen. Cabinets are often the most expensive part of a kitchen remodel. 

The Backsplash

You should also pay close attention to the backsplash. You need the backsplash to completely cover the area between the counters and the cabinets. You do not want the backsplash to be too short. Otherwise, you expose the wall to additional stress when you are cooking. 

The Kitchen Island

A kitchen island is often the gold standard when it comes to a kitchen. This additional feature can significantly increase the value of your home, but you need to make sure the island is in the right location. For example, you need the island to be close enough to the workspaces in your kitchen, such as the stove and refrigerator. You also want it to be centered in the kitchen itself.

Think About These Key Kitchen Features

These are just a few of the most important examples of kitchen features that you need to think about when you are interested in purchasing a house. Remember that these features need to match your needs, but you also need to think about how much money you can get for the house if you sell it down the road. Pay close attention to these kitchen features when you are looking for a new house.

 

What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – February 6, 2023

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What's Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week - February 6, 2023Last week’s economic reporting included readings on home price growth from S&P Case-Shiller and the Federal Housing Finance Administration. Monthly reports on job growth and unemployment were released by the federal government and ADP. Weekly readings on mortgage rates and jobless claims were also released.

S&P Case-Shiller HPI: Home Prices Drop in November

S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indices revealed that U.S. home prices fell for the fifth consecutive month in November. The National Home Price Index fell by -3.1 percent year over year in November as compared to a positive reading of 2.8 percent home price growth in October. Miami, Florida, Tampa, Florida, and Atlanta, Georgia held the top three places in the 20-City Home Price Index. Detroit, Michigan was the only city to post a positive reading for home price growth in November’s 20-City Home Price Index.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, reported that prices of homes owned or financed by the two government-sponsored enterprises fell by 0.10 percent in November. Analysts expect that home prices will continue to fall in the coming months.

Mortgage Rates and Jobless Claims

Average fixed mortgage rates fell last week. Freddie Mac reported that the rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell by four basis points to 6.09 percent. Rates for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages fell by three basis points to 5.14 percent.

183,000 first-time jobless claims were filed as compared to the expected reading of 195,000 new jobless claims and the previous week’s reading of 186,000 first-time jobless claims filed. 1.66 million continuing jobless claims were filed as compared to the previous week’s reading of 1.67 million ongoing jobless claims filed.

Public and Private Sector Job Growth

The federal government’s Non-Farm payrolls report for January posted 517,000 jobs added as compared to the expected reading of 187,000 jobs added and December’s reading of 260,000 jobs added.ADP reported 106,000 private-sector jobs added in January as compared to expectations of 190,000 jobs added and December’s reading of 253,000 private-sector jobs added.

The national unemployment rate for January was 3.4 percent; analysts expected an unemployment rate of 3.6 percent and December’s unemployment rate was 3.5 percent. 

What’s Ahead

This week’s scheduled economic news includes readings on consumer sentiment, inflation, and weekly readings on mortgage rates and jobless claims.

3 Tips To Consider When Buying A Home With An FHA Mortgage

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Tips to Sidestep Common FHA Loan Problems

FHA loans are becoming increasingly popular these days as potential homeowners may not able to qualify as easily for conventional mortgages.

The FHA insures some higher-risk loans, in turn allowing borrowers with low down payments and less than perfect credit to purchase homes and bolster the housing market.

However, while getting through the loan process with an FHA mortgage loan is not necessarily more difficult than with a conventional or conforming loan, there are some issues that you will want to be aware of.

Property Condition

You can’t buy just any property with a FHA loan, or any other loan for that matter. All lenders are concerned with the condition of a property, especially as it relates to livability and safety. 

Major deficiencies in a home will almost always be noted when the home is seen by the FHA appraiser. The appraiser must deem it to be livable, without any conditions that could jeopardize health or safety. 

Sometimes you can get the seller to make the needed repairs to pass the lender requirements. In other cases, you may want go an alternate route. The FHA 203K streamline loan allows you to borrow up to $35,000 for home repairs to bring the house up to code.

Low Appraisal

The primary role of the appraiser is to estimate it’s market value. These estimates are based on the property’s features and a comparison to similar properties that have sold recently. If the appraisal is low, the loan funding could fall through because the FHA underwriting guidelines (along with almost all conventional guidelines) will not let you borrow more than the home’s appraised value. You can, however, add to the amount you bring in to closing if you prefer to compensate for a low appraised value.

Rather than trying to scrape together a bigger down payment, you may want to take the information to the seller to renegotiate the purchase price. The seller will likely recognize that other buyers would be in the same boat, leading the seller to agree to a lower purchase price.

High Debt-to-Income Ratio

Debt to income ratios are a concern with virtually every type of mortgage loan on the market today. Your FHA loan may encounter a snag in the underwriting process if your total debt payments, including your new mortgage, would be a high percentage of your income.

FHA has an automated underwriting program called TOTAL Scorecard which uses an algorithm to determine a borrower’s qualification. The process is quick, and often you can make up for a high debt-to-income ratio with other compensating factors, like a larger down payment or a cash reserve of several months of mortgage payments.

If you have any questions regarding FHA loans or any other home financing questions, please give us a call!

S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indices: Home Prices Fall In November

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S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indices: Home Prices Fall In NovemberU.S. home prices continued to fall in November according to S&P Case-Shiller’s month-to-month national and 20-city home price indices, but home price growth rates remained in positive territory year-over-year. The national home price index posted a  7.70 percent year-over-year home price growth rate as of November 2022.

20-city home price index posts 5th consecutive month-to-month decrease in November

The S&P Case-Shiller 20-city home price index for November reported that the top three cities for home price growth were Miami, Florida with a year-over-year home price growth rate of 18.4 percent; Tampa, Florida followed with a  year-over-year home price growth rate of 16.9 percent. Atlanta Georgia reported a  12.7 percent growth rate for year-over-year home prices.

Home prices tracked in the 20-city home price index rose at a 6.8 percent year-over-year- pace in November as compared to year-over-year home price growth of 8.6 percent posted in October 2022. 19 of 20 cities included in the S&P Case-Shiller  20-city home price index reported lower home prices in November; only Detroit Michigan reported a gain in month-to-month home price growth.

FHFA: prices drop for homes owned or financed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

In related news, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees government-sponsored mortgage enterprises  Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, reported that home prices for homes financed or owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac dropped by 0.10 percent month-to-month and rose by 8.2 percent year-over-year.

Nataliya Polkovnichenko, Ph.D. and Supervisory Economist in the FHFA’s Division of Research and Statistics, said:  “ U.S. house prices were largely unchanged in the last four months and remained near the peak levels reached over the summer of 2022. While higher mortgage rates have suppressed demand for homes, low inventories of houses for sale have helped maintain relatively flat house prices.”

Changes in seasonally adjusted home price changes ranged across the nine Census Divisions from -1.1 percent in the Pacific Division to +0.5 percent in the West North Central Division.  Year-over-year home price gains ranged from  +2.4 percent in the Pacific Division to +12.0 percent in the South Atlantic Division.”

Data included in the FHFA House Price Index are gathered from reports on single-family home prices ranging from the 1970s to the present and include single-family home transactions in all 50 states and more than 400 U.S. cities.

Is It Worth It to Put More Than 20 Percent Down?

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Down Payments 101: Is It Worth It to Put More Than 20 Percent Down?Are you thinking of buying a new home this spring or summer? If so, you’re not alone. Many thousands of individuals and families alike will become homeowners this year. Whether you’re a first-time buyer or a seasoned veteran of the housing market, you probably know there are significant choices to make. One of the big decisions you will have to ponder is how much you want to invest in your down payment.

With that in mind, let’s try to answer the question of whether or not it is worth it to put more than 20 percent of the home’s price in your down payment.

Ask Yourself: How Liquid Are You?

Before you can decide how much to put down, you first need to determine how liquid your finances are. That is, how much cash do you have access to? For example, if you are considering a $300,000 home, a 20 percent down payment is $60,000. If you have more than $60,000, fantastic. However, if you have less than that, you might have to do a bit of work to save up the remainder.

Even if you do have enough available cash now, you won’t have access to it once you take possession of the home. It is important to leave yourself with some cash in case of emergencies or for other uses.

Higher Down Payment, Lower Interest Rate

If you do choose to invest more than 20 percent in your down payment, it’s possible that you will gain access to a lower interest rate for your mortgage. Many lenders look favorably on homebuyers that are investing more of their own money and borrowing less. Be sure to check with your mortgage advisor to find out if you qualify for lower rates.

Lower Monthly Payments Await

Finally, choosing a down payment higher than 20 percent means that you will have lower monthly mortgage payments in the future. You are borrowing less so you will owe less. This can provide a nice boost to your monthly budget moving forward as you will have more free cash flow each month.

Try to keep in mind that there is no perfect answer to the question of how big your down payment should be. Choosing the best course of action means taking a good, long look at your current financial situation and deciding what your goals are. When you’re ready to discuss buying a new home contact us. Our professional mortgage team is happy to share our experience!