| Welcome to eNewsletter |
Welcome to our monthly eNewsletter - coming to you each month with the latest happenings in the Utah Real Estate market.
We are local Real Estate professionals. In this increasingly complex market, it is our duty to keep you informed with current industry issues and market conditions. If you have any real estate needs, call or email us anytime.
Regards,
zoomUTAH.com
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| Insulate Your Home at No Net Cost to You |
zoomUTAH has partnered up with Reliance Homes Inc. to offer all of our members the ThermWise Weatherization Program by Questar Gas. This incredible program allows you to add additional insulation to different areas throughout your home at no net cost to you.
This program will ultimately cost you NO MONEY AT ALL! Questar is offering a rebate at certain amounts depending on where the insulation is put in the home. Other contractors are offering this program at a higher rate than the Questar rebate amount, which in turn costs the homeowners money. zoomUTAH and Reliance Homes are matching the offered Questar rebate so there is no cost that is passed to the homeowner.
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| What's With the New Stimulus Package? |
The Treasury Department has called it the "Making Home Affordable Program". There are two options that you can choose from, depending on your personal situation. Most people who are not late on their payments, who owe up to 5% more than the current value of their home (not including a 2nd mortgage), and can prove their income will probably go for the refinance program. The mortgage modification program could apply to people who are behind as well as to those who are not behind on their mortgage payment. If you have a mortgage payment that's no longer affordable, perhaps because of a significant change in income or expenses, will probably go with the modification program.
Below, you will find a summary of each program along with questions that most people can relate to. If you want to look at a much more detailed breakdown of the two programs, please click on the links at the bottom of the segment. Keep in mind, this just got signed into law. The Servicers that collect your payments, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, other Banks and lending institutions that hold your mortgages are all going to adopt these guidelines at different times throughout the year. Matter of fact, they have until the end of the year to even report that they would like to participate in this program. I suggest you look on your 1st mortgage statement and call the number listed to see if they are prepared to deal with your issue now or later. If your 1st mortgage is held by either Fannie or Freddie, you're in luck. You will be the first to be able to get something done on your behalf. Please read below and get the fine points of this new law.
Refinance Opportunities Now Available to Those Who Lack Sufficient Equity
The Obama Administration unveiled the final details of its "Making Home Affordable Program," which is designed to help up to 9 million American families refinance or modify their loans to a payment that is affordable now and into the future. One of the initiatives in this program is aimed at helping responsible homeowners "refinance" their loans to take advantage of historically low interest rates. Here are some common Questions and Answers about the Refinancing Initiative in the program.
Who is eligible?
You may be eligible if:
- You own and currently occupy a one- to four-unit home.
- Your mortgage is owned or controlled by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
- You are current on your mortgage payments.
- The amount you owe on your first mortgage is about the same or slightly less than the current value of your house.
- And, you have a stable income sufficient to support the new mortgage payments.
Click to Read More on Our Blog...
Modification Opportunities for Those At Risk of Foreclosure
The Obama Administration unveiled the final details of its "Making Home Affordable Program," which is designed to help up to 9 million American families refinance or modify their loans to a payment that is affordable now and into the future. One of the initiatives in this program is aimed at helping struggling homeowners "modify" their loans to avoid foreclosure. Here are some common Questions and Answers about the Modification Initiative in the program.
Who is eligible?
To apply for a Home Affordable Modification, you must:
- Own and currently occupy a one- to four-unit home.
- Have an unpaid principal balance that is equal to or less than $729,750 (for one unit properties).
- Have a loan that was originated before January 1, 2009.
- Have a mortgage payment (including taxes, insurance, and HOA fees) that is more than 31% of your gross (pre-tax) monthly income.
- And, have a mortgage payment that is no longer affordable, perhaps because of a significant change in income or expenses.
If you answered YES to all of these questions, you may be eligible for the Modification Initiative.
Click to Read More on Our Blog...
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| Introducing Zoom Real Estate |
After seven great years with another brokerage, we have decided to open Zoom Real Estate.
Although we just opened our doors in December, this has been in the planning phase for over two years. As I write this letter I'm glancing at my notes that I took when we started to discuss opening our own real estate brokerage. One of the first things that we discussed was "Why do we want to open a brokerage?" The answer is very similar to why we built zoomUTAH.com.
Empower the consumer, build a quality reputation and provide unmatched service to our clients.
How have we empowered the consumer?
- We were the first website in Utah (besides the public MLS site utahrealestate.com) to provide full postal addresses for all listings. This was always the Realtor's "bait and switch" to get buyers to call them to show them the home. We let the cat out of the bag and now most competing sites provide addresses.
- We were the first real estate site in Utah to utilize mapping technology for listings. The accuracy of our map placement even today is the best in the business.
- We provide as much data as we possibly can with each listing. The best research tools available to save you time.
- We allow home sellers to list their home for free on zoomUTAH.com. We even wrote a 6 step guide on how to sell a home on your own.
Why do we do all of this? We are after all Realtors that are trying to solicit buyers and sellers. The answer is simple, credibility! We have always believed that if we show value to the consumer first, they will come to us when they have any real estate needs. Consumers are far more educated with the information available today, and they demand a different type of real estate brokerage to depend on to buy and sell real estate.
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| zoomUTAH helped 711 families buy, sell, or refinance in February. |
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| Recent Market Trends |
Active Listing Inventory
This report shows you how many active listings were on the market at the end of each month. Inventory is slowly getting absorbed which means we are headed for a more stable market.
| Month |
Month End
Listings |
| September |
33,695 |
| October |
33,069 |
| November |
32,241 |
| December |
31,845 |
| January |
30,969 |
| February |
30,816 |
Monthly Sales
This report shows you the last 3 months price per square foot averages on sold homes as well as the average days on market for their respective counties.
| Month |
Avg $ Per Square Ft |
Avg Days on Market |
| Salt Lake County |
| December |
$103 |
77 |
| January |
$102 |
85 |
| February |
$103 |
87 |
| Utah County |
| December |
$88 |
93 |
| January |
$85 |
86 |
| February |
$85 |
86 |
| Davis County |
| December |
$89 |
78 |
| January |
$85 |
96 |
| February |
$87 |
87 |
Home Sales By Quarter
This report shows you the home sales in 2008 by quarter.
| Quarter |
Avg Sold Price |
Total # of Homes Sold |
Total # of Homes Listed |
| Salt Lake County |
| 1st/2008 |
$268,200 |
2,340 |
8,215 |
| 2nd/2008 |
$274,300 |
3,238 |
8,143 |
| 3rd/2008 |
$266,700 |
3,098 |
7,697 |
| 4th/2008 |
$261,700 |
2,114 |
5,411 |
| Utah County |
| 1st/2008 |
$245,900 |
923 |
3,947 |
| 2nd/2008 |
$250,400 |
1,233 |
4,115 |
| 3rd/2008 |
$250,000 |
1,365 |
3,323 |
| 4th/2008 |
$246,400 |
946 |
2,695 |
| Davis County |
| 1st/2008 |
$249,800 |
784 |
2,280 |
| 2nd/2008 |
$248,100 |
985 |
2,148 |
| 3rd/2008 |
$238,200 |
919 |
2,116 |
| 4th/2008 |
$231,200 |
677 |
1,597 |
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| Mortgage Rate Watch |
Today's Rates
| FHA/VA 30 Year Fixed |
5.250% * |
| Conv. 30 Year Fixed |
5.250% * |
| 15 Year Fixed |
5.000% ** |
*APR of 5.500%
**APR of 5.250%
Rate Trends (Last 3 Months)
To get a personalized mortgage
quote call us at 801-949-4872.
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| March Featured Listing |
Murray, UT
$285,000
Professional Finish - Great Location
100% completed almost brand new condo close to amenities, schools, and freeway access. 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, & 2 car garage. Large walk-in closets and tons of storage. This unit has the most FINISHED square footage for the price, in the whole neighborhood. Priced to sell, don't miss out!
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Sponsored By:
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We plan on taking the same stance with our brokerage. Zoom Real Estate is not your traditional brokerage; we are a marketing company that specializes in real estate. More than ever, creative marketing is what sells homes for top dollar. We feel no other brokerage can match the service and tools that we provide. We are very passionate about our industry and hope you see our signs all around town.
If you are looking to buy, or sell, we'd love to hear from you!
Zoom Real Estate
801-999-8005
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| Mortgage Market Update |
I try to not get too technical while describing the mortgage market. Unfortunately, most of the factors driving this market are described best in technical terms and analysis. I would appreciate feedback from our readers as to whether this column has been too technical in past newsletters. With that said, allow me to try to tone it down a bit.
Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS) are ultimately where your mortgage ends up. It gets sold a number of times then pooled together with other, similar mortgages. These "pools" of mortgages are converted into securities called CDO's (collateralized debt obligations). As they trade on Wall Street, many technical factors influence the price at which they sell. The price at which MBS's sell are what govern the interest rates you get on your mortgage.
Since our last newsletter (~30 days ago), the Dow Jones Industrial Average has lost roughly 1600 points (click here for graph). In a normal economy and marketplace, this would cause mortgage rates to fall significantly as money pours into the "safe haven" of bonds. Many technical influences held the bond market back, causing a sideways pattern that would not allow a breakout to the upside to lower our interest rates (click to see graph).
Interest rates during this period have remained between 5.0% and 5.5%. I must mention though, that there were a few days last month that, to buy down the rate, was cheap. I helped 5 families get down to 4.375% and 4.5% with a cost vs. savings that made them break even in 14 to 30 months. Once they hit their break even mark, they are truly saving $100-$400 per month (depending on the loan size). This is part of what I do in our "Mortgages Under Management" program.
Is it time to buy right now? Let's say values are going to slide down another 5-7% in 2009. If that was all that was going to happen, I would say wait, and buy later. You must put interest rates into the calculation. Let's make a simple comparison:
- $250,000 purchase at 5% interest rate = $1336 per mo. (principal & interest)
- $232,500 (7% less than above) at 6.25% = $1424 per mo. = $88 more per month than the more expensive home
- $232,500 at 5.625% = $1332 This scenario produces the same payment on both homes
Most people have their priorities in the wrong place, simply because they do not understand the dynamics of a lower rate. Let's look at our purchase as a long term way to save money. The home is purchased for $250,000. You are willing to "buy down" your interest rate and it costs 1 point ($2500). Keep in mind, the seller can participate in the costs of this buy-down. I closed several loans in the last month using this strategy:
$250,000 purchase at 4.625% = $1,280 per month. This is $56 per month less than the purchase at 5.0% above. The costs of the buy-down vs. savings will break even in less than 2 years and save you almost $19,000 in the life of the loan. What if you bought some Municipal Bonds or put the $56 or $672 per year into the stock market as it rebounds?
I, honestly, don't see interest rates staying this good for the next 6 months. Many experts do not see them lasting more than 2-3 months. You're probably better off taking advantage of today's lower rates (and buying the interest rate down to boot).
Please call me at 801-949-4872 and have me run your scenario so we can see what works best for you.
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