So you have heard that the real estate market is making its recovery in New Hampshire, but you’re nervous to take the big leap to home ownership? The question you should be looking at now is what are you paying to rent vs. what would it cost you to own? You may be surprised.

Now is the perfect time to buy a home with prices stabilized, and more affordable than they have been in years. Interest rates are at a record low, but are expected to rise in the future and since the market’s inventory is now moving, you could be missing out on the home of your dreams. What if you also knew that you might be paying the same or more for rent as you would for that mortgage and actual ownership?

Depending on where you live, renters on average are paying between $1,100 to $1,700 for their apartment or condominium. Size also plays a role in this equation, so if you have more than one bedroom, or more than one bathroom, your costs are on the higher end of this scale or above it.

But with interest rates at an all time low, you could be owning your home for the same cost per month, have larger living space, have the freedom to paint it whatever color you choose and have a yard to call your own.

According to recently published statistics by the National Association of Realtors, more home sellers are seeking the expertise and professional services of a real estate agent to sell their home, rather than trying to sell it on their own.

Over the last decade, the share of home sellers who used a real estate agent or broker to sell their home increased from 77% to 87%, while people who tried to sell their own home (For Sale By Owner or FSBO) decreased by 9%.

Why are more and more sellers using real estate agents to help them sell their homes? Well, first and foremost, selling a home is not always simple or quick, especially when you are trying to do it without the marketing tools and contract knowledge that an experienced Realtor has. Realtors can list a home on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), which puts it on the market to all the other Realtors in the region who are representing most buyers. Nobody selling on their own can reach the same number of potential buyers as the MLS provides. A Realtor also uses their skill to sell the house in a reasonable timeframe, to market the home to potential buyers, and to price the home competitively.

It is true that some people are able to sell their own homes without the services of a real estate agent, but they are the exception, not the rule. Here are five reasons why FSBO sales are challenging and sellers are turning to Realtors to get the job done.

1. A FSBO can not get their home listed in the MLS because it is open only to members in the Real Estate industry who are licensed real estate brokers and agents. FSBOs do not appear in many home search engines and Web sites. A FSBO can put a “for sale” sign in their front yard and place a few ads in newspapers, but their ability to market the home is very limited.

Consumer spending continues to rise nationwide, fueled by jobs growth and a rosier outlook for the U.S. economy. Unfortunately for mortgage rate shoppers NH & MA, it may also lead to higher mortgage rates later this week.

Thursday morning (1/12/12), the Census Bureau will release its U.S. Retail Sales data for December. The report is expected to show an 18th consecutive monthly increase, with analysts projecting sales volume higher by 0.4 percent from November.

This would be double the increase from last month, which saw a 0.2 percent increase in Retail Sales.

The Retail Sales report tallies receipts collected by retail and food-service stores nationwide. When the sum of these receipts rise, it puts pressure on mortgage rates to do the same. The connection is straight-forward.

Just in time for the holidays!

MLS PIN – the Massachusetts multiple listing service – has just issued revised rules for the display of IDX listings. What does that mean for you??

Well, if you have a saved search for any property in Massachusetts, you can now read the actual description written by the listing agent, rather than verbiage made up by individual brokerages. This change will allow customers to get a much closer look, and a much more accurate description of Massachusetts properties.

This enhancement is long overdue, and we here at Prudential Verani Realty would like to thank MLS PIN on behalf of all of our customers.

To see a sample of the new descriptions and search results, browse around some of the following saved searches:

With shopping, entertaining, school concerts, and a possible visit away to see family, the holidays may tempt you to take your home temporarily off the market. There is also that added pressure to keep your home in “show” condition for those last minute calls from your Realtor. But though your list of reasons is understandable, it is not better to just pack it in and start fresh in January.

Here is where having a great Realtor behind you comes in handy. Let him or her help make showings and dealing with offers before Christmas work for you. Buyers often have more time around the holidays because they have taken vacation from work and they can look at homes together. The number of showings your Realtor sets up may appear to slow down, but the buyers who are actively looking during the holidays are that much more serious.

Facts:

• The housing market is not slowed by Christmas any more than it is during the spring with the wedding season, graduations, summer vacations or Fall back-to-school preparations.
• Some buyers deliberately time their home shopping for when it is not as busy and their competition is less. It will be easier for them to look at homes with confidence that negotiations will be less stressful.

Yesterday afternoon we learned some big news that Prudential Real Estate & Relocation was acquired by Brookfield Residential Property Services, a global real estate and relocation company from Prudential Financial Inc. Brookfield is a premier real estate organization with over $150 billion in assets. Businesses include residential brokerage, global employee relocation, and data analytics. This transaction creates a global real estate and relocation services franchising company in the US, Canada, Mexico, Portugal, China, Brazil, India, France, Australia, & Singapore.

When real estate franchising began, it was an age when internet did not exist. Media did not have the reach it does now and certainly the consumer did not have as much ability to be involved in the transaction during the search and through closing. Those changes also mean that the role of the franchiser, brand and network have had to change. It’s essential for a real estate franchise to have a global reach and this joining allows this to happen.

Earl Lee, the former president of Prudential Real Estate & Relocation Services is taking an expanded role in the combined companies, and his enthusiasm and excitement are contagious. In his own words from twitter yesterday, “1+1=3 Brookfield Residential Property Services & Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services: 2 fine companies now form an even better one.”

Prudential Verani Realty is the number one leader in real estate sales in our market area of southern New Hampshire, northeastern Massachusetts and southern Maine, and we expect great things from Brookfield regarding relocation, new innovations, and a greater focus on technology and knowledge of the real estate business.

It may seem at times that the world of real estate is filled with terminology that nobody has ever heard of in everyday life. What is Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac? What is a motivated seller? What is a HUD? As you delve into a search for a home or begin shopping for a mortgage you may encounter some language and acronyms that leave you scratching your head. Here are a few top real estate terms that confuse and an explanation about what they mean:

1. REO: Real estate owned or a foreclosed upon property; repossessed by the former owner’s bank. This means if you buy this property you are going into a deal with a bank. How will this possibly affect you? Well, the timeframe to close on the REO property may not be as fast as a regular listing, since it is a bank deciding the fate of your offer. Often they have a group of people that make the decisions and this can delay when you get an answer. A bank will probably allow you to do a home inspection but probably will not fix any repair issues with house that are discovered.
2. S/S or Subject to Bank Approval: This is a Short Sale which means the seller is unable to pay his mortgage payments and has entered in an agreement with his bank to sell the property to avoid foreclosure. The bank will try to get as much of what they are owed back through proceeds from the sale. The owner has no real say in deciding to accept your offer. The bank must make that approval.

For most home buyers, mortgage rates and housing costs are a key determinant of whether it is a good time to buy. Currently, mortgage rates are so low that many would-be buyers can not only qualify for a mortgage, but perhaps a larger home than might think. If you have been thinking about searching for a home there are some very good reasons to investigate your options with the help of a Realtor.

At this time of year some sellers are facing job relocation and a required move come January. Some are looking to wrap up the sale before the holidays. Now is an excellent time to find not only your dream home but sellers who will take every offer seriously and may be motivated to sell quickly.

Interest rates remain at a record low: Essentially, interest rates effect the size of your monthly payments. Low interest means you can afford a bit more house than you could when interest rates were higher. It also means you pay less over the life of the loan in order to own the home and therefore it makes it a great time to invest your monthly payments to a mortgage versus your rent payment. According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year mortgage rate recently rose to 4.12 percent which is still less than half the average interest rate since 1971.

We’ve been getting this question a lot lately, we decided to post a blog article about it. How are real estate taxes billed in New Hampshire??

With only a few exceptions, real estate taxes for most New Hampshire towns are billed twice a year and are payable in July and December. The tax year is a fiscal year and not a calendar year, and covers the period April 1st to March 31st of the next year. The July tax bill covers the period of April 1st to September 30th, and the December tax bill covers October 1st to March 31st.

Because the Towns do not set their tax rates until sometime in the Fall, the July tax bill is for half of the previous year. The December tax bill adjusts to the new tax rate and will therefore generally be different than the July bill.

We hope that answers the question! For further questions on taxes or any other real estate/title question, call:

Karen F Kelley, President
Broker’s Title & Closing, LLC
(603) 434-1414
www.brokerstitlenh.com

New Hampshire assesses a tax on every real estate conveyance. This tax is at the rate of $15.00 per thousand of the sales price, split between buyer and seller. For example, a $200,000 sales price would bear transfer tax in the amount of $3000, $1500 from the buyer and $1500 from the seller, collected at closing. Check with your tax adviser. Transfer tax is often tax deductible.

For questions on transfer taxes or any other real estate/title question, give us a call.

Karen F Kelley, President
Broker’s Title & Closing, LLC
(603) 434-1414
www.brokerstitlenh.com