Tax credit fuels skyrocketing Dallas-area preowned home sales

Tax credit fuels skyrocketing Dallas-area preowned home sales

12:08 PM CST on Monday, December 7, 2009
By STEVE BROWN/ The Dallas Morning News


The North Texas housing market came roaring back in November. Preowned home sales rose by 31 percent last month from a year ago – one of the biggest such increases on record. Also Online

Interactive map: Dallas-area home sales and prices

And median home sales prices were up 5 percent.

The big jump in residential transactions came as large numbers of homebuyers rushed to take advantage of the federal home buying tax credit, which has been extended.

Real estate agents in October sold almost 5,500 preowned homes through their multiple listing service, according to statistics released Monday by the North Texas Residential Information Systems and the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University.

And condo and townhouse sales were up more than 60 percent from a year ago.

November’s robust sales activity is the latest in a string of recent indicators, which show that the North Texas home market has bottomed out and is turning the corner.

Through the first 11 months of 2009, North Texas home sales are down 12 percent from the same period of last year. And median home sales prices are unchanged year to day from 2008.

November was the second consecutive month that Dallas-Fort Worth area home sales rose from the previous year – ending more than a year of consecutive declines.

Some neighborhoods that weren’t impacted by the federal homebuying incentives saw dramatic spikes in home sales last month.

In the Park Cities, preowned home sales soared 81 percent in November from a year ago.

Sales in close in North Dallas neighborhoods rose 48 percent.

And at the end of November, the inventory of unsold homes on the market fell below 6 months which is considered a balanced market.

Expanded Version of Tax Credit Will Allow More Homebuyers to Qualify

Expanded Version of Tax Credit Will Allow More Homebuyers to Qualify

RISMEDIA, November 9, 2009—President Obama recently signed an expanded version of the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit that was set to expire on November 30. “The new version of the tax credit has the potential to stimulate the housing market even more than the old version due to the fact that more people will qualify under the new rules,” said Gibran Nicholas, Chairman of the CMPS Institute, an organization that certifies mortgage bankers and brokers. “Although the tax credit remains at $8,000 for homebuyers that have not owned a primary residence in the last three years, it has been expanded to include a $6,500 tax credit for homebuyers that have lived in their current primary residence for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight years. Under the old rules, move-up homebuyers did not qualify.” Consider these three examples:

Example 1:
Jane purchased a home in 2002, lived there for 5 years as her primary home, moved out in 2007, and turned that home into a rental property. If Jane decides to buy a new primary residence today, she would qualify for the $6,500 tax credit based on the fact that she lived in the same residence as her primary home for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight.

Example 2:
Harry purchased a home in 2004, and lived there for the past 5 years as his primary home. If Harry decides to buy a new primary residence today, he would qualify for the $6,500 tax credit based on the fact that he lived in the same residence as his primary home for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight.

Example 3:
Nicole purchased a home in 2006, and lived there for the past 3 years as her primary home. If Nicole decides to buy a new primary residence today, she would not qualify for the $6,500 tax credit based on the fact that she did not live in the same residence as her primary home for at least five consecutive years out of the past eight.

The tax credit applies to homes purchased for less than $800,000 before May 1, 2010. “If you sign a binding contract to purchase a home before May 1st, you would need to close on the transaction before July 1, 2010,” Nicholas said. “It works kind of like a gift certificate that can be redeemed for cash. You simply file a form with the IRS right after you buy your home, and the IRS will send you a check for the full amount of your credit.”

The income limitation for single tax payers went up from $75,000 under the old rules to $125,000 under the new rules. For married tax payers, the income limitation went up from $150,000 to $225,000. “This means that more people will qualify for the credit – especially in parts of the country with higher costs of living,” Nicholas said. “This should help stimulate parts of the housing market that may not have been impacted by the old version of the credit.”

There are many creative ways of structuring your home purchase transaction in ways that maximize the benefits of the credit. Here are a few examples:

-The credit applies to 1-4 unit homes as long as you live in one of the units as your primary residence – you could live in one unit and rent out the others

-If two unmarried individuals buy a home, and only one of the individuals qualifies for the credit based on their income or past home ownership status, the individual who qualifies for the credit can claim the full credit. (Note: In the case of married couples, both spouses must qualify for the credit).

-The credit applies even if you have co-signers on your mortgage loan

For more information, visit www.CMPSInstitute.org.

Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-11-08/expanded-version-of-tax-credit-will-allow-more-homebuyers-to-qualify/#ixzz0WTkr6IKw

TAX CREDIT HAS BEEN EXTENDED

TAX CREDIT HAS BEEN EXTENDED

The $8000 tax credit for first time homebuyer's has been extended. The program was expanded to include a $6500 tax credit on the purchase of a new home to apply to people who have owned a home for at least five years.

Income restrictions will be relaxed, meaning more people could take advantage of the program.

The bill would extend it to apply to home purchases under contract before May 1, 2010

Great news! Watch for more details.

Give us a call for all of your Real Estate needs.You can reach us directly at 817-337-5169 or on the web at www.soldteam.net



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Residents near proposed assisted-living center criticize developer's plan

Residents near proposed assisted-living center criticize developer's plan
By LINDA TAYLOR
A proposed assisted-living center has drawn opposition from nearby residents, who say it would hurt their quality of life and property values.

Homeowners near Countryhill Drive and Rapp Road turned out in large numbers to voice their concerns to Keller’s planning advisory board on Monday. They urged members to deny developer Nisher Inc.’s request to build the center, Mustang Creek Estates.

The 4.8-acre development would house 104 assisted-living units in eight, one-story buildings on the north and northwest sides of the intersection. Plans call for each building to be 6,000 square feet.

Nearby residents said the campus would increase traffic, worsen drainage problems and drive down the value of their houses. Most residents who spoke said it would pose a safety risk to the many children who walk or ride bikes to schools.

"Country Hill Drive is a neighborhood street, not a major arterial road," Terry Leake said. "There are a number of kids who ride to school who access Country Hill to reach the marked crosswalk on Rapp Road. Having the entries to the facility on Country Hill could present some serious safety issues to those kids."

Architect Scott Roberts said the center would add fewer cars to area roads than a commercial center, which the site is currently zoned for.

"We feel this zoning and use is much less impactive than the uses possible under the [current] zoning," Roberts said. "The buildings are very residential in nature and are arranged at angles to create more interest. We will try to be the best neighbors we can."

But some residents oppose the center, citing potential harm to their home values.

"Every realtor I’ve talked to said you will narrow your prospects when potential buyers see the retirement community located at the entrance to the neighborhood," Mike Reed said. "This will definitely decrease the property value."

Despite that concern, Roberts said, values near a similar facility in Allen have risen steadily since it was built.

Board members had their own concerns, which centered on parking. With a proposed 28 parking spaces, most members felt the number would not be adequate to accommodate staff, visitors and residents who have their own vehicles.

"The part that really jumped out at me is you only have three handicapped spaces for eight buildings," member Leslie Sagar said. "Parking is a big issue. You have 28 spaces and 16 of them are for employees."

Doug Miller agreed with Sagar, saying the proposed parking could cause visitors to park on Countryhill Drive.

"By my calculations, you could have as many as 24 employees on the premises at one time," Miller said. "The parking is woefully inadequate."

Most board members seemed to favor a zoning change but disapproved of the Mustang Creek Estates plan.

"We have a real conundrum here," Gary Reaves said, praising Nisher’s preparations. "I do applaud your efforts, but I’ve listened to the residents and they have some very real concerns. I think this project as it is proposed is too much of a strain on this neighborhood and I cannot support it."

Renee Ramsey, the would-be owner of the center, said she was willing to work with the neighbors on their concerns, possibly even reducing the number of buildings from eight to six.

The board postponed a decision until December to allow opponents, the developer and city staff to work out major sticking points.

Linda Taylor is a special contributor to The Keller Citizen.

For Sale: 6BR/5.5BA Single Family House in Southlake, TX, $565,000

For Sale: 6BR/5.5BA Single Family House in Southlake, TX, $565,000

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Existing-Home Sales Ease Following 4 Monthly Gains

Existing-Home Sales Ease Following 4 Monthly Gains
RISMEDIA, September 28, 2009—Existing-home sales in August 2009 gave back some of their strong gain in July but remain above year-ago levels, according to the National Association of Realtors®.

Existing-home sales- including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops- declined 2.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.10 million units in August from a pace of 5.24 million in July, but remain 3.4% above the 4.93 million-unit level in August 2008. In the previous four months, sales had risen a total of 15.2%.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the tax credit is working. “Home sales retrenched from a very strong improvement in July but continue to be much higher than before the stimulus. The first-time buyer tax credit is having the intended impact of bringing buyers into the market, allowing them to take advantage of very favorable affordability conditions,” he said. “Some of the give-back in closed sales appears to result from rising numbers of contracts entering the system, with some fallouts and a backlog contributing to a longer closing process, but the decline demonstrates we can’t take a housing rebound for granted.”

According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage fell to 5.19% in August from 5.22% in July; the rate was 6.48% in August 2008.

An NAR practitioner survey shows first-time buyers purchased 30% of homes in August, and that distressed homes accounted for 31% of transactions; both were unchanged from July. “The recent trend shows broad improvement in most of the country, but with an expected rise in foreclosures over the next 12 months we need to maintain a healthy level of ready buyers to absorb the inventory. An extension of the tax credit is critical to preserve incentives for financially qualified buyers to enter the market,” Yun said.

He added that many buyers had been on the sidelines during the past few years, waiting for signs of stabilization. “Now that the market is showing some momentum, we have an opportunity to achieve a more rapid and broader stabilization in home prices. Extending and expanding the tax credit also would help to keep other families from becoming upside down in their mortgages or risk foreclosure,” Yun said.

“When home prices show sustained gains, credit will become more widely available to other sectors because Wall Street will be able to price risks confidently. Stable home values will also allow more families to purchase consumer products and provide a strong boost for the broader economy.”

NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, said time is running very short for the existing tax credit. “Because it’s generally taking 60 days to close on a home after a contract is offered, buyers have little time to act to complete a purchase by the November 30 deadline,” he said. “There’s no guarantee what Congress might do, so there’s really no time to waste. Since Realtors® have unparalleled knowledge of local markets, they can also advise first-time buyers on any additional state or local programs that might be able to offer them financial assistance, and help them close on a home before the tax credit expires.”

Total housing inventory at the end of August fell 10.8% to 3.62 million existing homes available for sale, which represents an 8.5-month supply at the current sales pace, down from a 9.3-month supply in July. Unsold inventory totals are 16.4% lower than a year ago. The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $177,700 in August, down 12.5% from August 2008. Distressed properties continue to downwardly distort the median price because they generally sell for 15 to 20% less than traditional homes. Single-family home sales fell 2.% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.48 million in August from a level of 4.61 million in July, but are 2.55 higher than the 4.37 million-unit pace in August 2008. The median existing single-family home price was $177,500 in August, down 12.1% from a year ago. Existing condominium and co-op sales slipped 1.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 620,000 units in August from a spike of 630,000 in July, but are 10.1% higher than the 563,000-unit level a year ago. The median existing condo price was $179,300 in August, which is 15.7% below August 2008.

Regionally, existing-home sales in the Northeast declined 2.2% to an annual pace of 910,000 in August, but are 5.8% above August 2008. The median price in the Northeast was $241,100, which is 10.5% below a year ago. Existing-home sales in the Midwest fell 6.6% in August to a level of 1.14 million but are unchanged from a year ago. The median price in the Midwest was $149,900, down 10.4% from August 2008. In the South, existing-home sales were down 3.1% to an annual pace of 1.89 million in August but are 1.6% above August 2008. The median price in the South was $157,400, which is 11.0% below a year ago. Existing-home sales in the West declined 2.7% to an annual rate of 1.16 million in August but are 7.4% higher than a year ago. The median price in the West was $220,500, down 12.2% from August 2008.

For more information, visit www.realtor.org.



Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-09-27/existing-home-sales-ease-following-4-monthly-gains/#ixzz0SVdAMpNc