Mortgage Rates Hit a Record Low

Freddie Mac released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), with the 30-year and 15-year fixed-rate mortgages reaching record lows for this survey. (The 30-year fixed-rate survey began in 1971, and the 15-year began in 1991.)

30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.56 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending July 22, 2010, down from last week when it averaged 4.57 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 5.20 percent.


Click here to read the full study

Selling your home in Santa Clara County? How to Make YOUR Home the Home to Buy

Your home is a reflection of you and your style and most of us have put many years of work into making your house a home. Most of us love our home but when it comes time to sell, you have to take a step back and make your home be seen in the eyes of the potential buyer. That can sometimes be difficult.

It may be hard to disassociate yourself with your home but it’s important to try to do this. Soon your house will be someone else’s and they will want to put their own special touches on it to make it not just a house they purchased but their “home.” Getting into the right mind set is really the first step you need to take in order to prepare to sell your home. After you have established this mind set the rest can be very easy. 

There are a few basic things you can do in order to create a perfect space for a potential buyer. It can be as easy as clearing clutter, creating light and bright open spaces, adding curb appeal, a fresh coat of paint and/or clean or new carpet. 

Of course there are many things to consider when getting your home ready to sell. Mainly you should consider how much you should spend, do you have good curb appeal and how you will prepare the interior to create a space that is attractive to a wide variety of buyers.

When thinking about how much you should spend, on home improvements to help your home sell, the main factor should be “will your investment pay off.” You want to make sure that you will be getting back more money than what you put in. Buyers will be impressed by a brand new roof, but they aren't likely to give you enough extra money to pay for it. There is a big difference between making minor and inexpensive "polishes" and "touch-ups" to your house, such as putting new knobs on cabinets and a fresh coat of neutral paint in the living room, and doing extensive and costly renovations, like installing a new kitchen. However, it’s possible that extensive changes may pay off in some instances. It’s always a good idea to consult your real estate agent about what home improvements you are planning and they can guide you on what is best for your particular home and the area you live in.

We all know that we need to make a good first impression. Curb appeal is your homes first impression. If you have bad curb appeal it can be forever damaging. While looking for homes some buyers will have a large list of houses they want to see. The first step is to drive by the property. If there is no curb appeal the potential buyer may never step foot into your home. It won’t matter how beautiful the inside of your house is if the outside doesn’t look nice. To create good curb appeal there are many things you can do.

• Keep the lawn edged, cut and watered regularly
• Trim hedges, weed lawns and flowerbeds, and prune trees regularly
• Check the foundation, steps, walkways, walls and patios for cracks and crumbling
• Inspect doors and windows for peeling paint
• Clean and align gutters
• Inspect and clean the chimney
• Repair and replace loose or damaged roof shingles
• Repair and repaint loose siding and caulking
• During spring and summer months consider adding a few showy annuals, perhaps in pots, near your front entrance
• Re-seal an asphalt driveway
• Keep your garage door closed
• Store RVs or old and beaten up cars elsewhere while the house is on the market
• Apply a fresh coat of paint to the front door

List courtesy of Realtor.com

There are some specific areas in your home that create widespread appeal. Updated kitchen and bathrooms are what many home buyers are looking for. Although, even if these rooms in your home are not updated there are specific things you can do in order to spruce them up and make them more appealing.

• Paint & replace hardware on the cabinetry
• Repair dripping faucets and showerheads
• Buy showy new towels for the bathroom, to be brought out only when prospective buyers are on the way
• If necessary, repaint dingy, soiled or strongly colored walls with a neutral shade of paint, such as off-white or beige. The same neutral scheme can be applied to carpets and linoleum. This goes for all rooms in your home. It’s also advised to remove any dated wall coverings such as wallpaper or paneling.

In addition to just the bathrooms and kitchen some other basic areas to focus on inside are:

• Remove Clutter! This alone will make your house appear bigger and brighter.  Some homeowners with crowded rooms have actually rented storage garages and moved half their furniture out, creating a sleeker, and more spacious look
• Hire a professional cleaning service, once every few weeks while the house is on the market. This may be a good investment for owners who are busy elsewhere
• Repair cracks, holes or damage to plaster, wallboard, paint, and tiles
• Replace broken or cracked windowpanes, moldings, and other woodwork
• Inspect and repair any problems with the plumbing, heating, cooling, and alarm systems

No matter what you do in order to get your house ready-for-sale always remember that a home buyer’s greatest concern is functionality. You want a potential buyer to walk into your home and be able to imagine all the possibilities.

Silicon Valley housing market gaining steam, slowly

The San Jose Mercury News posted an article today which continues the conversation that house prices in silicon valley continue to rise. Click here to read the full article

Silicon Valley real estate: Median house price rises in June to $600,000

Courtesy of San Jose Mercury News -

In a mixed report on the Silicon Valley real estate market, MDA DataQuick reported today that prices climbed last month in Santa Clara County, but the number of sales dropped from a year earlier.

According to MDA DataQuick, Santa Clara County's median resale single-family home price last month was $600,000 — edging up 2.6 percent from May and climbing 23.7 percent from June 2009. The number of transactions, though, dropped 8.4 percent year over year.

Throughout the Bay Area, more higher-end homes sold than a year earlier, when the market was dominated by a wave of lower-priced foreclosure sales.

"The Bay Area market is getting a boost from super-low mortgage rates and a slightly friendlier lending environment for high-end borrowers," DataQuick President John Walsh said in a statement today.
Walsh said the market has benefited from federal tax credits of as much as $8,000. However, buyers needed to enter deals by April 30 to qualify for the incentive.

In the next several months, Walsh said, "barring new government stimulus, the housing market will be relying very heavily on improvements in the economy. A lot will depend on how many people find jobs, or stop worrying about losing the one they have."

In Santa Clara County, the median condominium price was $340,000, up 17.2 percent from June 2009. The number of transactions was 0.2 percent lower.

Understanding Your Credit Score

Having a healthy credit score is now more important than ever. When the mortgage crisis hit several years ago, lenders began tightening standards for loans. Even now, years after the onset of the crisis, changes in Congressional and housing agency legislation have made it more crucial to have your credit in order before buying. The days of zero down are out, and the days of healthy scores and equally healthy down payments are in fashion.

The first step towards homeownership is to get a copy of not only your credit score, but also your entire credit report. A credit score is a number from around 350 to 850, with higher scores being considered better. Any score less than 600 will put you in a hard place to qualify for a loan. What can make your score low? If you have defaulted on loans, made late payments, or filed for bankruptcy, these issues will have been reported to the credit agencies and will subsequently lower your score. A lower score means you are more of a liability to a lender.

A credit report, as opposed to the score, lists out all of your open and previously open accounts. It shows balances left on loans, default or late payments, high balances, and the like.

You can access both a report and a score at the government sponsored site, www.annualcreditreport.com. The government allows for you to access your report for free three times ayear, from one each of the major credit reporting agencies: Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian. You typically must pay a credit agency about $15 to see your actual score. One of the main reasons to check your report three times a year is to make sure it is accurate. Identity theft is rampant these days, and you want to make sure that accounts opened in your name are actually accounts that you opened.

If you feel that you are victim of identity theft, you can request that a “fraud alert” be placed on your report. According to annualcreditreport.com, “A fraud alert can make it more difficult for someone to get credit in your name because it tells creditors to follow certain procedures to protect you. It also may delay your ability to obtain credit. You may place a fraud alert in your file by calling just one of the three nationwide consumer credit reporting companies.” Many banks also now offer programs of added protection for under $20 a month that monitor your report for any changes, such as new accounts (e.g. Credit cards) being opened in your name.

First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Extended to September 30, 2010

First-time home buyers now have until Sept. 30 to close on their home purchases and qualify for a tax credit under a newly approved extension bill. The closing deadline was originally set for June 30 has now been extended to Sept. 30.

To be eligible, buyers still need a contract that was in place by April 30.

For more information you can visit the IRS website.