Buying a Home 
There are currently 12 blog entries related to this category.
Saint Paul and Minneapolis CityLiving Program Revived
Friday, February 12th, 2010 at 6:09pm. 92 Views, 1 Comments.
St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman and Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak have jointly announced $41 million in new funding for the CityLiving Program. CityLiving helps first time homebuyers purchase homes in either city.
The CityLiving Program offers below-market interest rates on mortgages as well as down payment and closing-cost assistance. In order to quality for the funding, homebuyers’ household income cannot exceed $92,290 and the purchase price for a single-family home can’t be greater than $276,870.
"We have an opportunity for people to invest, to get a good deal on an interest rate, get some assistance with a down payment, and get back into the cities," said Coleman. "It's a win-win for the potential homeowner, first-time homebuyer, and it's certainly a great…
Never Too Old to be a First Time Home Buyer
Thursday, February 4th, 2010 at 10:24pm. 100 Views, 0 Comments.
Fewer than 1% of first-time home buyers in 2009 were more than 75 years old, according to the National Association of Realtors. But as the population ages and life expectancy gets longer, the number of older home buyers will increase.
Hank and Verna Schmiess are not your typical first time home buyers. He was 89 and she was 84 when they bought their first home last year - a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo in New Brighton. After thoroughly going over their finances and determining it was cheaper for them to buy than rent, they carefully laid their plans to finally make the plunge into home ownership.
Though they hadn't had many reasons to buy before, they were priced out of the market when they did finally want to buy. Originally from North Dakota, they moved to…
First Time Home Buyer $8,000 Federal Tax Credit Extended & Expanded
Thursday, November 5th, 2009 at 2:37pm. 220 Views, 2 Comments.
A $24 billion package that seeks both to stir the sluggish economy and help out millions who have found themselves unemployed is being sent to President Barack Obama for his signature.
The measure extends the $8,000 federal tax credit for first-time home buyers and even expands it with a $6,500 credit for some prospective home buyers who already own homes. Set to expire at the end of the month, the credits will apply to house contracts entered into before April 30, 2010, and closed by June 30.
Additionally, the nearly 2 million people who have lost or are in danger of exhausting unemployment benefits before the end of the year will receive up to 20 weeks in additional benefits.
President Obama is expected to sign the measure quickly.
First Time Home Buyer Dos and Don'ts
Thursday, October 8th, 2009 at 10:28pm. 285 Views, 1 Comments.
There are many first time home buyers out there, thanks to the $8,000 federal tax credit. The deadline to buy is November 30, so hopefully if you're trying to qualify for it you've already well on you're way to buying your first home.
Before and during the home buying process, there are some things that can be done to increase the chances your loan is approved and at a reasonable interest rate, to boot. Read this earlier post to find out some “to do’s” for people considering buying their first home (or even their next home!).
As there are many things you should do to increase your chances of becoming a first time home owner, there are also things you should not. Please take a look at one of our earlier posts that lists some of the "don’ts" for people…
More Accurate Appraisals of a Trend
Monday, November 24th, 2008 at 10:40pm. 146 Views, 0 Comments.
When it comes to setting a price for your home that’s correct for the current market, many aspects are taken into account. One that is seeing a great amount of emphasis right now are “comps”: the comparable sales of other properties in your areas. Used as standards in home real estate appraisals, buyers and sellers haven’t needed to be concerned about “comps” as long as real estate values were on the upswing.
In this slumping market, mortgage lenders have recently been placing a great deal of importance on these benchmarks. Because of the swift decline in home prices, instead of accepting comparable property sales statistics from homes that closed six to 12 months ago, lenders and mortgage investors now insist that appraisers include the most recent…
New First Time Home Buyer Resource for Minnesota
Wednesday, November 5th, 2008 at 11:24pm. 125 Views, 0 Comments.
As real estate prices tumble and the amount of programs to help out homeowners, many Minnesotans are considering buying their first home soon. However, there are a lot of low-quality websites out there that don’t provide a lot of useful information for the potential first time home buyer. It can make researching the process of buying your first home a longer process than it has to be.
Because of the lack of real, comprehensive information for first time home buyers considering buying a home in the Twin Cities area, we have launched the Minnesota First Time Home Buyer Website. At this site, readers will find information about federal first time home buyer programs, Minnesota state first time home buyer programs, and Minnesota county first time home…
Increase in Tax Credit for First Time Home Buyers?
Monday, November 3rd, 2008 at 10:50pm. 121 Views, 0 Comments.
As I mentioned in a previous post, first time home buyers could receive a tax credit up to $7,500 on first homes purchased between April 9 of this year and June 30 of 2009. There could be more good news in the works! Potential home buyers could receive additional tax and financing incentives within the next few months. It could come from either a post-election lame-duck congressional session or from the newly elected Congress arriving in January.
To encourage activity in the housing market, national housing industry trade groups are pushing federal officials for a new round of emergency economic stimulus legislation to jolt the housing market into action. Though House and Senate leaders have not officially agreed on whether or not to hold a session…
First Time Home Buyer Don’ts
Thursday, September 18th, 2008 at 7:43pm. 131 Views, 1 Comments.
Earlier this week, I wrote a little bit about some things that first time home buyers should do when they are preparing to buy a home. As there are many things you should do to increase your chances of becoming a first time home owner, there are also things you should not do as well. Here are some of the don’ts for people considering purchasing a home.
Don’t switch jobs. Mortgages are very large loans. Because they are putting up the money, lenders like to see a steady job history. Getting a new job during the loan approval process could raise some red flags which affect your application. In most cases, career changes jobs will not affect your ability to qualify for a mortgage loan, however if you are qualifying for any specific types of loans because…
First Time Home Buyer Dos
Monday, September 15th, 2008 at 10:44pm. 135 Views, 1 Comments.
If you’re considering purchasing your first home, there are some things you can do to increase the chances your loan is approved and at a reasonable interest rate. Here are some “to do’s” for people considering buying their first home or their next home.
Do make sure that you take the time to educate yourself about what the home buying process involves. Knowledge is truly the key to having a smooth transaction. The more familiar you are with the process of buying a home, the more easily it will go. Absorb as much information about home ownership as you can. There are many educational seminars offered by government programs or even by real estate agencies which will tell you a lot of the information you need to know.
Do make sure that you have…
Saint Paul Home Buyer Programs
Thursday, September 4th, 2008 at 11:14pm. 102 Views, 0 Comments.
There are lots of great programs for first time home buyers and for those who are looking for their next home. I’ve put together some of the information below to give home buyers what they need to know in order to check the programs out. Please take a look below!
CityLiving Home Programs
The City of Saint Paul offers mortgage loans and home improvement loans through its CityLiving Home Program, a joint effort shared with the City of Minneapolis. CityLiving loans offer homebuyers an opportunity to purchase St. Paul homes at an interest rate that is generally below market rates. More than 10,000 people have purchased a home through the CityLiving program over the past 20 years. Here are the qualifications the program expects:
- Maximum …
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