New Loan limits for FHA / Current interest rates

FHA just announced the new loan limits for some of the counties in Utah starting 23 days hence.  It represents an almost 8% increase in Utah County and a paltry 1.5% increase in Salt Lake County.  The max loan amounts for Single Family Residences in the respective counties are $293,250 and $304,750 respectively. 

That means buyers can purchase homes up to $303,886 in Utah County and $315,803 in Salt Lake County and still only come up with a 3.5% down payment. 

Thirty year FHA loans are at 3.25% while Conventional 30 year loans are at 3.875%. 

Fifteen year rates are still at 3.0% (APR will generally be higher, depending on the loan and down payment amounts, and amortization term--as closing costs and the presence of mortgage insurance affect each loan differently.)

Contact me if you need the name of a fantastic mortgage officer / lender. You can typically get pre-approved in 24 hours. This helps us find you the right home and present a solid offer to the seller, by sending over your pre-qualification letter.

Let's go see some houses!

Discover Realty has a YouTube channel

Who doesn't love a feast?

I love looking for unique recipes for the usual holiday dishes. Love to try new sauces and herbs, which make all the difference! I found this blog this week--and it fits my two big loves: gourmet eating and healthy cooking, so I thought I'd share for any like-minded friends; or anyone who likes new recipes. I'm looking forward to trying many of these recipes in the coming week!

This chef has a slightly different take on Glazed Carrots and Green Bean Casserole, one that I love because it doesn't used any canned products; all frozen or fresh, with lots of little additions that create a savory, (and even healthy) dish! Here's the link to Katie's brilliant culinary website: Dashing Dish and this recipe:

Skinny Green Bean Casserole

If you're looking for other recipes, from turkey to dessert to beverages, check out her cooking blog.

Have a fabulous week celebrating life, bounty, loved ones and delicious food :)

Owning a Home Can Pay Off at Tax Time

Don’t Miss These Home Tax Deductions

Sharing a great article by Dona DeZube that will explain how to use tax deductions (lawfully) as a homeowner.

Owning a home can pay off at tax time.  

Take advantage of these homeownership-related tax deductions and strategies to lower your tax bill:

Mortgage Interest Deduction 
One of the neatest deductions itemizing homeowners can take advantage of is the mortgage interest deduction, which you claim on Schedule A. To get the mortgage interest deduction, your mortgage must be secured by your home — and your home can be a house, trailer, or boat, as long as you can sleep in it, cook in it, and it has a toilet.

Interest you pay on a mortgage of up to $1 million — or $500,000 if you’re married filing separately — is deductible when you use the loan to buy, build, or improve your home.
If you take on another mortgage (including a second mortgage, home equity loan, or home equity line of credit) to improve your home or to buy or build a second home, that counts towards the $1 million limit.

If you use loans secured by your home for other things — like sending your kid to college — you can still deduct the interest on loans up $100,000 ($50,000 for married filing separately) because your home secures the loan.

Prepaid Interest Deduction
Prepaid interest (or points) you paid when you took out your mortgage is generally 100% deductible in the year you paid it along with other mortgage interest. 
If you refinance your mortgage and use that money for home improvements, any points you pay are also deductible in the same year. 

But if you refinance to get a better rate or shorten the length of your mortgage, or to use the money for something other than home improvements, such as college tuition, you’ll need to deduct the points over the life of your mortgage. Say you refi into a 10-year mortgage and pay $3,000 in points. You can deduct $300 per year for 10 years.
So what happens if you refi again down the road?

Example: Three years after your first refi, you refinance again. Using the $3,000 in points scenario above, you’ll have deducted $900 ($300 x 3 years) so far. That leaves $2,400, which you can deduct in full the year you complete your second refi. If you paid points for the new loan, the process starts again; you can deduct the points over the life of the loan.  

Home mortgage interest and points are reported on Schedule A of IRS Form 1040.
Your lender will send you a Form 1098 that lists the points you paid. If not, you should be able to find the amount listed on the HUD-1 settlement sheet you got when you closed the purchase of your home or your refinance closing. 

Property Tax Deduction 
You can deduct on Schedule A the real estate property taxes you pay. If you have a mortgage with an escrow account, the amount of real estate property taxes you paid shows up on your annual escrow statement.
If you bought a house this year, check your HUD-1 settlement statement to see if you paid any property taxes when you closed the purchase of your house. Those taxes are deductible on Schedule A, too.

Vacation Home Tax Deductions
The rules on tax deductions for vacation homes are complicated. Do yourself a favor and keep good records about how and when you use your vacation home.

·         If you’re the only one using your vacation home (you don’t rent it out for more than 14 days a year), you deduct mortgage interest and real estate taxes on Schedule A.
·         Rent your vacation home out for more than 14 days and use it yourself fewer than 15 days (or 10% of total rental days, whichever is greater), and it’s treated like a rental property. Your expenses are deducted on Schedule E.
·         Rent your home for part of the year and use it yourself for more than the greater of 14 days or 10% of the days you rent it and you have to keep track of income, expenses, and allocate them based on how often you used and how often you rented the house.

Homebuyer Tax Credit
This isn’t a deduction, but it’s important to keep track of if you claimed it in 2008. 
There were federal first-time homebuyer tax credits in 2008, 2009, and 2010.
If you claimed the homebuyer tax credit for a purchase made after April 8, 2008, and before Jan. 1, 2009, you must repay 1/15th of the credit over 15 years, with no interest. 
The IRS has a tool you can use to help figure out what you owe each year until it’s paid off. Or if the home stops being your main home, you may need to add the remaining unpaid credit amount to your income tax on your next tax return.

Generally, you don’t have to pay back the credit if you bought your home in 2009, 2010, or early 2011. The exception: You have to repay the full credit amount if you sold your house or stopped using it as primary residence within 36 months of the purchase date. Then you must repay it with your tax return for the year the home stopped being your principal residence.
The repayment rules are less rigorous for uniformed service members, Foreign Service workers, and intelligence community workers who got sent on extended duty at least 50 miles from their principal residence.

Related: A Homeowner’s Guide to Taxes
This article provides general information about tax laws and consequences, but shouldn’t be relied upon as tax or legal advice applicable to particular transactions or circumstances. Consult a tax professional for such advice; tax laws may vary by jurisdiction

Read more: http://www.houselogic.com/home-advice/tax-deductions/home-tax-deductions/#ixzz3JNjQeB5L Follow us: @HouseLogic on Twitter | HouseLogic on Facebook

Protect and Seal Your Home--brrrrr!

Last year’s winter was long and cold (to those of us who like sunny warmth) and temps this week are LOW! Prepare your home now to save on energy bills and to avoid damage.

Here are some simple and eco-friendly ways to winterize your home’s interior and exterior without flattening your wallet.

Your Home’s Interior

1. Add extra insulation. You don’t want too much heat to escape through the attic because it can cause ice or snow on your roof to melt then refreeze, which has the potential of damaging the roof. Keeping rooms well insulated can even keep pipes from freezing.
2. Service heating system. In order to prevent fire or smoke damage, make sure you have any furnaces, boilers or chimneys serviced annually. This is typically quite inexpensive, costing around $150/year. They will come service your A/C unit each spring, also.
3. Emergency pressure release valve should be installed in your home’s plumbing system. This is crucial because it provides protection against increased pressure by freezing pipes. Without this emergency pressure release valve, your pipes could burst.
4. Keep your home warm. Your thermostat should be set at 65 degrees at the least. It will keep you cozy, too! If you go out of town, do not turn it down much lower. It will protect your pipes.
5. Have a plan B. If you have a power outage, it’s important that you’re prepared and have a back-up power source. A portable generator will do the trick.

Your Home’s Exterior

1. Install gutter guards. In addition to cleaning your gutters, you should also install gutter guards to prevent debris from getting in and blocking water from flowing away from the house and into the ground.
2. Seal exterior cracks. You can prevent cold air from seeping into the house by using caulk to seal around any wall openings. It’s also recommended that you apply weather stripping around windows and doors.
3. Storm windows. You’ll stop warm air from leaking outside by installing or re-installing storm windows in the attic.
4. Insulation film should be applied over windows to reduce drafts of cold air.
5. Trim trees and dead branches. If the trees around your home are not trimmed, there is a greater chance that the branches will freeze and break off, which can cause damage to your home or car.

Follow these tips for a cozy and damage-free winter. Check your local Lowe's or Home Depot for supplies or to get advice. I can also recommend some specialists in these areas. Now is the perfect time to begin your preparations!

New Website!

Working on updating one of my two professional websites--really excited about my growing team and the success we're having. Especially because we are having so much fun while working with some wonderful people!

Our team has grown this past year--we are LOVING what we do and enjoy the positive energy, training, support and friendship we share as a team:

Here's a link to a new website I've just finished: http://robynbuckwalter.cre8tool.com/home

Let me know what you think!

If I've worked with you in the past couple of years, I'd love to get an endorsement or review!

You can email me one at: robynsrealty@gmail.com or send one to my assistant, at: zanderbuyertc@gmail.com

Thank you so much!

How to find and finance the right home

Understanding how to find and finance the perfect home for you

Buying a house requires a lot of time and effort, but these 10 steps can help make the home buying process manageable and help you make the best decisions possible.

Step 1: Start Your Research Early

As soon as you can, start reading Web sites, newspapers, and magazines that have real estate listings. Make a note of particular homes you are interested in and see how long they stay on the market. Also, note any changes in asking prices. This will give you a sense of the housing trends in specific areas.

Step 2: Determine How Much House You Can Afford

Lenders generally recommend that people look for homes that cost no more than three to five times their annual household income if the home buyers plan to make a 20% down payment and have a moderate amount of other debt.

But you should make this determination based on your own financial situation. Use this Affordability Calculator to see how much house you can afford.

Step 3: Get Pre-qualified and Pre-approved for Your Mortgage

Before you start looking for a home, you will need to know how much you can actually spend. The best way to do that is to get pre-qualified for a mortgage. To get pre-qualified, you just need to provide some financial information to your mortgage lender, such as your income and the amount of savings and investments you have. He/She will review this information and tell you how much they can lend you. This will tell you the price range of the homes you should be looking at. Later, you will get pre-approved for your mortgage, which involves providing your financial documents (W-2 statements, paycheck stubs, bank account statements, etc.) so the lender can verify your financial status and credit.

I have a list of lenders that have been trustworthy, timely, personable and honest that I'm happy to share. They can be found on my website: Robyn's Realty on the Affiliates page.

To get pre-qualified quickly, contact one of our preferred lenders, Jon Schneider here: Jon at Citywide's homepage

Don't forget to ask about Closing Costs. As a buyer borrowing money, the lender has charges for helping prepare your loan and documentation. Sometimes, I can negotiate to get the seller to pay for some of these costs. They can be up to 3% of the price of the home, although are often less. 

Step 4: Find the Right Real Estate Agent

Real estate agents are important partners when you’re buying or selling a home. Real estate agents can provide you with helpful information on homes and neighborhoods that isn’t easily accessible to the public. Their knowledge of the home buying process, negotiating skills, and familiarity with the area you want to live in can be extremely valuable. And best of all, it doesn’t cost you anything to use an agent – I am compensated from the commission paid by the seller of the house.

Step 5: Shop for Your Home and Make an Offer

Start touring homes in your price range. It might be helpful to take notes on all the homes you visit. You will see a lot of houses! It can be hard to remember everything about them, so you might want to take pictures or video to help you remember each home. I will bring a copy of the listing for you to jot down those notes.

Make sure to check out the little details of each house. For example:

• Which way the front and back yards face
• Garage space and storage space
• Room sizes compared to your furniture (you can bring a tape measure if you wish)
• NOTE: The inspector will test all the electrical outlets, water pressure, roof & ceiling, appliances, etc.

It’s also important to evaluate the neighborhood and make a note of things such as:

• Are the other homes on the block well maintained?
• How much traffic does the street get?
• Is there enough street parking for your family and visitors?
• Is it conveniently located near places of interest to you: schools, shopping centers, restaurants, parks, and public transportation?

Take as much time as you need to find the right home. Then I'll work to negotiate a fair offer based on the value of comparable homes in the same neighborhood. Once you and the seller have reached agreement on a price, the house will go into escrow, which is the period of time it takes to complete all of the remaining steps in the home buying process.

Step 6: Get a Home Inspection

Typically, purchase offers are contingent on a home inspection of the property to check for signs of structural damage or things that may need fixing. I will help you arrange to have this inspection conducted within a few days of your offer being accepted by the seller. This contingency protects you by giving you a chance to renegotiate your offer or withdraw it without penalty if the inspection reveals significant material damage.

Both you and the seller will receive a report on the home inspector’s findings. You can then decide if you want to ask the seller to fix anything on the property before closing the sale. Before the sale closes, you will have a walk-through of the house, which gives you the chance to confirm that any agreed-upon repairs have been made. I work diligently to negotiate through this process to get as many repairs done as possible; or to get a price reduction if you want to take care of the repairs with someone you know.

Step 7: Work with a Mortgage Lender to Select Your Loan

Most Home Loan companies has a wide range of competitively priced loan programs and a reputation for exceptional customer service. You will have many questions when you are purchasing a home, and having an experienced, responsive mortgage lender assist you can make the process much easier. It is critical that you pick someone with an outstanding reputation for customer service, honesty, dependability, and character. I have a list of proven loan officers that past clients have loved working with and felt well taken care of.

Every home buyer has their own priorities when choosing a mortgage. Some are interested in keeping their monthly payments as low as possible. Others are interested in making sure that their monthly payments never increase. And still others pick a loan based on the knowledge they will be moving again in just a few years.

Review the resources below to learn more about the loans offered by Citywide Home Loans and get help on deciding which one is the best for you. Or choose a bank or mortgage broker of your choice.

• Citywide Home Loan Products and Processes
• Academy Mortgage Loan Programs

Step 8: Have the Home Appraised

Your loan officer will arrange for an appraiser to provide an independent estimate of the value of the house you are buying. The appraiser is a member of a third party company and is not directly associated with myself or the loan officer. The appraisal will let all the parties involved know that you are paying a fair price for the home.

Step 9: Coordinate the Paperwork

As you can imagine, there is a lot of paperwork involved in buying a house. I will arrange for a title company (Metro National Title or one of your choice) to handle all of the paperwork and make sure that the seller is the rightful owner of the house you are buying. They will also coordinate with your lender to get the amount of any money you need at the Settlement table. They will prepare all the documents needed for you to become the owner of your new home. 

Step 10: Close the Sale

At Settlement, you will sign all of the paperwork required to complete the purchase, including your loan documents. It typically takes a couple of days for your loan to be funded after the paperwork is returned to the lender. Once the check is delivered to the seller, you are ready to move into your new home. Usually within 24 hours of signing the documents.

CONGRATULATIONS, at the end of this important process, 

you will be a new home owner!

I have enjoyed the past four months because of the seriously awesome clients I have been lucky enough to work with--in finding the right house. Each has been unique and become a friend, which is the best part! I have learned about where they came from, their families, their work, hobbies, kids and it enriches my life. I love my job!

Congrats to these happy new homeowners!!!

SLC: "Hottest" housing market in 2014!

SLC: Hottest housing market this year-

As the market picks up, I wanted to share an article that was published recently. As Realtors in Salt Lake City and surrounding areas, my team is thrilled to hear that our area is slated to be "the hottest" city for housing in the nation this year.

Here is an excerpt from the article (Salt Lake Tribune):

In Salt Lake City, the burst housing bubble of yesteryear is looking more and more like a distant memory.

That’s according to real estate website Zillow... predicted that Utah’s capital city will have the hottest housing market in the U.S. (in 2014). The rankings were based on data related to unemployment rates, population growth and the website’s "Home Value Forecast." Salt Lake City dominated the list due to low unemployment and a booming population.

That’s good news for people looking to sell; it means home values should rise in 2014 as demand swells.

Among other things, Zillow also predicts home values will rise across the nation andmortgage rates will hit 5 percent by the end of 2014. If that happens, it would be the first time rates went that high since 2010.

The good news for home buyers is that mortgages should be easier to get, though overall homeownership rates will sink to their lowest point in nearly two decades.

The news of Salt Lake City’s booming market comes after earlier reports indicated a strong real estate recovery in the region. Last year, National Association of Realtors noted that Salt Lake City’s market was heating up with home prices rising 7.5 percent over 2011. 

Live Broadcast of Home Showings via Google Hangouts

Today I participated in a very unique, social media, advertising kind of experience: a live Google Hangout with real estate agents in England, British Columbia and the East coast. We had a Cincinnati moderator who had us "walk" everyone though homes we have listed; I took our audience through my associate, Tamara Zander's beautiful listing in the foothills of the Wasatch mountains in Sandy, UT. David, our moderator, asked questions about our local real estate markets and the area surrounding our listing. If you want to see how this worked, check it out--

Using Hosted Hangouts for Properties

It was fascinating and amazing to have a "live" showing with people present viewing online as we did it. The "Hangout" was live-streamed to YouTube and can be watched anytime. Talk about big advertising and major tech experience! I enjoyed it. I thank Dennis Duce for inviting me, setting it up, and Michael Mason in the Cannary Islands for all the tech work of getting us all "hanging out" at the same time, able to see and talk with one another. And gracias to David Leopold in Ohio for "hosting" us on his show. Most importantly, to Tamara and her clients, the Andersons, for letting us spend the afternoon in their home. Fabulous experience!

Creative, fun uses of blank wall space--seriously eye-catching ideas

I absolutely love hanging frames and decor on my walls. Now I've stumbled across a creative, inspiring and easy article with tons of ideas for walls:

36 Blank Wall Solutions (that rock!)

Here's a sneak peek:

Use baskets (nice 3-D effect!)

Frame BOOK covers.

Genius idea for book lovers (like me)

Frame kids' artwork

We've seen this; I've even done it

but not with such ornate, unique frames.

Find frames to fit your style!

I have hung plates and I've hung frames

This is combining the two: framed plates

mounted in shadow boxes with bright, interesting scrapbook paper behind them

Love it!

Trick with mirrors:

This one stands out because of how it's been painted.

Bright, fun and it enlarges the room--

Thanks, Better Homes and Gardens, for so many bright, creative ideas!

First Closing in 2014!

I feel lucky to have met this family--parents of two darling children who needed a home FAST. Theirs was destroyed in a fire right before Christmas. While they plan to rebuild sometime in the future, they wanted something to move into right away. We found the perfect home for them and closed in a matter of TEN days. Yes, it went FAST!

Congratulations to the Fine Finn Family!!

We loved working with you!

I have found a favorite HOME blog: The Inspired Room

--It is Inspiring!--

Decorating, Organizing, De-cluttering,

Projects (no power tools necessary), Holidays, etc.

One of my goals this year is to organize and beautify the space in my house; I'll be getting ideas and inspiration from this page of The Inspired Room. I love seeing easy, feasible, attractive ideas for my homes. Hope you find something you like!

Ten Favorite Home Organizing Ideas