Cedar Rapids Real Estate: Your Online Home Source

As the year draws to a close....I thought I would "re-blog" on the $7500 tax credit. Passed by congress is a bill that will allow any buyer that has not owned a home in the last three years (perfect for first time buyers) to claim a $7500 tax credit! How does it work? 1. You must NOT of owned a home within the past three years and ...

During the past two months in the stock market, there have been 19 trading days with a 3% move. It had previously taken 6 years to see 19 days with a 3% move. Bonds and home loan rates began the week with a strong rally on news that the world's largest Bond Fund, PIMCO, raised its stake in Mortgage-Backed Securities to its highest in over ...

According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) the Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) jumped 7.4% to 93.4 from July to August this year that is 8.8% higher than August 2007.  The PHSI is based on the number contracts signed within that given month.             Lawrence Yun, NAR ...

Trade – in ProgramThrough the first half of the year Skogman Homes has sold 52 new homes, identical tothe number sold in 2007.Nearly 33% of the buyers took advantage of the Guaranteed Trade Program. This is oneof the best programs in the country because Skogman normally guarantees 93-95percent of appraisal value. Normal selling costs are ...

So it was brought to my attention last week in a Skogman New Homes meeting that if we had clients looking to build.....we could get them in just before Christmas. Wow.....did someone say Christmas? It does not even seem as though we had a Summer....although...it feels like Fall outside. And I not sure I can remember an August that I said....it ...

Boy...the response that I have received concerning the Home Buyer Tax Credit has been overwhelming!  If there are that many home buyers out there considering buying....this seems to have given them an incentive to go buy, at least locally, where our market tends to still be decent. A few of the more common questions that I have been asked ...

 With the new buyer $7500 tax credit and this special.....it can make it easier than ever to get into a home for little/no money down.!  FHA LOANS LOCKED IN THE MONTH OF AUGUST WILL BE ELIGIBLE FOR A SUMMER PRICING SPECIAL……. FREE FIRST YEAR 1% BUYDOWN.……  THE TEMPORARY BUYDOWN PROVIDES A START ...

 As the year draws to a close....I thought I would "re-blog" on the $7500 tax credit. Passed by congress is a bill that will allow any buyer that has not owned a home in the last three years (perfect for first time buyers) to claim a $7500 tax credit! How does it work? 1. You must NOT of owned a home within the past three ...

So I have been running into this again this week.....July 1st mortgage lending changed....hopefully not-for-good. It is very hard to obtain 100% financing in todays world. The sad part is the for the Lenders getting themselve into this.....we all have to pay!  There are a couple of programs still available to first time buyers who would like ...

Just because a lender is willing to lend you the world doesn't mean you should take it. Know what you can manage. Don't over-extend yourself.Gather and tally your fixed monthly expenses (utilities, credit cards, cell phone, groceries, etc) and subtract that amount from your monthly income. This is roughly what you have left for a ...