First time buyers that take advantage of the $8,000 Stimulas Program and also the OHFA Mortgage Credit Certificates program could revieve over $40,000 in Federal Tax Credits on a $110,000. Home Purchase.    

IF you are a First Time Buyer (or plan on buying in a OHFA Targeted Area) you want to find out about this opportunity. 

Here is a calculator that will do the math for you.  http://www.firsttimebuyers-mortgages.com/OHFAMCCTaxCalculator.php?Linked=TBradford

The only catch is that OHFA has only authorized 12.5Million to this program and they estimate only the first 1,000 applications can be accepted.     If you have any questions, please give me a call. 

The Ohio Housing Finance Agency (OHFA) is planning on bringing back Down Payment Assistance early in February.   If you are a potential home buyer or a Realtor that would like more information on this program when it becomes available, please drop me a email. 

Initial word from the OHFA is they will be offering 2.50% of the sales price as a gift/grant to buyers using this program.   Buyers will be required to participate in a Homebuyers Education program. 

This post will be updated once additional information is received. 

Here is a short Video regarding How Values and Taxes are determined, It was done by Michael E. Kovack the Medina County Auditor and the basic information presents is good.  Below you will find some links that may assist you in filing a request for review of you Taxes and Tax Value according to county records.  Please watch it then continue to the links below to determine if your property is valued correctly with Lorain County and if you are paying more taxes than necessary. 

An protests or requests for lower your Property Values in Cuyahoga County must be filed between 1/1/2009 and 3/31/2009. 

Here is the link in Lorain County Records to start the process of disputing the Tax Value on a property.  http://www.loraincounty.com/auditor/real-estate-taxes/board-of-revision.shtml

Prior to filing a protest they should look on the auditors site to see what value the property is being taxed at. Here is a link to that site. You can search the county records here.  http://oh-lorain-auditor.governmaxa.com/propertymax/agency/oh-lorain-auditor/ohlorain_homepage.asp

With the decline in property values we have seen recently, any homeowners or buyers might be able to save some money on their taxes by filing for a correction of counties tax values. 

Because of the limited window to file the requests (3/31/2009) I suggest that you look at the County valuations and it if is above what the current market justifies, file a request for reconsideration. 

Also any homeowners that are considering refinancing may want to  determine if refinancing makes sense,  There are many calculators available to do the math for you, Here is one that I have that gives you the basics and does calculations based upon how long you expect to remain in the home.    http://www.lenderbradford.com/RefinaceCalculator   I also welcome phone calls from Northern Ohio owners to assist them in determining if refinancing makes financial sense.  

I also encourage all Realtors to share this with their clients. 

Here is a short Video from Michael E. Kovack the Medina County Auditor regarding How Values and Taxes are determined.   Please watch it then continue to the links below to determine if your property is valued correctly with Medina County and if you are paying more taxes than necessary. 

An protests or requests for lower your Property Values in Cuyahoga County must be filed between 1/1/2009 and 3/31/2009. 

Here is the link in Medina County Records to start the process of disputing the Tax Value on a property.  http://www.medinacountyauditor.org/frm_bor.htm

Prior to filing a protest they should look on the auditors site to see what value the property is being taxed at. Here is a link to that site.  http://www.medinacountyauditor.org/allsearches.htm

With the decline in property values we have seen recently, any homeowners or buyers might be able to save some money on their taxes by filing for a correction of counties tax values. 

Because of the limited window to file the requests (3/31/2009) I suggest that you look at the County valuations and it if is above what the current market justifies, file a request for reconsideration. 

Also any homeowners that are considering refinancing may want to  determine if refinancing makes sense,  There are many calculators available to do the math for you, Here is one that I have that gives you the basics and does calculations based upon how long you expect to remain in the home.    http://www.lenderbradford.com/RefinaceCalculator   I also welcome phone calls from Northern Ohio owners to assist them in determining if refinancing makes financial sense.  

I also encourage all Realtors to share this with their clients. 

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NOW IS THE TIME TO FILE ANY PROTEST TO YOUR REAL ESTATE TAXES AND VALUES

An protests or requests for lower your Property Values in Cuyahoga County must be filed between 1/1/2009 and 3/31/2009. 

Here is the link in Cuyahoga County Records to start the process of disputing the Tax Value on a property.  http://treasurer.cuyahogacounty.us/taxpayer/contesting.htm

Prior to filing a protest they should look on the auditors site to see what value the property is being taxed at. Here is a link to that site.  http://auditor.cuyahogacounty.us/repi/default.asp

With the decline in property values we have seen recently, any homeowners or buyers might be able to save some money on their taxes by filing for a correction of counties tax values. 

Because of the limited window to file the requests (3/31/2009) I suggest that you look at the County valuations and it if is above what the current market justifies, file a request for reconsideration. 

If you see a Seller or Realtor offering to save you .50% off your interest rate if you buy a home, here is why you are seeing this happening.  An offer of a .50% Lower Rate might cause you to take a second look at the home and is an excellent marketing move on their part.   Below is why this is a Win-Win for the Seller and Buyer.

Years ago it was quite common to pay 1, 2 or 3 points when you took out a mortgage loan.    Over the recent years it is quite common not to pay any points.   With the current mortgage enviroment before you finalize your mortgage application, you may want to consider paying a point or two in order to lower the rate on your loan. 

What is a point?   Points are quoted as a percentage of the amount borrowed, therefore if you were to pay 1 Point on a $100,000 loan you would increase your closing costs by $1,000.  Up until recently you could only expect to get a .25% reduction in the rate you were paying on your loan for every point that you paid.  In the current mortgage market it is possible at times to get a .50% reduction to your rate with the payment of the same 1 Point. 

The following Chart does some math to show in monitary terms the effects of paying one point using the current pricing and what it was years ago.   The chart show how things have changed.  Information presented was based upon pricing as of 12/4/2008.  Be aware that loan options are subject to change at any time. 

Tim's Informational WebSites

All about Ohio HECM Reverse Mortgages
Rent Vs Own in Ohio     Ohio Home Loans
Ohio First Time Buyer Programs Grants    
Cleveland and Northern Ohio Realtors   
Ohio Buyers and Sellers Resources  
Information - Ohio 203K Loan

 

On the Evening MyFoxNews.com news in Cleveland Ohio they reported that "Low Mortgage Rates are Coming".   Here is a link to that news report.   The news report was based upon a proposal by the Federal Reserve that is described here.   The proposal is to make money available to Banks if they agree to lend the money to home buyers at a rate set by the Federal Reserve.   The article makes reference to a 4.50% - 30 year fixed rate which is quite attractive. 

Anyone that is considering purchasing a home should talk with a lender now to make sure they will be ready to make a purchase when and if that program becomes available.  Any potential buyers should also ask themself if they should wait for the prospect of that GREAT RATE or make a purchse today because it is possible today(December 5, 2008) to get a 30 fixed rate at 5.00%.

In the past it was always said that the LOCATION, LOCATION AND LOCATION were the three things that most affected the price of a home.  I understood the logic of that statement as home prices were being increasing in the past.  In the economic times of today, we need to look further into the Truer factors that affect the value of a home.   Supply and Demand were the driving factors in the past and they are still the driving forces today when it comes to home prices.   Supply is great and demand is low for the homes that are on the market.  Demand has decreased for a number of reasons and it not a part of this posting. 

Also because of liberal lending that occurred in the past housing prices rose because people looked at homes and Real Estate as investments instead of Housing for families.  

The purpose of this post is to show that it is not always best to wait for a GREAT PROPSED RATE OF 4.50%.  If we are at or near the lows that have adjusted home prices, then when consumer confidence or incentives such as this 4.50% rate come, we should see increased demand for homes.   Applying the Supply and Demand principle, when this occurs home prices are more likely to increase than Anything else.  Now look at this chart, On a $105,000 loan at 4.50% would cost you $532.02 (Principle and Interest).   If you were able to purchase the same home today with a $100,000 loan at 5.00% your payment would be $536.82.   The payments are very similar. 

Look at this chart do you want to wait and consider a purchase today.    

If you are a consumer and have considerred purchasing a home, let me know if you think it is better to find that value priced home today or wait for the Great Rates of the Future.

With interest rates now being so low a number of people have asked if it is a good time to refinance.  Here is a calculator that I created to present information to homeowners to determine if refinancing made sense.  Remember this is only a tool that you can use to see if it might make sense to refinance your mortgage.   

 

 If after using this calculator, you believe it is in your best interest to refinance then call a loan officer that is authorized to do business in your state.   If in Ohio, please consider giving me a call.   If outside of Ohio consider searching ActiveRain for a Local Loan Officer.    

I also suggest that you avoid using general internet searches to find the best rates in your state.  The most common companies that you will find are Lead Generation Companies that will then sell your information to a number of lenders.  You are likely to recieve more phone calls and emails than you want. 

This is a great explaination as to why in more and more cases FHA is the best option for a buyer. 

For those that have not heard about the Ohio USDA Rural Home Loans, you may want to look at the program because it allows 100% Financing and there is no Monthly Mortgage Insurance. 

If your household income is below those shown in this table and you are considering a home purchase outside of a major metropolitan area, you should check out the Ohio USDA Rural Home Loan Program. 

In Ohio, visiting http://www.firsttimebuyers-mortgages.com for additional information.   For out of state buyers or realtors, please use the USDA link at the bottom of this page.    

Below is a map showing the eligible area for the Ohio Rural Home Loan Program.   Below this initial map are one for some Northern Ohio Counties.

USDA - Rural Home Northern Ohio Area OHIO This Map shows Eligible Areas in Northern Ohio

More information is also available at http://www.rurdev.usda.gov

The program does have an upfront Guarantee fee of 2.00%
which is very similar to the upfront fee charged on VA Loans.