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When to pay off your mortgage aggressively | Katonah Real Estate

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The clear advantages of paying off your mortgage as quickly as possible have changed quite a bit over the past few years. The urgency to pay it off has somewhat diminished, as interest rates have plummeted to historical lows. It’s no longer the black and white decision it was back when interest rates hovered between 6% and 9%, and even the 11% to 13% we saw a couple of decades ago.

I am a big proponent of paying down that ugly mortgage beast as soon as is practical. But, before you go cutting a check to the bank, there is a pecking order of financial priorities you need to address before you consider tackling your mortgage.

In order of importance, here are the places you need to put your financial attention first:

Take The Cards Off The Table: Pay off all credit cards with high interest rates. Consider the huge discrepancy between credit cards with interest rates of 13% – 23%, and a 4% mortgage interest rate.

In Case Of Emergency: You need to build an emergency fund, ideally 8-12 months of living expenses. Yes, today’s job market is improving, but if you suddenly find yourself facing a layoff, you need to be prepared to sustain up to one year of living expenses.

Build Up For Retirement: Are you able to make the maximum yearly contributions to your retirement accounts, 401K, IRA or an equivalent?  Ask your accountant what the maximum allowable is for you and go for it!

 

http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2014/03/12/when-to-pay-off-mortgage/6327487/

Atlanta House with ‘Gone with the Wind’ Link Asks $3.25M | Katonah NY Homes

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22 images

Location: Atlanta, Ga. Price: $3,250,000 The Skinny: Though Atlanta has played host to plenty of culturally important events, including the Olympics, the first season of the Walking Dead and, of course, the canonical live recording of Free Bird, the 1939 premiere of Gone with the Wind was such a huge milestone for the city that any association with it is trumpeted to this day. That’s the case with this 1935 home in the Peachtree Heights district of Buckhead, which the BrokerBabble claims hosted the cast party for the film. And it might very well have, though the homes where Clark Gable is said to have been fêted approaches the number of homes wherein George Washington purportedly lay down his wigged, weary head for a nap. Designed by Atlanta firm Cooper and Cooper, it’s all classical symmetry and reassuringly staid formalism (a combination the dim echoes of which can be seen in McMansion developments across the Sunbelt), while the decor veers queasily between traditional (downstairs) and blandly contemporary (upstairs). It’s asking $3.25M, which includes almost two acres of beautifully landscaped grounds that Vivien Leigh might have strolled through.

http://curbed.com/archives/2014/03/10/atlanta-home-with-gone-with-the-wind-connection-asking-325m.php

 

Craigslist real estate listings can help agents keep deals in-house | Katonah Real Estate

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Craigslist is the grandfather of listing sites.

So like grandfathers everywhere, it’s associated with the past, not the future. As a result, some agents may neglect the old-timer, seeking to harvest leads using cutting-edge tools instead.

But while some might consider Craigslist a bit of an old fogey, agents who shun it are passing up a marketing opportunity that remains a fertile (and typically free) source of high-quality leads, according to Amy Gerrish, leader of The Phoenix Metro Group, an agent team part of Phoenix-based HomeSmart.

As a resource for buyer leads, Gerrish — the latest winner of Inman News’ #madREskillz contest — says Craigslist seems to offer a better return on investment than advertising on listing portals or Facebook.

The leads she’s picked up from those sites seem to be of about equal quality to those she gets from Craigslist, which have translated into six sales for her team in the last year, she said.

“If they’re the same quality, then I just want the ones that you don’t have to pay for,” she said.

– See more at: http://www.inman.com/2014/03/05/craigslist-real-estate-listings-can-help-agents-keep-deals-in-house/?utm_source=20140305&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dailyheadlinespm#sthash.i2Zmr3w0.dpuf

Four-Step Guide to Refinancing Your Home Mortgage | Katonah Real Estate

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Refinancing your home mortgage can be a great way to save some money in the long run. If rates have dropped since you obtained your original loan, you can potentially see a substantial drop in your payments. But there are other reasons you may also want to consider refinancing your home mortgage.

It gives you the option to reach into the equity that’s built up in your home since you purchased it — it’s known as a “cash-out refi.” It lets you take out a new mortgage based on the home’s current worth, pay off what you still owe on the old loan, and pocket the difference, Realtor.com says. You could also shorten the time period that you’ll be making payments, which can be done by swapping your current 30-year mortgage for a 15-year loan or another similar option.

But how do you know when it’s a smart move for you to go through the refinancing  process? And when exactly will it start saving you money?

Click through for our guide to help you determine if it’s the right time to refinance

1. When to consider refinancing

source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sleepyjeanie/

source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sleepyjeanie/

According to USA Today: “Some borrowers can save money when they spot a rate that’s at least half a percentage point lower than their existing rate, experts say. More typically, people tend to move when they see more than a full percentage-point drop.”

ABC News reports that it’s also important to ask yourself this question: How long will it take for your new monthly payment to yield enough savings to make up for the closing costs for the new loan? If you can find a way to keep your closing costs down, refinancing becomes an even smarter option. And you should expect closing costs on refinancing to be even lower, because there is less work for the lender and title company to do.

2. Determine when it will start saving you money

think money save

Figuring out how long it will take you to start recouping costs is key. For example, someone who is in their 80s probably shouldn’t spend $4,000 upfront in order to save $50 a month, according to USA Today. Just make sure you’re looking at your costs and how long you plan to stay in your home. If you plan on being there for quite a while, there’s a good chance refinancing is a smart option.

Realtor.com recommends weighing monthly savings against upfront costs. Let’s say you can save $100 a month on your mortgage payment by refinancing but it requires you to pay $2,500 upfront — then you’d need to keep the new loan for at least 25 months to make up the difference. If you’re not going to be in your current house for at least that long, it’s not going to do you any good.

When in doubt, talking to a mortgage broker is always a good idea. They can look at your specific situation and figure out what’s going to be your best move.

3. Where mortgage rates are at

housing Real Estate Mortgage Loan

In February, the average rate on a 30-year fixed home mortgage was 4.28 percent, which is near historically low levels. A 15-year loan was 3.33 percent, according to Freddie Mac, a mortgage buyer.

These are great rates, but economists aren’t expecting them to stay that low for long, according to USA Today. “Most economists expect home sales and prices to keep rising this year, but at a slower pace,” the publication reports. They forecast that both will likely rise around 5 percent, down from double-digit gains in 2013.”

This means that if it’s something you’re interested in doing, the sooner the better. As interest rates continue to rise, it’ll save you less money when you do make the move to refinance.

4. Preparing to refinance

Source: Thinkstock

You’ve decided refinancing is for you, and so your next step is to start the loan process again. Make sure to get all of your records together and check to see that your credit profile look goods, Realtor.com says: “Your lender will need to verify your income, employment, account balances and the like, so be prepared. The lender will tell you exactly what you need, but generally you’ll be required to produce current pay stubs and savings and checking-account statements.”

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http://wallstcheatsheet.com/personal-finance/mortgages/four-step-guide-to-refinancing-your-home-mortgage.html/?ref=YF

Before you buy, try that mortgage on for size | Katonah Real Estate

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If you’re a future homebuyer, you might have used one of those “How much mortgage can I afford?” calculators online. These calculators typically gather information like your down payment amount, credit score range, monthly or annual income and debts.

 

Then, they’ll spit out an estimate of what a bank might lend you mortgage-wise.

These calculators work primarily by figuring out your debt-to-income ratio and then how much you can afford to pay for your monthly mortgage payment. This is similar to how banks decide how much to lend you.

The typical bank limit on monthly mortgage payments is about 28 percent of your gross monthly income. Therefore, the bank thinks you can devote up to 28 percent of your household income to your mortgage payment and expenses (including taxes, insurance and association dues).

Banks will also typically allow a total debt-to-income ratio of up to around 36 percent. This means that your mortgage, credit card payments, student loan payments and car payments shouldn’t exceed 36 percent of your total monthly income. (Note that if your other debt payments are already at 15 percent of your monthly income, you only have 21 percent of your income to devote to your mortgage, regardless of the 28 percent rule.)

So when you put your current income and expenses into a house affordability calculator, it will tell you how much you can afford to pay for your home per month. Then, based on factors such as estimated interest rate, tax payments, insurance payments and available down payment, it’ll tell you how much house, in total, you can afford.

 

http://homes.yahoo.com/news/before-you-buy–try-that-mortgage-on-for-size-211830352.html

Peek Inside 1945’s ‘Celestial’ Chrysler Building Observatory | Katonah NY Real Estate

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Monochromes.jpgPhoto courtesy of The Chrysler Building: Creating a New York Icon, Day by Day by David Stravitz; Princeton Architectural Press

Today we take a break from our regularly-scheduled Library of Congress programming to have a look at a tipster’s request: the observatory on the 71st floor of New York City’s Chrysler Building. The observatory—which featured, according to the book The Chrysler Building: One Kansas Mechanic and His Jazz-Age Tower of Babel, “a celestial motif, with sun rays painted on the walls, and Saturn-shaped lighting globes hanging from the ceiling”—opened to the public in 1945, 15 years after construction halted on the tower. The book also says that the steeply-pitched gabled ceiling succeeded in creating a feel of “disorienting splendor,” a technique used by architect William Van Alen to “dramatize a state of mind.”

 

 

http://curbed.com/archives/2014/02/28/peek-inside-1945s-celestial-chrysler-building-observatory.php

China Home Prices Continue Slowdown | Katonah Real Estate

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China’s housing market continued to show a modest slowdown in February as new data show that price growth was capped by discounts in some cities while the Lunar New Year holiday had an impact on sales overall.

Average new-home prices issued by data provider China Real Estate Index System on Friday showed prices grew 10.79% in February from a year earlier, compared with January’s 11.1%, which also slowed from December’s 11.5%.

The survey tracks new-home sales in 100 Chinese cities. The average price in February rose 0.54% compared with January, the survey said. That is down from 0.63% in January over December, which was the slowest on-month gain in more than a year.

More customers are staying on the sidelines since some property developers started to introduce price cuts from mid-February, sales agents said. In Hangzhou in east China, at least two property developers introduced discounts on their new homes last week.

While January and February are typically slower periods for home sales, some observers have warned that housing prices in China may cool in 2014 because many developers are concerned about clearing inventory in places where there is an oversupply of homes, especially in tier two and tier three cities.

 

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304709904579410711546149156

3 Huge Differences Between U.S. and Canadian Mortgages | Katonah NY Real Estate

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As housing reform continues to be part of the Obama administration’s agenda, differences between the mortgage market in the United States and that of other countries have come to light. For instance, how do domestic mortgage products differ from those offered in Canada, a country considered the most comparable to the Unites States?

Here are three critical differences between the home lending market here and in our closest neighbor to the north.

30-year mortgages? Never heard of them While the 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage has become a staple in the U.S., Canada doesn’t offer anything remotely similar. The longest term for a home loan in the North Country is five years, with the amount amortized over a 25-year period. Canadian banks also offer fixed-rate mortgages for two-year, three-year, and four-year terms.

This means Canadians can never count on having a particular loan interest rate last more than five years. At the end of the loan’s life span, borrowers can refinance, but prepaying a loan early to take advantage of a drop in rates can cost mortgage customers dearly, as prepayment fees are quite hefty.

 

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/02/23/3-huge-differences-between-us-and-canadian-mortgag.aspx