This Month in Real Estate February 2011

This Month in Real Estate for February 2011 shares that 89% of all homebuyers begin their home search online.

Jay Papasan also shared that home sales were at an annual rate of 5.3 Million with a median home sales price of $168,800, and the national average mortgage interest rate was 4.71%.

For selling a home in the winter, and getting a jump on the spring home sales market, there are some good reasons as to why to list your home now, and ideas that can help to possibly sell yours faster! Bryon Ellington provided some of those thoughts:

1) With less homes on the market, pricing your home right and staging it well will make yours stand out.

2) According to the National Association of REALTORS(R), it takes a buyer, on average, 12 weeks to search for a home. If yours is on the market NOW, then you can catch those buyers ready to enter the spring marketplace right when they get started!

3) Home inspectors, lenders, appraisers, and the like are not quite as busy during the winter months. This may mean things could go more quickly and smoothly than when they are busier. When it comes to home inspection repairs, the licensed contractors and repair persons also may have more availability to make repairs, so they can be completed more quickly and you, and the buyer, can have a quicker peace of mind.

4) The internet makes home shopping in the winter much easier — and appealing — to buyers. With less competition, and if your home is marketed well online, you could be seen by many homebuyers who haven’t even started their official search yet!

To find out the best price for your Towson home and how to make it most appealing to buyers, contact me so I can help!

First Time Buyer $7500 Grant Federal Home Loan Bank is Back!

Federal Home Loan Bank’s $7,500 First Time Buyer Grant is back for many qualifying individuals.

Brian Picker, one of my mortgage partners from 1st Mariner Mortgage, announced the return of the program and his company’s involvement in it.

Here are particulars on the grant qualifications from the information he sent over to me:

Details:

•            First Time Buyers Only (cannot have owned a home in the last 3 years)

•            Income Restricted to 80% of the area Median Income, based on Family size

-            All occupants over 18, income considered. Example – (1 person = $45,000 2 person = $52,000, etc.)

•            5 for 1 Matching Funds – UP TO $7500 Grant.

-            Buyer would need $1500.00 in the deal to get maximum allowed $7500.00.

*   Forgivable Grant over 5 years – pre-closing housing counseling required.

*   Funds CAN BE USED as Down payment requirements – for F.H.A. Loans

If you have been considering buying your first home in Towson or anywhere in the Baltimore real estate area, contact me, and Brian & I can help you figure out if this program will work for you!

New IRS Rental Property Law 2011

The IRS has issued a new law for rental property owners who have work done on their house over $600.

This is part of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (Law H.R. 5297), which expanded the law from multiple family units to individual owners. They are now considered to be conducting a trade or business, requiring them to provide a 1099 to any contractor conducting work totaling over $600 on the property.

For rental property owners, you must obtain the name, address, and social security number or Tax ID number of anyone doing work on your property, and provide them with a 1099 and keep a copy for yourself.

This begins in 2011, so starting in January, your records need to be kept if you are a rental property owner.

According to a National Association of REALTORS(R) article:

The requirement applies to all independent ­contractors or freelance workers that typically provide services in a rental real estate context. These include plumbers, electricians, painters, cleaning services, gardeners, landscapers, accountants, and handymen—in short, virtually all service providers to the property who don’t receive a W-2 form from you and who provide at least $600 in services for the year. It’s a cumulative amount, so even if a painting job costs you only $400, you need to track it and add any other charges from that vendor to see if the total comes to more than $600, which triggers the requirement.

Be aware of these new requirements, because fines begin at $250 per occurrence. Keep track of your expenses and what you pay your contractors, and follow the steps to make sure you are covered!

Dairy Road Bridge in Parkton to Be Closed

The Dairy Road bridge in Parkton will be closed for about 10 weeks as it is reconstructed for safety.

The bridge is located east of I-83 in Parkton, and will be under construction for about 10 weeks. It was built in 1920, and the concrete was deteriorating from age & usage.

When it reopens, it will be about a foot wider to accommodate larger cars, and about six feet longer for strength.

Most of the traffic on that portion of Dairy Rd in Parkton is local, so main traffic will not be effected. There are a few easy routes around the closed bridge to get through the area.

View Larger Map

So if you are in the Parkton area, just be aware, cautious, and follow signs. The bridge is expected to re-open at the beginning of May.

Non-Resident Seller Transfer Withholding Tax Reduced

The non-resident seller withholding transfer tax, which is charged to sellers who are out of state without certain requirements, has been reduced from 7.5% to 6.75%.

This withholding tax has been charged to sellers who moved, many estates, and other sellers of homes in the State of Maryland.

Luckily the reduction should help sellers who had to move out of town prior to selling their Maryland homes.

According to the new form, as put out by the Maryland Association of REALTORS(R),

“As defined under Maryland law and as used in a) and b) above, the term “total payment” means the net proceeds paid to the Seller for the Property and associated tangible personal property, less: 1) debts owed by the Seller and secured by a mortgage or other lien against the Property being paid upon the sale or exchange of the Property and 2) other expenses of the Seller arising out of the sale or exchange of the Property and disclosed on a settlement statement prepared in connection with the sale or exchange of the Property. “Total payment” includes the fair market value of any property transferred to the Seller.”

As always, you will want to contact an attorney for legal advice and a tax accountant for tax advice if you are a Maryland out-of-state seller.

Please note that all Maryland Association of REALTORS(R) forms are copy-written, and are for the use only of Maryland REALTORS(R) and their clients in a transaction, and may not be changed in any way without written permission from the Maryland Association of REALTORS(R).

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