Sometimes FAST is the key to success. You may have seen advertisements from lenders who “guarantee” very quick closings and offer to “make it right” if they don’t meet the deadline. That is not what this is – in fact instead of promising something that cannot be delivered unless a long, long list of stipulations is met we’ll start with the facts and deliver based on the borrower’s ability along with the ability of a few third party providers to deliver. Eight days is possible and can be done and something reasonably close can be achieved in the majority of cases.

Fast Home Loan Closings for Georgia Mortgages

1. Good credit, income and assets are required for the fastest closings. Some hopeful competitors won’t even consider a loan application with someone who has challenges and they only want to work with “the cream of the crop”. So do we, however we work with anyone and everyone.
2. The property must be acceptable and ready to occupy under standard lending guidelines.
3. The borrower(s) need to have all of the requested verifying documentation in the lender’s hands within hours of being requested.

I am a multi-year veteran of the industry who has served in the highest offices in the industry. I can help you get the best deals and avoid getting ripped off!
Contact form on this web site

We hear, and see, the words “executive home”. Do you know what it is? If not don’t feel too alone because even among seasoned professionals who attempt to define “executive homes” there is dissension. Today I asked a few REALTORS for an answer. Is there a specific designation for an executive home? Their answers were, “No.”

Cobb County, Marietta, Executive Homes

Around my base of operations in Marietta, Cobb County, Georgia – just a few minutes north of Atlanta on I75 – there are plenty of homes for sale which would fall into this somewhat imaginary “Marietta, Georgia Executive Homes For Sale” category. In researching and over years of experience I have been able to surmise that an executive home here in Georgia would be one which falls into the following:

• Is near mass or easy transportation
• Is a single-family home
• Generally in a PUD (Planned Unit Development)
• Has a sales price between about $400,000 and $650,000 (but can go lower or higher)
• Includes an office or study in the floor plan
• Often is in a gated community or has security patrols
• Is for families and individuals equally
• Features amenities like swimming, tennis, pathways, and golf

While other homes may also, especially in Cobb County, Georgia, be considered executive style homes this is the general description of what I have long seen referred to as an executive home. Priced just a little higher than the starter home and just a little lower than many luxury homes the executive home is built well enough and with the right floor-plan to be the final home purchased prior to retirement and downsizing if that is your plan.

There are several people in the Atlanta metropolitan area who can help you find an executive home once I have qualified you for the purchase.

Image: Ambro / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I am a multi-year veteran of the industry who has served in the highest offices in the industry. I can help you get the best deals and avoid getting ripped off!
Contact form on this web site

Atlanta Luxury Home Market – People are always asking me, how’s the Atlanta real estate market? In August 2011 there were 32 luxury homes that sold that were listed for over $1,000,000.  In August 2010, that number was pretty close to the same with 28 luxury homes sold.

What was the difference?

In August 2010 the lowest sales price was $850,000 with just 11 days on the market.  The average number of days on market for all the luxury homes sold was 193 days and an average sales price of $1,317,598.  The highest price Atlanta luxury home sold for $2,400,000 with 805 days on the market.

In August 2011, we saw a decrease in the number of days on the market in the Atlanta Luxury Home Market.  The lowest number of days on market is 0, yes, not even 1 day on the market for a home that was listed at 1,099,000 and sold for $520,000 in McDonough.  The average number of days on market for all luxury homes in the Atlanta area was 116 days with an average sale price of $1,620,534.  The most expensive luxury home that sold in August in the Atlanta area was $9,000,0000.  It was on the market 454 days.

Many of the Atlanta Luxury Homes are in golf course communities with fabulous amenities.

Where did the Atlanta area Luxury Homes sell in August 2011?

Buckhead  - 8 of the Luxury homes sold in Buckhead

• London Estates in Atlanta
• Kingswood – Atlanta Fulton County
• Woodward Investment (near Buckhead in Atlanta)
• Sugarloaf Country Club in Duluth – Gwinnett County – 2 of them sold here – For the same time period last year, 4 Luxury Homes sold at Sugarloaf
• Peachtree Manor Heights –Atlanta in Fulton
• Atlanta National in Alpharetta in Fulton
• St. Marlo in Duluth Forsyth County
• Tuxedo Park – Near Buckhead in Atlanta
• High Gates on Robinson in Marietta – Cobb County
• Chatham Park in Roswell –Fulton County
• Riverwood in Johns Creek – Fulton
• Sentinel Ferry at the River in Sandy Springs –Fulton County
• Lake Lanier in Cumming – Forysth
• Atlanta National – On the Golf Course in Alpharetta
• McDonough in Henry County
• Atlanta Country Club in Marietta
• Country Club of the South in Johns Creek –Fulton County
• Chastain –Atlanta Fulton County – Last year same time period 3 Luxury homes sold in Chastain
• Spalding Stables Estates in Atlanta – Sandy Springs area of Fulton County
• Chatsworth in Atlanta near Buckhead
• The Enclave at Jett Ferry – Dunwoody – New construction by John Wieland

If you’re thinking of buying or selling an Atlanta Luxury Home, contact Jen Bowman, Broker Associate with Keller Williams Realty Atlanta Partners, Luxury Homes by KW at 404-456-5024.

www.LuxuryHomesGA.com

I am a multi-year veteran of the industry who has served in the highest offices in the industry. I can help you get the best deals and avoid getting ripped off!
Contact form on this web site

HUD has issued Mortgagee Letter 2010-28 changing the Upfront and Annual Mortgage Insurance Premiums effective with case numbers assigned on or after October 4, 2010 as follows:

Upfront Premiums

Annual Premiums

These premiums are effective with case numbers assigned on or after October 4, 2010.

The Annual Percentage Rate (APR) is one of the most misunderstood numbers there is on the mortgage documentation. Additionally it is the most easily abused and even though it is supposed to exist to protect shoppers can be so misconstrued as to actually harm the shopper. Be that as it may here are fees that must be included in the calculations for APR in the state of Georgia.

The APR is the total cost of the loan over the life of the loan averaged with the base interest rate. For example if you have an interest rate or 4.5% and closing costs of $5000 on a $100,000 loan the .5% APR qualified closing costs would result in an APR of 4.923% while $10,000 in APR qualified closing costs on the same loan would result in an APR of 5.333%

The way this can be abused or manipulated is by charging a higher base rate and shifting the rate commission to cover some of the closing costs. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing but it gives a hint as to how this figure can be manipulated.

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I can’t say it any better than my friend Jennifer Fivelsdal “Just a few years ago it was not uncommon to see a house assessed at $200,000 selling for $400,000 and this made home sellers happy.  That was a market called a Seller’s Market, in other words more buyers and fewer properties.  The well known rule of supply and demand dictates that a higher demand with a limited supply will result in higher prices.  Today the scenario is so different.  Very high inventory and few buyers makes this a Buyer’s Market. In this case buyers want to spend less and get much more for their money.”

We are very much, for almost every market, in a buyer’s market. More now than ever before many sellers are having to short sell their home or bring cash to closing to pay the difference between the sales price and the mortgage pay off. To be sure a home seller may want to have their home appraised independently. While that appraisal cannot be used by the buyer’s lender due to all sorts of rules and regulations it should still be a standard, Uniform Appraisal and the result should be within a few percentage points. If you are in the Atlanta area I can give you the names of a few Atlanta area Georgia licensed appraisers.

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Actually this should be title “How to kill your chance of closing on time” or “How to sabotage your own home purchase or refinance”. Then again this is the short, short list of a long list of things you can do to bring your loan process to a screeching halt.

Be reminded of the number of people who put a lot of effort in your loan to get it to the closing table. In fact from my office door right now I can see four full-time people who work behind the scenes on every loan. I can see the set-up person, the processor, the compliance officer and the underwriting department supervisor. That doesn’t include your insurance company and the people who touch the policy there, the agents and all the people in their employment who work on your file, the appraiser, inspector, title office and all the people who are involved in working on your file and others. When you do not close all of the work of all of those people is for nothing. That time could have been invested in someone who doesn’t do the things we are talking about today.

Over the years I have seen a lot of reasons for people to be denied a loan after then have been pre-qualified and before they close. Everything from quitting their job to buying a new boat to something as simple as applying for a student loan and being approved. Here is the rule of thumb:

From the time you are pre-approved to the time you have your keys and paperwork in your hands plus about 90 days do not apply for any credit, quit your job, spend your saving, cash out your 401K, co-sign with someone on a loan, or anything else with your money or your credit. Think I’m kidding? I’ve seen it happen no less than two dozen times in the last few years.

Hopefully you are working with a loan officer who knows how to properly instruct you at the time of application or pre-approval and who knows how to accurately answer your questions about changes in employment, income, savings, or credit. If not call me and I’ll find one for you. I know loan officers in almost every state. Now get some popcorn and enjoy this brief video

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoC3on2apH0

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There is little secret about the devastation delivered to the real estate industry in the Atlanta area over the last twenty-four months. Values plummeted in 2009 as more properties made their way to the market through increasing numbers of foreclosures leaving banks and investors holding inventory unlikely to resell in months if not years.

Making matters worse many of the foreclosed properties are not in prime condition with many of them needing repairs to return them to livable condition. Add to this trouble the number of properties which have been vandalized while vacant and those continue to set in a deteriorating state further impacting the values of other properties in the area.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development, through their Federal Homeowner’s Association, established a special loan in 1978 using revisions to the National Housing Act (NHA). Since that date FHA 203K loans are available to help America restore and preserve its existing housing inventory even when the homes need upgrades or repairs.

Allowing for almost all repairs except structural repairs the FHA 203K loans, more specifically the Streamlined version thereof, are helping sellers like banks and servicers including HUD to sell housing inventory that otherwise would likely not be sold. The loan is good not only for repairs but for upgrades as well.

Real estate professional and mortgage executive Jesse Kight of Marietta says, “the solutions provided by the FHA rehab loan are helping HUD and banks accept offers on properties with only the standard 3.5% down payment required by FHA to insure the loan. Since all other qualifications are the same anyone who qualifies for any FHA loan is eligible for the rehab version.”

For more information on the FHA 203k Streamlined loan in Georgia contact Ken Cook at 678-439-8683

The Georgia Dream down payment assistance plan has been extended to higher loan amounts and higher income amounts in the Fall and Winter of 2009. Call me on my cell phone for specific examples of the augmentation to this program – that’s 678-439-8683.

Here is some information directly from Georgia DCA about the Georgia Dream Down Payment Assistance Plan.

Higher Income Limits!
Higher Purchase Price Limits!
No First Time Home-buyer Requirement!

In the 21 counties designated as Federal Disaster Areas.

The 21 Georgia counties are:

Carroll, Catoosa, Chattooga, Cherokee,
Cobb,Crawford, Dawson, DeKalb, Dooly, Douglas, Fulton, Gwinnett, Heard, Houston, Newton, Paulding, Peach, Rockdale, Stephens, Taylor and Walker.

For a limited time ANY HOME BUYER in these counties may qualify for Georgia Dream products with the following special guidelines:

You DO NOT have to be a First Time Home Buyer (For a Georiga Dream? First Mortgage Loan combined with NSP or “PLUS” down payment assistance)

Higher purchase price limits
Catoosa, Chattooga, Crawford, Dooly, Houston, Peach, Stephens, Taylor and Walker – $250,000

Carroll, Cherokee, Cobb, Dawson, Dekalb, Douglas, Fulton, Gwinnett, Heard, Newton, Paulding and Rockdale – $300,000

Higher Household Income limits
Catoosa, Chattooga, Crawford, Dooly, Houston, Peach, Stephens, Taylor and Walker
1 or 2 persons $73,000
3 or more persons $85,000

Carroll, Cherokee, Cobb, Dawson, Dekalb, Douglas, Fulton, Gwinnett, Heard, Newton, Paulding and Rockdale

1 or 2 persons $86,000
3 or more persons $100,000

Looking for a great place to live with some of the best values in America? Look no farther because I am sitting in it right now keyboarding this post to you! On October 6th NBC’s Today Show with Al Roker highlighted Marietta, Georgia as the number 4 place in America to buy a home and get the most “bang for your buck”.

I happen to agree with them because I live here, have lived here my entire life except a little college stint, and I am very actively involved in my community and lending here. During the boom builders constructed some very beautiful homes which in turn emptied a number of existing homes and left us with a surplus of larger, newer homes. In fact on October the 12th I wrote about “My Home, Marietta, Georgia” which was a featured article here on Active Rain.

We were hit late in the price drops but when we got hit we got hit hard! Sarasota is number one, San Fransisco is number two, is number three is Lansing (another great city), and Marietta (that’s me) is number four. By the way, the Gone With The Wind Museum is way down on the list of “pride and joy” of this community. Seriously, only an outsider would say that! Don’t get me wrong, it’s very cool but the life is in that old town area is very vibrant and that is just one of hundreds of attractions in that immediate area.

You can watch the video here on the City of Marietta’s website. When you get finished call me. I’m not a real estate agent – I’m a very seasoned home lender based right here for my entire career in Marietta, Georgia. 3300 homes in the Atlanta/Marietta area have been financed across my desk I have a pretty decent “handle” on the market here.