Housing & Economic Recovery Act of 2008!

Great news! The president just signed into law the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008. This is good news for buyers and sellers alike.

Summary provided by the National Association of Realtors:

H.R. 3221, the “Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008,” passed the House on July 23, 2008, by a vote of 272-152. On Saturday, July 26, 2008, the Senate passed the bill by a vote of 72-13. The President signed the bill on July 30, 2008. The bill includes the following provisions:

GSE Reform – including a strong independent regulator, and permanent conforming loan limits up to the greater of $417,000 or 115% local area median home price, capped at $625,500. The effective date for reforms is immediate upon enactment, but the loan limits will not go into effect until the expiration of the Economic Stimulus limits (December 31, 2008).

FHA Reform – including permanent FHA loan limits at the greater of $271,050 or 115% of local area median home price, capped at $625,500; streamlined processing for FHA condos; reforms to the HECM program, and reforms to the FHA manufactured housing program. The downpayment requirement on FHA loans will go up to 3.5% (from 3%). The effective date for reforms is immediate upon enactment, but the loan limits will not go into effect until the expiration of the Economic Stimulus limits (December 31, 2008).

Homebuyer Tax Credit - a $7500 tax credit that would be would be available for any qualified purchase between April 8, 2008 and June 30, 2009. The credit is repayable over 15 years (making it, in effect, an interest free loan).
FHA foreclosure rescue – development of a refinance program for homebuyers with problematic subprime loans. Lenders would write down qualified mortgages to 85% of the current appraised value and qualified borrowers would get a new FHA 30-year fixed mortgage at 90% of appraised value. Borrowers would have to share 50% of all future appreciation with FHA. The loan limit for this program is $550,440 nationwide. Program is effective on October 1, 2008.

Seller-funded downpayment assistance programs – codifies existing FHA proposal to prohibit the use of downpayment assistance programs funded by those who have a financial interest in the sale; does not prohibit other assistance programs provided by nonprofits funded by other sources, churches, employers, or family members. This prohibition does not go into effect until October 1, 2008.
VA loan limits – temporarily increases the VA home loan guarantee loan limits to the same level as the Economic Stimulus limits through December 31, 2008.

Risk-based pricing – puts a moratorium on FHA using risk-based pricing for one year. This provision is effective from October 1, 2008 through September 30, 2009.

GSE Stabilization – includes language proposed by the Treasury Department to authorize Treasury to make loans to and buy stock from the GSEs to make sure that Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae could not fail.

Mortgage Revenue Bond Authority – authorizes $10 billion in mortgage revenue bonds for refinancing subprime mortgages.

National Affordable Housing Trust Fund – Develops a Trust Fund funded by a percentage of profits from the GSEs. In its first years, the Trust Fund would cover costs of any defaulted loans in FHA foreclosure program. In out years, the Trust Fund would be used for the development of affordable housing.

CDBG Funding – Provides $4 billion in neighborhood revitalization funds for communities to purchase foreclosed homes.

LIHTC – Modernizes the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program to make it more efficient.

Loan Originator Requirements – Strengthens the existing state-run nationwide mortgage originator licensing and registration system (and requires a parallel HUD system for states that fail to participate). Federal bank regulators will establish a parallel registration system for FDIC-insured banks. The purpose is to prevent fraud and require minimum licensing and education requirements. The bill exempts those who only perform real estate brokerage activities and are licensed or registered by a state, unless they are compensated by a lender, mortgage broker, or other loan originator.

Is Today the Day?

Have we reached the real estate market turning point?

Portland metro/Vancouver/Beaverton is starting to see multiple offer situations, offers higher than asking price and lookers who were fence-sitting, turn into buyers.

Why? According to Coldwell Banker, Barbara Sue Seal's Certified Real Estate Success Coach, Ned Stafford, licensed in real estate since 1971, today marks a turn for the better. In addition to the above signs he witnesses throughout the Coldwell Banker offices, he attributes a turning point to the Dow going up 277 on Wednesday and up 207 today, plus oil decreasing in price.

What do you think? Is July 17 the turning point?

Nehemiah Program in Jeopardy!

Non-Profit Downpayment Assistance Programs in Jeopardy,
Take Action Today to Support Downpayment Assistance!

Nehemiah Corporation of America, a national non-profit organization, has helped 290,000 families who would have otherwise been locked out of homeownership due to lack of downpayment funds.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has re-issued a proposed rule which would threaten the opportunity for low to moderate income families to access downpayment assistance by eliminating all private downpayment assistance programs.

Preserve private downpayment assistance programs for families who are credit-worthy, but lack the savings necessary to fulfill their homeownership goals, protect the already fragile economy, improve the current housing market, and save jobs.

Take Action Today to Support Downpayment Assistance.

Go to:
http://capwiz.com/nehemia/issues/alert/?alertid=11598811

Portland Rocks, Here's Proof

And we aren't the only ones who think so....consider:

"Study Predicts Job Growth, Cites High Quality of Life in Portland Area

It’s good to live in the Portland area! Greenlight Greater Portland, a consortium of private sector leaders, has created a “2008 Greater Portland Prosperity Index” that notes the region’s potential in a range of business, demographic and quality of life metrics compared to nine other metro areas across the western United States.

Key findings include:

* Greenlight predicts that the Portland region will add 100,000 jobs in the next five years.
* Portland’s gross regional product is predicted to grow 29.1 percent to $144.1 billion in the next five years, behind only that of Austin, Texas.
* The Portland region boasts the second-lowest average price for industrial space among the nine regions, at $6.34 per square foot. Only Denver's is lower. The price in several California cities is more than double that of Portland.
* Average Class A office price per square foot is $25.30, lower than all other cities except Albuquerque and Austin.
* Overall cost of living is cheaper than in Seattle and the five California cities surveyed.
* Average rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $875, third-lowest, behind only Denver and Albuquerque.
* Median housing price, at $295,300, is fourth-lowest.
* The population in the Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton area is predicted to increase 8 percent to nearly 2.4 million people in the next five years.
* The study also measured quality of life. Portland leads all 10 study cities in number of bookstores per million residents (135), wineries per million residents (69) and brewpubs per million residents (23).

The index, done in conjunction with Philadelphia-based forecasting firm Global Insight, compares the region to nine other metro areas: Seattle, Denver, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Jose, Los Angeles, San Diego, Albuquerque and Austin. The study identified several local growth sectors, including professional, financial and information services and construction and natural resources. Portland's professional and business services sector will grow 23 percent to more than 170,000 workers by 2013."

What does this mean to you? Invest in Portland now, watch the growth happen and enjoy the gains. Contact us for details on the best real estate deals in town.

(stats courtesy of Portland Metropolitan Association of Realtors)

Buy Low, Sell High

Considering buying in Portland? Consider this:

The Portland metropolitan area is a very stable housing market. According to top economic forecaster Dr. Lawrence Yun, the area has one of the lowest mortgage default rates. Plus, Dr. Yun asserts that "buyers can find great bargains due to historically low mortgage rates and good inventory."

You've heard the adage "Buy low, sell high" -- right? Well, now's the time to buy. We're at the low point of the pendulum swing, with really low mortgage rates and many opportunities to find the precise home or investment you desire.

Call today, start investing for tomorrow.