While other markets are seeing things slow down we are not!  Even with the liquidity and credit crisis there is still money available to buy a new or starter home.  One of the biggest misconceptions right now is that there are no more 1^st time homebuyer products.  That is simply not true!  Yes, back in years past there were more things to choose from such as 100% financing and the 80/20 loan with no mortgage insurance and unfortunately they are gone but, there are other ways to finance a home. We have just forgotten about them.  In Hampton Roads we are lucky, as value is holding up, but sellers are more willing to chip in and help pay for closing costs in an effort to make their home more attractive to the buyer.  This brings me to the FHA loan.  What a great product that we forgot about and frankly we didn’t need to use it with all that Fannie Mae was offering.  But now it is back and bigger than ever.  It allows so much flexibility, with 97% financing and 6% allowable seller concessions, and you are able to get a gift of the 3% down payment from a relative.  You can still get 100% this way!  Most people are prepared to pay for their closing costs when purchasing a new home which is usually in the neighborhood of 3 to 4% but if you think about the seller picking up that for you, we are just shifting the money to the down payment.  Before when the 100% products were out there no seller was picking up the closing costs so that was an expense that was going to be incurred anyway. Well now they are and the money is now being called down payment but is really the same 100% just coming from different parties.  Another way to skin this cat is to borrower the money from a relative or get them to gift it to you and then you are getting the best of all worlds no money out of your pocket!  Awesome!!!  FHA is also more lenient on credit than a conventional loan, so for those just starting out this is really a great product. 

Now let’s talk about rates.  Yes, rates are higher than they have been over the last couple of years, but look they are still lower than they have been if you compare the last 20 or even 40 years.  Another bonus in buying a new home!   Let’s face it, Hampton Roads is a great market and does not have the things going on in the rest of the country that the media reports.  We are more stable and with rates and money available what a great time to buy a house.

Should you have questions or want to inquire about how to get a pre-approval feel free to contact me otherwise check back as I will continue to update every other week with something new and exciting going on in our market.

Happy Hunting,

Alex