JD Powers Award

J.D. Power and Associates Ranks Coldwell Banker Highest in Home Seller Satisfaction
SANDY, Utah – September 24, 2009 – Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC ranked highest among real estate companies in satisfying home sellers according to the recently released J.D. Power and Associates 2009 Home Buyer/Seller Study.
The independently administered study measured customer satisfaction of homebuyers and sellers among the largest national real estate firms.  The study incorporates more than 3,100 evaluations from 2,801 respondents who bought or sold a home between April 2008 and June 2009. The survey was fielded between April and June 2009.
“This recognition is a testament to the brand’s legacy as an industry leader, our commitment to innovation and, above all, our powerful network,” said Dan Christensen, president of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Utah.
“With unsurpassed local knowledge, expertise and work ethic, we at Coldwell Banker have always felt that our network of professionals is the greatest in the industry, and we’re pleased J.D. Power and Associates recognized it,” he added.
J.D. Power and Associates examined four factors in the home-selling experience including: agent, marketing, office, and package of additional services. Among home sellers, Coldwell Banker Real Estate ranked highest with a score of 815 and performed particularly well in all four areas.
Coldwell Banker Real Estate also ranked particularly high in the home-buyer segment. The brand ranked second with a score of 801 on a 1,000-point scale, performing particularly well in the office factor.
About J.D. Power and Associates
Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services company operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, Web intelligence and customer satisfaction.  The company's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually.  For more information on home building and home improvement, car reviews and ratings, car insurance, health insurance, cell phone ratings, and more, please visit www.JDPower.com. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

About Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, a leading residential real estate brokerage company in Utah, operates 12 offices with about 900 sales associates serving the communities of the greater Wasatch Front. The company offers residential and commercial brokerage, corporate relocation and mortgage services. Through its internationally renowned Coldwell Banker Previews® program, the company is widely recognized for its expertise in the luxury housing market. Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, online at HYPERLINK "http://www.utahhomes.com/" www.UtahHomes.com, is part of NRT LLC, the nation’s largest residential real estate brokerage company. NRT, a subsidiary of Realogy Corporation, operates Realogy’s company-owned real estate brokerage offices. For more information, please visit "http://www.UtahHomes.com" www.UtahHomes.com or call 801.563.8700.

Newcomers to Provo!

"The [most moved to area] college towns where students and education professionals help welcome outsiders. Among the places in America that have welcomed the most newcomers in 2008, three are home to major colleges and universities: Raleigh, N.C., Provo, Utah, (home to Brigham Young University, one of the country's largest private colleges), and Austin, Texas, home to the University of Texas at Austin.

"If there are lots of newcomers, it's easy to make friends; there's a sense of vibrancy there," says William Frey, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. "Places that don't have a lot of new migrants tend to be older and more stagnant. They're also more close-knit."

Intellectual centers like the above-mentioned college towns, however, reliably attract new residents because universities are large, relatively stable employers--and a steady flow of students keeps the population young.

"You have an educated population, and you have a large youthful population," says Alexander von Hoffman, senior fellow at the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University. "These places retain people after they've graduated, and attract like-minded people."

Published by Forbes.com
10/01/2009

Home Sales Up! Summer 2009

Wasatch Front home sales up for second consecutive month


Sales of existing Wasatch Front homes were up for the second consecutive month, rising 4 percent in July, while Utah County sales increased by a whopping 22 percent, according to statistics released by the Utah Association of REALTORS® Aug. 25, 2009.

In July, Salt Lake, Utah, Davis, Weber and Tooele County REALTORS® sold 2,352 single-family homes, townhomes and condominiums compared to the 2,261 properties sold in July 2008. In Utah County, REALTORS® sold 566 existing homes compared to the 465 homes sold last year.


The statistics mirrored figures released by the National Association of REALTORS® that said U.S. home sales were up 5 percent in July compared to July 2008. On a monthly basis, U.S. seasonally adjusted home sales increased 7 percent, the first time in five years that sales increased for four months in a row.


Along the Wasatch Front, sales were down 6 percent from June to July; however, the decrease was expected because sales are traditionally slower in July and the Utah statistics are not seasonally adjusted.


The median price of homes in the five-county area in July was $205,000, down 6 percent from last year. In a separate report, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said Utah home prices decreased nearly 12 percent for the second quarter.

Home Run 2 Grant

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT HOME RUN 2 GRANTS

*What is the $4,000 Home Run 2 Grant?

The Home Run 2 Grant is a mortgage assistance program that grants $4,000 to home buyers who wish to: (A) have a new home constructed, (B) have a partially-constructed home completed, or (C) purchase a newly-constructed home. It must be the primary residence of the home buyer. Homes that have been previously occupied do not qualify.

*How is Home Run 2 different from the first Home Run program?

The first Home Run program, which ended in June 2009, provided a $6,000 grant to eligible home buyers. Home Run 2 provides a $4,000 grant. The first program required that homes be ready for occupancy upon closing. Home Run 2 buyers have two additional options. They can purchase a home that is contracted for construction or partially finished and contracted for completion. Homes that have been previously occupied do not qualify.

When a Home Run 2 Grant Commitment is issued, if the Eligible Home is fully constructed, the Commitment expires 10 calendar days after the date of issuance (unless that day falls on a weekend or holiday and then it is the following business day). If the Eligible Home is somewhere in the construction process, the Commitment expires on June 30, 2010.

All other aspects of the program are materially the same as the first Home Run program.

*Who is eligible to receive a $4,000 Home Run 2 Grant?

• Home buyers who did not receive a $6,000 grant under the previous $6,000 Home Run Grant Program.

• Home buyers (any person taking title) must meet the following income restrictions:

o Single person, maximum income, $75,000

o Married couple, maximum income, $150,000

o If more than one unmarried person is taking title to the Eligible Home, each such single person is subject to the $75,000 income limit.

o Income calculations will be determined by the Adjusted Gross Income as verified by the Approved Lender using the 2008 IRS Federal Income Tax transcript obtained directly from IRS or from an authorized third-party vendor.

• Home buyers must occupy the purchased home as a primary, permanent residence.

• If home buyers need a mortgage loan to purchase the home, the loan must be a fixed interest rate, amortizing mortgage loan with a term of 30 years or less.

• The Home Run 2 Grant Program is effective only for home purchases closed after a Home Run 2 Grant Commitment has been issued for that specific transaction. The grant funds may not be issued for homes purchased prior to obtaining the Home Run 2 Grant Commitment.

*Can Cash Buyers qualify to get the Home Run 2 Grant?

Yes. Cash Buyers must contact Utah Housing directly. Cash Buyers, like all other Buyers, must obtain a written Home Run 2 Grant Commitment prior to closing.

*What property types can be purchased with a $4,000 Home Run 2 Grant?

Eligible property types include single-family detached homes, condominiums, planned unit developments (PUD), twin homes, town homes and manufactured homes permanently affixed to a foundation.

*What type of loan can a home buyer use to purchase the home?

If a home buyer needs a mortgage loan, it must be a fixed interest rate loan with a term of 30 years or less. Loans may be obtained from any Approved Lender. Examples of qualifying loans include:

∗ Conventional loans

∗ FHA, VA, or Rural Housing loans

∗ Utah Housing Corporation loans


*How does a home buyer apply for a $4,000 Home Run 2 Grant?

Apply for a grant through an Approved Lender. Approved Lenders are the key link between a home buyer and the Home Run 2 Grant. The Approved Lender assists a home buyer to provide necessary information to secure the grant commitment from Utah Housing Corporation. A home buyer does not work directly with Utah Housing Corporation (unless the home is being purchased for cash).


*Do I have to be a first-time home buyer to get a Home Run 2 Grant?

No. Home Run 2 Grants are available to all home buyers (all persons who take title) whose maximum income is $75,000 for singles, $150,000 for couples and, if more than one single person takes title, the $75,000 limit applies to each such single person.

*Can the $4,000 Home Run 2 Grant be combined with the new $8,000 federal tax credit?

Yes, if home buyers meet the independent criteria of both the federal government and the Home Run 2 Grant programs, they may take advantage of both. The $4,000 Home Run 2 Grant is available to both those who are first-time home buyers as well as those who previously owned a home. The $8,000 federal tax credit is available only to first-time home buyers.

*How many Home Run 2 Grants are available to home buyers?

A total of approximately 1,950 grants of $4,000 each will be available. Only one grant can be used for the purchase of each home and can only be issued to persons who did not obtain a grant under the previous $6,000 Home Run Program. Home Run 2 Grants are distributed on a first-come, first-served basis to fully-qualified home buyers. The approximate number of remaining grants is posted at all times on Utah Housing web page at www.utahhousingcorp.org.

*Is the Home Run 2 Grant taxable?

The Home Run 2 Grant will probably be taxable as income under federal and state tax laws. Utah Housing does not provide any tax advice regarding the taxability of the Home Run 2 Grant. If Utah Housing receives a favorable ruling from the Internal Revenue Service that a Home Run Grant is not taxable, Utah Housing will post the ruling on its Website (www.utahhousingcorp.org) and a home buyer should review the ruling in connection with the preparation of their tax return(s).

*If I have additional questions, who do I contact?

Contact Heidi Alldredge, Realtor for Coldwell Banker at 801-434-7008.

Important Note: Buyers should make sure that they work closely with a Realtor and an Approved Lender for the Home Run 2 Grant Program to ensure that required materials are submitted in a timely manner, but not prematurely.
When a Home Run 2 Grant Commitment is issued, if the Eligible Home is fully constructed, the Commitment expires 10 calendar days after the date of issuance (unless that day falls on a weekend or holiday and then it is the following business day). If the Eligible Home is somewhere in the construction process, the Commitment expires on June 30, 2010.

*Steps to obtain a Home Run 2 Grant:

1. Buyer signs a contract to: (A) have a new home constructed, (B) have a partially-constructed home completed, or (C) purchase a newly-constructed home. It must be the primary residence of the home buyer. Homes that have been previously occupied do not qualify.

2. Buyer applies for mortgage loan through an Approved Lender and Approved Lender obtains all required Home Run 2 documentation and written loan underwriting approval.

3. When all required Application materials have been obtained, Approved Lender submits a Home Run 2 Grant Request to Utah Housing and receives from Utah Housing a Home Run 2 Grant Commitment authorizing the Grant for the Buyer.

4. The purchase closing is scheduled at a title company. As soon as closing documents have been signed, the title company faxes required documents to Utah Housing so that it can request that the Escrow Agent send a wire of $4,000 to the closing.

5. The Home Run 2 Grant Commitment must be dated on or prior to the date shown on closing documents.

FHA Changes For Condos

Beginning October 1, there will be some changes to the approval process for FHA Condo loans nationwide. The reason for this change is to complete a current due diligence of all Condo projects.

Up until now, Condo projects were either already approved and listed on HUD’s website for FHA financing, or they could be “spot approved” for FHA loans, meaning the lender could get evidence that the Condo project met FHA guidelines and approve a loan on one of the units. This did not approve the whole project through HUD though, so the next time someone wanted to get an FHA loan on a unit in the same project, they also had to go through the “spot approval” process.

Under the new rules, FHA lenders will have the authority to actually approve a whole Condominium project for HUD. This means that “spot approvals” will be eliminated. Once a loan is done on a unit in a development, it will be added to the HUD approved list and future FHA loans in the project will be easier to do. 

All current Condominium project approval will be invalid. After October 1, 2009 all Condo projects will have to go through new approval. Until a Condo project is approved and listed with HUD then FHA financing will not be an option.  Over time, this should really streamline the time it takes to do FHA loans on condos here in the Utah County area.

The drawback is that it may take longer and be far more difficult to get an FHA loan done on that first unit in the project, so keep that in mind when buying a Condo that is not on HUD’s approved list. If you would like more information about these changes and what the requirements are for a Condo project to be eligible for FHA financing, just let me know!

New Lending Regulations

New lending regulations could delay closings

New lending rules that require mandatory disclosures and waiting periods for mortgage loans have many lenders advising buyers, sellers and real estate agents to plan for at least 30-day closings and to expect possible delays. The regulations, which went into effect July 30, are part of an amendment to the Truth in Lending Act that seeks to ensure consumers receive cost disclosures earlier in the mortgage process, says the Federal Reserve Board.

The new rules apply to all mortgages secured by the borrower’s home, including primary and second homes as well as refinancings, and require lenders to give good faith estimates of mortgage loan costs within three business days after receiving a consumer’s application for a mortgage loan. The rules prevent any fees from being collected before the consumer has received the early disclosures except for a reasonable fee for obtaining a credit report.

The new rules also include various waiting periods, including the requirement that a home loan cannot close until seven days after the borrower has been issued the initial disclosures.

Furthermore, the new regulations require lenders to disclose if the annual percentage rate on the loan changes by more than 0.125 percent from the amount stated in the initial disclosure. If there is a need for a corrected disclosure, the consumer has another three days to review the new document before the loan can close. Because APR is affected by a variety of items, a corrected disclosure may be needed if there are changes in the interest rate, loan product, closing date, settlement fees or other related items. If these changes occur unexpectedly, it could push back the closing.

In similar fashion, the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC) gives home buyers three days to review a copy of the appraisal before closing on the loan, unless they waive the right.

In addition to the new review periods, mailing dates could affect closings as well. In cases where the disclosures are mailed, they won’t be considered “received” until three business days after the lender places them in the mail. For example, if corrected disclosures are mailed, the earliest the buyer could close would be on the sixth business day after the mailing (i.e., three business days for mailing and three business days for consumer review, with the consumer being allowed to close on the third review day).
Note: In terms of the three- and seven-day waiting periods, a business day is defined as all calendar days except Sundays and legal public holidays.

Taken together, the new waiting periods could unexpectedly delay closings, especially if an appraisal comes in late or the APR changes. While the borrower may be able to waive the truth-in-lending waiting periods in a “bona fide personal financial emergency,” do not rely on this exemption.
Make sure your settlement deadlines provide enough time to accommodate for the new waiting periods.
By using a realtor, if you do end up in a situation where you won’t be able to meet the settlement deadline because of the timeframes in the new regulations, then your realtor will make sure to extend the REPC with an addendum.

Housing Recovery

Are We Moving Towards a Housing Recovery?

“We have enough cumulative signs now that we’ve come through the worst and not only are things less bad, we’re starting to see pockets of improvement.” Those are the promising words of Charles Schwab Chief Economic Strategist Liz Ann Sanders during her July 28, 2009 interview with Diane Sawyer on ABC’s Good Morning America.

Sanders was responding to Standard & Poor’s/Case-Schiller’s latest Home Price Index which revealed that though housing prices were down nationally 17.9% since June 2008, the rate of home price deterioration has in fact slowed and the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Schiller home price index saw its first monthly gain in the three month period ended in May, from the same period ending in April.

Sanders went on to note, “You have to go through less bad on your way to good.” This viewpoint certainly concurs with what we’re seeing locally as well. While there are many more “bargains” now than at any time in the past few years, the latest numbers show that prices may be stabilizing—but we don’t anticipate that we’ll suddenly see giant leaps in home prices anytime soon.

What we do know is that the housing market was the first to enter the down market and probably will be the first to emerge from it. But it all takes time.

To emphasize that point, Sanders noted, “We’re not going to go into positive gain territory anytime soon but we were looking at declines down in the 18 to 19% so they’re getting a little less bad and that’s just a sign that the turn has come in so I do think prices are bottoming here. It’s not universal but broadly, nationally you can say that. There is still going to be some pockets of weakness but also some pockets of significant strength.”

Locally in pockets along the Wasatch Front there has been a surge in home sales over the last several months. In fact, in its July 28, 2009 Decline in home sales along Wasatch Front slows, ABC 4 reported that, “The decline in home sales along the Wasatch Front is starting to slow. The Salt Lake Board of Realtors released new statistics Tuesday that have a bit of good economic news in them. There were 5,428 single-family homes sold in the second quarter in Salt Lake, Davis, Utah, Weber and Tooele counties. That's only down about 2% from the same time last year. And, in Utah County, home sales were actually up nearly 15%.”

The reported continued, “The Salt Lake Board of Realtors says buyers have been motivated to buy new homes by the lower prices and government incentives.”

So what does all of this mean for today’s buyers?

The latest news shows that prices may be stabilizing but they’re likely to remain at these levels for some time. The Wall Street Journal Reporter Nick Timiraos wrote in his July 29, 2009 blog posting What the Case-Shiller Numbers Mean for Home Buyers, “A purchase could make sense for borrowers who plan to live in their home for a long time now that prices are more in sync with incomes.”

What should we watch for?

During the Good Morning America interview, Sanders, and Mike Santoli, an associate editor of Barron’s, both provided their key vital signs to watch for in calling for a recovery. Among them:

Liz Ann Sanders’ Three Improving Economic Vital Signs to Watch For:

- Index of Leading Economic Indicators, which has enjoyed three months of increases

- New unemployment claims are down 93,000; “We’ve never still been in a recession when we’ve seen that kind of drop,” said Sanders.

- The spread between short term (set by the Fed) and long term interest rates (driven by the market) is widening; these numbers are telling us that the economy is recovering

Mike Santoli’s Three Improving Economic Vital Signs to Watch For:

- Dow above 8,000; if it stays above 8,000, Santoli noted, this would be a good indicator that we’re on the road to recovery. As an aside, the week ended July 31, 2009, we danced over the 9,000 mark, closing Friday, July 31 at 9,171, making it the best July for the Dow in over 20 years, according to CNNMoney.com’s July 31, 2009 article Dow ends best July in 20 years.

- Santoli concurred with Sanders’ new unemployment claim indicator

- Back to school retail sales; Santoli stated that this is a check on consumer psychology; Santoli noted that we should watch sales reports from companies like Target and Wal-Mart to report to determine if consumer psychology is improving.

In the end, what all of this information is telling us is that though we are starting to show signs of improvement, we probably won’t see huge surges in home prices any time soon. Home prices seem to be realigning more closely with incomes in most markets. With mortgage rates remaining attractive, the $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit that is on the table until November 30 and foreclosures on the decline, the key signs are finally pointing in the right direction.

If you are ready to make an informed decision about real estate, please contact me today!