Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William Real Estate Market

New Postal price from May 12th

Ritu Desai — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:50:00 GMT

Yes, starting May 12th USPS is increasing the postal prices by 1 penny for first class postage. But the news is not that bad, first time USPS pricing includes commercial volume, contract prices, rebates, online price reductiosn and other new incentives....(read more)

Not all Condominiums are FHA Approved or Approvable!

Ritu Desai — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 16:44:00 GMT

Many of you might be thinking of purchasing a condominium which fit into the FHA mold (great for 1st time buyers / priced under 440K) and need the FHA program - (down payments < 5% or 10%, marginal credit) It is very important that you find out if...(read more)

Renting Better Than a Vacant Home

Ritu Desai — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 02:26:00 GMT

If a house doesn’t sell, owners should consider renting – and hiring a real estate professional to manage the property. Property management company will screen your tenants and you do have a final approval about your tenant. Renting out a...(read more)

5 Most Dangerous Hazards in a Home

Ritu Desai — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 18:30:00 GMT

Home owners beware: Several dangers may lurk in a home. If you’re not careful, they could make you sick. Pillar to Post, a home inspection company, reviews how to spot these dangers in the home and encourages you to contact a home inspector if your...(read more)

New Appraisal Rules for Freddie, Fannie

Ritu Desai — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 13:13:00 GMT

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have reached an agreement with New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo that requires them to have independent appraisals of home values. Under the agreement, home appraisals have to come from assessors who don’t have formal...(read more)

Northern Virginia New Conforming/FHA Loan Limits

Ritu Desai — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 03:06:00 GMT

Yes another great news!!! Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA have all adopted these new maximum loan limitations. If you have limited equity or a jumbo loan, refinance now and save thousands of dollars! If you are purchasing a property over $417,000, this...(read more)

New FHA Loan Limits!!!!

Ritu Desai — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 18:16:00 GMT

HUD and FHA announced their new max loan limits this morning (March 6th 2008). In almost all of the Washington Metro area our new loan limit is $729,750 (up from $362,250). This is our max FHA loan limit and is good through the end of 2008 when Congress...(read more)

Grantor's Tax - Update on Refunds

Ritu Desai — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 20:03:00 GMT

Given the Virginia Supreme Court’s finding that the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA) cannot impose taxes, we will all be receiving questions about the additional grantor's taxes that have been paid to the Authority. Northern...(read more)

Are Extra Monthly Mortgage Payments OK?

Ritu Desai — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 02:31:00 GMT

Getting a windfall and using it to pay off the mortgage sounds like it should reduce the monthly amount owed, but often it doesn’t. Fixed-rate mortgage holders who pay off a big chunk of their mortgage are likely to shorten the payoff period, but...(read more)

10 Best Places for House Bargains

Ritu Desai — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 02:14:00 GMT

The best place to get a bargain on a home is an area where there is healthy job growth and more houses available than people to buy them. These are markets “where you have high inventories but pliable borrowers, with lenders willing to deal,”...(read more)

Lending Guidelines gets tougher-Countrywide

Ritu Desai — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 19:45:00 GMT

Countrywide last week sent mortgage brokers a list that categorized hundreds of counties as "soft markets" with rankings from 1 to 5, in ascending order of perceived risk. In areas rated 4 and 5 -- roughly 100 counties in metropolitan areas nationwide -- Countrywide said it will now require down payments that are 5 percentage points higher than from most applicants. If a loan program had previously allowed a minimum 5 percent down payment, applicants in these areas will now be required to come up with 10 percent.

In Virginia following counties
Virginia Fairfax 4
Virginia Arlington 4
Virginia Prince William 4
Virginia Spotsylvania 4

With these strict guideliness it does get harder to get loan but for first time home owners there are other resources still available like FHA, VHDA and other loan programs. Thinking about buying a home....concerned about the market...call me today for free buyer consultation. Email me at Info@eNOVAHomes.com or call me at 703-625-4949.

Avoid Getting Hooked By A Foreclosure-Related Scam

Ritu Desai — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 19:22:00 GMT

There are lots of people out there willing to victimize people in financial difficulty--especially when their troubles become part of public record. Beware of offers involving signing over your deed to someone else who promises to sell your home for you--whether they do or not, you'll still be responsible for the mortgage.

Also, investigate people who offer to buy your property so you can avoid foreclosure. They may be legitimate but, to be on the safe side, check them out by contacting your state Attorney General, the state Real Estate Commission, or the local District Attorney's consumer fraud unit.

Finally, consider carefully any "counseling agencies" that offer foreclosure-mitigation services for a fee. In many cases, they offer services you can perform yourself, such as negotiating a workout plan with your lender.

If you decide to conduct a pre-foreclosure sale, give us a call. We'll work with you to make sure your interests are protected in the transaction.

Keep in mind that if you have a loan ensured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) offers a toll-free number you can call to find a HUD-approved housing counseling agency: (800) 569-4287. For more information about foreclosures provided by HUD, go online to: www.HUD.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/econ/econ.cfm.

Foreclosure Fact

The type of foreclosure procedure followed in a state depends on whether real property is purchased there using mortgages or deeds of trust. (Some states use both.) In general, states that use mortgages require a judicial procedure through which the lender must get court approval to initiate foreclosure. Where a deed of trust containing a "power of sale" clause is used to purchase property, the lender can initiate a foreclosure sale without going to court.

10 States with the Highest Percentage of ARMs

Ritu Desai — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 20:51:00 GMT

Don't Blame it on the ARMs
Aggressive lending is the real culprit behind high foreclosure rates — not just adjustable-rate mortgages, say many of those who are trying to analyze and cure the foreclosure problem.

"I blame the builders who needed to unload their product and the nonprofessional loan officers," says David Zugheri, co-founder of First Houston Mortgage in Houston. "Everybody was putting loans together just to get them sold. We were treating the housing market like a used-car lot."

While some states with high percentages of ARMs also have high levels of foreclosures, the two don’t necessarily go hand-in-hand. In Midwestern states where there have been high numbers of job losses and other economic troubles buyers are losing their homes because of old-fashioned economic hardship — not ARMs.

"It is certainly not out of the realm of possibility that even without resets some of the borrowers who took out these loans are ill-prescribed for homeownership," says Keith Gumbinger, vice-president of mortgage-research firm HSH Associates.

Here are the states with the highest and lowest percentage of ARMs.

10 States with the Highest Percentage of ARMs

Nevada: 40.3 percent
California: 38.2 percent
District of Columbia: 33.2 percent
Arizona: 32.1 percent
Florida: 29.5 percent
Colorado: 27.2 percent
Washington: 24.5 percent
Virginia: 23.6 percent
Hawaii: 23.3 percent
Illinois: 23.1 percent

Source: BusinessWeek, Prashant Gopal (01/11/08)

All Real Estate is Local-Top 10 reason why you should buy in Virginia

Ritu Desai — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 20:03:00 GMT

We all understand the local economy, job market and investment trend in the area. Listing and reading about all the negative things about the Real Estate industry, I wish we only had access to local media information. On the other hand living in this globalization and technology growth era we have more information and tools to draft the realistic trend of the local market compared to the rest of the world. I have put together few of my thoughts why it is a idea to buy a home both of primary and investment purpose

1. Northern Virginia has a low unemployment rate of 2.0 compared to 5.0 national.
2. Interest rate is at the lowest
3. Housing inventory is highest in the year which means lot to choose from.
4. Rental market has become hot which means if you are renting your monthly rental payment versus an average priced home mortgage will be about the same.
5. With the financing guidelines getting tighter it may be better to jump now then wait on the side till you cannot find any lender to finance your loan.
6. FHA loans are back. With incredible loan programs offered by local (County), State (VHDA) and Federal (FHA) are big. They want to boost local economy so the funding are still available to getting into their programs.
7. Seller pays closing cost. In most of the instances you can get upto 6% as closing cost fees from the sellers.
8. A home purchased in Northern Virginia in 2002 at the median price of $265,300 could sell for $425000 today, a 60% increase.
9. Builders are willing to work with a qualified purchaser more than ever before.
10. " There is no such thing as a perfect market."

So why wait call me today and get started...I am just a phone call away at 703-625-4949 or email me today at Info@eNOVAHomes.com

How Frequently should I get updated CMA?

Ritu Desai — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 23:12:00 GMT

Your home is on the market for sale, you did a competitive market analysis before listing your home. Its been couple months since then. You have few showing but nothing turned into contract. What next is always the questions. First thought that comes to seller's mind is switch Realtor may be other person can do some miracle and sell right away. Lets face some fact. We are in the changing market place. Every seller has very different motivation to sell. Instant of playing games let's get down to business. Understand your market. Get bi-weekly CMA . Review them see where the competitiors are standing and where you are. Sometimes knowing bit more information about your neighborhood pricing may help you get the best deal. Ask your Realtor to show your competitor's home and see it stands with your in terms of update, staging and pricing.

Need more information please feel free to email me at Info@eNOVAHomes.com