Matterport 3D virtual tours
One of the best features our team has to offer our listings is a new technology called Matterport 3D virtual tours. Watch our latest video to learn more about how it works and how it helps market your home's listing more effectively!
Ryan And Brian - 5 Benefits of Homeownership
Greetings from the Ryan & Brian Real Estate Team!
Today we will be discussing 5 of the biggest benefits of home-ownership. First, lets not forget that if you are looking to buy a home, click on the link below.
If you are looking to sell your home, click on the link below for a FREE home valuation.
Equity Over Time
Homeownership can help you build equity over time. Every 3 years, the Federal Reserve conducts a survey of consumer finances from which they collect data across all economic and social groups. The latest survey reports that a home owners net-worth is 36 times greater than that of a renter. With more recent data now available in a Forbes article, the National Association of Realtors' Chief Economist, reported that the net-worth gap is now 45 times greater.
Stable Monthly Payments
Your monthly payments will remain stable. When you purchase a home with a fixed-rate mortgage, the majority of your payments, principal and interest, remain constant. On the other hand, rent continues to skyrocket. Your housing expense is much more stable if you own instead of rent.
Tax Benefits
According to the Tax Policy Center's briefing book, there are several tax advantages to home ownership. Here are 4 items from the briefing book:
- Mortgage interest deduction
- Property tax reduction
- Imputed rent
- Profits from home sale.
Take Pride!
You can take pride in your ownership! Most surveys show that a major factor on purchasing a home, is the freedom you have in designing the home the way you want. From paint colors to yard accessories, you don't need a landlord's permission to make your house feel like a home.
Home-ownership improves your community
The National Association of Realtors recently released a study titled Social Benefits of Homeownership and Stable Housing. The study explained:
"Social capital can provide residents with a platform from which to connect and interact with neighbors. Owning a home means owning part of a neighborhood, and a homeowner's feelings of commitment to the home can arouse feelings of commitment to the neighborhood, which, in turn, can produce interactions with neighbors" - Lawrence Yun & Nadia Evangelou
The Bottom Line
There are many benefits to homeownership including countless others we didn't even discuss today, That's why owning a home is still a critical piece of the American Dream. If you want help finding your dream home, call us today at (956) 203-0044!
Movie Night Client Testimonials
This past August at our Family Movie Night we got to sit down with some of our clients who shared their experience working with the Ryan and Brian team. Hear what they had to say and why they were satisfied with our services!
Ryan And Brian Movie Night!
This past August at our Family Movie Night we got to sit down with some of our clients who shared their experience working with the Ryan and Brian team. Hear what they had to say and why they were satisfied with our services!
How Can You Handle Common Appraisal Issues?
What happens when an appraisal doesn’t match the agreed-upon price of a home? Today, we’ll discuss how buyers and sellers can overcome appraisal challenges during a transaction.
Want to sell your home? Get a home value report
Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale
Want to sell your home? Get a home value report
Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale
When appraisals are involved in your real estate transaction, there are a couple of issues that can arise that I want to point out to you today.
Unfortunately, some real estate transactions will have an appraisal that does not meet the home’s market value. That can be a messy situation when you have deadlines and contingencies involved.
Luckily, there are a few options for buyers and sellers to avoid this.
First, it’s important to know there’s not an exact science for appraisals. You can hire 10 different appraisers and get a 10% to 15% difference in value on either end of the spectrum. The appraisal is only another person’s opinion of your property’s value, anyway.
A buyer will pay true market value for your home. However, a bank can’t lend on whatever a buyer is willing to pay. The bank needs some way to protect itself in the instance that a buyer defaults on the loan and cannot make the payments. Appraisers are hired mainly to protect the bank.
Unfortunately, some real estate transactions will have an appraisal that does not meet the home’s market value. That can be a messy situation when you have deadlines and contingencies involved.
Luckily, there are a few options for buyers and sellers to avoid this.
First, it’s important to know there’s not an exact science for appraisals. You can hire 10 different appraisers and get a 10% to 15% difference in value on either end of the spectrum. The appraisal is only another person’s opinion of your property’s value, anyway.
A buyer will pay true market value for your home. However, a bank can’t lend on whatever a buyer is willing to pay. The bank needs some way to protect itself in the instance that a buyer defaults on the loan and cannot make the payments. Appraisers are hired mainly to protect the bank.
You can hire 10 different appraisers and get a 10% to 15% difference in value.
What can you do if the property doesn’t appraise? As a buyer, depending on the loan, you can make up the difference, renegotiate with the seller, or terminate the contract. Unfortunately, as a seller, you can’t terminate the contract. However, you can negotiate or drop the purchase price down to the appraised value. You can also decide to proceed with the agreed-upon price.
Can you correct an appraisal if you feel it’s wrong?
Sometimes, we can get the appraiser to correct the report if something is blatantly wrong. Other times, the appraiser won't admit a mistake. I’ve even seen an appraiser not include the value of a pool on the property! That’s a lot of money that went unaccounted for. Sometimes, the bank will reject a report that is obviously wrong, but more often than not, they’ll go ahead and accept the appraisal.
If you have any questions about how to deal with appraisal issues or you’re thinking about buying or selling a home in the McAllen area market, give us a call or send us an email today. We would be happy to help you!
Can you correct an appraisal if you feel it’s wrong?
Sometimes, we can get the appraiser to correct the report if something is blatantly wrong. Other times, the appraiser won't admit a mistake. I’ve even seen an appraiser not include the value of a pool on the property! That’s a lot of money that went unaccounted for. Sometimes, the bank will reject a report that is obviously wrong, but more often than not, they’ll go ahead and accept the appraisal.
If you have any questions about how to deal with appraisal issues or you’re thinking about buying or selling a home in the McAllen area market, give us a call or send us an email today. We would be happy to help you!
Should You Sell Now or Wait Until Spring?
Although there are pros and cons to selling in any season, there are a few benefits to selling now rather than waiting for the spring market.
Want to sell your home? Get a home value report
Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale
Want to sell your home? Get a home value report
Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale
Many people think that the only good seasons to sell your home are the spring and summer. In fact, many homeowners wait to put their home on the market in spring rather than listing right now.
Ultimately, there are pros and cons to selling your home in any season. However, selling now instead of waiting for spring could be extremely beneficial.
The price of any item, including residential real estate, is determined by supply and demand. If many people are looking to buy an item and the supply of that item is limited, then the price of that item increases.
With low inventory and high demand, you can sell for top dollar.
According to the National Association of Realtors, the supply of homes for sale increases dramatically each spring. In fact, last year, inventory climbed steadily from January to May, culminating in 270,000 homes for sale. It makes sense to get ahead of the competition and list your home for sale now, while home prices are still high.
Also, buyers who are in the market during the winter months are highly motivated; they want to buy now. Since inventory is limited in most markets, sellers are in a great position to negotiate.
If you have any other questions about selling your home in the current market or about real estate in general, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!
How Has the Election Impacted McAllen Real Estate?
Now that we’re a couple months past election night, we can really start to take a look at how the results impacted the real estate market. We’ll also examine what those impacts will look like in the future.
Want to sell your home? Get a home value report
Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale
Want to sell your home? Get a home value report
Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale
Leading up to the presidential election, we were constantly asked how the election would affect the real estate market. Now that two months have passed since the election, there's some good news and there's some bad news. Today we’ll discuss what we have seen since the election and what we can expect to see moving forward in the McAllen market and beyond. First, the bad: mortgage rates have shot up since the election. From a low of 3.47% on November 7th, the average fixed 30-year mortgage rate increased to over 4% by the end of November, and rates have continued to rise. Economists say this kind of volatility is likely to continue, with day-to-day changes driven by the moves and statements of the incoming administration. The good news is that there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic in the future. Promised tax breaks could reinvigorate sales of luxury homes, which have seen an overabundance of inventory in recent years. This could have a ripple effect throughout the rest of the real estate market, spurring sales and construction of mid-level and lower-priced housing. Also, looser regulation could further stimulate construction and make it easier for buyers to obtain mortgages.
There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the future.
After election night, the stock market went haywire and stocks tumbled, which is expected during unexpected or surprising moments. However, you might have seen that the stock market has been surging for the most part since. That might be a vote of confidence for our President-elect and his anticipated business-friendly policies. It might also be a sign of relief that the election and the associated uncertainty are done with.
It certainly seems things are getting back to normal as people come to realize the world's not ending.
In fact, many people who waited on the sidelines during the election are now entering the real estate market. It's a great time to take advantage of this if you are selling because home prices are on the rise. If you'd like to get an idea of what your home is currently worth, click here and enter your home address to find an estimated home value.
If you're looking to buy, there are two things you should know.
First, even though mortgage rates have gone up, they are still historically very low and worth taking advantage of. Second, many new homes have entered the market since the election. It's definitely worth investigating what's available around the Greater McAllen Area right now.
Click here to get instant access to the MLS system.
There's one thing to be grateful for right now: One way or another, the election is finally over. If you want to talk about the election and where the real estate market might be going in the coming months, give us a call at 956-948-4128. We have an expert advisor ready to assist you with your home buying and selling needs. We looking forward to hearing from you.
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