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 $7,500 TAX CREDIT FOR FIRST-TIME HOMEBUYERS: With certain exceptions, a first-time homebuyer will receive a tax credit of 10% of the purchase price up to $7,500 maximum, for the tax year in which the buyer purchases a principal residence. The tax credit, however, must be repaid like an interest-free loan in equal installments over the next 15 years or in full if the homebuyer sells the property for a gain. A buyer qualifies as a "first-time" homebuyer as long as the buyer (and spouse if any) has not owned a principal residence in the U.S. for the last three years. The tax credit phases out for a taxpayer with a modified adjusted gross income over $75,000 (or $150,000 for joint returns). This tax credit is available for qualifying homes purchased from April 9, 2008 through June 30, 2009.

There is more good news for buyers so give us a call so we can help you take advantage of this great market. Interest rates are still OK and prices have come down.

Stewart

310-968-1730

Randi

310-415-6023

The next few weeks will prove to be the best time to buy!!!!

Spring/Summer is here and the choices will be the best of the year.

Last week the Federal Reserve put everyone on notice that lending rates are not going any lower.

What that means is that there is only one direction rates can go, and that is up. So why should you buy a house now when prices are going down and believed to continue to go down?

The answer is simple.

We believe over the coming months, as home prices decline, it will not outpace lending rate increases. What that means is your borrowing amount will increase faster than home prices will drop. This will make it essentially more expensive to buy in the future even though home prices are going down.

Today (and possibly not tomorrow ) the rates are still low and prices have come down making ownership more affordable than it has been for the last few years.

Don’t miss out this time around to get into the market, because as we all know, it will without question go back up sometime and again leave those on the fence behind.

Let Randi and Stewart show you how to take advantage of this “buyers” market and continue or start your real estate future.

It’s what we love to do

          What does Donald Trump Know That You Don’t ?

Rumor has it that “The Donald” is buying up real estate like crazy nowadays. Is he crazy like a fox? Well only the future well tell.

What’s important to learn at this point that is that reading the doom and gloom about the financial world especially as it relates to real estate can be more of an opportunity than just more bad news for you.

Our local market like most of the nation has lost value over the last year. In the South Bay this has translated into about a 10% decrease of property value. Is that bad news?

When you consider that most of the nation is losing a great deal more than 10% perhaps it’s really not bad at all. We are losing less at a slower pace than millions of homes across the nation. What this speaks to is the incredible strength of our local economy. If you own real estate in the South Bay your investment has actually increased in power if you were to consider buying out of the area.

Prices are coming down and most likely will continue. How much and for how long has now become the focus for buyers and sellers? This can be real good news for buyers, however buyers also have to consider the real issue today and that is how to get a loan. In the future it could be more costly to buy a house because of the anticipated interest rate increases despite the governments attempt to keep rates down.

What has changed and will continue to change like never before is the way we get loans. How this relates to housing prices is a constant variable that only truly experienced and practicing Realtors like Randi and I can put in perspective for you.

It’s been really wild out there lately and we would love the opportunity to be able to make the way clear for you whether you are investigating or buying or selling in this market.

We’ll keep watching what “The Donald” is doing and let you in on his secrets, so give us a call if you’d like a clear prospective about all the news nowadays. We love to talk Real Estate.

Take Care,

Stewart Fournier

310-968-1730

Randi

310-415-6023

Let Us Help You Through !

                                   A Great Story

For buyers there are more opportunities now than you realize. Recently we were looking for a house for clients who had been on our email system, like many of you have, for a couple of years.

Well, they started to look recently and were completely overwhelmed by all the choices since they were open to look at Condo’s, Townhouses, and Single Family residences.

After we showed them about 20 houses, Randi found a house that was off the market, in a beach city that seemed to fit exactly what they were looking for. We contacted the owner first to see if they were at all interested in selling since they had taken their house off the market a couple of months ago.

It turned out the owner’s were expecting a baby soon but they were still open to selling. Bear in mind, even though they had good reason to move they still were not willing to give their house away for an unreasonable price., Frustrated with low ball offers, they just knew hanging on to their beach property was the best course of action rather than selling too low.

Our buyers realized this situation was an opportunity for them. They made a reasonable offer, yet still offering under list price, and it looked like it might do the trick.

Well it worked.

The owners can now get that bigger house for their family and our buyers are now in escrow on a house at the beach which was their dream.

We have shared this story with you to let you know we can do the same for you. Its no secrete housing has softened even in the beach cities. Randi and I would love to show you how to take advantage of this situation before it goes away. Take advantage of this spike downward because as we all know it will shoot upward and leave some behind in the future.

When we last wrote things were on the upswing in the spring. Things have cooled since then and we are in a more traditional market now.

The other day we received a question we are hearing more and more. So in an effort to make those of you thinking of buying feel more comfortable below please our answer to the following question.

"Stewart & Randi I am afraid to buy now because if I do I think in the next few months or year that prices will go down and I don't want to loose. What should I do?"