$4,000 Grant !!!!!!

If you are a first-time home-buyer who is a police officer, sheriff’s deputy, firefighter, California Highway Patrol officer or emergency medical technician, the $4,000 grant program for public safety responders is still going and funds are still available. There are only a limited number of grants available, so don’t miss out! For more information call Heather at 818-388-2743

Historic Interest Rates!

The thirty-year fixed rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.375% today, with an APR of 4.559%, down from Friday’s average of 4.36%. This rate is much lower than last year around this time when the 30-year FRM was averaging well over five percent. Today’s rates are the lowest recorded since Freddie Mac began keeping track of this type of mortgage back in 1971.

How Far Will They Go?

Lenders’ data mining goes deep. Mortgage makers are going beyond tax returns and bank statements to determine whether you’re a good risk. They’re checking such things as where you have pizza delivered and where you shop online.

Click Here To Read The Entire Los Angeles Times Article

Will You Have To Repair Your Broken Sidewalk Before You Can Sell Your Home?

A year ago I posted about the Mayors Big Plan Could Cost You $7,000! Mayor Villariago wants to take the burden of fixing 4,600 miles of dangerously broken city sidewalks from the city to property owners. The plan is to make it mandatory at the point of sale – Good idea Mr. Mayor, make it even harder and more expensive to sell your home - ever heard the expression "Timing is everything". Villariagosa has recommended in his 2009-2010 budget that the burden of repairing sidewalks land squarely on property owners whenever a home is sold. Click here for the details and information on how to stop this very expensive change. Well IT'S BACK!!!!

CONTACT YOUR COUNCIL MEMBER NOW!!!

The city of Los Angeles may soon stop fixing our broken sidewalks and put the cost squarely on the shoulders of the homeowner. Hmmmm...if the homeowner is responsible for fixing them are they also responsible if someone trips and falls because it wasn't fixed? Will it become another added expense when you want to sell your home?

Mortgage Modification

More underwater homeowners to get cuts in principal balance
For hundreds of thousands of homeowners who are underwater on their mortgages, it’s been a tantalizing question: Is there any way that our lender might agree to lower the amount we owe – not just the monthly payments, but the principal debt itself?

To read the full story, please click here.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger Signs Bill!!!!!

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday signed a bill aimed at selling California's vacant homes and encouraging new construction by extending a $10,000 state tax credit for first-time home-buyers.

The governor signed a bill the state Legislature passed on a bipartisan vote earlier this week. It provides a state tax credit to first-time home-buyers who buy new or existing homes from May 1 until the end of 2010.

Home-buyers can claim 5 percent of the purchase price against their California taxes, or up to $10,000.

Call me for more information.

Heather Farquhar 818-388-2743

Federal Tax Credit for Home Buyers Extended and Expanded

The tax credit will be extended through April 30, 2010, with a 6-day extension if a binding contract is in place prior to the deadline. First-time home buyers will continue to receive a tax credit of up to $8,000, while existing homeowners will receive a credit of up to $6,500. For the tax credit program, the IRS defines a first-time home buyer as someone who has not owned a principal residence during the three-year period prior to the purchase.