Obama signed the First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit today. Congress both extended and expanded the First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit program Thursday. The up-to-$8000 tax credit’s expiration date has been pushed forward to spring, requiring homebuyers to be under contract by April 30, 2010, and to be...

An escrow account is a designated savings account into which funds get deposited for a specific purpose. With respect to real estate and home loans, escrow accounts are used to pay real estate tax bills and homeowners insurance payments. Escrow accounts are managed and disbursed by lenders. When a homeowner...

In what’s becoming a regular occurrence, housing data blew away economists expectations Tuesday. As reported by the National Association of Realtors®, the Pending Home Sales Index posted its 6th consecutive monthly gain in July. After a meteoric rise that started in January, the index is now at its...

As a reminder, Fannie Mae is rolling out new lending guidelines Tuesday, September 1, 2009. Starting next week, being approved for a home loan could be much more difficult. The new rules mark the first major underwriting update since April of this year.  The changes are mostly geared at fraud prevention. Among...

Sold properties are on the rise - and so is the average price!  Does this mean the worst is behind us and the bottom has come and gone? Leave a comment!

What is REALLY going on with Phoenix area real estate?  Here are the statistics as of 8/17/2009 - Properties For Sale in Phoenix-Metro area: 31,383 Lender Owned (foreclosures) for sale: 4,631 Short Sales for sale: 7,364 Properties under contract: 12,602 - 18,641 if you count those still in their inspection...

It is about time! Kudos Guaranty Bank. The simplest way to limit the supply is to eliminate it. Not only does it limit the supply, it detours future dilapidation and possible degradation.

The days of rock-bottom housing prices may be reaching an end. According to the National Association of REALTORS, the number of Existing Home Sales fell by a modest 140,000 units last month. It’s the fifth straight month in which home sales straddled the 4.5 million mark. The national housing inventory...

Auction: February 28, 2009 Registration begins: 7:30am Commercial Property Auction: 9:00am Residential Property Auction: 1:00pm The HomeStyle Team with RE/MAX Achievers currently has 18 foreclosure homes in the upcoming RE/MAX real estate auction. The HomeStyle Team auction property list is as follows: ...

Fannie Mae rolled-back one of its least popular mortgage guidelines updates of the last 12 months. Effective March 1, 2009, real estate investors can once again own and finance up to 10 individual properties.  The restriction reversal does come with new minimum requirements, however. Homeowners buying...