Wednesday, April 27, 2011

3.5% in Closing Cost Assistance Through June 30, 2011!


Been struggling to purchase a home in today's market? Have you considered purchasing a Fannie Mae foreclosed properties as part of the HomePath program? The HomePath Program was enacted early in 2009 to deal with the growing number of Fannie Mae's foreclosed properties. The HomePath Mortgage program has some great benefits - one being the First Look Initiative - which helps protect buyers from having to engage in bidding wars against investors for the first 15 days on qualified HomePath properties. Another benefit is the reduction in down payment for earnest money deposits for HomePath Mortgage properties. Owner occupants can put down as little as 3% and investors 10%. Also, there is no lender requested appraisal and private mortgage insurance (PMI) is not required. Lastly, Fannie Mae is now offering up to 3.5% in closing cost assistance on all homes where an initial offer was submitted on or after April 11, 2011 and closes by June 30, 2011.

 Here is everything one needs to know:
(Courtesy of HomePath.com)
The HomePath property buyer must meet the following qualifications to be eligible for 3.5% assistance:

•Buyers and/or selling agents (the agent representing the buyer) must request the incentive upon submission of initial offer in order to be eligible.

•The initial offer must be submitted on or after April 11, 2011 and close by June 30, 2011. If an initial offer was made prior to the effective date, the offer is not eligible for the incentive.

•The sale must close on or before June 30, 2011. No exceptions will be made to this deadline.

•Only buyers purchasing a HomePath property as their primary residence may receive up to 3.5% in closing cost assistance. Second homes and investment properties are excluded from the incentive.

•Buyer must sign the Owner Occupant Certification Rider to the Real Estate Purchase Addendum.

•If a buyer's total closing costs are under 3.5%, the difference will not be available as a credit to the buyer.

Now that you know - let's find a great HomePath Property and an approved lender together! Call today (818) 516-7387



Monday, April 25, 2011

Marketing, Marketing, Marketing

There are two things that determine how fast any home gets sold and for how much and that is how the property is price and marketing. Of the two, setting the right price is pretty important but marketing is probably more so since it will be the way qualified buyers will find your well priced home. This is why it is so important to choose the right Agent to list your home. We at Media West will list your home with the correct price then proceed to outmarket the local competition to get your home noticed and sold.

 Let's say you have the choice of two Realtors to choose from. One says he can give you the same basic marketing package other agents are providing these days: Sign in the yard, List the property on the MLS, Hold an Open House, List the home in the weekend newspaper, and possibly a virtual tour with some still pictures and music. Now let's say the second agent comes to you and states that he or she will start with the basic marketing and add to that a professionally made Hollywood Style Movie Trailer of your home - shot in High Definition - with a professionally written script read by a professional voice over talent. But it doesn't end there. The second agent continues by saying that she will house that High Definition movie and house it on its own website with your home address as the website address! How much would that be worth to you?

It is common knowledge that online video submissions have higher rankings on search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and Bing. So having a video of your listing will put your listing a head of all the other non-video listings. Knowing this, which Realtor would you choose? Contact us today and find out how we can set a great price for your home and then out market the competition!

Friday, April 22, 2011

Lord's Kitchen - Saturday 04/23/2011 Westminster Presbyterian Church Burbank, CA

Come Join us tomorrow as we volunteer to help feed the homeless at Westminster Presbyterian Church 542 N. Buena Vista St, Burbank, CA 91505 as part of the, "Lord's Kitchen" food program. Serving is scheduled to run from 12:00 -2:00pm. Hope to see you there!

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Making An Offer Can Be Scary - This May Help!


For home buyers, nothing is scarier than making an offer. It's understandable and can be attributed to basic human nature. We see it in people gathered around a pool, each waiting for the other to jump in first so they can gauge the temperature. Funny thing is - once somebody jumps in and finds the water pleasant, everyone else wants in too.

So let's say you finally found a great place - now what? Well if you haven't already done so - get your approval letter. An approval letter from a direct lender is one of the basic requirements in making an offer and can take anywhere from a few hours to one day to get depending on your lender. We recommend getting one at the very beginning of your search since you'll need this information to set a realistic search goal. Besides, well priced homes sell quickly in just about any market so why lose out being unprepared. Next, make sure you have a copy of your FICO scores. Many lenders will include them on their approval letter but not all so make sure to check. Lastly, you will need proof of funds for your stated deposit submitted with your offer. This can be in the form of your latest bank statements, 401K or any other fund that is in your name that can easily be accessed.

After your offer is accepted -what's next? Well, if you're buying in Southern California you will usually have up to 17 days for a physical inspection period to investigate what - if any risks are associated with the home. At the very least, Realtors advise having a general inspection of the property done then scheduling additional tests, depending on personal concerns and what might have been found during the first inspection. Many people have concerns about mold, lead, asbestos, and radon gas so schedule inspections by trained and licensed inspectors if you have any fear. Some buyers choose additional inspections for the foundation, chimney, or sewer line. It is also not unheard of to even have a geological survey of the property - especially for those located on hillsides.

 If you suspect that something may have been done to the building structures without the proper permits, schedule a visit to the city permit department and pull permits. It's a fairly easy process and usually free to do. Lastly, finish any other investigations that may be important to you such as searching the Megan's law database or local crime records. The goal is to be comfortable with your purchase knowing you did all the necessary research. If you had any doubts making your offer -hopefully they have all been alleviated by the end of the inspection period. OK, best of luck - now get out there and make some offers!

Friday, April 15, 2011

Downtown Burbank Art Festival 2011


Come out to beautiful downtown Burbank, CA this weekend Saturday, April 16 and Sunday, April 17 for one of the largest cultural arts events in the Southern California region, "Downtown Burbank Arts Festival"  hosted by the Downtown Burbank Partnership in collaboration with Burbank Arts for All and West Coast Artists. Events will run both Saturday 10am -7pm, and Sunday 10am - 5pm on four blocks of San Fernando Boulevard between Magnolia Boulevard and Olive Avenue.

Visitors can expect  to find various pieces of artwork such as paintings, sculpture, ceramics, jewelry, fiber art, fine glass, woodwork, mixed-media and photography. As an added benefit, there will be nonstop live performances of local dance teams, rock bands, an improvisational comedy troupe, and other performances from Burbank's local school students.

Burbank Arts for All, a non-profit organization, will be using the event to raise money for Burbank student art programs with raffles and opportunity baskets all weekend long. The organization is dedicated to ensuring permanent and equal access to quality arts education for all of Burbank’s 15,000 students. 

Jill and I will be there enjoying the festivities and supporting the arts! Hope to see you there. Have a great weekend folks!


Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Happy Birthday Burbank - 100 years... Let's Have a Parade!

Join us this Saturday morning 11 am Olive Avenue - between Keystone and Lomita Streets in Burbank, CA  for the City of Burbank CA 100th birthday celebration and parade. Do we really need to sell you on any more than that? Hope to see you there!

Best.
Phil & Jill Keppel