Landscaping and the Harmony of a Home

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Your Refund Could be the Difference

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One of the silver linings to filing your income tax return is finding out that you are going to receive a refund. If you happen to be one of these fortunate taxpayers, your next decision is what to do with it. With the average tax refund around $3,000, it could be the difference that makes a home a reality sooner rather than later. Many would-be buyers think it takes 10% or more down payment to purchase a home, but actually, it can be much less. There are VA and USDA mortgages that have no down payment for qualified buyers. FHA has a 3.5% down payment program and FNMA has 3% down payment mortgages for qualified creditors. Closing costs for originating new mortgages can easily range from two to three percent of the purchase price but most lenders will allow the seller to pay part or all of them based on the agreement in the sales contract. While the average tax refund might not cover the down payment on the median price home, it certainly helps. Your refund could make it as s
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Cost of Waiting to Buy in Both Price and Interest Rates

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Have you ever been shopping on a website where you were looking at something that was on sale?   You were interested in it but there wasn't a sense of urgency and maybe, you had a lot going on and didn't get back to it for a few days.   When you did go back to the website, the price on the item had returned to its regular price. How did you feel?   Did you go ahead and purchase it for the current price?   How did that make you feel knowing that if you had acted more decisively, you would have saved money and had the product by now? In 2021, homes across the United State went up 19.1% on average.   There were some markets where the prices soared 30 to 40%.   Fortunately, last year the mortgage rates did remain relatively stable but that isn't the situation this year, in 2022. At the end of 2021, economists from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, felt like prices would go up around 7% for 2022.   The Mortgage Bankers Association and the Home Price Expectation Survey
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In Search of a Big Mortgage

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The Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loan limits are adjusted annually to keep up with cost of living but with the appreciation experienced in many markets, it may not be enough. When the conforming loan limit is not enough, qualified buyers can turn to a jumbo loan. The maximum loan limit on conforming, conventional loans for 2022 is $625,000 for a single-family home but is increased up to $937,500 for designated high price areas.   The underwriting guidelines for conforming loans are consistent with regards to things like minimum down payment, private mortgage insurance, debt-to-income ratio, minimum credit score and cash reserves required. Jumbo loans are loans more than the FNMA maximum limits and are considered non-conforming loans.   This allows lenders to set their own requirements on maximum loan amount, minimum required credit score, maximum debt-to-income ratio, and minimum down payment. The rates paid on the jumbo loans may be the same as conforming loan rates.   It might so
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