Housing Tax Credit

Tax Credit Alert... Do not wait too long Buyers and Sellers. You have less than 120 Days to take advantage of the $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit or $6500 if you are a move up buyer (selling a current home and purchasing another). You need to have a "signed" purchase agreement to qualify by the end of April. Do not wait too long to take advantage of this incentive. Contact me with any questions on this limited program.

Cul de sacs- strange fact

Increasing numbers of towns and cities are taking exception to cul-de-sacs. Community leaders see cul-de-sacs as traffic-congesting roads that are tough to negotiate for emergency vehicles and time consuming for snow plowing and road maintenance. To this end, cities and towns across the U.S. are limiting, restricting, or even banning cul-de-sacs in new neighborhoods

Minneapolis beautiful skyline

Interest Rates remain at historic lows ---- 4.5 % on a 30 year fixed rate this past week. They hit 4.125% on a 15 year mortgage. These rates will not last long. Now is the time to refinance or buy a home.

Tax Credits for Energy Efficiency

Homeowners can now qualify for tax credits up to $1500. (in most cases) for home improvements made between Jan. 1, 2009- Dec. 31, 2010. Whether you are building a new home or renovating an existing one, there are ways to take advantage of this tax credit.

For existing homes, tax credits are available at 30% of the cost, up to $1500. in 2009 and 2010 for windows and doors, insulation, roofs, HVAC systems, water heaters (non solar) and biomass stoves. For existing new homes, tax credits are available at 30% of the cost, with no upper limit through 2016 for geothermal heat pumps, solr panels, solar water heaters, small wind energy systems and fuel cells.

For home improvements:

• must be 'placed in service" 1/1/2009 through 12/31/2010



• must be owner's primary residence



• must have a Manufacturer Certification statement to qualify



• for record keeping , save receipts and manufacturer certification statement.

For more information on how to qualify for and /or apply for these tax credits visit-

www.energystar.gov/taxcredits

Real Estate Update- Twin Cities

Low mortgage rates, affordable supply and the home buyer tax credit kept home sales moving in October.

There were 4,676 signed purchase agreements during the month, up 34.4 percent from a year ago—the 16th consecutive month of year-over-year increases in pending sales. The recent extension and expansion of the home-buyer tax credit should mean continued buyer movement into early 2010.

Traditional pending sales (excluding foreclosures and short sales) were up 55.0 percent from last October, a sure sign that demand is beginning to spill over into that segment.
The October median sales price of $169,000 is a slight dip from the prior month, but the dip is much less extreme than typical entering the fourth quarter. Compared to last October, it's a 6.1 percent decline—the lowest year-over-year decline in 24 months.

The median sales price of traditional homes in October was $193,500, down 13.2 percent from a year ago. Lender-mediated homes posted a October figure of $129,000, down 4.4 percent from a year ago.

Foreclosures are still selling much more frequently than short sales, bringing the months supply of foreclosures to 1.4, while short sales still have 13.2 months of supply. More information on these market segments is available with the October 2009 Update to Foreclosures and Short Sales in the Twin Cities.

Good news for sellers: Homes are selling quicker and sellers are receiving closer to their original asking price than they were a year ago. But the experience varies by price point. For example, activity in the upper-bracket price ranges is still pretty slow.

The lower and middle price brackets will probably see a lot of movement over the next nine months," said MAAR President-Elect, Brad Fisher. "If you're a buyer in those ranges, action is your best weapon

."

information provided by MAAR