Just like our clocks this weekend in the majority of the country, the housing market will soon “spring forward!” Similar to tension in a spring, the lack of inventory available for sale in the market right now is what is holding back the market. Many potential sellers believe that waiting until Spring is in their best interest, and traditionally they would have been right. Buyer demand has seasonality to it, which usually falls off in the winter months, especially in areas of the country impacted by arctic temperatures and conditions.

That hasn’t happened this year.

Demand for housing has remained strong as mortgage rates have remained near historic lows. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) recently reported that the top 10 dates sellers listed their homes in 2015 all fell in April, May or June. Those who act quickly and list now could benefit greatly from additional exposure to buyers prior to a flood of more competition coming to market in the next few months.

Bottom Line

If you are planning on selling your home in 2016, meet with a local real estate professional to evaluate the opportunities in your market.

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently. You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

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Owning a home of your very own is exciting and is the American dream. You should know however that when applying for a mortgage you need to be as honest as possible so that your dreams are not crushed at the last minute. Below are a few tips on what not to say when you are applying for a home mortgage. You may think that a little white lie won’t get you into trouble when applying for a home mortgage but what most people don’t realize is that you will likely get caught in that lie and may end up not getting approved after all.   Also the penalties for such lies can be quite severe such as a 30 year prison sentence and a million dollar fine.

• If you don’t plan to live in the home in which you are getting a mortgage but rather you plan to rent the property out do NOT apply for a mortgage as your primary residence. Default rates are higher on investment properties than they are on primary residences. Down payments are larger on investment properties as well. These are some of the reasons why folks try to lie about using the mortgage as their primary residence.
• Lying about how much money you make to get a home mortgage is also a no-no. If you try to lie about your income for the purposes of getting a better home mortgage you are very likely to get caught because your lender is going to verify your income by looking at your w-2’s as well as your tax returns.
• If you don’t have enough money for the down payment on your new home, you CAN borrow it from a family member or friend but if you do this you need to be sure to have the paperwork that supports the fact that it is a gift that you don’t have to repay otherwise it is considered a loan and the mortgage company will need to know about it. This little white lie may seem harmless but it isn’t and it can get you into trouble with your mortgage lender.

Basically, tell the truth about any and everything your mortgage lender asks you. If you want to have part of the American dream by owning your own home, don’t destroy the dream by lying. Once you get your mortgage and you move into your new home you will be glad you did everything the right way and that you don’t have to worry about anything coming back on you in the future.

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently. You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

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This is not a political post!

Finally, the issue of homeownership has become a platform talking point in this year’s presidential debate. This week, one of the candidates running for President spoke out about the importance of homeownership in America. Hillary Clinton detailed a new economic agenda and in announcing her new agenda, she remarked:

“Homeownership is about more than just owning a home. It is about putting roots down in a community with better schools, safer streets and good jobs. And it is about building wealth, as homeowners build equity in their home one mortgage payment at a time…We must make sure that everyone has a fair shot at homeownership.”

This post isn’t political!

It doesn’t matter that it was Clinton who said it first. It doesn’t matter that she is a Democrat. What matters is that EVERY candidate for our country’s highest office realizes the important role homeownership plays in the development of our nation. The fact that homeownership was finally brought to the forefront of the debate is great news – no matter which way you lean politically.

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently. You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

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Although the economy has improved some over the last few years, it doesn’t seem to be getting a whole lot better for most Americans. A good way to save money is to downsize your home. This is especially a good idea if you have already raised your family and you and your husband are left paying a mortgage on a home that is too large for you. Let’s take a look at how downsizing your home will help you to save a bit of money, to live more comfortably as well as some easy ways that you can downsize.

• One easy way to downsize is to look for a home that has a small garage or even no garage at all. If you and your spouse are living in the home alone and your children are grown it is likely that you don’t have a bunch of stuff to store in a garage. Buying a home without a garage is a great way to get more house for your money and to downsize your payment.
• Finding a home without a lot of land is another way to downsize and to save big. You can find a lot of cute houses on the market these days that don’t have a ton of land with them. It is also good to find a home without a lot of land if you are older and don’t have the stamina you once had to do all the yard work that is involved with a house with a lot of land attached.
• Buying a home that is one story is also a good way to downsize and to save when it comes to buying a new home. Buying a home without stairs is good for when you get older as well because you won’t want to or may not be able to climb them once you get up in years.
• Realize that you don’t have to give up on the home of your dreams when you downsize. There are plenty of adorable houses on the market that won’t break your bank account that are 1500 square feet or less. Don’t let society dictate to you that you need a large house in order to fit in. There are plenty of upsides to downsizing to a smaller home!

Once you set your mind in the right direction and you realize that you don’t need to have a huge house and that it’s no longer important to “keep up with the jones’’ you will be well on your way to saving a lot of money.

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently. You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

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Some Highlights:

• For the 4th year in a row the Northeast saw a concentration of High Outbound activity.
• Oregon held on to the top spot of High Inbound states for the 3rd year in a row.
• Much of this Outbound activity can be attributed to Boomers relocating to warmer climates after retiring.

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently. You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

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We have reported many times that the American Dream of homeownership is alive and well. The personal reasons to own differ for each buyer, with many basic similarities. Eric Belsky, the Managing Director of the Joint Center of Housing Studies at Harvard University expanded on the top 5 financial benefits of homeownership in his paper –The Dream Lives On: the Future of Homeownership in America. Here are the five reasons, each followed by an excerpt from the study: 

1.) Housing is typically the one leveraged investment available.

“Few households are interested in borrowing money to buy stocks and bonds and few lenders are willing to lend them the money. As a result, homeownership allows households to amplify any appreciation on the value of their homes by a leverage factor. Even a hefty 20 percent down payment results in a leverage factor of five so that every percentage point rise in the value of the home is a 5 percent return on their equity. With many buyers putting 10 percent or less down, their leverage factor is 10 or more.”

2.) You’re paying for housing whether you own or rent.

“Homeowners pay debt service to pay down their own principal while households that rent pay down the principal of a landlord.” 

3.) Owning is usually a form of “forced savings”.

“Since many people have trouble saving and have to make a housing payment one way or the other, owning a home can overcome people’s tendency to defer savings to another day.”

4.) There are substantial tax benefits to owning.

“Homeowners are able to deduct mortgage interest and property taxes from income…On top of all this, capital gains up to $250,000 are excluded from income for single filers and up to $500,000 for married couples if they sell their homes for a gain.”

5.) Owning is a hedge against inflation.

“Housing costs and rents have tended over most time periods to go up at or higher than the rate of inflation, making owning an attractive proposition.”

Bottom Line

We realize that homeownership makes sense for many Americans for an assortment of social and family reasons. It also makes sense financially. If you are considering a purchase this year, contact a local professional who can help evaluate your ability to do so.

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently. You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

Get Orlando Daily News delivered to your inbox! Subscribe here!

Fannie Mae recently released their “What do consumers know about the Mortgage Qualification Criteria?” Study. The study revealed that Americans are misinformed about what is required to qualify for a mortgage when purchasing a home. Here are three takeaways:

• 59% of Americans either don’t know (54%) or are misinformed (5%) about what FICO score is necessary
• 86% of Americans either don’t know (59%) or are misinformed (25%) about what an appropriate Back End Debt-to-Income (DTI) ratios is
• 76% of Americans either don’t know (40%) or are misinformed (36%) about the minimum down payment required

To help correct these misunderstandings, let’s take a look at the latest Ellie Mae Origination Insight Report, which focuses on recently closed (approved) loans.

FICO SCORES

BACK END DTI

DOWN PAYMENTS

Bottom Line

Whether buying your first home or moving up to your dream home, knowing your options will definitely make the mortgage process easier. Your dream home may already be within your reach.

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently. You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

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There are many people sitting on the sidelines trying to decide if they should purchase a home or sign a rental lease. Some might wonder if it makes sense to purchase a house before they are married and have a family. Others may think they are too young. And still others might think their current income would never enable them to qualify for a mortgage. We want to share what the typical first time homebuyer actually looks like based on the National Association of REALTORS most recent Profile of Home Buyers & Sellers. Here are some interesting revelations on the first time buyer:

Bottom Line

You may not be much different than many people who have already purchased their first home. Meet with a local real estate professional today who can help determine if your dream home is within your grasp.

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently. You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

Get Orlando Daily News delivered to your inbox! Subscribe here!

HomeVestors and Local Market Monitor have issued a list of top 10 cities for real estate investment for the fourth quarter of 2015. See the press release on this below…

HomeVestors, the We Buy Ugly Houses^® people, and Local Market Monitor, the premier real estate forecasting solution, have published the Best Markets Top Ten List for Real Estate Investing in the last quarter of 2015. The data is ranked based on cities with increased job opportunities in the past year. The overall national average increase was 1.9 percent.

Grand Rapids, Michigan topped the Best Markets Top Ten List, with Orlando, Florida coming in second. Texas cities remain strong, with San Antonio third, Dallas fourth and Austin fifth.

“Due to a shortage of home construction since the recession, local housing markets with a strong economy will experience more demand than supply in the next few years,” said Ingo Winzer, president and founder of Local Market Monitor. “This will create higher priced homes and rising rents.”

“In 2015, prices in all of the top ten housing markets have increased by at least six percent,” said David Hicks, HomeVestors co-president. “Prices will continue to rise, which is one of the reasons HomeVestors, the We Buy Ugly Houses^® people, continues to become an excellent option for independent investors.”

The remainder of the list includes Portland, Oregon sixth; Seattle, Washington seventh; Charlotte, North Carolina eighth; Salt Lake City, Utah ninth; and Fort Lauderdale, Florida tenth. While housing prices continue to increase, cities such as Portland and Seattle present an opportunity for investors because of their increase in income due to the expansion of high-value industries.

The fourth-quarter 2015 Best Markets Top 10 List for Real Estate Investing includes:

1. Grand Rapids, Michigan
2. Orlando, Florida
3. San Antonio, Texas
4. Dallas, Texas
5. Austin, Texas
6. Portland, Oregon
7. Seattle, Washington
8. Charlotte, North Carolina
9. Salt Lake City, Utah
10. Fort Lauderdale, Florida

About the Quarterly Data:

The data identifies markets that will be good rental markets and where home prices are likely to rise at an increased rate over the next few years. Criteria include markets where:

• the population has been growing at above-average rates (four percent or better) with growth coming from people moving there in search of jobs;
• the current rate of job growth of two percent or better; and
• there is low unemployment, so that new jobs will be filled by people who move there, not by unemployed people who are already there.

Markets are excluded that:

• Have a small population because they do not have stable economies.

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale.

You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently. You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

Get Orlando Daily News delivered to your inbox! Subscribe here!

Orlando FL Home for Sale:

7806 Waterview Way, #7806, Winter Haven, FL 33884
MLS #: O5413193 

Beautifully maintained condo in a great community!

Nestled within the beautifully maintained, gated community of Winterset, this spacious condo offers a generous loft and private half bath in addition to the master bedroom and full bath. Relaxing and entertaining is made easy with its open floor plan plus the outdoor balcony which is located off the living room. The community enjoys the use of a nice clubhouse, tennis courts, and sparkling community pool which overlooks the lake. Located near Legoland, grocery shopping, medical facilities, and restaurants this condo is ideal as a primary residence or as an investment property to generate rental income. Come take a peek inside.

Access Teri’s one-stop Orlando FL home search website.

Teri Isner is the team leader of Orlando Avenue Top Team and has been a Realtor for over 24 years. Teri has distinguished herself as a leader in the Orlando FL real estate market. Teri assists buyers looking for Orlando FL real estate for sale and aggressively markets Orlando FL homes for sale. You deserve professional real estate service! You obtain the best results with Teri Isner plus you benefit from her marketing skills, experience and ability to network with other REALTORS®. Your job gets done pleasantly and efficiently. You are able to make important decisions easily with fast, accurate information from Teri. The Orlando Avenue Top Team handles the details and follow-up that are important to the success of your transaction.

Get Orlando Daily News delivered to your inbox! Subscribe here!