A Sample of Today's Interest Rates From Local Lenders

In an article from Realtor.org and RealtorMag:

The Federal Reserve announced at its regular meeting on Wednesday that it intends to keep its key short-term interest rate – the federal-funds rate – at or near zero for the foreseeable future.

"Although the economic outlook has improved modestly since the March meeting, partly reflecting some easing of financial market conditions, economic activity is likely to remain weak for a time," the Fed said.

One of the Fed’s primary goals is to keep mortgage interest rates low, giving real estate time to recover."They're in the implementation stage," said Laurence Meyer, vice chairman of Macroeconomic Advisers LLC, a forecasting firm.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, Jon Hilsenrath (04/30/2009)

Here are rates posted by some of our local lenders and as always on the b-town Report rates are for 30 year fixed rate mortgages and rates are subject to change:

• Fifth Third Bank (www.53.com): 5.00%
• Premier Home Mtg. (www.premierhomemortgage.com): 4.875%
• Regions (www.regions.com): 4.875%
• United Commerce Bank (www.unitedcommercebank.com): 5.00%

Neighborhood Watch...Elm Heights Update

Elm Heights, the historic neighborhood on the south side of the Indiana University campus is always popular for its location and architecture. And spring in Elm Heights is simply beautiful. The photo to the right was taken on First Street.

Currently there are only three homes available in Elm Heights:

• 528 S. Highland Avenue is a lovely 2 bedroom, 1 1/2 bath home that has been beautifully decorated. The lot is quite small but has a very private outdoor sitting area. Priced at $269,500
• 1040 E. Maxwell Lane is a unique home whose original structure is a 1957 Lustrum home. It now has 5 bedrooms and 2 full baths. The floor plan in non-traditional but very interesting. Priced at $285,000.
• 1212 E. First Street is a California ranch that has been fully renovated and is located on one of the areas most lovely streets. It has 5 bedrooms and 3 full baths and is priced at $549,900.
  
  

The 5 Major Cities with Major Price Reductions

According to Trulia.com, the nation's largest cities are having the greatest price reductions. Here are the numbers:

• NYC: Average home price $2,090,851...average price reduction 14%
• LA: Average home price $1,012,041...average price reduction 13%
• San Fran: Average home price $1,253,618...average price reduction 13%
• Boston: Average home price $706,739...average price reduction 8%
• Houston: Average home price $312,266...average price reduction 6%
  

A Sample of Today's Interest Rates...4.875% is the popular number of the day!

Interest rates are looking great so far this week. As always, rates are for a 30 year fixed rate conventional mortgage and rates are subject to change. Here are the first three rates received by the b-town report today:

• Premier Home Mortgage (www.premierhomemortgage.com): 4.875%
• Regions (www.regions.com): 4.875%
• United Commerce Bank (www.unitedcommercebank.com): 4.875%

Condo Sales Year-to-Date

Since the first of the year, 32 condo's/PUD's have sold in Bloomington, compared to nearly 200 single family homes. Here are some stats on those condos:

• High selling price: $240,000
• Low selling price: $55,000
• Average selling price: 96,597
• Average days on the market: 127
• Average price per square foot: $75.00

This category includes condos, townhouses and attached patio homes

Have New-Home Sales Found the Floor?

Direct from Realtor.org and Realtor Magazine On-line:

It looks like sales of new homes have finally bottomed out.The Commerce Department reported Friday that after hitting a record low in January — 74 percent lower than they were in July 2005 — new home sales rose in February and were flat in March.

"We believe that the bottom is at hand and that sales will begin turning in the second half of this year," writes IHS Global Insight economist Patrick Newport. "As previous recessions show, demand for new homes does not evaporate altogether, even in the hardest of times.

"Median sales prices are still falling, down 12 percent in March compared to the same month the previous year. Analysts say they are likely to remain low until inventory is sold off.

Source: The Associated Press, Alan Zibel (04/24/2009)

120 Kirkwood: Bloomington's Newest Urban Condos in the Heart of Downtown

The initial marketing has begun for Bloomington's newest urban condo building: 120 Kirkwood. The building will be on the corner of Kirkwood Avenue and Washington Street. The building will feature underground parking and first floor retail. Prices start just under $200,000 for one bedroom units and range up to $600,000 for penthouse units.

The location is fabulous for anyone who wants to be able to walk to every kind of entertainment, restaurant and gallery. Updates will follow with more exact details on the interior design plan. And coming soon: www.120Kirkwood.com

The Top Ten Cities Where Home Prices Could Still Fall

From REALTOR.ORG/realtormag:

With incomes falling and loans remaining hard to get, the best bargains are probably yet to come in some of the nation’s largest housing markets, predicts Forbesmagazine.

To figure out which housing markets still haven’t hit bottom, Forbes calculated the spending power, unemployment, credit availability and housing stock over the last 27 years in the country’s 50 largest metropolitan statistical areas.

The projections determined how much each area’s home prices would have to change to bring that housing market into historical balance. Analysts said the employment rate is the great unknown. The more employment falls, the more likely home prices will follow.

Here are the 10 cities where Forbes believes prices are likely to continue to fall the most:

• Orlando
• Miami
• Jacksonville, Fla.
• Tampa
• Los Angeles
• Phoenix
• Las Vegas
• Oakland, Calif.
• San Diego
• New York

Source: Forbes, Matt Woolsey (04/17/2009)

Average Home Sales Prices for Bloomington Are Up From the First Quarter of 2008

The first quarter of 2009 saw an increase in home prices for Bloomington. In the first three months of this year the average home price was $179,823. For the same time period in 2008 the average home price was $177,273.

Though this is a small increase in price of 1.438 %, any increase is welcomed as we see the economy healing and home buyers becoming more confident.

As for Monroe County, including Bloomington City, we saw an even larger increase in sales prices. For the first quarter of 2009 the average sales price was $177,935. For the same time frame in 2008 the average sales price was $171,594. That is an increase of 3.695%.

Matthew Cole's Pick Listing of the Week

Talk about a house that's difficult to photograph! This house just had a major price reduction and is one of the BEST values on the market today. It is a mid-century home originally built my Mr. Bender of Bender's Lumber. It has all original details though out. If anyone is looking for a home in Bloomington that has potential to be 'Architectural Digest' worthy, at an affordable price, this is it.

This house has nearly 3000 square feet of finished living space and is located in a great University neighborhood. The trees are overgrown, the stain is too dark, but what a diamond in the rough...and it's not very rough at that. Now priced at only $199,900.

A Sample of Today's Interest Rates

Here is a sample of today's interest rates from local lenders. As always on the b-town Report rates are for a 30 year fixed rate conventional mortgage and rates are subject to change. Follow the links below for additional information from our local lenders.

• Fifth Third Bank (www.53.com): 5.00%
• Monroe Bank (www.monroebank.com): 4.75% with .5 points
• Premier Home Mtg. (www.premierhomemortgage.com): 4.875%
• Regions (www.regions.com): 4.875%
• United Commerce Bank (www.unitedcommercebank.com): 5.00%

City of Bloomington Announces Grand Opening of EverGreen Village

The City of Bloomington will host a grand opening celebration for EverGreen Village, a subdivision of LEED-certified affordable "green" housing units developed by the City's Housing and Neighborhood Development Department (HAND) that features a sustainable storm water system and pervious pavement sidepath.

The ceremony will take place on Wednesday, April 22, from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. at 2121 Susie Street, near the intersection of Rockport Road and Countryview Lane.

Speakers from the City and the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will be on hand to discuss the project's significance, both as an effort to create affordable housing and as a sustainable initiative.

At the grand opening event, the public will be invited to walk the sidepaths, cross a bridge constructed with recycled milk jugs and tour a home furnished with reused items from Habitat for Humanity's ReStore.

For more information, please contact Robert Woolford, Program Manager for the City of Bloomington HAND Department (812) 349-3580 or visit website: http://bloomington.in.gov/evergreen

New Guidelines for Rural Housing Loans

If you have been considering a Rural Housing Loan, which can mean 100% financing and other benefits if you purchase a home outside of a 3 mile radius of Bloomington City, there is good news in regard to qualifying income. This is from Lisa Sherfield of Bloomfield State Bank:

Hi, there has been a change effective today with the income limits for the guaranteed loan program. 1 – 4 family the income limit is $73,600.00 and 5 -8 income limit is $97,150.00. So a single person can now make up to $73,600.00 and still qualify for the loan program as there are only two income divisions.

If you have any questions please give me a call and I will help you in anyway that I can.


Thanks,

Lisa

Lisa K. Sherfield
Mortgage Loan Officer
Bloomfield State Bank
1301 N. Walnut Street
Bloomington, IN 47404
PH – 812-334-905

And here's a bit more information from Nathan Finney of Premier Home Mortgage:

Please see below for a refresher on the highlights of USDA Rural Housing:
Provides 100% loan-to-value financing for existing homes based on appraised value.
No requirement to be a "first-time" home buyer.
No monthly mortgage insurance required.
One-time guarantee fee, payable to Rural Development (RD) at closing, which may be financed above the appraised value, as follows:
Purchases - 2.00% of loan amount
Fully amortized 30-year fixed-rate loans.
No penalty for pre-payment.
No maximum loan limit. Loan limits are dictated by the applicant's income with respect to program eligibility and loan repayment ability.
Check here for property and income eligibility....
USDA Rural Housing Eligibility

This Material Girl Isn't Messing Around

According to www.trulia.com: Madonna broke neighborhood records, paying $40M for her four-story Georgian-style townhouse. The double-wide boasts 26 rooms, nine fireplaces, an elevator, wine cellar, garden terrace, library, 38' by 22' drawing room overlooking the garden and a 3,000-square-foot garden. Listed for $42,000,000.00

Inexpensive Staging Ideas for Your Living Room

Before you put your house on the market...or while your house is on the market, staging the home correctly can be as important as pricing the home correctly. From the National Association of Realtors, here are some helpful hints for low-cost staging in the Living Room offered by fellow Realtors from around the country:

Create a Focal Point
"Pick out the most visible corner and put a large plant—I've found that silk trees work best. Set up a spotlight behind it so it lights up the leaves and throws an interesting shadow on another wall. It really makes a difference in a person's perception of the space, especially if it's a large room without too much natural lighting."
—Izabela Stone, Keller Williams Realty, Apollo Beach, Fla.

Set Up a Chat Room
"Be sure that the living room furniture is positioned for conversation as well as entertainment. Potential buyers should be able to easily envision sitting in a space where they can easily talk without having to move a chair or turn completely around."
—Rana Lindhorst and Troy Schmidt, Prudential One Realty Centre, Edwardsville, Ill.

Get Rid of Carpet Dents
"Furniture often leaves indentations in the carpet. When a piece of furniture is moved, I tell my clients to put medium-sized ice cubes in the imprints. As the ice melts, it causes the compacted carpet to expand and erase those imprints."
—Shawn Moss, Century 21 C.R. O'Neil & Co.

Market Update for the Week Ending April 17th

On the national level, 10 of the top national markets are showing signs of improvement in the past month. What if they had all of the economic benefits of Bloomington Indiana! Here are the week's numbers:

• 92 New Listings (93 last week)
• 27 Sales (28 last week)
• 38 Pending Sales (66 last week)

The numbers stayed basically the same from last week with the exception of new pending transactions. This can be due to the fact that many Americans spent this past week scrambling to get their taxes together before the 15th deadline...myself included.

Here's the breakdown of the new listings:

• 6 Condo/PUD's
• 11 Land Listings
• 5 Commercial Listings
• 70 Single Family Homes

Breaking down the prices of the new single family listings:

• 2 priced over $1M
• 2 priced in the $500K's
• 3 priced in the $400K's
• 2 priced in the $300K's
• 17 priced in the $200K's
• 11 priced from $150K to $199K
• 19 priced from $100K to $149K
• 10 priced under $100K

The sales of the week ranged in price from a $29,900 manufactured home on a third of an acre in Linton all the way up to a $2,000,000.00 commercial listing on Rogers Street. Here's the price breakdown:

• 1 sold in the $400K's
• 8 sold in the $200K's
• 11 sold in the $100K's
• 6 sold under $100K

Home staging tips and more are coming on Saturday and Sunday to the b-town Report. Have a great weekend!

How is the Market Fairing This Month?

The first 10 days of April for the Bloomington area real estate market are up from a year ago and in line with 2007. Here are the numbers for all sales with the BBoR MLS system:

• First 10 days of April 2007...39 sales
• First 10 days of April 2008...33 sales
• First 10 days of April 2009...38 sales

Let's see how the rest of the month fares.

A Sample of Today's Interest Rates

Even President Obama is encouraging Americans to take advantage of these historically low interest rates while you can. Rate are looking great again today. Here is a sample of today's interest rates from some local lenders. As always on the b-town Report rates are for a 30 year conventional fixed rate mortgage and rates are subject to change. Follow the links below for additional information.

• Fifth Third Bank (www.53.c0m): 4.875%
• Monroe Bank (www.monroebank.com): 4.75% with .375% of a point
• Regions (www.regions.com): 4.875%
• United Commerce Bank (www.unitedcommercebank.com): 5.00%
  

Neighborhood Watch - Bittner Woods

Located on the southeast corner of Sare and Smith Roads, Bittner Woods remains one of Bloomington's classic neighborhoods. Small in size with only 20+ home sites, Bittner Woods offers the diversity in housing styles that was popular in Bloomington's growth during the 1960's and early 1970's with home prices ranging from the mid $200K's to the mid $600K's.

With a minimum of opportunities to buy in Bittner Woods...eight home sales in the last 8 years...the current offerings are even more appealing. Here is information on the three homes currently available:

• 2716 Bluff Court is a 3 bedroom home with 1765 square feet and is offered at $260,000
• 1515 Woodruff Lane is a 5 bedroom/4 bath home with over 5500 square feet and is offered at $649,900.

Recent sales within the past year include:

• 2715 Bluff Court which sold for $240,000
• 1551 Woodruff Lane which sold for $264,000
• 2721 Pine Lane which is pending with a list price of $374,900
  

Nicolas Cage Puts His Las Vegas Home on the Market

With a $460,000 price reduction, Nicolas Cage is pricing his house to sell at $9,490,000. Here's what www.Trulia.com had to report:

6 br 5 ½ ba 14,306 sqft Single-Family Home

Description provided by Realty Trac. This Single-Family Home located at 5100 Spanish Heights Drive, Las Vegas NV 89148 is currently for sale and has been listed on Trulia for 170 days. This property is listed by REMAX BENCHMARK REALTY for $9,490,000. 5100 Spanish Heights Dr has 6 beds, 5 ½ baths, and approximately 14,306 square feet. The price per square foot is $663. The property has a lot size of 15,682 and was built in 2003. 5100 Spanish Heights Dr is in the 89148 ZIP code in Las Vegas, NV.

Market Report for the Week Ending April 10th

An article in the New York Times this past week stated that the real estate market for Manhattan was finally feeling the the squeeze of the economy because of all the changes on Wall Street. That decline of the Manhattan market will have a large effect through out the metropolitan New York area.

Other sectors of the economy are starting to see subtle signs of improvement. As for the Bloomington real estate market, it is strong and active. Here are the week's numbers:

• 93 New Listings
• 28 Sales/Closings
• 66 Pending Transactions

As for the new listings here's the breakdown:

• 5 Condo's/PUDs
• 1 Multi Family
• 28 Land Listings
• 1 Commercial Listing
• 58 Single Family Listings

Many of the 28 land listings are for a new sub-division with large lots priced between $50,000 and $100,000. The community is called Muirfield and is located on the near north side of Bloomington. The lots range in size from over an acre and up to over 4 acres.

Here's the breakdown for the new single family listings:

• 16 priced below $100,000
• 14 priced between $100,000 and $150,000
• 7 priced between $150,000 and $200,000
• 6 priced between $200,000 and $250,000
• 4 priced between $250,000 and $300,000
• 3 priced between $300,000 and $400,000
• 2 priced between $400,000 and $500,000
• 1 priced at 995,000
• 1 priced at $1.095,000

As for the 28 sales of the week, six of them were for homes priced over $250,000 with the high seller going for $425,000. Here are the sales numbers:

• 3 Condo/PUDs priced from $109,000 to $255,000
• 24 Single Family homes
• 1 Commercial listing.

A Sample of Today's Interest Rates

The rates are hanging on! Remember when you are shopping for a mortgage to always shop at two or three places before committing. Some lender's rate may be more favorable but their fees may not be as favorable. The lenders will expect you to shop around. Here's a sample of rates from local lenders. As always on the b-town Report the rates are for a 30 year fixed rate conventional mortgage and are usually set for people with credit scores over 740. Rates are subject to change

• Fifth Third Bank (www.53.com): 4.875%
• Monroe Bank (www.monroebank.com): 4.75% with half a point
• Premier Home Mtg. (www.premierhomemortgage.com): 4.875%
• Regions (www.regions.com): 5.00%
• United Commerce Bank (www.unitedcommercebank.com): 5.00%
  

The New HomeFinder.com Launches It's New Site

www.homefinder.org has been the local real estate search engine of preference for the Bloomington area. Now check out www.HomeFinder.com.

Direct from the pages of Realtor Magazine Online:

"Ever hear of Homefinder.com? If not, you probably will. The company, formerly known as Homescapes, is launching a $40 million nationwide ad campaign in the real estate sections of 133 newspapers. The ads will run on Sundays throughout 2009.The goal, says company CEO Tim Fagan, is to get the Web site on consumers' radar screen. An initial ad shows a man with spiky hair mimicking the pitch of the roof of his home. The second ad depicts a woman’s red lipstick matching the door of her home.Participating papers include: the Chicago Tribune, Arizona Republic, Miami Herald, Los Angeles Times and Indianapolis Star."

Source: MediaPost.com, Les Luchter (04/06/2009)

More First Quarter Numbers for Bloomington's Real Estate Market

Using data from the Bloomington Board of Realtors MLS system for single family homes in Monroe County as of the end of the first quarter of 2009...there were the following Pending Sales at the end of the quarter.

• Total pending sales: 140
• 17 priced under $100,000
• 18 priced from $100,000 to $124,999
• 26 priced from $125,000 to $149,999
• 20 priced from $150,000 to $174,999
• 11 priced from $175,000 to 199,999
• 26 priced from $200,000 to $299,999
• 13 priced from $300,000 to $399,999
• 8 priced from $400,000 to $499,999
• 0 priced from $500,000 to $599,999
• 1 priced from $600,000 and over
  

A Sample of Today's Interest Rates

Lenders are doing their best to hold on to the great rates. Below is a sample of rates offered by local lenders. As always on the b-town Report rates are for a 30 year fixed rate conventional mortgage and rates are subject to change.

• Fifth Third Bank (http://www.53.com/): 4.875%
• Monroe Bank (http://www.monroebank.com/): 4.875% with .375% points
• Premier Home Mtg. (http://www.premierhomemortgage.com/): 4.75%
• Regions (http://www.regions.com/): 5.00%
• United Commerce Bank (http://www.unitedcommercebank.com/): 5.00%
  

First Quarter Stats for Bloomington's Real Estate Market

With the first quarter under our belts in the Bloomington real estate market, here are sum statistics of interest using the following criteria: Bloomington address, residential properties including single family homes, condos and PUDs and sold within the first quarter of 2009.

• Average size of home: 1908 square feet
• Average list price: $193,862
• Average sales price: $179,823
• Average price per square foot: $92
• Average days on the market: 119
• Percentage of sales price to list price: 93%

How Many Days on the Market is Standard for a Listing Bloomington?

When sellers are trying to plan when to put their house on the market or buyers are wondering how long to wait for a price reduction before submitting an offer, the question is always "What's the average Days On The Market for houses in this price range?". Here's the answer based on sales of single family houses in Bloomington since the first of this year:

• Homes priced under $100,000: 79 days on the market
• Homes priced between $100,000 and $150,000: 108 days on the market
• Homes priced between $150,000 and $200,000: 118 days on the market
• Homes priced between $200,000 and $250,000: 93 days on the market
• Homes priced between $250,000 and $300,000: 159 days on the market
• Homes priced between $300,000 and $400,000: 131 days on the market
• Homes priced between $400,000 and $500,000: 212 days on the market
• Homes priced between $500,000 and $600,000: 307 days on the market
• Homes priced between $600,000 and $1M: 288 days on the market
• Homes priced over $1M: no data due to no sales over $1M in 2009

Homes priced under $100K are moving very quickly. For the majority of homes that sell in this market you are looking at 3 to 4 months as the average time it takes to sell a house. Of course the desirability of the neighborhood, condition of the home and home staging are all factors that can alter the average.

Market Report for the Week Ending April 3rd

It's been another busy week here in the Bloomington area. In addition to Bloomington South winning the State Championships, the market has been quite strong. Here are the numbers:

• 85 New listings
• 22 Sales/closings
• 41 properties went pending

As for the new listings, here's the break down:

• 26 Condos/PUDs
• 7 Land listings
• 2 Commercial listings
• 50 Single family homes

The single family homes new to the market range in list price from $55,500 for a 1930's bungalow in Columbus to a $2,950,000 estate on Bloomington's East Side consisting of over 10 acres and 9200 square foot house. The majority of new listings are priced from $100,000 to $200,000 with only 5 listings priced over $400,000.

As for the week's sales, all were single family homes except one land and one commercial listing. Here are the numbers:

• 4 sold for under $100,000
• 5 sold from $100,000 to $150,000
• 6 sold from $150,000 to $200,000
• 2 sold from $200,000 to $250,000
• 1 sold for $298,000
• 1 sold for $415,000
• 1 sold for $491,076 (interesting price)

As for the newly pending properties, many were in the higher price range from the $300's to the $500's.

Interest rates ended the week still below 5% with many lenders so the spring market is looking strong for Bloomington for both buyers and sellers.

How Many Homes in Monroe County Carry a Mortgage?

We all talk about home ownership and the need for a mortgage. Here is some information on mortgages/home ownership for Monroe County:

Housing units in Monroe County with a mortgage: 14,447

• 1,526 second mortgage,


• 1,627 home equity loan,


• 78 both second mortgage and home equity loan


• Houses without a mortgage: 5,303

In Monroe County 73.1% of homes have a mortgage. State wide 70.9% of homes have a mortgage.

Source: City-Data.com

Check Out This Handy Web Site

Thanks to Jean Cannon for this bit of information. If you ever want to speak directly with someone at a business, this site gives you directions on how to reach a human being directly.

I have spent too much time hitting 0 over and over and you'll find out that it's not the way with a lot of businesses. Though this isn't real estate related, it was too good not to pass along!

http://www.dialahuman.com

The Top Ten Most Heavily Taxed States in the US

Here are the 10 states with the highest taxes, including property, individual income, sales, alcoholic beverages, tobacco, motor vehicles, hunting and fishing, motor fuels, death and gift taxes, as well as insurance premiums.

The per capita tax was derived by adding up all the taxes and dividing the total by the number of citizens.

1. Vermont, $3,861

2. Hawaii, $3,856

3. Connecticut, $3,596

4. Minnesota, $3,203

5. New Jersey, $3,024

6. New York, $3,019

7. Massachusetts, $2,953

8. Washington, $2,553

9. Wyoming, $2,357

10. Pennsylvania, $2,223

Source: Forbes, Matt Woolsey (03/30/2009)