Eric Lowry's Articles Archives

Where Interest Rates Are Headed

What credit score is needed to buy a home?

Common Real Estate Terms You Should Know

Search the Cincinnati MLS for Homes For Sale

Selling A Home In The Winter

December 30, 2015 by Eric Lowry

Selling a home in the winter can be very beneficial to you as a home owner believe it or not. You may think that Spring or even Summer is the best time to put your home on the market, and that’s not quite true. There are several reasons you may want to consider selling a home in the winter.

The buyers who are out looking at homes in the winter are typically very serious buyers, and for varying reasons, have a strong motivation to buy. Braving the winter temperatures and snow is not for the faint of heart. These buyers need to find a home, and usually they need to do so quickly.

Inventory is much lower in the winter than it is in the Spring and Summer. Selling a home in the winter means less competition for you as a seller. If you wait until Spring, the home inventory shoots up. Many other sellers put their homes on the market in the Spring and Summer, and there is also an influx of available New Construction to compete with as well. If you want to sell your home for the best price possible, wouldn’t you want to go up against less competition rather than more?

The accompanying chart shows the home inventory levels for the first five months of 2015 according the National Association of Realtors. As you can see, the longer you wait the higher the level of competition you will have when putting your home on the market.

If you’ve been considering selling a home in the winter, contact us today to schedule a consultation and find out what your home is worth. Don’t forget to ask about our Home Sale Guarantee! The Lowry Team will sell your home in 88 days or less, or we’ll sell it for FREE!

Don’t Hire an Agent…Hire a Team. The Lowry Team.

Buyers and Sellers can reach The Lowry Team Keller Williams at 513-874-1830.

Other Articles You May Be Interested In:

10 Ways To Improve The Resale Value Of Your Home

Top Home Updates

Preparing Your House To Sell: Tidy That Kitchen

Tips For Selling Your House Fast

10 Tips For Staging A Home

Search the entire Cincinnati MLS for Homes For Sale

Common Real Estate Terms You Should Know

December 29, 2015 by Eric Lowry

Whether you are buying or selling a home, you may come across plenty of real estate terms that you do not recognize. However, it’s important to be familiar with the common real estate terms that you will encounter throughout the process because it will make the process much easier. Here are several common real estate terms you should know:

Appraisal – The estimated value of a property as calculated by a licensed appraiser. An appraisal makes sure that the amount a buyer is under contract to pay for a property is equal to or less than the amount calculated by the appraiser. If a home “doesn’t appraise”, it means the seller must either agree to lower the sale price of the home to the appraised amount, or the buyer can walk away from the contract. This is ordered by the lender, and paid for by the buyer as part of closing costs.

Closing Costs – The fees paid at closing, including loan origination fees, attorney fees, appraisal fees, survey fees, title insurance, title search fees, underwriting fees, etc.

Contingency – A condition that must be met in order for the contract to become legally binding. In real estate, the sale contingencies are financing, the home inspection, and appraisal. If a contingency is not met, it allows the buyer to walk away from the contract and get their earnest money back.

Down Payment – The amount of money that a home buyer pays out of pocket towards purchasing a home. The down payment required for a buyer depends upon the type of home loan being utilized. Some loan programs allow for as little as 3% down.

Earnest Money – An amount of money (typically 1-2% of sale price) that a home buyer provides with their offer to the seller to show good faith. The check is cashed by the broker as soon as the offer is accepted, and is held in a non-interest bearing account until closing. If the sale falls through due to one of the contingencies on the contract (financing, inspections, or appraisal), the earnest money goes back to the buyer.

Home Inspection – A contingency on the purchase contract that allows for the buyer to hire a home inspector to conduct a thorough inspection of the home, which can also include radon tests, termite inspections, air quality tests, etc.

Home Warranty – A service contract that protects a home owner from the high costs of repairing and/or replacing major home components, such as the hot water heater, furnace, AC system, etc.

MLS – A database, also known as the Multiple Listing Service, that Realtors have access to that shows all homes currently listed for sale.

Pre Approval – A dry run of the loan process. A mortgage lender gathers information from a potential home buyer regarding income, debts, assets, etc. to determine how much home the buyer can afford. A pre approval letter is required to submit an offer on a home.

Title Insurance – Insurance that protects the buyer (or the seller) from any potential disputes regarding ownership of the property. It’s always a good idea to purchase title insurance.

Have any questions regarding these common real estate terms you should know? Ready to chat about your real estate plans? Contact The Lowry Team today!

Don’t Hire an Agent…Hire a Team. The Lowry Team.

Buyers and Sellers can reach The Lowry Team Keller Williams at 513-874-1830.

Other Articles You May Be Interested In:

Where Interest Rates Are Headed

What credit score is needed to buy a home?

Search the entire Cincinnati MLS for Homes For Sale

What credit score is needed to buy a home?

December 28, 2015 by Eric Lowry

Research shows that many Americans are not clear about what it really takes to qualify to buy a home in today’s market. There is a significant population not looking to purchase a home simply because they don’t believe they can qualify for a mortgage. One major misconception affecting this is regarding what credit score is needed to buy a home.

A recent Ipsos survey reported that two-thirds of respondents believe they would need a very good credit score to buy a home, with 45% thinking that a “very good” credit score is over 780. In reality, however, the actual FICO score requirement is much lower and has been dropping steadily over the last several months. The average FICO score required depends on which type of loan you get. For an FHA mortgage, the average FICO score is 687. For a Convetional mortgage, the average FICO score is 754.

Contact us today to evaluate your ability to purchase your dream home, you might be surprised at how much the requirements for a mortgage have eased.

Don’t Hire an Agent…Hire a Team. The Lowry Team.

Buyers and Sellers can reach The Lowry Team Keller Williams at 513-874-1830.

Other Articles You May Be Interested In:

Where Interest Rates Are Headed

Search the entire Cincinnati MLS for Homes For Sale

Where Interest Rates Are Headed

December 28, 2015 by Eric Lowry

The interest rate you pay on your home mortgage has a direct impact on your monthly payment. The higher the interest rate, the higher the monthly payment will be. That’s why it’s important to know where interest rates are headed when deciding whether to buy a home now or wait.

According to Freddie Mac, mortgage interest rates have increased over the last several weeks. Freddie Mac, along with Fannie Mae, the Mortgage Bankers Association, and the National Association of Realtors are all calling for interest rates to continue to rise over the next four quarters. While rates are expected to rise, it’s still important to keep in mind that interest rates are still at historic lows.

The graph above illustrates the projections of where interest rates are headed, based on Freddie Mac’s 2015 U.S. Economic & Housing Marketing Outlook. As you can see, they are expected to increase steadily over the next 12 months.

What does this mean for you? A half percent (.5%) increase in your interest rate can significantly increase your monthly mortgage payment. Based on the projections of where interest rates are headed, the sooner you buy a home the better. Waiting could cause you to wind up paying considerably more for your next home. Contact us today to evaluate your ability to buy your dream home.

Don’t Hire an Agent…Hire a Team. The Lowry Team.

Buyers and Sellers can reach The Lowry Team Keller Williams at 513-874-1830.

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