Attention Investors/ First time home Buyers

Good afternoon to all. I wanted to share the news if you have not heard.
The Federal Reserve announced late yesterday that they are keeping the interest rates low, these are among the lowest levels we have seen in years.
This is great news for first time home buyers who can still take advantage of the $8000.00 Tax Credit and the low interst rates. This is also a great time if you are an Investor and do not want to use all of your cash flow and would like to finance properties. I work with a couple of great lenders and would be happy to refer any Investor or First time home Buyer to them. The article below details the Feds decision and why. Very interesting Read in Today's Wall Street Journal.
Best Regards,
Nancy

Home Buyers Get a Reprieve
The Wall Street Journal - September 24, 2009

By Sudeep Reddy and James R. Haggerty

The Federal Reserve, in a move aimed at keeping interest rates low for home buyers through early next year, decided to extend and gradually phase out its purchase of mortgage-backed securities.

The Fed's action signals its belief that the economy, while in recovery, remains fragile and that housing, which has seen some improvement in recent months, has only started to pull out of its slump.

"We definitely need help from the government," says Lee Barrett, president of Century 21 Barrett, a real-estate brokerage firm in Las Vegas. "I don't think the market can make it on its own." He also ... Click Here to Read the Rest of this Article at Wall Street Journal.com

More than $150 Billion in Commercial Loans to Come Due

Good Morning,
This article appeared in Today's Wall Street Journal, thought it important enough to share.
The Treasury has relaxed the restrictions on refinancing in response to the growing pain occurring in the Commercial Real Estate Industry. The restructuring of these loans has a big impact on our economy and the Real Estate industry.

New Rules Ease the Restructuring of CMBS Loans
Treasury Relaxes Restrictions on Refinancing in an Effort to Stave Off Commercial Mortgage Defaults

Wall Street Journal - September 16, 2009
BY LINGLING WEI

The Treasury, responding to the growing pain in the commercial real-estate industry, released new tax rules that make it easier for distressed property owners to restructure loans that were packaged by Wall Street firms and sold as securities.

Most in the real-estate industry, which lobbied intensely for the move, applauded the action. But some warned it has opened a Pandora's box, especially for servicers of the securities who will likely come under new pressure from borrowers and competing classes of investors.

The move is the first round of "additional guidance" the Treasury is weighing to stave off what many fear ... Click her to continue article on WallStreetJournal.com

Forclosures Holding Steady

New Mexico reported 736 properties with some sort of Foreclosure related filing in August 09. This reported by RealtyTrac. This number is a jump of 50% over reported numbers in 2008. On a positive note, this is a 16% decrease from July 09.
This should give First Time Home Buyers incentive to get out there and buy, there are so many good deals out there right now. Short Sales included. The $8000.00 tax incentive expires December 1st 2009. So get out there and Buy!!!
Read the full article below, featured in Friday's Albuquerque Journal.
Have a great weekend.
Nancy

By Adrian Sainz /The Associated Press Thursday, 10 September 2009 18:02 MIAMI - The number of U.S. households threatened with losing their homes held steady last month, a sign that lenders' efforts to help distressed borrowers may be having a gradual impact.
More than 358,000 foreclosure-related filings were recorded in August, meaning one in 357 U.S. homes received a filing, RealtyTrac Inc. reported Thursday. That number, up 18 percent from a year ago, includes default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions.
New Mexico, ranked 36th in the report, had 736 properties with some sort of foreclosure-related filing in August, a jump of nearly 50 percent from August 2008 but a 16 percent improvement over July. Only one household in every 1,171 statewide saw a foreclosure filing in August, dramatically less than the nationwide ratio.
Mortgage companies are ramping up efforts to help troubled borrowers modify their loan payments to make them more affordable, data showed. And RealtyTrac said bank repossessions dropped 13 percent from July.
The problem is the economy. The unemployment rate continues to rise, despite a new Federal Reserve survey that suggested the recession is over.
More than 138,000 households received a default notice in August. Another 144,113 received a notice scheduling the house for public auction.
"The August report demonstrates that there is still an ample supply of properties filling the foreclosure pipeline," said James Saccacio, CEO of Irvine, Calif.-based RealtyTrac.
Despite an 8 percent monthly decline in foreclosure activity in August, Nevada had the nation's highest foreclosure rate for the 32nd straight month. Florida, California, Arizona, Michigan, Idaho, Utah, Colorado, Georgia and Illinois completed the top 10 states for foreclosure filings.

NM Pending Sales Drop in July but increase across the US

I am expecting Home sales to rally in September and October with the deadline for the $8000.00 Tax incentive to end November 30Th. This is a great time to buy if you are a first time home buyer. Prices have not been this good in years and the incentive is the best I have ever seen offered. Below is the full article featured in the Albuquerque Journal today. If you know of a first time home buyer, please make them aware of the incentives offered. This is a one time deal and folks should really take advantage of it. Feel free to contact me, I will be happy to assist you in your new home purchase.
Best Regards,
Nancy
The article below appeared in the Albuquerque Journal and I wanted to share it with you.

Wednesday, September 02, 2009

N.M. Bucks U.S. Home Sales Rise

By Alan Zibel
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Pending home sales in most states — but not New Mexico — rose more than expected in July as first-time buyers rushed to take advantage of a tax credit that expires this fall.
The National Association of Realtors said on Tuesday that its seasonally adjusted index of sales contracts signed in July for previously occupied homes rose 3.2 percent to 97.6. It was the sixth straight increase and 12 percent above the same month last year.
Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected the index would edge up to 96.5.
In the Albuquerque metro area, July produced the first recent decrease in pending sales, down to 875 from 933 in June. Local real estate officials had been hoping for another month of growth but since that did not happen, “that means that June was the peak,” said Don Padilla, chairman of the Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors.
Pending sales could rebound, he said. “What we might see for August or maybe even September, we might see a spike (in sales) because of the deadline for the first-time homebuyer tax credit that expires Nov. 30.”
Typically there is a one- to two-month lag between a contract and a done deal, so the national index is a barometer of how sales completed this month and next will turn out. However, delays in getting mortgages approved and appraisals completed have lengthened the time it takes to close a deal.
In a separate report, the U.S. manufacturing sector grew in August for the first time in 19 months as new orders from customers jumped to the highest level since late 2004. The better-than-expected reading Tuesday by the Institute for Supply Management showed the highest number for its manufacturing index since June 2007.
The ISM, a trade group of purchasing executives, said its manufacturing index rose to 52.9 in August, from 48.9 in July. It's the first reading above 50 since January 2008.
Journal staff contributed to this report.