Jan McPheter

Senate may extend $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers, add current homeowners.

Washington (CNN) — Senate leaders have reached a tentative deal to extend the first-time homebuyers’ tax credit that was originally passed earlier this year as part of the stimulus bill, Republican and Democratic sources told CNN on Wednesday.

The agreement would extend and expand the credit to include current homeowners who want to move, according to the sources.

The original credit in the stimulus bill is set to expire at the end of November and offers a tax credit of $8,000 to first-time homebuyers.

Senate sources told CNN they have tentatively agreed to extend that $8,000 credit for first-time buyers until the end of April. In addition, they are adding a $6,500 credit for some current homeowners who buy a new residence by then.

To qualify, current homeowners must have lived in their primary residence for five continuous years.

Senators have not agreed on how the tentative deal would come up for a vote, but sources from both parties said they are considering adding the housing credit to a bill that would extend unemployment benefits.

www.janmcpheter.com

Bierocks

Dough:
2 1/4 tsps. dry yeast
1 cup warm milk
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs, beaten
4+ cups bread flour

Filling:
1/2 medium-sized onion, chopped
1 lb. ground beef, pork, or turkey (I used turkey)
1 TB. vegetable oil
1/2 small head of cabbage, shredded
salt and pepper, to taste

1. Dissolve sugar and yeast in warm milk. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. In a heavy -duty mixer, combine oil, salt and eggs; add yeast mixture. Add 1 cup of flour and beat for 1 minute. Beat in 1/2 cup of flour at a time, until dough pulls away from sides of bowl.
2. Switch to dough hook. Knead on low speed, adding remaining flour 1 TB. at a time, until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
3. Place dough in a well-oiled large bowl and loosely cover. Let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
4. To make filling, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add meat and onion and cook until meat is browned, stirring to crumble. Add cabbage and cook until wilted. Season with salt and pepper. Let cool.
5. Punch dough down and let rest 5 minutes.
6. Divide dough in half. Roll each half into a letter-sized rectangle (roughly 8 by 11) and cut each rectangle into 6 squares. Spoon 1/4 cup filling into center of each square. Bring opposite corners together at the center, pinching corners and seams to seal. Place seam side down on a large baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Repeat with remaining dough. Cover and let rise 20 minutes.
7. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
8. Uncover and bake until lightly golden, about 15 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

Makes 12 bierocks.

Prediction: Homes Sales to Rise 11 Percent Next Year

Sales of existing homes will rise 11 percent in 2010, and sales of new homes will climb 21 percent over this year, Mortgage Bankers Association Chief Economist Jay Brinkmann predicted in a speech Tuesday at the organization’s annual meeting.

“We still see a concentration in the lower end of the market,” Brinkmann said. “The entry level homes are in demand.”

Brinkmann also predicted further declines in existing home prices, with the median falling to $164,200 in the first quarter of 2010.

David Stevens, commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration, concurred, adding that mortgage rates will rise to 5.6 percent by the end of 2010, though not enough of an increase to discourage a 12 percent increase in mortgage applications next year.  Visit my website at www.janmcpheter.com

Source: Associated Press, Alex Veiga (10/13/2009)

Make your own Granola

Make your own Granola

From Foodwishes.com

Enjoy !

Please visit My website at www.janmcpheter.com

CHEESY CURLY KALE CHIPS

1 large bunch green curly kale, washed, large stems removed, torn into bite size pieces

COATING:
1 cup cashews, (soaked 2 hours)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
juice of 1 lemon
1 T. nutritional yeast
2 t. agave (opt.)
1/2 t. himalayan pink crystal salt
1 jalapeno, no seeds (optional)

Put coating ingredients in food processor. Blend until smooth. Using your hands, spread coating on kale pieces getting it inside of curls. Put on teflex sheets and dehydrate at 105 overnight or until coating is dry. Slide onto mesh screens and dehydrate 12 hours, or until very crispy.

The kale should be firm. If kale is limp, wash it, cut an inch off the end of the stems and stand in a bowl of water for an hour.

Jan McPheter has a New Lisiting at 528 Rogers in Fox Hill

To view all of my listings visit my website at www.janmcpheter.com

Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tide Information

Buy a New Home with a Reverse Mortgage

* Be 62 years of age or older
* Own the property outright or have a small mortgage balance
* Occupy the property as your principal residence
* Not be delinquent on any federal debt
* Participate in a consumer information session given by an approved HECM counselor

Mortgage Amount Based On

Financial Requirements

* No income or credit qualifications are required of the borrower
* No repayment as long as the property is your principal residence
* Closing costs may be financed in the mortgage

Property Requirements

How the Program Works

* Tenure – equal monthly payments as long as at least one borrower lives and continues to occupy the property as a principal residence.
* Term – equal monthly payments for a fixed period of months selected.
* Line of Credit – unscheduled payments or in installments, at times and in an amount of your choosing until the line of credit is exhausted.
* Modified Tenure – combination of line of credit plus scheduled monthly payments for as long as you remain in the home.
* Modified Term – combination of line of credit plus monthly payments for a fixed period of months selected by the borrower.

Unlike ordinary home equity loans, a FHA reverse mortgage HECM does not require repayment as long as the home is your principal residence. Lenders recover their principal, plus interest, when the home is sold. The remaining value of the home goes to you or your heirs. You can never owe more than your home’s value.

The amount you can borrow depends on your age, the current interest rate, other loan fees, and the appraised value of your home or FHA’s HECM mortgage limit for your area, whichever is less. Generally, the more valuable your home is, the older you are, and the lower the interest, the more you can borrow. If there is more than one owner, the age of the youngest owner is used to determine the amount you can borrow. For an estimate of HECM cash benefits based on your age, home value, and current interest rate, call Paul Neufeld at (913) 645-7874.

HECM Costs

The HECM loan includes several fees, including an origination fee, closing costs, mortgage insurance premium, interest and servicing fees.

You will pay an origination fee to compensate the lender for processing your HECM loan. A lender can charge a HECM origination fee up to $2,500 if your home is valued at less than $125,000. If your home is valued at more than $125,000 lenders can charge 2% of the first $200,000 of your home’s value plus 1% of the amount over $200,000. HECM origination fees are capped at $6,000.

Closing costs from third parties can include an appraisal, title search and insurance, surveys, inspections, recording fees, mortgage taxes, credit checks and other fees.

Mortgage Insurance Premium (MIP)

You will incur a cost for HECM insurance. You can finance the mortgage insurance premium (MIP) as part of your loan. You will be charged an upfront MIP at closing which will be 2% of the lesser of your home’s value or the FHA HECM mortgage limit for your area. You will also be charged a monthly MIP that equals 0.5% of the mortgage balance.

The HECM insurance guarantees that you will receive expected loan advances and that you will not have to repay the loan for as long as you live in your home. The insurance also guarantees that, if you or your heirs sell your home to repay the loan, your total debt can never be greater than the value of your home.

Servicing Fee

Lenders or their agents provide servicing throughout the life of the HECM. Servicing includes sending you account statements, disbursing loan proceeds and making certain that you keep up with loan requirements such as paying taxes and insurance. HECM lenders may charge a monthly servicing fee of no more than $30 if the loan has an annually adjusting interest rate and $35 if the interest rate adjusts monthly. At loan origination, HECM lenders set aside the servicing fee and deduct the fee from your available funds. Each month the monthly servicing fee is added to your loan balance.

Interest Rate

HECM borrowers can choose an adjustable interest rate or a fixed rate. If you choose an adjustable interest rate, you may choose to have the interest rate adjust monthly or annually. Lenders may not adjust annually adjusted HECMs by more than 2 percentage points per year and not by more than 5 total percentage points over the life of the loan. FHA does not require interest rate caps on monthly adjusted HECMs.

Repaying a HECM

A HECM loan must be repaid in full when you die or sell the home. The loan also becomes due and payable if:

* You do not pay property taxes or hazard insurance or violate other obligations.
* You permanently move to a new principal residence.
* You, or the last borrower, fail to live in the home for 12 months in a row. An example of this situation would be if you (or the last borrower) were to have a 12-month or longer stay in a nursing home.
* You allow the property to deteriorate and do not make necessary repairs.

For more information on Revere Mortgages, Call Paul Neufeld at (913) 645-7874 or visit my website at www.pwneufeld.com

Looking for a Short Sale Property, or Considering a Short Sale?

Banks could get government incentive payments for allowing borrowers to sell their home at a loss rather than go through foreclosure, under guidelines recently issued by the Obama Administration.

The program, known as Making Home Affordable (MHA), focuses on paying lenders to modify distressed borrowers’ loans to affordable levels. MHA provides $75 billion for sustainable mortgage modifications through the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).  Under this program, lenders can also receive incentive payments even if the homeowner’s loan is not modified.

In those cases, the lender could get up to $1,000 for allowing a short sale. In such deals, the lender accepts less than the value of the mortgage in what has usually been a time-consuming and cumbersome process. Under the plan, the government will also share the cost of extinguishing second liens on the property, such as those for second mortgages.

If the short sale fails, the borrower can turn over their house keys in a process known as “deed in lieu of foreclosure,” transferring ownership to the lender without a foreclosure. At the end of the process, the homeowner could be eligible for $1,500 for relocation expenses.

“If a modification is not possible, we are also announcing steps to encourage the quick private sale or voluntary transfer of property, which will save homeowners money and protect their financial future,” Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner said. “These are critical steps in stemming the foreclosure crisis and stabilizing the housing market.”

The additions to the program are an acknowledgement by government officials that not all distressed borrowers will be able to save their homes. Despite government efforts, lenders are starting the foreclosure process on an increasing number of homes.

The program’s expansion also includes a $10 billion feature that protects lenders from losses associated with falling home prices. If a lender modifies a loan and the homeowner redefaults, the lender faces more severe losses if home prices have fallen in the interim.

The new incentive will encourage loan modifications in places where home values have dropped severely, according to a summary of the program. It reduces “the risk of loss to lenders from modifications compared to alternatives that could result in the loss of homeownership,” the summary said.  Call Jan at 757-329-4714 or visit my website at
www.janmcpheter.com

Hampton Roads $8,000 Tax Credit for First Time Home Buyers is Running Out…Call Me Now!!

Time is running out for Hampton Roads first time home buyers…

The Government program for the $8000 tax credit will expire on November 30, 2009.

FIRST TIME HOME BUYERS TAX CREDIT INFORMATION

1. Amount of Credit – 10% of purchase price, not to exceed $8,000
2. Eligible Property – Single family residence (principal residence)
3. Not Refundable- Reduces or eliminates income tax liability, will receive refund for unused amount
4. Income Limit – Single taxpayers with income up to $75,000 and married couples with incomes up to $150,000 qualify for the full tax credit
5. First Time Home Buyer – Purchaser and Purchaser’s Spouse may not have owned a principal residence in three years previous to purchase
6. Revenue Bond Financing – Purchasers who utilize revenue bond financing can use credit
7. Repayment – no repayment for purchases on or after January 1st, 2009 and before December 1st, 2009
8. Recapture – If home is sold within three years of purchase, entire amount of credit is recaptured on sale. Applies only to homes purchased in 2009
9. Termination – Program expires on December 1st, 2009
10. Effective date – Effective as of January 1st, 2009

Finding a house takes time but also don’t forget that these items require time (usually about 45-60 days)to process a transaction:

1. Finding a Realtor whom you trust and who will best represent you…call me now.
2. Writing an offer
3. Offer acceptance and negotiations
4. Finding a Lender
5. Loan application
6. Survey
7. Inspections
8. Repairs
9. Appraisals
10. And other issues which often come from lenders, title companies etc…

Time is running out. Call Jan at 757-329-4714 or visit my website at
www.janmcpheter.com