Eye Candy for House Hunters

Perhaps, in an effort to help make real estate search FUN, Trulia.com has alunched a new utility called Snapshot, powered by Microsoft Virtual Earth, that overlays housing data atop an interactive map that is nothing short of a visual treat.

The visual interface offers an alternative view of the homes currently listed for sale on trulia.com and allows users to customize the selected properties based on a price range or whether the listing is stale or fresh.

Users can search for any city in the USA & either click around the map, scroll the slider or just hit the big “play” button & sit back & just watch. Users can also click on a series of tabs to view “Most Expensive,” “Least Expensive,” “Newest” and “Oldest” properties. Scrolling the pointer over a property image displays the home’s address in large type and the amount of time that has passed since the property was listed.

Memorial Day

Has Memorial Day just become an extra holiday from work or school? Have we made it more a time to hit the shopping malls or go to the beach or the golf course? Once this was not so.

Years ago, the nation honored its dead on the 30th of May and not on a day conveniently tacked onto the nearest two-day weekend to create a triple holiday. Once this memorial was called “Decoration Day.” It was a day Americans marched in solemn procession in every town and hamlet to lay flowers upon the many graves in their cemeteries.

“What does Memorial Day mean to you?” a little girl was asked.

“That’s the day the pool opens,” she replied.

How fortunate we are that the little girl may go to her pool. The freedom we enjoy was purchased dearly.

Let us remember. Let us put the “memorial” back into Memorial Day. May We Never Forget!


What interest rates really mean

The Fed did this! The Fed did that! Rates are up! Rates are down! Aaaagggh! Okay, now exhale.  In turbulent economic times the media can’t wait to report what interest rates are doing.  Pundits prognosticate, forecasters forecast and soothsayers sooth.  When should you buy a home based upon interest rates and when is it the right time?

The fact is that interest rates, while important, have little impact when it comes to buying a home.  Alright, alright, I’ll admit: it’s important…but it’s not a deal-killer.

There is a fixation on what rates are doing.  A fixation on what rates will be in the future and what rates were in the past.  I’ve heard potential home buyers tell me, “I’m not sure I want to buy now because rates are ¼ percent higher now and I think I’ll wait.” I say,  ”Wait for what?”  I say let’s not look at the rate but instead concentrate on what that rate actually represents … your monthly payment.

Let’s look at what an interest rate move of ¼ percent really does to a $200,000 mortgage.  Say a 30-year interest rate at 6.00 percent “jumps” to 6 ¼ percent. Shall we sit on the sidelines, thinking such a move is suddenly unaffordable?  No.  The payment on a $200,000 loan “jumps” by about $32 a month!

Now let’s get a bit more draconian and look at a ½ percent increase and the monthly payment increases by $64.  Putting that into daily financial terms, $64 is about a tank of gas. While not insignificant, it’s hardly a reason to stay on the sidelines of home ownership. Right now, buyers should have more urgency than ever. Home prices have declined enough to make buying more affordable than it’s been in recent memory and interest rates (whether at 6 percent or 6 1/4 percent) are historically low. It’s time to act.

Are rates important? Sure they are.  But are they the end-all?  Heck no.  Interest rates over the past few years have been in a very tight range, with few major swings.  Just remember what interest rates represent, your monthly payment, and pay less attention to the headlines.

Written by David Reed, author of Mortgage 101 and Mortgage Confidential.

US Home prices adjusted for inflation plotted as a roller coaster:

 

 Click here to view the graph full size in a new window.