One man’s loss is another man’s gain and right now buyer’s have everything to gain. It was only a few short years ago that sellers controlled the market and were calling the shots. In order to buy a home, buyers were paying over the asking price, foregoing home inspections and paying all their own closing costs. Virginia Beach home buyers were jumping through any and all hoops. 

Now the market has shifted. The strong sellers’ market is a thing of the past and it is the sellers who are jumping through hoops. Buyers are calling the shots with offers that include home inspections; requests that closing costs, homeowner association fees and inspection fees be paid by the seller; decorating allowances; home improvement; and prices far below the asking price. 

So why are buyers hesitating? Fear of a tanking economy, falling home prices and job instability are concerns for many potential home buyers. But if you are financially stable and plan to stay in a home for at least five years, there are 5 top reasons to buy a Virginia Beach home in 2009: 

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Stimulus Bill May Be Good News For Virginia Beach Home Buyers

It looks as if our legislators in Washington are finally making positive steps toward fixing the house mess by including housing legislation in the Economic Stimulus Bill.

Yesterday, the Lieberman/Isakson Amendment was included in the senate version of the Economic Stimulus Bill by a unanimous voice vote. This amendment would provide a Tax Credit to all home buyers at the rate of 10% of the sales price up to a limit of $15,000. The credit would be available for a one year period to all purchasers of primary residences.

Now, the senate expects to debate Amendment 353, a proposal by Senator John Ensign (R-NV) that would provide 30 year fixed financing at a rate of about 4%, for anyone purchasing a primary residence.

If these two provisions are included in the final passage of a stimulus bill they could have a positive impact on Virginia Beach real estate.

Dave Liniger, co-founder of RE/MAX International has this to say about the proposed legislation: 

“I feel that these provisions represent real economic stimulus. They will put money in the hands of millions of homeowners, increase sales, stabilize home values and add more revenues to local communities in the form of property taxes.

I urge each of you to contact your senators and representatives to let them know that you believe these provisions are essential components of any stimulus bill. You can go to the official Senate http://www.senate.gov and House http://www.house.gov web sites to locate the email and phone number of your legislators.”

This has passed the Senate, but the entire bill does need to go back to the House, and be signed by the President. There could be many changes before this happens, or not pass at all.

But is it light at the end of the tunnel for Virginia Beach home buyers and would help the housing crisis immensely as you can imagine.

Visit ButlerTeamHomes.com to learn more about Virginia Beach real estate.

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Virginia Beach home buyers are interested in energy efficient features of green homes and the potential cost savings of such features.

Not so long ago helping the environment meant recycling plastic and newspapers, but today it has evolved into “green” thinking and extends to our homes and our living environments.

According to a recent NAR survey, nine out of 10 Realtors® said home buyers are interested in energy efficient features of green homes and the potential cost savings of such features. An overwhelming 90 percent agreed there will be even more interest in green building practices a year from now.

Results of a Harris Interactive poll by Move, Inc. show potential home buyers consider “green” building features more important than luxury amenities. Almost half of the adults surveyed (49 percent) said features such as solar panels or energy-saving appliances were “important,” compared to just 31 percent who rated luxury amenities important.

Ninety-three percent of all home buyers are not willing to pay more for green or energy efficient features when building a home, according to a recent independent study commissioned by The New York Times Customer Insight Group.

However, a recent survey from Green Builder Media reports U.S. and Virginia Beach home buyers are willing to pay a premium for more environmentally friendly, green-built homes.

More than half of home builders surveyed (250 residential builders across the U.S.) said that buyers are willing to pay a premium of between 11-25 percent for green-built homes. The same builders report that the average green home buyer is between the ages of 35-50 with a college degree and fair understanding of green products.

Despite the conflicting statistics, the U.S. Green Building Council believes thinking “green” is an industry trend, rather than a passing fad; not only does it save on energy costs, it is better for our overall health and the environment as a whole.

Interested is buying a Virginia Beach home with environmentally-frienldy “green” features? Visit our website, ButlerTeamHomes.com or give us a call at 866-222-0158 #550.

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President Bush signed into law today The Housing and Economic Recovery Act. This is the most sweeping change to housing reform since the New Deal of 1934. You need to write your Congressmen to see if we can get legislation to revoke some of the changes. FHA effective October 1, 2008 will increase the minimum required down payment from 3% to 3.5% for Virginia Beach home buyers. The legislation also calls for the elimination of seller down-payment assistance programs such as AmeriDream and Nehemiah by October 1, 2008.

As of July 14, 2008 they already made upfront MIP premiums risk based on credit scores but also increased the annual premium across the board.. Instead of the original plan of making FHA loans more affordable for potential Virginia Beach home buyers; the new legislation makes it more expensive.

High-level Details of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act:

Here are some key provisions of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act that most affect Virginia Beach home buyers:

1) Higher permanent loan limits for conventional conforming and FHA will become effective Jan. 1, 2009; the Act calls for limits to increase to a maximum amount of $625,500, depending on the metropolitan area. Note: The temporary limits established in March will expire on Dec. 31, 2008.

2) FHA floor limits will remain the same at $271,050.

3) The VA guaranty will increase.

4) Minimum cash investment for FHA loans will increase to 3.5%.

5) A moratorium on risk-based pricing for FHA loans will go into effect Oct. 1, 2008.

6) Seller-funded Down Payment Assistance Programs with FHA loans will be terminated Oct. 1, 2008. (Nehemiah, AmeriDream, etc.)

7) Condo processing for FHA loans will be streamlined.

Concerned how these sweeping changes will affect your ability to buy Virginia Beach real estate? give us a call, 866-222-0158 #550. We are glad to talk with you about your situation.

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