All Blog Entries by Jim Stewart 
There are currently 7 blog entries published by Jim Stewart.
December and Full Year 2011 Real Estate Sales
Monday, January 9th, 2012 at 5:53pm. 337 Views, 0 Comments.
Sales in the Springfield market area were essentially flat in December compared to the same month one year ago. Total sales were 394 units in Dec, 2011 compared to 384 units in Oct, 2010. For the year, 2011 sales ended down 7.05% compared to 2010. There were 5,392 residential homes sold through the Greater Springfield Board of Realtors MLS system in 2011 compared to 5,801 in 2010.
The median selling price in Dec, 2011 fell 8.55% to $99,900 compared to $109,250 in Dec, 2010. December’s sub-$100,000 median price is the third month in a row prices have been below six figures and the sixth month in the last 12 at $100,000 or less. For the full year median home prices fell 5.32%. Median prices have been bouncing in a tight range…
I’m Sorry But You Must Have Income To Get A Mortgage
Thursday, November 17th, 2011 at 11:38am. 371 Views, 0 Comments.
I’ve recently run across this situation twice in a very short time frame so I thought it would be good to write this for other prospective buyers of homes: A prospective home buyer finds a home they really like and want me to help them buy it. Great! The buyer has a high down payment of 20%+. Fantastic! The buyer has plenty of cash left over in reserves. Awesome! Their credit is A-OK! Incredible! The problem is that in neither case did the potential buyer have enough income to qualify for the mortgage. One is self-employed with lots of revenue but writes off so many expenses that their net income as shown on their taxes wouldn’t even be enough to pay the monthly utilities. The second potential buyer works part time while…
Springfield Area Home Sales, October, 2011
Monday, November 7th, 2011 at 3:55pm. 282 Views, 0 Comments.
Sales in the Springfield market area were basically flat in October compared to a year ago. Total sales were 448 units in Oct, 2011 compared to 453 units in Oct, 2010. For the year sales are down 7.4% compared to last year.
The median selling price in Oct, 2011 fell 7% to $99,950 compared to $107,500 in Oct, 2010. This fall in prices to around $100,000 seems to be a floor though. Median prices have been right around $100,000 five times in the last year but have rebounded the next month every time. There seems to be a reaction from the buying public when prices fall to this point. Buyers step in and start bidding prices back up. My intuition is that this is primarily investor bidding but only have anecdotal evidence of…
Renewed Trust for Tough Times
Thursday, September 1st, 2011 at 9:59am. 301 Views, 0 Comments.
Does it feel like trust is one of the major casualties of the economic meltdown of 2008 – followed by the “Great Recession,” the “Jobless Recovery” and now the threat of a “Double Dip Recession?”
Weren’t we assured that home values were destined to go up and up and up?
There have been lots of promises that help is on the way—and lots of warnings of scams and schemes that have only served to confuse the matter. So where’s a homeowner who’s underwater or overleveraged to turn?
Here’s the bottom line: the choices that homeowners make when they feel they are at the end of their rope will have ramifications for years to come on their ability to qualify for credit, their job prospects, their security clearance and their…
Handling the Stress of an Unaffordable Mortgage Payment
Tuesday, August 9th, 2011 at 1:59pm. 340 Views, 0 Comments.
Whenever I research the latest foreclosure and distressed property statistics, the sheer number of Americans facing the stress of losing their homes amazes me. Additionally, somewhere between one in four and one in five of all homeowners owe more on their home than it is worth. It is my goal to help as many homeowners I can either stay in their homes or relieve the burden of their mortgages. Knowing that there are so many that need my help is a driving force for me to continue doing what I do.
In fact, I just released a new report that I’ve made available here. It explains the CDPE designation and lists 10 options that homeowners can take advantage of to relieve the stress that comes with owing their mortgage lenders more money than…
Article: 2012 Budget Could Limit Mortgage Interest Deduction
Thursday, March 10th, 2011 at 3:38pm. 410 Views, 1 Comments.
Below is an article from Realty Trac, a foreclosure tracking company, regarding the potential future of the home mortgage interest deduction. Very interesting stuff. What are your thoughts??
2012 Budget Could Limit Mortgage Interest Deduction
While President Obama’s proposed 2012 budget plan doesn’t specifically target the mortgage interest deduction by name, many believe it could be collateral damage from the 30 percent reduction in itemized deductions on income taxes — which the budget said is necessary to pay for a “three-year patch to prevent an increase in taxes on middle-class families through the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT)."
The Obama budget plan argues that the reduction “would bring these rates back…
2010 Springfield Area Home Sales End Lower
Friday, February 18th, 2011 at 3:00pm. 311 Views, 1 Comments.
2010 Home Sales Review
Sales of residential homes in the Greater Springfield metro area fell in 2010 by 4.62% to 5,796 units compared with 6,070 units in 2009. The 2010 sales number represents a fall of 35% from the peak selling year of 2005 (8,915 units).
The 2010 average selling price fell by 4.81% to an average of $125,423 compared with the 2009 average selling price of $131,622. Interestingly, even though sales peaked in 2005 average selling prices did not peak until January, 2007. The average sales price in that month was $162,946. 2010’s average selling price represents a 23% drop from the absolute peak.
The bulk of sales occurred in the first half of 2010 while tax credits for buying a home being were available. 55% of…