Real Estate Information Archive

Getting into the home of your dreams can be a challenge. Whether this is your first home purchase or your fifth, ensure a smooth home-buying process by working with an Accredited Buyer’s Representative (ABR).  An ABR has specialized knowledge and experience to make sure your home buying process is straightforward and successful.

The ABR designation is awarded by the Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council (REBAC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Association of REALTORS (NAR).  To learn more about the council, please visit www.REBAC.net. 

It is important to know that the ABR designation is only awarded to licensed real estate professionals after they complete specialized training and demonstrate experience working with buyers.  The training helps the agent to better understand the buyer’s perspective, along with how to effectively represent the buyer-client.   

Working with an ABR means your agent has chosen to go above and beyond the normal license requirements and that you will be well represented in your purchase. 

All agents who work with a buyer should do the following:

• Ask questions to help understand your specific needs and wants from a home.
• Help you determine how much you can afford, and assist you in getting pre-approved for a mortgage.
• Preview properties for you, and accompany you to viewings/showings, even open houses.
• Provide a list of qualified service providers, including home inspectors, attorneys, mortgage lenders, radon test operators, etc.
• Concentrate on the details of the process and keep accurate records so you can focus on and enjoy your new home.

 An ABR will do even more however, including the following:

• Help you establish the market value of the home you are interested in purchasing, by doing a comprehensive market analysis for you.
• Help you to estimate the costs of improvements, changes, or needed repairs and/or updates.
• Advise you in creating/making an offer on a home, along with mapping out a negotiation strategy.
• Put your interests first throughout the process.
• Give you advice, counsel and their professional opinion.

If you are looking to purchase a home, make sure you seek an agent with the ABR designation to help make your home-buying process easy and successful.  If you have any other questions about how an ABR designated agent can help you get in to your home, email me or call me today!

There is a lot of uncertainty and misinformation circulating about the newly extended and expanded home buyer tax credit. I will try to end some of the confusion here, by highlighting the main criteria and answering some frequently asked questions.

First of all, who is eligible? You qualify for up to an $8,000 tax credit if you have not owned a principal residence for the last 3 years (the IRS uses this definition of a "first time buyer").

You qualify for up to a $6,500 tax credit if you have owned a principal residence for five consecutive years, out of the last eight years, and now purchase a "replacement" principal residence.

I say up to because the credit is 10% of the purchase price, with a maximum of $8,000 for "first time" buyers and a maximum of $6,500 for "replacement" buyers.

There are also income requirements that all buyers must meet. A single buyer can make no more than $125,000 in "modified adjusted gross income" and those filing jointly cannot exceed $225,000. There may be a portion of the credit available to those singles filers who make between $125,000 and $145,000 and joint filers with income between $225,000 and $245,000; check with your accountant for exact amounts, if your income is within that range.

There are also a few new rules. First, the new home cannot cost more than $800,000. Also, you must be at least 18 to be eligible and lastly, anyone who is counted as a dependent on another's tax return is not eligible for the credit.

All buyers must have a written accepted offer by April 30, 2010 and must close on that transaction no later than June 30, 2010.

Once you have closed on the new home, use IRS revised Form 5405 (will be downloadable from their web site www.IRS.gov late 2009) to claim the credit.

Please feel free to contact me with specific questions. This is a wonderful opportunity to take advantage of the current market!