Charlottesville Real Estate

Charlottesville Real Estate Finance FAQ

Below are some of the frequently asked questions that are posed by Charlottesville homebuyers who are new to the process of buying a home:

What is a mortgage?

A mortgage is a loan used to buy a home or other real estate property, with the home serving as the collateral for the loan, acting as the guarantee that the loan will be repaid.

What’s in a payment?

Payments are comprised of principal, interest, property taxes, and possibly mortgage insurance. In the cases of condominiums, maintenance fees may apply as well. However, the real question is: how much can you repay over how many years? Consider how quickly you could repay your loan. Is it 15 years, 20 years, 25 years, or 30 years? Typically, the sooner you repay the loan, the more you’ll save on interest payments. However, the longer you extend the term of your financing, the lower your monthly payments may be. When choosing a loan term, consider your budget, your long-term spending patterns, your income over the life of the loan, and how long you plan to stay in your home.

What is a fixed rate (mortgage)?

The interest rate is set for the full length of the loan and doesn’t change. Therefore, since the monthly mortgage payment for principal and interest stays the same for the life of the loan, it’s easier to plan a budget using this sort of loan.

What is an adjustable rate mortgage (or ARM)?

An adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) usually starts with a lower initial interest rate than traditional fixed rate loans. After a set initial payment period—anywhere from one to 10 years—the interest rate may change periodically based on market conditions. As the rate changes, so does your monthly payment.In addition, ARM loans feature an adjustment “cap” that limits how much the interest rate can go up, protecting you from large increases in your monthly payment. If you plan on being in your home for a shorter period of time, or expect your income to increase over the years, an ARM loan may be right for you.

What is the property appraisal?

A professional appraisal is done to determine the value of the home or other type of real estate. An appraisal is based on the home’s condition and selling prices of comparable properties in the area.

What is the best mortgage for me?

The best mortgage is one that you can afford without cutting in on other necessities, and has interest rates and terms and conditions that give you peace of mind. Click Here to gain a better idea of which mortgage is the most affordable for you.

How much will my mortgage be?

The size of your mortgage and the monthly payments that you will incur are determined by the price of your home minus the down payment, spread over the term of the mortgage at the interest rate chosen.
If you are considering purchasing Charlottesville Real Estate, contact me today–I am happy to help!

Tags: Charlottesville market update, charlottesville mortgage, Charlottesville Real Estate

Is your home worth the asking price?

Is your home worth your asking price? The best way to answer that question is to separate what’s relevant to home buyers from what’s not relevant.

Starting with the bare basics, home buyers choose homes based on:

Price – their lenders tell them what they can afford
Location – they know where they want to live and why
Condition – they want homes that are well-maintained and move-in ready
They look at the available inventory – your home and its competition.  The greater the inventory, the more room they have to negotiate terms.

They narrow their choices to a short list, based on what they perceive to be the best value.

They buy according to what’s most important to them – price, neighborhood, and/or condition. For example, a buyer who wants a certain neighborhood may choose a home in less than perfect condition, but only if the price is right.

What you should consider before you price your home

Your market

When home sales volumes increase, prices go up, and inventories of homes for sale fall below about six months on hand, (meaning it would take six months or less to sell all the homes for sale on the market to zero on hand) the market is said to be a “seller’s market,” because the market’s conditions favor sellers. 

When sales volumes decrease, prices decline, and inventories of homes rise above about six months on hand, conditions favor the buyer, making it a “buyer’s market.”

To sell your home in the current market, you have to consider the market’s conditions.
You may adjust your price and terms accordingly.

Your competition

Your competition is not only other similar homes in your area, but what buyers can get if they buy brand-new.  Your buyer is comparing size, number of bedrooms and baths, amenities, updates, views, landscaping, and décor. You can’t put a price on many features, but some qualities, such as fine workmanship, room flow, and convenient storage are simply worth more money to buyers. 

Your urgency

If you’re relocating or have another reason to be in a hurry, you don’t have time to test the market. You have to price your home to get immediate and serious offers to buy.

What’s not relevant to home buyers

Your emotions

If you’re sentimental about your home, remember your buyer hasn’t formed the same attachments. Your buyer may appreciate your home, but will still compare it to other available homes in terms of price, location, and condition before weighing emotion. 

What you paid for the house

Many area home prices have receded as much as five to ten years. Sellers who paid high prices for their homes, purchased too recently to build equity, or took out second liens or equity loans may find that what they paid is not what the home is worth in today’s market. Buyers are only concerned with what they can afford.

What you paid for improvements beyond ordinary maintenance

Your swimming pool may be beautiful and add some value to your home, but some buyers may not want the upkeep or the insurance liability, so they’ll tend to offer less for the home than a buyer who really wants a pool.

What buyers expect is for homes to be properly maintained. Even if a home is in the most desirable of neighborhoods, it will never sell for as much as similar homes if it is in poor condition or lacking updates comparable to newer homes in the area.

Tags: Albemarle Homes, Charlottesville Homes, Charlottesville Homes for sale, Charlottesville Real Estate, My Charlottesville Home

Charlottesville Real Estate 2011 Market Report

 Median sales price for the region is down 0.4% over last quarter and 3.6% from the Q4‐2010 to $ 240,000

 New listings were down 20.3% from the same period last year. 

Homes took an average 9 days longer to sell compared to Q4‐2010 with average Days on Market  of 161

 Pending sales rose 19.3% over same time 2010 from 456 in Q4 2010 to 544 in Q4 2011.

 The median sales price for 4th Quarter sales year‐over‐year declined 3.75% from $249,000 to $240,000.

The most affordable areas in our market were Greene, Louisa, and Fluvanna counties. 

Overall sales were down a nominal 1.5% from 2010, though up slightly from 2009 levels. 

Active inventory to close 2011 is down 7% from year end 2010. 

Days on Market stable since 2010, half of homes sold in 86 days or less in 2011 and average DOM was149 in 2011. 

 Median Sales price for 2011 of $245,000 was down 3.9% from year end 2010.

Top three areas for sales in 2011 were Albemarle, Charlottesville, and Fluvanna counties. 

Tags: Charlottesville market update, Charlottesville Real Estate

Local Charlottesville Neighborhood makes top 20 List

The Charlottesville neighborhood of Belmont has just been named one of the top 20 best “secret” neighborhoods by Travel and Leisure.com  Here is the article:

Belmont, Charlottesville, VA

Then: One of the nation’s earliest planned neighborhoods—born in the 1890’s and raised around the local woolen mills—it declined precipitously when the industry shut down in the 1960’s.

Now: Converted riverside mills, restored Victorian bungalows, and a central location primed this historic district to be the city’s hottest new hood. Más restaurant’s open-air deck and Spanish tapas like creamy croquetas de jamón first lured crowds from nearby downtown in 2001.

Don’t Miss: Organic dinners, live bluegrass, or your pick of 130 microbrews at Beer Run.

Americas Best Secret Neighborhoods- Slide 9 – Slideshows | Travel + Leisure.

Tags: Belmont, Charlottesville neighborhoods, Charlottesville Real Estate

 

Merry

Christmas

 

from

Todd McGee

and

 

BuyCharlottesvilleHome.com

Tags: Charlottesville Real Estate