Real estate industry experts are predicting that mortgage interest rates will remain low in the Brainerd area and across the country for the remainder of 2012.

30-year fixed-rate mortgage rates now are currently at an all-time record low. At the beginning of this year we saw interest rates reach 3.91 % which ties a record low interest rate according to Freddie Mac’s weekly survey of conforming mortgage rates. The 30-year mortgage rate averaged 4.5% in 2011 according to Freddie Mac. The majority of the lowest weekly rates were seen towards the end of 2011.

The economy is expected to improve which may impact interest rates causing them to rise.  Rates are expected to average 4.2% in the first quarter of 2012, and should average around 4.8% by the fourth quarter of 2012, according to Freddie Mac’s predictions.

However, others have different predictions on mortgage rates throughout the year. HSH Associates, a publisher of consumer loan information, has made their own predictions. They anticipate rates on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage will remain between 3.85% and 4.85% throughout 2012.

If you are looking to buy or sell a home in Brainerd area,  contact me, Bill Grunewald. My team and I enjoy helping folks like you find just the right spot to live your northern Minnesota Lake Country dream.

Bill Grunewald/ Edina Realty.
Licensed in Minnesota/ Lic # 20204156

By Jerold Leslie of TheStreet

The fall home-selling season is a lot like the college football season — both normally end around Thanksgiving, but a smaller postseason keeps going long after that.

“It used to be that spring and summer were the hot times to buy or sell houses, but people are much more mobile now. If you want to sell your house these days, you don’t
necessarily have to wait until spring to put it on the market,” says Brad Knapp, a National Association of Realtors regional vice president and an agent with Henkle Schueler & Associates in suburban Cincinnati.

True, most would-be homebuyers and sellers in colder climates still call it quits from late November until late February or so.

But Knapp says consumers who face job relocations, divorces or other situations
requiring an immediate move keep the market humming all winter long.

“There are fewer buyers and sellers in the marketplace during the winter, but they’re
all serious buyers and sellers,” he says. “They all have a sense of urgency or they wouldn’t be in the market at all.”

But how can a would-be seller attract a buyer when there’s ice on a home’s walkway, snow covering the flower beds and little natural light to make a place look bright?

Here are five things Knapp says homeowners must do if they want to heat up the chances of selling a property this winter:

1. Set a realistic price

House hunters expect discount prices in the winter, because they know that any
homeowner who lists a property during the period really needs to sell. So Knapp
recommends that sellers list their homes at realistic prices to begin with —
without any extra “air” for haggling.

“We’ve been in a buyers market for so long now in most of the country that buyers are trained tolowball,” he says. “The best way to avoid that is to price a home accurately in first place.”

2. Advertise with snow-free pictures

If possible, you or your agent should commission your home’s advertising photos before it snows. If that’s not feasible, make arrangements to have a photographer come out the first time the snow melts — even if it’s just a brief winter thaw.

You can also have a photographer digitally alter photos to take out snow, but proceed with caution. Too much digital editing can open you or your agent up to allegations of deceptive advertising.

3. Maximize curb appeal

You always want your home to have good “curb appeal” — a nice appearance that’s apparent from the moment a would-be buyer pulls up to the curb — but winter snow and gloom make that tough.

To make the most of your home’s wintertime look, Knapp recommends making sure all autumn leaves and any dead tree branches are gone. Keep your home’s driveway and paths free of snow and ice and put a nice, clean doormat in front.

“You home might not have the same beautiful landscaping that it does in June, but you can at least make sure the property looks halfway decent,” Knapp says.

4. ‘Stage’ the interior for winter

A good real-estate agent or professional home stager can help you make your home’s interior look warm and friendly no matter how dreary it is outside. Knapp says you should start by decluttering the home, putting as much stuff as possible away — preferably in offsite storage — to make your home look clean and roomy.

Also remove all family photos, sports memorabilia and the like so would-be buyers can picture themselves — not you — living in the home. And don’t go overboard with holiday decorations if you’re listing your home in December.

“It’s OK to put up a Christmas tree, but you might not want the fake reindeer and Santa Claus in the yard this year,” Knapp says, adding that you should take all decorations down by Jan. 2.

Additionally, make sure to fix broken windows, squeaky doors or anything else that needs repair long before any showings.

Lastly, Knapp recommends baking cookies or an apple pie shortly before house hunters
arrive. This will give your home an inviting smell when would-be buyers come in from the cold.

5. Have good interior lighting

You always want your home to look as bright as possible to potential buyers, but sparse winter sunlight can make that a real challenge.

Maximize all available lighting by having your home’s windows professionally cleaned — inside and out — before you put your place on the market. Don’t forget the storm windows.

Also consider replacing 40-watt bulbs with 75- or 100-watt versions — and put all lights on before every showing. “I know that’s going to drive up the electric bill, but you want to make sure there’s plenty of light,” Knapp says. “You don’t want an agent who’s not familiar with the home showing it to a client and having to paw around to find the light switches.”

Getting a mortgage loan has become challenging in recent years. Don’t expect that to change anytime soon.

Lending standards will remain tight in 2012, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to snag a mortgage with an attractive rate. Savvy borrowers who understand the rules and
prepare will improve their chances of success.

These tips will help you stay on top of your game as you try to secure a mortgage in 2012.

Study your credit

Good credit is the key to snagging a mortgage in this tight lending environment. Get copies of your credit scores and credit history from the three main credit-reporting bureaus. Study the reports carefully to make sure there are no errors or issues to resolve before applying.

Most lenders require a minimum credit score of 680 to comply with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s guidelines. Federal Housing Administration loans — which are guaranteed by the FHA — allow for lower scores, but most lenders want to stay away from scores lower than 620.

Prepare before you start

Every lender requests certain basic documents when you apply for a mortgage. Don’t wait for them to ask.

Have these documents ready when you walk into the lender’s office: your last two pay stubs, W-2s, income-tax returns and bank statements.

Save these documents and any additional ones the lender requests in an electronic format, so you can easily resend them if anything gets lost.

Know how much you can afford

Don’t rely on your lender to tell you how much mortgage you qualify for and then borrow the maximum amount. Plan your budget, and leave room for unexpected expenses. That’s especially the case when you are buying a house.

Bankrate’s calculators can help you determine how much house you can afford and estimate your monthly mortgage payments.

Shop around

Shopping around for a mortgage should go beyond comparing interest rates. Rates are important, but would-be borrowers must consider points, closing costs and different types of loans. Get estimates from three banks and three mortgage brokers before you
decide which combination works for you.

Time is of the essence

Once you submit your mortgage application to the lender, the clock starts ticking. Make sure you quickly send in any documents requested during the approval process.

For buyers, a delay in closing the loan could kill the purchase and cost them their deposits. When refinancing, a delay could mean losing the interest rate the borrower
originally locked in. Ask for an expected closing date, and follow up with the lender periodically until the loan closes. Keep in mind, some lenders close more quickly than others.

Mortgage approved?
Your credit must stay put until closing

After the lender pulls your credit and says you’ve been approved, don’t assume you’ve won the battle. Most lenders will pull your credit again before the loan closes.

It’s wise to avoid any moves that may affect your credit. Don’t apply for new credit cards or credit lines. Pay your bills on time. Don’t close any accounts. Don’t finance a new car. Stay put until closing.

Consider refinancing with no closing costs

You don’t always have to spend money to save money when refinancing. Many lenders offer mortgages with no closing costs. No, it’s not a free ride. Lenders usually make up for those costs by charging the borrower a slightly higher interest rate. Sometimes the slight increase translates into a few extra dollars in the monthly payment, and the borrower can save thousands in closing costs.

Consider a shorter-term loan

Because interest rates have been at or near rock bottom, short-term loans have  become more affordable for many borrowers.

Those who have a 30-year mortgage with an interest rate of 6% or higher may be able to refinance into a 20-year or 15-year loan while keeping their monthly mortgage payments close to what they pay now. Consider this option even when the short-term loan means slightly higher monthly payments. This is your chance to pay off your
mortgage more quickly.

Receive a gift? Be ready to explain it

Did your parents or in-laws give you a few thousand dollars as a gift to help out with the down payment? If so, congratulations — but make sure you can document and explain
where you got the money.

FHA loans allow borrowers to receive their down payment as a gift from a relative. For
conventional loans, borrowers may receive gifts, but at least a 5% percent down payment must come from their own funds.

Borrowers receiving a gift are required to present a gift letter signed by the donor, and they will need a paper trail of the money transfer. Be ready to present statements to
show where the money came from when it was deposited into your account.

Unless the money is being used for the down payment, avoid receiving large cash deposits in your bank account until your mortgage closes. Any large deposits other than your paycheck will have to be explained to comply with federal regulations.

Be persistent

If one lender rejects your mortgage application, that doesn’t mean all lenders will. Most lenders follow Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guidelines. In addition, they have their own
internal underwriting guidelines, and some are stricter than others.

Ask why your mortgage was denied. Depending on the reason, you may be able to take some quick steps to improve your credit, or you might just need to try a different lender.

Appraisal isn’t enough? Try again

If the home appraisal your lender received isn’t enough to back the mortgage loan and you think the appraiser is mistaken, try another lender.

You can’t order a second appraisal or pick which appraiser the lender hires, but you can dispute the first appraisal or apply with a different lender.

In a perfect world, the appraised value of a home shouldn’t vary drastically from one appraiser to another. But you may find that it does. If you believe the first appraiser is
wrong, try a different lender and hope that lender’s appraiser does a better job.

Seek help

If you are behind on your mortgage or are struggling to keep up with your mortgage payments, seek counseling.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has counseling agencies throughout the country. Homeowners can receive free foreclosure-prevention counseling from HUD-approved counselors. To find a housing counseling agency near you call 800-569-4287 or visit the HUD website.

A few borrowers who have lost their home as a result of foreclosure could be eligible to receive a $2,000 refund. “Ordinary homeowners struggling to make ends meet in the bad economy have routinely faced corporate red tape and callous disregard when asking the big national banks for help,” Swanson said in a statement. “This settlement gets some money back to people who have been hurt by the big five banks and hopefully will help others trying to work out loan modifications down the road.”

The settlement comes as a result of allegations towards mortgage lenders who failed to use the proper process to verify foreclosure documents.  The settlement that was reached will only apply to privately funded mortgages and will not include those mortgages that have been guaranteed through the government via Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

If you are looking to buy or sell a home in Brainerd area,  contact me, Bill Grunewald. My team and I enjoy helping folks like you find just the right spot to live your northern Minnesota Lake Country dream.

Bill Grunewald/ Edina Realty.
Licensed in Minnesota/ Lic # 20204156

Data shows that existing home sales rose by 5.0 percent in December to a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.61 million.  Existing homes sales were also up by 3.6 percent in November of 2011. The estimation used to determine these numbers are based on the number of completed transactions from multiple listing services across the nation on single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops.

The National Association of Realtors chief economist, Lawrence Yun said, “The pattern of home sales in recent months demonstrates a market in recovery,” he said. “Record low mortgage interest rates, job growth and bargain home prices are giving more consumers the confidence they need to enter the market.”

Overall in 2011 we saw existing-home sales rise 1.7 percent to 4.26 million up from 4.19 million in 2010. The number of available homes on the market also trended down in 2011.  “The inventory supply suggests many markets will see prices stabilize or grow moderately in the near future,” Yun said.

The average national median home price for existing homes across the nation for all housing types was $164,500 in December, down 2. 5 percent from December 2010.

If you are looking to buy or sell a home in Brainerd area,  contact me, Bill Grunewald. My team and I enjoy helping folks like you find just the right spot to live your northern Minnesota Lake Country dream.

Bill Grunewald/ Edina Realty.
Licensed in Minnesota/ Lic # 20204156

Warm up next to the bonfire and enjoy s’mores after doing some pond skating.  DJ music will be playing and horse-drawn wagon rides will be available.  The warming house for the event will be offering coffee and hot chocolate and the kids at the same time will have the opportunity to explore the Crosslake Fire Department’s trucks.

The fun continues on Saturday with the Firefighter’s Pancake Breakfast at 7:30 a.m. till noon at the Crosslake Lutheran Church. The SoupFest will begin promptly at noon, with souvenir soup cups being available for $3 at the Crosslake Welcome Center.  The SoupFest tasting will have 14 participating Crosslake businesses. Activities planned throughout the day include: Italian Olympics, bocce ball, radar runs, ice car races, ice sculpture demonstrations, snowman building contest, and plenty of games for the kids.

New events added to this family tradition this year include: dogsled rides, a vendor extravaganza, and a live comedy show featuring Wild Bill Bauer.  The vendor extravaganza will take place at the Pine Peaks Retreat and Event Center.  Catch Wild Bill Bauer’s show on Friday and Saturday night at 8 p.m. at the  Pine Peaks Retreat and Event Center.  Maucieri’s Italian Buffet will begin at 6:30 p.m.

If you are looking to buy or sell a home in Crosslake,  contact me, Bill Grunewald. My team and I enjoy helping folks like you find just the right spot to live your northern Minnesota Lake Country dream.

According to Jessica Scott, sales and marketing coordinator, the light display saw 26,500 people visited the event during the six weeks it was open.

“Our light displays were magical as always and with the events like our walking evenings, enchanted dinners and horse hay rides there were several options for family outings again this year,” said Scott.

In years past the event has raised more than $100,000, and organizers are estimating that the same amount was raised this year. Event co-chair, Lori Rubin, said “This event takes thousands of hours to put on and our community is a huge part of that, we feel blessed to have the support of so many. The amount of local organizations and people that are touched by the proceeds are in the hundreds annually.”

Organizers are already busy planning for the 2012 holiday season. If you are interested in volunteering or sponsor this year go to sertomawinterwonderland.com or call (218) 4-LIGHTS.

If you are looking to buy or sell a home in Crow Wing County this winter,  contact me, Bill Grunewald. My team and I enjoy helping folks like you find just the right spot to live your northern Minnesota Lake Country dream.

Bill Grunewald/ Edina Realty.
Licensed in Minnesota/ Lic # 20204156

By Nick Timiraos of The Wall Street Journal

Home prices are falling again, but some analysts see a silver lining because the prices of homes that aren’t selling out of foreclosure have been holding steady.

CoreLogic reported that home prices in October declined by 1.3% from September and by 3.9% from a year before. A separate index released in early December by LPS Applied Analytics showed that home prices in September had dropped by 1.2% from August

“Many housing statistics are basically moving sideways,” said Mark Fleming, chief economist at CoreLogic.

Still, the CoreLogic index shows an important emerging trend in which home prices — excluding distressed sales — are stabilizing.

What’s the difference between distressed sales and nondistressed sales?
Unlike traditional owners, banks are often faster to cut prices in order to unload properties quickly — or what are called “distressed” sales. The upshot: The more homes being sold by lenders in any given month, the faster prices tend to fall.

This was clear throughout the initial years of the housing bust. Prices declined most sharply in 2008 as banks dumped foreclosed properties at fire-sale prices. Owner-occupants are less likely to list their homes for sale in winter, too, which means that each winter prices drop because distressed sales account for a growing share of sales.

Are prices of distressed homes falling at the same rate as nondistressed homes?
That’s been the case up until recently. While home prices overall were down 3.9% from one year ago, prices excluding distressed sales were down just 0.5%. In September, total prices were down 3.8% from one year ago, but nondistressed prices were down 2.1%.

This shows that while price declines are resuming, they are not yet falling from one year ago for nondistressed homes. In fact, during the first nine months of 2011, prices of nondistressed homes remained relatively stable, with year-over-year declines between 2% and 3%.

Analysts at Barclays Capital, in a report published in early December, called this “the most important trend in the housing industry right now.”

Why would any stabilization of nondistressed prices matter?
If it’s true that prices of nondistressed homes are stabilizing, even as distressed homes continue to fall in price, it would mean that a distressed home is “increasingly being seen as a poor substitute for a nondistressed home,” writes Stephen Kim, a Barclays housing analyst. He says it’s possible that the “bifurcation between distressed and nondistressed homes will only widen with the passage of time.”

Won’t the overhang of foreclosures put pressure on nondistressed prices anyway?
That’s all too possible. More than 2 million loans are in some stage of foreclosure, and it may be too early to argue that those won’t in some way affect the sale prices of nondistressed homes. For one, homes that sell out of foreclosure at significantly lower prices could be used by appraisers as “comparable” sales, which may make banks less willing to lend at an agreed sale price for a nondistressed home.

In certain markets where many homes are selling out of foreclosure, it’s hard to simply set aside distressed homes. “You can’t deny the fact that if half of homes that sold in San Diego in a given year were distressed, that is the trend,” said Kyle Lundstedt, managing director at LPS.

What could happen if this trend holds up, with distressed prices falling and nondistressed prices staying flat?
It could stabilize something else: homebuyer confidence. “There is nothing that strikes fear in a homeowner’s heart than to hear that his home value has declined,” Kim writes. “But if it was home-price trends that got us into this funk, it stands to reason that a recovery in sentiment will be similarly ushered in once price declines have abated — which is precisely what the CoreLogic price data shows us.”

We’ve talked about surprising home features buyers LOVE, and about why buyers aren’t biting on today’s market, despite it being highly affordable. But we haven’t talked much about the characteristics of sellers, listings and homes that turn buyers all the way off. Well, not until now!

Here are 6 big-time homebuyer turn-offs that make buyers cringe at the thought of your home, and action steps you can take to prevent your home from being an offender:

1. Stalker-ish sellers. I know you think you’re being helpful, walking the buyer through your home and pointing out the wagon-wheel light fixture you made with your own two hands, the custom mural of a stingray you paid top dollar to have painted across your living room wall and the way the sounds of happy schoolchildren running across the front yard of your corner lot to get to the school in the next block lifts your spirits. However, the buyers might be trying really hard to ignore, minimize or figure out how to undo the very features of your home you hold dear. They also may want or need to have personal space and conversations with their mate or their agent while they’re viewing your home – you being there, especially walking right alongside them while they’re in your home, prevents them from being comfortable about doing this, or discussing all the things they would change if the home were theirs. In my experience, the more nitpicky a buyer gets about a house and the more detailed their list of things they would change, the more serious they are about considering making an offer on this place.

What’s a Seller to do? Back off. Let your home be shown vacant, or leave the house when people come to see it. If you need to be there, at least walk outside or go sit at the coffee shop down the way while prospective buyers view your home. If the buyers have questions, their people will contact your people.

2. Shabby, dirty, crowded and/or smelly houses. You already know this one. Yet, buyers constantly marvel. The buyers who come to see your home are making the decision whether to choose your home for the biggest purchase they’ve ever made during the worst economic conditions most of them have ever experienced. Your job is to get your home noticed – favorably – above the sea of other homes on the market, many of which are priced very, very low.

What’s a Seller to do? Other than listing your home at a competitive price, the only tool within your control for differentiating your home from all the foreclosures and short sales is to show it in tip-top shape. Pre-pack your place up, getting rid of as many of your personal effects as possible. Do not show it without it being completely cleaned up: no laundry or dishes piled up, countertops freshly washed, smelly dogs (I have a couple who smell on occasion – no judgment – but don’t show your house with pet odors) or litter boxes cleaned and/or out of the house.

3. Irrational seller expectations (i.e., overpricing). Buying a house on today’s market is hard work! On top of all the research and analysis about the market and situating their own lives to be sure they’ll be able to afford the place for 5, 7, 10 years – or longer, buyers have to work overtime to separate the real estate wheat from the chaff, get educated about short sales and foreclosures and often put in many, many offers before they get even a single one accepted. The last thing they want to add to their task lists is trying to argue a seller out of unreasonable expectations or pricing. And, in fact, there are so many other homes on the market, buyers don’t have to do this. When they see a home whose seller is clearly clueless about their home’s value and has priced it sky-high, most often they won’t bother even looking at it. If they love it, they’ll wait for it to sit on the market for awhile, hoping the market will “educate you” into desperation, priming the pump for a later, lowball offer.

What’s a Seller to do? Get real. Get out there and look at the other properties that are for sale in your area and price range. Get multiple agents’ take on what your home should be listed at, and don’t take it personally if their recommendation is low. If your home has much less curb appeal or space or is much less upgraded than the house across the way, don’t list it at the same price and expect it to sell. If you owe more than your home is realistically worth, you may need to reexamine whether you really want or need to sell, or consider a short sale, if you simply have to sell. Don’t be tempted into testing your market with an obviously too-high price, unless you’re prepared to have your home lag on the market and get lowball offers.

4. Feeling misled. Here’s the deal. You will never trick someone into buying your home. If the listing pics are photo-edited within an inch of their lives, or your home is described as an “approved” short sale when, in fact, the bank approved another offer, now withdrawn, but will require a new offer to go through any sort of approval process (even a truncated one), buyers will learn this information at some point. If your neighborhood is described as funky and vibrant, as code for the fact that your house is under the train tracks and you live in between a wrecking yard and a biker bar, prospects will figure this out. If the detailed information about your home, neighborhood or even transactional position (e.g., short sale status, seller financing, etc.) is misrepresented, the sheer misrepresentation will turn otherwise interested buyers off. If you authorize your agent to “verbally approve” the buyer’s offer, don’t go back the next day demanding an extra $5,000. In cases where the buyer feels misled, whether or not that was your intention, running through the buyer’s mind is this question: If they can’t trust you to be honest about this, how can they trust you to be honest about everything else?

What’s a Seller to do? Buyers rely on sellers to be upfront and honest – so be both. If your home has features or aspects that are often perceived negatively, your home’s listing probably shouldn’t lead with them (like the ad I recently saw with the intro line: “this place is a mess!”), but neither should you go out of your way to slant or skew or spin the facts which will be obvious to anyone who visits your home. Make sure you know what the listing of your home reads like, before it’s published to the web, and that a prospective buyer will not feel misled by it.

5. New, ugly home improvements. Many a buyer has walked into a house that has clearly been remodeled and upgraded in anticipation of the sale, only to have their heart sink with the further realization that the brand-spanking-new kitchen features a countertop made, not of Carerra marble, but brand-new, pink tiles with a kitty cat in the middle of each one (I saw this once, people – no joke). Or the pristine, just-installed floors feature carpet in a creamy shade of blue – the buyer’s least favorite color. New home improvements that run totally counter to a buyer’s aesthetics are a big turn-off, because in today’s era of Conspicuous Frugality, buyers just can’t cotton to ripping out expensive, brand new, perfectly functioning things just on the basis of style – especially since they’ll feel like they paid for these things in the price of the home.

What’s a Seller to do? Check in with a local broker or agent before you make a big investment in a pre-sale remodel. They can give you a reality check about the likely return on your investment, and help you prioritize about which projects to do (or not). Instead of spending $40,000 on a new, less-than-attractive kitchen, they might encourage you to update appliances, have the cabinets painted and spend a few grand on your curb appeal. Many times, they will also help you do the work of selecting neutral finishes that will work for the largest possible range of buyer tastes.

6. CRAZY listing photos (or no photos at all). Here at Trulia, we’ve seen listing photos that have dumpsters parked in front of the house, piles of laundry all over the“hardwood” floors touted in the listing description, and once, even the family dog doing his or her business in the lovely green front yard. Listing pictures that have put your home in anything but its best, accurate light are a very quick way to ensure that you turn off a huge number of buyers from even coming to see your house! The only bigger buyer turn-off than these bizarre listing pics are listings that have no photos at all; most buyers on today’s market see a listing with no pictures and click right on past it, without giving the place a second glance.

What’s a Seller to do? Check your home’s listing on Trulia and make sure that the pics represent your home well. If not, ask your agent to grab some new shots and get them online (and say pretty please, pretty please!).

Mortgage rates tend to follow the trend on the 10-year Treasury note which recently fell below 2 percent.  Many economists are expecting that interest rates may fall lower if the Fed would choose to launch another round of bond purchases.

Interest rates have been around the 4 percent mark since the end of 2011. Many homeowners who are eligible to refinance their existing home mortgage loans have already done so. Many homeowners are finding out that they are underwater on their home and not eligible to refinance their loan. If refinancing your home or if buying a new home now is the time to do so interest rates will not continue to remain this low for a long period of time.

Freddie Mac’s chief economist, Frank Nothaft, feels that until we see hiring pick up and unemployment numbers drop substantially we will continue to see mortgage rates remain muted. Builders across the country are hoping that these low rates will help boost sales this year.

If you are looking to buy or sell a home in Brainerd area,  contact me, Bill Grunewald. My team and I enjoy helping folks like you find just the right spot to live your northern Minnesota Lake Country dream.

Bill Grunewald/ Edina Realty.
Licensed in Minnesota/ Lic # 20204156