Utah Stimulus - $6,000 towards purchase of new construction

This is new and has just been posted. Just another reason to be shopping for a home. If you are a first-time home buyer and purchase a new construction - that is $14,000 in your pocket!

$8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit
$6,000 Utah new construction purchase

Be warned, the $6,000 is first-come, first-served. Below are the details.

Governor signs bill for new homes grant. Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. signed a bill yesterday that will provide $6,000 grants to buyers of newly constructed, never-occupied homes. Upon his signature, he immediately directed the Utah Housing Corporation to begin dispersing grants under the “Home Run” program to buyers who finance a recently constructed home with a 30-year (or less) fixed-rate mortgage and meet other qualifications.

Senate Bill 260 created a fund that will use federal stimulus dollars to provide about 1,600 grants to be distributed through Utah Housing Corporation to home buyers on a first-come, first-served basis. To apply for the grant, home buyers should work through their lender. Any mortgage lender qualified to make mortgage loans under Utah law can assist home buyers to secure the Home Run grant, but Utah Housing has a list of currently approved lenders. Lenders will work directly with Utah Housing Corporation to apply for the grant money. Examples of qualifying mortgages include conventional, FHA, VA, Rural Housing and Utah Housing loans. Cash buyers should work directly with Utah Housing.

Consumers do not have to be first-time buyers to qualify for the program but incomes cannot exceed $75,000 for singles and $150,000 for married couples. Buyers who qualify for both programs can take advantage of the $8,000 federal home-buyer tax credit as well as a Home Run grant. “It is up to the states to use the federal stimulus money in a way that truly has a beneficial impact on our economy. This is an immediate stimulus targeted at the weakest area of Utah’s economy,” Huntsman said in a press release. “This investment of $10 million will result in 8,800 jobs in the market and $324 million in wages into our economy. This boost is critical for us to reverse our current position.” To learn more about program details and how buyers can apply, visit http://www.utahhousingcorp.org/ . Also visit http://www.utahhousingfacts.com/ for information about both the Home Run program and the $8,000 federal first-time home buyer tax credit.

(Utah Association of Realtors)

Have you heard enough? What are you waiting for? Call me and let's get this ball rolling!!!

$8,000 Tax Credit is for Real!!

If you are a first time home buyer, the time to buy is NOW!

Here is the scoop on the $8,000 tax credit for first time home buyers in the stimulus package just passed by Congress and signed by the President.

The credit is refundable, meaning tax filers see a refund of the full $8,000 even if their total tax bill - the amount of withholding they paid during the year- was less than that amount.

To qualify for the credit, the purchase must be made between Jan. 1, 2009 and Nov. 30, 2009.

To qualify buyers may not have owned a home for the past three years. Buyers must also live in the house as their primary residence for at least three years.

Applying for the credit is easy. Just claim it on your tax return. No other forms or papers have to be filed.

To qualify, buyers must make less than $75,000 for singles or $150,000 for couples.

Source: CNN.com

Please email me if you have any questions.

Wow!! Rural Housing Loans - You need this info

There is a loan program that just begs to be looked at, Rural Housing Loans. This may be for you or your children. If you find the right home in more of "rural" Cache Valley, this may be the loan for you.

1. Couple with no children - Salary cap is approximately $53K. It goes up from there.
2. Must live outside of Logan, Providence, North Logan, and the north end of Nibley. If you have questions, email me and I will send you a map.
3. Can qualify with credit in the high 600s.
4. No mortgage insurance.
5. FHA loan, so all you need is 3% down.

Now is so the time to buy. Interest rates are still low. I am working with a lender that I love and he is able to give you the info that you need on these or any other home loans.

Russ Piggott
MetLife Home Loans
45 East 200 North, Suite 102
Logan, UT 84321
435-792-4600

Please email me if you have any questions. Remember, I am always working for you!

Utah is not the norm for the poor economic outlook

Don't get too excited about the poor housing news that is out there. Utah (and especially Cache Valley) is on the cusp (yes cusp!) of turning things around. Prices have not slipped here as they have nationwide. Believe me, I know. I have a rental home in Arizona that is worth $40,000 less than when I bought it a few years ago.

Cache Valley is still seeing sales, more so in the below $200K range. Interest rates are low, and soon to go lower, if the Fed does what is expected today. Great deals are to be had in the above $200K range. It is time to buy. If your credit is decent and you are ready to pack a few boxes, now is your chance to have an interest rate below 5% on a 30-year fixed.

Do not believe that Cache Valley is going to depreciate. The prices here have been lower than the national average for years. We are slow to move up and also slow to move down.

Call me if you have any real estate questions, or just want to chat.