Rent or buy? The cost is going up!

Rent or Buy - the cost is going up

Whether you continue to rent or decide to buy a home, according to recent Zillow 2014 housing projections, the cost is going up.  Zillow projects home prices to increase nationally by 3%, mortgages to rise to %5 interest rate by the end of the year and rents to go up by 2.5% on average.

If it will cost a person more whether they rent or buy, the conclusion can be made that one way or the other, they will pay for the house they occupy.  The question will be whether they buy it for themselves or their landlord? Will they benefit from the equity build-up and the appreciation?

The following analysis looks at a $200,000 home that can be purchased with a 30 year FHA mortgage at 4.3%.  The assumption uses 3% appreciation and tenant currently paying $1,750 a month in rent.

The house payment, principal, interest, taxes and insurance would be about $1,609 a month.  However, once you consider the benefits of the principal reduction each month, the appreciation and the tax savings and the increased cost of maintenance, the net cost of housing is closer to $630 per month.

Even if you ignored the tax savings, the net cost of housing would only be $919.06 per month.  The tenant would pay considerably more to rent than to own the home.  Over time, the decision to buy a home could result in a considerable financial asset that the tenant will not benefit from.

To estimate your cost of housing, use the Rent vs. Own.

To purchase your next home call Coni Otto of Long and Foster - I would be happy to help you purchase your next home in the DC Metropolitan area. My office is in Burtonsville, MD but I travel all over Maryland and the District of Columbia. Call today for your free consultation, Cell: 240-483-7556 or Office: 301-384-8700 

When hiring a Real Estate Agent, look for a CRS Agent ** Certified Residential Specialist

You’ve heard it many times. “The purchase of a home is one of the most important decisions you’ll make in your lifetime.” In today’s market, selling a home is equally important—getting the most out of your investment.  So whether buying or selling, you want a specialist—a residential specialist. Someone who understands the complexities of the housing market, how to best position your interests, and someone who will get to know you and what you want from the transaction. You want success. You want a Certified Residential Specialist.

CRS Success

Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) agents have proven record of success—3X success, in fact. Compared to the average REALTOR®, CRS agents have been in the business nearly three times longer, have three times the number of annual transactions, and generate three times the amount of gross sales.

No Coincidence

There’s no coincidence when it comes to CRS success. CRS agents must meet stringent education and experience requirements. That’s why only 3% of REALTORS® are Certified Residential Specialists. CRS agents are dedicated professionals. They work to ensure success for their home-buying and selling clients by tapping into their superior training, exceptional professional referral network, and timely and cutting edge industry resources.

Make the Right Choice…Choose Success

CRS agents made the right choice when deciding to become a Certified Residential Specialist. Now it’s your turn. Make your first home-buying or selling decision be to work with a member of the Council of Certified Residential Specialists. I have been a CRS since 2010, choose success. I would love to work with you when buying or selling your home. 

Since 2010

Buyer Questionnaire from Coni Otto - Fill it out today and let's get started

Buyer Questionnaire 

If your looking to purchase a new home please fill out my buyer questionnaire, helps me start to know what your looking for and at what stage you are at in the process. Click on the link below and lets get started.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1F16RZ4xhmF5IzliM-LOZ08822iqBJx_NIsbf_we4-go/viewform

Find a Better Return

A certificate of deposit will generate a cash flow based on the interest rate that it pays which is the only way it generates a return for the investor.

An investment in a stock that doesn’t pay dividends, would need to be worth more than you paid for it to earn a profit.  On the other hand, a stock that paid dividends could make the investor a profit even if it sold for the same price that he paid for it.

Investors can profit four different ways with an investment in rental real estate.

1. Cash flows that result from having a surplus after collecting the rent and paying the expenses.

2. Equity build-up results from a portion of each monthly payment reducing the unpaid balance.

3. Tax benefits can result from the depreciation allowed on the property and the preferential long-term capital gains tax rate.

4. Appreciation benefits the investor when the value of the property increases.

The most conservative investors in real estate make decisions to purchase a rental property based on its ability to generate a cash flow and reduce the mortgage through normal amortization.  If the property can offer an acceptable rate of return compared to other available investments, the tax benefits and possible appreciation become an added bonus.

With increased rents and low mortgage rates for investors, rental property can offer significantly higher returns than many of the available alternatives.  Contact me for more information- coni.otto@gmail.com; you may be amazed about what is available in the market.

Personal Finance Review

You’ll need to earn $2.00 for every $1.00 you want to spend assuming you pay 50% of your earnings on income tax, social security and Medicare.  On the other hand, you get to keep 100% of every dollar you save on your personal expenses because the taxes have already been paid.

Periodically, review your expenditures with the diligence of an exuberant IRS agent on commission.  It’s an exercise that most people don’t feel they have time to do but the rewards make it entirely worthwhile.

• Get comparative quotes on insurance – car, home, other 
• Review and compare utility providers 
• Review plans on cell phones 
• Review plans on cable TV, satellite for unused channels and packages or receivers 
• Review available discounts on property taxes 
• Consider refinancing home – lower rate, shorter term or cash out to payoff higher rate loans 
• Consider refinancing cars 
• Call credit card companies to ask for a lower rate 
• Review all of the automatic charges on your credit cards – consider no-fee cards 
• Search for late fees that are regularly being paid and eliminate them. 
• Review all bank charges for accounts and debit cards; determine if they can be reduced or eliminated.

If you don’t want to review your credit card accounts, consider reporting the cards stolen so that new numbers will be issued.  You can notify the companies that need your number.  Companies who might have your number won’t be able to automatically renew services that you may no longer be using.  You can be assured that they’ll contact you when the old number doesn’t go through and you can re-evaluate the decision at that time.

Interviewing a Mover

“I’d wish I’d know that before I made a decision.”  If you’ve ever regrettably said this to yourself, having a checklist might have prevented the issue in the first place.  This list of questions can provide you with things to discuss when interviewing a moving company.

Fees

• What is the charge for packing?
• Does it include boxes? If not, what do they cost and will you deliver them?
• Is there an additional charge to deliver some items to a storage unit?

Insurance

• How is a damage claim handled? 
• What insurance do you provide and is there a cost? 
• Does the insurance cover items packed by the owner? 
• Can additional insurance be purchased? 
• If items are covered by my Homeowner’s insurance, whose insurance pays first?

Unusual Items 

• Can you ship my car(s)? Will they be in the moving van or towed? 
• What are the charges for shipping cars, lawn tractors, etc? 
• What items cannot be shipped? 
• If a shuttle truck is needed because of the location of my house or size of the drive way, is there an additional charge? 
• If packing and loading are on different days, can you leave the beds and other basics out for us to use?

Dates 

• What dates are available for our move?
• What date will you pack and how long will this take? 
• What date will you load the van? 
• What date will the van arrive at my new location? 
• If my new home is not ready for delivery, how many days can it be delayed before there is a charge? 
• What is the charge for additional days or weeks?

Terms 

• Are there any additional fees that I’m responsible for that have not been discussed? 
• What are the terms of payment? 
• Is a down payment required? 
• When will the balance be due and who is authorized to accept it?

Something we all have in our house that could start this fire! Watch this video.....It could save your house, and your life...

I found this video online and I couldn't believe what burned down his house. I think you will be as surprised as I was.