Rent vs Own with the Gold Star 3/2/1 Advantage

Watch how our client was able to avoid paying over $178,000 in rent and purchase their new home, while securing a below market rate!

How to Create Affordability in Today’s Market – Christie Stryker

Hello, We've been saying this for some time now, "the increase in rates is an excellent thing for potential buyers." If you're a potential buyer, you might disagree with us, but we'd like to explain our thoughts on this. We understand that, as a buyer, you might have exited the housing market because of the higher prices and then stayed out of the market due to the increase in rates. For most buyers, not only can you not find a decent home, you also can't afford to purchase because of the increased rates. That's about to change; the market is shifting and allowing more homes (not enough to fit our national inventory issues) to come to market for potential buyers to purchase. Now, that's only the first half of the problem we need to solve; we also need some more affordable financing to go along with more homes coming to market. This is where we come in to help you as a potential buyer using our Seller Buy Down strategy. This is how we can bring back affordability and get you back into the housing market. Watch these videos and call to schedule a personalized consultation so that we can create your customized re-enter game plan. Thanks! Christie & Gene

How To Create Affordability in Todays Market

Hello, We've been saying this for some time now, "the increase in rates is an excellent thing for potential buyers." If you're a potential buyer, you might disagree with us, but we'd like to explain our thoughts on this. We understand that, as a buyer, you might have exited the housing market because of the higher prices and then stayed out of the market due to the increase in rates. For most buyers, not only can you not find a decent home, you also can't afford to purchase because of the increased rates. That's about to change; the market is shifting and allowing more homes (not enough to fit our national inventory issues) to come to market for potential buyers to purchase. Now, that's only the first half of the problem we need to solve; we also need some more affordable financing to go along with more homes coming to market. This is where we come in to help you as a potential buyer using our Seller Buy Down strategy. This is how we can bring back affordability and get you back into the housing market. Watch these videos and call to schedule a personalized consultation so that we can create your customized re-enter game plan. Thanks! Jenna & Gene

Financial: Buying in a seller’s market?

When you’re trying to buy in a seller’s market, you want every competitive edge you can get. If you find yourself in this situation, we can help. We’ve got three tips we generally recommend. One of them is setting up an initial consultation with us, where we’ll teach you everything from how to shop for rates to setting a realistic budget. To learn our other tips, watch this short video.

Should you refinance your home?

One question homeowners often ask us is, “Why should I refinance?” There are two main benefits to refinancing your home. The first is that it improves your cash flow. We see this a lot with first-time home buyers who only plan to stay in their house for five to seven years. The second benefit of refinancing is that it allows you to pay off your mortgage faster. To see how this works, watch this short video.

Can you really skip a mortgage payment?

There's an idea out there that you can 'skip' a mortgage payment when you refinance your loan. It may seem this way, but that’s not exactly the case. Unlike rent, mortgage interest is paid in arrears, so you pay it at the end of the month rather than up front. This is why some people feel like they're skipping a payment when they refinance. For the full breakdown of this situation, watch my latest video.

What can you do if a home doesn’t appraise?

If you’ve found your dream home and the seller has accepted your offer, there’s only one more hurdle to get over: the appraisal. What happens if the home appraisal comes in low? Don’t worry, there are actually a few things you can do to help remedy that situation. For example, you can have your Realtor present the appraiser with some good comparables that might more accurately represent the higher value. To find out all your options when an appraisal comes in low, watch this short video.

Why am I being charged supplemental tax?

Supplemental tax is a hot topic right now. Many homeowners are being charged this tax and don't understand why. Today, I want to quickly explain this tax and help you understand why you need to pay it on your new home, even if you bought the home six to eight months ago. The supplemental tax essentially aims to capture the difference between the previous owner's tax rate and your new tax rate, because they are probably different rates. For the full explanation, watch this short video.

When do you need a living trust?

One of the most common questions we get is, “When do I need a living trust?” Today, Adam Shiells, an estate planning attorney at Shiells and Hammer, is here to discuss a few things that you should know about living trusts. For example, while many people think you only need a trust when you get older, age is actually not the most important factor in estate planning. To learn more, watch this short video.

If you don’t have an estate plan, you should!

Having an estate plan in place is like having a good insurance policy. Hopefully you won’t need to use it, but if you have to, at least you know you will be protected. In the unfortunate event that something happens to you and you don’t have a living trust set up, you are at the mercy of the state of California. They have a plan for you, but it’s worth it to set up a plan on your own with an attorney. To learn more about estate planning and why it’s so important to have in order to protect your family, watch this short video.

Are your family and assets protected?

Today I wanted to address a topic we've received a lot of questions about lately: estate planning. Estate planning is about protecting your wealth and assets, which is really all about protecting your family. To help me explain the finer details, I've invited Adam Shiells from the law firm Shiells and Hammer. Adam has two good examples of exactly how estate planning protects both your family and your legacy. For more details, watch this short video.

Why Has Your Monthly Payment Changed?

One question I get asked often from clients who have a fixed mortgage is, “Why is my payment changing?” If your fixed mortgage payment has changed, it’s probably because you have an impound account and there was a change in your property tax or homeowners insurance bill. Anytime reassessment values go up, or any new bonds or levies are voted for within your county, those are collected through your property tax bill. When your mortgage company does an assessment on how much they’ve collected, that’s when the change takes place. To find out more about this process, watch our latest video.

Get Rid of Your PMI

If you’ve purchased a home for less than 20% down, then you are most likely paying mortgage insurance each month. When will you be able to get rid of that mortgage insurance? It actually depends on what kind of loan you have. If you have a conventional loan, there are a couple of ways to get rid of mortgage insurance. If you have an FHA loan, that can be a little trickier to figure out. To learn more, watch this short video.

Solutions For Real Estate in a Divorce

Nobody enjoys talking about divorce. However, when you’re going through one, there are some important decisions you’ll have to make. One of these is what you’ll do with the home if both of your names are on the mortgage. We have a lot of experience resolving situations like this. Sometimes it’s in your best interest to sell, and sometimes it’s better for one person to buy the other out of the mortgage. To learn more about how we help our clients determine the right decision for themselves, watch this short video.

The Difference Between Pre-Approval and Pre-Qualification

Many people don’t realize that being pre-qualified is not the same thing as being pre-approved, and lenders won’t always help you understand the difference. Gold Star agents, however, can help you. In some cases, the lender is just taking information down over the phone, and they may collect some of the documents from you, but they’re not really running it through their entire system and submitting the client’s loan to an underwriter to be looked at. Technically, this is not a pre-approval. To learn about the difference, watch this short video.

Are You Truly Prepared To Close?

Many buyers make the mistake of forgetting to budget for other closing costs on top of their down payment. To avoid any surprises at the closing table, there are a few things you need to plan for ahead of time. There are two types of fees you need to keep in mind: recurring and nonrecurring. Knowing what to expect ahead of time could save you a lot of trouble. To learn more, watch this short video.

Looking For a Home After a Divorce?

How does divorce affect you as a buyer if you are paying out or receiving child support and alimony? There are actually a few factors to keep in mind. The primary impact will be your finances. From an underwriting standpoint, lenders will want to see that a divorce is finalized. To learn more, watch this short video.

Can You Use Gifted Funds Towards a New Home?

If you are buying a home for the first time, you may be wondering whether financial gifts are an acceptable form of payment at closing. Actually, financial gifts are common in this scenario. However, there are stipulations. These stipulations will vary depending on what type of loan you choose to use. To learn more, watch this short video.

What Does The Home Purchasing Process Look Like?

Today we’re starting a new series called “Ask a Realtor,” where we’re joined by one of our Realtor partners to answer some of the most popular questions we get from clients. For this first installment, our guest is Jenna Meyerstein of the Haney Garcia Realty Group. She’ll be answering the question, “What does the home buying process look like?” To find out more about the home buying process, watch this short video.

Protecting Earnest Money Deposit with Contingencies

Submitting an earnest deposit shows sellers that you are a qualified and serious buyer, but how can you protect this deposit in the event that the deal falls through? Today we’re back with another installment into our “Ask a Realtor” series with the answer to this question. According to today’s special guest, the key to protecting your earnest deposit is by including contingencies in your contract. To learn more, watch this short video.

Do’s and Don’t when Buying a New Home

Today we want to share some of the do’s and dont's of getting a mortgage. For example, do continue to work and make sure you have access to all of your pay stubs and bank statements. Don’t be late on any of your payments. Think of your mortgage like a puzzle your advisor has put together. If you mess with that puzzle, the outcome of getting your mortgage might change. To learn all the do’s and don’ts of applying for a mortgage, watch our latest video.

Different Income Types That Will Qualify You

What types of income and documentation do you need to qualify for a mortgage? The single biggest factor lenders look for is a documented employment history of at least two years. If you’re worried you won’t qualify because your job or other life circumstances don’t allow you to prove this two-year employment history, there’s no need to worry. There are other proofs of income we can use to qualify you. To find out what those are, watch out latest video.

The Options You Have for Paying Mortgage Insurance

In the final part of our series on mortgage insurance, we answer the question, “How do you pay for mortgage insurance?” There are a few ways you can do it, but many choose one route in particular. One option can actually cause your interest rate to increase, which many homeowners would prefer not to happen. To find out more, watch this short video.

When Can You Get Rid of Private Mortgage Insurance?

For most homebuyers, private mortgage insurance is a necessary evil. It’s an extra expense, but it allows you to own a home without having to make a massive down payment. Our friend Jen Sopinski from National MI joined us recently to talk mortgage insurance and the different ways that homeowners can make it go away. It will automatically disappear once you’ve paid your loan down to 78% loan-to-value, but there are other methods to make it disappear. To learn about them, watch this short video.

How Does Mortgage Insurance Work?

Many people think that you need to put 20% down in order to be able to buy a property, but that’s just not true! Today, Jen Sopinski from National MI joins me to answer a couple of key questions about how mortgage insurance allows you to put down much less than that. To hear the questions and their answers, watch our latest video.

How Long Do You Have to Wait to Get the Keys to Your New Home?

Tom and Cindy Ralston of Lyon Real Estate are here today to help us wrap up our “Ask a Realtor” series. Tom and Cindy will discuss their answer to a question buyers often ask us after they sign their loan documents: “How soon can I have access to the property?” To find out the answer, watch our latest video.

How To Buy With a VA Loan?

Are you a veteran having trouble getting your offer accepted with a VA loan? I am joined by Tom and Cindy Ralston to discuss what you can do as a veteran to help your home purchase go more smoothly. Cindy tells us that a big influence on buying is having a larger earnest money deposit. She says that she encourages 3% as opposed to the normal 1%. To learn what else you can do, watch my latest video.

What Makes a Strong Offer?

Standing out from the competition can feel like a daunting task for today’s buyers. Between low supply and high demand, sellers are in control. This leaves many buyers wondering, “How can I make my offer more attractive?” To help answer this question, we have a few key tips all buyers should follow when crafting an offer. And the first step to a strong offer is to have a strong agent working on your behalf. To learn more, watch this short video.