Pete Bruinsma, REALTOR®

Link to National Association of Realtors Press Release Here.

According to the NAR, “Pending Sales” of residential property have rose in the midwest by 3.3% in the past month, and are 9.5% higher than one year ago at this time.

According to a separate study entitled “Existing Home Sales Continue to Climb in November,” it has been found that “Sales reached the highest mark in 10 months and are 34 percent above the cyclical low point in mid-2010 – a genuine sustained sales recovery appears to be developing.”

Studies by Laurence Yun, Chief Economist of the NAR.

Thanks so much for your business this year!
I’d like to wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

In 1998, I purchased my very first home with an interest rate just over 7% and I was thrilled. It is a 2-unit, I still have it as an investment, and I refinanced just this past week to an non-owner-occupant rate of 4.5%. Being a numbers guy, I calculated that with no re-fis, I would have paid $96,353 in interest until now. If I’d had an original rate like I received this week, my to-date interest would have been $58,377.  That’s a difference of $38 Grand!

When I think about it, it is astounding how great the buying climate is today for buyers. You’ve heard that home prices are at a long-time low, but money is also very cheap. This is a wicked combination! I’m focusing on interest rates only for this post. Here is a chart of interest rates, from when I personally started purchasing until now:

Bringing it Home

What does this mean for you, a buyer in today’s market? Here’s an example:

You qualify now for a $100,000 mortgage. All factors the same, we warp you back to 1998 with 7.1% interest rates. You are now qualified for a $77,000 purchase.

Lets modernize this. Say you qualify in Fall 2011 for a $100,000 mortgage at 4% interest. You wait awhile and interest rates go back up to 5.85%, a rate we saw a couple of years ago. You are now qualified for a purchase price of just over $85,000 with the same down payment and loan terms.

Lets flip it around:

You purchase a $100,000 home and put $3,000 down. Here’s how much interest you pay over the life of the 30 year loan:

7.1% (like 1998): $137,674
4.0% (like right now): $69,713
5.85% (like…the future): $109,007

$100k will get you this home in West Michigan, or one of many others:

Buyers, I have news for you: Now is the time!

Time to make a choice!

(a) Now
(b) Later

Pete Bruinsma is an Associate Broker at Grand Rapids Realty in West Michigan. © www.PeteBruinsma.com

“I believe the $17 million estimate in future development (the amount stated in a May 17 press release from MEGA) is extremely conservative,” says Jonathan Bradford, CEO of ICCF. “We anticipate a minimum of 150 housing units, attractive green spaces and 55,000 to 60,000 square feet of retail space, half of which would be a grocery store developed in phase four.”

Rapid Growth Article

Jaw drop lately? 60 Minutes explains one reason for delays behind economic recovery.

Calculator Link

Ginnie Mae Calculator for 100k home vs $1000 rent.

Thanks Rapid Growth Media: ARTICLE
This Old House: FULL ARTICLE

THURSDAY, MARCH 10, 2011

Photo: Courtesy of the Heritage Hill Association

ThisOldHouse.com touts Grand Rapids’ historic Heritage Hill neighborhood as one of the top 12 “old house neighborhoods” in the country for sustaining a sense of place in a storied residential area, and the best Old-house neighborhood in Michigan.

excerpt:

Why Buy Here?
Though short sales and foreclosures haven’t hit Grand Rapids (long the center of the office-furniture industry) as they have Detroit and other automotive cities, the down market hasn’t overlooked Heritage Hill. Today, you can grab the former castle of a lumber baron or wealthy judge—and walk from home to work in the city’s center—for what amounts to pocket change in other places.

Read the complete story here.

Buy Michigan Now, a site dedicated to building a strong, vibrant, and diverse Michigan economy. Individuals and organizations are invited to use this platform to take an active role in the state’s revitalization. Collectively we can make the difference if we Think Michigan First.

Interactive Map

Check out this story ALLACCESS.COM quoted from the Wall Street Journal. Banks rarely let a homeowner get away with something like this; granted a 4.8 Billion dollar loan is a little different.

EMI - London (photo by Omernos at the Wikipedia Project)

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL reportsTODAY (1/28) that, “CITIGROUP INC., which is expected to seize control of EMI GROUP LTD. from beleaguered financierGUY HANDS in coming months, has already made contact with parties that could quickly snap up the historic music company — and Mr. HANDS himself is even among them.”

Two months from now, EMI is expected to default on its roughly $4.79 billion loan from CITIGROUP, which would leave the bank owning the storied record label. The actual exchange of power at EMI is expected to take place three months after a default, but sources told the JOURNAL that CITIGROUP is exploring ways to take control of the business sooner.

Who is on the short list of potential buyers?

THE JOURNAL has a shocker, writing “The most eye-popping name on the list of potential buyers is Mr. HANDS…

Excerpt from Dr. Steve Sjuggerud’s “Daily Wealth” web site. Full article Here.

rightwaycharts.com

By Dr. Steve Sjuggerud
Friday, January 28, 2011

“‘Affordability’ takes three factors into account: home prices, your income, and mortgage rates. Home prices have crashed. And mortgage rates are at record lows. But incomes (nationwide) haven’t fallen nearly as much… So homes are now more affordable than ever. “Most people” out there will only tell you the bad news about housing… That’s the way it goes in a bear market. People drive looking in the rearview mirror.
Meanwhile, we have some darn compelling facts out there…
Home prices have fallen by a third… and mortgage rates are the lowest in history. Therefore, U.S. homes are more affordable than they’ve ever been…Based on these facts alone, now may be one of the best times in American history – even the very best time – to buy a house.”

From the Heritage Hill Association:

Vandenberg School

What’s warming Heritage Hill these days is the great news that the Vandenberg School is on track to be a new school. The Child Discovery Center has purchased the building and will open its doors to K-5^th graders in the fall of 2011. We have long promoted this site as a school but had almost lost hope when UPrep left. This purchase adds a walkable school alternative for neighbors with children and also brings a playground and green space for the community.

More Schools:
Our other very walkable education opportunities are housed at the Central High Campus. Centered here are the Montessori PreK-12 and the Central High’s Small School of Health, Science and Technology. Information on both of these programs is at www.grpublicschools.org. Also at the Central Campus is the University Preparatory Academy, an alternative middle school (6-9^th ). Uprep will be adding a grade each year so that it will a middle and high school within 3 years.

There are many other choices at Grand Rapids Public Schools including the Martin Luther King Academy that is close to Heritage Hill. The complete list can be found at the website cited above. Also research the Grand Rapids Christian, Catholic, and other charter schools.