Just a quick post to tell you about a new feature I have added to our main website. I have developed a number of maps detailing the location of subdivisions within Salt Lake County. At the moment these are limited to subdivisions located with South Jordan, Sandy, Bountiful, Draper and Holladay, but new ones will be added over the next few weeks/months.

The maps are developed using Google Maps V3, which provides some really useful features. If you zoom far enough into the map, local establishments such as coffee shops and restaurants are displayed on the map. You can also perform a search for establishments by using the search box located to the top left of the map. Lastly you can switch to street view by dragging the person shaped icon onto a map location.

Keep your eyes out for more cities to be added over the coming weeks.

Oct-14-2011 – just finished adding West Jordan map

Nov-15-2011 – added Midvale and Kaysville

There is a long standing argument that by selling your home For Sale By Owner (FSBO), you can get out of paying real estate commissions and save yourself some money. So when Colby Sambrotto, the founder and former COO of forsalebyowner.com decided to sell his home you would expect this to be a slam dunk. Well maybe not.

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal reported that after trying to sell his New York condo for six months, he decided enough was enough and employed the help of a Real Estate Broker.

Here is a quote from the WSJ:

“Looking to move his family to the suburbs, [Mr. Sambrotto] said he carefully staged his apartment for sale himself, and put it on the market. But after using a mix of websites to publicize his apartment, he said he had only ‘middling success’ and switched to a broker because many buyers were so reliant on brokers.”

But here is the real killer, not only did the Broker sell his home, he sold it for $150,000 more than Mr Sambrotto was asking for it when trying to sell it FSBO.

So what’s the moral of this story? Trying to save money may not always save you money and you should probably rely on the services of a professional. After all it could save you money.

Homes prices for Salt Lake County actually increased for the second month in a row. The median home price for April 2011 was $219,720 a small increase of 0.7%, and maybe a sign that prices have at least stabilized. Year on year prices fell 6.56%. There were 914 homes sold with an average size of 2,455 square ft. The average price per square foot increased from $89 to $90. Average number of days it took to sell a home decreased from 92 to 88.

All in all this is the best data I have seen for some time, with most of the indicators going in the right direction. Hopefully this is a sign of something positive rather than just a blip.

Total Sales 2455
Average List Price $226,643
Average Sale Price $219,720
Sale Vs List 97%
Average Sq. Ft. 2,455
Price Per Sq. Feet $90
Days on Market 88

You can read this post about Salt Lake County April 2011 Housing Sales and other posts on my real estate blog.

The annual mortgage insurance premium is due to increase on the 18th April, by 0.25%. For loans whose LTV (loan to value) is <= 95% the rate will increase from 0.85% to 1.10% and if the LTV is > 95% from 0.90% to 1.20% (assuming length of mortgage is more than 15 years).

For those of you that don’t know, mortgage insurance or PMI, is designed to protect the lender if the borrower does not repay the loan. It is required for all FHA loans, where the borrower makes less than a 20% down payment when the loan is taken out.

So what does this mean if you are buying a home? It means that your monthly repayment amount is going to increase. For example, if you have a mortgage for $157,259, your annual mortgage insurance premium will go from $118 to $151.

In order to ensure that you pay the old rate you will need to ensure that you have a case number assigned before the 18th April 2011.

You can read this post about Mortgage Insurance Increase and other posts on my real estate blog.

Salt Lake County home sales increased slightly in January 2011, going from 525 in Jan 2010 to 558. But this was the only positive sign, all other indicators dropped, including the average sales price which fell from $267,579 to $235,847 over the last 12 months. The average number of days it took to sell a property also increased, rising to 96 days, the highest level seen for some time.

Total Sales 558
Average List Price $243,978
Average Sale Price $235,847
Sale Vs List 97%
Average Sq. Ft. 2,582
Price Per Sq. Feet $91
Days on Market 96

You can read this post about Salt Lake County Housing Market and other posts on my real estate blog.

There has been a lot of talk recently about how the health-care legislation that was recently passed, introduced a sales tax on real estate. While there is a new sales tax for real estate, the facts are that it will not impact everyone; in fact the chances are it will not impact you at all.

Here are the facts, in the bill there is a provision for a tax of 3.8% on profits from the sale of residential or investment real estate, which is due to come into effect on the 1st of Jan 2013. But this tax is aimed at high earners, and will not touch the vast amount of people. For a start if your adjusted gross income is less than $200,000, you do not need to worry. This limit is $250,000 for married couples who file jointly and $125,000 each if you file separate returns.

In addition to this, the current tax breaks when you sell your home have not been changed. This means that a married couple can take a tax free gain of up to $500,000 when they sell their home, assuming that they qualify given the current rules (lived in the property for 2 out of the last 5 years etc.).

Let’s look at a few examples. A married couple has an adjusted gross income of $240,000, sell their home for a $490,000 gain. How much Health Reform Property Tax will they pay? The answer is none. They can offset the $490,000 against the current tax free allowance of $500,000 and so don’t have to pay the new 3.8% tax.

Let’s stick with the above example but say that the couple now earns $330,000. Even though they now earn more than the $250,000 allowed under the new rules, they still don’t have to pay any additional tax, because the $490,000 gain is below the current tax free allowance of $500,000.

Sticking with the above example lets change it so that they make a profit on the sale of their home of $600,000. Now this is where it starts to get complicated. The $600,000 is above the allowed limit of $500,000, so they would have to pay capital gains tax on amount over $500,000. Therefore they would pay the current capital gains tax rate on $100,000 (remember none of this is new, these are just the current rules).

In addition to this, since the couples income is over the new Health Reform Bill tax threshold, they now have to pay the 3.8 percent tax. But on what amount? The tax is payable on the lesser of the taxable profit made from the sale of their home ($100,000) or the difference between their income and the $250,000 threshold ($80,000). Therefore they will have to pay the 3.8% tax on the $80,000, which is $3,040.

So you see from the above examples, apart from being complicated, there is probably not that much to worry about, and the chances of you having to pay any additional amount to the tax man are remote. Having said that you should always consider consulting with your tax and financial advisers regarding your exposure to the new rules.

You can read this post about Real Estate Tax and the Health Reform Bill and other posts on my real estate blog.

Just a quick note to let you know that Daybreak’s new model home village called Brookside will open this weekend, with a special event taking place on Saturday June 24th between 11:00am and 2:00pm.

The Brookside model home village features 19 homes from seven home builders. It is located on a bluff on the north east side of the lake just off 104th South. The homes in this phase of the Daybreak development have more of an emphasis on energy efficiency and outdoor living. The new collection of homes range in size from 878 square feet to 6,382 square feet and include three different types of townhomes as well as a variety of single family home collections. Pricing ranges from the $170’s to $500’s.

The grand opening event will feature live music on the beach, cooking demonstrations in the model homes, and a variety of food from local restaurants for sale in an open-air market.

Fueled by the home buyer tax credits, May 2010 returned the most home sales since June 2009, with a total of 1,219 sales. That’s an increase of just over 20% year on year, and a 6.29% increase compared to last month. The average home price declined 0.63%, to $234,358. The price per square foot ticked up slightly to $100.

Total Sales 1,219
Average List Price $240,336
Average Sale Price $234,512
Sale Vs List 98%
Average Sq. Ft. 2,356
Price Per Sq. Feet $100
Days on Market 73

It looks like that all the people who wanted to take advantage of the tax credit have already closed on their home (homes had to close by the end of June), because looking at the numbers so far June looks like it will see a big drop in the number of homes sold.

You can read this post about Salt Lake County Home Prices and other posts on our real estate blog.

With the expiration of the First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit at the end of April, we will be holding a FREE seminar to go through the Home Buying process. This class will be held twice at the Salt Lake Community College Miller Campus in Sandy on MARCH 23RD and MARCH 30th.

This exciting new class will be held in the Salt Lake Community College Professional Development Building and is being provided at no cost for Salt Lake area residents.

The campus is located at: 9750 South 300 West, Sandy, UT 84070

Here’s what will be covered in the class:

What loan programs are available to first time home buyers and what are their qualifying requirements?

What are the requirements and key dates for qualifying and claiming the $8000 First Time Home Buyer’s Tax Credit?

What are the credit requirements for conventional, FHA, and VA loans? How can I find out what my credit score is?

How do I go about qualifying for a loan?

What should I consider when looking for a new home?

How does the home buying process work. How do I make an offer, deposits, what are the key dates, home inspections, when can I move in?

Please note that SEATING IS LIMITED and because of this REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED!

If you would like further information about the class, please contact Joseph Gordon on 801-577-6304 or Trela Bird on 801-450-3535 or Tracie Peay on 801-891-5678.

If you wish to register then please complete the Salt Lake Area First Time Home Buyers Class Registration Form.

December saw the median home price rise to the highest level seen since January 2009. The new median home price of $264,398 was a 6.27% increase over Novembers price, and is further evidence that the worst of the housing market may well be behind us. The number of homes sold did decrease month on month, but this is normal for this time of year, and was still a 15% increase over last January’s total. The average size of a home sold continued to climb, and is now at the highest level for a year.

Total Sales 511
Average List Price $273,277
Average Sale Price $264,398
Sale Vs List 97%
Average Sq. Ft. 2,619
Price Per Sq. Feet $101
Days on Market 88

You can read this post about Salt Lake County Home Prices and other posts on our real estate blog.