Spring is Here in Cache Valley. The real estate market is picking up and the weather is actually nice on some days. It’s this time of year where we all remember why we love living in this great area.

Here are the articles published in Cornerstone Real Estate Professionals monthly newsletter.

These articles are nationally written, and may not exactly apply to Logan Real Estate, but hopefully you’ll find something useful.

• “What Can You Do To Get Your Home Sold?“;
• “Remodeling Improvements That Entice Buyers“;
• “Mortgage Interest Deduction“;
• “Should I Accept This Offer?“;
• “March Mortgage Interest Rates”;
• “First Time Buyers: Preparing To Move Forward“;
• “The Pre Inspection Inspection“:

Good News. It looks like January’s awful home sales numbers were an anomaly. February home sales were much improved compared with January. The 58 reported home sales was an increase of 27.59% compared with February sales of 2011. This gives year over year monthly home sales improvements for eight of the last nine months.

The Logan Real Estate market really looks as if has bottomed out and is recovering. February Home sales were up by 32% compared with January.

Year over year home sales improvements look as if they will continue into the future as there are 26 more homes under contract than there was at this time last year.

The amount of real estate inventory in Cache County rose slightly from last month. There are currently 583 homes for sale listed on the Utah MLS. At this time last month there were 570. This is normal as the spring season is traditionally the most popular time for new listings. At February’s home sales pace, the current inventory has an absorption rate of ten months. There are 120 less homes for sale than there was at this time last year.

Home prices are still quite low in Cache Valley, although list prices are on the rise. The median list price of Cache County homes is $178,000 with an average list price of $224,000. Mortgage interest rates are still at historic lows, and 30 year fixed loans can be obtained for less than 4%.

The overall real estate market conditions make it a great time to buy Logan Utah Real Estate.

via Logan Utah Real Estate Market Conditions: February Home Sales Much Improved.

The number of homes for sale in Logan Utah is at its lowest level since April of 2008. That was

at the height of the real estate boom for Cache Valley when homes prices were rapidly appreciating. It is typical for real estate inventory to decline during the fall and winter months, but inventory hasn’t been this low in years. This is great news for people who currently own Logan Real Estateand is a sign that home values should start stabilizing.

As you can see in the chart below, while inventory at the front of the year was at its highest January level ever, it is now well below November levels at any time during the last four years.

While the reduced real estate inventory in Cache County is good news for homeowners, overall home sales also continue improving.

During October, 78 residential homes sold. This is a 42% increase from October of a year ago. This is the fifth straight month where we have seen a year over year increase in home sales. It actually appears that annual home sales will actually be better this year than they were last year.

If these signs towards recovery continue, the current low home prices combined with the all time low mortgage interest rates might make right now the best time to buy ever. Chances are that home prices will continue to drop throughout the winter, home price trends always lag behind sales. But if inventory remains low and demand continues to increase, we will see stable if not rising prices by the latter half of 2012.

via Logan Utah Real Estate Market Conditions: Logan Real Estate Inventory at Lowest Level Since April of 2008.

If you are thinking about buying real estate in Logan Utah or the surrounding areas, now is the time to get started. Start by simply visiting our website and viewing all the available homes for sale in Cache Valley.

Home sales during September in Cache County were pretty impressive. September was the second best month of the year for total home sales. On an annual basis, they were up 32.18% compared with September of last year, as 87 residential homes sold. This marks the fourth straight month that year over year home sales are up.

October looks like it will also be a fairly strong month for home sales. There are 141 homes under contract right now, last year at this time there were just 99. At last months sales pace, we have just over 8 months of active inventory. This is slightly higher than a balanced market, but compared with what we have seen, this is something to be optimistic about.

The amount of real estate inventory is also down, and HOME PRICES ARE UP. That’s right the median and average list price of homes for sale in Cache County Utah is higher than it has been in months. The median list price rose $4,000 to $179,000, while the average list price increased from $218,135 to $223434. Sales prices last month were also up. The average sold price last month was $182,833 while the median sales price was $168,000. August of 2010 was the last time home prices were that high.

Things could change over the winter, but with the way things are looking, it appears as if the Logan Real Estate market has bottomed out and we are near recovery. Real estate inventory is declining, and with 30 year mortgage interest rates hovering around 4%, this could be the best time EVER for buying Cache Valley Real Estate.

via Logan Utah Real Estate Market Conditions: October 2011.

My wife and I recently made an offer on a home in Smithfield Utah. Unlike my current house, this home has a full basement. Knowing that most homes on the eastern bench in Utah have high radon levels, and being that I plan to live in this house for a very long time, I decided to have a radon test done as part of our due diligence.

I purchased a $12, do it your self radon test kit from Lowes, followed the instructions, and set it up in a basement bedroom about 2 feet off the ground.

Two days later I went back to the house, put the little radon test kit in the postage bag provided, and mailed it off to the lab address in Carrolton Texas. Being that I needed the results quickly before my due diligence deadline, I paid an extra $10 for “expedited processing” and paid about $5.50 for priority mail so it would get their faster. It worked. On friday I got the results telling me that my potential house had some fairly high radon levels 6.5 pCi/L. The EPA recommends having a radon mitigation system installed anytime the level is above 4.0. The average US home has radon levels at 1.3 pCi/L.

When I told my wife about the high radon levels, she was really concerned. She didn’t know much about radon but had great fears that our children would be among the 21,000 Americans who die each year from lung cancer caused by radon, if we bought the house. In reality, the risk of getting lung cancer from radon gas is higher than normal, but it is still not a high probability. Nevertheless, we don’t even want to risk higher than average probability for our family.

The nice things about radon gas, is that it can be reduced through mitigation efforts.

Sometimes the “do it yourself” radon test kits aren’t completely accurate. After all, they are delivered by mail to some out of state location. So I decided that I would want an additional test done to verify that my radon levels really were high before asking the seller to pay around $1,500 for a radon mitigation system. So I called Ben from Radon Check and had him come out with his super high tech radon tester. This advanced tester provides detailed reports that show the different fluctuations in the radon levels based on the time of day.

After this test was completed it was confirmed that indeed our Radon levels were high.

The house in Smithfield we are buying is a new construction house that is owned by the builder. If we were to back out of the house based on the radon levels, there is a good chance that the next potential buyers would do the same. For this reason, it was the builders best interest to pay for the radon mitigation system — which they did.

If you’re buying a home in Utah that has a basement, check it for radon. It’ll cost a few bucks, but it’s well worth it for the peace of mind that comes from knowing that your house isn’t contributing to your families probability of cancer.

If you need a radon test, and or a Radon Mitigation system call Radon Check. They know what they are doing. (435) 764-8951

Right now mortgage interest rates are the lowest they have ever been, making home ownership much less expensive than renting an equivalent house. I just locked into a 3.75% 30 year fixed mortgage interest rate today.

One problem that many potential home buyers have is that they can’t qualify for a home loan because their credit score isn’t high enough, or they don’t have credit established.

The good news is that mortgage interest rates will probably remain low for at least another year. The other good news is that credit scores can be improved, you just have to know what to do.

At our office meeting today we were visited by Credit Aid of Cache Valley. They specialize in helping people improve their credit scores so they can qualify for things like home loans, car loans, or even satellite TV. They have an online presence where they can utilize their services to help people improve their credit scores, as well as a physical storefront right here in Logan.

Some of the things they do include:

• Help them get their free credit reports. Also available at AnnualCreditReport.com
• Help people dispute credit issues
• Help people establish credit, they work with credit unions and such that have very affordable ways to get credit established

Understanding Your Credit Score

To improve your credit, the first thing you need to do is understand how your Credit Score is calculated.

35% of your credit score is Payment History. Companies offering financing want to make sure you have a history of making your payments. If companies don’t report payments you made, or don’t report them properly your credit score could be adversely affected.

Missed payments will stay on your credit score for 7 to 10 years.

30% – Debt to Limit Ratios – Financial companies don’t want you to have a high level of debt, or more debt than you can handle. Don’t have a credit card maxed out. Raise your limits, or even better pay down your debt so that no more than 30% of your cards limit is used. 10% or less is best. If you raise your limit, don’t use it. Have some discipline. This same principle applies with home equity lines of credit and other revolving credit lines.

With credit cards you can call and ask to have interest rates lowered and credit limits changed.

Empty credit cards that are never used also aren’t good. Try to use each credit card or line of credit once a quarter. This shows the credit bureaus that you know how manage your money.

15% Age of Credit lines. The older the better. This shows the credit bureaus that you have been responsible over the years. Don’t cancel an old credit card.

10% – Types of Credit. Credit bureaus like to see a little bit of everything. They want to see revolving debt, instalment debt, mortgage debt, unsecured loans, as well as secured loans for a really high credit score. Paying for everything with cash isn’t necessarily good when you’re trying to get I high credit rating.

Car loans and Home loans actually pull a different score. Car loans will pull and ‘Advantage Score’ whereas home loans will pull the ‘True Fico Score’

10% – Credit Inquiries – The credit bureaus don’t like to see that people are seeking credit regularly. These queries only count when you you personally apply for credit. If shopping, and comparing loans do them all at the same time, that way they will only act as one inquiry rather than multiple queries. Credit inquiries last for 2 years on your credit report.

Building Credit

If you don’t have any credit you need to borrow money in some way or form to establish credit. The tricky thing is that its hard to borrow when you don’t already have credit.

Local banks offer a ‘secured’ credit card limit that establishes credit. People pay for the security by depositing a certain amount of money, then the bank issues a credit card. These banks will immediately report the repayment to the credit bureaus so that the person can establish some credit services. America First Credit Union, Wells Fargo, and USU Charter Credit Union all offer these services. These are a great way to establish some credit at very limited cost. There is still interest charged, but it is usually lower than an unsecured credit card.

Credit Repair of Cache Valley offers solutions to help people improve their credit scores. They will write letters to the credit bureaus for you to dispute any falsely reported debts. Every envelope they send is hand written. They will also provide education for you that will help you to raise your credit scores.

Most people see improvements within 60 days. Substantial improvement can be seen at four months.

If you are someone who wants to buy, but doesn’t have a strong credit score, Credit Repair of Cache Valley may be able to help you fulfill your dreams.

I decided to do something new this month, and publish the links to the articles from our real estate newsletter on the blog. These are professionally written articles with all kinds of buying, selling, home loan, and credit tips, and practical home ownership advice. Some of the articles are more useful than others, so feel free to read any that look interesting:

This month’s issue includes the following articles :

• “Seven Deadly Credit Score Sins“;
• “Creative Ways to Curb Spending“;
• “Home Hunting Without Fear“;
• “Choosing Your Neighborhood“;
• “Buyers Want Move-In Ready Homes“;
• “Green Living: Saving and Conserving Energy“
• “Mortgage Interest Rates Find New Lows in May“
• “Homes are More Affordable, Should Help Sales Improve“

Plus a roundup of May real estate activity as well as much more advice and information.

For Logan Utah Real Estate, it’s still the dead of winter, there isn’t much snow left, but that doesn’t mean that winter is over, or even close to being over.

Spring is typically the busiest time of year for the listing of Logan homes, as most people want to move during the summer months when school is out. There are also more buyers during spring. The typical seller will think, “I’ll wait until spring to list my home.”

While there will be more buyers, there will also be a lot more listings, and a lot more competitions. And while most of the will-be buyers are not out actually looking at homes yet, they are looking at them online.

Online buyer activity is currently up by more than 35% for our Utah Real Estate websites compared with December. Almost all home buyers start their home search online, and if your house isn’t there yet, buyers aren’t going to fall in love with it.

We are starting to see a large spike in the number of listings in Cache Valley, and this number will keep rising. Unless the number of buyers outpaces the number of new listings, home prices will continue to decline.

It may not be the most convenient time, but your chances of selling your home by summer will probably be better if you list now rather than later.

via Need to Sell Your Home This Summer? You Might Want to List Your Home Now.

For the first time in a long time, credit standards have actually loosened in regards to getting a home loan. Borrowers getting FHA home loans can once again get a mortgage with credit scores as low as 580.

With no fanfare or public announcements, two of the largest FHA-approved lenders have backed off their controversial “overlay” requirements on FICO scores lender overlays are qualification requirements that can be more stringent than FHA’s own requirements.

Both Wells Fargo and Quicken Loans confirmed to me last week that they will now lend to applicants with 580 FICOs and 3.5 percent down payments.

Their revised standards conform in most respects to FHA’s own minimums, and open the agency’s financing to large numbers of buyers whose credit scores have sagged during the recession. Wells Fargo is the largest originator of FHA-insured mortgages; Quicken ranks third, according to industry data.  via FICOs and FHA: 2 big lenders loosen up | Inman News.

via Utah Real Estate Mortgage Information.

It’s hard to believe, but 2010 is over. Real Estate sales in Cache Valley were clearly down from the last few years, and home prices are at the lowest they’ve been in four years. Mortgage interest rates are still very low. This storm of changes in real estate market conditions gives an excellent window of opportunity for many Logan Real Estate buyers. How long this window will last, nobody knows exactly, but it likely won’t last long. The population in Logan is growing, and the national economy is starting to recover.

If you are a renter in financial position to buy, make a goal of buying your new home in 2011. It’s a great time to start looking, and it is always free to use our free online Logan Home Search. If you’re planning on downsizing or upgrading your current residence, there are plenty of deals out there for you as well.

Our online real estate search includes all of the MLS listed homes in Northern Utah and Southern Idaho. This is the listings of all real estate brokerages, not just homes listed by Cornerstone.

Start your online Logan Home Search today, and have a great and prosperous 2011!