How to guide: Finding homeownership tax deductions

WASHINGTON – March 6, 2013 – Tax season is underway, and homeowners gearing up to meet the April 15 filing deadline can find the tax tips and insights they need at HouseLogic.com, a consumer website created by the National Association of Realtors® (NAR).

An overview of the tax benefits of homeownership, HouseLogic’s Homeowner’s Guide to Taxes helps filers get a general understanding and avoid common home-related tax mistakes.

“From the mortgage interest deduction to energy tax credits, many homeowners can take advantage of a variety of tax strategies that can lower their tax bill,” says Pamela Kabati, NAR senior vice president of communications and HouseLogic spokesperson. “For example, a family who bought a home last year with a $200,000, 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage, assuming an interest rate of 4.5 percent, could save nearly $3,500 in federal taxes when they file this year.”

HouseLogic also offers tips to avoid unnecessary tax mistakes in 9 Easy Mistakes Home Owners Make on Their Taxes, which identifies common errors, such as deducting the wrong year for property taxes, confusing the escrow amount for actual property taxes paid and neglecting to take the private mortgage insurance (PMI) deduction.

Other possible deductions: Homeowners who make certain energy-efficient home improvements may be eligible for tax credits. Also, owners who had a portion of their mortgage forgiven as part of a workout plan, short sale or foreclosure don’t have to pay income tax on the forgiven debt, provided the mortgage was secured by a principal residence and the total amount of the outstanding debt is not more than the original purchase price plus improvements.

Other HouseLogic articles:

• How to Deduct PMI
• How to Deduct Mortgage Interest and Equity Loan Costs
• How to Amend Your Tax Return
• How to Claim Your 2012 Energy Tax Credits

Homeowners should consult a tax professional for specific advice about their own transactions or circumstances. Information on HouseLogic should not be relied on as tax or legal advice.

© 2013 Florida Realtors®

Jan. Home Price Index up almost 10% year over year

NEW YORK – March 5, 2013 – CoreLogic released its January CoreLogic Home Price Index (HPI) report today. Home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased on a year-over-year basis by 9.7 percent in January year-to-year. It’s the biggest increase since April 2006, and the eleventh consecutive monthly increase in national home prices.

On a month-over-month basis, overall home prices increased 0.7 percent in January 2013 compared to December 2012. All but two states, Delaware and Illinois, saw year-over-year price gains.

Excluding distressed sales, home prices increased on a year-over-year basis by 9.0 percent in January 2013 compared to January 2012. On a month-over-month basis, excluding distressed sales, home prices increased 1.8 percent in January 2013 compared to December 2012. Distressed sales include short sales and real estate owned (REO) transactions.

February projection
The CoreLogic Pending HPI indicates that overall February 2013 home prices are expected to rise by 9.7 percent on a year-over-year basis but fall 0.3 percent on a month-over-month compared to January prices, reflecting a seasonal winter slowdown.

However, CoreLogic also creates a set of home price numbers that excludes distressed sales. Looking at those, prices will rise year-to-year (11.3 percent) and month-to-month (1.8 percent). The CoreLogic Pending HPI is based on Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data that measure price changes.

“The HPI showed strong growth during the typically slow winter season,” said Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic. “With these gains, the housing market is poised to enter the spring selling season on sound footing. The improvements are materializing across the country, with all but Delaware and Illinois showing increasing HPI, and 15 states within 10 percent of their peak values.”

HPI highlights for January 2013

If including distressed sales:
• The five states with the highest home price appreciation were: Arizona (+20.1 percent), Nevada (+17.4 percent), Idaho (+14.9 percent), California (+14.1 percent) and Hawaii (+14.0 percent).

• Only two states posted home price depreciation: Illinois (-0.4 percent) and Delaware (-0.1 percent).

• The peak-to-current change (current prices compared to all-time highs, April 2006 to January 2013) was -26.4 percent.

• The five states with the largest peak-to-current declines, including distressed transactions, were Nevada (-51.6 percent), Florida (-43.0 percent), Arizona (-38.9 percent), Michigan (-37.4 percent) and Rhode Island (-35.5 percent).

• Of the top 100 Core Based Statistical Areas measured by population, 92 are showing year-over-year increases in January, up from 87 in December.

If excluding distressed sales:
• When excluding distressed sales, the five states with the highest home price appreciation were: Nevada (+17.5 percent), Arizona (+16.5 percent), California (+14.5 percent), Hawaii (+13.9 percent) and Idaho (+13.2 percent).

• No states posted home price depreciation in January.

• The peak-to-current change in the HPI for the April 2006 to January 2013 period was 19.9 percent.

© 2013 Florida Realtors®

Many improving their bad credit as economy improves

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – March 4, 2013 – Melvin Montesino endured the full brunt of the Great Recession: A lost job, then foreclosure and even bankruptcy.

Since then Montesino has been on the rebound, working two jobs while improving his damaged credit. “It wasn’t easy. Some banks even turned me down for a prepaid credit card,” he said.

But his efforts have paid off. Despite the foreclosure and bankruptcy, he will close on a three-bedroom, two-bath home in Coral Springs later this month. “It’s pretty spacious,” he said.

The South Florida housing market is filled with thousands of others trying to start over after the recession left them with severe dings to their credit. Many are making good progress. In fact, South Florida is second only to the Los Angeles metro area in the number of people who have improved their once sub-prime credit scores in the year that ended Sept. 30, according to Equifax, the national credit reporting agency.

Some 40,000 people in Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties raised their credit scores to 620 or above in a year, removing them from the Subprime/Risky category that meant they had to pay the highest interest rates – if they could get credit, Equifax found. That netted a 3.6 percent decline in the number of South Floridians with bad credit, a substantial improvement.

“People are getting back on their feet and improving their credit,” said Howard Dvorkin who founded the Fort Lauderdale-based nonprofit, Consolidated Credit Counseling Services. More people are optimistic about starting over – calls for help in improving low credit scores are up about 25 percent from just a year ago, he said.

In January, consumers in the three counties had an average credit score of 645, just three points below the national average, the consumer website CreditKarma.com reported.

Many South Florida lenders are trying to help out. Deerfield Beach senior mortgage specialist Adam Cohn said his company, The Mortgage Firm, provides free counseling to help people improve their credit scores so they can better qualify for a home loan.

Cohn, who helped Montesino get a loan for his Coral Springs house, said some South Floridians just need a little nudge, such as encouraging them to pay off credit cards with balances less than $500 to boost their credit score.

One woman took his advice and recently raised her score 30 points to 650. That got her a conventional loan for a home in Davie, Cohn said, a loan she otherwise would not have been eligible for.

Cohn said he also was able to help a man qualify for a loan on a Boynton Beach house after improving his credit score despite filing for bankruptcy five years ago.

“He’ll be closing in the next couple of weeks,” Cohn said.

Some who were forced into bankruptcy or a short sale of their home because of extenuating circumstances beyond their control – and not because of overspending – can qualify for a mortgage in as little time as 24 months, said secondary lender Freddie Mac spokesman Brad German. Those who are foreclosed on have to wait longer – at least three years – to get a Freddie Mac loan, German said.

In Parkland, contractor Ken Viviano sees his recent truck loan from Miramar-based Tropical Financial Credit Union as the start toward rebuilding his damaged credit and eventually buying a new home. He now is trying to short sale his Parkland home that he can’t afford.

“Life was good for many years. Then someone flipped the switch,” Viviano said. Large construction companies could not even pay his company for assignments already finished, Viviano said. “That wiped out my savings and caused me to go into bankruptcy,” he said.

But now the economy is better, he said. Viviano said he and his workers are concentrating on individual homeowners’ kitchen and bathroom remodeling projects.

He is grateful Tropical Financial gave him a chance.

Credit union staffers are aware of the financial trauma that South Florida went through and are willing to take a risk on members who are working again and have the money to pay on debts, said Tropical Financial’s chief lending officer, Helen McGiffin. “We’ll look at their alternate payments, such as utility bills, to see if they have been paying.”

To get a mortgage on the Coral Springs house, Montesino said he was able to improve his credit score to above 700. His break: A bank agreed to give him a prepaid credit card. He said he paid that and other bills faithfully and in the last two years was able to get other credit.

“It was pretty rough in 2008,” said Montesino who has since gone on to work in air conditioning and as a courier. “But you keep working hard.”

Credit score levels

A credit score reflects your creditworthiness to lenders. Increase your score by paying bills on time; using no more than 30 percent of your available credit; obtaining your credit report and disputing errors. Here’s what the scores mean:

720-850 (Excellent) – Earns the best financing terms.
700-719 (Very Good) – Favorable financing.
620-699 (Average) – Qualifies for most loans at higher interest rates
500-619 (Subprime/Risky) – Highest interest rates, credit uncertain.

Copyright © 2013 the Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), Donna Gehrke-White. Distributed by MCT Information Services. Staff writer Richard Burnett contributed to this report.

U.S. rate on 30-year mortgage declines to 3.51%

Mortgage Rate Trend Index

Citing economic troubles in Europe, 46% of experts polled by Bankrate.com this week expect mortgage rates to decline further. The rest divide evenly: 27% expect no change over the short term and 27% foresee an increase.

WASHINGTON – March 1, 2013 – Average U.S. rates on fixed mortgages moved closer to historic lows this week, a trend that has helped drive a rebound in home sales.

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage declined to 3.51 percent from 3.56 percent last week. That’s near the 3.31 percent rate reached in November, the lowest on records dating to 1971.

The average rate on the 15-year fixed mortgage slipped to 2.76 percent from 2.77 last week. The record low is 2.63 percent.

The lowest mortgage rates in decades have helped the housing market recover. More people are buying homes, which has pushed up home prices. And ultra-low rates have encouraged more people to refinance. That often lowers monthly mortgage payments and leaves consumers with more spending money.

A measure of the number of Americans who signed contracts to buy homes rose in January from December to the highest level in more than 2 1/2 years, the National Association of Realtors reported Wednesday. The increase suggests that sales of previously occupied homes will continue rising in the coming months.

New-home sales jumped 16 percent last month from December to the highest level since July 2008, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. Home prices, meanwhile, rose by the most in more than six years in the 12 months ending in December.

Still, some people are unable to take advantage of the low mortgage rates, either because they can’t qualify for stricter lending rules or they lack the money for larger downpayment requirements.

To calculate average mortgage rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country on Monday through Wednesday each week. The average doesn’t include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fee for 30-year mortgages was unchanged at 0.8 point. The fee for 15-year loans also remained at 0.8 point.

The average rate on a one-year adjustable-rate mortgage ticked down to 2.64 percent from 2.65 percent last week. The fee for one-year adjustable-rate loans was steady at 0.4 point.

The average rate on a five-year adjustable-rate mortgage fell to 2.61 percent from 2.64 percent. The fee rose to 0.6 point from 0.5.
 Copyright © 2013 The Associated Press, Marcy Gordon, AP business writer. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

CoreLogic: Jan. foreclosures mark 15-month decline

IRVINE, Calif. – Feb. 28, 2013 – According to CoreLogic’s National Foreclosure Report released today, the U.S. had 61,000 completed foreclosures in January 2013, down from 75,000 in January 2012, for a year-over-year decrease of 17.8 percent.

On a month-over-month basis, completed foreclosures rose from 56,000 in December 2012 to January’s 61,000, an increase of 10.5 percent. (Completed foreclosures averaged 21,000 per month before the recession.)

About 1.2 million homes were in some stage of foreclosure in the U.S. – the foreclosure inventory – in January. One year earlier, that number was 1.5 million, for a 21 percent drop, according to CoreLogic. The foreclosure inventory dropped 3.3 percent from December to January. About 3 out of every 100 homes with a mortgage (2.9 percent) were part of the foreclosure inventory in January.

“The backlog of distressed assets continues to fade,” says Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic. “The foreclosure inventory has fallen to a level not seen since mid-2009 … The improvement is widespread as only six states and 13 of the largest 100 metro areas had an increase in the foreclosure rate year over year.”

January 2013 report highlights

• The five states with the highest number of completed foreclosures for the 12 months ending in January 2013 were: California (96,000), Florida (95,000), Michigan (74,000), Texas (59,000) and Georgia (50,000). These five states account for almost half of all completed foreclosures nationally.

• The five states with the lowest number of completed foreclosures for the 12 months ending in January 2013 were: District of Columbia (96), Hawaii (458), North Dakota (508), Maine (538) and West Virginia (602).

• The five states with the highest foreclosure inventory as a percentage of all mortgaged homes were: Florida (10 percent), New Jersey (7.2 percent), New York (5.1 percent), Nevada (4.7 percent) and Illinois (4.6 percent).

• The five states with the lowest foreclosure inventory as a percentage of all mortgaged homes were: Wyoming (0.4 percent), Alaska (0.6 percent), North Dakota (0.7 percent), Nebraska (0.8 percent) and Colorado (0.9 percent).

© 2013 Florida Realtors®

NAR: January pending home sales up in all regions

WASHINGTON – Feb. 27, 2013 – Pending home sales rose in January, making it 21 consecutive months for pending sales to rise above year-ago levels, according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). There were healthy monthly gains in all regions but the West, which is constrained by limited inventory – but it still improved slightly.

The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI), a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, increased 4.5 percent to 105.9 in January from a downwardly revised 101.3 in December and is 9.5 percent above January 2012 when it was 96.7. The data reflect contracts but not closings.

The January index is the highest reading since April 2010 when it hit 110.9, just before the deadline for the homebuyer tax credit. Aside from spikes induced by the tax credits, the last time there was a higher reading was in February 2007 when it reached 107.9.

“Favorable affordability conditions and job growth have unleashed a pent-up demand,” says Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. “Most areas are drawing down housing inventory, which has shifted the supply/demand balance to sellers in much of the country. It’s also why we’re experiencing the strongest price growth in more than seven years.”

Yun says he expects total housing sales to be higher in 2013 than 2012, but he doesn’t expect the increase to be as dramatic. However, he expects price increases this year to beat 2012.

The PHSI in the Northeast rose 8.2 percent to 84.8 in January and is 10.5 percent higher than January 2012. In the Midwest, the index increased 4.5 percent to 105.0 in January and is 17.7 percent above a year ago. Pending home sales in the South rose 5.9 percent to an index of 119.3 in January and are 11.3 percent higher January 2012. In the West, the index edged up 0.1 percent in January to 102.1 but is 1.5 percent below a year ago.

Yun expects approximately 5.0 million existing-home sales this year. However, price growth could exceed a 7 percent gain projected for 2013 if inventory supplies remain low. Previously, NAR had expected 5.1 million existing-home sales in 2013, while prices were forecast to rise 5.5 to 6.0 percent.

© 2013 Florida Realtors®

U.S. new-home sales jump to highest in 4½ years

WASHINGTON (AP) – Feb. 26, 2013 – U.S. new-home sales jumped in January from the previous month to the highest level since July 2008, a sign that the housing recovery is accelerating.

The Commerce Department said Tuesday that new-home sales rose nearly 16 percent in January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 437,000. The percentage increase was the largest in nearly 20 years. And December’s sales were revised higher to 378,000 from 369,000.

Steady job creation and near-record-low mortgage rates are spurring more Americans to buy houses. Sales of previously occupied homes rose to the highest level in five years last year.

At the same time, the number of previously occupied homes for sale is at a 13-year low. That shortage creates more demand for new homes. Builders began construction on the most houses and apartments in four years last year.

The supply of new homes for sale was unchanged last month at 150,000. That’s barely above August’s total of 143,000 – the smallest supply of new homes on records dating back to 1963.

At the current sales pace, it would take just 4.1 months to exhaust the number of new homes for sale, the lowest in eight years. Low inventories should encourage more construction.

Though new homes represent less than 20 percent of the housing sales market, they have an outsize impact on the economy. Each home built creates an average of three jobs for a year and generates about $90,000 in tax revenue, according to data from the National Association of Homebuilders.

The increase in home building has helped boost construction hiring. The industry has gained 98,000 jobs since September, the best stretch since the spring of 2006.

Still, the increases in new-home sales are coming from depressed levels. Sales plummeted to a record low in 2011. And sales are still well below the 700,000 annual level that economists consider healthy.

The biggest gain in new-home sales was in the West, where they soared 45.3 percent. The supply of previously occupied homes in that region has fallen sharply. Sales jumped 27.6 percent in the Northeast, 11.1 percent in the Midwest but only 3.2 percent in the South.

A separate report Tuesday showed that home prices accelerated in December. The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index rose 6.8 percent in December compared with the same month a year earlier. That’s up from November’s 5.5 percent gain over the previous November.

Rising home prices can fuel the housing recovery by encouraging people to buy before prices increase further. They can also bring more sellers off the sidelines.

Higher home values also make homeowners feel wealthier, building confidence and encouraging more spending. And banks are more likely to provide mortgage loans if they are confident that home prices are rising.
 Copyright © 2013 The Associated Press, Christopher S. Rugaber, AP economics writer.