Mariana Wagner

BUYERS Category

What Is Annual Percentage Rate (APR)? | Colorado Springs Real Estate and Mortgage Information

More commonly called APR, Annual Percentage Rate is a government-mandated mortgage comparison tool. It measures the total cost of borrowing over the life of a loan into dollars-and-cents.

A loan’s APR is printed in the top-left corner of the Federal Truth-In-Lending Disclosure, as shown above. When quoting an interest rate, loan officers are required by law to disclose a loan’s APR, too.

APR is meant to simplify the process of choosing between two or more loans. The theory is that the loan with the lowest APR is the “best deal” for the applicant because the loan’s long-term costs are lowest. However, the loan with the lowest APR isn’t always best.

APR makes assumptions in its formula that can render it moot.

First, APR assumes you’ll pay your mortgage off at term, at never sooner. So, if your loan is a 15-year fixed rate, its APR is based on a full 15 year term. If you sell or refinance prior to Year 15, the math used to make your loan’s APR becomes instantly flawed and “wrong”.

Example: Let’s compare two identical loans — one with discount points and a lower interest rate; and one without discount points and a higher mortgage rate. The loan with discount points will have a lower APR in most cases. However, if the homeowner sells or refinances within the first few years, the loan with the higher APR would have been the better option, in hindsight.

Second, APR can be “doctored” early in the loan process.

Because the APR formula accounts for third-party costs in a mortgage transaction, and third-party costs aren’t always known at the start of a loan, a bank can inadvertently understate them. This would make the APR appear lower than what it really is, and may mislead a consumer.

And, lastly, APR is particularly unhelpful for adjustable-rate loans. Because the APR calculation makes assumptions about how a loan will adjust during its 30-year term, if two lenders use a different set of assumptions, their APRs will differ — even if the loans are identical in every other way. The lender whose adjustments are most aggressively-low will present the lowest APR.

Summarized, APR is not the metric for comparing mortgages — it’s a metric. For relevant comparison points, talk to Dan Green at dan.green [at] waterstonemortgage [dot] com

For more information on buying a home for sale in Colorado Springs,
please contact the Wagner iTeam: 719.434.8346

July 21st, 2011 by Mariana Wagner | 6 Comments »

Economy Expected To Have Added 80,000 Jobs In June

Friday morning, at 8:30 AM ET, the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its June Non-Farm Payrolls report. If you’re currently shopping for a mortgage, or floating a mortgage rate, be prepared. Mortgage rates can change following the monthly report’s release.

Often, by a lot.

More commonly called “the jobs report“, Non-Farm Payrolls reports on the U.S. workforce by sector, summarizing its findings in terms of total workforce size, and as a national Unemployment Rate. Jobs are considered a keystone in the continuing U.S. economic recovery.

More working Americans means:

1. More consumer spending, a boost to businesses
2. More tax collection, a boost to governments
3. More personal savings, a boost to households

For June, analysts expect the government to report 80,000 net new jobs created, and no change in the 9.1% Unemployment Rate.

Although these figures are slightly below than what can be considered “strong growth”, that’s not what should concern rate shoppers. Mortgage markets react to a deviation from estimates more than to the actual results themselves.

This is because Wall Street placed bets in advance of the jobs report’s release. If jobs growth tallies more than 80,000, therefore, it signals better news for the economy than what was expected. This will push banks and investors towards equities, and away from bonds — including the mortgage-backed kind.

With less demand for mortgage bonds, mortgage rates will rise.

Conversely, if jobs growth is less than 80,000, mortgage rates should fall.

Mortgage rates remain near their lows for the year, but if the June Non-Farm Payrolls report beats estimates of 80,000 jobs made in June, look for mortgage rates to spike. The safe move is to lock today.

For more information on buying a home in Colorado Springs, please contact the Wagner iTeam 719-434-8346

July 14th, 2011 by Mariana Wagner | Leave A Comment

What To Know Before You Move To A New Colorado Springs Neighborhood

As home buyers in Colorado Springs, we tend to research homes a lot. We look at square footage; at upgrades; at landscaping; at community statistics; and, at every other “number” on which we can get our hands.

But those are just statistics. What about the home’s “feel”?

In this 5-minute piece from NBC’s The Today Show, you’ll learn a dozen complementary home-shopping techniques to help you review and evaluate a home for purchase. Each is focused on findings you won’t see listed on a website.

For example, instead of scheduling your second showing for the same time of day as your first one, revisit a home during an “opposite” time. if you originally saw the home in daylight, go see it at nighttime. If you first saw a home on the weekend, go see it during the work week.

By seeing a home in two distinct settings, you can get a better feel for what the home and neighborhood are really like.

Some of the other tips from the video include:

1. Visit during Rush Hour and on a Saturday night. This will help you gauge sound levels of the street.
2. Go to Google Maps and study the aerial shot of the home. What’s nearby?
3. Talk to neighbors. They’ll share everything about the neighborhood with you — good and bad.

When you buy a home, you committing to more than just the property. You’re committing to the neighborhood, too. Armed with the methods described in this video, you’ll be better prepared to make a good decision.

For more information on Colorado Springs neighborhoods, please contact the Wagner iTeam: 719-434-8346

July 6th, 2011 by Mariana Wagner | Leave A Comment

Should I Offer Less than Listing Price on a Colorado Springs Home?

“Should I Offer Less than Listing Price on a Colorado Springs Home?”

This is a question we get asked quite frequently – especially in this current economy. Everyone wants a “deal”.

Unfortunately there is not an easy answer.

If you find a home that you want to purchase, asking price should have nothing to do with how much you choose to offer. Your Buyer Agent should run a comprehensive price analysis on the property to determine the actual market value. This should be the number that you should feel comfortable offering. (Unless, of course, this number is HIGHER than list price, in which case you should NOT offer more. Unless you are in a competing offer situation, in which case you should consult with your agent to determine an offer price that you are comfortable with.)

Why shouldn’t you automatically offer less?

Well, let’s say a house is listed at $100,000. After you review your agent’s price analysis, you see that the house is probably worth $90,000. In this case, yes, you would offer what you determine to be a fair offer, which may be less.

But what happens if, after reviewing the price analysis, you see that the home is probably worth $112,000. You could easily offer full price and still be getting a great deal.

There is no magic formula. Making an offer needs to be based on a careful study of what the home is really worth.

Read Also:

• Top 5 Ways to Choose the BEST Real Estate Agent When Buying a Home in Colorado Springs
• 3 Easy Ways to Find a Buyers Agent to Represent You
• Top 7 Questions to Ask Your Buyer’s Agent

March 24th, 2011 by Mariana Wagner | Leave A Comment

Is an Academy School District 20 Foreclosure a Good Deal?

The Colorado Springs Real Estate Connection works with a lot of people looking of buy a home in Academy School District 20, which encompasses most northern Colorado Springs neighborhoods and includes zip codes 80920, 80921, 80924 and 80908.

(See below for a list of the current available Academy District 20 Foreclosures.)

We also get a lot of questions about whether or not buying a foreclosure in these areas is a good idea. Everyone is looking for a good deal in this economy and this is a natural question.

Read Also:  Buying a Colorado Springs Foreclosure or Bank Owned Home

Here is some information that can help you make the decision as to whether buying a District 20 foreclosure is right for you.

The Facts

Since the beginning of 2011 …

• 20.9% of all home sales in this area has been a distressed property* (foreclosure, pre-foreclosure, short sale, bank owned home, etc.) *Homes marked as distressed in the MLS. Some properties may not have been properly identified, but not enough to sway the findings significantly.
• The median sales price for a foreclosure was $213,000, whereas the median price for a non-foreclosure was $309,000.

Things to Consider

• The majority of foreclosures were in neighborhoods with lower priced homes, in general.
• The higher average sales price of a neighborhood, the lower percentage of foreclosed homes were even available.

Are Foreclosures a Better Deal?

If you are looking for a “foreclosure deal” in the Academy District 20 real estate market, you will find them in the lower priced homes. However, be prepared to spend the time it takes to close on these properties and the money it may take to get the homes up to your standard of living. (Maintenance is the first thing to go when a home is going through foreclosure.) If you are willing to do this, then you may score a great “deal”.

If you are looking for a higher priced home, you can probably close in a fairly quick amount of time and move-into a clean and ready home. However, you will more than likely be paying market value. But it could be well worth it.

For more information on buying a foreclosure, or non-foreclosure home in Academy School District 20, please contact the Wagner iTeam 719.434.8346

Current available Academy District 20 Foreclosures.

Showing properties 1 - 5 of 13. See more Academy District 20 Foreclosure Homes.
(all data current as of 5/21/2012)

1. $624,900 : 16229 Forest Light Dr, Colorado Springs
   
   4 beds, 4 full baths

   Home size: 4,614 sq ft

   Lot size: 2.55 ac

   Listed with Real Living-Select Properties
2. $349,900 : 386 All Sky Dr, Colorado Springs
   
   3 beds, 3 full baths

   Home size: 3,520 sq ft

   Lot size: 6,856 sqft

   Listed with RE/MAX Properties, Inc.
3. $525,000 : 19275 Mariah Tr, Colorado Springs
   
   5 beds, 4 full baths

   Home size: 4,066 sq ft

   Lot size: 69.60 ac

   Listed with Properties of Colorado
4. $399,900 : 3252 Indian Peak Ct, Colorado Springs
   
   5 beds, 4 full baths

   Home size: 3,312 sq ft

   Lot size: 11,586 sqft

   Listed with RE/MAX Properties, Inc.
5. $171,000 : 4115 Thundercloud Dr, Colorado Springs
   
   5 beds, 3 full baths

   Home size: 2,666 sq ft

   Lot size: 9,750 sqft

   Listed with Sellstate Alliance

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

March 15th, 2011 by Mariana Wagner | Leave A Comment