Many Home Purchase Offers Are "Sight Unseen"

Nationwide, 45% of surveyed homebuyers said they made a bid on a home without first seeing it in person, up from 28% in 2019. Redfin agents cite health concerns around the pandemic and competition fueled by a worsening housing shortage as reasons more buyers are bidding on homes before visiting them.

See the  Redfin-commissioned survey in May and June of more than 1,400 people across 29 major markets.  Article by Lily Katz.

I have had one experience myself of an offer "sight unseen" on one of my listings, 3 months ago, and several agents have also experienced one of such offers within our Coldwell Banker Los Altos office.

Francis

Silicon Valley real estate
Trends: Local prices and graphs.
A noteworthy local non-profit:  Community Services Agency - in Mountain View

Buy? Sell? Another tack, another take...

Buy now, sell now?? 

This is another take on my previous post, another perspective, quite interesting and informative if you have been thinking about buying, or about selling a property in the "new market" of today.

The article, albeit a bit long, does offer a few tidbits of information which verifiably qualify as interesting, - information taken "from the trenches".

Coldwell Banker: "Reality Check"

My clients know me, I do not like to influence them into a purchase, or a sale.  But there are things that I do advise clients to keep in mind and stay informed about.  Of course the new market, as radical as it is, is one of them.

If you need a sounding board, don't hesitate to write or call me,

Thank you,

Francis

Silicon Valley Real Estate

Local market trends

useful links

Current Mortgage rates

Who does not cringe at rejection?..

Triggers for rejection. - Loan rejection that is.

Last year, more than two million people were turned down for homes, according to federal data, often because the applicants didn’t meet certain lender requirements or because their applications were incomplete or otherwise problematic. With lenders’ underwriting criteria becoming more rigorous in recent years, it’s important buyers know the most common triggers for mortgage-loan rejection.

• Insufficient income: well, this is straightforward… But also, lenders typically look for at least a two-year track record of income, which could hurt those who have changed jobs recently.

• Cloudy financial picture: Generally, total debt payments, including the mortgage, cannot exceed 45 to 50 percent of a borrower’s adjusted gross monthly income. Overtime and bonuses are included only if the borrower has worked for the same employer at least two years, and has a history of receiving them.

• Poor credit: Lenders typically reject applicants with FICO scores below 620.

• Low appraisal: One of the predominant reasons buyers are turned down for home loans is because the appraisal on the property is too low. If this is the case, the bank will often loan less, which can create a problem for the cash-tight buyers.

• Property problems: Sometimes issues turn up within a house, like a major repair or safety issue that needs to be addressed, before an application can be approved.

• Information mix-ups: Approximately 12 percent of new mortgage applications were denied because of unverifiable information or incomplete credit applications, according to the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council.

The full story can be accessed here.

If you need any lender referrals, don't hesitate to contact me. When you buy a home or refinance, you rely a lot on your loan agent.
Thanks for reading!...
Francis

Silicon Valley Real Estate

Local market trends

frolland.com

PS:  Mortgage rates: Week ending 10/27/2011
- 30-yr. fixed: 4.11 fees/points: 0.8%
- 15-yr. fixed: 3.38 fees/points: 0.8%-
- 1-yr. adjustable: 2.94% Fees/points: 0.6%
(Source: Freddie Mac)