Wichita, KS - One of the Top Markets Expected for Home Prices to Rise

Top Rising, Falling Housing Markets

When the recovery in housing finally comes, some housing markets will rebound sooner than others. Real estate forecasting service Local Market Monitor, which covers the nation’s 300 largest markets, has identified 13 markets where it predicts home prices will rise in the coming months and 11 markets where it expects home prices will continue to decline significantly.

To make these picks, Local Market Monitor uses a proprietary formula. Here are the 13 markets where it expects prices to rise:

1. Baton Rouge, La.
2. Buffalo-Niagara Falls
3. Dallas-Plano-Irving
4. Fort Worth-Arlington
5. Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown
6. Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, Ark.
7. McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas
8. Oklahoma City
9. Rochester, N.Y.
10. San Antonio
11. Syracuse, N.Y.
12. Tulsa
13. Wichita, Kan.

Find out the 11 markets expected to decline

Source: Local Market Monitor, June 23, 2006 via www.realtor.org

New Listing - 2403 S. Springdale Cr.

5 Bedrooms, 3 Bathrooms, 3 Car Garage

Full Finished Basement

Andover School District

Chestnut Ridge

$324,000

Visual Tour

May Wichita Area Home Sales Figures Released

The Wichita Area Association of REALTORS® and the South Central Kansas MLS releases the May Wichita-area home sales figures.

Existing home sales increased 10.5% in May according to new figures released by the South Central Kansas MLS. Existing homes sales in May totaled 650, up from 588 units in April 2009. The median sales price of existing homes in May increased .9% on a year over year basis.


New home sales increased in May to 81 units which represents a 2.5 percent increase compared to April 2009. The May median sale price of new homes rose to $215,400 from $196,310 in April 2009.

Read Press Release

Source: Wichita Area Association of REALTORS® and the South Central Kansas MLS

Appraiser Checklist - Helping You Understand

I would like to help you understand what to expect during the appraisal process by sharing some information on how appraisers reach their property value estimates.

Here are some of the factors that appraisers Joni L. Herndon of Real Property Analysts/Gulf Coast in Tampa, Fla., and John A. Hillas of Hulbert & Associates Inc. in Modesto, Calif., say they consider when determining value.

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Source: by Barbara Ballinger, April 2009, realtor.org

Should Home Buyers Lock in Rates?

Should home buyers apply for loan lock-in rates that are at their highest level since February? Or should they bet that the federal government will find a way to lower rates?

Money magazine staffers say the wildcard is Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke. The Fed has been buying up long-term Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities to keep rates low. But when rates started to climb in the last week, the Fed seemed to signal that it wasn’t too concerned.

But now that rates have climbed to a six-month high, some observers believe that the Fed will refocus its efforts and push them down.

“It’s one thing to have a Treasury yield backup when mortgage rates are still declining, but that is no longer the case. The yield on the 30-year fixed-rate is already up 20 basis points from the lows; 1-year ARMs have jumped 17 basis points. This is not what the Fed wants to see,” says David Rosenberg, a former Merrill Lynch economist now at Gluskin Sheff.

Source: CNNMoney.com, Carla Fried (05/29/2009)

HUD Makes It Official: Tax Credit Available for Limited Uses

Under a policy released by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) on May 29, FHA-approved lenders are authorized to develop bridge loan products that enable homebuyers to access the $8,000 first-time homebuyers’ tax credit at the closing table. Under this guidance , FHA-approved lenders can offer bridge loans to homebuyers that allow them to use the proceeds of the tax credit to pay for closing costs, buy down the interest rate on the loan or cover the portion of the downpayment that exceeds the minimum required 3.5 percent downpayment for FHA loans.

These bridge loans cannot be used to cover the minimum required 3.5 percent downpayment on FHA loans. As a result, homebuyers applying for FHA-backed financing with an FHA-approved lender that offers a tax credit bridge loan program can use these funds to bring down the upfront costs of buying a home significantly, but they will still be required to come up with the minimum required 3.5 percent downpayment.

In certain states, state housing finance agencies have developed their own tax credit bridge loan program that allows homebuyers to get assistance for the entire downpayment requirement on FHA loans. However, Kansas does not have a state housing finance agency and this program is currently not available here.

Source: Kansas Association of REALTORS®, June 4, 2009