Stop Throwing Money Away, Prepare Now Before Tax Time

Stop Throwing Money Away, Prepare Now Before Tax Time

Ask yourself: How much do you pay in rent every month?

For the rent that I pay, how much space do I have?

Am I truly happy giving someone money every month without seeing a return?

If you do not like the response to these questions, its time to make a change now. Do you know that every year people get thousands of dollars in tax refund money and in 3-4months they do not know where that money went? I know because I used to be one of those people. So, what did I do...I made a change. Its time to spend your money more wisely.

How do you start doing so? The first step is to understand your credit score.

In this day and time, if you do not understand your FICO score, you do not understand your money. FICO stands for Fair Isaac Corporation; which is the company that created the credit score over 50 years ago. The credit score is a 3 digit number that will determine the interest rate that you will pay for a credit card, auto loan, or any other debt that you are looking to incur. These scores range anywhere from 300-850 in which you should strive to be above 700.

Here is 5 parts of a formula you can use to keep your score as high as possible:

1. Make payments on time. This makes up 35% of your score and is the most important part (Don't buy things you cant afford)

2. Amount owed: Its not about how much debt you have, but about how you owe compared to how much you have been authorized to borrow. Its a debt-to-credit ratio. This is 30% of your score

3. Length of credit history: How long have you had ongoing debts? That's why its important that before you close a credit card, think really hard because that track record is important to you credit reputation. This is 15% of your score.

4. Mix of Credit: This determines if you are responsible for  different types of debt. 10% of your score.

5. Application for new credit: Making an unusual amount of applications in a short period of time is a red flag. This is 10% of your score. (Susan Orman, 2014)

FICO is as important to you as your SAT score when trying to get into college.

KNOW IT AND PROTECT IT

Contact me today to meet about your options and make plans to spend  your tax money right his year.

Til next time,
JC
Jay Cooper
New Realty
443-869-1364

Who Wouldn't Want a Kitchen Like This?????????????

Don't you loveeeeee this kitchen???? This kitchen belongs to 2 new homeowners that closed on their property this morning. Being a homeowner is feeling beyond measure. I can remember purchasing my home like it was yesterday. It was March of 2010. I was 27 years old and scared out of my mind because I thought "What in the world am I getting myself into? I'm too young, I don't know how to maintain a home my myself, I'm no handy-woman......" What I realized in time is that you don't have to be a Ms. Fix it to own a home, you just have to get to know someone that is. Being a homeowner is a wonderful feeling and I have to tell you a secret.......There are people out there that will help you along the way. Within 3 weeks of owning my home, my grass was starting to grow and I was thinking "darn, i forgot about that, i have to find someone to do that." My brother had two jobs and you can imagine how long it would take to get a family member to cut my grass; I would have a forest by then lol. Luckily a neighbor came to my door the following day and told me he cuts grass in the neighbor for a small fee. How did I respond.....you guessed it, I told him to get started right away. So, trust me when I tell you, maintaining a home does not have to be a one person job. 

Want to own a home? Contact me today Jay Cooper (New Realty) 443-869-1364. Need a lender??? Let me know because I also can refer you.

Til next time,
JC

Economy Picks Up Steam; Housing Recovery, Consumer Spending, and Manufacturing Pave the Way

Economic growth continues to gain momentum in the second half of the year, as expected, despite the slow start at the beginning of 2013. Fannie Mae’s Economic & Strategic Research Group’s full-year forecast for both the economy and housing market remains on track, with GDP expected to come in at approximately 2.0 percent in 2013 and to accelerate to 2.6 percent in 2014. Fiscal drag is waning, the housing recovery continues, and manufacturing and business investment are rebounding, helping to boost growth.

     Furthermore, consumer spending and the employment sector appear to be growing sustainably, which may help to offset downside risks from the expected tapering of the Federal Reserve’s securities purchases.

“Our macroeconomic and housing forecast shows very little change from July, and the steady pickup during the past few months validates our expectations for the second half of the year,” says Fannie Mae Chief Economist Doug Duncan. “The biggest risk to this forecast is the expected reduction in the Federal Reserve’s asset purchases, which would likely put additional upward pressure on interest rates and lead to some volatility in capital markets. Although the nature and timing of the tapering are still to be determined, we continue to expect the Fed will scale back its asset purchases and end the program by spring. In addition, we may see some fiscal tightening this fall as the debate over federal spending and the debt ceiling takes place.”

The housing recovery appears to have weathered some of the uncertainty, although additional growth is expected to be modest rather than robust while the market awaits an easing of credit conditions in the presence of rising interest rates. The rise in mortgage rates has led to a drop-off in refinance activity but does not appear to have had much impact on home purchase activity to this point. Home prices are expected to continue to climb, although the pace should slow significantly from the dramatic levels seen during the past 12 months.

2013 RISMedia

The best time to buy a home is now, before rates get any higher. Contact me today 443-869-1364

Til next time,

JC

So Your Ready To Move.............

Get Your Move On

Figure out how much help you need with your move
Depending on how much you have and how far you’re going, you may want to consider hiring a mover. Your three basic options are:

·         doing all the packing and moving yourself with the help of some willing friends - pizza, anyone?

·         you handle packing up the boxes, but the movers load, move and unload the truck for you - this is a great option if you’re moving to a completely new area and need a little muscle for your belongings!

·         the moving company handles the whole move from the packing of boxes down to unloading your stuff at your new home - this is obviously more expensive, but great if you’re physically unable to load and unload, if you’re going far, if you have a lot of fragile items or if you’re in a big rush

Read more about these different moving options by checking out our post on preparing to move out of your home and compare moving companies to figure out whose prices and services meet your needs.
Get your utilities up and running
Do a little research on your service providers, so you can get your utilities set up right before you move. Compare different service providers to make sure you get the best deal for your new neighborhood.
Set up mail forwarding
It’s totally easy to set up mail forwarding, so you can have all your mail rerouted to your new home - just request a change of address with the United States Post Office.

Make It Your Own

One of the most exciting things about becoming a homeowner is finally having a place that’s yours and that you can personalize any way you want! That’s right, no more ugly wood paneling or blank white walls (unless that’s your thing).
Take it a step (and a room!) at a time. Whether you’re an expert DIYer, or just want to do a few simple things to your new home to show off your personal style, there are loads of ideas out there to get you started! Find a project you like that fits in your budget, and enjoy creating a home that’s all your own.

Stay in the Know

Keep track of tax deductions.
Make sure you’re up-to-speed about tax deductions you’re entitled to as a homeowner, such as your mortgage interest payments. Get educated on your property taxes and what tax breaks you qualify for.
Keep an eye on your neighborhood
Now that you have a real vested interest in your local market, stay on top of nearby property values by using ZipRealty's Watch This Home tool. By “watching” your home, you’ll get weekly updates about what’s happening with the real estate around you.
We hope these tips make your move a stress-free and smooth one – enjoy settling into your new home!


See more at: http://www.ziprealty.com/blog/smooth-move-how-make-your-move-new-home-easy-possible#sthash.WRbreGDm.dpuf

Til next time,

JC

EXTRA, EXTRA, Read All About It

Check out this press released for JDC Investments




http://www.pr.com/press-release/493453


Til next time,

JC

Report Shows Housing Recovering Accelerating

This is what everyone has been waiting for; buyers should act now.

I have been telling people (especially buyers) that if there is anytime to buy a home; it is now. Properties are the lowest as I have ever seen them and this is not going to last for too much longer. Seller have been suffering because they are not receiving market value for their home, which means that this is a buyers market. On the contrary, home prices are starting to rise which is great news for sellers.

Check out this article:

http://rismedia.com/2013-05-15/april-realtor-com-report-shows-housing-recovery-accelerating/



Til next time,
JC

Top Expensive/Most Affordable Housing Market

Below is a list of the Top 10 Most Affordable Housing Markets with the current ratio of median home sales prices to median household income shown for each metropolitan area. 

1. Dallas-Fort Worth        5.27x
2. Houston                        5.43x
3. Minneapolis                 5.50x
4. Orlando                         5.89x
5. Las Vegas                    5.98x
6. Raleigh, N.C.               6.03x
7. Austin                            6.13x
8. Denver                          6.31x
9. Nashville                      6.47x
10. Phoenix                        6.59x

ZipRealty’s list of the most affordable housing markets was created using the most accurate and complete data in the real estate industry, which is detailed in the company’s Data Quality Report,http://bit.ly/107LMMp, which was released on March 6, 2013. ZipRealty discovered that prominent real estate websites consistently fail to display a significant number of MLS-listed homes for sale, while also presenting a large number of sold homes as if they were currently for sale. The study results show that up to 30% of MLS listed homes for sale are missing from other real estate websites, and over 15% of the listings on these websites are stale, expired or inactive. In contrast, ZipRealty never includes sold homes in search results, and has an accuracy rate of greater than 99% on MLS listed homes for sale.

Based on ZipRealty data, the Top 10 Most Expensive Housing Markets are:

1. Washington, D.C.                        16.78x
2. Brooklyn, N.Y.                                16.58x
3. San Francisco Bay Area             13.81x
4. San Diego                                     13.60x
5. Los Angeles                                 13.52x
6. Miami                                             12.11x
7. Orange County (California)       10.63x
8. Boston                                           9.47x
9. Westchester (New York State)  9.29x
10. Baltimore                                      8.56x

(Zip Realty)

Til next time,

JC