I often find that I try to stay on top of trends so much that I miss basic things that people are looking for. I must admit that the thought of putting together information on Owner Financing did not really cross my mind until I decided to put my personal residence up for sale and offer an attractive owner financing package.

In the late 80’s and early 90’s, owner financing and owner-held seconds were very popular because of the high interest rates, typically in the double-digits. Since rates dropped into the 7% range, then 6, 5, and even into the 4% range, owner financing was not really needed, especially when anyone with a heartbeat could get a loan. Now that underwriting guidelines are much more strict, it can be difficult for people to get a bank loan even with 20-25% down. This means owner financing is coming back into style and as a seller, if you are not offering it – you are potentially losing a large chunk of the market.

With Owner Financing, you should expect to put 10-25% down, depending on the property and the terms. Often times, the terms are the best with the most money down (not unlike traditional financing).

Unfortunately, there are a lot of people (agents and brokers included) that are nervous about offering seller financing alternatives so there are not many available. For a current list of available owner finance opportunities in the Gulfport, Biloxi, Ocean Springs, and surrounding areas, please contact me.

Land Contract or Contract for Deed

A Land Contract, also known as a Contract for Deed, is a seller-financing arrangement which is most typically referred to as a Lease Purchase. In this type of financing arrangement, the seller continues to hold title to the property, but the buyer will hold a contract in place of the deed (this is where the term contract for deed and land contract come from). Under this arrangement, once the contract terms are fulfilled (final payment term is made), the buyer will receive the equitable title, or deed for the property. There are many ways to structure a land contract and these terms should always be included in the contract:

• Monthly Note with Balloon – Under this agreement, the buyer will typically make payments at a predetermined interest rate for a certain period of time that can range from only a few months to many years. The “balloon” payment is due at the completion of contract. This is the most typical contract and is typically 3-5 years. If, at the time of the balloon, the buyer is not able to pay it off, there may be a clause in the contract to extend or modify the existing agreement. The most common way a buyer pays the balloon is by refinancing with a mortgage lender.
• Monthly note with no balloon – this is more of a mortgage type contract which is typically much longer and may range from 10-30 years. The seller is ultimately acting as the bank and is completely financing the deal for the life of the loan or at some point which the buyer wishes to get a new loan (or is capable of doing so)

Homeowners Mortgages

There are many types of mortgages available, both conforming and non-conforming loans. With recent mortgage changes, non-conforming loans are much harder to come by, which is typically a non-issue for most buyers. A conforming loan just means that it “conforms” to government guidelines. Such loans include:

• Conventional – these loans are your “typical” bank loans
• FHA – Federal Housing Authority loans which offer decreased down payment amounts
• VA – Veterans Administration for qualifying members of the armed forces and certain other US Government jobs
• USDA – United States Department of Agriculture offers loans for purchases in rural areas

There are many other loan programs and it is best to talk with a lender for your specific needs. Contact me and I will put you in contact with someone to help with your mortgage needs.

Let’s face it – everyone wants to get the best deal possible on a home and a lot of people like the idea of “sweat equity”. The unfortunate side is if you find a home in a location that you love, with a layout that you love, but decor, etc that you hate – it may present more challenges.

Sure, you can get a loan on a home, move in, and do things room by room, painting and replacing floors, trim, windows as you have the extra funds, but if you are like most families, you have little “extra” income and these projects take forever to do. What if the house is really bad off and simply is not livable without work? Then you can’t get a loan no matter how much you love the house, right? Wrong!

Since 1978, the FHA has offered “rehab” loans known as the 203k loan. It is not widely used because most consumers do not know about it, and most real estate agents, brokers, and lenders are either unaware or to lazy to work them. The 203k loan takes considerable extra work on behalf of the REALTOR®, the loan officer, and a little extra stress on behalf of the buyer, but it can be a very rewarding way to go if you want to buy that “fixer-upper” and have the money to do the work.

These loans are for owner-occupants only (sorry, no investors) and have several stipulations that either I or lender can go over with you.

If you are already using the services of a GOOD Real Estate Broker/Agent, ask them about this. If you have not yet contacted one, call or email me. I have done several rehab loans and have lenders that don’t mind earning their money

Although civilian homebuyers may no longer be able to receive their government tax credits, military homebuyers still can. The first-time and repeat homebuyers tax credits have been extended for certain military members, but time to take advantage of the extension is running out. April 30th is the deadline!

Congress initially extended the homebuyers tax credit to veterans and active duty service members who served overseas for at least 90 days from January 1, 2009 and May 1, 2010. The tax credit extension was granted by Congress because of the program’s initial time constraints prohibited military members who were ordered to serve overseas from receiving the tax benefit.

Congress has once again extended the tax credit to military members; however, the deadline is rapidly approaching. In order to receive the tax credit under the one-year extension, military homebuyers must enter a binding sales contract before or on April 30, 2011 and close on their home by June 30, 2011.

To have eligibility for the tax credit extension, military members must have served on “official extended duty.” “Official extended duty” is defined as 90 days of overseas service occurring between December 31, 2008 and May 1, 2010. If a military member could not complete 90 days of overseas service because of medical reasons, he or she may also be eligible for the one-year tax credit extension. Military homebuyers tax credit applicants must also be “a qualified service member” to be eligible which means they must be a member of the U.S. armed forces, foreign service , or of the intelligence community.

Finally, for veterans and active duty service members wanting to take advantage of the tax credit extension, they should consider financing their home purchase with a VA home loan. This type of loan is a VA-insured benefit that affords service members the opportunity to achieve affordable and easily accessible financing for their home purchase, and can be secured relatively easily and quickly. Also, when used in conjunction with a first-time or repeat homebuyers tax credit, a VA home loan can save a borrower thousands over the life of their loan.

If you qualify and have not yet found a home – contact Damion Flynn or search MLS right here on this site.

If you put 50 of the top Mississippi real estate agents/brokers in a room and asked each of them about their services, the overwhelming majority would have the same, or very similar, services, strategies, etc. Believe it or not, there is almost a standard to what agents do because it has been taught this way in real estate schools across the country repeatedly and for decades.

When I first got my license, I had a great vision of what the perfect real estate company would be like and was astounded to find that no one had really made the effort to move forward and embrace technology as a normal part of their everyday business. I worked with a broker initially who still thought the best way to do things was to hide listings behind a wall of opt-in forms or lead forms so that he could get your name and email before you could even get information about a property. The sad part, is that there are still hundreds, if not thousands of agents in Mississippi alone that still look at this as a good way of getting business. What they do not realize is that we are in an information age and consumers know that they can get the information elsewhere – you can get the information here, and contact me when you are ready to buy or sell!

I have had a lot of setbacks in this business (technology isn’t cheap), but I have won a lot of business because of my philosophy for the open sharing of information. My goal is to educate without being a pain in the butt salesman, and spring to action when you are ready to buy or sell a property on the Mississippi Coast.

The My Home My Coast grant program has been getting a lot of attention lately, and unfortunately a lot of wrong information. If you are a current approved recipient of the My Home My Coast assistance, please contact us to have us go to work helping you find your new home.

Who is eligible?

• A person/family who is not a current homeowner in the 6 eligible counties
• A renter who wishes to own a home and has not owned a home in the past 6 months
• A person displaced by Hurricane Katrina who wishes to buy a home in the 6 eligible counties
• A new resident to the 6 eligible counties
• An individual whose income is not more than 120% of median income as defined by HUD (see Chart)

What about participant support?
As part of the My Home My Coast program, participants will go through a class on home ownership, and counseling both before and after the purchase of their home. The My Home My Coast program is designed in a manner to help people own homes long term and provide counseling to help mitigate the possibilities of foreclosure.  This counseling is also designed to help participants with credit repair and is individually catered to each person to achieve the highest possible results.

How much money can you get?
The program is determined by each participants needs but offers up to a 40/60 value loan program. Local approved lending institutions fund as little as 40% of the loan while  the remaining (up to) 60% is provided through block grants as a 0% loan. Closing costs and downpayment assistance is also provided. Down payment assistance is determined based on participant’s income to the Average Median Income (AMI) – See Chart.

Are there any other requirements?
The My Home My Coast program does require that you use specified lending institutions and closing agents when you buy your home. This list of “acceptable” suppliers is used to create a more seamless transaction as these suppliers are familiar with the unique way the program is handled.

Where do I go from here?
If you have already received My Home My Coast approval, contact us to help you find your new home. If you still need to apply, you can view the My Home My Coast website at MSGCRC.com. At the time of this writing, the My Home My Coast program is not taking additional applicants. I am in contact with the MSGCRC staff to get updated when this occurs. You can also call 1-888-49-Coast (888.492.6278).