Save Tons of Money on Your Home in 2016

5 Savings for Home Owners in 2016
Making a few changes around the home can lead to big savings, and doesn't everyone resolve to save more in the new year? Here are a few ideas:

1. Energy audits: Utility companies may offer an energy audit (some for free) where experts come in to assess how a home consumes energy and identifies areas for improvement. Inspectors may perform the audit remotely or by visiting your home. It's been known to save as much as 30 percent on monthly bills. Search for an energy auditor near your ZIP code at the Residential Energy Services Network.
2. Adjust your water heater: Lower the water heater by just 10 degrees Fahrenheit, and you may be able to curb your heating costs by 3 percent to 5 percent. A cover for your water heater can also keep the heat in and save an extra 4 percent to 9 percent. 
3. Change the light bulbs: Swapping out your current bulbs for low-energy ones can help reduce lighting costs. A 60-watt bulb, which costs about $6, will save between $30 and $80 over its lifetime. With households typically having a minimum of 50 bulbs, home owners could see a potential $1,500 in savings. 
4. Wash your clothes on cold: By using less hot water for laundry, you can save about $60 per year. Dryers account for 12 percent of energy in an average household, so line-drying clothes could save an extra $200 per year. If you do use the dryer, make sure you clean your vent, which can reduce energy costs by $9 to $12 per month.
5. Get rid of cable: Cutting the cord to your landline or cable can save you $100 a month. As an alternative, a Chromecast, which streams shows from your smartphone or computer to your television, costs just $35. 

Source: RosaPace@realtor.com

Fed raises interest rates Finally!

America's first interest rate hike in nearly a decade is here.

The Federal Reserve raised its key interest rate on Wednesday from a range of 0% to 0.25% to a range of 0.25% to 0.5%.

The rate hike is a small one, but it will affect millions of Americans, including investors, home buyers and savers. Savers should eventually see a little more interest on their deposits at the bank, but big banks didn't make any increases Wednesday. Mortgage rates will gradually rise. The move was widely expected. It is a sign of how much the economy has healed since the Great Recession.

The central bank believes the U.S. economy is strong now and no longer needs crutches and that the move "marks the end of an extraordinary period" of low rates designed to boost the recovery from the Great Recession. "I feel confident about the fundamentals driving the U.S. economy, the health of U.S. households, and domestic spending," Fed chief Janet Yellen said during a press conference. "There are pressures on some sectors of the economy, particularly manufacturing, and the energy sector...but the underlying health of the U.S. economy I consider to be quite sound." Known as "liftoff," the Fed's action is expected to be the first of more rate increases that will probably come in 2016. The last rate hike was June 2006. Source: RosaPace@realtor.com

Lets-Review for Utah's Housing Market for 2015

As we approach the end of  2015, Demand, Limited Inventory Fueled Market, it’s a great time to take a look back at how the Utah housing market fared this year.

This year turned out to be another strong year for the local real estate market, especially for home sellers. The market experienced good appreciation in home sale prices in many areas, although some home values did come back to earth a bit as the year wore on. Through the first nine months of the year, Utah’s median sale price statewide was $227,500, up 6.6 percent from the same period last year, according to the Utah Association of REALTORS® (UAR®).
Salt Lake County’s median sale price year-to-date through September was $248,000, up 7.1 percent. Utah County’s median price stood at $234,900, up 6.8 percent from a year ago. Tooele County’s median price rose 10.6 percent to $188,000. And Weber County’s median price through the first nine months of this year was $169,965, up 9.5 percent from last year.

Strong buyer demand, a healthy state economy, and a relatively low inventory of homes on the market combined to help make 2015 a strong year for Utah’s real estate market. Another factor that helped bolster the housing market was a continuation of attractive mortgage interest rates, which remained near historic lows this year and continued to help make homes more affordable.

According to Freddie Mac, the average 30-year fixed rate mortgage in the U.S. as of mid-November stood at 3.98 percent. Although the Federal Reserve is considering a rate hike this month, UAR® believes that any boost in rates will be relatively small and will increase very gradually in the coming year. 
 
So if you’ve been thinking about selling your home, now may be a good time to take advantage of the current seller’s market. There just are not enough good homes on the market right now. I know you may have questions about making a move, what your home might be worth, and what’s involved in putting a home up for sale. I’m happy to walk you through the process and answer any questions you may have. Please give me a call or e-mail me today and we’ll get started. Source: RosaPace@Realtor.com

 

 

Half-Priced Homes from HUD

What to Know: Spread the word to your teacher, police officer, firefighter, and emergency medical clients: There’s a program that they can use to buy homes at half the cost.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) sponsored-housing program called

Good Neighbor Next Door is a little publicized program that allows police officers, teachers, firefighters, and emergency medical technicians to purchase some homes at half the purchase price. To be eligible, the buyers must agree to live in the home for at least three years and the buyers must not have owned any other residential property within the previous year. The home prices of the HUD properties are cut in half, but buyers must be able to qualify for a loan equal to the full price of the property. Buyers can search for eligible properties in their local area at hudhomesstore.com. If multiple buyers come forward on a property, HUD will select the winner at random in a lottery, If no buyers come forward for a property, the home is then offered at full price to any buyer, as long as they agree to become an owner-occupant. The program is a “phenomenal opportunity” for first-time buyers. Also, the numbers of listings have dwindled in recent years as HUD’s stock of foreclosure properties has declined, he notes.
Source: RosaPace@Realtor.com