Good morning, it’s Bruce Woodburn. Today is July the 24th, and I want to talk to all my realtor friends, builder friends or anyone considering buying, selling or refinancing a home. You need to know what’s going on and I want to make sure that you’re always clear on what the data looks like and what’s happening in the market. If you’re a real estate agent, it’s important that you’re armed with accurate data so that your clients can make informed decisions as to what to do or how to move forward with a purchase or a refinance transaction. So, I want to give you a little bit of information on the three most important things that I’m finding are happening in the industry right now.

1. CrossCountry Mortgage is coming back with our construction perm loans. So, if you are seeking to build a property on a lot that you have purchased or would like to purchase, those products are coming back, and we’re going to come back really strong. Most lenders require 20% down, but we are coming back with 5-10% down on FHA and VA programs to accommodate your needs. I don’t know anybody else that does that!
2. Now, in the real estate arena, the National Association of Realtors reports that existing home sales soared by 20.7% in June from May to an annual rate of $4,720,000 as the sector continues to shine post-pandemic shut down. This monthly gain was the largest in record, however sales are down 11.3% year over year due in part to the decline seen in March, April and May. So, if you take March, April and May out of it, we’re really not much in the way of a decline year over year, but those three months really affected us negatively. Gains were seen across all four major regions of the country; the sales recovery is strong as buyers are eager to purchase homes and properties that they had been eyeing during the shutdown. This is according to Lawrence Yun with the National Association of Realtors. This is very impactful information. You can see that it’s still a strong seller’s market, meaning that house sales are continuing to rise. Now, one of the other things that we’re seeing that is very important to you, is that appraisers are having a tough time keeping up with inflation or the increase in prices. So, since sales are going up, prices are going up and appraisals cannot keep up with it. So, we’re seeing a lot of appraisals falling short and not being able to stay up to pace with as fast as the prices are increasing. So be aware of that.
3. The third thing I’d like to mention is that if you are self-employed and you’re writing off all your income on your tax returns because Uncle Sam allows you to do that, that’s fine, that’s your business. I do have self-employed programs available for you. So, if you desire not to show me your tax returns, I can use your bank statements to qualify you and we can get you qualified based on the terms and conditions that apply with those types of financing. I’ll need the last 12 to 24-month business and personal bank statements, and we’ll use that as income, and we can accommodate you with that as well.

Bruce Woodburn CrossCountry Mortgage, in 31 years in the business I’ve closed over 9,000 transactions in my career and I would love to be your lender of choice if you’re a real estate agent, builder representative or if you’re considering buying or refinancing. If you currently rent, it is time to get into the game. These are historic lows and when I say historic lows, we’ve heard that in the past. These are the lowest I’ve ever seen in 31 years. Don’t miss out on it. I’m fitting client’s interest rates on FHA loans with marginal credit scores at 2.75%, you’ll never see that again. So, quit standing on the sidelines, if you know anybody that’s renting, it’s really important that we reach out to them and help them become a homeowner now, the opportunity and the striking zone is right now. So, allow me to help you, I’d be honored to be your lender of choice and I hope to hear from you very soon. Have a great day.