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More than 60 percent of U.S. homes are “over-assessed”, says an industry trade group. Homeowners pay more in property taxes than they otherwise should have to.  You might be one of them.

Have you considered fighting your real estate tax bill?

In this 4-minute piece from The Today Show, you’ll learn:

• When to file your tax bill dispute for the best chances of winning
• How to pull your “property card” and check for tax bill-raising errors
• What to do if the taxing authority turns down your request

Most importantly, you’ll learn that don’t need to hire an attorney to fight your tax bill.  You just need to be prepared.  Do your research and make your case. It’s estimated that nearly half of all contesting homeowners are successful.

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• Poll: Two-thirds support income tax on rich in Washington (seattlepi.com)

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An article from the Wall Street Journal lays it out cleanly. Function beats flash these days so be wary of where you spend.

Environmental upgrades such as home insulation and energy-efficient steel entry doors are recovering a much greater percentage of their cost these days than major remodels including kitchens or bathrooms.  This is especially true for homes that are already “over-improved” relative to the neighborhood.

Upgrading the biggest and best homes on the block can be a losing proposition.

The article’s findings include data from groups such as the National Association of Home Builders, Remodeling Magazine, and Consumer Reports.  It lists the following home improvements among its top “paybacks”:

• Steel entry door replacement : 129% cost recovery
• Wood deck addition : 81% cost recovery
• Vinyl-replacement window : 77% cost recovery

Energy-efficiency projects also recoup costs monthly in the form of lower heating and cooling bills.

Remodeling Magazine says a larger number of homeowners will remodel their homes in 2010 with less emphasis on upgrading kitchens and bathrooms, and more emphasis on adding new rooms.  From an appraisal perspective, this is a terrific way to increase your home’s value — especially if your home’s bed/bath count lags your neighbors.

Before starting a home improvement project, regardless of whether your goal is increase resale value, talk with a real estate agent about other homes in the area and how they’re built. At worst, you’ll gather some ideas you can work into your plan. At best, you’ll keep yourself from over-improving.

Seattle home value, Washington home value

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• Trimming Your 2010 Tax Bill (online.wsj.com)

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Soft housing and low rates are an excellent combination for home buyers but whereas home values rise with a gradual pace, mortgage rates change in an instant.  It’s something worth watching.

Each 0.25% increase to conventional or FHA rates adds approximately $16 per month for each $100,000 borrowed. Mortgage rate volatility can change your household budget.

If you’re trying to gauge whether rates will be rising or falling, one keyword for which to listen is “inflation“. Mortgage rates are highly responsive to inflation.

By definition, inflation is when a currency loses its value; when what used to cost $2.00 now costs $2.15. As consumers, we perceive inflation as goods becoming more expensive.  However, it’s not that goods are more expensive, per se. It’s that the dollars used to buy them are worth less.

This is a big deal to mortgage rates because mortgage bonds are denominated, bought, and sold in U.S. dollars.  As the dollar loses value to inflation, therefore, so does the value of every mortgage bond in existence. When bonds lose their value, investors don’t want them and bond prices fall.  Mortgage rates move opposite of bond prices.

Prices down, rates up.

In today’s market, the relationship between inflation and mortgage rates is helping home buyers. The Cost of Living made its smallest annual gain in 6 years last month and the Fed has repeatedly said that inflation will stay low for some time. The combination is driving investors to buy mortgage bonds which, in turn, is suppresses rates.

So long as it lasts, the cost of homeownership will remain relatively low. Combined with the expiring tax credit, the timing to buy a home may be as good as it gets.

Seattle Mortgage Rates, Seattle Home Loans, Washington home loans, Washington Mortgage Rates

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• Mortgage rates still below 5 percent (seattletimes.nwsource.com)

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6625 Wagner Way #150
Gig Harbor WA 98335
United States

Seattle Mortgage Rates, Seattle Home Loans, Washington home loans, Washington Mortgage Rates

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• U.S., Washington mortgage rates jump: Zillow (bizjournals.com)

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Now, your daily commute may not be as long, but time spent in cars, trains and buses is time away from work and from family. Drive-time can affect a person’s Quality of Life and it’s one reason why Forbes Magazine’s Best and Worst Commutes is worth reviewing.

Measuring travel time, road congestion and travel delays in the 60 largest metropolitan areas, Forbes ranks city commutes from best-to-worst with Salt Lake City topping the list and Tampa-St. Petersburg finishing it.

The Top 5 Commutes, as compiled by Forbes:

1. Salt Lake City, Utah
2. Buffalo-Niagara Falls, New York
3. Rochester, New York
4. Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, Wisconsin
5. Albany-Schenectady-Troy, New York

The bottom 5 are Tampa-St. Petersburg, Detroit, Atlanta, Orlando, and Dallas-Forth Worth.

Long commutes shouldn’t deter you from moving to a particular city, but the potential commute should be consideration. Before making an offer on your next home, make a rush-hour commute to work from your potential new neighborhood.  Then imagine doing it every day.

You can read the complete Forbes list of Best and Worst Cities for Commuters on its website.

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Please take the time to watch and try to understand!

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1. How to respond to an “insulting offer”
2. How to handle the first purchase offer you receive
3. What do when you can’t leave your home for its Open House
4. What room in the home should be kept the neatest

But, be aware. At the video’s end, there’s a piece of advice that may sound extremely self-serving coming from a real estate professional. Don’t let it turn you off. The video’s overall message is spot-on and the advice is real-world tested.

Selling a home is a process. Make sure to do it properly.

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Dear Investor,

The email you just received titled “My Predictions” was sent out without my approval. It was not my intention to say I told you so – that is not my style. Had I seen this email in advance it would not have been worded in the manner that it was.

I have always believed that my presentation in 2006 in front of the Western Regional Mortgage Bankers Association proves conclusively what Washington, Wall Street, and the main stream media do not want the public to know — that the financial crisis was easily predictable by anyone with a solid understanding of economics.

When I originally posted this presentation to YouTube it was split into eight clips, and not nearly as many people viewed it as I had hoped. Now that I am a YouTube partner I was able to upload the entire presentation into one clip. If you have not had the opportunity to watch it, and you have an hour and fifteen minutes to spare, I think you will find it well worth your time. If you consider when this presentation was made, and the audience I was addressing, it is even more compelling.

Click here to view the video.

I hope that despite its length, this video can widely circulate on the internet. To help achieve this goal, try to forward it to as many people as you can. Hopefully a number of the people who ultimately view it will reside in Connecticut, helping voters conclude that having a senator who warned about the crisis in advance is preferable to having one who played an integral role in creating it.

Best Regards,

Peter Schiff
President and Chief Global Strategist
Euro Pacific Capital

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