5871 Ballymeade St SE Salem Oregon
Check out this true 4 bedroom + bonus room. Very difficult to find in such a great area for this price! Huge MBR with WIC, jetted tub. Large kitchen with island, abundant counter & cabinet space, storage! Gas fireplace in family room. UG sprinklers with drip system & fenced yard.
1280 Gwinn E Monmouth, Oregon
Truly better than new with upgrades by master craftsman owner. New B. Moore Aura exterior paint with 30 year fade guarantee. Wonderful covered patio. Outstanding trim, hand troweled “plaster” over sheet rock, fireproof closet for high efficiency gas furnace and water heater, garage with shelving and workspace to covet, low maintenance landscaping. Large bonus room over garage with rough plumb in wall for additional bathroom. “Pride of ownership” doesn’t come close. Move in ready!
FHA Loan Limits Looking to Decrease
HUD is planning another shift in loan limits for FHA loans coming this October. Currently they are set at $295,000 for our 
Marion & Polk Counties within the Mid Willamette Valley in Oregon. Currently FHA requires a down payment of 3.5% of the sales price leaving a potential sales price to be no more than $280,880.00 come this October. Hopefully this will not have a huge affect on our home sales in this area. Many of the FHA buyers in this market are purchasing homes below $200,000. However, you will see that many move up buyers want to take advantage of the FHA backed mortgages with the minimal 3.5% down payment leaving some sellers with homes priced around the $280,000 price range and above in an ever more difficult position to find a qualified buyer.
Like most markets around the country, ours is also flooded with homes priced above $280,000 and it is a difficult task to find a buyer able to put down 20% during these economic times. Sellers need to look ahead so they are able to position themselves correctly for the coming changes.
Video Tour for 5275 Chicago St. SE Turner, Oregon
We just listed this nice home in the heart of Turner, Oregon. This home has been fixed up with new carpet, tile, trim, doors and paint to make it shine! Many windows allow for natural light, large rooms and formal dining. This property would also work excellent for an office or home based business with ample parking, functional for many offices and next to a park! Check out the video tour Here
Jobs Report
Today the Bureau of Labor Statistics jobs report came out that announced that we gained 162,000 jobs in the month of March(www.bls.gov). On Wednesday the ADP (Automatic Data Processing) said we lost 23,000 private jobs. So what does all of this mean? First of all, it is good news that the BLS report shows job gain. I want to make it clear that any growth is good for us right now. The bad news in my opinion is that most all of these jobs are government jobs and many of them are temporary. It is estimated that the US Census Bureau will create approximately 800,000 jobs from January to May of this year. That is all wonderful, but May is only a month away. By the way, did you send in your Census yet?
I do believe that the health of our country’s economy, including our housing market, is going to be built on the foundation of a strong PRIVATE work force. Small businesses and corporations are what encourage the American Dream that we have become known for. Government jobs only create more dependence and add to our problems. As you can tell, I am not a fan of big government.
Our housing market has stopped its hemorrhaging, but we continue to seep if you will. The tax credit that expires in 28 days, which will NOT be extended, is holding us steady with properties under $200,000 here in the Willamette Valley. Homes over that price range and especially homes above $300,000 continue to drop in values. Again, everything hinges on our employment rate and the confidence that Americans have in our economy. We will not see home values stop dropping until we get people back to work. Our current unemployment rate is holding at 10.5% here in Oregon. That is better than the 11.6% it was in 2009, but we have a long way to go. I don’t believe we will sustain our problems in the long run with more government jobs.
In the midst of the economic conditions, I do believe now is the best time to buy a home if you are in the market. I do believe that housing rates will continue to rise from here on out, which will cost a buyer more money than the potential drop in home values. If rates go too high, then it will price home buyers out of the market completely, then we will be living in the early 1980’s once again. Only cash buyers were purchasing homes and only a few were selling on contract. Purchase agreements must be inked by April 30th, and homes must close by June 30th to get the $8000 “First Time Home Buyer” tax credit, and the $6500 “Move Up Home Buyer” tax credit.