02.15.10
Posted in Brandon MS homes for sale tagged Brandon MS Real Estate Buyers at 7:00 am by Mississippi Real Estate Agent
Thousands of potential buyers of Brandon MS homes for sale are now homeowners, thanks to the first-time homebuyer tax credit. You could be eligible for a tax credit if you bought a home in 2009 or plan to buy one before April, 2010. But which one are you eligible for?
If you have two or three hours to spend reading the information about the homebuyer tax credit, you’ll be able to figure out if you’re eligible. But, most people don’t have the time or patience. To shorten your learning curve, here are a few tips, pointers and frequently asked (and answered) questions about the tax credit:
Three Kinds of Homebuyer Tax Credits
There are actually three kinds of tax credits:
- The original first-time homebuyer tax credit, enacted in 2008, covers the Brandon MS homes for sale that went off the market between April 9, 2008 and June 30, 2009. Rather than being a true credit, the money received is actually a 15-year, interest-free loan. In other words, it has to be paid back.
- The second tax credit, raised from a maximum of $7,500 to $8,000, doesn’t have to be paid back. If you bought a home between January 1, 2009 and November 30, 2009, you may be eligible.
- The third homebuyer tax credit, enacted in November 2009, is actually an expansion and extension of the second credit. It extends the deadline of November 30, 2009 to April 30, 2010 and expands the credit to include long-term homeowners who want to buy a new residence.
Tax Credit Qualifications
Just because you buy a home between April 9, 2008, and April 30, 2010, doesn’t mean you automatically qualify. Each homebuyer tax credit has its own eligibility requirements. For instance, the home has to cost less than $800,000, if bought after November 6, 2009. Long-term owners have to have lived in the same home for five consecutive years of the past eight. There are also income requirements, as well as other factors.
Automatic Ineligibility
To receive the homebuyer tax credit, there are a few things you absolutely cannot do. For example, the home you buy has to be a principle residence, which means it’s the one you live in most of the time. You can’t buy it for business. As well, the home you buy has to be in the U.S.
Another “can’t do” is selling the home or converting it to rental property. You have to live in the home as your permanent residence for at least three years. If you don’t, Uncle Sam will want the money back.
There are many great Brandon MS homes for sale, and one of them might just be your dream home. However, if you plan to purchase and claim the homebuyer tax credit, make sure you know the facts first.
Have questions about the homebuyer tax credits? I can help. Call me at 601-942-3392 or email me at Paula@PaulaRicks.com for more information.
Paula Ricks
Coldwell Banker Nell Wyatt, Inc.
Ridgeland, Mississippi
www.PaulaRicks.com
Paula@PaulaRicks.com
Call direct: 601-942-3392
Tags:
Brandon MS Real Estate Buyers
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11.23.09
Posted in Brandon MS Real Estate tagged Brandon MS Real Estate Buyers at 7:00 am by Mississippi Real Estate Agent
Working to have a safe home environment is important to everyone who owns Brandon MS real estate. We want our children to have safe water, clean air, fresh food and a healthy earth for their future.
One area where you might consider decreasing your impact on the environment is in your own home construction. There are several ways you can have a safe and clean green home construction.
1) Find a “green” builder to help with your home. Search the Internet for professional green builders. It takes a special contractor to coordinate the elements of Brandon MS real estate home building to ensure maximum energy savings. Buying green materials is just one step toward having a green home. To achieve ultimate efficiency, the different structural parts of plumbing, electricity, gas lines, and framework need to be coordinated.
2) Buy green materials from different vendors. Shop around to ensure you are getting the best deal. One vendor may sell stone at an exceptional price, but his timber may be overpriced. Natural supplies can be in short availability in some areas. Natural builders and vendors are working together to build a greener home construction industry, but it is still a business. It is your responsibility as the homeowner to make sure that you are getting the best deal.
3) Continue the “green” theme with your home decorations and furnishings. The construction of your green home saves resources and energy. You can reduce your impact on the environment even further by using energy saving appliances, eco-friendly interior paint, and sustainable wood flooring in your home.
If you’re one of the Brandon MS real estate owners wanting to build your new home using green construction, it’s a great start to a cleaner, brighter future.
I can help you learn more about green home construction options. Call me at 601-942-3392 or email me at Paula@PaulaRicks.com for more information.
Paula Ricks
Coldwell Banker Nell Wyatt, Inc.
Ridgeland, Mississippi
www.PaulaRicks.com
Paula@PaulaRicks.com
Call direct: 601-942-3392
Tags:
Brandon MS Real Estate Buyers
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11.02.09
Posted in Brandon MS homes for sale tagged Brandon MS Real Estate Buyers at 7:00 am by Mississippi Real Estate Agent
If you’re looking at one of the many Brandon MS homes for sale (and especially when reading about buying a home), you’ve probably already read articles that ask, “How much house can you afford?” and “Can you really afford the mortgage for a new home?” From beginning to end, to get a good estimate, you’ll need to figure monthly payments, loan qualification guidelines, closing costs and much more. Frankly, all those calculations can set your head to reeling.
To cut down on some of the frustration, save a few trees from the paper you’d use up and help give you a better guestimate, I’ve decided to go looking for the best real estate calculators I could find on the Net. Here are my top 3 picks I’ve come across:
#3. Real Estate Calculator Suite – This product seems to be an excellent choice for anyone, whether you’re a homebuyer, seller or even, yes, a real estate agent like me. Sixteen different real estate and mortgage calculators can help you figure out refinancing costs, amortization schedules – even whether it’s better to rent or buy one the Brandon MS homes for sale. Although it’s $40.00, which might seem rather expensive to many, it could more than make up for the time you’d spend staring at a sheet of paper and numbers. To top it all off, it even includes a home inspection form and to do list for movers, tying your buying or selling experience up nicely.
#2. Yahoo! Real Estate Calculators – You can’t beat a search engine for information, and the Yahoo! Real Estate really does a thorough job in collecting a fantastic amount of calculators. Budgeting and finance, mortgage refinancing, deciding fixed or adjustable rate mortgages and more are all available on this one page. The major upside as compared to the Real Estate Calculator Suite is that it’s free.
#1. CNNMoney.com – CNN isn’t a worldwide news network for nothing, and they’ve taken their complete coverage to calculators. On one page, you have over thirty calculators to figure out everything. Compare costs of living for any area, figure out how much house you can afford, calculate the gain or loss on your home and more. As a bonus, it’s all free, too.
I ranked CNNMoney.com as the top due to the amazing amount of information you can gain in one place. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t try one of the others, or even all three. If you want one of the Brandon MS homes for sale, get to calculating, get informed and see what you can accomplish.
Or, you can contact me, and I’ll do the figuring for you. Call me at 601-942-3392 or email me at Paula@PaulaRicks.com for more information.
Paula Ricks
Coldwell Banker Nell Wyatt, Inc.
Ridgeland, Mississippi
www.PaulaRicks.com
Paula@PaulaRicks.com
Call direct: 601-942-3392
Tags:
Brandon MS Real Estate Buyers
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09.24.09
Posted in Brandon MS homes for sale tagged Brandon MS Real Estate Buyers at 7:00 am by Mississippi Real Estate Agent
Are you looking at Brandon MS homes for sale and feeling overwhelmed by the choices? Back in the Dark Ages before the Internet (1986 or so), if you wanted to look at a house, you had to call a real estate agent, find out the address and then physically drive to the house. Thanks to the Internet, however, you can start narrowing down your choices before you ever talk to your agent.
What do you need to know?
Looking online can give you the information you want to know about the Brandon MS homes for sale. However, if you just go surfing on the Web, that information can be as overwhelming as the number of choices. Before you start shopping online, make a list of the things that are important to you about the city or neighborhood in which you want to live, such as:
- What are the average property taxes in the neighborhood?
- What is the average utility cost for the home?
- What is the neighborhood like?
- How high is the crime rate in the neighborhood?
- What is the average climate of the city?
- What is the unemployment rate of the city?
- How good are the schools?
Once you have your list of questions, go online with an eye to answering them. Here is a list of links that might help you on your quest for information:
My Government Website – Sunshine Review: Here you can find a list of cities with official websites. Choose the city you’re looking for and be magically transported by way of the Internet to that city’s official website. You’ll find all the great stuff that calls people to move to a particular city, including attractions, businesses, restaurants and beautiful housing developments.
City Data: City Data is just that – a website with nothing but data on U.S. cities. You’ll find the nice and not so nice information about any city. Crime rates, shortest commute, weather patterns and more, all at your fingertips. The only drawback is that the information is two years old.
Interest: Interest.com will show you the current mortgage interest rates for the area you’re interested in.
PaulaRicks.com: Learn about local communities in the Metro Jackson Mississippi area by clicking on the Communities drop down menu.
By gathering all this information, you have a much better chance of choosing one of the Brandon MS homes for sale that fits your needs. Once you have it all, you can search online or take the information to your real estate agent and get help with your house hunting.
Are you looking for the perfect house? Let me help. Call me today at 601-942-3392 or email me at Paula@PaulaRicks.com for more information.
Paula Ricks
Coldwell Banker Nell Wyatt, Inc.
Ridgeland, Mississippi
www.PaulaRicks.com
Paula@PaulaRicks.com
Call direct: 601-942-3392
Tags:
Brandon MS Real Estate Buyers
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