Abby Noble - Homes for Heroes, Scott AFB

Homes for Heroes offers large savings to local community heroes when buying or selling a home:  A different approach to affordable home ownership.

Here is the new Homes for Heroes Commercial! Check it out and see what you could be missing.

Homes for Heroes provides substantial discounts and rebates to buyers and sellers in the following groups: military personnel, police officers, firefighters, teachers, first responders, and others who serve our community and nation. We are able to save our hero clients THOUSANDS of dollars that is credited back to them directly at closing.  Not only that but our discounts with participating local businesses offers huge saving even after you close on your home!

It is our way of saying Thank You to those that protect our community and our country on a daily basis!

Here is a fantastic article about what some military home buyers don't realize when selecting what type of loan they'd like to use to finance their home from one of my favorite websites!

No PMI with VA Loans

No private mortgage insurance is just one of the many benefits of the VA Home Loan Program. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs sets guidelines so that VA-approved lenders can offer attractive loan features to qualified VA borrowers. ...VA borrowers are not required to pay a monthly Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) premium...

One of the unique features of VA loans is that they don't require private mortgage insurance (PMI). PMI is insurance on a conventional mortgage with more than an 80% loan-to-value (LTV) ratio. (FHA also has a mortgage insurance premium ("MIP") on most of its loans regardless of LTV.) The insurance helps cover lender losses in case a borrower defaults on the loan and the property goes into foreclosure. Because 25% of each VA loan mortgage amount is guaranteed by the federal government, VA-approved lenders consider the guaranty in lieu of PMI. Therefore, VA borrowers are not required to pay a monthly PMI premium.

Not having a monthly PMI payment can translate into big savings for the VA borrower. Typical PMI premiums on a conventional loan of $200,000 can run about $120 per month or $1,400 per year. Some borrowers end up paying PMI on non-VA loans even after their principal amounts dip below 80% LTV.

In some cases, an appraisal is necessary before PMI is canceled. Most appraisals cost between $300 and $400. Not having to pay for another appraisal is just another savings VA borrowers may experience by not having PMI associated with their loans.

People in the market for a mortgage may find that some conventional loans may be marketed as no-PMI loans. It's important to be aware that some loans advertised as "no PMI required" may be lender-paid PMI loans with higher interest rates. With some such loans, the borrower may end up paying for the PMI indirectly through higher monthly mortgage payments.

Understanding PMI is just one step in realizing the savings for VA borrowers with a no-PMI loan. In addition to no PMI, there are many advantages in using your VA home loan benefits. Other VA loan advantages include:

• No down payment
• Relaxed qualifying standards
• Competitive interest rates
• No penalties for mortgage pre-payment
• Cash-out and debt consolidation
• Streamline rate reduction

For more information about military home services check out this great resource: http://www.military.com/finance/homebuying/no-pmi-with-va-loans.html

ENTERTAINERS DREAM!

1121 Butternut Lane, O'Fallon IL

$204,900

• 4 Bedrooms
• 2.5 Baths
• 2,795 sqft
• Eat-in Kitchen
• Crown Molding
• Office
• Main Floor Master Suite
• 2-story Great Room & Foyer
• Updated Kitchen
• Hardwood & Tiled Flooring
• Cul-De-Sac
• Close to Scott AFB
• O'Fallon Schools

This home is an entertainers dream. Located just minutes from Scott Air Force Base on a small cul-de-sac in a wonderful neighborhood this 2,795 square foot home is perfect for your family.  Your guests will be welcomed in with mature trees and beautiful landscaping. The stunning 2-story foyer has hardwood floors and is open to the rest of the home. The main floor is accented with hardwood floors, chair rails and crown molding. The updated eat-in kitchen boasts new tiled floors, new countertops, updated hardware & fixtures, and new appliances.  The pass through window allows you to entertain family and friends in the great room with cathedral ceilings and a charming fireplace. You'll find a formal dining room, office with french doors, and the master suite on the main floor as well! The spacious master suite retreat boasts his and hers closets and a luxurious master bath including dual sinks, a soaker tub and beautiful picture window. A double staircase leads upstairs to 3 bedrooms, a bathroom, and the balcony overlooking the great room. That's not all, the abundant backyard and patio is the perfect place to relax with family & friends! Call me today to see how you can save thousands of dollars on this home with the Homes for Heroes program and to schedule your own private showing of this beautiful home for sale in O'Fallon, IL.

Check out this homes personal website and virtual tour at: http://www.exite-listings.com/53083

With PCS season in full swing for the military I have been getting lots of questions from my fellow military members here at Scott Air Force Base, IL about the Homeownes Assistance Program (HAP) available to them.  HAP is intended to help offset the decrease in home values for military personnel being forced to sell their home due to official military orders to move.  Here is a great outline of the program as well as a website that should be able to answer all of your questions.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) opened up a Department of Defense initiative known as the Homeowners Assistance Program, or HAP, which was created by Congress in 1966 to aid military families, surviving spouses and federal civilian employees affected by a base realignment or closure, which, in military lingo, is called BRAC.

Under ARRA, the BRAC requirement is waived. Now, help is available merely if eligible personnel are under mandatory orders to transfer on a permanent basis.

"Like many Americans, DoD families feel the economic downturn's impact as they cope with the unique challenges of military life," says Ilse Merryman, who manages HAP. "They often don't get to choose when they move and may be forced to sell their homes when they don't want to. Often, service members are ordered to change duty stations and establish new homes, sometimes every two to three years."

There are numerous rules and eligibility requirements, but here's a brief rundown of the expanded HAP program, which is run by the Army Corps of Engineers on behalf of all the branches of the military:

• Applications for aid will be processed according to eligibility in this order:

1. Owners who were injured, wounded or became ill in the line of duty while deployed since Sept. 11, 2001 and are relocating for further medical treatment. Covered here are service members, including the Coast Guard, and civilian employees of the Defense Department.

2.  Spouses of the fallen who relocate within two after the death of their mates.

3. Owners affected by the 2005 round of base closings, without the need to prove the closure caused local housing prices to decline.

4. Servicemen owners who receive permanent duty station changes between Feb. 1, 2006 and Sept. 30, 2010.

5. Benefits are based on the prior fair market value of the property, which under the expanded HAP is the purchase price as evidenced by the HUD-1 settlement sheet. But the amount may not exceed the 2009 conforming loan limits, which range from $729,500 in high-cost areas to no less than $417,000 everywhere else.

6. As long as your home meets fair market value guidelines supported by comps and the internal desk appraisal done by HAP there is no specific time you need to market your home for.

7. When a home is sold at less than what it was purchased for, there are 2 options for sellers to choose from once the home is under contract, one pays 95% plus closing costs and the other pay 90% plus improvements and closing costs.

8. The government will not make up past payments, nor will it pay outstanding judgments, personal encumbrances or junior liens. But it will pay all legally enforceable liabilities, and for title services necessary to close the sale as well as any other allowable closing costs

9. For further information, contact the Corps field office nearest you -- Savannah, Ga., Fort Worth, Texas, or Sacramento, Calif. -- or got to the HAP Web site, www.usace.army.mil.

If you have additional questions or would like more information about HAP please don't hesitate to contact me, Abby Noble at (618)444-6188 or via email at abby.noble@gmail.com.  

Your Scott Air Force Base Specialist and EXCLUSIVE Homes for Heroes Affiliate.

Home Buyer Tax Credit: Military Extension 

Congress has acknowledged the unique circumstances affecting members of the military, the foreign service and the intelligence community due to deployments and other circumstances by making the following exceptions that apply to both the $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers and the $6,500 tax credit for repeat home buyers. 

Here are the additional benefits:

• Members of the military and certain other federal employees serving outside the U.S. have an extra year to buy a principal residence in the U.S. and qualify for the credit.
• A sales contract must be written by April 30, 2011 and settlement must take place on or prior to June 30, 2011.
• This extension applies to any individual (and, if married, the individual's spouse) who serves on qualified official extended duty service outside of the United States for at least 90 days during the period beginning after Dec. 31, 2008, and ending before May 1, 2010.
• Extended duty is defined as any period of duty pursuant to a call or order to such duty for a period in excess of 90 days or for an indefinite period.

Home buyer credits and rebates that never expire...

April 30th marked the last day to buy a home and get the federal tax credit. Homes for Heroes discounts and credits never expire! In fact, through the Friends of Heroes program, the discounts continue far after the closing.

Scott AFB, IL. - May 3, 2010 - Homes for Heroes® offers large savings to local heroes when buying or selling a home. With the Spring housing market here, Homes for Heroes is gearing up to serve as many heroes as possible. Homes for Heroes aims to help close the gap between the cost of housing and buyers in the following groups: military personnel, police officers, firefighters, teachers, first responders and others who serve our community and nation.

Homes for Heroes is celebrating its ninth year of bringing big savings to everyday heroes. Inspired by the hometown heroes who serve and protect their communities and our country, a partnership of Realtors, mortgage lenders, title companies and appraisers created Homes for Heroes, Incorporated. The sole purpose of this collaboration of real estate professionals is to offer savings when buying or selling a home. With the May launch of sister program, Friends of Heroes, community vendors outside of the real estate related profession can offer discounts to heroes for savings beyond the closing. This offers local businesses the opportunity to show its community that they are proud of your local and national Heroes and set their company apart from the competition.

See our videos!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAQ2tONxJs8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMAvbG4rW4k

Police Officer, soldier, and Homes for Heroes spokesperson Katie Blackwell returned from serving alongside her husband, Steve, in Iraq with the National Guard. Through her efforts in distributing information about the program to fellow soldiers, Homes for Heroes has been able to assist soldiers returning home, matching them to enthusiastic real estate affiliates eager to support our troops by way of great benefits offered by the program. We are ramping up quickly to align with the debriefing and reintegration initiatives at several military bases in anticipation of the large amount of returning troops.

Ruth Johnson is one of the founding members who started Homes For Heroes, Inc. in 2001. "We all share an admiration for the people who serve our community and our nation selflessly and we wanted to recognize and show our appreciation in a meaningful way, "said Johnson.

While the program's genesis and primary concentration originally was intended to serve the Minnesota real estate market, word of the Homes For Heroes benefits spread throughout the country. With the far-reaching power of the Internet, this originally local-only effort spiraled into a growing nationwide program. Homes for Heroes is now in 25 states and hopes to be in all 50 by the end of the year.

If you would like more information about Homes For Heroes or to schedule an interview with Abby Noble, please call 618-444-6188 or email Abby at abby.noble@gmail.com                 

www.homesforheroes.com

Homes for Heroes is a registered trademark. Any reproduction or redistribution in whole or in part without written permission is expressly prohibited by law

The home buyer tax credit offers special rules and extensions for our country's military members who may miss out on this great opportunity due to deployments.  Below is some information regarding these special circumstances provided be the National Association of Home Builders:

Special Rules for Members of the Military, the Foreign Service
and the Intelligence Community

Provided by: http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/service_mem.php

Congress has acknowledged the unique circumstances affecting members of the military, the foreign service and the intelligence community by making the following exceptions that apply to both the $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers and the $6,500 tax credit for repeat home buyers.

Exemption From Tax Credit Recapture Rules

• Typically, homes that are sold or that cease to be used as a principal residence within three years of the initial purchase are subject to recapture of the tax credit.
• However, qualified service members who sell or move from a tax credit home within three years of the initial purchase due to official extended duty are exempt from the recapture rule.

Extension of Tax Credit Deadlines

• The home buyer tax credit is available for qualified purchases with a binding sales contract in place on or before April 30, 2010 and closed by June 30, 2010.
• However, for qualified service members who are ordered on a period of official extended duty, these dates are extended for one year. For these home buyers, the tax credit applies to sales with a binding sales contract in place on or before April 30, 2011 and closed by June 30, 2011.
• A person who is forced to return to the U.S. for medical reasons before completing an assignment of at least 90 days of qualified official extended duty outside of the United States may qualify for the one-year extension.

Definitions

• "Qualified service member" means a member of the uniformed services of the U.S military, a member of the Foreign Service of the U.S., or an employee of the intelligence community.
• "Official extended duty" means any period of extended duty outside of the United States for at least 90 days during the period beginning after December 31, 2008 and ending before May 1, 2010.

Military members are also eligible for real estate discounts and rebates with the Homes for Heroes program.  Homes for Heroes offers substantial savings to military personnel, police officers, fire fighters, teachers, and other local community heroes.  Better yet, Homes for Heroes savings NEVER end or expire!  In Illinois, the Homes for Heroes program near Scott AFB has teamed up with 15 local businesses to provide discounts every step of the way through the home buying and home selling process saving their hero clients thousands of dollars.  For more information please contact Abby Noble at (618)444-6188 or via email abby.noble@gmail.com

I found this fantastic article about why it is a good time to buy a home.  And while most of us Realtors don't need the convincing sometimes our clients do.  All too often do I hear my clients say that they bet the Home Buyer Tax Credit will be extended again.  Now, I'm not much of a gambler but I don't think I would bet $8,000 on something that has already happened once!   Don't miss out on this amazing opportunity to buy a home.  Not only is it a great long term investment but if you qualify for either of the Home Buyer tax credits it's money in the bank as well. Now I definitely like those odds!

Check out the article below or by going to http://kcmblog.com/2010/03/22/5-reasons-to-buy-that-home-now/

5 Good Reasons to Buy that Home NOW!!

If you are considering whether or not to purchase a home in the near future, let us discuss why this might be the optimal time to do so. There are five excellent reasons to buy a home now instead of waiting until later. Let's go over them quickly in this post.

1.) The Homebuyer's Tax Credit

The federal government, in hopes of stimulating the economy, has made available to eligible first-time homebuyers a tax credit of eight thousand dollars ($8,000). The tax credit also makes six thousand five hundred dollars ($6,500) available to eligible move-up buyers. This tax credit is scheduled to end this spring. The home in question must be in contract by April 30, 2010 and you must close the transaction by June 30, 2010. To see if you are eligible, you can go to http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/home.html

2.) Low Interest Rates Currently Available

The Fed has announced that they will be definitely exiting their plan to purchase mortgage-backed-securities. That plan has lowered interest rates on a 30 year fixed rate mortgage by two full percentage points since its inception in October, 2008. Almost every expert believes interest rates will increase immediately once the Fed backs away. Some, like Morgan Stanley, believe rates can return to the seven percent level that existed before the Fed involvement. What can that mean to you? In the adjourning graph, we can see that even if prices continue to soften, the change in interest rates could dramatically increase your monthly costs.

3.) Location, Location, Location

There is a tremendous selection of properties currently available. More and more buyers are seeing the opportunities that exist in today's real estate market. As more purchasers enter the market, many of the best values (determined by price, location, or both) will be gobbled up first. This is an opportunity for you to purchase that dream house your family has always relished.

As the Washington Post reported last week, waterfront properties are at bargain prices:

For investors, second-home buyers or retirees who have been sitting on the sidelines for years, 2010 may be the time to dive into the beach market. Prices are now almost back to 2001 levels, and buyers previously priced out of this market may now be able to afford their dream home. In addition, the sheer inventory of available homes is quite favorable to a beach buyer.

4.) Real Estate Has Always Been a Good Long Term Investment

Though prices in many markets will continue to feel downward pressure in 2010, in the long term real estate will eventually return to historic returns. Even in the past decade, real estate was a better investment than the stock market as shown by the table below:

5.) The House Is a Home First and an Investment Second

In our culture today we are moving away from extrinsic values (power, money and prestige) and moving back toward more intrinsic values (wanting meaning in our lives). The home has always been a place where friends and family gather to share our live experiences whether at a party or over a simple dinner. We may be too focused on the cost of a house without taking into account the cost of delaying a return to the more fulfilling experiences a home brings with it.

What does this mean to you?

Only you truly know. But if you have a desire to settle down in your own home and enjoy everything that comes with the homeowner experience, this is probably the time to act.

Written by Steve Harney on March 22, 2010. For more information go to: http://kcmblog.com/2010/03/22/5-reasons-to-buy-that-home-now/

Well our grand opening was a success! We had lots of military supporters, a representative from Senator Burris' office, the Belleville Chamber, plenty of local "Friends of HFH" business owners, and even a few fire chiefs stop by!   The grand opening was picked up by the O'Fallon Progress newspaper and made the front page! Here's the link if you'd like to read the article: http://www.bnd.com/2010/03/18/1179207/homes-for-heroes-program-comes.html

It has since been picked up by the Command Post, our local Scott AFB paper, and the Belleville News Democrat.  We have had 2 new hero clients in the last week from our recent exposure and I can't wait for the spring and summer housing market so that we can help as many heroes as possible! Especially with the influx in military personnel arrving in the area due to orders to PCS to Scott Air Force Base.

Realtors & Heroes if you haven't checked this program out yet you need to! Homes for Heroes is a wonderful program that provides cause marketing while giving back to our local community heroes that give so much for us on a daily basis.

Enjoy a few pictures of our recent event and if you have any questions about the Homes for Heroes program or if you are a Hero that is looking to move in the Metro East Area I would be happy to help in any way!  Please don't hesitate to contact me: Abby Noble (618)444-6188 or via email at abby.noble@gmail.com

Thank you again to everyone who came out to support this incredible program, Gershman Mortgage, American TV, The Belleville Chamber, Jazmine Hasty from Senator Burris' Office, Cabinets Flooring & More, Benchmark Title, the Belleville Fire Dept., all my military spouses, the Exit Realty family and of course the founder of Homes for Heroes, Mark Micek.