April Home Sales

Contracts written on properties in the Omaha Real Estate Market in April were up 37% from April of 2009. Closed sales were up 3.9%%.

1518 pending sales in April were the most of any month in the last 10 years.

Obviously the home buyer tax credits help boost the market to record levels. Depending on which research you look at, 20-25% of buyers were in the market solely for the tax credit. If we lose 25% of buyers in the next several we will still be averaging  1000 sales a month which is historically a pretty strong number in the Omaha market.

Below are the April housing stats and how they compare to April 2009.

April  2010

For Sale   5714           +15.9%
Sold            943               +3.9%
Pended     1518             + 37%

For Sale  5714
New Listings 2344
Sold 943
Pended 1518
Months of Inventory based on Closed Sales 6.1 months
Months of Inventory based on Pended Sales 3.8 months
Avg. Active Price $210,000
Avg. Sold Price $159,000
Avg. Sq. Ft. Price $83 per sq. ft.
Sold/List Diff. % 97%
Days on Market 65 Days
Median Price $137,000

Help For Flippers

The Federal Housing Administration has placed a one-year moratorium on its anti-flipping rule, and will now allow buyers with FHA-backed loans to purchase homes that have been held for less than 90 days by the seller.

Homebuyers who need a loan insured by the Federal Housing Administration, or FHA, may be able to buy a recent foreclosure house now that the FHA has waived its so-called “anti-flipping” rule. This rule banned the use of an FHA-insured mortgage to buy a home that was being resold within 90 days of purchase.

Buyers should be aware of the FHA’s limits on the anti-flipping rule waiver, which are as follows:

* The home sale must be at arm’s length, which means there can be no close business or personal relationship between the seller and buyer.

* If the price that the buyer agrees to pay for the home is more than 20 percent higher than the price the investor paid to purchase it, the sale will be subject to extra scrutiny to ensure that the value hasn’t been inflated.

* The Home Equity Conversion Mortgage for Purchase program is excluded from the waiver. This program allows older homeowners to combine a reverse mortgage and a home purchase.

* The 90-day time period might be shorter or longer than 90 calendar days due to the way the start and end dates are determined. The start date occurs when the sale is recorded. The end date occurs when the purchase contract is signed.

* The waiver began Feb. 1, 2010, and will last one year, unless the FHA extends or withdraws it. The waiver can be withdrawn if there is a significant increase in defaults or mortgage insurance claims on FHA loans that were used to buy flipped homes.

You also need to make sure your lender has implemented FHA’s waiver of the anti-flipping rule.

Fannie Mae Incentives

Closing Cost Assistance and Appliance Incentive for Fannie Mae Homes

Fannie Mae is looking to clear out some of their foreclosure inventory by offering a couple of incentives to home buyers. Fannie Mae is offering a 3.5% incentive for home buyers who purchase and close on a Fannie Mae-owned home between January 28 and April 30, 2010. Buyers may receive up to 3.5% of the final sales price for:

• Closing costs;
• The purchase of new Whirlpool® appliances by Fannie Mae; or
• A mix of closing costs and appliances, at the buyer’s discretion, up to the maximum 3.5%.

To be eligible for this incentive:

• Offers must be accepted on or after January 28, 2010
• Property sales must close before May 1, 2010
• Buyers must be owner-occupants, investors are excluded

Click here if you would like to search Fannie Mae foreclosures.