The CNN article, Real estate: It’s time to buy again,” caused quite a stir in cyberspace, both from supporters and dissenters alike. One cyber-pursuer cackles: “Ha! What a joke.” While some see optimistic predictions of the real estate market as delusion-driven or, at the very least, misguided, such predictions are now gaining more and more support from economists.  CEO Charles Plosser informs us that “Consumer spending continues to expand at a reasonably robust pace, and business investment, particularly on equipment and software, continues to support overall growth.” In consequence, “the nonresidential real estate sector is likely to improve as the overall economy gains ground.” The projection of economic growth allows us to rest assured that the housing market will too strengthen with time.

So, why is now the time to buy? Any real estate mogul will suggest trying to buy at the bottom of the market and, indeed, ladies and gentlemen, we are pretty darn close to the bottom. A study by Deutsche Bank shows that homeowners now pay just 9.8% of their income in after-tax mortgage, tax, and insurance payments, down from 17.2% at the market’s peak in 2007. Additionally, with such low prices, home-buying has become incredibly affordable. Phil DeMuth, co-author of the hot-of-the-press Little Book of Alternative Investments, encourages his readers to buy by explaining that “Housing prices are where they were in 2002 and you’ve got mortgage rates at 5% now on a 30-year mortgage.” If you can qualify for a good mortgage, DeMuth says, “I’d say this is an excellent time to take that kind of position.” After a stint of pro-renting advocacy and a healthy dose of pessimism, it seems that we have come full circle back to our culturally-rooted obsession with houses.

Bio: James Kim writes for an Austin Real Estate Company service Homecity.com. HomeCity combines powerful online Austin MLS search technology and other online tools with personalized real estate services to provide clients with the knowledge they need to make the right buying and selling decisions.

Because homes are of different ages, conditions, and locations, there is no standard $ per square footage that applies for all Cache Valley Homes. There are lots of variables that make $ per square foot more or less relevant. Unfinished basements also make calculating the average cost per square foot very difficult.

Here are a few classifications of different property types, and what their average $ per square footage has been over the last six months.

Older Starter Homes -$78 Square Foot

To figure out this square footage I took homes built before 1960, with less than 2000 square feet, on lots smaller than half an acre. There were 40 Cache Valley starter homes used to determine this number.

Older Family Homes -$64 Square Foot

These homes fit under the same criteria, as the starter homes, but just consist of the properties that were bigger than 2000 square feet. There were 28 properties in this sample. Most older homes aren’t big. Initially I ran the numbers for just homes over 2500 square feet, and there were only five of them that had sold in the last six months. So I moved my criteria down to allow for a bigger sample.

Middle Aged Starter Homes -$78 Square Foot

These homes were classified as properties with less than 2,000 square feet that were built between 1961-2000, on less than half an acre. As you can see, the age of these homes didn’t make much of a difference in terms of the price per square footage compared with the older homes.

Middle Aged Family Homes – $68 Square Foot

Homes with more than 2,500 square feet on less than half an acre. The average square footage of these homes was actually about 3100 square feet. There were 37 homes in this group.

New Starter Homes -$105 Per Square Foot

From a per square foot standpoint these are the most expensive properties. They consisted of single family homes with less than 2,000 square feet, built in the year 2000 or after.

New Family Homes -$79 Per Square Foot

These homes were properties with more than 2,000 square feet built from 2000-2010. Despite the “new” factor of these homes, the price per square foot isn’t much more expensive than the older homes. Many of these homes are brand new and have high end upgrades. One reason that the price per square footage of these properties was so low is because many of these homes actually have unfinished basements. The price per square foot of these homes is also low because, there is a huge surplus of these properties. Only the least expensive of these larger newer Logan homes are actually selling.

via Determining Home Prices by “Price Per Square Foot” « Logan Real Estate Blog.

With a “Lease Option”, or “Rent to Own home,” sellers rent their home out giving the renter the option to buy the home at a future date. Lease option contracts usually require a substantial down payment. The down payment will be subtracted from the purchase price in the event that the renter buys the house. Lease options also generally have a portion of the rent that goes towards the option as well.

Why is there an increase in Cache Valley Lease Option Homes?

There are too many homes for sale. Cache Valley has record high numbers of real estate listings right now. Because there are so many homes for sale, some homes will just plain not sell. For many sellers who need to move out of the valley, its better to have a renter pay to cover the mortgage payment than it is to have a vacant house. Offering a house as a lease option, opens the door to the number of potential buyers.

Here are a few reasons why right now might be a good time to offer your home as a lease option:

Cover your mortgage payment. Because your house may not be able to sell right now at the amount owed, a lease option gives you one way to pay the mortgage while you wait for the real estate market to improve. Lease options can net more monthly income than just “renting” your home out. In addition, someone who has ownership interest in your property is more likely to take better care of it.

It’s harder for buyers to get financing. Mortgage loan underwriting standards are still very strict. While some potential buyers may have large savings, good credit, and excellent income, they may be unable to buy a house just because they switched careers or are self employed. These people can make excellent renters, and don’t have an option to buy.

Home ownership isn’t as appealing as it once was. Some qualified buyers just don’t want to buy right now. They fear that home prices will go down further, or just don’t want to commit to a certain house. Some people moving to Logan from other areas want to get a better feel for the area before committing where they want to actually buy. For people like this, a lease option is an ideal solution.

Higher Purchase Price. Offering your house as a lease option, may help you to net a higher purchase price. Only 22 out of more than 900 Cache Valley real estate listings are offered as lease options. This is a small percentage of the total inventory. People that want to buy, but cant get mortgage financing have no other option. In addition, if prices do continue to drop over the next few years, your contract lease purchase price has already been set. You may be able to get today’s market value for the sell of your property when the future market value is actually lower.

via Number of “Lease Option” Homes in Logan Up « Logan Real Estate Blog.

From a marketing standpoint, this is actually a pretty good idea. Harness the power of the MLS and IDX feeds with fake homes for sale to get potential buyers to ask about a particular builder, and think about building.

From a statistics and market condition standpoint, this is downright dishonest and misleading. Having a dozen phantom high end “North Logan Homes for Sale” has a significant impact on the average price of homes for sale, and on the months of real estate inventory our market appears to have.

At the beginning of the month when I ran my monthly home sales statistics, there were 794 homes for sale in Cache County with an average list price at $237,173. Right now there are 820 listings with and average list price of $246,118.

So Cache County home prices went up $9,000 in the last 20 days! This is the first time in 15 months that home prices have gone up. This means our real estate market downturn is finally turning around right?

No. Not really, there just happen to be a dozen fake listings that make the average list price of Cache Valley homes look higher than it really is.

via Real Estate Blog – Phantom Home Listings in North Logan.

$85,000.00
558 E FERNWOOD DR, Hyrum, UT 84319
Hyrum Rambler/Ranch built in 1974
4 Bedrooms, 1 Baths, 2076 Square Feet
MLS #: 959316

Wow. A very inexpensive home in Hyrum was listed yesterday. It has more than 2,000 square feet, and four bedrooms and is priced at just $85,000. That’s just $41 per square foot, which is an incredible price. The initial indication of listings like this is that the price is too good to be true, which likely means there is something seriously wrong with them. All I can see from this one thus far is that it is a Short Sale, and the listing agent probably wants an immediate offer. From the pictures this certainly doesn’t look like an $85,000 house. It actually has a tax value of almost $140,000. It looks like it could be a great deal for someone. Click the address hyper link for the full MLS details of this property.

via New Hyrum Utah Real Estate Listings: New Hyrum Utah Home Listings for 04/25/2010.

If short sales are under contract, are they still considered “under contract” in terms of being eligible for the home buyer tax credits? A short sale contract is a valid contract, but it isn’t enforceable. In the Utah Short Sale Addendum to the Real Estate Purchase contract there is a clause that essentially says that the contract can be canceled at any time.

During this significant time delay, circumstances may change for both Seller and Buyer. The changes in circumstances may include, but are not limited to: (a) adjustments in available mortgage financing rates and terms; (b) modifications in the financial circumstances of Seller or Buyer; (c) the timing of the transaction may no longer meet Buyer or Seller’s needs; (d) Buyer may find another property that better suits Buyer’s needs; and (e) Seller may receive additional offers for the purchase of the Property that better address Seller’s legal and financial needs. Based on the above, if at any time prior to Third Party Approval, or the Third Party Approval Deadline, whichever occurs first, the Buyer or Seller determines that their circumstances have changed and it is no longer in their best interest to pursue the sale/purchase of the Property, either Buyer or Seller may cancel the REPC by providing written notice to the other party. In such instance, the Earnest Money Deposit, if any, shall be returned to the Buyer without the requirement of further written authorization from Seller. Buyer and Seller acknowledge and agree that this mutual right of cancellation is fair and reasonable to both parties.

And what will the IRS consider “under contract?” Is it when the homeowner signs the short sale contract, or when the third parties actually approves it? I don’t know the answer.

The bigger issue with trying to purchase a short sale, and take advantage of the home buyer tax credit is the probability that it will be able to close by the end of June. I’m sure banks in charge of approving short sales will be busier than ever, and the likelihood of that happen isn’t great.

My recommendation would be to only make an offer on a short sale property if it is absolutely a home you love, and would be willing to buy with our without the $8,000 from Uncle Sam. The probability of it legitimately getting approved, and going under contract in time to qualify for the tax credits isn’t great.

Traditionally, open houses in Logan are pretty ineffective. There are rarely more than a handful of lookers who actually come view the homes, and most of the people that look are just curious neighbors. I have only ever heard of one home selling in Cache County as result of an Open House.

The timing of this open house weekend though should be pretty good though. The weather should finally be nice after a long dreary Cache Valley winter, and with the expiration of the home buying tax credit just a few weeks away, there are plenty of “motivated” buyers out there.

In general, open homes are a nice way for potential buyers to get a feel for prices of homes for sale, and what to expect, without being really committed towards buying.

Here is a list of some of the homes that should be open to the public sometime this Saturday, April 10th, 2010. Cache Valley Open Houses.

You can also use this link to view all of the current Logan Utah Homes for Sale.

via Open Houses Weekend in Logan – April 10th « Logan Utah Real Estate Blog.

Is it possible to find any real estate in Cache Valley for around $50,000? Yes, occasionally real estate in Cache Valley is priced around $50,000. But only if it’s a mobile home without land not actually real estate, meth-house, or complete fixer upper. Also, Mt. Aire Garden Condos can sometimes be purchased for close to the $50,000 range, one sold for $64,000 last year.Last Year a 3 bedroom Meth House in Smithfield sold for $69,900, a strange 780 square foot green pre-foreclosure twin house sold “as is” for $49,523, and an 1894 built home in Richmond sold “as is” for just $40,000.So while it is possible to get homes for around $50,000 in Cache Valley, these properties aren’t going to be quality “nice homes.”View all Cache Valley Homes for Sale Now!

via Is it Possible to Buy Cache Valley Homes for Less than $50,000? « Logan Utah Real Estate Blog.

Is it better to buy a new home or an older home? When shopping for a new home buyers usually have a choice, is newer home or an older home better? Both choices have their advantages, and most buyers have individual preferences based on their needs and desires.

Choosing between an older home, and a new home is a preference thing. If you are looking for new homes in Cache Valley, here are a few links to help you out: New Homes in Logan, New Homes in Hyrum Utah, New Homes in Nibley, Providence Utah New Homes, Smithfield Utah New Homes.

Here are a few of the advantages of buying new homes vs. older homes:

via New Construction or Existing Homes « Logan Utah Real Estate Blog.

Water rights stay with the property. Water is real property. Wells, for example, have a stock water number with the state’s division of water.

Water Shares, are personal property,that can be transferred anywhere within a given water irrigation district. Water shares need to be specified with a bill of sale, with a specific certificate that explains who has rights to those shares.

Riparian rights –Ownership extends along the initial the banks of a river. If the banks of the river change (due to natural forces), then ownership changes. If the river is too small to be navigable, then the property boundary extends to the middle of the river.

Littoral Rights –Rights of ownership have to do with properties adjacent to bodies of water with historic high and low tide levels. With littoral rights you own up to the historic high water mark.

In a common Utah Real Estate transaction the seller is required to provide any evidence of water rights and shares as specified in the real estate purchase contract.

For any specific questions or for more information about water rights in Utah, visit the Division of Water Rights website.