Spruce Up Your Outdoor Living Space
With summer right around the corner, thoughts of outdoor entertainment and a sparkling pool can become a reality with the right planning — and the right loan.
Yes, there’s a loan that covers sprucing up your pool, adding an outdoor kitchen and expanding your home entertainment center – it’s the Fannie Mae HomeStyle Renovation loan program – and it covers luxury items and improvements when other programs say “no way”.
Use it for improving your current home.
You can do those luxury backyard upgrades you’ve always wanted. Plus, carry the improvements to inside your home and replace outdated flooring, baths and kitchens, too.
This is a conventional loan which means the loan amount can go up to $417,000.00 and has a low down payment of 5%. Best of all unlike the FHA Rehab loans, luxury items ARE ALLOWED with the HomeStyle loan. This means that not only landscaping and new decking are allowed but with this loan you may add a pool, renovate an existing pool add an outdoor kitchen and even a sauna.
Use it to purchase and update a new family home.
There is no better time to remodel than before you actually move in. You can fully customize the home to your personal taste, do repairs and updates all at the same time – then move right in and enjoy. Maybe it has the perfect back yard but has required foundation and roof repairs. Not to worry, these can all be fixed using the HomeStyle loan too.
Investors welcome!
If you are an investor considering a property that needs a little work – the Fannie Mae HomeStyle loan is your answer as well.
At closing, all funds for renovation will be held in escrow in an interest-bearing account. After all renovation work is complete, any remaining funds in the escrow account will be used to pay down the principal balance of the mortgage.
Fannie Mae HomeStyle Renovation Mortgage Highlights:
- Up to 95% LTV for owner occupied / 75% LTV for investment
- Gift funds allowed
- Renovation funds escrowed in an interest bearing account
- Multi-dwelling units and Condos are allowed (may be subject to additional requirements)
- Soft costs (architectural services, engineering, permit fees, etc.) may be financed
- Loans are underwritten to FNMA guidelines
- Credit score minimums range based on LTV requirements and income documentation requirements
- Pool and luxury item installation or repair allowed
- Mortgage insurance requirements are based on the LTV calculated using the after-improved value
- The HomeStyle Program is available for refinancing options as well as purchase financing
With the HomeStyle Renovation Mortgage – you can basically do any kind of repairs as long as the appraised value can support the repairs or improvements are common for the area. The repairs must be completed within 120 days and cannot be more than 50% of the final appraised value.
Looking for a home you can jazz with your own personal style? We can help.
We are Collin County real estate veterans and love to work with buyers!
Call North Point to jump-start your search 214-212-6770 or CLICK HERE.
There’s no substitute for a knowledgable Loan Officer who specializes in renovation loans. Contact Leesa Sandavol with Prime Lending 972-725-9190 – and tell her I said to call – she is always up to date on the in this highly specialized field. – Norma Wall, Broker
Your Home Has A Smoke Detector. Are You Sure It’s Really Working?
An estimated 356,000 in-home fires caused more than $7 billion in U.S. residential property damage in 2009, according to data from the United States Fire Administration.
The fires caused more than 12,000 injuries, and killed more than 2,500 people nationwide.
Unfortunately, many of affected homes did have smoke detectors — they just weren’t working properly. This is why it’s critically important to test your home’s smoke detectors at least once annually.
When you test a smoke detector, you’re making sure that the alarm will trigger in the event of a real-life fire. A proper test will confirm that the batteries have useful life, and that the device’s smoke detection components are operating as expected.
To test your smoke detector, here’s what to do :
- Make a checklist of your home’s smoke detectors
- Go to the first smoke detector
- Ask a helper to go to the farthest point from the detector within your home
- Press the smoke detector’s testing button up to 10 seconds to activate the alarm
- Confirm with your helper that the alarm could be heard from his/her location
- Note on the checklist whether the smoke detector worked, or needs replacement
You can also take your test a step further.
Just because the smoke detector’s alarm can be heard from the farthest point in your house doesn’t mean that the alarm will sound in the event of a real fire. Therefore, you may want to buy a “smoke test”.
Smoke tests are aerosol cans that simulate a bona fide in-home fire. You can buy them for less than $15 at your local hardware store, or at Amazon.com. If your smoke detector fails to sound its alarm in the presence of a “real fire”, make sure you replace it right away.
Fall Fix-Ups For Your Home
It’s October and the fall season has officially started.
For homeowners nationwide, the change of season is a well-timed, “preventative maintenance” reminder.
As temperatures cool, there are a handful of do-it-yourself projects you should undertake in order to keep your home in tip-top shape through the winter. This 4-minute piece from NBC’s The Today Show highlights just a few of them.
Calling it a “Fall Fix-Up Checklist”, The Today Show’s interview is fast-paced and wide-ranging. Some of the topics covered include :
- Pick up all fallen leaves to limit damage to grass and “critter” invasions
- Unclog gutters to protect windows and foundations
- Turn off outside water sources and remove water from pipes and hoses
- Get your faucet cover guards to use when it starts to freeze.
The home-tip video also shares how to find air leaks in your home, and how to fix them. Reducing air leaks can lower your home’s heating and cooling bills by thousands of dollars annually.
Although the highlighted projects are DIYs, you may feel more comfortable hiring a professional. Know your “handyman limits”, and remain safe at all times.
And if you need any references, just call us.
How To Clean Your Home Gutters
With the change of season, it’s a good time to make sure your home’s gutter system is clean and well-functioning.
Home gutters serve a specific purpose. By capturing and funneling rainwater away from a home “footprint” water damage to walls, windows and roofing can be minimized. A well-functioning gutter system can keep a foundation safe from long-term structural damage.
Damaged or dirty gutters can lead to major home damage that may not be covered by insurance.
For homeowners , keeping clean gutters is essential. Luckily, with the right tools, gutter maintenance can be a do-it-yourself job.
First, gather the necessary tools. You’ll need a ladder for climbing; a bucket for holding debris; a hose for flushing your gutters; and a small, scooping tool such as a trowel.
Next, carefully climb to your gutter. Using your hands, scoop large debris and place it in the bucket. Use the trowel to get to hard-to-reach places and for removing sticks and leaves. For safety, do not stretch to reach the next section of gutter.
After clearing the first gutter portion, step down from the ladder, move it to the next section of gutter, and repeat. Do this until all gutter sections are free from debris.
Next, find a garden hose with a spray attachment. Carry the hose up the ladder with you to the highest point of your gutter system — usually opposite the downspout. With the water supply on, spray water into the gutter to flush the remaining debris.
If the water fails to drain, there’s likely a clog in the downspout. Using a screwdriver, separate the downspout, find the clog, and remove it. Or, if you find standing water, adjust the slope of your gutter by removing the gutter hangers, fixing the slope, and re-attaching the hangers.
A gutter system should slope roughly one-quarter inch for every 10 feet of gutter.
Gutter maintenance is a twice a year task that you can do yourself. However, if you’re uncomfortable on a ladder, or prefer to hire professionals, that’s okay, too. As with everything in home maintenance, it’s safety first.
Painless Move – Thanks to These Guys!
By Norma Wall, Broker
Everybody hates to move – and it’s always a challenge to find a reliable mover. The big guys are fine for large, long distance moves, but when you have a local relocation, especially with office furniture, you need a “large enough to serve you – small enough to know you” kind of company.
Enter General Relocations Office Installations. After three projects with this local family-owned business I can certainly recommend and give them high marks for taking the pain out of the process.
For my dreaded move they showed up early, were well organized, had good tools and (even in this relentless Dallas heatwave) were focused on the end result. As an added bonus they were polite. They respected the building restrictions and did not disrupt the neighbors. All my furniture, accessories, computers and hundreds of pounds of files arrived at the new destination without a blemish!
They have 15 years experience, cover Dallas-Ft. Worth, Waco, Austin and surrounding areas. Their services include:
- Office relocations / installations
- Home and apartment relocations
- Load / unload your rental truck
When a service business does a good job for me, I believe referrals should be an automatic reward. If you are looking for this kind of service for your next move, call owner Gerardo Ramirez, 214-354-8168 for a FREE ESTIMATE and tell him “Brad’s mom” recommended him.
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