Here's the podcast from Saturday's show where I shared the importance of the internet when looking for a home and choosing an agent and what Buyers need to do before buying a home. http://www.wina.com/play_window.php?audioType=Episode&audioId=5294772  It is easy to miss important pieces of the real estate transaction these days.  This podcast will share a number of things you want to know when buying or selling a home

http://www.washingtonpost.com/realestate/with-changes-ahead-for-fha-down-payments-private-mortgage-insurers-seek-inroads/2011/04/18/AFoEvYPE_story.html

the FHA guidelines are changing and with them, minimum down payment and monthly payments are on the rise.  With this being the case, a home borrower should look at the PMI option as noted in this Kenneth Article above.

There are many that say renting a home may be the best way to go these days when it comes to the place you call home.  There is no doubt for some that this is probably the best choice especially if you think you might only be in that location for a couple of years.  that being said this article, http://www.housingwire.com/2011/04/22/homeownership-still-considered-best-long-term-investment-pew?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=beta&utm_content=Real+Estate+News&utm_term=Charlotte+Real+Estate shows that 81% of folks surveyed still think buying is the thing to do.  No matter what, our recommendation is to find someone you trust who knows the real estate market where you want to live so that you can make an educated decision as to whether buying or renting is the right choice for you.

A close to 40 year project may finally happen.  Click on this link to learn about an important piece of this puzzle that was announced yesterday. http://www.newsplex.com/home/headlines/City_Approves_Construction_of_Meadow_Creek_Parkway_120513109.html

Real Estate Matters w Michael Guthrie

Listen to hear what Barbara G. McMurry and Brad Conner had to say about what is happened and what they think will happen with the Charlottesville Real Estate Market. http://www.wina.com/play_window.php?audioType=Episode&audioId=5263604

Once you have had a chance to listen, you will see that there are reasons to be encouraged but the number of homes on the market will keep the housing market from making any significant recovery.  That being said, prices are lower than they have been in at least 6 years and interest rates continue to hover around 5%.  This may be the reason there were more homes sold in the 1st quarter of 2011 vs 2010 even though the Home Buyer Tax Credit was being used last year to stimulate the market.

What Does the Federal Reserve Do? Doug Adamson of Suntrust

With the economy in the news every day, more attention is being focused on the Federal Reserve than ever before.  Have you ever wondered what the Federal Reserve does?  Let's look at some of the facts, and understand exactly what they do and how they do it.

 The Federal Reserve System is made up of twelve Federal Reserve Banks, overseen by the Board of Governors. The Board of Governors is located in Washington DC and is comprised of just seven members, who are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. The full term of each member of the Board of Governors is 14 years, and the appointments are staggered such that one term expires on each even-numbered year. This system ensures that "fresh blood" will be brought to the Board every two years. When one’s term is up as a Board Governor, they cannot be reappointed. But if a member leaves the Board before their term expires, the appointee chosen to fill the remainder of the term can be reappointed for another full term. The terms for the Chairman and Vice Chairman are four years, but may be reappointed for additional four-year terms. The current Chairman, Ben Bernanke, and Vice Chairman Donald Kohn lead the Board of Governors.

  The main responsibilities of the Fed include:

1. Researching US national and regional economies.
2. Providing financial services to depository institutions, the US government and foreign central banks.
3. Supervising and regulating banking institutions to ensure the safety of the nation's financial system and protect the credit rights of consumers.
4. Conducting the nation’s monetary policy by influencing the monetary and credit conditions in the economy (i.e. hiking or cutting the Fed Funds Rate) in pursuit of maximum employment, stable prices and moderate long-term interest rates.
5. Communicating information about the economy via publications, speeches, seminars and websites.

  But the communication that typically grabs the attention of most is the statement given by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, following the eight formal meetings that take place about every six weeks throughout the year.  At these meetings, the Fed has the opportunity to make changes to the Federal Funds Rate.  They can also make adjustments to the Federal Funds Rate outside of these meeting, but rarely do so as not to rattle the financial markets.  An interesting side note is that in an effort to prevent sending the wrong message the Chairman sometimes works with experts trained to read the body language of big-time gamblers in Las Vegas.  Alan Greenspan was reported to be such a hoot that he was the life of the party in his social life.  Who would have guessed it from the image portrayed in his professional life?       

  Overall, the Fed's main responsibility is to keep the economy growing at a steady pace by keeping inflation stable and interest rates moderate. When inflation is low and stable, businesses and households can spend, knowing that their purchasing power can remain strong.  With moderate interest rates, businesses and consumers are more likely to invest for the future with funds borrowed today, and feel confident they can pay down debt with the rewards from their investments.

Although this @washingtonpost article is about Washington, the same issues are causing problems with condo sales both here and Wintergreen Resort http://www.washingtonpost.com/realestate/although-a-few-neighborhoods-shine-washington-area-condo-market-still-struggles/2011/04/01/AFAzGl2C_story.html

http://kcmblog.com/2011/04/04/qrm-is-the-pendulum-swinging-back-too-hard/ We have been talking about this for 18 months now. When things swing way too far one way, almost always, the correction is to swing too hard back the other way. This post gives clear evidence that it could once again happen in the mortgage which will negatively impact any type of housing recovery.

http://www.housingwire.com/2011/03/30/shadow-inventory-of-foreclosures-drops-11-from-one-year-ago-corelogic 

Foreclosure shadow inventory (mortgages in 90+ days of deliquency) are a considerable factor against the recovery of the housing market. The estimates put the current inventory around 1.8 million homes equating to a nine-month supply; a six-month supply is considered healthy. CoreLogic reports that this is an 11 percent drop in this inventory from one year ago. Read the full story by clicking on the link above

http://kcmblog.com/2011/03/29/month%E2%80%99s-shadow-inventory-state-by-state/ Click on this link to see how your state is doing with months of listing inventory.  what this means is depending on the number shown in your state, that is how many months it would take to sell every home without other homes coming on the market.  This second link http://www.housingwire.com/2011/03/29/foreclosure-inventory-volume-outpacing-actual-foreclosure-sales-lps?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+HWTop+%28HousingWire+%C2%BB+Top+Stories%29&utm_content=Google+Readershows why these numbers will be slow to improve.  Home foreclosure listings are outpacing the number of foreclosed homes being sold.  the bottom line is even though we are entering the spring market, it remains a buyers market and therefroe sellers have to keep their homes in impeccable condition and be very conscious of pricing their homes competitively.