Purchasing a Santa Cruz home for sale, especially as a first-time buyer, is incredibly exciting. However, just because your offer is accepted doesn’t mean the deal is done. Lots of things can still cause the deal to fall through. Here are just a few things that might slow or stop your purchase:

1. Termites – Most lenders will insist on having a pest inspection to make sure termites or carpenter ants haven’t seriously damaged the home. Even if your particular lender doesn’t require an inspection, it’s best that you get one done anyway. If the pest inspection shows there is a severe problem, you can either ask the seller to pay to have the problem fixed or walk away if your purchase agreement allows it. At less than $100, a pest inspection is definitely…

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Although the housing market has had its fair share of ups and down, many home buyers, particularly first-time home buyers, are reaping the benefits. If you're thinking about purchasing a Santa Cruz home, there are many good reasons to make your move today.  Here are six of them:

1. Low interest rates – Right now, interest rates are lower than ever before. This means you can get an extremely affordable loan and save big on interest payments.

2. Cheaper home prices – Not only are interest rates low, but homes all around are cheaper. Since the market is packed with homes for sale, selling has become harder. As a result, prices have fallen significantly, allowing you to get a more expensive home for less money.

3. Potential tax credits – As a first-time…

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You’ve finally decided you want to buy a piece of Santa Cruz real estate.  What do you do now?  Here are a few tips for getting the best deal for your money:

Check Out Your Credit

The first thing you’ll want to do is order a copy of your credit report from the three major credit bureaus:  Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax.  Look for inaccuracies in:

• Name
• Address
• Creditors
• Late payments
• Delinquencies

After you’ve reviewed your credit report and know your credit score, you’re ready to make improvements to your report, if your credit score is too low.  Send a written “Notice of Correction” to the credit bureaus.  It can be up to 200 words.  If needed, you can explain why you fell behind on a particular debt, and every time a lender accesses the…

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In spite of problems in the housing market, experts agree this is a great time to buy Santa Cruz real estate. First-time home buyers can take advantage of the many tax breaks allowed by the stimulus plan, and everyone can benefit from the fact that the stimulus package includes help for banks so that they can provide mortgages. There are other reasons the current market is good for new home buyers, too.

Mortgage Rates

Because so few mortgages were being issued, the rates are very low. This gives home buyers, especially those with good credit, a big advantage. Just a two point difference in mortgage rates can mean saving several hundred dollars a month on payments.

Low Prices

If you're considering buying Santa Cruz real estate, act now so you can take…

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Most people are familiar with the new stimulus plan that helps many get tax rebates for buying a home. The incentive is centered on first-time home buyers and a lot of people automatically assume they aren't eligible because they have owned a home in the past. This incentive shouldn't be dismissed so quickly. It is worth as much as $8,000 during the calendar year of 2009 and is a great reason to consider entering or re-entering the Santa Cruz home buying market. Yes, that's right "re-entering" the market.

Three Year Rule

If you have not owned a Santa Cruz home in the past three years, for tax purposes you are considered a first-time home buyer and are still eligible for the tax credit. This, however, includes you and your spouse if you are married so…

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Thanks to the current stimulus plan, it's a great time to buy a Santa Cruz home.  Buying a home is an exciting time, but it can be a little scary too.  Here are some smart ways to protect yourself from potentially falling prices while you wait for the market to rebound.

• Know how much you can afford to spend ahead of time and then look for homes in areas that reflect those prices. Choose homes on the lower end of the average home values in that area so that even if the housing market slumps a little bit before it recovers your Santa Cruz home is unlikely to sink below its current value.

• Look for homes that aren't on busy streets or highways.

• Don't buy a home directly across from a school or park. While that can be great if you have young kids, it…

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Is this a good time for first time home buyers to consider a Santa Cruz home? It's a familiar question with the economy in the state it is in. Here are a few reasons why a home is still a great investment for first time home buyers.

Pride of Ownership

This will never go away no matter what the economy is like. Owning your own home is the American dream for a reason.  It just feels good to take care of a Santa Cruz home that's yours and yours alone.

Tax Incentives

Owning your own home is one of the best tax deductions. The new stimulus plan makes that tax incentive better than ever before. Not only can you deduct your interest payments on your tax forms this year and for every year during the life of your mortgage, the stimulus plan allows a huge …

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Whether you are new to home buying or an experienced home buyer, you should take a minute to read this information before you set out to look for your new Santa Cruz home.

Look Before You Leap

Anyone who has bought a home in the past knows how good one can look when you walk through it. Even after you close on the sale and move in, all looks good, for a while. Then you begin to notice the little things. Things you should have known to look for when viewing. Be sure to have your home thoroughly inspected by a professional home inspector.

Avoid Problems at Closing

Title company issues can put a damper on your closing and possibly cause you to be without a home.  How? Once your current home is sold and the new owners want to move in, you'll be looking…

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The housing plan included in President Obama's stimulus package has many good qualities that will help those seeking Santa Cruz real estate.

There are two main points to the housing plan:

1. To help people once again obtain reasonable mortgages to afford the home of their dreams.

2. To keep people in the homes they already have. If it works the way it is planned, it is reason for a collective sigh of relief for millions of homeowners feeling threatened by foreclosures.

That's really it in a nutshell. There are many incentives wrapped up in each of those two areas to help both homeowners and prospective home buyers, but the very impetus behind the stimulus housing package is simple.

For Current Homeowners

If you have a current mortgage that you…

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There are great incentives for first-time Santa Cruz real estate buyers. Big tax incentives and money put into the banking and financing industries to give buyers more availability to loans makes now the best time to move when looking for a home. This environment won't last—exactly. Some of the elements put in place are geared toward a strong future for the housing market, but many of the advantages are only good for now.

Tax Relief

First-time Santa Cruz real estate buyers, meaning those who have not owned a home in the past three years, are eligible for a big tax break on income taxes. Next year at tax time all buyers have to do is report the new home purchase to get $8,000 dollars back. That's a big incentive. The drawback is it’s only good for this…

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