Why Property Taxes Matter When Buying A House?

When you are looking for a house in the Charlotte, NC. area property taxes can and do play a vital factor into the affordability of a home. A lot of people gauge the value of a house based on the tax value. As accurate or inaccurate as that may be at times that number holds one true definite factor. The property taxes you will pay on a house in charlotte, NC. Property taxes are generally escrowed into a mortgage loan. if you are getting a VA, FHA or USDA loan they are required to be escrowed into your payment every month. On conventional loans it depends on what you are putting down and then the option is usually yours. But how do they affect the value of a house? in Charlotte, NC. we are in Mecklenburg county and the property taxes are based on a dollar amount. Times the tax value. In Charlotte the property tax rate is 1.2292 per hundred dollars. So if you are looking at a $100,000 tax value the property taxes would be $1229.20 a year or a little over $100.00 a month. A $200,000 tax value would be $200.00 a month. When you are applying for a loan the bank will generally tell you what you are approved up to dollar wise. But that may exceed where you want to be payment wise because of the taxes. You could be looking at a house that is going to sell for $125,000 and you know you are approved for $130,000 so you feel comfortable with the mortgage payment. But then you find out that the tax value on the house is $200,000 and your taxes are now $70.00 a month more than you anticipated. I always advise buyers when they find a house they like to get a mortgage payment quote before putting in an offer. I give them the taxes that are on the property so they can get a true idea of what the payment will be...This way the decision they are making is truly an educated decision. Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker Coldwell Banker United www.davedicecco.com

Should I Put My Home On the Market now Or Wait Till Spring/

I constantly get this question from sellers. Should I put my house on the market now or wait until the spring to list my home for sale? My answer is always the same...There is no better time than the present to list your home for sale. There are many pros to putting your home on the market now and if you understand some things it will be a lot less stressful on you as well. First, buyers are buying homes year round. They are not taking off for the holidays. I do the second most amount of my business every year from October through the end of the year. And that business is not investors; but actual home buyers looking to buy or being relocated here for jobs. Second, the best part of putting your home on the market now is you will not get the so called tire kickers looking at your house. Let’s face it; this time of the year we all have a lot of other things on our plate and going out to look at homes when we really are not in the market is not one of them. You probably will get fewer showings now than you would in the spring time. But the quality of your showings will be greater now than in the spring time. Meaning serious pre-approved buyers are out looking at homes. Third, you have less competition. For every person that listens and puts there house on the market now; there are at least eight to none that do not. Those people are waiting for the spring market to put their house on. So, as I told one family the other day..."do you want to be the only one on the market on one of five on the market at the same time in your neighborhood?" less competition makes for a better price for the seller and a quicker sale when the buyer has less to choose from. Fourth, buyers are not going to be coming out on the holiday to look at your house (probably). The holidays are still a sacred place for a lot of families. Buyers are aware they may have to rearrange looking at homes do to holiday parties and such...this is expected this time of the year when they are out looking at homes. Fifth, why put off to tomorrow what you can do today. Mortgage rates are at a historic low. Prices are beginning the steady climb up. If you are selling and need to buy on the other end; would you not want to take advantage of the low rates while they are still here? Sixth, the weather in Charlotte, NC. Bodes well for listing your house year round. We do not have the ugly winters the northeast and Midwest battle every year. We get a few days of bad weather but for the most part you do not lose potential days for showings because of the weather in charlotte, NC. This helps with potential buyers looking at homes and you maintaining the house be shown. A lot of home owners will wait to the spring to put their houses on the market. But you could lose out on potential sale of your house by doing that. I have two buyers looking right now that have been involved in multiple offer situations on houses because of the lack of inventory out there. In three to four months it would be just move on to the next house. But with slim inventory out there buyers are moving quickly and sellers are reaping the benefit of it. Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker Coldwell Banker United www.davedicecco.com