Las Vegas Real Estate Foreclosure Auction in October!

Hudson and Marshall is back with a new auction of 153 properties in the Las Vegas Valley! This will be by far the largest auction they have held in more than a year. Auction properties will include every type of Las Vegas real estate, from small condos to single family homes to luxury high rise residences. The auction will be held at the JW Marriott hotel at 1 pm on October 9th, and auction properties will be held open for viewing the previous weekend on October 2nd and 3rd from 1 pm until 3pm.

In addition, early viewings and pre auction bidding are available through your Las Vegas real estate agent, and you should choose an agent that is thoroughly familiar with the auction process. Auction properties do NOT list prices, and your agent will need to do a lot of research to come up with an appropriate bid amount. Your agent’s commission will be paid by the seller and there is NO cost to the buyer. Since the auction house only looks at the highest bid, whether or not the buyer is representing himself or has an agent, it pays to have an experienced auction agent at your side!

One thing to keep in mind on auction properties is that there is a 5% buyer’s premium that will be added to the winning bid amount, so a Las Vegas home that goes for $150K will actually cost the buyer $150,000 plus the $7500 buyer’s premium in addition to normal buyer closing costs. Offers cannot be made with any kind of contingencies, including inspections, appraisal or financing. Escrows must close within 30 to 45 days, and on the day of the auction, successful bidders will be required to present a $2,500 non-refundable cashier's check as earnest deposit. (Many auction properties CAN be financed, as long as your lender can close within the stated time period.)

To receive a complete list of auction properties being offered, please contact us at sold@greatlasvegashomes.com and we will be delighted to send you the auction brochure.

"Smart" Credit System Helps Las Vegas Home Buyers!

Whether your credit is already good or if it needs a helping hand, you need to read this blog article!

A local Las Vegas mortgage lender, Residential Capital Mortgage, has developed a proprietary credit reporting system capable of helping prospective purchasers determine the quickest way to boost their credit scores within 30 to 60 days. This “smart” system, Credit Compass, pulls the borrower’s credit from each of the three major credit reporting bureaus: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion, and then prints out a summary for each credit bureau. The summary details exactly how many points the borrower’s score will be raised at each bureau if they pay off/down certain credit lines, pay off specific collection accounts, or have items deleted from the report that should not even be there.

Most lenders “guess” which items are having the most adverse affect on a borrower’s credit and then have to wait for a credit rescore to determine if the borrower will be eligible for a loan. If the lender guesses wrong, the borrower could spend thousands paying off the wrong bills and still not be able to qualify. Residential Capital’s innovative new system allows the borrower to prioritize which items on the credit report should be addressed first for the least amount of money out of pocket to raise the borrower’s scores enough to qualify for the purchase of Las Vegas real estate.

Once specific items have been identified and taken care of, the borrower’s loan officer would contact the credit reporting bureaus and have them initiate an immediate credit rescore. Already many borrowers have had their credit scores raised 50 to 60 points within a short time period, allowing them to buy Las Vegas homes or Las Vegas condos far more quickly than with conventional credit systems! And for far less money.

All types of loans use the “middle” score from the three credit bureaus to determine eligibility. FHA and VA loans require a minimum 620 credit score to qualify for a loan, but the rate is the same no matter how high the score. Conventional loans require higher credit scores, and the interest rate charged on a conventional loan varies according to the credit score based on federal risk guidelines. So even buyers with good credit can benefit greatly from the Credit Compass system. Raising a borrower’s score from 680 to 720 could save the borrower 1/4% or more on their interest rate! (By the way, this lender’s rates and fees are consistently lower than Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Chase.)

And the cost? A mere $22.00 for the credit report AND summary! If the borrower pays off a credit line or has an item deleted from the credit report, there would be an additional charge of $25 per item per credit bureau to have the credit rescored. The lender would only have the credit score updated on as many credit bureaus as necessary to increase the borrower’s middle score quickly, within three to five days. For example, if the buyer needs two items updated on two different bureaus, the cost would be $25 per item or $50, times two credit bureaus = $100. The third bureau will automatically update at the beginning of the month, so in most instances there is no need to pay for a quick update on all three credit bureaus, and sometimes an update is only necessary on one credit bureau. The $25 per item is charged by the credit bureaus, and is NOT a lender charge.

For borrowers who need more time to work on their credit due to bankruptcy or foreclosure and/or to save enough money to payoff existing credit/collections, the Credit Compass system can also put the borrower on a detailed long term plan that is MUCH cheaper than other credit consulting companies. For a one time fee of $295 per borrower (or an additional $100 for a borrower’s spouse), the system will outline exactly what the borrower needs to do to improve their credit rating and provides periodic updates on how their credit scores are doing. Most credit consulting agencies charge $250 per month OR MORE for the same service. Plus when the borrower eventually gets a mortgage through Residential Capital, this fee is refunded at closing.

With today’s low interest rates and the all time low prices of Las Vegas homes for sale, including Las Vegas foreclosures and short sales, it makes sense for a borrower to get into a home as quickly as possible before prices and rates rise again. The Credit Compass system, available in Las Vegas for owner occupants, second homes and investors alike, can help make your dreams come true. For more information, please call us at 985-7654.

Real Estate Tax Credit Extended for Qualified Veterans!

Attention all Veterans! Did you know that you might still be eligible to receive a real estate tax credit on a primary home purchase? If you are relocating and would like to purchase a Las Vegas home, we would be delighted to help you take advantage of this additional benefit!

Qualified Veterans have an additional year to take advantage of the first time home buyer $8,000 tax credit or the $6,500 move up buyer tax credit for any property put under contract before April 30, 2011 as long as it closes by June 30, 2011. To be eligible, the Veteran must have served on qualified official extended duty service outside of the United States for at least 90 days during the period beginning after Dec. 31, 2008, and ending before May 1, 2010. Members of the uniformed services, the Foreign Service and employees of the intelligence community are all eligible for this special rule.

In addition, the penalty for selling a home purchased with the tax credit before three years may be waived. Normally the borrower is required to live in the property as a primary residence for three full years or be subject to repaying a prorated portion of the tax credit. But members of the uniformed services, the Foreign service or the intelligence community are exempt if a home is sold or stops being the taxpayer’s principal residence because of government orders for qualified official extended duty service. Qualified official extended duty is any period of extended duty more than 90 days while serving at a place of duty at least 50 miles away from the taxpayer’s principal residence (whether inside or outside the U.S.) or while residing under government orders in government quarters.

So not only might you still be able to receive the tax credit on your next home purchase, but you can also take advantage of the Las Vegas real estate market and our historically low prices! CNN Money has named Las Vegas the most undervalued housing market in the country. Check out the great deals you can get on Las Vegas foreclosures and come live in one of the most vibrant cities in the world.