The lawyers and powers that be at the California Association of Realtors rolled out a new Residential Purchase Agreement (RPA) a few weeks ago. If you're buying a home, your Realtor should have you sign the new RPA, which reflects a revision date of April 2010 (it will look like 4/10 on the purchase agreement).

Why should you care? What gives?

The new RPA is loaded with changes, some great, some just ok, that seem to me, to be added protection in what is surely a very litigious state – California. The RPA hasn't been over-hauled like this since 2007. Fortunately for all of us involved in the real estate business, what was an 8 page contract, is still an 8 page contract. It's just better!

Some of the new changes include:

• Agency Disclosure Moved – The location of the Agency Disclosure is no longer found, and buried, on page 7 of 8. It's now prominently on page 1, before the buyer and their agent note what price is being offered for the home. It's important that the buyer understand the agency relationship their broker has, between themselves and the seller. This is now taken care of at the outset of the transaction's creation.
• Buyer's Initial Deposit – Now the language is provided for, that the buyer may hold onto their deposit, and within three days of their offer being accepted, they may deposit that initial deposit, at escrow. This differs from the prior Residential Purchase Contract, in that previously the buyer generally left with their agent/broker a deposit check, even though they did not know whether or not their offer would be accepted. Furthermore, the broker and real estate company no longer has to worry about the accounting of Trust books, which can get quite tedious when taking in so many initial deposit checks for different buyers.
• Buyers Be Exercised In Good Faith – We're talking about a buyers home inspection, investigation, and loan approval. The buyer must do their due-diligence with their inspections and must in good faith do their best to obtain a loan for which they have indicated they need on page 1 of their offer. This sounds like a no-brainer, but there have obviously been instances when one party tries to use the other, and essentially jerks the other party around for their own gain. Now, if a buyer is choosing to NOT remove their contingencies for items such as home inspections, loan contingencies, etc, they must make sure that they at least tried to complete the before mentioned items, in good faith. The burden to prove such a vague standard however, likely falls on the seller. The goal though is to improve the performance of the contract by both principals involved.
• Table of Contents – While it's only 8 pages to fill out in order to get your offer accepted…it can still be tricky to navigate. There will now be a Table of Contents at the beginning of the RPA, to help make it all a bit more clear, for you, the homebuyer, as well as the seller when reviewing your offer.
• FHA/VA Buyer Addendum – When using an FHA or VA loan, it's not too uncommon for your lender to require certain repairs, and or require that the seller pay for certain closing costs that the homebuyer is not allowed to pay for. This addendum will now be filled out along with a normal repair request, as an addendum to it, in order to detail whatever it is that your lender is requiring the seller to do, in order for you to get your FHA or VA home loan. Previously important language was absent in any contract generally being used. With the prominence of FHA and VA loans, especially amongst first-time homebuyers, it's fantastic that this issue gets brought out into the light and is made, a bit more clear.

Here is a Sample of the new California Association of Realtors – Residential Purchase Contract 4/2010

The California Legislature passed a bill, now on it's way for Gov. Schwarzenegger to sign, that will provide state tax relief to many Santa Clarita homeowners who performed a short sale on their home, selling it for a loss, and below what they owned on their mortgage. It will certainly help those who are contemplating performing a Short Sale in Santa Clarita as well.

Until this bill, homeowners with a recourse loan (not purchase money), have had to claim the amount of debt forgiven by a bank, as income, when it comes to their California state income taxes. While there is already a Federal Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Act, this particular California Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Act will come in handy to those who have been hit hard by home values dropping, and have had to perform a short sale.

Gov. Schwarzenegger is expected to sign the bill in the coming days. If you need to perform a short sale on your Santa Clarita home…contact us @ The Robert and Brian Team @ 661-964-1760 so we can guide you through the process.

Here I talk about how first-time homebuyers in Santa Clarita have a special opportunity to try and get up-to $18,000 in tax credits combined. Q: Combined how? A: If you can get under contract for a home (open escrow) by April 30, 2010, which is fast approaching, and if you can close that escrow between the dates of May 1, 2010 up until June 30, 2010, and you happen to be a first-time Santa Clarita homebuyer, you may just be eligible up-to $18,000 in Tax Credits!

The State of California is offering a tax credit to first-time homebuyers of up-to $10,000, to be split over a 3 year period, and the Federal Government is offering first-time homebuyers a tax credit of up-to $8,000. To get the State of California tax credit you must close escrow no earlier than May 1, 2010. That tax credit is good until Jan 1, 2011, or until funds run out ($200,000,000 in total). But to earn the Federal tax credit, you must be IN escrow by April 30, 2010, and you can close no later on the escrow than June 30, 2010. Follow me? Perhaps watch the video below from our SCVRealEstate360 Show on YouTube…or

JUST CALL US @ The Robert and Brian Team @ 661-964-1760. We'd be more than happy to guide you, and assist with that first home purchase of yours, and possibly make this a reality for you. Time is definitely ticking though for these offerings by Uncle Sam and Mother California.

Please consult a qualified professional for specific details regarding any tax credits and how this may or may not apply to you.

Here is another video message from Keith Renno, of The Renno Lending Team. Here, Keith goes over Santa Clarita Mortgage interest rates, and the popular new California Tax Credit of $10,000 for first-time homebuyers.

If you're ever in the market for a Santa Clarita home, and you'll be financing, give The Renno Lending Team a shot, and check out their excellent customer service, and rates!

 For help finding your dream home in Santa Clarita, give us a call at The Robert and Brian Team @ 661-964-1760.

Both houses of the California Legislature have passed a new homebuyer tax credit geared toward first-time homebuyers. All that's needed is Governor Schwarzenegger's signature on the new bill, which is expected any day now. There are plenty of Santa Clarita homebuyers that will want to take advantage of this. The only down side is that there is only $200,000,000 allocated toward this state tax credit, and as such, it's first come first serve. If the funds run out, you will not get it.

The Details:

Effective May 1, 2010, first-time Santa Clarita homebuyers, and those across the state, must close escrow on a home by December 31, 2010. Time to start your Santa Clarita home search!? If you're a first-time homebuyer (defined as not having owned a home in the past 3 years), you can't be related to the seller, you must be least 18 years old, and you must live in the home you're buying (owner occupied).

The state tax credit is just that. It's a credit against your state income taxes. The credit is for up-to $10,000. You can receive up to $3,333 credit toward the taxes you owe the state each year, for 3 years by purchasing a home between May 1, 2010, to December 31, 2010. “Up-to” is the key here. If you only owe the state $3,000 over 3 years in state income taxes, then I suppose all you will receive is a $3,000 tax credit, and no more, over that 3 year period.

Of the $200,000,000 allocated for this first-time homebuyer tax credit, $100,000,000 of that is for new home purchases only (not re-sales). I can see this tax credit running out well before December 31, 2010. So don't wait if this is something that interests you.

If you're a Santa Clarita first-time homebuyer, and you aren't going to make the April 30, 2010 cut-off for the federal tax credit of up-to $8,000, then you may want to look into taking advantage of this one. Contact The Robert and Brian Team, to discuss your options, and to get help looking for that Santa Clarita dream home of yours!

You can find us at our Santa Clarita real estate website. Or just contact us at 661-964-1760.

Sean O'Toole, of Foreclosure Radar, posted this video today to YouTube. It's an excellent source for details on where the foreclosure market was at, as of February 2010, in California.

Foreclosure Radar is just that…radar for foreclosures! It's cool, and we offer it for free, to you, at our Santa Clarita real estate website. Check it out! But first, check this video out:

Today President Obama signed the bill that extends and expands a tax credit to home buyers. For all the details on the tax credit you may be eligible for when purchasing a home now, or in 2010, check out our blog post from yesterday: Santa Clarita Home Buyers: Congress Passes Tax Credit Extension.

Call The Robert and Brian Team for assistance with your Santa Clarita home search. Reach us @ 661-964-1760. Or always feel free to shop for SCV Homes @ TheScvAgents.com!

Attention all Santa Clarita home buyers! Today, Congress almost unanimously passed the extension of the home buyer tax credit. They also expanded it to include existing homeowners. There are several other details that added flexibility to the tax credit, which hadn't been included in the first go-around for most of 2009 when the first time home buyer tax credit was implemented.

Here is what you need to know:

• The Senate and House of Representatives have now both passed the extension and the expansion of the home buyer tax credit. It is now up to President Obama to sign off. It's likely he will, and soon.
• The federal tax credit will be extended through April 30, 2010, with a 60 day extension if a binding purchase contract is in place prior to the April 30th deadline.
• First time home buyers will continue to be eligible for a tax credit of up to $8,000.
• Existing homeowners will be eligible for a reduced credit of up to $6,500, so long as they have lived in their current residence for at least 5 years, of the last 8.
• This bill also increased the income levels for recipients of the tax credit. For individual tax filers, you can now earn up to $125,000 (previously $75,000), and joint filers can now earn up to $225,000 (previously $150,000). The purchase price of the home can be no more than $880,000 in either instance.
• You can claim this credit on your 2009 tax return.
• You do NOT have to repay the tax credit, so long as you live in the residence for 36 months after the purchase, and this requirement is waived for active duty military personnel who move due to a military order.

Nationally, just over a million first time home buyers become homeowners as a result of the Federal Tax Credit, which started in February 2009.

As always, please check with your accountant, CPA, or financial adviser, and see how this tax credit may, or may not fit into your own personal situation.

We expect this tax credit, especially with it having been extended to existing homeowners, to continue to stabilize home sales and moderate the housing inventory in the Santa Clarita Valley. The inventory level of homes for sale in Santa Clarita is at historic lows right now. There is quite a bit of demand, and not enough supply. Due to that fact, prices aren't dropping as much right now, and in some cases, not at all. All real estate is local, and some communities within Santa Clarita are certainly fairing better, or worse, than others.

You need a local expert to help you decipher what's going on in our local Santa Clarita real estate market. Contact The Robert and Brian Team @ Realty Executives for assistance, 661-964-1760. You can visit their local real estate website @ TheScvAgents.com!

We’re down here in Van Nuys today, taking care of business for some of our new listings hitting the market soon, and thought I’d snap a shot of this cool looking office building that’s right next to the Van Nuys Civic Center. Does anyone know the name of this building or it’s history? It looks super old.

Looking forward to getting back in Santa Clarita!

Posted via email from The Robert & Brian Team

Posted via email from The SCV Agents Team