New Stimulus Law and Outer Cape Cod Real Estate

The long awaited stimulus package is now law. But how will this impact our local housing market here in Provincetown, Truro and Wellfleet? Although the finer details of the housing plan will not be released until March 4th, there are definite components of this law that may help our local housing market.

Up to four million homeowners nationwide who have mortgages owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be able to refinance to a mortgage product in the 5% range. This is directed at homeowners who are in negative equity situations and have not been able to refinance due to current strict qualifying criteria and low appraisals. There are homeowners on the Outer Cape who find themselves in this position. The double benefit here will be helping struggling homeowners keep their homes from foreclosure, thus protecting home values. The other plus is the potential extra monthly cash that may be spent at our local businesses.

The government will also step in to prevent foreclosures on millions of homeowners. There will be a potential modification of monthly payments for seriously delinquent homeowners to an estimated 31-38% of their income. Lenders who cooperate with this plan will receive a co-payment from the federal government. An additional incentive for homeowners to stay current and Lenders to participate is a potential yearly bonus set in place for five years of up to $1,000 per annually. This will serve our community by preventing foreclosures and preserving home values.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will each receive $200 billion from the government. The US Treasury will continue to purchase their mortgage backed securities in order to keep rates low. This is good for the resort market. Low mortgage rates combined with low prices and the potential of vacation rental income make a second home purchase in Provincetown, Truro or Wellfleet palatable for many seeking an alternative investment to the faltering stock market.

There is a tax credit of $8,000 for first time homebuyers purchasing a primary residence. This isn’t as pertinent on the Outer Cape. However, for those of us who live here year round, you can qualify for this tax credit if you haven’t owned a home in three years. The definition of first time homebuyer has been adapted.

The next few weeks will be telltale and should provide a clearer picture of how all this will ultimately impact the real estate market. The true test will be in the months ahead.

Certifying Your Rental Property

The time of year for summer planning is upon us. Many property owners are considering how much use they will get out of their property this coming summer and the question of whether or not to rent the property arises. If you decide to list your property for weekly or seasonal rental (under 90 days), be aware that the town of Provincetown has a by-law requiring property owners to obtain a Certificate to Rent from the town licensing department. 

The town will send a building inspector and the health inspector to the property who will be looking for the following:

Building Inspector:

1. street number on your building or unit
2. the electrical panel/circuit breaker panel must be labeled
3. you must have a carbon monoxide detector on each floor (plug-in with battery back-up is acceptable)
4. a certified fired extinguisher must be mounted on the wall no more than 5 feet from the floor, with a current yellow tag certification
5. working emergency lights (if applicable)

Health Inspector:

6. total occupancy for unit will be determined
7. sanitation overview
8. overall condition of the property will be assessed

Certificates cost $140 each year and must be prominently posted in your property during rentals. For more information about the rental certification process, visit the licensing department’s Web site. If you would like assistance with this process or if you would like to list your property with our rental department, please contact us info@provincetownrealestatenow.com.

Pricing, Pricing, Pricing

A well-known mantra for homebuyers has long been summed up in three words: location, location, location. We are now offering three critical words for home sellers: pricing, pricing, pricing.

The transition from sellers marketto buyers market began on the Outer Cape in the fall of 2005. The emotional transition has proven difficult for many sellers, who lived through the meteoric rise in home values in the early 2000’s. During those years, it was very common for sellers to list their property over the suggested value with a fair amount of success. That nudging upward of prices was contagious and pricing became a game of ‘let’s give it shot.’ This was all possible in an environment where credit was easy to come by and personal wealth was on the upswing.

The climate couldn’t be more different these days. Buying a second home has fallen in priority on many peoples’ TO-DO lists, making the field of buyers much smaller. For those who really want to sell, making your property stand out in the competing inventory boils down to one simple principle: pricing.

Consider that approximately 85% of homebuyers begin their search for a property on the Internet. The first criterion (after location) that a buyer enters on a site like trullia.com or realtor.com is a price range. If your property is not priced correctly, you risk being excluded from the search results of your potential future buyer. Your home will not even be considered.

Many buyers in our area are working with Buyers Agents who are sending them automatic email updates about new listings. What drives the selection of these properties? You guessed it, price.

The “sweet spot” for marketing a property is the first 30 days. It is during this period that the greatest numbers of showings typically occur. This is when the property first appears in advertisements and on real estate websites and excitement is generated for buyers closely monitoring the market. Today’s buyers are very savvy and they are using the Internet to study home values. They recognize when a property is priced right. Capitalize on this momentum by positioning your property so that it attracts a bonafide buyer during this period.

Here is the good news: there are buyers out there! During the past few months, we have seen flurries of activity around well-priced properties, with several of them generating bidding wars. There are buyers waiting on the sidelines for that next good deal to come along. Price your property correctly and yours could be the one they are waiting for!

New Features: MLS Property Finder and Messenger

This week we stray from the typical real estate topic to inform you about our latest attraction on the blog. In case you haven’t noticed, we’ve added two exciting new features called “MLS Property Finder” and “MLS Property Messenger.”

The “MLS Property Finder” lets you surf all properties in Provincetown, Truro and Wellfleet that are actively listed on the Cape Cod and Islands Multiple Listing Service. You are in control to choose the town, category of property and so much more. It is very easy to do. Choose property type, town, price range and hit search. You can click on “custom search” for more specialized results. It is easy to do, fun and free. Now all the information we see as Realtors is just a click away for you.

The “MLS Property Messenger” is designed to send you automated emails with property listings that meet your customized criteria. It is free to you and signing up has never been easier. It is a quick two step process. Step one is an input of your contact information, which will be kept private. Step two instructs you to complete a search criteria page. Before you know it, you will be receiving emails containing newly listed homes, price changes and more directly from the system. You are in control of what you receive. Check in anytime, anywhere to see what's going on with the market as you will be assigned a username and password. A special amenity to “MLS Property Messenger,” is an icon alert system. You can download an icon to your desktop that will issue an alert whenever a property within your search parameters is listed or any change to existing properties occurs.

We hope you enjoy these new features. Call or email us if you have any questions. Happy house hunting and please let us know if there is anything that catches your eye.