Posts Tagged ‘Huntsville Real Estate’

Obtaining Huntsville mortgage approval in Huntsville, Alabama or anywhere else in the United States, can be either a simple or a consuming experience.  Either way, underwriters are particular about what you do with your finances when you are planning to buy a home. The process of getting a Huntsville mortgage from the time of writing the offer to the day of closing can take some banks and lenders up to 60 days. This is a big difference from not long ago when closings were happening in sometimes less than 20 days.

When you are trying to purchase Huntsville real estate using your Huntsville mortgage approval this can seem like an extraordinarily long time to try to keep everything in the same situation they were in when you qualified. There are some things you will not have any control over so you'll want to concentrate and be prepared for those things which you do have control over. Here are eight things you should be extremely careful not to do between underwriting and closing.

1) Do not open any new credit cards or lines of credit. Getting your Huntsville mortgage approval depends on keeping everything on the same even keel it was on at the beginning of the underwriting process.

2) Do not make a big purchase such as a vehicle. This includes trading your existing vehicle in for a lease or purchase that is more money.

3) Do not move large sums of money from one account to another account. This looks like you are trying to hide something or keep something from the underwriter.

4) Do not switch jobs. Especially do not switch from a position in which you are paid a salary to a commission job.

5) Especially do not quit your job - for any reason. This includes changing from the type of work you do to another vocation or starting your own business. If you already own a business do not open another one at this time.

6) Make sure you pay your bills. Not paying on the ones that you are disputing for the purposes of your credit may affect it between now and the time you close on your home.

7) Do not accept a gift of money unless you are going to fill out the proper paperwork. Even if a family member wants to give you a generous monetary gift to help with the purchase of your new purchase of Huntsville real estate, the proper paperwork must be filled out - speak to your Huntsville mortgage lender further about this.

Do not deposit different amounts of money into your bank account at random times. The deposits that go in should be able to be accounted for when it comes to where they are from. For example, a weekly or bi-weekly amount from the same source every time is clearly a paycheck. This can be documented by your Huntsville mortgage lender.

Some of the rules may not be feasible for obtaining your Huntsville mortgage approval. For example, the cash gift your family member wants to give you to help with the purchase of your home. The right way of accepting the gift versus the wrong way will allow you to use it rather than not when it comes to your Huntsville mortgage approval. The Huntsville home that you want to purchase is not yours until after closing. Keep in mind that with the longer times now for getting the underwriting done means the time to keep your finances in order has increased. Try your best to keep everything the same and before you know it you will be a proud new Huntsville home owner.

Take a look at prime Madison Alabama Real Estate for sale. Here is a wonderful home located within a quiet neighborhood in the heart of Madison, Alabama which is close to Madison schools, parks, Redstone Arsenal, the Huntsville International Airport and Research Park.

This home boasts a large family room with vaulted ceilings, plant ledges and a gas log fireplace.   The large kitchen is bright with lots of cabinets and a pantry.  There is crown molding in all the bedrooms, each of the rooms are very spacious, plus there are 10' ceilings in the formal dining room which also has crown and chair molding.  Hardwood floors welcome you as you enter into the foyer (and the dining room).  The master suite is isolated from the rest of the home, plus the master bath has a large jetted tub and a separate shower.  To see this wonderful example of Madison Alabama Real Estate, please click the play button below to view a virtual tour of this very special Madison AL home.

Call the Steve Thomas Team for more information about this fine home, 256.694.4663.

The Huntsville, Alabama home sales Market Statistics for March 2009 may be reviewed below.

HUNTSVILLE REAL ESTATE
MARKET STATISTICS ~ MARCH 2009
# Existing Single Family Homes Sold This Month	Average List Price	Average Sold Price	Average Days on Market	List Price vs. Sale Price %
327	$183,271	$178,558	90	97.43%
Area	# of Sales in March '09	Avg Sales Price March '09	Avg Sales Price February '08	Trend
HSV CITY NW	43	$87,130	$100,987	DOWN
HSV CITY NE	17	$117,925	$140,689	DOWN
HSV CITY SW	36	$156,335	$194,687	DOWN
HSV CITY SE	42	$204,720	$214,885	DOWN
MAD CITY LIMITS	39	$210,533	$274,171	DOWN
HSV CITY EAST	26	$294,713	$267,965	UP
MAD OUTSIDE CITY	42	$193,184	$221,672	DOWN
MAD CO NW	28	$134,225	$136,652	DOWN
MAD CO NE	49	$203,563	$168,830	UP
MAD CO SW	1	$163,000	-	UP
MAD CO SE	4	$131,975	$118,033	UP

Huntsville realtors report that the Madison County area saw the most positive movement in sales during this period, which is indicative of families with children to be drawn toward - looking to be surrounded by the same type of families.  This is the same for the Huntsville South East area, where subdivisions such as Somerset Lake are very popular, providing newer homes priced in the mid to high $200K's and Marina Park with higher end properties for sale, from the mid $500K's to the high $700K's.  Another popular high-end subdivision here is The Ledges of Huntsville Mountain, which you can learn more about in a previous blog of mine. 

The average number of days a Huntsville, Alabama home took to sell dropped significantly in March versus in February (down by almost 2 weeks), which is great news for home sellers.  And even though the average sales price of homes dropped month over month, the percentage that the home sold for versus what it was listed for increased.  

With the nearing of the end of another school year, more families will be on the move this coming summer (before their children will be starting up their next school year).  If you have been looking to buy or sell your Huntsville Alabama home, please contact me.

The Huntsville Spring Festival of Flowers is once again in full swing. With the wide array of flowers all showing off their best dressed blooms, this is one of the most looked forward to festivals in the area. Beginning March 31st thru April 30th Huntsville is proud to say this is one of the Southeast's Top 20 Tourist Attractions.

For those who are residents of Huntsville homes this is a special treat. The festival is held in the Botanical Gardens on Bob Wallace Avenue. The spring spectacular features tulips, dogwoods, azaleas and wildflowers galore. The beauty of the mixture of colors is one of the most beautiful sights of the festival. 

The Bonsai Show is scheduled for April 28th and 29th. This is also the grand opening days for the Ishii Bonsai Display Garden. The Huntsville, AL real estate companies in the area look forward to this special event. Reminding the areas residents of the huge Easter Egg Hunt with over 8,000 eggs hidden and waiting, the event is hosted by a DJ and snacks are served for the children.

The Spring Plant Sale is another event that everyone looks forward to with much excitement. For the members only there is a one day sale on April 16th and the public has a two day sale on the 17th and 18th.  This is looked on by those who own Huntsville homes as a harbinger of spring.

The flowers include houseplants, shrubs, trees, vegetables, roses, orchids and perennials. These are all plants that have been proven to grown in the northern Alabama area. There are also master gardeners on hand to test your soils pH level. Check out this great plant sale and the vendors who are available with accessories for your garden.

If you are into photography, the Wildflower Photography Workshop is essential. The instructors teach the basics of photographing nature and then out into the Botanical Garden for the real thing. This is one interesting workshop for amateurs and semi-professionals. A competition and exhibition is also held during the Spring Festival of Flowers.

This is a great time to see what some of the Huntsville, AL real estate owners have done with their lawns when it comes to planting the types of flowers featured at the Festival. Many of these flowers were purchased at past spring festivals. The abundance of color at this time of the year makes everything seem fresh and new.

If you have recently purchased one of the Huntsville homes in the area and need a few tips, the Garden Chat every weekday in April at noon will be where you want to go. The chat is held at Clementine's at the Garden. The information you gather here will be quite helpful with the plan for your own garden.

The public wants to know about orchids and how to grow these exotic looking plants. The Heart of Dixie Orchid Society meets every month on the third Monday. Their meetings are held at the Botanical Gardens and in preparation for their yearly Orchid sale they will be discussing different aspects of growing the orchid each month.

An all-around good time is what the Spring Festival of Flowers is all about. If you are not careful you just might learn something while you are there.

Please find below the updated summary of the Huntsville, AL Real Estate activity for the month of February 2009, versus the month of January.  As last month, this new layout shows the trend that each area of the Huntsville/Madison cities and suburbs are taking.  Although the number of days it is taking a seller to close on their property (up 3 days over January's and 5 days longer than December 2008), the list price to sale price is increasing, which makes it worth waiting those extra few days to sell.  Please take a look at the chart below and let me know if you have any questions.

HUNTSVILLE REAL ESTATE
MARKET STATISTICS ~ FEBRUARY 2009
# Existing Single Family Homes Sold This Month	Average List Price	Average Sold Price	Average Days on Market	List Price vs. Sale Price %
518	$201,587	$195,919	103	97.19%
Area	# of Sales in February '09	Avg Sales Price February '09	Avg Sales Price January '08	Trend
HSV CITY NW	22	$100,987	$121,062	DOWN
HSV CITY NE	18	$140,689	$146,925	DOWN
HSV CITY SW	35	$194,687	$167,918	UP
HSV CITY SE	33	$214,885	$266,730	DOWN
MAD CITY LIMITS	33	$274,171	$274,663	-
HSV CITY EAST	24	$267,965	$374,013	DOWN
MAD OUTSIDE CITY	29	$221,672	$218,574	UP
MAD CO NW	17	$136,652	$146,450	DOWN
MAD CO NE	40	$168,830	$170,637	DOWN
MAD CO SW	-	-	$152,000	-
MAD CO SE	6	$118,033	$105,450	UP

Here is a slideshow of some of the homes that sold over the past month:

Please bookmark this site for future market reports for the upcoming year.  You can also go to my previous blogs to see how the market has changed over the past year.

There's no better time than today to boast about the great reasons why buying and living within the Huntsville, AL real estate area is the best decision you are going to make!

Below is a list of this great city's accomplishments and recognitions over the past year - from one of America's leading greenist cities to one of the top ten cities for job growth.

	Huntsville named one the South’s leading cities for Defense Jobs February 2009
	The City of Huntsville receives Standard & Poor’s highest possible “AAA” bond rating for strength of the local economy January 2009
	Huntsville named one of 10 Great Cities for Salary Growth January 2009
	Madison County named the country’s Best Place to Live to weather the economy November 2008
	Huntsville named one of the Top 50 Best Places to raise children in the U.S. November 2008
	Huntsville named one of the Top 5 locations in the U.S. for aerospace companies October/November 2008
	Huntsville named one of America’s Top 5 Cities for Job Opportunities September 2008
	Huntsville named one of the Top 5 Best Performing Cities in the Country September 2008
	Huntsville named the #1 Mid-market in the South August 2008
	Huntsville named one of America’s Top 5 Mid-Sized Cities for Doing Business July 2008
	Huntsville is one of the country’s Top 10 Technology Cities, ranking 3rd in the country for concentration of technology workers June 2008
	Huntsville named one of the country’s Top 10 Places to Live May 2008
	Huntsville named one of America’s Leading Greenest Cities”. -Popular Science, March 2008 March 2008

For more information on why buying a Huntsville, AL home should be in your future plans, please call me anytime.  I've got over a dozen EXCELLENT reasons why I'd love to talk to you more about!

222 Legacy Park Drive

Welcome to this fabulous one owner custom built 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath pool home, including a three car side entry garage, and approximately 600 sqft unfinished floored walk out storage accessible through closet in master.

Formal living room, dining room and family room will be enjoyed by all. Hardwood and tile throughout except in bedrooms. You can just imagine your family taking advantage of the fun activities on the large 500 sqft deck and very private back yard in the coming months.  And next winter, enjoy the gas log fireplace...

Transferable Cook's Termite Bond.  Located within Legacy Park subdivision, this home is within Monrovia Middle & Monrovia Elementary school districts.

Note - Seller will provide a $4,000 Decor. Allowance at Closing too!  For more information on this or any other Huntsville Real Estate property, please contact me anytime.

With U.S. home prices hitting an average of a 21 year decline, a national index announced that there are several cities and town within North Alabama that are moving in the other direction.

Our neighboring city, Decatur, was at the top of the list of U.S. cities where real estate values are still appreciating, and Huntsville AL homes also made it's name known high on the list too.

Sellers here are feeling fortunate to be living in such a rare housing market, compared to most other states throughout the nation. And even with the incomprehensible economy our country is struggling in, a government housing report still lists Decatur as the number one city in the country in terms of homes gaining value. That's quite the talk of the town around here; during the course of the past year, real estate values in Decatur have increased more than 6.5 percent. When comparing that to other cities, that have seen over 20 (or more) percent decrease, North Alabama homeowners are feeling mighty privileged. With BRAC and the lower cost of living in this area, Huntsville real estate and the surrounding areas (like Decatur) are still seen as a great place to live.

Please find below the updated summary of the Huntsville, AL Real Estate activity for the month of January 2009, versus the month of December.  As last month, this new layout shows the trend that each area of the Huntsville/Madison cities and suburbs are taking.  The trend this month shows a more optimistic upturn to the market in most areas, which is great news for sellers.  This time of year (the middle of winter) tends to be a slower season for the real estate market, which shows in the smaller number of sales during this first month of the new year.  Please take a look at the chart below and let me know if you have any questions.

 

HUNTSVILLE REAL ESTATE
MARKET STATISTICS ~ JANUARY 2009
# Existing Single Family Homes         Sold This Month	Average List Price	Average Sold Price	Average Days on Market	List Price vs. Sale Price %
447	$214,229	$207,178	100	96.71%
Area	# of Sales in January  '09	Avg Sales Price January  '09	Avg Sales Price December '08	Trend
HSV CITY NW	27	$121,062	$128,320	DOWN
HSV CITY NE	12	$146,925	$122,723	UP
HSV CITY SW	30	$167,918	$160,989	UP
HSV CITY SE	22	$266,730	$188,798	UP
MAD CITY LIMITS	36	$274,663	$236,389	UP
HSV CITY EAST	16	$374,013	$292,364	UP
MAD OUTSIDE CITY	35	$218,574	$215,503	UP
MAD CO NW	19	$146,450	$153,214	DOWN
MAD CO NE	32	$170,637	$178,613	DOWN
MAD CO SW	1	$152,000	$149,273	UP
MAD CO SE	2	$105,450	$146,333	DOWN

Please bookmark this site for future market reports for the upcoming year.  You can also go to my previous blogs to see how the market has changed over the past year. 

 

Below is an updated summary of the Huntsville, AL Real Estate activity for the month of December, versus the month of November.  This new layout shows the trend that each area of the Huntsville/Madison cities and suburbs are taking.  This trend this month shows an obvious downturn to the market in most areas, which is great news for buyers.  Many people look to move during this time of year, and here is another great reason why!  Take a look at the chart below and let me know if you have any questions.

HUNTSVILLE REAL ESTATE
MARKET STATISTICS ~ DECEMBER 2008
# Existing Single Family Homes         Sold This Month	Average List Price	Average Sold Price	Average Days on Market	List Price vs. Sale Price %
522	$159,899	$153,549	98	96.03%
Area	# of Sales in December '08	Avg Sales Price December '08	Avg Sales Price November '08	Trend
HSV CITY NW	38	$128,320	$130,574	DOWN
HSV CITY NE	13	$122,723	$158,588	DOWN
HSV CITY SW	41	$160,959	$171,548	DOWN
HSV CITY SE	22	$188,798	$278,754	DOWN
MAD CITY LIMITS	42	$236,389	$272,066	DOWN
HSV CITY EAST	13	$292,364	$354,906	DOWN
MAD OUTSIDE CITY	41	$215,503	$220,681	DOWN
MAD CO NW	21	$153,214	$116,744	UP
MAD CO NE	45	$178,613	$211,386	DOWN
MAD CO SW	2	$149,273	$152,400	DOWN
MAD CO SE	3	$146,333	$61,725	UP

Please bookmark this site for future market reports for the upcoming year.  You can also go to my previous blogs to see how the market has changed over the past year.