Well right now this is actually a possibility, due to the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s “Good Neighbor Next Door Program.”

Long story short, the HUD is offering half off a home mortgage if you are in one of the previously mentioned fields and find a property that falls into one of the designated geographic areas authorized by Congress under provisions of the National Housing Act.

Why would they do this?  Basically, HUD desires to make the communities of America stronger and safer, and improve the quality of life in distressed urban communities by encouraging Law Enforcement Officers, Teachers (pre-Kindergarten through 12^th grade), Firefighters, and Emergency Responders (EMT) to purchase and live in homes in these communities.

In return for the 50% discount, you must only prove once a year that you occupy the property as your primary residence.  You must do this for a total of 36 months.  In other words, as long as you live in the house for 3 years you never have to pay the other half of the mortgage!  It’s that easy.

How does the discount work?  Well, when you purchase the house, you will be required to sign a second mortgage for the other half of the loan.  As long as you stay in the house for the requisite 3 years the second mortgage is wiped away after that time period.

You can even refinance the mortgage down the road if it happens to be to get a lower rate or even to make repairs (203k loan).

Want to find out if you qualify for this type of loan?  Are you interested in seeing which properties qualify as a designated geographic area?  Just fill out this short form and we will get back to you quickly.  The HUD updates and changes the areas frequently, so it’s really much easier to let us do the work for you!

As always, if you have any questions about this type of loan, or if you just have questions about the mortgage process, feel free to contact us and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

So why don’t more people sell their house on their own?  Well, society and popular opinion will tell you that it’s a difficult, if not impossible process.  For example, a simple internet search of “selling your house without a realtor” will pull up such alarming claims as:

“Without a knowledgeable Realtor to guide you through the process, you’ll have to hone your knowledge of the housing market in your area, lending practices, loan availability and requirements for a home sale. You’ll need to brush up your negotiation and people skills and clear time in your schedule to be available to show your house…”

After reading such claims, it’s easy to think that you should just go ahead, give up and use a realtor instead of dealing with such drama.  Fortunately this isn’t so.  The truth is, selling a home by yourself can be both easy and cost effective……if you have the right tools.

WHERE DO YOU START?

So how do you get the right tools?  The answer is Nationwide By Owner, or NWBO.  NWBO was formed to help individuals generate the exposure needed to effectively sell their homes without a realtor.  Since then, it has helped literally thousands accomplish this feat, all without paying out expensive real estate commissions.  In fact, NWBO charges only $399 for their whole package.  For that amount here’s what you get:

• A personalized web page to showcase your home.
• A Brilliant Yellow Sign with an Audio Tour for interested buyers.
• A FREE Interactive Tutorial to answer common questions about selling your own home.
• Nationwide exposure 24/7.
• Prominent Search Engine Placement to attract active buyers to your listing.
• A team of experts to provide on-call professional help.
• A Virtual Web Office™ with 24/7 live email notification.
• Most Importantly – NO commission fees – Just one low price of $399!

So feel free to call NWBO at 1-866-205-2306, or visit their homepage for more info.  After all, you don’t use a travel agent to book business trips or vacations anymore, so why would you need a realtor to help you sell your own home?

Fortunately though, there is a new program available from the United States Department of Agriculture that offers 100% financing for people that live (or are looking to live) in rural areas.

Why would they do this?  Is it too good to be true?  Well, long story short, the government offers the option of “zero money down” so that people who live in rural areas (who may have always been renters) can finally have access to affordable mortgages. Consequently, this type of loan is often the best scenario for people who live in the country and want to find a place they can call home. 

Another amazing feature of this loan is that 100% of repairs that need to be made to the property can actually be finance into the loan based on “after repair value.”  What this means is that the USDA Rural Development Loan can also be considered a renovation loan as well.  Because of all these qualities, these loans are quite possibly the best option on the market today. 

So you may be asking, what features does this type of financing entail?  What can I do to make this work for ME?  Well, here are some of the benefits of the USDA Rural Development Loan:

- NOT ONLY FOR FIRST TIME HOME BUYERS - This isn’t like the tax credit!

- LOW INTEREST RATES – Just because you are getting a good deal doesn’t mean you will pay more over the long run.  Rates on these loans are generally better than VA and similar to FHA.

- NO PMI (MORTGAGE INSURANCE) - This makes your monthly payment even lower.

- NO LIMIT ON PURCHASE PRICE - Buy what you want!  (Property must still be reasonable for your income)

- NO MINIMUM FICO SCORE- People that have zero credit history may even qualify.  Those with a credit histoty should have a reasonably good score.  Call for more details.

- SELLER CONCESSIONS UP TO 6% - What this means is that the person selling the house can pay for all or some of your closing costs, which saves you even more money.

- NO CASH RESERVES REQUIRED - Most loan programs require you to have a certain amount of money saved up before you can purchase a home.  This is not the case with the USDA Rural Development Loan.

- 100% FINANCING!!! - NO DOWN PAYMENT IS REQUIRED.  That’s right. NO DOWN PAYMENT.

So next is the issue of actually qualifying for the loan.  Here’s what you need to do, and some of the main requirements involved:

 - You must be a legal US citizen or legal permanent resident.

 - Your income must qualify for the house or property you desire.  As a point of reference, your mortgage payment should not exceed 29% of your gross monthly income.

 - The property must be used as a residence (no farms or commerical deals).

 - You can’t already own a suitable residence in the same area as your proposed new property.

 - Your total family income should not be more than 115% of the median United States income.

Probably the biggest requirement for this type of loan is that the property MUST be in a qualified rural area.  What constitutes a qualified rural area? Well, mostly this has to do with Income and Population Density restrictions, but you may be surprised to find out just how many areas around Dallas and Fort Worth in fact qualify.  As always, you can call or CONTACT US and we will review your situation and see if you (or a house you desire) qualifies.  (free of charge too!)