The big news in local real estate today is that the federal Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) announced it has temporarily increased limits on conforming loans offered by government-sponsored enterprises, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Conforming loans are those that the government will buy from lenders, so the interest rates are lower sometimes as much as a full percent lower.
Much has been made about how this can help a lot of homeowners and homebuyers in
But I think this could be even bigger news in the best parts of town for duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes.
The old limits:
| One-family | Two-family | Three-family | Four-family |
| $417,000.00 | $533,850.00 | $645,300.00 | $801,950.00 |
The new limits:
| One-family | Two-family | Three-family | Four-family |
| $729,750.00 | $934,200.00 | $1,129,250.00 | $1,403,400.00 |
To understand futher why I think this is such a big deal for 2-4 units, you just have to do the math and look at the MLS.
If you’re the standard putting 20% down on a single family home, these loan limits allow you to buy a single-family home up to $912,187. But you still won’t be able to get a great home in a great part of town for that price.
However, if you get a duplex and put 20% down, you can afford $1,167,750. Can you get a great duplex in a great part of town for that. Absolutely! I can show you plenty of them right this minute.
And the same goes for triplexes at $1,411,562 and fourplexes at $1.754,250.
For now, these limits only apply to loans originated between July 1, 2007 and Dec. 31, 2008. It may or may not be extended beyond this year. But I can tell you for sure, if I was going to buy a duplex, triplex or fourplex and put at least 20% down, this sure would make me happy. And in fact, I sent this exact information out this afternoon before posting it here to two of my own clients who are looking to buy this type of property.
0 comments:
Post a Comment