Vermont Guidelines keep changing, so the best way to get updates is to check the Agency of Commerce and Community Development, Stay Home Stay Safe Sector Specific Guidance, which reports on Phased Restart Safe Guidance.
Author: Steve K-Brooks
Fanny Adjust Underwriting Standards to Accommodate Covid-19 Orders
The Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), the largest funding source for home mortgages in the United States, has published special underwriting guidelines for the Covid-19 crisis. Plain English explanation of how the current guidelines will affect home financing appear on Fannie’s website as FAQs: https://singlefamily.fanniemae.com/media/22326/display The FAQs deal with such practical issues as acceptance of …
Vermont Homebuying Covid-19 Real Estate Guidance
Stay Home Stay Safe Sector Specific Guidance New Rules effective April 20 for various occupations: https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/business/stay-home-stay-safe-sector-specific-guidance Guidance specifically for Real Estate Real Estate All professional services should be provided in a manner calculated to minimize in-person contact. Any activity that can be conducted remotely, online, by phone, or email, should beThe sale of real estate …
What should I know to buy house during the covid-19 pandemic?
Will the home inspector be given access to the house? If there is a septic system, will a septic inspector be permitted to do the inspection? Even if inspections are permitted, you might not be permitted to be present, which means that you will not have the benefit on asking questions and actually seeing the …
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How much should I pay?
Black’s Law Dictionary (Sixth Edition) defines “Fair Market Value” (in part) as: The amount at which property would change hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither being under any compulsion to buy or sell and both having reasonable knowledge of the relevant facts. The challenge for a seller in pricing their home …
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Christmas Closing
[Christmas – 1998] Walter was a Vietnam War veteran who had finally received disputed benefits more than 20 years late, and he wanted to use the money to purchase land and build his home. He found a tiny parcel at a low price, but the closing was delayed when Walter’s attorney discovered that, somewhere in …
Thinking of Building Your Home?
The first question a buyer should consider is, “Why am I thinking of purchasing land and building, rather than buying an already-existing home?” Generally the cost of bringing the elements of home-building together (Land, site improvements such as road, clearing, well, septic, possibly earth moving to create flat areas, electrical hookup or off-grid system) will cost …
Vermont Announces $5,000 Downpayment Assistance
Thanks to a bill just passed by large majorities in both houses and signed by the governor, the Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA) will soon be able to offer qualified first-time homebuyers a leg up in the form of a $5,000 “sleeping” loan. The $5,000 assistance be in the form of a zero interest loan, …
What is MLS?
Imagine what house hunting would be like if you had to visit each agency in order to see their listings? Multiple Listing Service® (MLS) is a cooperative system which allows participating Realtors® to share information, to show one anotherʼs listings, and to split commissions. Thanks to MLS, you do not have to visit many offices …
Real Estate Recovery: Wishful Thinking?
MLS data for Windham County shows median home prices during the first three-quarters of 2014 running 5.26% below median home prices for the same period a year ago. National real estate and other economic indicators are mixed and increasingly volatile, with even a fragile recovery, uncertain. The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) reports that prices …