Read about new property tax law that took effect September 2, 2011.

What is a homestead?

A homestead can be a separate structure, condominium or a manufactured home located on owned or leased land, as long as the individual living in the home owns it. A homestead can include up to 20 acres, if the land is owned by the homeowner and used for a purpose related to the residential use of the homestead.

What is the Homestead Exemption?

Homestead laws were developed to grant a surviving spouse, minor children, and/or unmarried children of a deceased homeowner the right of occupancy, to afford a reduction on property tax, and also to protect a home from creditors.

Homestead exemptions reduce taxable value by removing part of your home's value from taxation. If you want to receive a homestead exemption for the taxes on your home, the home must first qualify as a residence homestead on January 1 of the year in which you are applying. There are two requirements:

1.    You must own your home on January 1. (If you are over 65,and/or disabled the January 1 ownership and residency are not required.)

2.    You must use the home as your principal residence on January

Click here to see other exemptions you may qualify for.

If you talk to a dissatisfied homebuyer today he/she will   probably tell you 
they paid too much or they were pressured into buying   the wrong house by the
real estate agent.  Why does this happen? More   often than not these buyers
were not represented by a buyer’s
agent.

What home buyers don’t know is  that the real estate industry underwent a dramatic change in the 1990s due to  “disclosure of agency” laws  that required agents to disclose to a potential buyer that they work for the  Seller. Prior to this time 3 out of 4 buyers believed the agent they worked with
was representing their interest.  Even today less than half of home buyers
understand that they are entitled to be represented by a buyer’s agent. Buyer’s  routinely search for a home on-line, find the home they like, call the agent listing the home and never seek the help of a buyer’s agent.  The current law states that at the point of the first substantive communication with a home buyer, the real estate agent listing the home is SUPPOSED to disclose that he/she  is working for the seller. 

When you have a home buying plan before you shop, you’ll be sure to avoid these costly  errors. Here are some tips for making the most of your home purchase:

Find a El Paso Buyer’s Agent
An exclusive buyer’s agent has no conflict of  interest as he/she does not list any property for sale. These agents are trained  to work only for the home buyer and are paid out of the proceeds of the sale at closing.*  Buyer’s agents provide real estate tools to search for  homes in their  market, they provide mortgage  information,  they inform and educate the buyer about  the home buying  process and provide current home buying  programs.

 Get  pre-approved before house hunting
Because of the current economic climate  a seller will consider an offer from a pre-approved buyer above other offers because the seller only wants buyers that are financially able to support an  offer. When a buyer is unrepresented, he/she may not know where to apply for a mortgage and may not even know what their credit picture looks like. 
 
Making the offer

 What price  do you offer a seller?. Before you make that offer, be sure your agent has researched the market. A professional buyer’s agent can offer an unbiased  opinion on the value of a home, based on market conditions, condition of the  home and neighborhood. Without knowledge of the market, your offer could be too high.

 BUYER  BEWARE when buying from FSBO
Many home buyers believe that buying a home  from a homeowner without involving a real estate agent will save them big money.   FSBOs do not reduce the price just because you don’t have an agent. In fact, most FSBOs price above the market. There are too many pitfalls when
dealing with FSBO to innumerate here.  Read  more..

 Home  repairs
Your home will be one of your greatest assets and you need to  know what the condition of the home is before your buy it. A buyer’s agent will
require the homeowner to make repairs or price concessions in lieu of repairs.

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*pertains to El  Paso County Texas


Posted via email
from el paso homes posterous





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Posted By Blogger to Fort Bliss New Home Builders |
Remax Realtor
at 11/19/2011 09:17:00 AM

This site have been provided for buyer's only by Yvonne Russell, Re/Max buyer’s agent. An Exclusive Buyer's Agent is trained to represent the interest of the buyer in the home purchase transaction which gives buyers the peace of mind that there won't be a conflict of interest. As your buyer's agent I can show you any El Paso Texas or Fort Bliss area property for sale and negotiate the lowest price for the house. As an Re/max Buyer's agent I am paid at closing out of the proceeds of the transaction (like everyone else). 

Please feel free to save your favorites, send me emails of homes you are interested in, or ask me any question that is on your mind.

Lastly, since the El Paso Texas mortgage loan process is the longest part of the home purchase process I recommend contacting a mortgage lender now if you want to move into a home in 30-45 days. Here are a few lenders my clients have used successfully at El Paso Preferred Lenders.

Yvonne A. Russell,  REALTOR® |CELL (915) 873-8646 | (888) 845-2408 | FAX (915) 594-9253

Russell-Realtor

El Paso Preferred Lenders

MLS Access

JD Power Survey-”Top Rate Real Estate Agent”

RE/MAX of Texas, RE/MAX Associates, 10940 Ben Crenshaw Dr Ste C, El Paso 79935