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By: G. M. Filisko

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2. Develop your home wish list. Then, prioritize the features on your list.

3. Select where you want to live. Compile a list of three or four neighborhoods you’d like to live in, taking into account items such as schools, recreational facilities, area expansion plans, and safety.

4. Start saving. Do you have enough money saved to qualify for a mortgage and cover your down payment? Ideally, you should have 20 percent of the purchase price saved as a down payment. Also, don’t forget to factor in closing costs. Closing costs — including taxes, attorney’s fee, and transfer fees — average between 2 and 7 percent of the home price.

5. Get your credit in order. Obtain a copy of your credit report to make sure it is accurate and to correct any errors immediately. A credit report provides a history of your credit, bad debts, and any late payments.

6. Determine your mortgage qualifications. How large of mortgage do you qualify for? Also, explore different loan options — such as 30-year or 15-year fixed mortgages or ARMs — and decide what’s best for you.

7. Get preapproved. Organize all the documentation a lender will need to preapprove you for a loan. You might need W-2 forms, copies of at least one pay stub, account numbers, and copies of two to four months of bank or credit union statements.

8. Weigh other sources of help with a down payment. Do you qualify for any special mortgage or down payment assistance programs? Check with your state and local government on down payment assistance programs for first-time buyers. Or, if you have an IRA account, you can use the money you’ve saved to buy your fist home without paying a penalty for early withdrawal.

9. Calculate the costs of homeownership. This should include property taxes, insurance, maintenance and utilities, and association fees, if applicable.

10. Contact a REALTOR®. Find an experienced REALTOR® who can help guide you through the process.

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Buyers will be pinched by FHA’s new rules.
By Robert Freedman | March 2010 | Realtor Magazine

No one likes it when changes to mortgage underwriting make it harder for working households to secure safe and affordable home financing.
But in the case of the FHA’s tightened lending requirements announced in late January, the end may justify the means. The policy changes are designed to shore up the FHA’s capital reserves and help the agency do a better job of managing risk.
“These changes, while serious, are reasonable,” says John Anderson, CRS®, GRI, a 30-year real estate veteran who chairs the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®’ Federal Housing Policy Committee. “I think the FHA is doing the right thing.”
Nonetheless, Anderson, broker-owner of Twin Oaks Realty Inc. in Crystal, Minn., acknowledges that many households will be adversely affected. Buyers will have to either spend more to secure financing or scale down what they buy.
Among other things, the FHA is raising its upfront mortgage insurance premium to 2.25 percent from 1.75 percent, boosting the minimum down payment to 10 percent for borrowers with a credit score of 580 and below (it stays at 3.5 percent for everyone else), and reducing permissible seller concessions from 6 percent to 3 percent.
The FHA also will seek legislation to raise the annual mortgage insurance premium to a level above the current cap of 0.55 percent. The agency already has authority to institute the other changes.
“Striking the right balance between managing the FHA’s risk, continuing to provide access to underserved communities, and supporting the nation’s economic recovery is critically important,” FHA Commissioner David Stevens said in a statement.
Anderson, looking at his own market in Minnesota where the median home price is under $200,000, says the impact of the changes will be subtle. For many first-time buyers, including younger households that haven’t had a chance to develop much of a credit history, the credit-score floor will be a hurdle because the minimum 10 percent down payment will simply be out of reach unless they can get help from elsewhere, like family. “But even mom and dad are stretched these days,” he says.
The reduced seller concessions will hurt, too, because these funds typically help buyers take care of closing costs like title insurance and the mortgage origination fee. “With that now limited to 3 percent, buyers might have to come up with another 1 percent of the mortgage amount,” Anderson says.
The higher up-front mortgage insurance premium won’t affect the amount of cash buyers will need to raise, as that can be financed. But it will affect how much house they can afford, and could increase their monthly payments by $50 to $100. “That extra cost can have a big impact,” he says.
Yet Anderson thinks these hurdles are a reasonable price to pay to ensure a healthier FHA, which today commands about 40 percent of the mortgage market nationally and far more than that in regions like the Midwest, with a strong tradition of using FHA-insured loans.
What would be worse, he says, is for the FHA to imperil its financial health. “Over the last couple of years I would have been out of business without the FHA,” he says. “They say they’re trying to strike the right balance and I think they are.”

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Sources: National Safety Council, New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, Washington State Government Information & Services

The best advice for driving in bad winter weather is not to drive at all, if you can avoid it.

Don’t go out until the snow plows and sanding trucks have had a chance to do their work, and allow yourself extra time to reach your destination.

If you must drive in snowy conditions, make sure your car is prepared (TIPS), and that you know how to handle road conditions.

It’s helpful to practice winter driving techniques in a snowy, open parking lot, so you’re familiar with how your car handles. Consult your owner’s manual for tips specific to your vehicle.

Driving safely on icy roads

1. Decrease your speed and leave yourself plenty of room to stop. You should allow at least three times more space than usual between you and the car in front of you.
2. Brake gently to avoid skidding. If your wheels start to lock up, ease off the brake.
3. Turn on your lights to increase your visibility to other motorists.
4. Keep your lights and windshield clean.
5. Use low gears to keep traction, especially on hills.
6. Don’t use cruise control or overdrive on icy roads.
7. Be especially careful on bridges, overpasses and infrequently traveled roads, which will freeze first. Even at temperatures above freezing, if the conditions are wet, you might encounter ice in shady areas or on exposed roadways like bridges.
8. Don’t pass snow plows and sanding trucks. The drivers have limited visibility, and you’re likely to find the road in front of them worse than the road behind.
9. Don’t assume your vehicle can handle all conditions. Even four-wheel and front-wheel drive vehicles can encounter trouble on winter roads.

If your rear wheels skid…

1. Take your foot off the accelerator.
2. Steer in the direction you want the front wheels to go. If your rear wheels are sliding left, steer left. If they’re sliding right, steer right.
3. If your rear wheels start sliding the other way as you recover, ease the steering wheel toward that side. You might have to steer left and right a few times to get your vehicle completely under control.
   If you have standard brakes, pump them gently.
4. If you have anti-lock brakes (ABS), do not pump the brakes. Apply steady pressure to the brakes. You will feel the brakes pulse — this is normal.

If your front wheels skid…

1. Take your foot off the gas and shift to neutral, but don’t try to steer immediately.
2. As the wheels skid sideways, they will slow the vehicle and traction will return. As it does, steer in the direction you want to go. Then put the transmission in “drive” or release the clutch, and accelerate gently.

If you get stuck…

1. Do not spin your wheels. This will only dig you in deeper.
2. Turn your wheels from side to side a few times to push snow out of the way.
3. Use a light touch on the gas, to ease your car out.
4. Use a shovel to clear snow away from the wheels and the underside of the car.
5. Pour sand, kitty litter, gravel or salt in the path of the wheels, to help get traction.
6. Try rocking the vehicle. (Check your owner’s manual first — it can damage the transmission on some vehicles.) Shift from forward to reverse, and back again. Each time you’re in gear, give a light touch on the gas until the vehicle gets going.

Sources: National Safety Council, New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, Washington State Government Information & Services

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	Essential Heating System Maintenance Getting your home’s heating system professionally serviced every year will keep it running smoothly and help keep heating costs under control. Read
	Save Money With an Insulation Upgrade Beefing up inadequate insulation is one of the quickest energy-payback projects you can do, resulting in lower heating and cooling bills and increased comfort. Read
	Chimney Maintenance for Warmth and Safety Chimney maintenance and a fireplace inspection can make the difference between warm safety and drafty danger. Read
	Cleaning and Caring for Siding The annual cleaning and repair of your home’s siding will pay off in a long life and increased value. Read
	Conduct Your Own Energy Audit A do-it-yourself energy audit can teach you how to be more energy efficient and make you a more-educated consumer should you decide to hire an expert. Read
Visit houselogic.com for more articles like this. © Copyright 2010 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

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Curtain closing on Old Blair Auditorium project
County jeopardizes renovation by deciding not to fund facility

by Jason Tomassini | Staff Writer Gazette.com | Wed Jan 20, 2010

Click here for to go to the Old Blair Auditorium Project website

Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett did not fund the renovation of the Old Blair Auditorium in his capital budget released Friday, putting state funds allotted for the long-vacant Silver Spring facility in jeopardy and leaving a community in need of arts space still wanting.

In 2005, a $600,000 state bond bill was awarded to Old Blair Auditorium Project Inc., a nonprofit residents group dedicated to renovating the facility, which has been closed since the 1999 relocation of Montgomery Blair High School. However, the bond is contingent on the county matching the $600,000 in its Capital Improvements Program for 2011-2016.

Leggett left out funds for the Old Blair Auditorium in his recommended CIP submitted Friday. Now, unless there is an extension, the bond bill will expire at the end of this year, forcing rehabilitation efforts of the auditorium to start from scratch.

“The county government hasn’t stepped up to take ownership of the project,” said Stuart Moore, president of Old Blair Auditorium Inc. “… It’s a county resource, this space that’s sitting there that was once used for something beneficial now is just rotting and the county is letting it continue to rot.”

In May 2008, Calverton-based architects Grimm and Parker met with residents, county officials and Montgomery County Public Schools officials to plan the auditorium’s renovation in the event that further funding would be provided. The facility would be renovated into a 750- to 800-seat, two-floor auditorium with four classrooms in the rear of the facility and cost up to $8 million depending on the design. The auditorium is located on the campus of Silver Spring International Middle and Sligo Creek Elementary schools.

The space would be available to students of those schools, as well as county arts and theater groups who could rent out the space.

“It would have been so flexible in terms of putting on different scale and size things,” said Greg Lewis, executive director of the performance group Washington Revels, which has administrative offices on Dale Drive near the Old Blair Auditorium. Washington Revels, usually featuring 50 to 100 performers in each of its productions, travels across the region looking for performance venues and often holds smaller rehearsals in their offices or outside due to a lack of available space.

The design meetings held last year were part of a $25,000 feasibility study spearheaded by Councilwoman Valerie Ervin (D-Dist. 5) of Silver Spring.

“It’s time for the county to step up for responsibility of this asset,” said Ervin, who wondered why funding for the auditorium wasn’t included at least in the back end of the 2011-2016 CIP. “It’s been left empty for a decade now, at a time where we need extra classroom space and afterschool space.”

Leggett’s CIP proposal called for $3.9 million in capital construction, $110 million more than what was approved last year. The CIP budget relies largely on borrowed money, and low interest rates and low construction costs due to the economic recession made this a good time to take on construction projects, Leggett said last week. The county’s operating budget is facing a $600 million deficit.

“We had a lot more requests than money to give out,” Leggett spokesman Patrick K. Lacefield said of the CIP.

The bond bill was extended in the 2008 General Assembly, thanks to support from Sen. Jamie B. Raskin (D-Dist. 20) of Takoma Park and Dels. Sheila Hixson, Tom Hucker and Heather Mizeur, all Democrats from Dist. 20 in Silver Spring. Facing the loss of $600,000 dedicated to the auditorium’s renovation, Old Blair Auditorium Inc. and state legislators will push for an extension again this year, Raskin said, but “we have limited leverage in the absence of a local effort.” The state is facing a $2 billion shortfall.

If the state funding is lost the building will continue to deteriorate, leaving middle and elementary school students adjoined to the auditorium without space and a potentially vibrant performance space without an opening curtain.

“It could be rented out virtually every day,” said David Ottalini, an Old Blair Auditorium Inc. board member. “How much money have we lost by not having space available for rent?”

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