Workshop for ADUs (Accessory Dwelling Units)

Have you ever thought about building a tiny home? Come to my workshop!

It’s now more attractive & easier than ever to build an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) on your property. Our community does not have enough housing units to accommodate our growing population, which is why we’ve experienced record increases in home values and rental rates in recent years. State laws have been eased to allow ADUs to be built in nearly every residential neighborhood in Sacramento!

As part of our Summer Seminar Series, we are hosting an IN-PERSON ADU workshop on August 16th @ 5:30 PM at our office at 1847 Iron Point Road in Folsom. Come & learn how city & county planning departments are implementing these changes to ADU permits, and how local builders are creating customized & comfortable units that are attractive and appealing to residents. In the workshop you’ll receive a one-on-one consultation on your options to add an ADU to your property this year!

Refreshments will be served. Industry experts will be on site to answer questions about planning, building, and financing your ADU. We look forward to seeing you there. Register today below for your free spot before we fill up!

REGISTER HERE FOR ADU WORKSHOP

Our Team Is Growing

Meet Our Newest Team Members

When we moved our office earlier this year, we wanted to have room to grow our team. We’ve been incredibly fortunate to find three professionals that are a perfect fit for our work family. Do you know anyone in the real estate field who would value from partnering with an experienced, genuine & talented firm? Tell them The Blue Waters Group is looking for them!

JENNIFER POUND

Jennifer comes to us with nearly a decade of industry experience & an ambition to always find winning solutions for her clients. We had previously worked with her on many real estate transactions over the years, so we knew she’d be a perfect fit for our team.

BRET LANG

Bret had a ton of tenure as a REALTOR at a Re/Max office but was ready for a company change. Lisa had been colleagues & friends with Bret for years, and we look forward to helping him continue bringing his ultra-marathon intensity to his work.

ALLIE KOSAKA

Allie is an Air Force veteran who has played many roles over her real estate career. She is joining our team to do what The Blue Waters Group does best; serve clients both as a REALTOR & Mortgage Broker. Welcome to the family Allie!

Scam calls are getting out of hand

We can help!

Most days I get over 10 “Scam Likely” calls.  Its getting to the point that I don’t even pick up an unknown number, which is problematic considering much of my livelihood consists of being available to clients by phone!

The number of aggressive solicitors calling to say they want to “help” is out of control!

Enough is enough, and I’m taking action.  I recently signed up my cell phone number to the www.DoNotCall.gov registry, but I know from experience that won’t be enough. There is an additional step I’ve taken, and I encourage you to do the same.

As crazy as this may sound, the credit reporting agencies are legally allowed to sell your contact information to solicitors.  Its common that after I pull a credit report for a client who wants to obtain a mortgage that the client is bombarded by aggressive sales calls from other mortgage companies.  They claim this promotes consumer shopping alternatives, but in reality its borderline harassment!  Thankfully, there is a way to stop it.

Go to www.OptOutPreScreen.com  and select to Opt-Out of being included on these annoying marketing lists.  It takes just a couple of minutes, and doing so reduces the unwanted calls and texts (good for you) and keeps the unscrupulous folks in my industry from having a sleezy way to shortcut their way to customers (good for you and me!).

Are Your Friends GETTING OUT of Real Estate?

Some are getting side hustles; we are becoming experts

I’m not gonna lie; things have been tough in the real estate business.  After a decade of boom times and folks flooding the industry (remember this post asking if most of your friends were also in real estate!?), the number of transactions has decreased dramatically.

Many agents and brokers are getting side-hustles or quitting altogether in the midst of the fastest market downturn in a generation.  Nearly 10,000 Realtors have left the industry every month so far in 2023, and this trend will likely accelerate in the coming months.  Statistics aren’t available for mortgage professionals, but due to higher interest rates the mortgage exodus is probably even worse.

So how are we handling these slower times?  By keeping our hands and minds busy!  In addition to spending a few months relocating and settling into our new office, we are growing our team (more on that next month) & honing our craft to be even more valuable to you!  As I stated back in October, we are ALL IN!

We are taking the opportunity to invest, educate, and grow by becoming further experts in emerging trends in our markets and share our insights with you!  On the Summer Solstice last week, we kicked off our Summer Seminar Series with an Estate Planning class.  These FREE in-person seminars are designed to provide you with valuable details on critical, yet often overlooked, real estate topics. 

This month we are proud to host a seminar on Reverse Mortgages.  As Baby Boomers approach retirement age, many are looking for ways to be financially secure.  A reverse mortgage can be a useful tool that help homeowners aged 62 and better to utilize the equity in their homes for living expenses, health care costs, home improvements and more!  There are many stigmas around these loan programs, some of which are flat out untrue!  Come attend this seminar to learn the good, the bad, and everything in between from industry professionals who specialize in helping senior borrowers make wise financial decisions.

Admission is free but space is limited, so be sure to RSVP here before tickets are gone!  Check out the rest of the summer schedule for our upcoming seminars on Accessory Dwelling Units and First-Time Home Buying.

We thank you for referring and returning to us for all of your mortgage & real estate needs.  Our team remains ready and capable to guide you through this ever-changing market.

Lower Mortgage Rates Are Coming

Why?  Because we are inverted!

The most famous use of that “inverted” phrase naturally comes from my favorite childhood movie, Top Gun. Now, as a grown up who owns a mortgage & real estate brokerage and enjoys studying economics, being inverted has an entirely different meaning that generally precedes recessions and times of lower mortgage rates!

Talk To Me, Goose!

First a quick econ lesson…the yield curve is a graphical representation of the interest rates (or yields) on bonds of different maturities. Typically, longer-term bonds have higher yields compared to shorter-term bonds. This upward sloping yield curve illustrated from June 2013 is the normal or positive yield curve, making it look like the front side of a jump ramp.

Great Balls Of Fire!

However, when the yield curve inverts, it suggests that investors have a pessimistic outlook on the future economic conditions. Check out how different today’s yield curve looks, like the backside landing of that same jump ramp!

An inverted yield curve refers to a situation where the yields on shorter-term bonds are actually higher than the yields on longer-term bonds. This phenomenon is considered significant because it has historically been a reliable indicator of an impending economic recession.

What Were You Doing There?

Communicating! An inverted yield curve is a way of our markets sounding the warning bells. Over the last 50 years, every time the yield curve has gone negative (below the 0% flat line), an economic recession has followed (shown by the vertical gray bands). Presently, the yield curve is in deeper negative territory than the previous 3 cycles, and has been flirting with levels not seen in my lifetime (I’m a young Gen-Xer, for the record). In other words, this inversion is deep, serious, and prolonged. We need to pay attention to it!

I Feel The Need, The Need For…

Lower rates!!! These recessionary periods also tend to lower borrowing costs, especially mortgage rates. In each recession for the last 40 years, we have seen mortgage rates drop during these slower economic times. Could we be heading for a steep decline in mortgage rates???

It’s important to note that while an inverted yield curve has been a reliable indicator in the past, it doesn’t guarantee a recession nor lower mortgage rates will occur. It is merely a signal that suggests increased risks and the need for careful monitoring of economic conditions. Nevertheless, I think this reliable tell-tale sign is clear that lower rates are on their way. Stay tuned for more statistical insight on the state of our market, economy, and interest rates. Thanks as always for reading; you can be my wingman anytime! 😉

Summer Seminar Series

We recognize there’s much more to real estate than buying and selling homes.  We are proud to bring our clients a series of FREE 90-minute seminars this summer that bring clarity to the critical topics of estate planning, reverse mortgages, accessory dwelling units (ADUs), and first-time home-buying.  See below for more details, and be sure to RSVP early as space is limited at each seminar.

Wednesday, June 21st 5:30 PM – Living Trusts & Estate Planning – RSVP NOW

There are only two things in life that are certain; death and taxes!  As our population ages, the largest transfer of wealth ever will take place through inherited real estate, and the tax implications are huge.  Unfortunately, most homeowners are not prepared to easily & efficiently transfer their property to heirs.  Learn the benefits of establishing a living trust so your assets and heirs are cared for after you pass away.  Selling a home through probate can be a costly and frustrating process for your loved ones, so we’ll give you the tips and the contacts for setting up your living trust now! 

Wednesday, July 19th 5:30 PM – Reverse Mortgages – RSVP NOW

As Baby Boomers approach retirement age, many are looking for ways to be financially secure.  A reverse mortgage can be a useful tool that help homeowners aged 62 and better to utilize the equity in their homes for living expenses, health care costs, home improvements and more!  There are many stigmas around these loan programs, some of which are flat out untrue!  Come attend this seminar to learn the good, the bad, and everything in between from industry professionals who specialize in helping senior borrowers make wise financial decisions.

Wednesday, August 16th 5:30 PM – Accessory Dwelling Units – RSVP NOW

It’s now more attractive & easier than ever to build an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) on your property. Our community does not have enough housing units to accommodate our growing population, which is why we’ve experienced record increases in home values and rental rates in recent years. State laws have been recently eased to allow ADUs to be build in nearly every residential neighborhood in Sacramento! Attend the workshop to learn how our city’s planning department is implementing these changes to ADU permits, and how local builders are creating customized & comfortable units that are attractive and appealing to residents.

Wednesday, September 20th 5:30 PM – First-Time Home Buying – RSVP NOW

We love helping our clients purchase their first homes!  Our aim is to educate and empower new home buyers to feel confident in the process and their decisions.  We will discuss down payment assistance loans, improving your credit score, and why its so important to have experts explain and guide you in this life-milestone transaction.  Come learn how our firm helps you to find, finance, and negotiate your first home, and why the upcoming Fall season may be the best time to buy a home! 

May The Fourth Be With You

Our Team Put Together These Parody Videos for your May The Fourth enjoyment

In a galaxy not so far away, The Fed is at war with rates. Will their efforts spark a New Hope for the economy? Or will a recession Strike Back?

For the 10th straight meeting, The Fed has raised the federal funds rate. Have they gone “Kylo Ren” on inflation? We think so! The good news is their aggressive attack on inflation will likely lead to lower mortgage rates later this year.

Workshop for ADUs (Accessory Dwelling Units)

Have you ever thought about building a tiny home? Come to my workshop!

It’s now more attractive & easier than ever to build an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) on your property. Our community does not have enough housing units to accommodate our growing population, which is why we’ve experienced record increases in home values and rental rates in recent years. State laws have been eased to allow ADUs to be built in nearly every residential neighborhood in Sacramento!

To meet the growing interest & demand for ADUs, I am hosting an informative workshop at our office at 1847 Iron Point Road in Folsom. Come & learn how city & county planning departments are implementing these changes to ADU permits, and how local builders are creating customized & comfortable units that are attractive and appealing to residents. In the workshop you’ll receive a one-on-one consultation on your options to add an ADU to your property this year!

Refreshments will be served. Industry experts will be on site to answer questions about planning, building, and financing your ADU. We look forward to seeing you there!

Register

There are less than 5 spots remaining for the workshop. Register today by clicking above for your free spot before we fill up!

New Loan Is Indeed A Dream For ALL!

Home Sellers Should Be Particularly Excited

There’s been a big buzz in real estate this week, maybe you’ve heard it from friends, family, or another real estate professional.  But I’m going to give you a fresh take on it that you haven’t heard anywhere else!

Earlier this week, a brand-new state funded loan program became available to first-time home buyers.  Coined the CA Dream For All Loan, its an innovative loan that allows buyers to purchase a home with no money down, no mortgage insurance, and no monthly payment associated with the portion of the loan from California. Our team has become well-versed with the program and are certified to offer it to our first-time home buyer clients.  But you know you should really be most excited about this new loan?  Home Sellers!!

There’s no doubt this program will be a game changer for more Californians to purchase a home.  That’s a great thing given how expensive it is to buy a home here, and we are honored to help as many clients as we can to qualify for it!  But, the program only has funding for approximately 3,000 buyers, and forecasts show the program being depleted in a few short months.  This will create a frenzy for homes below the median price, which in California currently stands at $615,000.  This is already an extremely competitive segment of the market as there aren’t enough homes for sale to match buyer demand.  This Dream for All program will further exaggerate this imbalance, which means there is a tremendous opportunity for folks who have been thinking about selling a home, particularly one typical of a first time home buyer purchase.

If you’ve been thinking about moving up, moving out of state, or selling a rental property, this Spring real estate season could be a golden opportunity for you.  Think about this, for someone moving up, you get to sell your smaller home in an incredibly competitive market, and buy a larger home that is surely struggling to sell more than its lower priced counterparts.  Or someone moving out of the market altogether, this may be a perfect time to cash out before future economic uncertainties soften our real estate market.

Whether you are a buyer looking to qualify for the Dream For All program or a seller looking to cash in on this incoming wave of demand, my team and I are able to help you.  Watch my separate video detailing the Dream For All Loan program, & please reach out to me to see how I can help you find your buying or selling opportunities in this spring season market.

CA Dream For All Loan Example

Our team has become well-versed with the new California Dream For All Loan program and has it available to offer to our first-time home buyer clients.  Lets unpack a common example and see how this program functions.

Assume someone buys a home for $500,000.  They would obtain a traditional 30-year fixed loan at a fair market interest rate for 80% of the purchase price, making the loan $400,000.  Now instead of making a $100,000 down payment, something most first-time home buyers don’t have, they obtain a 2nd mortgage from the state of California for the needed $100,000.  No monthly payments are required and no interest accrues on this $100,000 2nd mortgage.  But it is not a grant; it is not free money.  This 2nd mortgage is a Shared Appreciation Loan, meaning that when the home buyer goes to sell the property they have to pay back the loan in full AND share in the gained equity with the state of California.

Lets see how those numbers work.  Lets assume this $500,000 home appreciates by a modest 5% per year.  After 5 years, the home is now worth $640,000; it has appreciated by $140,000.  Most folks utilizing this program will need to pay back 20% of that appreciation to the state, in this case $28,000 dollars.  So when they sell the home, they will pay $128K to the Dream For All mortgage, the outstanding balance of the 1st mortgage that started at $400,000, leaving them with $142,000 in equity before selling costs.

So, in a nutshell, a borrower who put in nothing for a down payment ends up earning nearly $150,000 in realized equity.  And to do so, they had to pay $28,000 in shared appreciation to borrow a $100,000 loan, which essentially works out to be an annualized interest rate of 6%. 

Here’s another example created by CalHFA worth watching:

Like any loan program, there are qualifying restrictions. Contact my team and I for the full details on how first-time buyers can take advantage of this new loan!