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Displaying blog entries 1691-1700 of 1904

Government Camp Land Swap with Feds

Sunday, March 15, 2009
by Liz Warren

I recently found anonline article about the Wyden Wilderness bill and the controversial Mt. Hood Meadows land swap. This involved trading future home developments in the Cooper Spur area for 120 acres of National Forest property near Government Camp. This came to the forefront a while ago with screaming headlines in the Oregonian but not much has been in the news since. Sounds like the the Hood River Valley Residents Committee has completed their task for conserving their side of the mountain.

There is also mention of increased wild and scenic rivers in our area plus an additional 128,000 acres of land to be added to the Mt. Hood Wilderness.

Here is the link

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Oregon Economic Impact of Housing Crisis

Sunday, March 15, 2009
by Liz Warren

Here is some interesting information on the impact of real estate for the state of Oregon compiled by the National Association of Realtors through the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

The real estate industry accounted for 17.1% of the gross state product in 2007. “The Industry” includes everything from construction, lending, title services, moving trucks, brokerage, appraisals and other related services.

When a home is sold, $25,767 worth of income is generated into those services. An additional $5,000 is generated from painting, buying new furniture and other auxiliary events.

Once this income is generated there is the multiplier effect with an additional $14,927. This money is generated by eating out, going to movies and sporting events, giving to charity and other spending events generating sales and income.

As additional home sales are conducted a new home is usually constructed- one for every eight home sales. According to Macroeconomic Advisors for NAR, when a new home is constructed it creates 1/8th of new home value generating approximately $35,788 into the economy.

It becomes obvious looking at these numbers that the economic impact of the housing crisis is huge for Oregon.  The slowdown has caused Oregon unemployment numbers to be some of the top in the nation!

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Mt. Hood Sales for February 2009

Saturday, March 14, 2009
by Liz Warren

The Portland RMLS recently released sales information for February 2009. Here are the numbers:

Increasing inventory with 56 new listings on the market since January and 22 new on market in February alone. Closed sales at six shows an increasingly competitive market with not as many buyers active. Pending sales are down 61.5% comparing this same time from last year.

There's no doubt that increased unemployment, increased savings and the virtual disappearance of around 45-50% of individuals savings and wealth are having an impact on real estate.

There have been no sales of land, mutilfamily, or commercial properties since January.

Some sellers are making the price adjustments needed to compete and get their properties sold. It is shocking for many sellers to see what comparable properties are selling for as home equities rapidly shrink to adjust to this current economy.

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Morning Coffee

Monday, March 9, 2009
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"Men are disturbed not by things that happen,
but by their opinions of the things that happen."
~ Epictetus

NO FEAR!

A well-known motivational speaker once said, "No one knows enough to be a pessimist." He also quoted statistics showing that a very high percentage of the things we worry about are either A) things that never happen, or B) things over which we have no control anyway. His point? Not only do we not have enough information to justify our worries, we also are virtually unable to alter the outcome of most situations.

Our worst fears are generally of the unknown (not enough information). Our imagination runs wild, conjuring up worst-case scenarios. We become fearful, anxious, and even overwhelmed - yet the source of our fear is non-existent (except in our minds).

"Think you can - think you can't - either way you're right."

"As a man thinketh, so is he."

"Argue for your limitations, and sure enough they're yours."

In other words, by your thoughts alone, you control the outcome. Although there exist many risks to our peace-of-mind during this uncertain time, we still have the ability to pursue our very best hopes and dreams. We may find that their achievement requires more effort than usual. Doubt may creep in. Nevertheless, as you have heard many times, "It's all in your head

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Excellent Mt. Hood Buyer Loan Available!

Saturday, March 7, 2009
by Liz Warren

If you are a buyer looking on Mt. Hood in Welches, Sandy, Brightwood, Rhododendron or Government Camp you should be aware of the USDA loan available for buyers who meet certain income requirements. Although this loan is not available for second homes or investment properties, it is great for a primary home purchaser. Believe it or not, 99% of Oregon is elegible for this rural development loan!

I recently attended a semiar on this program and our area qualifites as a "rural development" area. Here are some of the incredible benefits of qualifying for this loan which makes it even more attractive than FHA or VA financing:

1. 100% financing with a 2% upfront funding fee that can be paid by buyer or seller.

2. No PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance) saving you money every month!

3. You only need a 620 credit score!

4. They only offer one type of loan and this is a 30 year fixed rate loan.

5. No maximum purchase price.

6. No limit to seller concessions or gift funds.

Visit this website for further information.

 

 

 

 

 

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Mt. Hood Recession

Friday, March 6, 2009
by Liz Warren

Ok, so we are seeing effects of the recession all over the Mt. Hood area. Local retail shops are doing the best they can to stay afloat. We all try to purchase locally if possible to keep our fellow business owners out of the red.

Most notable recession fighters are the restaurants offering half price appetizers, two for ones, and early evening happy hour meals. It's working too. The bursts of winter snow storms have really helped the weekend traffic to our area. The mountain businesses were particularly hit hard due to no Thanksgiving snow and the chain of weather events that demolished the traditional winter break vacation hoardes that give our local businesses a huge shot in the arm.

How does this recession compare to others in our history? Take a look at these super charts I found online from the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis to see how this recession compares to others we've had in the past 80 years.

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Mt. Hood Homeowners Owing More Than The Value of the Home

Wednesday, March 4, 2009
by Liz Warren

Attention property owners in the Mt. Hood area from Government Camp, Rhododendron, Welches and Brightwood. Are you falling behind on your mortgage payments? Do you owe more than your home is worth? Have you heard of the Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan? The Obama administration has released information about a government program which will help homeowners refinance or modify their current mortgage.  This is for owner occupied properties only but one does not need to be behind on their mortgage to qualify. 

 

Here is a link to get information

 

 Here is the important part: "Find out if you are eligible"

 

You need to determine if your mortgage is owned by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae.  The link for Fannie Mae is correct, but the link for Freddie Mac is incorrect and you will spend a great deal of time trying to get Freddie Mac.  Here is the correct link for Freddie Mac to give them information about your name/address etc. They  respond within two days letting you know whether they own your mortgage.

 

Do this RIGHT AWAY because they will be totally inundated with callers trying to get information. You do not need to know your loan number or balance. Do it NOW!

 

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Waterfront Homes New on Market for the Mt. Hood Area

Monday, March 2, 2009
by Liz Warren

Mt. Hood area inventory has been increasing since January. One of the most popular requests for properties are waterfront homes. Several new homes have hit the market and they are sitting on a couple of the most popular rivers in Welches, Rhododendron and Brightwood. This would be the Salmon River, the Sandy River, and the Zig Zag River.

Check out these new homes below. Several are established vacation rental investment properties:

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SPECIAL MEETING! Villages at Mt. Hood

Monday, March 2, 2009
by Liz Warren

Friends,

 

Tuesday, March 3, 2009 at 3 PM the Villages at Mt. Hood Board of Directors will hold a Special Meeting at the Mt. Hood Village Resort. 

 

This meeting was called to "fact find" and disclose to the community 2 issues:

 

Issue 1.  ODOT has awarded a contract to repair the highway 26 slide in downtown Sandy that will involve drilling and blasting 16,000 cubic yards of rock  AND dumping 12,000 cubic yards of road spoils in our community.  The explosive mining and dumping area is the property along the Salmon River in the vicinity of the Cedar Ridge Property next door to Mt. Hood Village Resort.  The access to this property is Miller Road at Milepost 38.06 on Highway 26,

 

Issue 2:  In June of 2006, Clackamas County came to the Villages at Mt. Hood Board of Directors and asked us to endorse a land sale of the Cedar Ridge Property to Western Rivers Conservancy.  This 170+/- property sale was explained to us as a way to protect the Salmon River watershed.  Recently it has come to light that Clackamas County sold an additional 245 acres of land to the same organization.  The additional sale was not disclosed to our community.  It appears the timberland was sold for about $5,800 and acre as a private sale, without public disclosure. 

 

Please consider attending this meeting.  It is very, very important that we have a stong showing of community interest at this Special Meeting.

 

How can you help?

1.  Attend!

2.  Get the word out and get as many people as you can to the meeting!

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Mortgage Interest Deduction: Seeing the EXIT DOOR?

Monday, March 2, 2009
by Liz Warren

One of the provisions proposed by the Obama administration for reform in the upcoming budget is a change to the mortgage interest deduction for homeowners. The current budget proposal would apply to upper income earners, anyone making over $250,000 a year, and it would cap their interest deduction at a 28% tax rate. If that earner was in the 35% tax bracket, it wouldn't matter, they would still be subject to the max 28% rate.

The scary part about this proposal is that if this gets approved I'm sure it will eventually come into play for all homeowners and not just high earners. Who knows, eventually... no mortgage deduction, which some countries already practice. I suspect the second home interest deduction will go by the wayside too. Think of all the tax revenue this will increase for the feds.

Many property owners in the Mt. Hood Corridor from Government Camp to Welches and Brightwood would see a substantial hit from the second home mortgage deduction termination because so many homes in our area are second homes. This would impact home values by sending them lower with less tax benefits for owning a second home.

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Displaying blog entries 1691-1700 of 1904

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