Omaha Residential Market Active Listings, Sales and Pending Sales

Bringing the Dream of Homeownership Within Reach For details and flyers to answer any questions, go to Ad Galleries in this web site and click on Home Buyer Tax Credit  As part of its plan to stimulate the U.S. housing market and address the economic challenges facing our nation, Congress has passed new legislation that: •     Extends the First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit of up to $8,000 to first-time home buyers until April 30, 2010.  •     Expands the credit to grant up to $6,500 credit to current home owners purchasing a new or existing home between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010.  Here is more information about how the Extended Home Buyer Tax Credit can help prospective home buyers become part of the American dream. Who Qualifies for the Extended Credit? •     First-time home buyers who purchase homes between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010. •     Current home owners purchasing a home between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010, who have used the home being sold or vacated as a principal residence for five consecutive years within the last eight.  To qualify as a "first-time home buyer" the purchaser or his/her spouse may not have owned a residence during the three years prior to the purchase. Which Properties Are Eligible? The Extended Home Buyer Tax Credit may be applied to primary residences, including: single-family homes, condos, townhomes, and co-ops. How Much Is Available? The maximum allowable credit for first-time home buyers is $8,000. The maximum allowable credit for current homeowners is $6,500. How is a Buyer’s Credit Amount Determined? Each home buyer's tax credit is determined by tow additional factors: 1.             The price of the home.  2.             The buyer’s income.  Price Under the Extended Home Buyer Tax Credit, credit may only be awarded on homes purchased for $800,000 or less. Buyer Income Under the Extended Home Buyer Tax Credit, which is effective on November 7, 2009,  single buyers with incomes up to $125,000 and married couples with incomes up to $225,000â€"may receive the maximum tax credit. These income limits have changed from the 2009 First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit limits.  If the Buyer(s)' Income Exceeds These Limits, Can He/She Still Get a Credit? Yes, some buyers may still be eligible for the credit. The credit decreases for buyers who earn between $125,000 and $145,000 for single buyers and between $225,000 and $245,000 for home buyers filing jointly. The amount of the tax credit decreases as his/her income approaches the maximum limit. Home buyers earning more than the maximum qualifying incomeâ€"over $145,000 for singles and over $245,000 for couples are not eligible for the credit. Can a Buyer Still Qualify If He/She Closes After April 30, 2010? Under the Extended Home Buyer Tax Credit, as long as a written binding contract to purchase is in effect on April 30, 2010, the purchaser will have until July 1, 2010 to close. Will the Tax Credit Need to Be Repaid? No. The buyer does not need to repay the tax credit, if he/she occupies the home for three years or more. However, if the property is sold during this three-year period, the full amount credit will be recouped on the sale.

2009 Market Review and 2010 Outlook I hope the new year finds you with improved optimism over the same time last year.  I know that I am far more confident and assured that our market is improving.  Several national publications, most notably, Forbes Magazine has recognized Omaha as the #1 recovering economy in the United States.  I continue to be thankful that we live in Omaha.   The information which am providing you today, is a combination of my personal experience over 37 years in Real Estate, my personal analysis, along with information provided by Trendgraphix ( a tool which NP Dodge provides me) and input from Gregg Mitchell of Mitchell & Associates, an appraisal and Real Estate Market analysis company.   I continue to believe that present market conditions provide one the best opportunities to purchase a home, especially if you are moving up in price range.   •                     Inventories, although having declined by 7.7% from December of 2008 to December of 2009, continue to be historically high.  This affords you a large inventory of homes from which to shop for your next home. •                     Interest rates are hovering around 5% which also is at historic lows. •                     While you may not sell your present home for the price you had hoped, the next home you purchase will also be at a lower price.  This is good investment strategy, to buy a larger and more expensive home at a discounted price, if you believe that the market will eventually return to price levels which existed prior to the present market decreases.   Mitchell and Associates analysis of 2009 is as follows:   •                     2009 was a year which saw improved sales in price ranges below $400,000 while sales in markets above $400,000 were down from prior years. •                     Sales of homes priced below $250,000 were up as a direct result of the $8,000 1st time homebuyer tax credit. •                     In the $250,000 to $400,000 price range sales were up just slightly from 2008. •                     Conditions in markets above $400,000 continue to be soft, but we are hopeful that the new tax credit for existing homebuyers will have a positive impact on this price range. •                     From $250,000 to $400,000, sales were up.  Many buyers seem to have re-entered this market as they feel that prices have "bottomed out."  This segment of the market is slightly oversupplied with a 6-month inventory.  Price trending continues to be flat to slightly declining.  Inventories in this price range are at a two year low.  Even though sales activity is improving, current and anticipated market conditions now only slightly favor the buyer.  Markets in this price range could achieve balance by the 2nd quarter if economic conditions continue to improve. •                     The $400,000 to $600,000 market is the segment that has suffered the most from high inventories and sluggish sales over the past 18 months, according to Mitchell & Associates analysis.  They report that prices of most homes had fallen rather dramatically over that term.  Again, this means a good buying opportunity for buyers entering this price range. •                     $600,000 -$2,000,000.  This is a market segment that was quite strong until 2007.  Since that time inventories have been high and sales activity is running well below the figures we enjoyed from 2000-2007.  Sales in this price range were down by 13% in 2009 compared with 2008.  The inventory, coupled with lower sales rates, tended to drive prices down at a rate of .5% to 1% per month during 2009 according to Mitchell and Associates.  NP Dodge, reported the most sales in this price range than any other company in the second half of 2009.  At forecasted absorption rates, there appears to be a 12 to 18 month supply of listings in this price range.   2010 Outlook: •                     We see activity continuing to build for 2010 despite the snow and lower temperatures.  •                     The first time homebuyer tax credit has been extended to June of 2010 but it appears activity in this price range has slowed in the past several months leading to a conclusion that perhaps demand for the first time buyer may be satisfied. •                     The $6500 tax credit for other buyers could enhance the move up market and empty nester activity in 2010 - most likely in the $250,000 to $400,000 range but not likely to have a great impact in the $400,000 and above range. •                     Builders continue to offer incentives or price discounts.  Speculation building will be slow. •                     Homes that sell will continue to be those that are priced very competitively and are in "show house" condition. •                     Buyers have been and will likely continue to seek concessions in terms of pricing, financing assistance and/or decorating allowances.  That trending will be with us as long as inventories remain high relative to absorption rates.   It is my hope that you find this information to be helpful.  If you or any of your friends, family or acquaintances want to buy or sell a home this year, please call me and give me their name and number and I will take it from there.  I thank you in advance for thinking of me.

Omaha Chamber Releases New Rankings and Recognitions on City and State by Jeff Slobotski on June 30, 2009 From our friends at the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce comes some new facts and figures on the great city and state many of us call home… It's been a busy quarter for national attention in Omaha and Nebraska with eight new or updated rankings for the city and 11 for the state. These additional 19 rankings coupled with 10 for the first quarter bring the total rankings for 2009 up to 29. 2Q 2009 Rankings and Recognitions Omaha received the #10 ranking for "America's Most Recession-Resistant Cities" (Brookings Institution â€" June 2009) Omaha was rated sixth on the list of "Best Mid-sized Cities for Next Gen Workers" (Next Generation Consulting â€" June 2009) Omaha was ranked fifth among the "Best Places to Start Over" (Business Week â€" June 2009) The Greater Omaha MSA is 11th on the "2009 Best Large Cities for Job Growth" (NewGeography.com â€" June 2009) Omaha ranked 35th out of 200 top metros for "Best Places for Business and Careers" (Forbes.com â€" June 2009) Omaha ranked 33rd out of 200 top metros for "Cost of Living" (Forbes.com â€" June 2009) Omaha ranked 35th out of 200 top metros for "Projected Job Growth" (Forbes.com â€" June 2009) Omaha is sixth on the list of "Most Favorable Cities for a Plant that Turns an Ethanol Byproduct into Health Food." (The Boyd Company â€" April 2009) Nebraska was one of only nine states to receive a "Green" rating for the "Best Places to Avoid a Recession" (JobBait.com â€" June 2009) Nebraska ranked 10th on the Forbes.com list of "Best States for Business" (Forbes.com â€" June 2009) Nebraska was identified as being more than 90 percent recession proof from 1991 through 2009 (JobBait.com â€" June 2009) Nebraska was listed among only 10 states whose economies are outperforming the U.S. economy as a whole (Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government â€" April 2009) Nebraska ranked 16th on a list of "America's Best States to Live" (Forbes.com â€" June 2009) Nebraska ranked #1 as the "Financially Happiest State in the Union" (MainStreet.com Happiness Index â€" April 2009) Nebraska is listed as a "Top 10 Pro-Business State for 2009" (Pollina Corporate Real Estate â€" June 2009) In the overall ranking for "Best States for Business", Nebraska is fifth (Directorship Boardroom Intelligence â€" June 2009) On the "National Physical Health Ranking", Nebraska is sixth (Forbes.com - June 2009) Nebraska ranked seventh for "Lowest Cost of Living in 2008? (CNBC.com â€" June 2009) Nebraska ranked 12th for "Quality of Life in 2008" (CNBC.com â€" June 2009) Updated… As of May 2009, Nebraska's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was less than half the national average (4.4 vs. 9.4) and was tied with North Dakota for the lowest unemployment rate in the nation (Bureau of Labor Statistics â€" 2009)

 

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