Tag Archive for: Real estate market

Renting vs. Owning…A Cost Analysis

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Renting a home can often be more expensive than owning a home in the long term due to several financial benefits associated with home ownership especially if the home is sold after 10 years.

Let’s break down the key factors to illustrate why this might be the case:

Assumptions…

Appreciation Schedule

Assuming a 7% annual appreciation rate over the last 10 years for a home in the Bay Area:

  • Initial Home Value: $1,500,000
  • Appreciated Value After 10 Years: $2,950,726.50

Mortgage and Refinancing

Assuming a 20% down payment and an initial interest rate of 7%, refinanced to 6% after 6 months:

  • Initial Mortgage: $1,200,000
  • Initial Interest Rate: 7%
  • Refinanced Interest Rate: 6%
  • Loan Term: 30 years

Tax Write-Off

In a 32% tax bracket, the mortgage interest is tax-deductible, providing substantial tax savings.

Rent vs. Buy Scenario

Comparing the cost of renting at $6,000 per month with a 2.65% annual inflation rate over 10 years versus owning.

Renting Costs

  • Initial Rent: $6,000 per month
  • Annual Rent Increase: 2.65%
  • Total Rent Paid Over 10 Years: Approximately $812,218

Homeownership Costs

  • Monthly Mortgage Payment:
    • Initial 6 months at 7%: $7,983.63 per month
    • Remaining term at 6%: $7,238.39 per month
  • Total Mortgage Payments:
    • Initial 6 months: $47,901.78
    • Subsequent 9.5 years: $825,837.42
    • Total: $873,739.20

Tax Savings

  • First Year Interest Payment: $84,000
  • First Year Tax Savings: $26,880
  • Subsequent Years Interest Payment: $72,000 per year
  • Subsequent Years Tax Savings: $23,040 per year
  • Total Tax Savings Over 10 Years: $234,240
  • Net Mortgage Payments (after Tax Savings): $639,499.20

Sale of the Home After 10 Years

  • Appreciated Home Value: $2,950,726.50
  • Original Purchase Price: $1,500,000
  • Capital Gain: $2,950,726.50 – $1,500,000 = $1,450,726.50
  • Capital Gains Exclusion for Married Couple: $500,000
  • Taxable Capital Gain: $950,726.50
  • Capital Gains Tax (20%): $190,145.30

Summary of Costs and Benefits

Renting Costs (Over 10 Years)

  • Total Rent Paid: $812,218

Homeownership Costs (Over 10 Years)

  • Total Mortgage Payments: $873,739.20
  • Total Tax Savings: $234,240
  • Net Mortgage Payments (after Tax Savings): $639,499.20
  • Capital Gains Tax: $190,145.30

Financial Outcome After Selling the Home

  • Net Proceeds from Sale: $2,950,726.50 (Appreciated Value) – $1,200,000 (Remaining Mortgage Balance) – $190,145.30 (Capital Gains Tax) = $1,560,581.20

Conclusion (Including Home Sale)

When considering the sale of the home after 10 years:

  • Total Cost of Renting: $812,218
  • Net Cost of Owning (including mortgage payments and tax savings): $639,499.20
  • Net Proceeds from Home Sale: $1,560,581.20

Owning a home not only becomes more cost-effective compared to renting over 10 years but also significantly increases the homeowner’s net worth through appreciation and equity building. The net proceeds from selling the home further amplify the financial benefits of homeownership, making it a far more attractive option for long-term wealth accumulation.

For more info, please contact us.

Best Regards,

101 Loan
Senior Mortgage Advisor
www.101Loan.com
650-465-8957 c  408-377-4123 o
CA DRE #01205444  NMLS #326829
101 Loan – 14435 C Big Basin Way, Saratoga, CA 95070

Products/Services/Accolades:

  1. Residential Financing for Purchases and Refinances on 1 to 4 unit properties.
  2. Reverse Mortgage Financing to include Conforming, Jumbo, HELOC Jumbo’s.
  3. Commercial & SBA Financing to include Multifamily, Office, Retail and Light Industrial.
  4. Access to over 60 banks with over 300 “Five Star” Reviews on Yelp, Google and Linkedin.
  5. Over 30 years of lending experience with over $2b in closed loan volume.

Note...Above info is for educational purposes and not to be construed as wealth planning or tax planning advice.  For more info, please contact a professional to confirm the above and how it will impact or affect you.

Ready to Buy a Home?  Follow These Steps!

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Step 1 – Research and Preparation

  • Understand the Process: Learn about the real estate market in your desired area.  Educate yourself on the home buying process and the need for representation by a realtor and lender that work together so mistakes are not made ensuring your success with home ownership.
  • Determine Your Purchase Power to include Home Affordability and Get Pre-qualified to understand your purchase power and what that buys you in terms of a property based on the price and its location.
  • Market Research: Learn about local home prices, inventory levels, and market demand in your specific search areas and what’s needed to ratify an offer on the purchase of a home.

Step 2 – Set Goals and Budget

  • Get Preapproved for Financing: Lender underwrites your income, debt, assets and credit report to determine your max purchase power in writing subject to the appraisal, ratified purchase contract and prelim.
  • Determine Your Wants and Needs: Bedrooms, Bathrooms, Locations, Schools
  • Understand Market conditions: Align your budget with local prices and what your preapproved for to ensure you can obtain what you want when buying based on inventory.
  • Plan your timeline: Stick to a schedule for home hunting and closing.
  • Advocate for yourself: Ask questions on what you don’t know and rely on your Realtor and Lender to guide you through the process of buying.

Step 3 – Start Your Home Search

  • Explore neighborhoods: Visit areas and test distance for dollars.  How far from work do you have to travel to find properties or the neighbor you like where you’d eventually like to buy.
  • Scout listings: Use real-time alerts and compare properties provided by your realtor based on your wants and needs.
  • Realtor leveraged networks: Some properties never hit the MLS.  Realtors have access to properties you will never have access to.
  • “Virtually” preview homes: Shortlist the properties meeting your needs so you can then schedule a real estate tour of those properties with your Realtor.  Make this a priority as properties sell fast in the current market (5-16-24)
  • Determine the Pro’s and Con’s of each property so you can narrow down on the ones you’d like to make an offer on.

Step 4 – Making Your Offer

  • Discuss Price to Offer with Realtor: Decide on your offer amount based on inventory, market conditions and how many other offers are being made on the same property.
  • Discuss Offer with Realtor and Lender: They can help you differentiate your offer over others by offering a quick closing or long closing based on the needs of the seller.  Closing date, contingencies, rent backs, credits, who pays for what.
  • Make sure preapproval is current and updated specific to the price you want to offer.
  • Make sure the Realtor has spoken to the listing agent about your offer and to ensure your offer is aligned with the seller as much as possible.
  • Make Sure the Lender calls the listing agent on behalf of the offer to communicate the strength of the offer and answer any questions.

Step 5 – Possible Counters and Acceptance

  • Understand multiple-offer scenarios: Have strategies ready with your realtor and lender.
  • Negotiate effectively: Secure the best terms and finalize the contract.

Step 6 – Facilitate Closing

  • Coordinate with all parties: Ensure clear communication with agents, escrow, title, lender, inspector, appraiser, escrow officer, insurance company and bank.
  • Order inspections and appraisals: Confirm property condition and value based on what’s drafted in the ratified purchase contract.
  • Track deadlines: Create timeline all parties follow and update immediately if there are delays from any party to ensure everyone is to up to date.
  • Review closing documents from realtor but also lender: Ensure accuracy and completeness.
  • Prepare for closing meeting: Coordinate with escrow and bring necessary items to sign and eventually close.
  • Finalize the transaction: Sign documents. Coordinate with lender and escrow to record the purchase.  Once the purchase is recorded, the keys to the buyer unless a rent back amount the seller and buyer was previously negotiated.

This summary highlights the key steps in the home-buying process, focusing on research, budgeting, searching for homes, preparing financing, making offers, negotiating, and finalizing the purchase.

Any questions, please contact me.

Best Regards,

101 Loan
Senior Mortgage Advisor
www.101Loan.com
650-465-8957 c  hello@101loan.com
CA DRE #01205444  NMLS #326829
101 Loan – 14435 C Big Basin Way, Saratoga, CA 95070

Products/Services/Accolades:
  1. Residential Financing for Purchases and Refinances on 1 to 4 unit properties.
  2. Reverse Mortgage Financing to include Conforming, Jumbo, HELOC Jumbo’s.
  3. Commercial & SBA Financing to include Multifamily, Office, Retail and Light Industrial.
  4. Access to over 60 banks with over 300 “Five Star” Reviews on Yelp, Google and Linkedin.
  5. Over 30 years of lending experience with over $2b in closed loan volume.

 

Interesting Times in Real Estate – Recent Changes in Commercial & Construction Financing – Part 4

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This is the final article of my series titled “Interesting Times in Real Estate” that covers the following key real estate trends:

  • Housing Inventory
  • Interest Rates
  • Recent Changes in Residential Real Estate
  • Recent Changes in Commercial and Construction Financing (Today’s article)

If you have questions about these or any other topics related to real estate, real estate financing or real estate trends, please feel free to reach out to me.

Now for Part 4 – Recent Changes in the World of Commercial and Construction Financing.

First of All…What is Commercial and Construction Financing?

Answer: Any building, structure or location where business is conducted and where revenue may be created that needs financing.  In addition, any residential style property equal to 5 units or more, often referred to as multifamily or apartments where renters reside.  Lastly, if the structure or building is not built, often times investors or buyers will build out the property and have the need for financing, also called Construction financing.

Next…

What are the Types of Commercial Property?

  • Multifamily/Apartments
  • Retail
  • Office
  • Light Industrial
  • Auto Dealerships
  • Parking Structures
  • Skilled Nursing
  • Anything Hospitality

What Happened Last Year and This Year?

Do you remember these three letters, SVB?  Well in 2023, Silicon Valley Bank closed their doors only to be purchased by First Citizens Bank on March 23, 2023.

Why did SVB close? 

For two reasons, that include a lack of diversification where much of their customers’ deposits were from tech companies. SVB then invested those funds in long term U.S. treasuries and mortgage-backed securities, which got crushed when the Federal Reserve increased rates in 2022 and part of 2023 causing these assets to lose significant value.  That was followed by a bank run where customers withdrew their money as news spread that SVB may go out of business, which it did, creating mass losses for the bank and for the FDIC to the tune of $20B.

Other banks followed suit including First Republic and Signature Bank as well as others.

As banks closed, consumer confidence suffered not only for depositors but for other banks throughout the U.S. as well.  This caused banks to tread carefully in creating lending relationships with new clients but also seriously looking at existing clients that lost liquidity or showed declining income or declining cash reserves.  The bank’s focus in lending went from focus on the property to the borrower and if the borrower was not perfect, the lender would cease ties to them especially if they had a lending relationship with them.

Interesting how this feels like SOX in that one company can have a negative impact on the entire real estate and banking industry and its banking customers.

What is Commercial Lending Like Today?

In one word – conservative!  Or maybe better yet, two words – very conservative!

In the past, banks that loaned on commercial type properties mostly focused on the property in terms of location, cash flow and condition of property.  With construction, bank financing would typically be based on what was being built and the potential market for the finished product whether the property was a home, townhouse, condo, 4 unit or commercial property.

Today those property factors are still a concern, but now lenders are very much concerned about the borrower’s experience, relationship with the bank, cash reserves, credit, solvency etc.  If any red flags emerge, the bank will simply decline the deal with little explanation.  In fact, some banks aren’t taking on any new business whatsoever until consumer and banking confidence increases.

Imagine if you’re a commercial loan officer at a bank that currently isn’t willing to loan to anyone…What do you do?  Quit and go to another bank that could do the very same thing?  Better yet, imagine you’re the customer and you’re looking to get a deal done where financing is needed and the bank says, we are not lending right now and have no plans in the immediate future to lend.

This year and last year, I had many commercial banks that were once my “go to” for financing, but today some are simply saying they aren’t lending in the current climate regardless of what the client has in reserves or in experience or what the property cash flows at.  As a mortgage broker, having access to multiple banks is critical in today’s climate and I’m grateful to have access to more than 60 banks, many of which are still lending at favorable terms.

Recent Story about Lending…

Recently I had a client looking to obtain construction financing equal to $15M to build 5 custom homes and all of the big banks stated that there was too much risk in building homes on spec (to be sold in the future).

My response to these banks…Wait a minute…the borrower owns the land, residential inventory is at an all-time low and demand is at an all-time high.  What risk?  We ended up getting it done with a local bank that asked the client to deposit a little less than 10% of the loan proceeds (something that is very common right now).

Another Story…

Another client that was looking to purchase a medical office and use SBA which is super expensive as rates are at an all-time high coupled with high fees. I offered a better solution that uses the client’s income and the current rents from the property to qualify.  It requires 15% down versus 10% down but saves the client about 1% in rate and about $20k in closing costs.

Being a mortgage broker in this market sure has its benefits as it gives our clients much more freedom and flexibility than working with a large bank that has lots of rules and no flexibility all due to what occurred last year with SVB and First Republic.

Last Story…

Have a client that rents an office space and their landlord which is also the owner of the building recently had a “margin call” from their lender after finding out that the building they purchased 3 years ago has lost 50% of its value.  This was due to declining rents and lack of tenants as so many businesses work out of their home today.  As a result, the owner of the building has decided to walk away from the building and let the bank have the property.  The owner just wanted to inform their tenant.  Aren’t you glad you’re not the owner.  BTW…Property was worth $80M 3 years ago and today its worth $40m and their loan is $40m.  OUCH!  Hope they did not personally guarantee that loan!

Conclusion…

Real estate has its ups and its downs just like any industry, but working with people that understand the changing markets and adapt to those markets are the ones you want to work with.  If you have any need in Residential or Commercial Real Estate, please feel free to contact me.

All the Best,

101 Loan
Senior Mortgage Advisor
www.101Loan.com
650-465-8957 c
CA DRE #01205444  NMLS #326829
101 Loan – 14435 C Big Basin Way, Saratoga, CA 95070

Products/Services/Accolades:

  1. Residential Financing for Purchases and Refinances on 1 to 4 unit properties.
  2. Reverse Mortgage Financing to include Conforming, Jumbo, HELOC Jumbo’s.
  3. Commercial & SBA Financing to include Multifamily, Office, Retail and Light Industrial.
  4. Access to over 60 banks with over 300 “Five Star” Reviews on Yelp, Google and Linkedin.
  5. Over 30 years of lending experience with over $2b in closed loan volume.

 

 

 

 

Chasing the 2021-2022 Housing Market

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Over the last 30 years our office has seen multiple cycles in Real Estate and in the Stock Market.  These cycles consisted of Growth (where the US Equity Markets (Dow and Nasdaq) and housing prices soared), Over-Supply (where the curve flattened due to a lack of economic growth and housing inventory started increasing), Recession (where the US Equity Markets dropped and housing prices followed) and then Recovery (where consumer confidence increased and the US Equity Markets and housing prices slowly started to go back up).  Each cycle would last a max of 24 to 36 months.  

In my time of providing home financing to thousands of customers, I have personally witnessed these cycles and like clockwork we saw one in the 80’s, in the 90’s and in 2000’s.  Then in 2009, the books were rewritten and we found history changed.  Basically in 36 months following the 2009 housing and US Equity crash, we went into a recession, skipping “over-supply” all together and found us in a recession (the worst we had seen in 70 years since the great depression) with housing and the US Equity Markets free falling.  Then in 2012, the storm leveled and over the next 8 years we saw the Dow average rocket to 29,500 and housing prices hit all-time highs or so we thought.  Then on or around Q1 – 2020 (March 9th to be exact), the COVID pandemic scared investors but had little impact on Real Estate.  Yes, the Dow dropped down to 17,000 in change but US residential real estate stayed strong only pausing for a short period of time and then once the market could survive COVID, the US Equity Markets and US Residential Property Prices continued their way up with the Dow Average now at 35,526 (dtd 8/13/2021 at 10:22am PST) up 6026 since March 9, 2020 and US Real Estate Prices went even higher than 1.5 years ago.

Now let’s go back 12 -18 months (8/2020) where the US Equity Markets started showing signs of growth and there were signs (a vaccine for Covid) that things were improving not just locally but on national level and international level.  So many buyers and trade up sellers (selling first and then buying up) convinced themselves, that if they didn’t act quickly, they were going to miss a once in a lifetime opportunity and get priced out of the housing market also called FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)

Here’s where things got really bad for buyers… 

Residential Home, Townhouse and Condo Inventory drops below 1000 in several Bay Area counties as the economy bounces back.  Sellers backed by the advice of their Realtors, list properties 20% or lower causing a frenzy of buyers to over bid, making some offers with no contingencies for Financing or Inspections and some even decide to pay cash improving their position to “win” the offer.

Then this Happens…

That Overbid becomes the new comp for the area.  Why is that a problem?  See below…

Let’s say you were looking at $1M dollar home in the Bay Area and had to compete with someone that already sold their home and has a lot of cash for the down payment or has enough cash to pay for it out right.  The house is listed for $1M but it’s really worth $1.2m and you decide to come in at $1.2M but someone else comes in at $1.4M that pays $200K more than the fair market value.  The home closes escrow and now that home and other properties like it within a 1-to-2-mile distance are now worth $1.4M.  You the buyer, start looking at making another offer, but now what was $1.2M is now worth 1.4M.  What if you don’t make an aggressive offer on the next property?  You might get outbid again and the prices of homes in that area are now even higher.  

Let’s say you take some time out of the buying frenzy, thinking it can’t stay this way and you start looking again only to find homes in the neighborhood you want, are now worth $1.6M or higher.  In just a short period of time you saw homes in one neighborhood go from $1.2M to $1.6M and then find out this phenomenon is happening in other desirable areas not just locally but nationally.

What do You Do?

Do you ride this one out or do you take the plunge, go super aggressive and pay $1.7m or higher for the next property in your desired neighborhood.  This dilemma is something every buyer has had to consider in the last 8 to 12 months.  If you want a “leg up on your next offer” 101 Loan LLC and a few Realtors we work with have the answer(s) to help win on your next offer.

In today’s market, you want to work with pro-active Real Estate Professionals and Time-Trusted Lenders but here’s the key…We can help you not become one of those frustrated buyers that are waiting for the housing bubble to burst.  Those buyers may be waiting for a long time, especially as many Bay Area HQ Companies are now forcing employees back to their Bay Area offices with many of them looking to buy locally again.  The employees that left the area for other less expensive areas, may soon become your competition in buying as large companies like IBM, Apple, Google and Facebook force employees to come back to the office in the very near future or risk economic consequences.

If you want to make a competitive offer and your next offer, we can help.  Contact Rob at your earliest convenience.