Kevin Langan Phoenix Real Estate Podcast‪​‬ Kevin Langan

Now is the time of year when many choose to stop and reflect on the things they are grateful for. Today, I want to let you know how thankful I am for all of you. Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value report Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale Today I wanted to let you know how grateful I am for you and your support. Thanksgiving is a great time to reflect on our blessings. I consider all of you to be among the things I am blessed with. Thanksgiving is a great time to reflect on our blessings. I appreciate all of you who have allowed me to serve you over this past year. I hope you have a happy Thanksgiving and a great holiday season. If you have any questions or have any real estate needs, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

We have an exciting announcement to make today. Stay tuned for good news. Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value report Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale The Langan Team is excited to announce that we are joining forces with Brandon Tracy and BTG real estate. With this merger, we’re going to be able to deliver an even higher level of service to our clients even as the industry is constantly changing around us. We have a desire to serve everyone we work with at the highest level possible. With the way things are changing in real estate, some of our personal goals got pushed by the wayside. Now that we have decided to join forces, it will allow us to accomplish all of our goals, both personally and professionally. We are very excited about what the future has to hold for ourselves and our clients. The result is going to be even better service. In addition to fantastic service, Brandon and BTG Real Estate bring a high level of marketing knowledge and leverage to what we already have. Simply put, these are two very talented organizations coming together and taking what each of them is best at to combine them into one package. If you have any questions for us about the merger and what it means for you, we’re always here to answer your call or email. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

How will the Fed’s recent rate hike affect our real estate market? I’ve got the answers for you. Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value report Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale On June 14th, the Fed raised the federal funds rate by 0.25%. When those types of things happen, people can start to get a little nervous. Mortgage interest rates have dropped recently to 3.9% in the wake of the recent Fed rate hike. That doesn’t seem like that should be the case, but the federal funds rate and mortgage bond rates don’t necessarily go hand-in-hand. The economy continues to do well, with unemployment and inflation rates looking good. The Fed will typically raise rates when the economy is doing well, so this rate hike was expected. That will keep growth on a sustainable pattern. This corresponds with increased sales and home appreciation rates. Interestingly enough, the number of mortgages has actually increased by 2.5% since last year. The economy continues to do well, with unemployment and inflation rates looking good. While the Fed raising or lowering rates tends to get a lot of attention, I feel that the real estate market is going to continue growing and won’t be affected by the changes we’ve been seeing. If you have any additional questions or you’re looking to buy or sell a home in our area, please give me a call. I’d be happy to help!

What’s driving the Phoenix real estate market? Three things in particular. Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value report Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale At the end of the 2nd quarter of 2017, there were three things that stood out to me in terms of market activity. Here’s what’s driving the market right now: 1. Active listings are down. There are fewer homes coming on the market this month than there were last month. That 6% decrease means inventory is still very low. 2. Pending sales. Right now, we’ve got 11,394 of them, which is down from last month’s 12,431. Some of this is due to a bit of a seasonal decline in our large metro area. Some of it is related to our depleted inventory. 3. Closed sales. This month, we had about 236 fewer sales than we did in the previous month, which isn’t a very big change. It’s a notable decrease, but we are still up 8% in closed sales year over year. Homes that are priced right are receiving offers quickly. What does this mean to you? We still have low inventory, affordable homes, and homes that are priced right are getting offers almost immediately after they hit the market. If you have any questions about the market or anything else relating to real estate, give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you.

If you want to buy a home but can't cover the down payment, there are three options for home loans here in the Phoenix area that are perfect for you. Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value report Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale If you want to buy a home but don't have any money for down payment, you still have three options. If you're a veteran of a military service, you might have VA eligibility that would allow you to qualify for a VA loan. This is a government-insured loan program that lets you buy a home without any money down. Another option would be looking at the many grant programs offered in our area. In Maricopa County, we have two in particular called Home Plus and Home in 5 that provide grant money that's set aside by the county for your down payment to buy a home. You can even get closing cost assistance from sellers; I've had client buy a home with way with less than $1,000 out of pocket. Our county has multiple grant programs with money set aside to cover your down payment. You can also look into USDA financing. This loan program is sponsored and insured by the United States Department of Agriculture and provides zero money down financing for rural areas. Most areas in Maricopa County don't fall into the USDA requirements, but there are some that do in surrounding areas. If you're interested in any of these three zero money down home loans or you have any other questions about the Phoenix market, give me a call or send me an email. I'm here to help.

If you're on the fence about investing in real estate as a rental property, learning these three benefits might tip the scales for you. Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value report Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale Real estate is an excellent vehicle for building long-term wealth as an investment. There are three benefits to focus on for buy and hold (rental) real estate investment properties: Cash flow: Once you close on the property and get a tenant, you'll receive income every single month from their rent. You need to make sure you're actually making profit and that the expenses of the property don't exceed the incoming cash. Tax breaks: There's a rule in the IRS code that allows you to depreciate the property - meaning you can write off its expenses over time and deduct it from your taxable income. This creates annual savings. Building equity in the property over time: As you rent out the property, the tenant will pay down the mortgage balance and the property will appreciate over time. Between your tenant paying down the mortgage and the appreciation (40-year average is about 4%), you'll build a lot of equity. Over time, a tenant pays down your mortgage while appreciation boosts your property's value. At the end of the investment, it's important to have an exit strategy in place to move that money into another investment or retirement. If you're thinking of investing in Phoenix real estate or just buying a home, give me a call or send me an email soon. I'd be glad to help however I can.