Prices on homes and condos for sale in West Chester, Beckett Ridge and Liberty Township -increased slightly in August.

According to the Multiple Listing Service of Greater Cincinnati real estate activity is shown below:

Data from Greater Cincinnati Multiple Listing Service

Data from Greater Cincinnati Multiple Listing Service

Data from Greater Cincinnati Multiple Listing Service

The number of single family homes closing in August:
Beckett Ridge- 0
West Chester- 39
Liberty Township- 33

So while real estate continues to sell (and close) listing prices are inching up- the question is whether buyers will pay a little more…or wait until the seller reduces the price.

Stay ahead of the by market by clicking here.

More detailed information about your property’s market value is available-just email or call.

Interest rates are dropping for the OHFA First Time Homebuyer Program!  The new rates went into effect Monday, September 13, 2010.   This is great news for home buyers in the greater Cincinnati area.

First-Time Homebuyer Program:
Mortgage Rates
4.25% for loans without 2.5% assistance grant
4.75% for loans with 2.5% assistance grant
4.00% for Ohio Heroes without 2.5% assistance grant
4.50% for Ohio Heroes with 2.5% assistance grant
4.25% for Grant for Grads 2.5% assistance grant

30-year fixed rate FHA/VA/USDA-RD loans are eligible
2-1 buy downs are permitted**
**Please see the underwriting guidelines for specific product information

Fees
$150 Transfer fee to Servicer (US Bank fee)
$79 Tax service fee (US Bank fee, not to exceed $90)
1% origination fee
Additional fees may apply to certain products

Make sure you are a qualified buyer and purchasing a qualified property within the acreage limitation.

Effective Dates:
Loans must close between September 13, 2010 – February 14, 2011.
Mortgage file must be delivered to servicer by February 21, 2011.

Note:
The federal recapture tax provision applies to all loans in this program. View the IRS explanation on recapture of federal subsidy. Please remember, OHFA will reimburse for any recapture tax payments for all loans reserved after March 1, 2006.

OHFA has helped lots of first time homebuyers and if you need to talk a OHFA qualified lender-let me know and I will have one contact you.

Below is the Market Action Reports for 6 zip-codes in the greater Cincinnati area – click here to order your report….call or email for details.

The information covers all the single family homes in the zipcode- which usually encompasses several neighborhoods and sometimes different school districts. For specifics- call me.

45208

45233

45011

45014

 45040


45069
  

This is the abbreviated version of the detailed information available for the zip-codes.

Driving up Elm Street last week heading to the OAR (Ohio Association of Realtors) annual meetings I thought the street signs were pretty descriptive of today’s real estate market in Cincinnati, Mason, West Chester and surrounding communities.

What is the right direction?

Do you put your property on the market?  If you’re already listed- do you stay with the current listing price or drop the price?  Change agents?  Change the carpet?  If I’m a buyer- do I wait for another tax credit?  Can I get a mortgage?  Will the sellers really negotiate?  If I buy this property today- will I be missing a better deal – maybe something I will like better?

Just like the traffic at Elm and Fourth downtown are faced with stop lights, directional arrows and pedestrian traffic, today’s real estate market is still in motion-but at a slightly slower speed. 

The basic questions and concerns about buying and selling are the same ones buyers and sellers have been asking for decades.  (Well maybe the tax credit is relatively new)

And just like flow of traffic going up Elm street is impacted by broken stop lights, road work, lousy weather and jaywalkers greater Cincinnati home sales are ”feeling the impact” of the economic hiccups.

The bottom line seems to be until people are comfortable with their employment/income status-they will continue to wobble about buying a house or condo.  

The Multiple Listing Service of Greater Cincinnati has a neat report on their home page- a 24-Hour Market Watch.  It’s a snapshot of what’s going on in the real estate market.  So over the weekend (until 11 am this morning) 53 new listings hit the market and 32 are pending.  So the speed may be slower but real estate traffic is still moving.  If you cannot figure out what to do- call or email me.

Contrary to popular belief Downtown Cincinnati is not going to the dogs!  It’s roaring with things to do.

And it’s not just crazed Bengals fans waiting for a victory (remember we lost the opener last year and made it to the playoffs) this weekend Oktoberfest-Zinzinnati takes over downtown.  And while Cincinnati gets national attention for our chicken dance, I think the following weekend offers a better opportunity for everybody to enjoy another part of downtown by joining the fun at painting the street.

Thanks to the Fine Arts Fund, Cincinnatians (and the rest of us living the burbs) are going to paint the street on Sunday -September 26, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.

 
Map designed by Alex Kesman from Know Theatre

According to those who know- the canvas will be the pavement on 12th Street from Main Street all the way to Central Parkway. As you can see on the map- this section of 12th is overflowing with “arts” activities from schools, Music Hall and theaters.

Don’t miss this opportunity to spend some quality time downtown with your neighbors…and unlike Oktobefest there are no age restrictions…painters of all ages are welcome.