For more information on current Allandale and Austin area listings visit http://www.leeallbright.com for map and form enabled search tools for easy access to active MLS listings. And please think of me for any of your real estate needs.

Click here to access January 2012

Below is a summary of our neighborhood real estate transactions for the period beginning June 6, 2011 through October 9, 2011.

Click here to access October 2011 newsletter.

Read more: Downtown Austin condos sell 62 units in May | Austin Business Journal

Read more: ACC enters deal for rest of Highland Mall land | Austin Business Journal

February 2011

Freddie Mac (OTC BB: FMCC) said a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to an average of 4.95 percent in the week ending Feb. 24, down from 5 percent last week. A 15-year fix fell to an average of 4.22 percent, down from 4.27 percent.

Read more: Mortgage rates back below 5 percent | Austin Business Journal

But let’s ring in the new decade optimistically, with Walletpop’s Top 10 List of the Best Places to Buy a Home in 2011. This mostly unscientific and partially biased list is based on a grab-bag of lifestyle priorities and, yes, thorough reporting.

The group’s Multiple Listing Service data showed total homes sold decreased to 1,221 in October, while home listings were up 8 percent to 9,703 properties on the market. At the same time, the median price jumped 10 percent to about $198,500.

Read more: Austin home prices up 10%, sales down, report says | Austin Business Journal

Here are a few tips to help you get organized:

• Pull a credit report on yourself and make sure the information is accurate. If you
  find any errors take steps to correct them immediately.
• Browse through real estate advertisements in the newspaper and on the web. You’ll
  get a good feel for the types of homes that are on the market and what they cost.
• Visit open houses on the weekend. It doesn’t cost anything to look, and looking
  at a few different homes might give you ideas for things you’d like in a house
  but haven’t considered.
• Start saving money – you’ll need to have cash on hand for a down payment and closing
  costs.
• Don’t incur any additional debt. Pay down your credit cards – and don’t apply for
  any new ones. Don’t make any major purchases on credit – buy the furniture or car
  later.
• Contact me to help you find your ideal home. If you have access to email, let me set
  up a profile for you in the MLS email system which allows you to receive emails daily of
  any new or changed properties on the market.

How much house can you afford?

Simply put, you can afford a house that costs as much as the largest monthly mortgage
payment you qualify for. A quick way to estimate the size of mortgage you qualify
for is to take your gross monthly income (that’s before taxes and other deductions)
and multiply it by .28. This works out to just over 1/4 of your gross income.

Mortgage
companies use something called “qualifying ratios” to determine how much
they’ll lend you. Most mortgage companies use either a 28/36 ratio or a 25/33 ratio.
The first number in each pair is the percentage of your gross income that the lender
would consider acceptable as a monthly mortgage payment (i.e. if you make $3,000
per month, 28% of that is $840 per month). The second number in each pair is used
when all debt payments are considered, not just the mortgage. (i.e. if you make
$3,000 per month, but also have a $250 a month car payment, 36% of $3,000 is $1,080,
minus the $250 car payment equals $830). As you can see, in this example the numbers
work out to be almost the same. Obviously if you have more debt you would qualify
for less. Get an idea about what you qualify for using this .