San Antonio Homes For Sale - Property Taxes

So, what can a home buyer expect to pay in yearly real estate taxes in and around San Antonio and Bexar and adjoining counties?

The following is a very good article from the Bexar County tax assessor’s website. It’s worth reading because it explains how the property taxes are set and collected, but doesn’t specifically address tax rates.

To save research time, simply contact a San Antonio area real estate advisor and ask for tax information on a representative property meeting your home ownership wants and needs. For example, tell the advisor you want to know about property taxes for the average recent vintage $100,000, 3 bedroom, 2 and 1/2 bath, 2 car garage home near Randolph Air Force Base.

Your real estate advisor should be able to tell you very quickly about the average property tax bill for such a property. By the way, the answer is approximately $3,000 per year.

Here’s the article explaining the Texas property tax system:

Property Taxes. Property taxes are local taxes. Local officials value your property, set your tax rates, and collect your taxes. State law governs how this process works.There are four main parts to the property tax system. The appraisal district values property, administers exemptions, calculates tax ceilings and maintains current ownership information on the appraisal records. The appraisal review board is a panel made up of people from the local community. They are independent from the appraisal district. They settle any disagreements between the appraisal district and the property owner about the valuation of the property. The governing bodies of the taxing units, such as the city councils, school boards, or county commissioners decide the annual budgets and set the tax rates. This determines the total amount of taxes to be paid. The tax office calculates the levy, mails the statements, collects the taxes and disburses the tax revenue to the taxing units.The Bexar County Tax Office collects taxes for 52 taxing entities. All property in Bexar County is taxable by the county, Flood Control, Alamo Community College District, University Health System, San Antonio River Authority and one of the independent school districts. There may also be additional taxes for cities or towns, or special districts such as municipal utility and Emergency Service Districts.Property taxes are a major source of funding for local services. They help pay for public schools, community health services, fire and police protection, streets, roads, flood control projects, and many other services.The property tax is an ad valorem tax. Ad valorem is a Latin phrase which means according to value. The tax is based on the value of the property. For example the property tax on land valued at $10,000 will be ten times higher than land valued at $1,000.

All property is taxable unless state or federal law exempts all or part of the value. Total exemptions may be granted for public properties or those owned by qualifying organizations such as churches, schools, or charitable organizations. A partial property tax exemption excludes part of a property´s value from taxation (i.e., General Residential Homestead, Over-65 Homestead, Disability Homestead and Disabled Veterans Exemptions).

What a property is used for on January 1, market conditions at the time, and who owns the property on that date, determine whether the property is taxed, its value, and who is responsible for paying the tax. A tax lien attaches to property on January 1 to secure payment of taxes for the year.

END OF ARTICLE

Of course, we’ll be pleased to answer your property tax questions and, if you’re a buyer looking to visit listings or a seller wanting to sell ahome, we can help.


We’re Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors® of Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, Texas. If you have questions, need San Antonio realty or mortgage loan advice or assistance, or just want to chat a bit about the wonderful Alamo City, please call us at (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743, or E-mail us at swkrealtor@aol.com or http://kelleybus@aol.c/om. Our SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.




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Tips For Buying A San Antonio Home - Coming Up With The Down Payment

If you’re looking to buy a San Antonio home and you’re entitled to VA mortgage loan benefits, you’ll most likely use a VA mortgage to make your purchase. Why? Because your VA mortgage loan provides 100% financing, ie., you can be in with no down payment.

But, what if you can’t qualify for a VA mortgage loan?

The good news is this. In today’s market, if your credit score (minimum 620) and your debt-to-income ratios are good, there will be a mortgage loan program available for you. The bad news is this. You’ll have to come up with a down payment.

So, how do you come up with down payment money?

Click here for timely tips offered by San Francisco blogger Tara-Nicholle Nelson. It’s a good article - well worth the reading.

And, of course, when you’re ready to visit homes for sale and deal with mortgage lenders, we can help.

We’re Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors® of Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, Texas. If you have questions, need San Antonio realty or mortgage loan advice or assistance, or just want to chat a bit about the wonderful Alamo City, please call us at (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743, or E-mail us at swkrealtor@aol.com or kelleybus@aol.com. Our SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.

Buying A San Antonio Foreclosure Property

So, you might want to buy a "foreclosure?" 

You've heard a foreclosure might be an opportunity to snag a home for a bargain price.  But, what, exactly, is a foreclosure?

The term "foreclosure" is defined by the status of the property.

First, there is the foreclosure being auctioned at the courthouse steps by a trustee representing the lender after the homeowner has defaulted on the mortgage payments. This type of  foreclosure is risky and most buyers avoid taking the risk if they aren't well versed with the legal and technical aspects of buying a foreclosure auction property.

Second, there is the foreclosure that has already been sold at the courthouse steps and, more often than not, bought by the lender foreclosing on the property in the first place. These foreclosure properties are most commonly referred to as REO (real estate owned) properties, meaning they are owned by lending institutions. Usually, a REO is eventually listed for sale in the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS).

Third, there is foreclosure signed over to the government by a lender after a borrower has defaulted on a FHA or VA loan. The lender gets the loan insurance proceeds guaranteed by the FHA or VA program and gets off the hook. The government takes over, MLS advertises the property, and, through an intermediary asset manager, sells the property.

A foreclosure may be a good deal, but don't count on it in the San Antonio realty market. It seems like our market has stayed too healthy to drive down the value of foreclosures in good condition. The best foreclosures can even sell for a price above market value.

If you find a foreclosure that meets your needs, seek the assistance of an experienced realty advisor to help you through the bidding process.

We can help.  We're Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors® of Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, Texas. If you have questions, need San Antonio realty or mortgage loan advice or assistance, or just want to chat a bit about the wonderful Alamo City, please call us at (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743, or E-mail us at swkrealtor@aol.com or kelleybus@aol.com. Our SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.

VA Loan Eligibility For Buying A San Antonio Home

Do you have questions about your VA eligibility for buying a San Antonio home?

Your eligibility is determined on a case-by-case basis by the Department of Veteran Affairs and is proven by a Certificate of Eligibility showing the amount of your entitlement.

To be considered for a VA home loan, you must meet one or a combination of these basic military service requirements:

90 days of active duty during wartime

181 days of continuous active duty during peacetime

6 years of service for Reservist/National Guard

Must you have an honorable discharge to qualify?  Perhaps not.  When it comes to the question of discharge type, the VA determines eligibility on a case-by-case basis.

Issuance of your Certificate of Eligibility (COE) is essential before you apply for your VA backed home mortgage.  It tells the lender the amount of your entitlement.

So, what's so great about a VA home loan?  Basically, it's a wonderful reward for your dedication and service to your country.  Specifically, you'll enjoy:

No down payment (100% financing)

No private mortgage insurance (PMI)

Relaxed qualifying standards

Competitive interest rates

No penalties for mortgage pre-payment

Cash-out and debt consolidation

Streamline rate reduction

For more information on your eligibility, you should contact the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, or speak with a VA loan professional at your credit union, bank, or at a mortgage brokerage.

We can help you find a VA loan expert.  Contact us.

We're Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors® of Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, Texas. If you have questions, need San Antonio realty or mortgage loan advice or assistance, or just want to chat a bit about the wonderful Alamo City, please call us at (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743, or E-mail us at swkrealtor@aol.com or kelleybus@aol.com. Our SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.

Minimum Credit Score To Qualify To Buy A San Antonio Home

It's a fabulous summer for San Antonio home sales.  There's a larger than usual inventory of reasonably priced and well prepared resale homes.  New home builders are enticing buyers with valuable incentives.  Mortgage interest rates are historically low. 

Yet, many buyers have been holding back, concerned about their ability to acquire a mortage loan and confused about the sustainability of the national economic recovery.

Nonetheless, lenders report a promising trend.  It appears more prospective buyers are now willing to launch their home search and are wisely consulting with a loan officer about qualifing for a mortgage loan.   

Lenders report the average loan seeker almost always starts the loan qualifying discussion with questions about the significance of the FICO credit score.   Most people already know their score but aren't sure what it means.  Here's the answer.

FICO scores generally fall between 550 and 800. Nearly 20% of the U.S. population have a credit score under 620 and that's the cutoff for a prime-rate loan.   But the FICO score is only one of many factors taken into consideration when qualifying for loan.  For example, income and debt issues can offset even the best FICO score. 

Once all factors are taken into consideration, a loan officer can advise a prospective buyer to either start looking for a dream home or to take steps to improve the financial factors holding back qualiflying for a mortgage loan.

We're Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors® of Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, Texas. If you have questions, need San Antonio realty or mortgage loan advice or assistance, or just want to chat a bit about the wonderful Alamo City, please call us at (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743, or E-mail us at swkrealtor@aol.com or kelleybus@aol.com. Our SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.

Why Rent A San Antonio Home In A Buyers Market?

Are you renting or hope to rent a San Antonio area home?  Do you know someone who is now renting? With so many opportunities for San Antonio area home buyers, everyone who is renting or hopes to rent should at least explore what home buying opportunities are available.

This summer, San Antonio residential real estate is boldly in a buyer's mode.  Mortgage interest rates remain at historic lows.  List prices are comparatively much lower than in past years.  Sellers are now helping buyers with down payments, buying down rates, offering concessions and much more!

The real estate market changes quickly, so don't let yourself  or your friends miss out on this fantastic opportunity. Check out homes for sale on your favorite San Antonio realty website (like sanantoniohomequest.com).  Call a Realtor for realty information and home search advice and assistance.  Tell your renting friends to do the same.  You, and they, won't be disappointed.

We're Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors® of Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, Texas. If you have questions, need San Antonio realty or mortgage loan advice or assistance, or just want to chat a bit about the wonderful Alamo City, please call us at (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743, or E-mail us at swkrealtor@aol.com or kelleybus@aol.com. Our SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.

Information About Texas Real Estate Broker Services

Texas law requires all real estate licensees to give a written statement about brokerage services upon first substantive dialogue with a prospective buyer, tenant, seller or landlord.  According to Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) rules, a substantive dialogue can occur at a face-to-face or telephone meeting or by written communication (including email) that involves a substantive discussion relating to a specific real estate property.  If the substantive dialogue occurs at other than a face-to-face meeting (like a telephone conversation), the required written statement should be sent to the party promptly.

The required information is easily conveyed using TREC's Information About Brokerage Services disclosure form.  The form is found here:

www.trec.state.tx.us/pdf/contracts/op-k.pdf

We're Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors® of Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, Texas. If you have questions, need San Antonio realty or mortgage loan advice or assistance, or just want to chat a bit about the wonderful Alamo City, please call us at (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743, or E-mail us at swkrealtor@aol.com or kelleybus@aol.com. Our SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.

July 2010 San Antonio Homes For Sale Report

The second week in July is typically San Antonio's realty market yearly high point. Many pending sales will close within the next 30 days. Uncommitted buyers with school age children must rush to find the right home in order to be able to close on their purchase or at least be under a binding contract before school starts.


This year, many factors are converging to make San Antonio's realty market exciting, interesting, and somewhat confusing.

Although the local economy is strong and population growth is high, home values in many neighborhoods have depreciated. Home sellers have lowered their list prices accordingly, but buyer response has been tepid and the inventory of homes for sale is growing at an unusually fast pace. Also, builders are offering enticing incentives in an effort to move their new home inventory more quickly.

Despite the fact that mortgage rates are the lowest since the 1950's and there is an ample supply of very reasonably priced homes to pick from, Realtors® report their current home buyer traffic has fallen well below expectations. Some are concerned that the end of the Federal home buyer tax credit programs may have signaled a long term lull in demand caused by faltering buyer confidence in the national economy.

It is difficult to reach conclusions as to the long term market trends, but in the short term, it's clear San Antonio's home market remains extremely favorable for buyers. As for sellers, the advantage will go to the seller most willing to reduce his or her price expectations and to expend the money, time, and effort to improve the property's condition and appearance.

For those who love the stats, here are the key indicators for San Antonio's single family detached home listings as of 11 July, 2010.

There are 12,948 active listings compared to 12,033 one year ago. The inventory is rising fast. That's a good sign for home buyers.

The average sales price for the most recent closings is $190,497, compared to last year's $189,785. The absence of any significant sales price appreciation is another good sign for buyers.

Average cumulative-days-on-the-market (CDOM) for the most recent sales is 121 compared to 137 last year. During 2009, CDOM figures were unacceptably high, but dropped fast during the Federal Tax credit home buying frenzy. It remains to be seen if cumulative market time will improve further, but a slight upward trend is possible. Nonetheless, for the time being, CDOM data is positive for San Antonio home sellers, specifically, and for San Antonio's realty market, generally.

Industry analysts see these data as reflecting a housing market strongly favoring buyers over sellers.

That's all for our 11 July 2010 San Antonio realty market report. We encourage reader comments and recommendations about how to make our reports more informative and useful.

We're Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors® of Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, Texas. If you have questions, need San Antonio realty or mortgage loan advice or assistance, or just want to chat a bit about the wonderful Alamo City, please call us at (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743, or E-mail us at swkrealtor@aol.com or kelleybus@aol.com. Our SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.

Active Option Defined For San Antonio Homes For Sale

Active option means a buyer has successfully negotiated a contract to buy the property and, for a small fee, has purchased the unrestricted right to back out of the contract within a negotiated number of days, usually 10 days in this market. If the buyer exercises his option to walk away, the property will go back on the market. During the option period, the buyer will have the property inspected by a licensed residential property inspector (if he so chooses), takes steps to finalize loan arrangements, and
contemplates going through, or not going through, with the purchase.

The seller may continue to allow showings during the option period in hopes of garnering a back up offer.

We’re Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors® of Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, Texas. If you have questions, need San Antonio realty or mortgage loan advice or assistance, or just want to chat a bit about our wonderful Alamo City, please call us at (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743, or E-mail us at swkrealtor@aol.com or kelleybus@aol.com. Our SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.

San Antonio Gated Community Security

The safety of San Antonio gated communities may be a myth. The police department advises gated community homeowners to be especially vigilant because thieves and no-good-doers scope out and work the communities just because they know the residents have a false sense of security. Gated communities are notorious for being targets for auto vandalism and burglaries. Some San Antonio gated communities tend to have a rash of incidents about every three years.

We’re Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors® of Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, Texas. If you have questions, need San Antonio realty or mortgage loan advice or assistance, or just want to chat a bit about our wonderful Alamo City, please call us at (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743, or E-mail us at swkrealtor@aol.com or kelleybus@aol.com. Our SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.

Buying A New Vs Resale San Antonio Home

If you are considering buying a San Antonio home, it's always worthwhile to look at the new home builders' products. A newly built home's appeal is so great that a very high percentage of San Antonio home buyers purchase new versus resale homes.

It's easy to see why. Each year, the builders seem to have ever more enticing features built into their products. The homes are new and unspoiled. They don't have the expected wear and tear found in every resale home, no matter its age. The builders' lending programs are very competitive and the builders offer additional incentives to encourage the buyer to use their affiliate lenders.

That said, be cautious if you decide to buy a newly constructed home product . It's not in your best interest to rely on the builder's sales representative and construction staff to adequately represent your interests. Take along someone who knows the hooks and pitfalls of new home buyer incentive and mortgage loan programs. Use someone who knows how to monitor the process from contract writing to closing and will be
ready to step in on your behalf is something goes awry.

If you decide to buy a new construction home, we'll be happy to help you.

We're Stephanie and Randy Kelley, Realtors® of Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, Texas. If you have questions, need San Antonio realty or mortgage loan advice or assistance, or just want to chat a bit about our wonderful Alamo City, please call us at (210) 863-2661 or (210) 867-8743, or E-mail us at swkrealtor@aol.com or kelleybus@aol.com. Our SanAntonioHomeQuest.com Realty Solutions Team is always ready to help you with your home buying or selling needs.