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Central Texas Real Estate Advice with Cliff Hahn

Amazing Tuscan Estate on 1 acre Hill Country- 405 Brave Face

- Maybe you're the parents of a college age student, on their way to enter college, or they're already in college. You've probably been faced with some really astronomical costs of student housing. Well here in Texas, parents are now buying houses near the campus, using their son or daughter as cosigners so they start building some good credit history, and during the time of college, they basically get to live in the house for free. You get to rent out the other bedrooms, and then when the student graduates from college, you have two options. You could sell the property and cash in on that equity, or keep the house, and continue to rent out the bedrooms using it as an income property. It's a great idea that's catching on and our good friend over at Supreme Lending, Andrea Keith, tells us how it's done. - Right, well actually that's a strategy I'm thinking of taking advantage of myself, and I've helped many clients do this also. It takes a little forethought, you have to have some established credit for the student. But if you're like me, and you have one, or more students that are going to be going to college soon, you wanna help them establish a little bit of credit profile so they have credit scores. Which I can advise on what to do for that. And then, when it comes time to think about student housing, maybe instead of going to a dorm, the parents could actually cosign for an occupied home for the student. And then the student can live close to campus, be in a home, and have a place to go. The parents probably would save some money on the housing, because potentially you could rent out to other students, rent a room out to their friends or what have you. And then as long as that student is in school there, the student has a place to live, student housing, that sort of thing. When the graduation happens, there's nothing that says you have to sell the home, you can keep it. It's a rental property for you and your child, or you could sell it and cash out the equity. So there's a lot of options there but it does help defray the cost of student housing when you're in college if you take advantage of this. - Andrea, how do parents start this process? - Well, I would say the first place to start is to get qualified and talk to a professional like me that knows how to deal with mortgages. We would need to pull credit, evaluate income and ratios and that sort of thing. And also need to build in the part with the student being on the loan itself. That keeps the minimal down payment. - You gotta admit that's a great idea. If you're the parents of a college student, you can help them start a good credit history, save some money on student housing, and possibly even make some money in the process. Thank you Andrea. If you, or someone you know, are considering to buy a brand new home, new construction, you want to check out myTexasRealEstate.com, the five big mistakes that new construction buyers make. That's myTexasRealEstate.com, the five big mistakes that new construction buyers make. I'm Cliff Hahn, realtor and broker, at myTexasRealEstate.com, and also Keller Williams, where it's always time to buy Texas.

Instead of paying big $ for your college student's housing- Make $ from Your Own Student Housing

Buying a new home, especially from these big production builders, is not like buying a car. You really need representation. You should have a realtor or a seasoned professional broker that knows how to negotiate with these on-site sales reps in the model homes, so that you benefit from this purchase and you don't get burned, you don't pay too much. So I have some stories for you, but just a couple of things that need to just let you know about. The very nice salesperson in the model home is representing the builder. And when you're in there signing off hundreds of thousands of dollars to purchase a new home, without a realtor or a broker you're not being represented. What could go wrong there? You got to remember also that that salesperson representing the builder is not licensed to sell real estate. So they represent the builder and they do the builder's bidding, and even though they're friendly, and I've known many of them and worked with them over the years, basically nice people, but the fact of the matter is that without representation you have nobody there looking out for your best interests. Many things may not be disclosed to you. I've got a few stories that I'm gonna share with you, that come to mind over the last few years, about new home construction purchases. A lot of times people just... and again none of these folks have had realtors representing them buying the new home. They pay too much. I had one client come to me to list their house. And I eventually did, but I had to tell them, because I looked back at when the purchased the house a few years ago, that they actually paid, it was nearly $15,000 for that house. And they were kinda shocked to know that. Its right there, they paid way too much for the house, about $15,000 worth. And they said they got a free refrigerator out of it. Well, I don't know if that refrigerator was free, do you? The other thing is that they don't know about some of the other complexities, these complexities were not disclosed to them. For instance, a couple came to me, they had bought a new home a few years ago and they were in a high property tax bracket. And they wanted to get out, They needed some relief. So the problem was that they were in a MUD, which is a... The problem is they were in a MUD district, which is The problem was that they were in a MUD, which is a Municipal Utility District. And that is a service provider that has jurisdiction, and can add to your property taxes. They provide, could be sewer, water, could be some other amenities, some other services. And it adds to your property taxes. Plus they were in a high tax bracket. Oh for Gods's sakes. They were in a MUD, which is a Municipal Utility District. Which is a service provider, a management service provider, that has jurisdiction and can add to your property taxes, and they provide services like water, sewage, maybe some other amenities. But basically they're going to add to your property tax. Not every sub-division is in a MUD, but those that are, that's what happens. And these folks were also in a high tax bracket. Typically tax brackets here in central Texas run anywhere from 1.8 up to 3.7 percent per year, and they were on the higher end of that. So they needed to get a place without a MUD and in a lower tax rate, and they wanted to get a new home. So I sent them new homes without the MUD, and with a lower tax rate. And they called me up one day and they said hey, we bought a brand new home. And I said well that's fantastic. Congratulations. And I wished them well. But I did look back and I found out the home that they bought was actually in a MUD district, in a Municipal Utility District, and the tax rate was actually higher than the house that they were trying to sell. So, they went from the frying pan into the fire. They actually got into a situation where in about four years they were going to be in a much higher property tax situation than they were in the house they were trying to sell. You should remember that it's an un-level playing field, when you don't have representation, when you don't have a realtor or a broker. The commission that is paid comes from a marketing account. It has nothing to do with the sales price of the house. You'll get more of the story, you'll learn more. And that's mytexasrealestate.com. Five big new construction buyer's mistakes. That's mytexasrealestate.com. Five big mistakes new construction buyers make. Mytexasrealestate.com. Five big new construction, big mistakes new construction buyers make. And you'll even see more than... If you want to learn more, visit mytexasrealestate.com. Five big mistakes new construction buyers make. I'm Cliff Hahn. Get somebody to represent you when you buy a new home. Won't cost you anything and you'll make out a lot better. You'll actually benefit. I'm Cliff Hahn. Broker-Owner of Hahn Real Estate, serving all of central Texas in the greater Austin area, where it's always time to buy Texas.

Buying New Construction- No Realtor-No Problem?

- - Over the decades, one of the best ways of generating wealth is owning real estate. It could be your own home, could be income property. And it's in the form of equity. Equity is the amount of money that you own in the property. And over the years, equity is the amount of money that this property actually generates for you. So by buying real estate, you have a very, very high incidence of making money as you own the property over the years. So first equity is what I call the initial equity. The equity is the dollar amount of your home that you actually own. And at the point of purchase, if you used a mortgage, you can calculate your equity simply by subtracting your loan balance from the sales price. In this example, it's $300,000 sales price minus the $250,000 mortgage. And that leaves a positive $50,000 in initial equity. Now it gets even better, because over the years, again, if you use a realtor or broker and you buy in a good area in a good housing market, like the Austin and Central Texas market where there is no price bubble, it's solid economy, the house will, actually, or the real estate, whatever it is, will actually generate money for you. So looking at year-to-year increases... It's been this way since 2008, but we see no reason for it not to continue. And it's a fairly modest increase, because we have no price bubble here. So over the years, considering just single family homes, condos, and town homes in the Austin and Central Texas market, the average year-to-year increase is anywhere between 3.8% and 5.7%. And just for your information, the median sold price of all those homes in April of 2018 was $316,000. But let's go back to the 3.8% to 5.7% year-to-year increase in market value. I took the midway point, and I have calculated 4.75%. So in this example, a very solid example, of a $275,000 home that you initially purchased, and the next year it goes up about $13,000 using that 4.75 figure. The next year it goes up a little, almost $14,000, and then the next year, $14,000, for the final year, in this example over a four-year period, a little bit over $316,000. So if you subtract the original purchase price of $275,000 from the $316,079, you come up with generated equity of a little bit over $41,000 over those four years. That's fantastic news. You did very well. All the homes that I have ever sold, I've walked away with a considerable profit simply because they were bought smart. They were bought in good areas. And we just sit back, and you watch the value of the house rise. What can you do with that money? You could borrow against it. Maybe you have improvements in the house you wanna do. You wanna add on something. You wanna put a pool in Whatever it might be, it's there for you to use. And of course, when you sell the house, that is another opportunity for you to cash out the money that your real estate, whether it be your home or income property, has actually earned for you. That's good news. If you're interested in selling your home, certainly you wanna check out myTexasRealEstate.com and see the nine big seller mistakes. And make sure you don't make those mistakes. But they're available to you on the website, once again, it's myTexasRealEstate.com/9-big-seller-mistakes. The good news is equity. When you purchase a home, the house, or whatever the real estate is, should make money for you if it's bought right. I'm Cliff Hahn, broker-owner of HAHN Real Estate serving all of Central Texas in the greater Austin area where it's always time to buy Texas.

How Your Home Makes Money- Generates Tax Free Income. How this happens and how it can work for you.

- Maybe you're a first-time home buyer. Perhaps you have a home to sell and you haven't used a mortgage to purchase a home in a long time. The process of getting pre-qualed first and then getting pre-approved for a mortgage is free, there is no harm to your credit, and everything is confidential. All your personal information is confidential. A broker-realtor like me, or even when you write a contract and you attach a pre-qualification letter to the offer, the other side, the only thing we know about your personal profile, your financial personal profile is the type of loan that you're using, the interest rate, and the amount of the mortgage. And the amount of the mortgage is the most important thing for you to know. This way, you understand how much down paymnent you perhaps will need, and no, you do not need 10 to 20% down to buy a house on a mortgage, with a mortgage. There are other programs out there, zero down for vets, and also USDA. FHA is 3.5%. So the only thing you really need to know is how much, the most important thing is how much house you can afford. That's a big, big detail. And you should really use a lender, a professional mortgage broker, and stay away from Wells Fargo, stay away from Bank of America, and also Chase Mort. And it's been my history over the decades that these large banks are really challenged to originate a mortgage. They ask for the same documents over again, and they may not even close on time. So, you need, preferably a local, and reputable mortgage brokerage to guide you through this process. To get in place, to get a mortgage, and to get the highest credit. So get your score up. And also get the lowest interest rate. Those are very important items for you. Along with how much house can you afford. The one lender that I use, and have used over the decades is Supreme Lending. And Andrea Keith. - People are afraid to have their credit pulled but really, pulling credit doesn't have a big impact. Maybe zero to two points, possible impact on your credit score. But the thing is, if you don't pull your credit, you won't know where you stand. You really need an expert to look at it and tell you what you need to do. So if you're ready now, great. If you're not ready now, talk to somebody who can help you get there. I'm Andrea Keith with Supreme Lending. I've been a loan officer for over 25 years and I love helping people figure out their next step. - So there's good news. If you're going to use a mortgage to buy a home, get yourself in place to get pre-qualified, and then eventually pre-approved with a preferably local mortgage brokerage. And stay away from the big banks. With a local mortgage brokerage, you will find how much house you can really afford for your budget, how to get your credit in place to get the lowest interest rates, and work with somebody who will actually help you and keep all of your information confidential. Hey, by the way, if you wanna see some of the big seller mistakes, visit myTexasRealEstate.com, nine biggest seller mistakes and find out some of the big boo-boos that sellers make when trying to sell their house. I'm Cliff Hahn, broker-owner of Hahn Real Estate. Serving all of Central Texas and the Greater Austin Area, where it's always time to buy Texas.

How to Take the Stress out of Getting A Mortgage

I remember some unexpected issues in many inspections, sometimes the sellers didn't suspect problems, some knew about them and didn't disclose them. We successfully negotiated through all of the points, found resolves and agreed on seller paid repairs. Common ground is always the goal, what is reasonable for both seller and buyer. Finding a sane, thorough and knowledgeable inspector is one of the answers.

Home Inspections What to Expect

We have that answer and mortgage providers that will help buyers qualify and provide competitive interest rates and close on time.

Need 10% 20% Down to Buy a Home - True or False ?

You're buying a home and think all is going well, you have a home under contract and on your way to closing, BUT the Seller Cancels the contract. What Can be done and how. Very valuable information.

The Seller Just Cancelled your Purchase Contract !

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405 Brave Face World Class Tuscan Estate Crystal Falls - Grand Mesa

Those small details Home Sellers dismiss can be costly because they are big issues to buyers. What they are and how to deal with them.

Little things to Home Sellers- Big Issues for Buyers

You're days from closing on your new home and the appraisal comes in below the sales price. For the buyer this can be great news. How appraisals are established and what is their importance.

The Appraisal is LOW - What Can be Done.

Learn how to save big money by negotiating with the Broker (not the agents) when selling your house. Keep more dollars at closing.

How to Save $20,000+ when Selling a House

- The buyer comes into that living room in the new home that they just bought and they notice that big chandelier is gone. Boy, are they upset and maybe they should be. They assumed, maybe wrongfully, that that big chandelier was going to convey or stay with the house upon sale. There are lots of items that cause confusion. And one of my jobs, I represent sellers and buyers but specifically sellers is to make sure that all the items are identified as items that will stay or they will go, they will be retained by the seller. And they will be gone at closing. On the first page of the contract, ya know, a lot of this is addressed right off the top there. Improvements are defined as the house itself, the garage and anything that could be considered an improvement and here's the key word, that is attached to the real property. The real property is the house and everything attached to it, personal property is pretty much everything that isn't. There's still some vaguery there. Under improvements you have accessories. That's a long list, it could be curtains and draperies, window shades, above ground pools, artificial fire logs. It goes on and on and also there's an opportunity there for the seller to state that there are exclusions. These items will not convey, will not go along with the house but yet, in today's world, there are still many opportunities for confusion unfortunately. So let's go over just a broad view here of what items stay with the house. You will get with the house upon closing. First of all, there's that key word again, is it attached, if it's bolted, nailed or mounted, it stays, if it grows out of the ground, if it's landscaping, bushes, trees, it stays. If it's anchored to the land in some way, like a swing set or a basketball hoop that's mounted and cemented to the ground or maybe a shed, it stays. And if the buyer really wants to have an item convey, stay with the house upon closing, could be mirrors, could be custom drapes, anything like that, then those items that are to go with the house can be addressed in a non realty addendum. And I provide those documents and guidance for folks who are listing their homes, selling their homes and also buyers but this is really something that should be addressed right at the outset by the seller. And I make sure that happens and we clarify all of that. Very dear friend and a very experienced real estate attorney once told me that words in the air are not there. It all has to be in writing. That works, I'm Cliff Hahn, broker, owner of Hahn Real Estate, serving all of Central Texas in the Greater Austin Area where it's always time to buy Texas.

What Stays What Goes When Selling or Buying a House?

New Construction- Asking $758,000 4 BED - 3 1/2 Bath- 1 Story LEANDER, TEXAS 78641--Stunning Tuscan Villa Estate~Custom Builder-Loaded with Upgrades~Premium quality finish out-Lots of Windows for Natural Light- Tile Roof~48" Thermador Range/Appliances~NO CARPET~Travertine Tile+Wood Floors~Cantera Columns~(Patio Fireplace+Grill+Sink)~Wine Room~Grand Entrance with Baluster Columns+Custom Iron Door.

2424 High Lonesome Texas Hill Country Estate Custom Built Ready for Move-in

What makes a contract offer to buy a home- win? It's not just offering more than the list price and hope for the best. IF you want to buy a home and actually get an accepted contract -or- if you're selling a home and you want to know what to look for in an offer, these 3 ingredients are key.

The Three C's of a Strong Contract Offer

Cliff Hahn takes you behind the scenes of buying and selling homes in the Austin, Texas area. Need advice about buying or selling a home from an approachable, trusted expert? Cliff is a veteran real estate broker who always makes his clients feel right at home.

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Central Texas Real Estate Advice with Cliff Hahn

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