New programs and products to streamline the buying and selling of homes were in the forefront at the recent convention of the National Associaton of Realtors (NAR) here.
Among the highlights:
– Take your dream house home before you buy it. With Sony Electronics’ new Digital Mavica camera, home buyers can “view” many prospective homes at a Realtor’s office before scheduling an appointment to see the property.
The point-and-shoot camera stores up to 40 still pictures–new listings or multiple views of a single home–on an ordinary 3.5-inch floppy disk. No photo developing is required. After showing a home, agents can send clients home with their own photos on a floppy disk.
– HomeSteps, a new sales service, says it can save time and money for home buyers. Homes marketed by HomeSteps are owned by Freddie Mac (Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp.).
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The program spends an average of $5,000 to put a house in move-in condition, including painting, carpet repair or replacement, and servicing of heating and air conditioning.
This process results in a sale five days faster than average and a higher price for the seller, according to HomeSteps, which also says the typical buyer can save $2,500 in closing costs. For a listing of properties call 1-800-972-7777.
– Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corp. said it is launching the Transaction 2000 Task Force in order to speed up the real estate buying process. “When I first started in this business 20 years ago, it took 45 days to buy a house and it still takes that long,” said Alex Perriello, president and CEO. He envisions a typical transaction process that would be completed in two weeks. This will involve pre-approving buyers as well as properties.
– The NAR reported that its Website–www.realtor.com–is the most popular real estate homepage on the Internet. With more than 1 million homes currently advertised for sale, it receives 33 million “hits” a month. The median home price was $175,000 in October.
In a survey of 1 million shoppers visiting the site, 60 percent indicated they are actively looking for a home and 40 percent said they plan to move in less than six months.
– The NAR tallied up its legislative victories this year, which include:
Passage of the 1997 Taxpayers Relief Act, which increased to $500,000 the amount of profit a home owning couple can receive tax-free on a principal residence. Singles can exclude $250,000. Homeowners can use the new exclusion at any age and as often as every two years.
The new law also includes a bonus for first-time buyers, which allows penalty-free withdrawals of up to $10,000 from Individual Retirement Accounts for the down payment and closing of a home.
The U.S. House and Senate passed bills to make banks cancel mortgage insurance when it is no longer needed. Automatic cancellations would kick in at 22 percent equity in the Senate bill and 25 percent in the House bill. According to the NAR, a final bill is expected to be signed by President Clinton early next year.