Although 30 percent of all Americans opt to live in the same town in which they were born, the rest of the population is composed of movers and shakers. Due to housing prices and lack luster job markets New York, Illinois, Ohio, Nebraska and Kansas are all poised to experience population declines and states including Arizona are expected to reap the rewards of new residents to the area (Forbes.com). Those who opt to relocate to the "Valley of the Sun", can scoop up some amazing deals in the marketplace including luxury mansion dwellings for pennies on the dollar.
Since local homes market values peaked in July 2006, Phoenix home values have dropped by has much as 60 percent (Time.com). The city is also filled with a surplus of real estate owned properties featuring huge discounts and negatively impacting the home values throughout the region. Although the news is currently bleak for property owners in the Phoenix housing market, consumers looking to transition from renting to buying a home now can get amazing deals, especially in the luxury marketplace.
Chateaux on Central Units Discounted by 50%
When construction began on the Chateaux on Central (a townhouse project constructed to resemble a 1890s-era mansion) over five years ago, the future looked sunny in regards to the local real estate market. Construction on the 21 unit property was painstakingly conducted by craftsmen specializing in brick, steel and concrete, and each luxury unit was to have amenities like an abundance of space, private car garages and a cutting edge security system. The smallest unit in the complex featured a spacious 5,200 square feet and a price-tag of $2.8 million. The crown jewel of the structure was an 8,200 square foot mansion priced at approximately $4.92 million.
Thanks to the mortgage meltdown, all units feature price tags with a whopping 50 percent discount. The listing discounts are being attributed to hard times that the original developer had to deal with. When the building first started being developed circa 2007, the bank financing the construction had a conflict with developer Central PHX that later filed for bankruptcy. Private lender Phoenix-based Mortgages Ltd. then tried to save the day, but ended up having financial woes that ended their relationship with the property. Currently MSI West Investments, is being cited for breathing new life into the project.
Even at the highly discounted prices, the Chateaux is hard pressed to find buyers in town, as the Arizona State University's W.P. Carey School of Business has indicated that the average price of a Phoenix townhouse sale is $66,000. The current management team of the project is not concerned about the price discrepancy as they are targeting a niche dedicated to buying the finer things in life, such as luxurious and large accommodations.
Jumbo Mortgage Activity On The Rise
When the mortgage industry crumbled, every sector was negatively impacted and qualified borrowers for fixed rate mortgages and jumbo mortgages were a challenge to find. New reports have shown that jumbo mortgages (loans too large to be insured by agencies like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) have indicated an uptick in this particular mortgage niche. While most of the activity in the sector is being attributed to refinancing in order to take advantage of the lowest mortgage rates in recorded history, the action albeit small, is real.
How to Qualify for a Jumbo Mortgage Rate
The buyers market in Phoenix, Arizona will not last forever and consumers wanting to score amazing deals on home purchases are encouraged to act now. When it comes to qualifying for a jumbo mortgage, borrowers still need to meet the mortgage magic numbers for loan qualification, such as having a credit score of at least 730, need to have the financing to qualify for a traditional 30-year fixed rate mortgage and should plan on only spending 35 percent of pre-tax income on living accommodations.
Consumers who crunch the numbers and can justify buying a McMansion, can find the great mortgage rates they need at Mortgage Marvel. Mortgage Marvel is the industry's premiere rate origination tool that provides mortgage seekers with accurate information in real time and without requiring any personal information.
