If you are a real estate appraiser or an agent you need to determine market condition for your appraisals which is indeed very frustrating and time consuming. Are you are prepared to agree the new requirements implied by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for a complete and perfect market analysis? Now is the time that you really need to get S.M.A.R.T. Appraiser (Statistical Market Analysis In Real Time).
How does S.M.A.R.T help the Realtors and Appraisers? Actually S.M.A.R.T. works from data downloaded from the user's local MLS (Multiple Listing Service). An MLS is basically a website full of local housing data available only to Realtors and Appraisers. This helps them to make knowledgeable estimations in a very small time, in just a few minutes. The data that is downloaded from the user's local MLS helps the realtor to describe the market like zip code, city, geographical boundaries etc. and download all the activities in last three years. This is the most effective way to divide, breakdown and study thousands of records in just a few clicks. However the realtors and appraiser need not carry out multiple searches and do filtering in data provided by MLS. You simply need to select the required data and S.M.A.R.T does the work for you by converting it into accurately reliable and detailed graphs. S.M.A.R.T. also pre-populates and forms the latest 1004MC automatically! Thus S.M.A.R.T. really helps to analyze the market in ways you might have never ever dreamt of. Finally, it makes it quite easier to complete the Fannie Mae 1004 MC is one of the most crucial reason for the creation of S.M.A.R.T.
The benefits of a S.M.A.R.T. (TM) subscription are: 1.) It helps one complete the FNMA 1004MC much faster than an Excel spreadsheet, 2.) Quickly draw trends lines to help support declining or appreciating market time adjustments, 3.) Helps you shine as the professional that knows the "Pulse" of their market - Underwriters will think you're a genius, meaning less call backs, 4.) To help you publish major studies for your marketing purposes, again presenting you the local professional knowing the "Pulse" of your market!
Are you still ready to fill your appraisal reports according to the new requirements set by FNMA 1004 MC Addendums within the deadline given that is 1st April 2009? If not, then S.M.A.R.T. is the right option for you. S.M.A.R.T. not only makes you complete the FNMA 1004 MC faster but you also gain the credibility of being recognized as the "Pulse" of the market. You also save a great deal of time and energy in searching for records and details of previous years with the help of MLS as it gives you the complete details of the market in a few minutes by simply clicking on the links given.
However, you should always remember that S.M.A.R.T. will be able to work with most MLS system in USA which has export potentials. Some MLS systems have limitations in sending data required or in a well-matched format of S.M.A.R.T. analysis. Some may require MS Excel to be installed to send required data from MLS system.
First let's look at the reaction from the media and the general public. One would expect there to be some political fallout from the largest takeover in government history. But because of the election and Hurricane Ike the reactions have largely been muted. There have been of course the expected positive reactions that this was a shrewd move to help the real estate market and negative reactions that the government should limit its involvement. But for the most part their has not been a big reaction one way or another. I have actually seen more stories about the reactions on the takeover from the presidential candidates than stories simply about the takeover.
While the media reaction has been muted the reactions in the financial markets have not been. Not surprisingly, the stocks of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac plummeted after the announcement. The government said before hand that the common shares of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae would lose most of their value in the event of a government takeover. So following the news of the takeover the share promptly lost 80% of their value.
The mortgage markets have reacted very favorably to the news. Considering the Fed has cut interest rates multiple times this year mortgage interest rates have remained relatively high. The reason for this was that banks were unsure about the financial stability of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae which provides insurance for about half of the residential loans issued in the United States. This risk has now been lowered since the government takeover. Consequently mortgage rates have plummeted in the last week. 30 Year mortgages have dropped from 6.35 to 5.93. This is after rates have moved down from 6.63 to 6.35 partially on expectations that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were going to be taken over. I have seen some reports that this is lowest rates have been in the last 4 months. I think this understates how low rates have come down. Besides two brief drops at the beginning of 2008 this is the lowest rates have been since 2005.
The lower interest rates should have a positive effect on the real estate market. Lower rates pull down the mortgage on a house and tend to have a positive effect on real estate values and market activity. In another positive sign although their has not been too much media coverage the coverage that has come out has been mostly positive. To be honest I was a little surprised by this. I would have expected the coverage to be a little more mixed. But regardless the favorable media reaction combined with lower interest rates should help the real estate market. And based on what I have heard from different realtors their does seem to be an upswing in activity. But we won't have any hard data on this for a month or so.
So, at least in the short term, it seems the Feds have accomplished their goals of helping the real estate market with the Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae takeover. We will of course have to wait over the next few years to see if this move turns out to be wise. But for now the Fed has finally been able to push down mortgage rates.
Both Jamie Hanson & Ki Gray are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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