THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC
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A S P E C I A L P U B L I C AT I O N C R E AT E D B Y R E P U B L I C M E D I A C U S T O M P U B L I S H I N G
WHAT’S INSIDE
November 2016
I N F O R M AT I O N GE Appliances
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DISHWASHERS
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FIRE SAFETY FEATURES; WHAT’S UP WITH ATTICS?
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PRIVATE MORTGAGE INSURANCE (PMI)
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JELD-WEN
WHAT’S THE DEAL WITH DOORS?
Move-In-Ready Guide Check out three pages of listings for beautiful brandnew move-in-ready homes. See pages 8, 9 & 10
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Home Locator Maps Visit NewHomecentral.com for communities, home listings, home tour videos and more. See pages 11, 12 & 13
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The mortgage quiet period After your loan is approved, keep a lid on spending until you close By David M. Brown
Scott Sandler via Cachet Homes
Is it time to upsize or downsize your home?
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he “mortgage quiet period” means just that: After your loan approval and before close of escrow, keep as financially silent as you can until you’re comfortably moved into your new home. Why? Even though a lender has approved your loan, it’s not “wrapped up” until it’s funded and recorded with the county. If the funder sees significant spikes in your lifestyle, you might not be moving at all.
Keep your credit calm “The key point to remember during this time is to not do anything to negatively affect your credit,” said Paris Davis, vice president and Northwest Arizona retail banking division manager for the Phoenix/ Camelback office of Washington Federal. “Many people don’t realize they should not make a change in their employment or make purchases of any type that could impact the final approval of their mortgage,” Davis said.
“The key point to remember during this time is to not do anything to negatively affect your credit.” — Paris Davis, Washington Federal
Also, avoid doing anything that may lower your FICO credit score. That important number incorporates credit information about individuals to help lenders predict consumer behavior such as how likely he or she is to pay bills on time or if they can manage an increased credit line. “They should not open a new credit card or begin to purchase items for their new home using their credit card for the purchases. And the borrower should continue to pay their monthly bills and expenses on time,” Davis added. In fact, Steve Howard, vice president/ branch manager (NMLS #997898) for HomeStreet Home Loans, based in Seattle, Washington, said that borrowers should “put a hold on all credit transactions and avoid increasing credit balances.” In addition, don’t apply for any new credit accounts. These “hard inquiries” requested by you can lower your FICO score, he said.
If you need more — or less — space, a move-in-ready home may be perfect for you
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By Debra Gelbart
eciding on the right time to upsize or downsize your residence may take a while, but eventually, it generally becomes pretty obvious. And when you are finally ready to take the proverbial plunge, a brand-new move-inready home may be the ideal option for you.
You might need a bigger home if… These are the top indications you may need a bigger home, said Ken Peterson, vice president of sales and marketing for Shea Homes Arizona: • Your family is expanding or kids are too old to share rooms. • You realize it would be much easier to host frequent visitors with a dedicated guest bedroom. • An extra room for an office would make it easier to telecommute occasionally or work from home on a regular basis. • Entertaining would be a lot more enjoyable if you had more space for guests to mix and mingle. • You have multiple generations living under one roof. Maybe, said Matt Cody, president of Cachet Homes, you have a teenage driver and a third vehicle in the family now. But if you have a two-car garage in a neighborhood with an HOA that won’t let you park on the street, a home with a three-car garage may be more suited to your family’s needs. Or, “it may be something less obvious, like not being able to have your family over for the holidays or that claustrophobic feeling when you realize your kids are now ‘adult-sized,’” said Chris Kelly, division president of LGI Homes. You might need a smaller home if… Peterson and Kelly said these are the leading reasons to downsize your home: • Financial incentives and/or motivations. • Children have grown up and moved out. • Retirement is on the horizon and a smaller home would make it easier to travel. • Utility bills and other operating costs keep climbing.
LGI Homes
• There are always-empty rooms that still need maintained. • Yard-upkeep is time-consuming and/or costly to hire out to a service. Other considerations for downsizing include the fact that a smaller home is easier to care for and clean. In addition, many people feel that less “stuff” equals a simpler lifestyle. Why a move-in-ready home might be ideal “A quick move-in is a home that we’ve started building to meet the needs of those home-shoppers who want a new home but would like to move in sooner than with the typical build process,” Peterson said. (TIME TO UPSIZE OR DOWNSIZE?, continued on page NH13)
(MORTGAGE QUIET PERIOD,
continued on page NH13)
Scott Sandler via Cachet Homes