2 Home Fairs Offer Tips to Buyers, Sellers
With home prices and mortgage rates at their most affordable in years, thousands of Southern Californians are wondering if now is the time to buy.
The answer, in a word, is yes. Housing experts call the current real estate market the best buying opportunity of a generation.
But even with soft prices and low rates, smarts and savvy still count. After all, the home-buying decision is the biggest and most complex that many of us ever make, and most house hunters, especially first-timers, have lots of questions.
Well, we’ve got answers for you, and all you have to do is come and get ‘em.
The Times will sponsor its fourth annual Home Buyers and Sellers Fairs on Saturday, March 20, at Cal State Northridge in the San Fernando Valley, and Saturday, March 27, at the Anaheim Convention Center in Orange County. The fairs will run from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days.
At each fair a full day of consumer-oriented question-and-answer programs will present real estate experts providing timely advice on all aspects of home buying, selling, mortgages, taxes and realty law. About 5,000 consumers attended last year’s fair.
Featured on the Q&A; panels will be The Times’ “Real Estate Q&A;” columnist Robert J. Bruss, “Condo Q&A;” writer Jan Hickenbottom, Times contributor Benny L. Kass, authors Dian Hymer (“Buying and Selling a House in California”), Ira Serkes (“How to Buy a House in California: Strategies for Beating the Affordability Gap”), investment expert Danny Santucci, state Real Estate Commissioner Clark Wallace as well as lenders, CPAs and realty consultants.
More than 50 exhibitors--including many of the Southland’s largest home builders, realtors, mortgage lenders, as well as the state Department of Real Estate, the California Housing Finance Agency, the Internal Revenue Service, the VA and HUD--will be on hand to answer your questions.
In the San Fernando Valley, programs are planned on buying, selling and financing. The Federal National Mortgage Assn. (Fannie Mae) will present its program on entry-level buyer loans. And the parking is free.
In Orange County, along with the full range of programs, special workshops will be held for senior citizens, for condominium owners, for homeowners facing foreclosure and a Spanish-language workshop for Latino home buyers.
Fair-goers can also:
--Receive a free credit check to see how a mortgage lender will view your loan application, and get insider tips on how to clean up any rough spots on your credit report.
--Pre-qualify for a mortgage to see how much house you can afford, an important first step to house hunting.
--Get timely, accurate home-price information on your current neighborhood, or your prospective one, from a leading real estate information company.
--Learn about home loans for the first-time buyer at a panel presented by the Federal National Mortgage Assn. (Fannie Mae) and at an exhibit by the California Housing Finance Agency (CHFA).
--Talk to representatives from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in plenty of time for the April 15 income tax filing deadline.
--Get information on the FHA loan program from representatives of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
--Learn about special first-time buyer programs offered by the City of Los Angeles.
Admission to the Home Buyers and Sellers Fairs is $7.50, but if you use the coupon you’ll find in the Real Estate section in coming weeks, you can save $2.50. See ad on K9.
