National Association of Realtors Proposes Housing Incentives November 20, 2008 As a Realtor® and owner of a nationwide relocation company, I am daily faced with the effects of the economic meltdown on our real estate members all over the country. Consumer confidence is at an all time low which is adding to the current housing crisis. Buyers who have stable jobs and good income are postponing purchasing a home due to fear. We need action by lawmakers NOW - not in January. Hopefully the lame duck Congress will listen to reason, and pass some meaningful bills! Bills that will RESTORE CONSUMER CONFIDENCE so that homebuyers are not frozen by fear! Even in areas which have a strong economy (low unemployment, healthy job outlook, no real estate bubble bursting) buyers are holding off buying – waiting for a lower interest rate, or the assurance that they'll buy at the absolute bottom price. They are also frustrated with the current lending environment that places a variety of barriers to getting a mortgage. This further impedes sales and price stabilization of the housing market. A recent consumer survey conducted by Realogy Corp. (a National Association of Realtors ® member) stated how important housing is to this country's economic recovery. The survey found that nine out of 10 homeowners believe that owning a home is still the best long-term investment. But this same survey said that most people are not buying right now because of uncertainty about the market. Recently the National Association of Realtors® sent a letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson outlining steps he could take to stabilize the housing market. They also presented this plan to the House Financial Services Committee on November 18th. The four steps the recommended are: 1) Make the $7,500 first-time homebuyer tax credit available to all homebuyers and eliminate the repayment requirement. 2) Make the increased 2008 FHA, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac loan limits permanent so that all American families can find a safe and affordable mortgage when buying a home. 3) Get the $700 billion Treasury relief program back on track and focused on providing stability to the nation's housing markets and reducing foreclosures. 4) Bar banks from real estate brokerage and management activities permanently, to avoid exposing consumers and the economy to more unnecessary risks. NAR also provided an economic analysis demonstrating that a reduction, or a buydown, of interest rates by just 1 percentage point could result in up to 840,000 additional home sales and reduce the inventory of homes by as much as 20 percent. Substantially lower mortgage rates would stimulate both existing- and new-home sales. These are great first steps to getting home sales going again. It was Richard Nixon who said, "A recession is anytime people lose confidence in the future." Now is the time to restore confidence, people! As of 11/23/09 the Lauree Bradway RePage is ranked at 1,142 with 525 points. The monthly top RePage owner will receive a cash prize. Help this agent by bookmarking this site and posting it to blogs and other Web pages and encourage others to visit.

My Tours

601 South Magnolia St., Summerville SC

Local Information for Summerville, SC

Latitude: 33.008154 -- Longitude: -80.182891

Other Area Cities:   Summerville  Goose Creek  Hanahan  Ladson  North Charleston  Moncks Corner  Charleston 

Enter our Photo Sweepstakes and Win $200 for your Summerville photos!

Submit your photos of Summerville and become eligible to win $200. Click Here for details.

Summerville is a city located in Dorchester County, South Carolina, United States, though inhabitants often refer to it as a town. In 2005, however, the Census Bureau estimated the population at 37,714. The city functions as a distant suburb of Charleston, SC; and has thus experienced rapid population growth. By 2010, Summerville is projected to have a population of 43,756, an increase of 15,694 over the 2000 population. As defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, Summerville is included within the Charleston-North Charleston Urbanized Area and the Charleston-North Charleston Metropolitan Statistical Area. It has the fourth largest city limit population within this metro after Charleston, North Charleston, and Mount Pleasant. -- Source: Wikipedia.com