Santa Cruz County Home & Community Information

SANTA CRUZ USDA LOANS - 100% FINANCING

Santa Cruz USDA loans or United States Department of Agriculture Loans are loans that offer 100% financing to buy a property.  To buy a home with a USDA loan you must meet the income requirements, and not make too much or too little money.  For income limits in Santa Cruz, contact me.

You cannot use a Santa Cruz USDA Loan to buy a home just anywere in county.  USDA loans are for 'rural properties' so buying in the city of Santa Cruz or Watsonville is not an option.  I have seen Santa Cruz USDA loans used in the San Lorenzo Valley (Boulder Creek, Felton) and there are many other 'rural' areas in Santa Cruz county you can use the USDA loan.  You can go here to see a Map of eligilble areas for USDA loans in Santa Cruz

A USDA loan is not just for agricultural properties, you can actually buy a real home in Santa Cruz with a USDA loan, if it is in the designated areas and you qualify. 

Contact me for more information about Santa Cruz USDA loans 100% financing and Santa Cruz First Time Home Buyer Programs.

SANTA CRUZ HOMEPATH  LOANS

Santa Cruz Homepath loans are great loans for first time home buyers as well as investors in Santa Cruz county.  Homepath loans can only be used on Fannie Mae owned properties, so you cannot use a Homepath loan on any foreclosed home in Santa Cruz, just a Fannie Mae foreclosure.  While there are not a ton of Homepath homes for sale now, there are more and more coming on the market.  Some of my clients were able to use Homepath loans this year to buy a home in Santa Cruz with great results!

Here are some of the features of Santa Cruz Homepath loans:

The downpayment can be as low as 3% down

NO PMI – Private Mortgage Insurance – This will save you lots of money over time if you are putting less than 20% down on a home.

NO Appraisal

HomePath Loans are available for owner occupants as well as investors.

There is a HomePath Renovation Loan which is similar to an FHA 203k loan or fixer loan.  A HomePath Renovation Loan will lend funds for the purchase of the home and to fix up the home.  Homepath will lend up to $35,000 to renovate the home.

If you are a first time home buyer, read my article Santa Cruz First Time Home Buyer Assistance Programs for more info about how you can qualify to buy a home.

Contact me for more info about HomePath loans and available HomePath homes for sale and foreclosures for sale in Santa Cruz.

GOOD NEWS FOR FHA LOANS IN SANTA CRUZ - FHA LOAN LIMITS HAVE BEEN RAISED

Congress voted this week to raise the FHA loan limits, the Santa Cruz FHA loan limit will be back to $729,750.

This is good news for FHA buyers in Santa Cruz.  With an FHA loan you can buy a home or condo with as little at 3.5 % down.  FHA interest rates are competitive and they are a little more relaxed about credit scores than conventional lenders.

Santa Cruz FHA loans are a great way to buy a home and with these new Santa Cruz FHA loan limits, home buyers have a much larger range of Santa Cruz homes to choose from.

If you are thinking about buying a home in Santa Cruz with an FHA loan, read my related article, How to buy a home with and FHA loan in Santa Cruz

You can also buy a condo with an FHA loan with 3.5% down.  The condo does need to be FHA approved which will limit your choices.  Go here to read about FHA approved condos in Santa Cruz

If you are a first time home buyer, check out my article First Time Home Buyer Programs in Santa Cruz.

Contact me for more information about FHA loans and buying a home in Santa Cruz County, I am happy to help!

SANTA CRUZ MORTGAGE CREDIT CERTIFICATE - MCC - ATTENTION FIRST TIME HOME BUYERS!

Attention all first time home buyers in Santa Cruz!  New Mortgage Credit Certificates - MCC's have just been made available in Santa Cruz.  This is a great program for first time home buyers and can help you buy your dream home.

So what is the Mortgage Credit Certificate or MCC?  How the Santa Cruz MCC works is that first time buyers will receive a 20% tax credit on their federal taxes.  You take 20% the total interest you pay on your mortgage per year and you receive it as a direct tax credit.  For example, say you pay $18,000 in interest a year on your mortgage.  You would receive a tax credit of $3,600, that is $300 a month!

This extra money that the Santa Cruz MCC or Mortgage Credit Certificate provides a first time buyer can help you qualify for a higher loan amount and save you money.  You will be able to use the MCC every year that you live in the home!  Over the years that will be quite a money saver.

The MCC is one of the best Santa Cruz first time buyer programs out there.  There is a limited amount of Santa Cruz Mortgage Credit Certificates available and income restrictions do apply.  Contact me to find out if you can qualify to use the Mortgage Credit Certificate and other Santa Cruz First Time Home Buyer Programs.

You never know,  you just may be able to qualify for a mortage that is less than your rent!  Read my post Success in using first time home buyer programs in Santa Cruz for an example.

SANTA CRUZ ENERGY EFFICIENT MORTGAGES

Going Green is the new thing and there is a new loan product - Energy Efficient Mortgages -that allows a homeowner to borrow up to 5% of the purchase price up to $32,000 to put in energy efficient features in their home.

Going Green when buying a home is not only good for the environment it is good for your pocketbook as well.  In Santa Cruz where many are very environmentally conscious, homebuyers really like to see energy efficient features in a home.  Many of the homes in Santa Cruz are older, especially on the Westside of Santa Cruz where we have many Craftsman and Victorian homes.  These homes almost always need upgrades for energy efficiency and this Energy Efficient Mortgage can help you improve your home.

Here are some examples of what the Santa Cruz Energy Efficient Mortgage can be used for:

1) Replacing older furnaces with new energy efficient furnaces and air conditioning units

2)  Upgrading old single pane windows to double paned vinyl windows (this really helps insulate your home from heat/cold and noise)

3)  Upgrading or installing insualtion in attic or walls

4)  Upgrading water heater (we just put in a tankless gas water heater and it not only saves a lot of space but $ too)

5)  Weatherizing doors, windows, walls

These changes will really help your home be more energy efficient.  You can complete the work after you close escrow.  These Energy Efficient Mortgages can be used in conjunction with FHA loans, VA loans as well as a refinance.

Making your home more energy efficient will save you money in the long run and make you more comfortable and happy in your home now.  It is definitely worth looking into a Energy Efficient Mortgage when buying a home in Santa Cruz or anywhere.

BUYING A HOME OR CONDO FOR YOUR UCSC STUDENT - Santa Cruz

The University of California at Santa Cruz is a great school with a beautiful campus and attracts many students.  Housing in Santa Cruz is limited, especially on the Westside of Santa Cruz where UCSC is located.  Finding a quality rental at a good price is a challenge.  Because of this some parents of UCSC students elect to purchase a home or condo for their student during their attendance at UCSC. 

I have helped several families of UCSC students purchase homes and condos in Santa Cruz.  During this time when house prices in Santa Cruz have dropped significantly and interest rates are low buying a home for your UCSC student can be a great investment.

There is a new loan program that will make buying a home or condo for your UCSC student even easier.   FHA has a loan program allows a Parent to help their UCSC or Cabrillo student purchase a home or condo near the school they are attending.  Here is how it works:

*The student that will be living in the property does not need to show income, just provide proof that they are enrolled in college

*Parents can qualify for the loan on their own

*Downpayments as low as 3.5% !!

*Up to $729k loan amount

*640 minimum credit score

*30 year fixed loan

These FHA loans will work for homes or Condos that are FHA approved (Contact me for a list of FHA approved condos in Santa Cruz, there are some new ones)

When you buy a home or condo for your UCSC student you guarantee they will have a stable, nice place to live during their studies and a good environment for them to concentrate and be productive.  You might also be able to make a little money while you are at it!

Contact me at 831.419.9345 for more information about homes and condos for sale near UCSC and Cabrillo and how to buy your UCSC student a home, I am happy to help!

SANTA CRUZ FHA 203K LOANS - REHAB LOAN

FHA 203K loans or Rehab loans are perfect for buying a fixer home or a foreclosure that needs some work.  FHA 203k loans are starting to become more utilized in the Santa Cruz area.  With the increase in Santa Cruz foreclosures and short sales for sale there is really a demand for these type of 'fixer loans' or 'rehab loans'.

This is basically how a FHA 203k loan works:  Say you find a Santa Cruz foreclosure for sale for $300,000 but it needs a new roof and has no working heating system.  Since it is a foreclosure the bank usually sells a home as-is and won't do any repairs.  It will be difficult to get a regular loan on the property without putting down a very large downpayment or it might not even be financeable.

With an FHA 203k loan or Rehab Loan, you can purchase a home with as little as 3.5% down and the bank will loan you money on top of the purchase pice, up to $35,000 to do the necessary repairs.  This is really an excellent option for a buyer that wants to buy a cheap foreclosure, with little downpayment.  I have had clients successfullly use FHA 203k loans in Santa Cruz and it helps them get into a home at a great price.

Santa Cruz FHA 203k loans require an experienced Realtor, lender and contractor to all work together to get the transaction completed.  FHA 203k loans are more complicated and detailed than a regular FHA loan or conventional loan and will take more time to complete.

If you want to buy a fixer, foreclosure or short sale that needs work the FHA 203k loan is a fantastic opportunity, especially for a first time homebuyer with a low downpayment.

Contact me for more information about FHA 203k loans and foreclosures for sale in Santa Cruz.

Read my related posts:

FHA Loans Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz Homes for sale under $500,000

Santa Cruz homes for sale under $300,000

MY FIRST FHA 203K LOAN TRANSACTION IN SANTA CRUZ

FHA 203k loans have been around for awhile and we have all been hearing about them but I have rarely seen them put to use in Santa Cruz County.  When searching for homes for first time buyers we are often in a lower price range and come across many foreclosure homes or short sales in bad condition that would never qualify for a regular FHA loan.    For a first time buyer with limited cash reserves that needs to buy a lower priced home or foreclosure home an FHA 203k loan can be a great way to go.

My first FHA 203k loan transaction as a Realtor just closed last week.  The client was a young first time home buyer that wanted to buy a home priced under $300,000.  In Santa Cruz County you will not find many homes under $300k in good condition so we found a fixer and got into contract using an FHA 203k loan.  I have heard these FHA 203k loans can take 60 to 90 days to close but the excellent lender we used in this transaction had it done in less than 40 days!  There is a lot of work to do getting the bids right and all the conditions met but with teamwork we got it done.

Now that I know how an FHA 203k loan works and have had such success I can recommend it to my clients.  Also this lender with Wells Fargo did such a great job I am confident in recomending him.

Now the buyer has a great property at a great price that needs a little work and the bank is loaning him $35k to fix it up!  Pretty sweet deal!

Feel free to contact me for more details about FHA 203k loans and buying a foreclosure in Santa Cruz.

Read my related article: Santa Cruz FHA Loans

HOW FHA LOAN CHANGES WILL AFFECT LOW DOWN PAYMENT BUYERS IN SANTA CRUZ

FHA loans have become very popular loans for home buyers with low down payments.  With an FHA loan you can buy a home with as little as 3.5% down payment.  I have helped quite a few buyers purchase homes and condos in Santa Cruz in the past couple of years with FHA loans and it has gone really well.  They have mostly been 1st time buyers but not all.  Before the credit crunch FHA loans were not used often in Santa Cruz County because there were so many other programs for buyers with low down payments.  Now it seems they are pretty much the only way to go for buyers with low cash reserves. 

There have been and will be more changes coming to FHA loans that will affect buyers with low down payments.  It is going to become more expensive to obtain these loans in the future but the good news is that they are not raising the minimum down payment amount from 3.5% for now.

Here are a few of the changes coming up in FHA loans:

Mortgage insurance is required on FHA loans that have less than a 20% down payment.  The mortgage insurance premium is going to be increased this year from 1.75% to 2.25%. 

Seller credits to the buyer on FHA loans were allowed up to 6% and that is going to be changed to only 3%. 

Home buyers with less than stellar credit (580 credit score) may be required to put up to 10% down payment in order to purchase a home.

Another rule that has changed recently is the 90 day flipping rule.  Buyers will no longer have to wait 90 days to purchase a home that has transferred title in the previous 90 days.

For buyers with a low down payment looking to purchase a home this year these changes can really affect the amount you can qualify for.  Check with your local FHA lender to see what you can qualify for with these new rules.  I know several great FHA lenders that can help you, contact me and I will forward their information.

Start here to Search for your Santa Cruz Home and receive up to date info about homes for sale in Santa Cruz including Foreclosures.

Read my related post: Santa Cruz FHA Loans - How to buy a home with an FHA loan