Steps to Homeownership

New Hampshire Housing offers a number of different homeownership programs to help make homeownership more affordable.  While the specific programs may have different income limits, in general, we serve borrowers with incomes up to $135,300. 

We offer low downpayment requirements, down payment assistance (up to 3% cash to help with downpayment and closing costs), the homebuyer tax credit (HBTC) (Must be a first-time homebuyer or buying in a targeted community) and low-mortgage insurance options;

Are you ready to buy a home?

Take our quiz to help you determine your next steps.

Just like every industry, the coronavirus flipped the real estate market upside down, completely changing the way realtors, buyers and sellers do business. The normal spring market is like Super Bowl Sunday every weekend. This year, Realtors were left scrambling to keep everyone safe in the process.  Standard showings became Virtual Showings and 3D Tours, and, in some cases, buyers were purchasing homes they’d never stepped foot in.

What does all this mean? In short – due to a previous Executive Order, consumers cannot be evicted or foreclosed on their residence until the original order is lifted.  What it doesn’t mean is that consumers are not liable to pay their rent or mortgage, it just gives them some wiggle room during the pandemic to create and adapt an emergency household budget or find other financial resources to pay these debts.

Real Estate is evolving on a daily basis right now and none of us truly know how the story will end.  Believe it or not, there are buyers out there that are still looking for their dream home. Those would be the buyers that are confident with their employment situation and have been able to save for the transaction. At the same time there are many homeowners not being pushed to sell because their lender has automatically deferred their mortgage payments.  Still, buyers should not assume that because we are in a pandemic they can automatically lowball a seller. Sellers may be more willing, however, to entertain offers on the lower end. The reality is a buyer won’t know how motivated a seller is until they make an offer. Buyers need to keep in mind that no matter how badly a seller needs to sell they may not want to engage with a buyer who low balls an initial offer.

Per orders of Governor Sununu  all non essential businesses are to close as of midnight tonight. A Real Estate company happens to be non essential.  Our Campton and Lincoln offices will be closed until further notice. Our Realtors on the other hand will continue to do as much as they can from the safety of their homes.

Continued communication with our clients and customers is important to all of us. What does this mean for our sellers: marketing strategies will continue to put your property in the forefront of  buyers able and willing to purchase as soon as the restrictions have lifted. 

?During this unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, Alpine Lakes Real Estate is continuing to monitor closely local and world events. With many companies closing their offices and directing their employees to work from home to help reduce the possible spread of this virus, our offices are no different. Currently our offices in Lincoln and Campton are open.

First and foremost, we are taking the safety and health of our Realtors, staff and our clients and customers seriously. We are adhering to the recommendations from our local, state, and federal governments. This is a fluid situation which we are monitoring daily to better adjust and change how we operate within our company.

As the coronavirus spreads, how will it impact New Hampshire’s Real Estate Transactions?

We reached out to many of our most trusted professionals in the field to get their feedback and yet there appears to be only a minimal impact on NH transactions. Though Bank lobbies have been closed across the state, mortgage lenders are still able to meet in person with customers if they so choose and yet there hasn’t been a significant impact on transactions already in process.

Let’s review what has happen over the past 10 years from 2009 to 2019. Steve Loynd, Alpine Lakes Real Estate Inc., managing Broker in our Lincoln New Hampshire office has reviewed and analyzed the last 10 years market conditions. In 2009 there were 73 unites (single family and condominiums) that [...]

With limited inventory available on the market you should take special care when interviewing Realtors you want to work with whether you are selling or buying a home. Here's a few questions to ask those potential agents.

1. What’s your experience with selling property?

There’s no right or wrong answer requiring a full resume, however, you may wish to know if the Realtor sells real estate full-time or part-time and how long they’ve been in the industry.  It’s also reasonable to ask how they resolve issues such as discovering a lien after the fact, disputes with property lines, negative property inspection prior to closing etc.

For first-time home buyers, the process can be completely overwhelming. There are contracts, deadlines, inspections, deposits, etc. When you outgrow that first home and decide to sell it and buy something better suited for your current situation you might think it’ll be a piece of cake because you’ve already done it once.  Not so fast . . . the process will be equally overwhelming if not more due to regulations put in the place since you purchased your first home.

First, you need to sell your existing home and determining where you’ll live until you find and close on a new home. It’s possible to find a home before you’ve sold your existing residence, but it can be tricky to pull it off, so you may choose to get the first home sold before making an offer on a new one.

Real estate investing involves the purchase, ownership, management, rental and/or sale of real estate for profit. Being a real estate investor isn’t always glamorous but it’s a great way to make your money work for you and build wealth over the long-haul.  There are several ways to consider investing in real estate, buying properties with the intention of renting them to generate income,1031 Exchange or buy, fix, and flip to other buyers. 

When considering investment options think about this, when you buy a stock, it simply sits in your brokerage account and, hopefully, increases in value. If you invest in a rental property, there are many responsibilities that come along with being a landlord. When the furnace stops working in the middle of the night, it's you who gets the phone call. If you have the skills and don't mind handyman work, this may not be barrier; otherwise, you may need a property manager which, of course, affects your profit.

Credit affects all people; young, old, rich or poor. Credit reports and scores can impact all aspects of our lives; loans, credit card offers, renting an apartment and even job opportunities. Because of this, it’s critical that you understand how credit works and what factors create your credit score.

Are you a homeowner who’s thinking about selling, yet you may feel you missed the prime selling season and may have to put off listing your home until the Spring?  Don’t despair, there are many good reasons to go ahead and list your property now, you just need to have a strategic plan, so it doesn’t sit on the market all Winter. According to the National Association of Realtors, Existing home sales have increased from November to December an average of 4.5% in the past three winters. This means that although there will be less inventory available, buyers are still out there buying at a steady pace. That’s great news for homeowners wishing to sell during the colder months. The key to attracting buyers during this time of year is to be prepared and have an established strategic plan to prepare your home for sale.

You’ve done your due diligence, found a superb real estate agent and have stored away your personal items to declutter your home, now it’s time to prepare for all those showings your agent will bring your way.

While NH real estate sales rose from April to May by 3.7%, year-to-date, they are down 1.2%. The reality is there are just not enough homes on the market for the number of buyers looking to make purchases and that’s a serious problem.  The most desirable homes, the ones that are selling, tend to be smaller, and more affordable, slowing the median increase.

When some people decide to buy property outside that state in which they currently live, they may be doing it with a lot of knowledge already.  They could have the resources of friends and family already living there, or the experience of having visited and spent significant amounts of time in the state.

For others, however, the choice to buy real estate- whether it’s a commercial property, single home, a condo, or even bare land- can seem daunting without some knowledge of the new state. 

Of course, there is some research you can do for yourself. You'll have to narrow it down to the state and maybe a county or region on our own.  But when you get down to choosing a city or town, the best source of information is going to be a well-qualified real estate broker.

Many subdivisions have strict by-laws to prevent owners from pitching a tent on their site and camping out. This Covenant comes in the form of “no” a temporary shelters provision. One step further we often see no mobile homes, or a minimum square footage requirement. These guidelines were intended to ensure a homogeneous design and value of homes in a given neighborhood. They were and are still a good idea in most cases.

Your Mortgage lender analyzes these five “steps” when considering your loan application and you can help the likelihood of being approved for a loan by knowing them. 

You think you’re getting a great deal when you purchase a For Sale by Owner (FSBO) property, but buyer beware – things aren’t always as rosy as they seem.  Here’s a real-life example of just one of the many things that can go wrong.

I had a seller on the sale of a condo in the White Mountains. My seller listed their property with me and during the normal disclosure reported that they had no mortgage on the property. As the transaction moves forward and it comes time to close, we should expect a simple transaction and no lender to chase for a discharge, right? Wrong!

“Many times, in the past buyers have called about properties they want to view and potentially buy, only to find out that a financing option was not available due to the fact the access is on a private road. We have informed the sellers a solution which is to get everyone on the road to sign a joint maintenance agreement. This would state who would take care of the plowing, and general upkeep of the common road, and the financial responsibility. This document would need to be recorded and run with the property deed. The problem is not everyone is willing to do that, after all, why put yourself on the hook for this expense if your neighbor is willing to plow for free because that individual has a truck and plow?”