Romeo Manzanilla's (suncitytx) Blog

This month's newsletter was the easiest to write in quite some time. It seems as though the press just can't stop saying enough good things about Austin. Take a look at some of these amazing headlines from some very reputable news sources: Forbes: Austin is nation's best bargain city Austin only ...

This is some information that was provided to me by one of Austin's top mortgage brokers: As you may have noticed, interest rates on 30-yr fixed mortgages have really shot up over the last few days.  We have gone from 4.5% with 1 point on Thursday morning of last week, to 5.25% as of late this af...

Many people I talk to are feeling a bit more optimistic these days.  Even President Obama believes the economy is showing 'glimmers of hope.'  In Austin, we are by no means immune to the economic crisis, but we feel very fortunate that our local economy has remained relatively strong in spite of ...

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Austin was the second fastest growing metropolitan area between 2007 and 2008. The population in the greater Austin metro area grew 3.8% to 1.65 million from July 2007 to July 2008.  Austin's growth rate was second only to Raleigh, N.C., which experienced a 4....

First-Time Home buyer Credit of Up to $8,000Qualified first-time home buyers who purchase a home in 2009 before December 1, 2009 will receive a tax credit of up to 10% of the purchase price (up to $8,000).  Home buyers can claim the credit on their income taxes and receive money back in excess of...

TEXAS (Builder) - Five Texas cities swept the top spots on Builder magazine's list of "Healthiest Housing Markets for 2009″ Houston ranked first, Austin second, Fort Worth third, San Antonio fourth and Dallas fifth. Rounding out the top ten were Raleigh, N.C., Seattle, Indianapolis, Ind., Fayette...

Spring is in the air and homeowners across the city are preparing to put their homes on the market.  Some of my clients have managed to get ahead of the pack while others are still getting their homes ready to sell.  Either way, I'm making sure they realize the statistics indicate they may have a...

The Federal Reserve on Tuesday rolled out a much-awaited program aimed at boosting the availability of credit to consumers and small businesses. The Fed will lend up to $200 billion to spur consumer lending -- for autos, education, credit cards and other consumer debt. The money will be used to p...

The White House website posted a Q&A on its blog yesterday for homeowners in distress to learn how the President's plan will help them specifically. Here are a few excerpts: Borrowers Who Are Current on Their Mortgage Are Asking: • What help is available for borrowers who stay current on their mo...

As of January 1st 2009, HUD began allowing a reverse mortgage to be used as a means to purchase a home. Qualifications for this option were comparable to typical reverse mortgage options (buyer must be the primary resident, over the age of 62, etc.) but there are some differences. For clients tha...