Here's the market update for the Logan Utah Real Estate Market: The number of sold homes have consistently risen each month starting at 15 in January to 36 sold homes in May. This is good news and can be contributed to a mixture of low interest rates, buyer incentives, the overall consistent Cache Valley market as well as the normal increase of sales in the summer months. On the other hand, the average sales and list price of Homes For Sale in Logan Utah has been fluctuating over the past 5 months. Below are graphs showing these market updates:

Any person looking to buy or sell a home in Logan Utah or surrounding areas please check out my website at www.realestateinloganutah.com - Thanks!

Logan Utah Real Estate - Cache Valley Real Estate - Logan Utah Real Estate - Cache Valley Real Estate

For the first half of the year, Cache Valley Real Estate sales were down compared with 2008. During the third quarter, they were also down, but less down. Sounds a bit like the national unemployment statistics. The third quarter is traditionally has the highest volume of real estate sales in Cache Valley.

Well during the third quarter of this year, Cache Valley Ut Home Sales were down 5.65%. 317 Cache County Homes sold compared with 336 during the same period last year. Home sales during the second quarter were down by 12.5% and during the first quarter were down 14.09%, so we are seeing improvement.

Third Quarter Cache Valley Utah Real Estate prices were also down compared with July-August of last year. The median sold price of Homes in Cache County was $166,727, down 3.63% from last years Q3 median sales price of $173,000. The average sold price of $187,075 was down 3.5% compared with last year. While the year over year Q3 comparison was down, both the median and average home prices were actually up compared with the second quarter of this year. Prices for Logan Utah Real Estate may have already bottomed out.

If you are a buyer looking to purchase a home in the Logan Utah Real Estatemarket or any other surrounding area, I recommend that you visit with John Neil at Wasatch Mortgage Solutions.  He is the consumate professional and always has your best interest in mind.

John graduated from Utah State University and has spent the last several years serving the community as one of it's top loan officers.  He is very knowledgeable with various loan programs and will go above and beyond to serve you!

Visit his website here: Logan Utah Real Estate

To search all homes for sale in Logan Utah or surrounding areas please check out the following links: Logan Utah Real Estate or Real Estate in Logan Utah

CLICK TO VIEW LISTING WEBSITE
Description and Features
updated 2158 square foot 4 bedroom 2 bath ranch rambler on .63 acres. Call today this won't last long.	Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 2 Parking Spaces: 4 Square Feet: 2158 Lot Size: 27444 Year Built: 1981 Floors: 2 MLS #: 918325
Location
Click to view map: 238 west 100 north Newton UT 84327
Links
TaylorZClark.com MountainsToValleys Logan Area Homes Cache Valley Homes for Sale Listing Website

CLICK TO VIEW LISTING WEBSITE
Description and Features
updated 2158 square foot 4 bedroom 2 bath ranch rambler on .63 acres. Call today this won't last long.	Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 2 Parking Spaces: 4 Square Feet: 2158 Lot Size: 27444 Year Built: 1981 Floors: 2 MLS #: 918325
Location
Click to view map: 238 west 100 north Newton UT 84327
Links
TaylorZClark.com MountainsToValleys Logan Area Homes Cache Valley Homes for Sale Listing Website

When you are buying a home you can't always rely on your loan officer to tell you what you can afford. The fact is that what you can qualify for and what you are comfortable with can be two very different things. To find out if you are truly comfortable with a potential monthly payment there are a few things that you should do...

Develop a Realistic Budget
You should develop a monthly budget and write down every single monthly cost and include a contingency fund of 10% for the unexpected. After the mortgage payment, do you still have enough to put some into savings? into an emergency fund? Are you going to have to cut out cable/Internet, eating out, or other luxuries that you can't do without? If you are uncomfortable with your answers, look for a different house.

The Industry Standards
You could also use the standard "housing ratio" and "debt to income ratio" which underwriters use to determine whether the payments are affordable. Those standards are that you shouldn't spend more than 28% of your gross monthly income on your mortgage payments and that you shouldn't be spending more than 41% of your gross monthly income on your mortgage payments along with other monthly debts (e.g. car payments, credit card payments, student loans, etc.)

It's possible to get approved if your ratios are higher than these standards, if you have very good credit or a large down payment for example. But unless you live very frugally it's likely that you will struggle with a mortgage payment that high.

Account for all increases!
you need to look at your current housing expenses and take into account all of the increases that you will see if you buy a new home. You will need to ask yourself at least these questions...

• How much more is the new mortgage payment (including hazard insurance and property taxes) vs. our current rent payments?
• How much more or less will the utility bills be?
• How much do we need to set aside each month for potential home repairs? (Studies show that you will pay 3.5% annually of the purchase price for a new home and 4.5% for an older home)
• Is there an HOA fee that we need to account for?

*You also need to find out how much more of a tax refund you will get because mortgage interest is tax deductible.

The Eight Hour Rule
If you have taken all of the above steps and passed there is still one more test that you need to be aware of. You can always fall back on the eight hour test to determine whether you will be comfortable with a new mortgage payment. If you find yourself reaching for the Tylenol PM at 2 am, chances are that you will not be comfortable with your new mortgage payment.