I frequently get asked aobut gifting money for a down payment to help out a child. Giving your child a gift of cash for the down payment on a home works like this. Currently, you can give up to $12,000 a year to an individual ($24,000 through gift-splitting with your spouse) and not have any gift-tax impact. So you and your spouse could give give your adult child and his or her spouse up to $48,000 for a down payment in 2008.

Please do talk with your financial advisor prior to any gifting of money but these are the limits.

Quick, Quality Financing for Buyers.....

Are you working with a financial partner that is interested in your long term financial success? If not, you need to be. Johnson Bank is a permier lender and at thier website www.johnsonbankmortgage.com you can start the financing process for your home. Even if you work out the details on the web, you need to touch base with Julie Kramer, Asst. Vice President/Senior Mortgage Loan Officer. There are a multitude of lending programs availabe to Buyers! YES! Even today you work with 5% and 10% down payments. Go on line, call Julie at 262-757-1163 and start your new home buying process.

I can help you tour Geneva National and answer questions as we do. If you are interested in making a purchase now or in 30 days or 1 year this is the time to start. Sales are ongoing, pricing is stable and the community is growing. Come on in - the economics are good.

Thinking twice.....great article on Sunday, May 4, 2008. Both Sam and Linda Salchenberger and Gary and Wanda Lockwood are my clients and customers. We spent time together finding the right fit. I am not a tour guide but someone who truly understands the emotional buy that is involved. What can I do for you?

Welcome to a new ranch plan at The Turn. This paired condominium includes 1900 sf. of living space with 16 feet of glass and windows onto the patio and Palmer golf course. Master suite, second bedroom, great room, kitchen and dining space along with cathedral ceilings, hardwoods, granite, and more are included in the price of 489,000. Come into Geneva National today or call 262-949-9272 for included features and more.

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/04/the_skys_not_falling.html

John Stossel's recent article in Real Clear Politics........

As you probably know, while the nation sorts out the housing downturn and caution on a possible recession, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin while 'influenced' is not affected in the same way. Generally our inventory isn't climbing that much and our prices aren't falling that much. Especially in our secondary home market. Those home with lake access, deeded boat slips, waver runner ramps and assocation lake rights are even in more demand as a long winter begins to recede. However, Buyers who don't understand this market area are influenced by the media to delay deciding, as they may be in their own market.

Real Estate is like the weather....it only depends on what is happening in your local area.

Whether properties have been on the market for awhile or have adjusted pricing the reality is that those properties will be placed under contract and won't be available within the next four weeks. Visitor traffic will increase and Buyers looking to take advantage will arrive to pick them off in order to get organized and on the Lake by Memorial Day weekend. Don't delay if a property is catching your eye.......

Area growth 'healthy' amid national issues
By RICK ROMELL
rromell@journalsentinel.com
Posted: March 27, 2008

The growth in property values in southeastern Wisconsin slowed last year but increased by a "still healthy" 6%, the Public Policy Forum said in newly released research.
Walworth and Kenosha counties, probably benefiting from their proximity to Chicago and northern Illinois, led the way. But the region as a whole held up well amid the problems that have beset real estate nationally, forum President Rob Henken said.

Southeastern Wisconsin's property value growth fell off the 10.7% pace of 2005-'06, but other parts of the country have seen values decline, Henken said. "It certainly looks to be very good news ....that that has not happened here as of the 2007 data, and having a 6% growth rate in the region is not anything to feel bad about," he said. "Even these numbers may be higher than some had expected."Walworth County's total value rose 10.5% last year. The county has gained 121.4% in value over the past decade.Kenosha County posted the next highest increase, 7.2%.

Increases in the rest of the region were: Ozaukee County, 6.6%; Washington County, 5.7%; Racine County, 5.6%;Milwaukee County, 5.5%; and Waukesha County, 5.1%. Henken called the greater growth of the Illinois border counties "a valuable piece of information for policy-makers." "It again points to the benefits of public policies, which are going to take advantage of our proximity to northern Illinois," he said.

Property values for the state as a whole rose 6.2%. The report also shows the range in the value of property per person in the region's communities.
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Original Story URL:
http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=732999
Chenequa, in Waukesha County, is easily the wealthiest by this measure, with $971,508 in property value per resident.

The lowest ranking community is Whitewater, in Walworth County, with $49,079 in property value per resident.
Milwaukee ranks fourth to last, at $53,995.
The Public Policy Forum based its analysis on the equalized property values across the state determined by the state
Department of Revenue as of August.
Buy

Mortgage rates have dropped to their lowest levels since the summer of 2005, as more people become convinced that the economy is in a housing-led slowdown.

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The benchmark 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell 13 basis points, to 5.75 percent, according to the Bankrate.com national survey of large lenders. A basis point is one-hundredth of 1 percentage point. The mortgages in this week's survey had an average total of 0.36 discount and origination points. One year ago, the mortgage index was 6.26 percent; four weeks ago, it was 6.21 percent.

The benchmark 15-year fixed-rate mortgage fell 17 basis points, to 5.28 percent. The benchmark 5/1 adjustable-rate mortgage fell 14 basis points, to 5.67 percent. As usual, the 30-year jumbo, for mortgages exceeding the $417,000 conforming limit, fell less rapidly -- down 5 basis points, to 6.98 percent.

The benchmark 30-year rate hasn't been lower than this since July 6, 2005, when it was 5.7 percent. Less than six months ago -- July 25, 2007 -- the benchmark 30-year rate was exactly 1 percentage point higher, at 6.75 percent. It has dropped fairly steadily since then, but the decline accelerated at the beginning of this year. The 30-year fixed has fallen 56 basis points in three weeks, the biggest three-week drop since February 1988.