As of July 31, 2023, new listings are down 19.4% from last year in the greater Milwaukee area. Even with higher rates, buyers are needing to fight over fewer houses. 

As the competition rages on, some buyers are considering other options to find more housing inventory available. 

You have two options to consider:

1. Renovation Loans – I love the renovation loan! You can finance the cost to do small cosmetic repairs, or even major structural changes if you’d want. Add a bedroom, make the living space open-concept. You need a contractor bid before closing, and the loan is based on how much the home WILL be worth after the work is done! How cool is that? Quick example. Say you buy a home for $250,000 and it needs some "love", and you would like to do about $100,00 worth of updates on the home. Your total acquisition cost is $350,000, and you could do a 3-5% down payment on the total "acquisition cost" of $350,000.
2. House-hacking! I love the house-hack option. Some borrowers qualify for a special program that allows for a 5% down payment on a 2-4 unit property – with a conventional loan! Another program available for many first time homebuyers is the FHA 3.5% down payment option as well. You can live in a "future rental property" - while you live in one of the units, you can rent the other(s) out! After 6-18 months, you may decide you don't want to be in the same property, and you could choose to move on and purchase your next home! You could then keep your original mortgage. 

Both of these programs allow you to consider a different type of property than most, which gives you access to dozens more available homes for you to choose from. The “average” homebuyer is seeking a move-in-ready single family , these programs help you look outside the box with less competition! 

Even if these options don't apply to you, is there someone else you know that could benefit from one of these solutions? 

Questions? Don't hesitate to text me at 414-488-0483