Atlanta Real Estate Blog

What is a TBD Approval? Why is it the way to go?
TBD (To Be Determined) approvals are for buyers obtaining financing who get their loan file underwritten to the furthest extent possible – without having yet identified a property to purchase. With a TBD, income, assets, credit, etc are examined leaving only the property itself to be determined. Once the purchase contract is created, the remaining needed items to fund the loan are minimal – an appraisal and title report.

Only a Bank, Credit Union or Direct Lender has this capability because they have “in-house” underwriters. The only remaining items for a “Clear-to-Close is a copy of the borrower’s purchase agreement and an appraisal on the property.

Who do they benefit? Everyone Involved.

Real estate agents know they have a solid buyer before going out looking at homes and writing up offers. A deal falling out because of a pay stub or a strange deposit on a bank statement 20 days into escrow is a huge time waste and emotional drain.

Buyers have more confidence with their offers knowing that they ‘check out’ with the underwriter before pulling out the credit card for an appraisal. More importantly – sellers have been known to accept a lower offer from a buyer who has a “Loan Approval Subject Only to Appraisal and Title”, versus a buyer who has only been pre-qualified.

Sellers have less fall out when dealing with a TBD approved buyer. If there is fallout, it would be because of the property that they are selling, not the buyer. Sellers hold TBD approved buyers in esteem somewhere between buyers who only have a ‘standard pre-qual’ and the highly coveted ‘all-cash’ buyer. There are times when sellers will actually accept lower offers from an “approved buyer” because they want or need  a firm sale date, and prefer not to risk letting a buyer who merely has a Pre-Qualification pull their property off market for 15+ days while they seek loan approval.

With a TBD Approval a lot of potential unknowns are eliminated up front, and all parties involved benefit.

  Over the last four years, Penske Truck Rental has produced an annual list of its *top moving destinations in the United States. Once again, the Atlanta metro area remained No. 1 for the fourth consecutive year.

The following list of top move destinations for 2013 was compiled in January 2014, and last year’s rankings for 2012 are noted in parentheses. New to the 2013 list is Las Vegas, coming in at number10. Sarasota, FL, number 10 in 2012, was combined with the Tampa, FL metro area for this year’s list.

1. Atlanta (1)
2. Tampa, Fla./Sarasota, Fla. (new combined entry)
3. Dallas/Fort Worth (2)
4. Orlando, Fla. (4)
5. Phoenix (3)
6. Houston (6)
7. Seattle (8)
8. Chicago (5)
9. Denver (7)
10. Las Vegas (new!)

“We have seen a continued migration of Penske Truck Rental customers from the Northeast and Midwest parts of the U.S. into these areas,” said Don Mikes, Penske senior vice president of rental.

Penske created a series of infographics to complement their list of top relocation cities.  We have attached their Atlanta infographic which shows Atlanta is famous for its international sports, soft drinks and its supply of Georgia peaches. The graphic also shows Atlanta’s median household income to be $46,146, and it displays the average listing price as $448,387.

*Penske creates their annual Top 10 Moving Destinations list through an analysis of one-way consumer truck rental reservations made online, and through their central reservations call center.

Did you buy a home in the Atlanta area last year?

If you purchased your home last year and have not already done so, file for your Homestead Exemption by the deadline or you won’t get a tax break for another year! Filing a Homestead Exemption can save you thousands of dollars in property taxes! Some states provide this exemption automatically, but in Georgia a homestead exemption must be applied for. Depending on your county, this can be done online, by fax, by mail or in person. You only have to apply for the exemption once and the exemption remains for as long as you reside in the home as your primary residence. A Homestead Exemption provides more than just a tax break. It also provides two important protections. It prevents the forced sale of a home to meet the demands of creditors and provides the surviving spouse with shelter. You may file for homestead exemption year round. Deadlines are listed below by county along with a link for a homestead application. Applications received after these deadlines will be processed the following year.

 Filing for Homestead Exemption

The Homestead Exemption is available to legal residents of Georgia for their primary homes. You are entitled to the Homestead exemption if you owned and occupied your home by January 1.  Senior citizens may have additional exemptions available – check with your county tax office.

Deadline Dates (in parenthesis)

Cherokee County (4/1): 2782 Marietta Highway, Suite 200, Canton 30114 678-493-6120 M-F 8am to 5pm http://www.cherokeega.com/Tax-Assessors-Office/

Cobb County (4/1): 736 Whitlock Avenue, Suite 100, Marietta, GA 30064 770-528-8600 M-F 8:30am to 5pm http://www.cobbtax.org/property/exemptions#BasicHomestead

DeKalb County (4/1): 4380 Memorial Drive, Suite 100, Decatur, GA 30032 404-298-4000 M-F 8am to 5pm http://web.co.dekalb.ga.us/TaxCommissioner/homesteadGen.html

Douglas County (4/1): Douglas County Courthouse, 8700 Hospital Drive, Douglasville, GA 30133 770-920-7272 M-F 8am to 5pm http://www.douglastaxcommissioner.com/

Forsyth County (4/1): 110 East Main Street, Suite 260, Cumming, GA 30040 770-781-2106 M-F 8:30am to 5pm http://www.qpublic.net/ga/forsyth/homestead.html

Fulton County (4/1): You may be able to file at one of the annex centers – please check the website for location nearest you. 141 Pryor Street SW, Suite 1047, Atlanta, GA 30303 404-730-4000 M-F 8am to 5pm http://www.qpublic.net/ga/fulton/basic_homestead.html

Gwinnett County (4/1): Call for application. 75 Langley Drive, Lawrenceville, GA 30046 770-822-8800 M-F 8:30am to 5pm http://gwinnetttaxcommissioner.manatron.com/Tabs/Property/HomesteadExemption.aspx

Hall County (4/1): 2875 Browns Bridge Rd, Gainesville, GA 30504 770-531-6720 M-F 8am to 5pm http://www.hallcounty.org/depts/taxassessor/homestead_exempt_app.asp

Paulding County (4/1): 240 Constitution Boulevard, Dallas, GA 30132 770-443-7606 M-F 8am to 5pm http://www.paulding.gov/index.aspx?NID=210

Rockdale County (4/1): 969 Pine Street, Conyers, GA 30012 770-278-7600 M-F 8am to 4:30pm http://www.rockdalecounty.org/main.cfm?id=2985

Walton County (4/1): 303 South Hammond Drive, Walton County Government Building, Monroe, GA 30655 770-267-1335 M-F 8am to 5pm http://www.waltoncountytax.com/info#returns

 What You Need in Order to File: A copy of the recorded warranty deed, Social Security numbers of all persons on the deed, the mortgage holder, and the amount of the mortgage. Note: Some counties may require a copy of the closing statement and proof of age for senior citizens.

If your county is not listed, please visit the Ga Dept of Revenue online at: https://etax.dor.ga.gov/ptd/county/index.aspx to find information for your county.