Tick Tock

404 Poppy in Garden Heights is Move In Ready!

We have a few Neighborhoods that are in close out this Fall.  In fact we have many!  So, if you have visited Garden Heights in Mansfield or Hidden Creek in Burleson and are thinking of buying in those neighborhoods, it’s time to get off the fence.  We have one home site left in each of those neighborhoods and 3 move in ready homes between the two.

On the North Side of Fort Worth, Parkview Hills has only four home sites remaining and three of those are the coveted Meandering Creek Lane greenbelt sites.

Looking for a value in South Fort Worth?  Matador Ranch has less than ten home sites remaining and those are going fast!

Do you want to move in before the end of the year?  We can help!  We have several homes available now ranging from 1430 to 3098 square feet, three bedrooms to five bedrooms with Media and Game Rooms!

Need a Lease Buyout?  No Problem?  Have a Realtor?  Great!  Credit Issues?  We can help!

Tick, Tock!

New Year, New Home

Open the door to a Brand New Year!

Have you been thinking about a new home for a long time?  Have you watched interest rates and home prices drop?  Have you noticed that home prices are now rising?

We are at the beginning of the upswing in pricing for Real Estate in our area.  Guess what else is happening?  Loan costs are on the rise too.  That means both interest rates and mortgage insurance premiums will be higher on FHA loans.  What does that mean to you?  Move quickly!  Claim your inventory home and lock in your rate and current MIP rates before they skyrocket at the end of this month.  This could save you thousands of dollars over a 30 year loan.

 It’s a New Year.  Don’t you deserve a New Home?

It’s Easy!

Buying a New Home is Easy! We’ll show you how.

Did you know that buying a new home is a very simple process? You have one major choice to make before you begin the process: do you want to build your new home from the ground up or do you want to move into your new home in the next 30 days or less?

 

If you want to move quickly, let’s say your home has sold or your lease is up, or you have just re-located, an inventory home is the best option for you.    An inventory home is one that the builder chose to build knowing that it is a popular floor plan and anticipating that some people may need to move into their new home in 30 days or less. There are about five steps to buying a completed inventory home:

 

-Gathering Your Paperwork 

Now this is the first step no matter what type of home you are buying.  You will need to provide your lender with a copy of your last two year’s W2’s, the two most recent paycheck stubs, a copy of your driver’s license, a copy of your social security card and your most recent checking and savings account statements.  Getting this paperwork together before you begin looking will streamline the process when you are ready to make your decision.

 

-Loan Application

Most Home Builders will have their list of preferred or in house lenders.  At Antares we have a list of over six Lenders that we prefer to work with.  These people have earned their place on our list by providing great customer service to our Home Buyers and to our Sales Consultants.  They are Lenders we can depend on to answer our phone calls even on weekends and after hours and they take care of our Buyers.  You can submit a loan application at any of our Model Homes any day of the week.  You are also welcome to use your own Lender that has already pre-approved you.  Getting this part out of the way early on in the process helps you to determine what price range you want to stay in.  It can also help with planning a budget for after you close.  Having a realistic plan for your lifestyle is very important.  For example, if you love to travel, you may want to keep your mortgage payment way below the maximum you can qualify for.

 

-Choose Your Home

This is the fun part!  Visiting our Model Homes, looking at our completed inventory and imagining where you’ll place your furniture!  Not sure what exactly will be the best style home for you?  No problem.  Our Sales Consultants are very good listeners and they will ask you lots of questions to discover which home will best suit your needs.

 

-Go to your Home Owner Orientation

Meet with the Construction Manager and find out all about the unique construction of your New Home.  You’ll learn more about Water Heaters, Grout, Foundations and Insulation than you every wanted!

 

-Go to Closing

Signing on the dotted line and getting the keys to your future!  Congratulations!

 

Have you decided you would like to pick all of the colors for your new home?  Need a few months to save up your down payment?  Want a floor plan that we don’t have as a completed inventory home?  In love with that over sized Cul-De-Sac Home Site?  Build!  After the first two steps above, the next step is:

 

-Choose Your Floor Plan and Home Site

It can be overwhelming when we have so many different plans and locations to build.  But don’t worry we are here to help!  With plans ranging from three bedrooms to six bedrooms, we will have the perfect plan for you!

 

-Visit the Selection Studio

This is my favorite part!  Since we don’t limit our Buyers to pre-selected packages, every home can be customized in many different ways.  We will help you choose options that are beautiful and within any budget!

 

-Watch Your Home Emerge!

The construction process is very interesting if you ask me!  A lot of our buyers will visit their home weekly to take pictures and observe their dreams taking form.  You will meet with the Construction Manager during this time to get an overview of the construction process.  He will also be able to answer any questions you have about how your home is being built.  All of the Construction Managers at Antares Homes are Graduate Master Builders!  Where else can you find that?

 

-Save Your Down Payment Money

Most of our buyers are using FHA loans.  These loans require 3.5% of the mortgage value of the home as a down payment.  A lot of people don’t have that amount sitting around and have to budget to save it.  Since it takes us four months to build your new home, most of our buyers are able to save down payment money in that time period.  We also have various Zero Down loans available for qualified buyers.  If you want more information on those programs, please contact one of our Sales Offices.  Our Sales Consultants will be able to tell you very quickly if you qualify for one of those programs.

 

-Meet with the Construction Manager

You will meet with your Construction Manager at least three times during the building process.  He is a great educational resource for our buyers.  Every wonder why we do what we do?  He’ll be able to tell you!

 

-Go to closing!

The same last step: Signing on the dotted line and getting the keys to your future!  Congratulations!

 

Now Wasn’t That Easy?

A Little Something Extra

No stress. No worries. From extra inspections during construction to engineered steel rebar foundations to guaranteed heating & cooling costs, your Antares home will provide peace of mind.

Sometimes you just want that little bit more.  Something extra.  We get it.  And we think that little bit more is peace of mind.  With the hustle and bustle of life, you don’t need any more stress and worry than absolutely necessary.  So we go out of our way to provide our customers with a worry-free experience.  Let’s examine the ways:

 

  1. Guaranteed Heating and Cooling.  Seriously.  Not Kidding.  It’s a warranted item.  Our 3098 square foot floor plan in Garden Heights is GUARANTEED to average 907.5 kWh/month to heat and cool.  At a price of $0.084/kWh that’s $76.23 on average to run the HVAC.  Incredible, and true.
  2. Extra Inspections.  We go above and beyond to get additional third party inspections on each home.  We want to make sure that a second set of eyes has inspected our homes to catch mistakes we may have missed.  The result?  Fewer Warranty Requests from our Home Owners.
  3. Rebar Foundation.  Each foundation is tailored to the specific needs of each neighborhood.  Did you know that Tarrant County soils can vary so much that a soils test in one neighborhood can yield completely different results when compared to another?  We always take the most conservative approach with our foundations and it shows in our record with Bonded Builders — our Third Party Warranty Partner.  We have been claims free on our foundations since the company was founded in 1998.
  4. Graduate Master Builders.  Astonishing as it may be, all of our Construction Managers that build our homes are Graduate Master Builders.  Continuing education is vital for anyone who desires to be the best in their field.  We are no different.  Experience and education make a difference in the end product.  We are very proud to have such a great team building our homes, and you will be too.
  5. Top Notch Salespeople.  Our Sales Team is the best in the business.  Why?  What’s different about them?  They are highly trained in areas that make the most difference to our Customers.  They are very knowledgeable about the latest loan programs for first time buyers, repeat buyers and credit challenged buyers.  If there is a way to save you money and get you the Home of your Dreams, they can find it.  They are most concerned with helping people, not selling people.  And our Customer Service Surveys reflect their hard work.

 

And if you still want more, call one of our Sales Offices to find out what’s so special about their neighborhood!

 

14 Reasons to live in Garden Heights

  • Community Pool 

The community pool is within walking distance of all of our home sites.  Since our community is small, there is never any crowding at the pool!

  • Mansfield National Golf Course 

 Mansfield National is just a golf cart-drive from our neighborhood.  It really is within walking distance as well!  It is a Par 72, 18 hole course situated on 225 acres.  Kids play Free Monday through Friday and after 2pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

  • Mansfield ISD 

 Mansfield is very well known for their Top Rated Schools.  Check ratings on the TEA websiteThe School District has a Blog and it is very informational.  It gives an insider’s look into the personality of the school district.  There is also a Foundation established to generate additional funds for the School District.  Grant recipients are teachers who will use the funds for implementing special programs in their classrooms.  What a way to take make education a grassroots initiative!

  • Hawaiian Falls 

Guess where else you can walk to from your home?  Season passes are very reasonably priced and there are different online clubs to join that offer discounts and weekly specials.  You can find all of that and more on the Hawaiian Falls website.

  • Joe Pool Lake 

Garden Heights is a stone’s throw away from Loyd Park at Joe Pool Lake.  There are tons of amenities at this location including camping and multi-use trails.

  • Mansfield Activities Center 

 The MAC as locals call it is a full service operation!  This is your one stop for becoming involved in Mansfield.  There are loads of Programs for the whole family as well as Senior Activities.   Click Here for the full Brochure.

Mansfield claims 11 Parks and Athletic Fields.

This Theater was founded in 1917 and is housed in a Historic Building in Mansfield.  It is a very active place and they offer Musical presentations as well as movies and family fun nights. 

The City of Mansfield built the replica fields and owns themThey host several leagues at the fields and the pavilion can be rented for special events.  And guess what else?  It is next door to Mansfield National Golf Course and Hawaiian Falls!

This group of folks run a Museum and preserves the rich History of this wonderful town! 

 

 

 

Garden Heights is our only Neighborhood in Mansfield, Texas.  We think it is a great location and so do our buyers!  We currently have four Homes available for immediate move-in.  Call Stan Goldstein at 817-447-7502.

8 Reasons to Buy a New Home

If you’re like most first-time home buyers, you’ve probably listened to friends’, family’s and coworkers’ advice, many of whom are encouraging you to buy a home. However, you may still wonder if buying a home is the right thing to do. Relax. Having reservations is normal. The more you know about why you should buy a home, the less scary the entire process will appear to you. Here are eight good reasons why you should buy a new home.

Pride of Ownership

Pride of ownership is the number one reason why people yearn to own their home. It means you can paint the walls any color you desire, turn up the volume on your CD player, attach permanent fixtures and decorate your home according to your own taste. Home ownership gives you and your family a sense of stability and security. It’s making an investment in your future.

Appreciation

Although real estate moves in cycles, sometimes up, sometimes down, over the years, real estate has consistently appreciated. The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight tracks the movements of single family home values across the country. Its Housing Price Index breaks down the changes by region and metropolitan area. Many people view their home investment as a hedge against inflation.  Texas is one of the states that lead the Nation here.

Mortgage Interest Deductions

Home ownership is a superb tax shelter and our tax rates favor homeowners. As long as your mortgage balance is smaller than the price of your home, mortgage interest is fully deductible on your tax return. Interest is the largest component of your mortgage payment.

Property Tax Deductions

IRS Publication 530 contains tax information for first-time home buyers.  Real estate property taxes paid for a first home and a vacation home are fully deductible for income tax purposes.

Capital Gain Exclusion

As long as you have lived in your home for two of the past five years, you can exclude up to $250,000 for an individual or $500,000 for a married couple of profit from capital gains. You do not have to buy a replacement home or move up. There is no age restriction, and the “over-55” rule does not apply. You can exclude the above thresholds from taxes every 24 months, which means you could sell every two years and pocket your profit–subject to limitation–free from taxation.

Preferential Tax Treatment

If you receive more profit than the allowable exclusion upon sale of your home, that profit will be considered a capital asset as long as you owned your home for more than one year. Capital assets receive preferential tax treatment.

Mortgage Reduction Builds Equity

Each month, part of your monthly payment is applied to the principal balance of your loan, which reduces your obligation. The way amortization works, the principal portion of your principal and interest payment increases slightly every month. It is lowest on your first payment and highest on your last payment. On average, each $100,000 of a mortgage will reduce in balance the first year by about $500 in principal, bringing that balance at the end of your first 12 months to $99,500.

Equity Loans

Consumers who carry credit card balances cannot deduct the interest paid, which can cost as much as 18% to 22%. Equity loan interest is often much less and it is deductible. For many home owners, it makes sense to pay off this kind of debt with a home equity loan. Consumers can borrow against a home’s equity for a variety of reasons such as home improvement, college, medical or starting a new business.

-Ron Formby

Singing Salespeople!

At our Holiday Party this year we were treated to a wonderful performance of the song “Antares Home” sung to the tune of “Mercedes Benz” by Janis Joplin.  This version was written by Stan Goldstein who is the Salesperson at Garden Heights.  It was too great not to share, so here are pictures and lyrics!

Melissa, Sharon and Stan. Picture by Monique Tinsley.

Oh Lord, won’t you buy me an Antares Home

My friends have ****** and all they do is moan

Worked hard all my lifetime, protected my credit score

So Lord get me an Antares and I’ll feel like I got more

Oh Lord, won’t you give me a home with low bills

Guaranteed heating and cooling gives me the chills

I am cool in summer and toasty in the cold

So Lord give me an Antares if I may be so bold

Oh Lord won’t you give me a real quiet house

My friends all hear boom boxes; I’m quiet as a mouse

No fiberglass for me I want cellulose can’t you see

Oh Lord it’s so nice to be able to hear my TV

Oh Lord give me a home with rebar slab

No post tension for me I think rebar is fab

A Certified Graduate Builder is who I want to see

So Lord give me a foundation engineered just for me

(Everyone)

Oh Lord, won’t you buy me an Antares Home

My friends have ****** and all they do is moan

Worked hard all my lifetime, protected my credit score

So Lord get me an Antares and I’ll feel like I got more

Jaimie, Melissa, Sharon and Stan. Photo by Monique Tinsley.