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Daily Archives: February 24, 2014
Warren Buffett and his Real Estate Investment Advice | South Salem Real Estate
Kerry Kennedy was ‘sleep driving’ according to her defense attorney at DWI trial in Westchester County | Armonk Homes
Monthly Home Prices Are on the Rise | Waccabuc Real Estate
Rise in China’s Home Prices a Little Less Steep | Cross River Real Estate
Monthly Home Prices Are On the Rise | Bedford NY Homes by Robert Paul
Are higher monthly mortgage payments a good or bad trend for the economy?
It’s probably bad, but either way, rising home payments are increasingly a fact of life for new homeowners, as house payments for U.S. homebuyers rose by 21% in the fourth quarter of 2013.
The hike in monthly payments is forged from two separate real estate trends — rising median prices and higher interest rates, reports RealtyTrac, the Irvine, Calif., housing data provider.
The firm says that, in the last quarter of 2013, median home prices rose by 10% and interest rates rose by 33%, on average, in 325 counties.
The monthly payment hike covers the full gamut of homeownership expenses for an average three-bedroom home — data reached by combining mortgage, insurance, taxes and maintenance and by subtracting the estimated income tax benefit, RealtyTrac reports.
So that 21% figure is surprisingly high, especially as higher home prices significantly outpace household incomes, which are virtually stagnant.
“A potent combination of rapidly rising home prices and the often-overlooked but significant uptick in interest rates in the second half of 2013 caused the monthly cost of owning a home using traditional financing to jump substantially in many markets over the last year,” says Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac.
“The monthly cost of owning a home is still less than renting in the majority of markets, but the cost of financed homeownership is becoming dangerously disconnected with still-stagnant median incomes, driven not by shoddy underwriting practices this time around but by investors and other cash buyers who are not tethered to the typical affordability constraints,” he adds.
Smart alternatives to putting 20 percent down | Bedford Corners NY Homes
These days, there are a number of alternatives to the 20 percent down payment, with some options requiring down payments of 3 to 5 percent, while others offer loans with 0 percent down.
Keep reading to learn more about these alternatives…
Alternative #1 – FHA Loan
If you’re a first-time homebuyer, consider a Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loan. It’s a type of federal assistance loan that allows lower-income Americans to borrow money to purchase a home they could not otherwise afford.
Buyers can get an FHA loan with a down payment as low as 3.5 percent of the purchase price, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
“The FHA loan is designed to protect buyers from buying more house than they can afford,” says Paula Pant, founder of Afford Anything, a website that helps people reach their financial goals. “It limits buyers to spending no more than 31 percent of their gross monthly income on their total house payment. In other words, it protects buyers against making risky decisions.”
However, Pant says there is one drawback: Buyers will need to pay mortgage insurance as a result of not furnishing a 20 percent down payment.
“The cost of this insurance counts towards the total house payment, which is capped at 31 percent of a buyer’s gross monthly income. So, for example, if they earn $1,000 per month (gross), they can’t pay more than $310 per month towards all mortgage expenses, including the principal, interest, taxes and insurance, including PMI.”
http://homes.yahoo.com/news/alternatives-to-20-percent-down-003911752.html
15 Painting Mistakes to Avoid in Your Home | Chappaqua NY Homes
Taking on your next painting project? For a flawless finish, avoid these painting mistakes.
1. Skipping the Tape Do you have the skills to get straight lines around the woodwork, windowsills and doorframes? Grab the painter’s tape and get the nice, clean edges you want.
2. Painting Without Primer Primer gives paint a good surface to adhere to and brings out the true color of the shade you’ve chosen. Going without it can lead to poor results.
3. Impatience You took the time to fix every imperfection with patching compound. Wait. Make sure it’s completely dry before you sand and prime. Otherwise, all that patching was a waste of time.
4. Paint Buildup on Pad Edge When using edge pads around ceiling edges and corners, make sure to wipe off excess paint frequently to avoid marking the surface.
5. Brushing When You Should be Rolling For a large interior area, a roller will do a better job in less time. Select the right nap roller for your sheen of paint and try to avoid pushing the roller into the wall when you paint.
6. Underestimating How Much Paint Needed The pros say you need one gallon for every 400 square feet. Plan ahead and you can avoid running back and forth to the store with a paint swatch in your hand.
7. Assuming Walls are Clean Paint looks much better when it has a good, clean surface to stick to. Wash your walls before painting and get professional results you can be proud of. 8. Painting When the Humidity is High When the air is full of moisture, water-based paint takes longer to dry. If the weather winds up more humid than expected, take the day off and wait for a dry day.
http://shine.yahoo.com/at-home/15-painting-mistakes-avoid-home-201300426.html
How debt affects your credit score | Armonk NY Homes
The amount of debt you carry makes up for 30% of your credit rating. Therefore, let’s take a look at how debt affects your credit score.
Factor
The main aspect of debt that affects your credit rating is the balance you carry on your lines of credit. Credit score calculators examine your credit utilization by studying the relation between your credit card balance and your credit threshold. Though installment loans play a part in the amount of debt you have, credit score calculators focus more on your credit card usage.
If you have a high balance on your credit card(s), your score will suffer. On that note, having a maxed out credit card will severely hurt your credit rating.
Tips:
Make small purchases
It is ok to have a credit card with a high credit limit. However, do not look at the limit as a way to spend more money. At the end of the day, you still owe that money back to the creditor, and you will owe it back with interest. Therefore, only make small purchases that you can pay off at the end of each billing cycle.
Do not close unused credit cards
Allow your unused credit cards to stay open. This will help your credit utilization rating and debt to credit ratio.
Do not open a bunch of new credit cards
Be content with the amount of credit cards you have. If you feel the need for a new credit card, try not to have any more than three at a time. If you desire more credit, simply ask for a credit increase on the credit card you have owned the longest
http://www.examiner.com/article/how-debt-affects-your-credit-score?cid=taboola_inbound
South Salem Real Estate Weekly Report | South Salem NY Homes
| South  Salem NY Weekly Real Estate Report | 2/24/2013 | |
| Homes for sale | 50 | |
| Median Ask Price | $732,500.00 | |
| Low Price | $199,900.00 | |
| High Price | $12,200,000.00 | |
| Average Size | 3086 | |
| Average Price/foot | $368.00 | |
| Average DOM | 223 | |
| Average Ask Price | $1,213,764.00 | |