Daily Archives: March 24, 2014

Borrowing again: Mortgage debt increases most in 6 years | Armonk Homes

 

First mortgages increased 2.8% from the same period a year ago, marking the largest year-over-year increase since September of 2008, according to the most recent Equifax national consumer credit trends report.

The total balance of first mortgages now sits at $7.97 trillion — the highest since December 2011.

Currently, delinquent first mortgages, those 30 or more days past due, represent 5.65% of the outstanding balances, dropping more than 22% from the same time last year.

In addition, the total balance of first mortgages 90-days past due or in foreclosure is less than $27- billion: a six-year low and a decrease of nearly 27% from the same time a year ago.

“The decline in mortgage balances from accelerated amortization and foreclosure write-offs has finally been overcome by increases in mortgage debt due to home purchase lending,” said Amy Crews Cutts, Equifax chief economist.

“This trend should gain additional momentum as we head into the spring and summer home buying seasons, which increases the volume of new loans coming in, while at the same time rising home values and improving employment conditions should push down the incidence of mortgage defaults,” Cutts continued.

Meanwhile, the report also found that the total balance of home finance write-offs year-to-date in February is $17.9 billion, 41% lower than the same time a year ago, and the total balance of home finance write-off dollars in 2013 was $149 billion, a decrease of more than 30% from 2012.

For the first time in four years, the total balance of home finance debt, which hit $8.58 trillion and includes first mortgage and home equity, increased year-over-year for three consecutive months.

 

http://www.housingwire.com/articles/29409-borrowing-again-mortgage-debt-increases-most-in-6-years

 

Zillow, Trulia Rise as SouFun, E-House Fall | Mt Kisco Real Estate

 

Real estate information providers were passing ships last week. The winners and losers just happened to literally be a world apart. Stateside darlings Zillow  (NASDAQ: Z )  and Trulia  (NYSE: TRLA )  rose 15% and 12%, respectively, on the week. Chinese players E-House  (NYSE: EJ )  and SouFun  (NYSE: SFUN)  saw their shares fall by 10% each last week. The double-digit-percentage moves in both directions paint contrasting portraits, but it’s not as good or bad as you might think.

Let’s start with the Chinese sinkers. E-House and SouFun fell as investors retreated out of China’s growth stocks, but if anything, the only substantial news out of the companies was positive.

SouFun, a website operator emphasizing home improvement, furnishings and other real estate topics, should have moved higher after announcing a new ADS-to-share ratio that essentially equates a 5-for-1 stock split. It didn’t.

There was some encouraging news out of E-House on Friday. Tencent’s agreeing to shell out $180 million to E-House for a 15% stake in its previously wholly owned Leju, a provider of real estate online services that E-House is proposing to take public as a stand-alone entity. It didn’t matter. The market just wasn’t interested in Chinese equities.

The market’s reception was far kinder to the real-estate portals toiling away closer to home.

Jim Cramer had some kind words to say about Zillow on Wednesday’s Mad Money show. Zillow also helped make its own luck by introducing a new platform where potential home buyers can get a mortgage provider’s pre-approval letter in just minutes. Zillow claims that this is the first time that this kind of offering — something that will make it easier for aspiring buyers to sway sellers into entering into a sales contract — is being made possible on desktop and mobile platforms.

Trulia announced the residential real estate website’s first national marketing campaign. Trulia is investing $45 million in this “Moment of Trulia” campaign that’s aimed at women between the ages of 25 and 44 and will be promoted across various media platforms.

 

 

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/03/24/zillow-trulia-rise-as-soufun-e-house-fall.aspx

Do you have what it takes to be a real estate rainmaker, or will you remain a buyer’s agent? 4 clues | Waccabuc Homes

In real estate, nothing happens until you generate a lead. Whether you want to be a top-producing salesperson or the head of a successful agent team, successful “rainmakers” differ from lower-producing agents in a variety of ways. If you’re an agent who would like to be the rainmaker for a team of agents or if you’re aspiring to become a top producer, your behavioral profile and your values will strongly influence how easy or difficult it is for you to succeed. An Online Real Estate Broker Pre License Course is a must before you start to acquire leads. Do you fit the rainmaker profile? Here’s how to tell: 1. The rainmaker profile Your behavioral and values profiles are highly correlated with real estate sales success or failure. Target Training International’s (TTI) version of the DISC personality assessment that incorporates its former PIAV (Personal Interests, Attitudes and Values) assessment is perhaps the most accurate predictor available today. The rainmaker profile on the TTI version of the DISC is high score on the “D” and “I” factors coupled with a high “Utilitarian” score on the Values. In case you’re not familiar with this jargon, here’s how this information translates into real estate practice:“D” is for Dominance People who score high on the “D” factor on the DISC are high-powered, get-it-done types. Because they are so motivated to accomplish what they set out to do, they find it easier to “ask for forgiveness” as opposed to ask for permission. A great example of this type is Donald Trump — he has no issue or compunction about firing people; if they’re not doing the job, they’re out. How can you recognize the agents who score high on the “D” factor? Here are some statements that typify these individuals:“Rejection? What’s that? If they don’t want to work with me, it’s their loss.” “Objections? Not a problem! Objections are buying signs!”You can also identify people who score high on the “D” factor on the DISC — they’re generally the ones calling on owners of expired listings, for-sale-by-owners and cold calling. Rejection simply doesn’t bother them. They schedule their two to three hours of prospecting per day and keep to that schedule day in and day out.“I” is for Influencing The second factor is the “I” factor for influencing. People who score high on the “I” factors are the “people persons.” They like to talk and enjoy bonding with others. If you put a person who scores high on this factor in a roomful of 100 strangers, they won’t be strangers for very long. The challenge for people who score high on Influencing is that without a high Dominance score they tend to talk a lot without accomplishing much. Moreover, they are reluctant to put themselves into situations where they may by rejected. They’re much too sensitive to have someone slam a door in their face.

– See more at: http://www.inman.com/2014/03/24/do-you-have-what-it-takes-to-be-a-real-estate-rainmaker-or-will-you-remain-a-buyers-agent-4-clues/?utm_source=20140324&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dailyheadlinesam#sthash.4DtRKNLl.dpuf

Sweet, Private Cottage on Five Acres in Wainscott Asks $1.2M | Chappaqua NY Homes

 

121 Merchants Path, Wainscott
10 images

We quite like the Colonial Williamsburg vibe of this shingled cottage in the northern reaches of Wainscott. Plus, since it’s set on five acres, it’s quiet and private. The property has been on the market for months, though, so we wonder what the catch is. There’s a charming painted kitchen with a fireplace, more fireplaces in the living room and master bedroom, wide-planked floors, and charming built-ins and pocket doors. In all, there are four bedrooms and 3.5 baths in 2623sf. Outside, the plot is 5.45 acres with pretty gardens. No pool, but plenty of room for one. Price seems fairly reasonable, too.

 

 

http://hamptons.curbed.com/archives/2014/03/21/sweet_private_cottage_on_five_acres_in_wainscott_asks_12m.php

Spring Has Sprung, But Snow Is Likely To Return To Westchester | Armonk Real Estate

 

Winter is officially over, but the first full week of spring in Westchester is likely to bring accumulating snow.

The latest forecast from accuweather.com calls for the potential for between 2 to 4 inches of snow Tuesday, with higher amounts toward the coast. The snow could start late Tuesday morning followed by periods of afternoon snow. You can view the accuweather.com forecast here.
Monday will be a mostly sunny day with a high between 30 and 32 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. The overnight low will be around 20-22 degrees.

Tuesday’s high temperature will be between 35 and 37 degrees. There is a chance of morning flurries on Wednesday.

 

http://armonk.dailyvoice.com/news/spring-has-sprung-snow-likely-return-westchester

Rising Home Prices May Not Tell the Whole Story | Cross River Real Estate

 

Everyone knows rising home prices make it a sellers’ market. Sellers can afford to hold out for top dollar because buyers are rushing to beat higher prices.

Well, not exactly. Zillow.com, the home listing and data firm, has a more refined way of looking at it, defining a sellers’ market as “not necessarily one where home values are rising, but rather one in which homes are on the market for a shorter time, price cuts occur less frequently and homes are sold at prices very close to (or greater than) their last listing price.”

The buyers’ market is, as you’d expect, the opposite: “Homes for sale stay on the market longer, price cuts occur more frequently and homes are sold for less relative to their listing price.”

Prices may indeed be rising quickly in sellers’ markets and falling in buyers’ markets, but price change alone is not the key factor.

So whether you are a buyer or seller, with a little sleuthing you can figure out who has the negotiating edge. Lots of this data are under Zillow’s Local Info button.

Zillow’s approach makes for some intriguing conclusions about conditions as the spring selling season gets rolling. The West Coast is a seller’s market, while the Midwest and East Coast favor buyers. In the recent post-crisis years, the whole country tended to move in the same direction, but now, in a return to more typical behavior, local variations are reasserting themselves, Zillow says.

The hottest sellers’ markets: San Jose, Calif., and San Francisco; San Antonio, Texas; and Los Angeles. The hottest for buyers: Cleveland, Ohio; Philadelphia; Tampa, Fla.; and Chicago.

 

 

http://www.mainstreet.com/article/real-estate/rising-home-prices-may-not-tell-whole-story?puc=yahoo&cm_ven=YAHOO

The best real estate plays in 25 years | Katonah Real Estate

 

The global real estate market in 2039 will be city-centric, with an increased focus on Asia and other emerging markets, and more investment by the public, according to senior executives at some of the world’s largest investment firms.

The big money sees China, India and other Asian markets as drivers of real estate growth—and investment opportunities.

“Asia will be the future of real estate over the next 25 years,” said Jonathan Gray, who manages about $79 billion for clients as global head of real estate for the Blackstone Group. “The largest investment markets will be in China, India and other countries in the region given their rate of growth. Both public and private real estate markets will be much, much bigger.”

A common criticism of Asian economic growth is the relative disregard for the environment. That concern could be a long term investment opportunity, such as taking advantage of high pollution in China, according to LaSalle Investment Management, a $47.6 billion real estate investment firm.

“Although China will be switching over to renewables by 2039, concerns about unhealthy air will be so intense after two decades of respiratory diseases that they could likely pioneer buildings with filtered air, oxygen supplements and artificial light to replace lost sunlight,” said Jacques Gordon, LaSalle’s head of global research and strategy.

Key to Asia’s rise in real estate will be the increasing importance of its urban centers, a global theme.

 

 

http://www.cnbc.com/id/101473257?__source=yahoo%7Cfinance%7Cheadline%7Cheadline%7Cstory&par=yahoo&doc=101473257%7CThe%20best%20real%20estate%20play

Why the property market could be in trouble after the 2015 election | Bedford Hills Real Estate

 

If there was one winner from the Budget,  it seems to have been property.

Chancellor George Osborne has extended part of the ‘Help to Buy’ scheme all the way until 2020.

No wonder. He wants to be as sure as he can that the current property bubble (or recovery, depending on which part of the UK you’re in) lasts until the general election in May.

But I wouldn’t rush out to stick all your newly-freed pension money into buy-to-let.

You see, ‘Help to Buy’ comes in two parts, and the extension does not apply to the most aggressive part of the scheme.

On top of that, Osborne also announced a sting in the tail that could hit central London property hard…

Help to Buy – a scheme of two halves

It easy to forget that the Help to Buy scheme is divided into two parts.

Both allow a buyer to secure a mortgage with as little as a 5% deposit. But they operate in very different ways.

The first part targets only those who want to buy a new-build house. In this case the government gives them a 20% home equity loan, which is interest-free for the first five years.

Effectively, the government owns a chunk of your house. So if you sell up, or want to buy back the government’s stake, the price will reflect the value of the house at that point.

In other words, if you bought a house at £200,000 with a £40,000 loan from the government, and the price rose to £300,000, you would have to pay £60,000 to get full ownership.

We don’t think it’s a good idea for the government to be putting taxpayers’ money on the line in the housing market. But at least this only applies to new builds. And at least the taxpayer is exposed to the upside too.

In contrast, the second part of Help to Buy is much more dangerous.

 

http://moneyweek.com/uk-property-market-could-be-in-trouble-after-the-2015-election/

 

What we will—and won’t—learn about home prices this week | Bedford Corners Real Estate

 

Housing market data have been mixed over the past few months, as harsh winter weather has appeared to put a damper of homebuying. Investors will get some more data on housing in the days ahead, when new home sales, pending home sales and home price data are released. But even if these numbers come in soft, some experts say the U.S. housing market is just getting heated up.

“We’re still in the very preliminary stages of a housing market upturn,” said Carl Riccadonna, senior U.S. economist at Deutsche Bank. “Housing is extremely seasonal, and there’s a high season and a low season. This low season is particularly low due to the weather, and housing numbers have been vulnerable.”

“In next week’s data, new home sales will be pretty lousy, just because buyer traffic has been depressed. But I’m personally waiting to see the March and April data to see what happens in the spring buying season,” Riccadonna told CNBC.com on Friday.

New homes sales for the month of February are set to be released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday morning. The consensus expectation is for sales to come in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 449,000 units, below the 5½ year high of 468,000 that was recorded for the month of January.

In other housing data that will emerge this week, the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index for January will be released Tuesday as well. This is designed to give investors an indication of the trend in real estate prices. And on Friday, pending home sales data from the National Association of Realtors, which tracks sales that have not yet closed, will give an indication of the demand for houses.

 

http://www.cnbc.com/id/101510605