CNNMoney writes that Omaha real estate appraiser John Bredemeyer claimed a few years ago he saw a house in his area sell for 8% less than comparable homes nearby, owing largely to the large, snarling dogs next door. “Raising kids there?” he says. “I don’t think so.”
So what’s your recourse? “You can move to the woods,” Borzotta says. “Or you can expect issues and learn how to deal with them properly.” See what CNNMoney suggests when facing intolerable neighbors.
Mortgage rates are at historical lows, but they are increasing at the fastest pace in a decade, Businessweek claims in a new article.
Earlier this week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the Fed plans to taper off purchases of mortgage-backed securities once the unemployment rate hits 7%.
The news sent stock markets plunging around the world, the article noted.
“If people believe house prices are going up, credit availability will evolve,” said Paul Willen, a senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. “There is too much money to be made lending to homebuyers. Lenders will find a way.”
Mortgage rates rise at fastest pace in 10 years | HousingWire.
If you exclude November 2009, when home sales spiked amid a frenzy to claim a tax credit for first-time home buyers, home sales are running at their highest rate in six years, writes the Wall Street Journal.
The National Association of Realtors reported on Thursday that sales in May rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.18 million homes. They reached a level of 5.44 million in November 2009, and 5.27 million in May 2007, when the housing market collapse accelerated. They hit a low of 3.45 million in July 2010, after the last round of home-buyer tax credits expired.
Brokers said many wealthy Cape Codders are trading up. Other buyers see the Cape as a strong investment, with bigger properties still selling at a 20% to 50% discount to the Hamptons in New York.
CNBC has learned that billionaire William Koch—the sailor, wine-collector and brother of famed conservatives David and Charles—is putting his historic compound on the private island of Oyster Harbors up for sale.Robert Paul Properties, an affiliate of Luxury Portfolio International, is about to list the property for $15 million.
Koch is selling after he purchased a nearby estate previously owned by Rachel “Bunny” Melon for $19.5 million, according to reports.
The top listing in Martha’s Vineyard, the Obamas’ favorite summer retreat, is a property called Herring Creek Farm, a 25-acre estate on the market for $19.5 million. The farm sits on a private corner of land off Slough Cove. Located on the southeast part of the island, the property features sweeping views of Edgartown Great Pond and the Atlantic, writes CNBC.
Tight inventory of Cape Cod mansions make prices soar | HousingWire.
The average age of a consumer looking to buy a second home is 50, said Chris Kelsey, president of Long Cove, a private community on Cedar Creek Lake built to give Dallas-area families a close-to-home getaway.
“A lot of people are wondering how the desires of consumers are changing now that we’re coming out of the recession,” said Kelsey.
The whole second-home industry has been predicated on Baby Boomers, said Kelsey, although the industry is now crossing the threshold from Boomer to Generation X.
“Boomers are becoming grandparents,” said Kelsey, who noted that their motivation for buying is often for extended family. On the other hand, Generation X is simply approaching the natural point in life where a second home becomes a feasible option.
What’s interesting, notes Kelsey, is the language used by the Baby Boomers compared to Generation X. Boomers often refer to their second home as a “vacation home,” while Gen X typically calls it a “second home.”
“This distinction is important to them because they don’t see their resort property as a place for vacation,” said the Kelsey & Norden Resort Real Estate Survey. “Instead, they think of it as an extension of their regular lives, a second home where they are connected to a community of like-minded friends and can provide their kids an alternative experience to their urban or suburban neighborhoods. And with the shift comes a similar shift in vocabulary.”
Kelsey added that Gen X is notorious for its distaste for gated communities and their dislike of inclusivity. “They may want a gated community, they may just not want to celebrate the fact that they’re in a gated community,” said Kelsey.
Although the era of low mortgages rates are beginning to dwindle away, the housing market is still projected to keep recovering, an article in CNN Money said.
The article explains that higher mortgage rates will not derail the housing market for three reasons.
First, interest rates alone do not drive up home prices, with additional factors like unemployment factoring in.
Additionally, investors armed with cash played a large part in the recovery by buying a lot of foreclosed properties with cash, foregoing the need for a mortgage.
Meanwhile, mortgage rates are still low historically.
Rates are close to what they were in Spring 2012, and people thought the rates were amazingly low then, the article said.
Increasing mortgage rates will not ruin the housing recovery | HousingWire.