Monthly Archives: July 2013

Michael Jackson Producer Brian Malouf Lists Sherman Oaks Home | Bedford Corners Homes

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“So Michael Jackson walks in and says, ‘Hey Brian, I want to come back tonight and do my own stuff. Can you do it with me?’”

And that’s all it took, Brian Malouf explains in an interview with Mix magazine: A casual encounter with the King of Pop to completely change his producing career.

Twenty-six years later, Malouf is still living the dream, producing a total of 53 gold, platinum and double platinum records to-date for Stevie Wonder, Queen, Madonna, Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews Band and other leading artists. He’s so good that he’s also earned the right to work from his home, a 3-bedroom located at 13245 Addison St, Sherman Oaks, CA 91423.

Now listed for $1.099 million, the 1955-built house has been tastefully remodeled with high ceilings, skylights, French doors, hardwood floors, wooden built-ins and, of course, a recording studio.

“[The] garage has been converted to a high-end professional recording studio with all the bells and whistles,” writes Rodeo Realty, Inc.‘s Niki Rosenfeld in the listing description. In fact, the entire property has been decked out with surround sound and outdoor speakers.

Malouf purchased the 2,599-square-foot home in May 2011 for $990,000. Born in in nearby Hollywood, he’s been passionate about percussion since playing for his high school band. In 1981, he started working for Can-Am Recorders in Tarzana, where Michael Jackson walked in the door looking for someone to help him produce the ‘Bad’ album.

“I try to be a useful human in the race,” writes Malouf in his Twitter profile description. “I spend a lot of time in front of knobs and faders and do the best I can to make beautiful sounding music come out.”

 

Michael Jackson Producer Brian Malouf Lists Sherman Oaks Home | Zillow Blog.

Homebuilders build momentum as existing home sales fall | Pound Ridge Real Estate

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Disappointment seemed to flood the housing industry upon Monday’s existing-home sales report for June, which revealed total existing-home sales fell from May. Many analysts saw this as a smaller piece of a bigger picture that rising interest rates are deterring potential homebuyers from entering into the market.

However, homebuilders should have slept easy last night, as the drop in existing-home sales actually supports a positive housing outlook for them.

The primary competitor to public homebuilders is existing-homes for sale, Sterne Agee analyst Jay McCanless told HousingWire.

The lack of existing home supply is forcing Realtors to bring buyers who may not have been interested in a new home into new home neighborhoods, said McCanless.

“Assuming that the inventory situation either stays where it is or gets tighter from here, I think that’s a positive for homebuilders,” he added.

With inventory low and demand high, the median days to sell a home dropped 47.1% year-over-year in June, falling from 70 days to 37 days.

According to the analyst, it’s basic supply and demand. Builders can create the supply and the demand for housing is still abundant, despite higher rates. If you have such a high demand level, it implies that group of buyers have access to financing and creates a very positive market, McCanless noted.

According to McCanless, the backdrop remains positive for four homebuilders that he hand selected as his top picks. Meritage Homes Corp. ($45.03 0%), D.R. Horton, Inc. ($21.20 0%),Ryland Group ($39.74 0%) and PulteGroup, Inc. ($18.45 0%)have the potential to increase their pricing power in 2013 as competitive supply comes off the market. 

In a conference call on Tuesday, Fitch Ratings Managing Director and lead homebuilding analyst Robert Curran addressed the existing-home sales report as well as the current state of the housing recovery. 

Curran said it’s necessary that employment continues growing at a reasonable pace for housing to do well. Last month, 195,000 jobs were created, pushing the unemployment rate down to 7.6%. 

Fitch’s economic forecast is hesitant, considering the drag tax increases have had on the economy since the start of the year. However, the growth momentum in the private sector is well supported by the recovery in the housing market. 

Fitch’s housing forecast for 2013 predicts inventory remaining near low levels, while affordability remains high. 

“The housing recovery shall be maintained this year,” said Curran. Fitch anticipates single-family starts to rise 18% in 2013, while existing-home sales will only increase 7.5%.

Broken down, it is anticipated that total home sales will equal one million this year. Existing-home sales are expected to dominate new home sales significantly.

 

 

Homebuilders build momentum as existing home sales fall | HousingWire.

June Concludes Best Spring Home Shopping Season in Almost a Decade | Cross River Real Estate

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As the weather warmed up this spring, so did the national housing market, shaking off a relatively sluggish start to the year to register the highest annual rate of home value appreciation in any second quarter since 2004.

The U.S. Zillow Home Value Index rose to $161,100 as of the end of the second quarter, up 5.8 percent year-over-year and 2.4 percent from the first quarter, the largest annual gain since August 2006 and largest gain in any quarter since the fourth quarter of 2005. National home values rose just 0.25 percent during the first quarter.

Additionally, not only did the pace of home value appreciation quicken in the second quarter, but the recovery also fully took hold nationwide. Markets in some areas of the Northeast, Midwest and Southeastern U.S. that had previously been slow to turn the corner began to appreciate, which helped boost the overall national market. All of the top 30 largest metro areas covered by Zillow experienced annual appreciation as of the end of the second quarter, and all have hit their bottom. Metros with the largest annual gains in the second quarter included Sacramento (29.5 percent), Las Vegas (29.4 percent) and San Francisco (25.5 percent).

Home values are expected to rise another 5 percent over the next 12 months, according to the Zillow Home Value Forecast. Of the 30 largest metro areas, 29 are expected to show home value appreciation in the next year. Metros expected to see the highest appreciation rates through June 2014 include Sacramento (18.9 percent), Riverside, CA (16.6 percent) and Phoenix (11 percent).

Only the New York metro is expected to show home value depreciation over the next 12 months (-0.8 percent). One possible explanation for expected depreciation (however slight) in the New York metro area is because New York is a judicial foreclosure state, with all foreclosures requiring judicial review before completion, which can lengthen the foreclosure process. Because foreclosures take longer to work through the system, they continue to drag home value appreciation rates down, according to Zillow economists. This could also help explain why large metro areas in other judicial foreclosure states, including Pennsylvania, Ohio and Illinois, are expected to show only modest appreciation over the next year.

As home values continue to rise along with mortgage interest rates, and different kinds of buyers and sellers enter and exit the market, the landscape is expected to change.

“The U.S. housing market as a whole is currently not experiencing a bubble, but in many places it sure must feel like one, with some markets experiencing annual home value appreciation approaching 30 percent. Homeowners are feeling a sense of whiplash after years of depreciation, but this kind of market behavior won’t last,” said Zillow Senior Economist Svenja Gudell. “Investors are starting to pull out of some markets and regular buyers are coming back, and more inventory is slowly but surely coming on line, both of which will contribute to slowdowns in appreciation. Additionally, in some overheated markets, rapid home value increases coupled with rising mortgage rates will lead to housing prices and financing costs outpacing local income growth, which will also contribute to a moderation of the market. Combined, all of these factors will help the market in the second half of 2013 and beyond normalize and become much more steady than it has been in these past six months.”

 

 

June Concludes Best Spring Home Shopping Season in Almost a Decade | Zillow Blog.

Astorino OKs Deals For Rye Playland, Children’s Museum | Armonk Real Estate

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Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino signed two deals Tuesday that would turn over operations of Playland Amusement Park to Sustainable Playland Inc.and would allow the Children’s Museum to move into the renovated bathhouse on the boardwalk.

The deal with SPI would see the non-profit take over operations of the park next year. The agreement is for 10 years, with an option to renew for another 10 years. SPI will invest $34 million in the park, and pay the county a $4 million fee.

“Through our new public-private partnership with Sustainable Playland and the Westchester Children’s Museum, we are reinventing Playland with a vision that builds on tradition by keeping what we love, such as Kiddyland and the historic rides, replaces tax dollars with private capital and adds new attractions and experiences for visitors to enjoy on a year round basis,” Astorino said. “This is a winning formula for saving Playland today and for future generations.”

With the signing, SPI has 30 days to submit to Astorino, a Playland Improvement Plan, which will outline the changes the group plans to make to the park. The plan will then go to the county Board of Legislators for approval. If the plan is not approved by Dec. 31, SPI has the right to withdraw from the agreement. Under SPI’s proposed plan, admission to the park would be free, with attractions grouped into separate zones that would each have separate fees. Zones include an aqua zone with a water park, an outdoor ball field, a renovated ice rink, a Great Lawn and an indoor multi-use facility that can be rented out for functions.

The lease that Astorino signed with the Children’s Museum would see the museum open up in the renovated bathhouse in the next two years. Under the terms of the lease, the museum will invest $7 million in infrastructure improvements in exchange for a $1 a year rent for 10 years.

 

Astorino OKs Deals For Rye Playland, Children’s Museum | The Bedford Daily Voice.

Outdoor Shakespeare Festival In Mount Kisco Starts Friday | Bedford Real Estate

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You can spend a mid-summer’s evening watching Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Westmoreland Sanctuary this weekend.

The 60-minute, family-friendly adaptation will be performed four times: Friday, July 26 at 6:30pm; Saturday July 27 at 2:00pm and 6:30pm;  and Sunday July 27 at 1:00pm.

The grounds will open 90 minutes ahead of the performances for picnicking.  The evening performances will end with a marshmallow roast around a campfire.

Tickets are $17.50 for Westmoreland Sanctuary members and $20 for non-members.  Contact Michele Miller at MMiller@WestmorelandSanctuary.org for more information.

 

Outdoor Shakespeare Festival In Mount Kisco Starts Friday | The Bedford Daily Voice.

4 sexy trends to add fun and inspire visitors to your real estate website | South Salem NY Homes

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Sometimes it’s just too easy to let your website presence slack off a little. Especially with today’s fast-moving market. There are many mixed messages about what you should have on your website; content; videos; or even if you should HAVE a website. Blogging falls off; we don’t add our listing photos or videos; and there it sits. Yawn.

But, there are some exciting new trends happening, and, truth be told, agents are business owners who need to market their services online. It’s the billboard, the storefront, the treasure trove of your expertise and personality. It could be time to find ways to inspire your website visitors in NEW ways, with new content, and shift the perspective of the old website. Engaging your visitors in new ways can increase traffic, inspire them to take action, and give them a little fun at the same time. Below are some colorful finds with fresh ideas that turn old websites into new, sexy, trendy places to find a home.

1. Check out the newest website trends: FUN! Color! Action!

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DC Lifestyles by Real Living at Home

Some of the newer WordPress or Tumblr themes (or custom-developed ones) have fun new layouts. For the most part, they take the “categories” of your website and turn them into visual destinations, rather than the old drop-down menus in navigation menus. Add in some fun graphics or photography, and suddenly you have eye-catching calls to action that are discoverable rather than just “Communities.” Check out DC Lifestyles’ new home page. As a site visitor, my eye draws me in to all the things I can search; I want to stay and play, and see what’s under all the fun “windows.”

2. Bring in your reviews from other sources.

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GlendaleandBeyond.com

Reviews on sites like Google, Realtor.com, Zillow, Trulia and Yelp are yours and yours to keep. Display them proudly on your website. Kendyl Young of GlendaleandBeyond.com has integrated her reviews with a WordPress plug-in, and then LINKS BACK to the original review on the associated site. This is a great way to add some extra SEO juice to your site as well. Alternatively, using your own user-generated reviews through a service like RealSatisfied, you can bring in widgets, plug-ins, and other tools to display your great service. Make your visitors search easier by giving them exactly what they want: information about you.

– See more at: http://www.inman.com/next/4-sexy-trends-to-add-fun-and-inspire-visitors-on-your-real-estate-website/#sthash.UxHJVeH5.dpuf

 

4 sexy trends to add fun and inspire visitors to your real estate website | Inman News.

Housing market: Broward’s median price rises 23 percent | Waccabuc Real Estate

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Broward County home sellers enjoyed more pricing power in June.

The county’s median price for existing single-family homes hit $265,000, a 23 percent increase from a year ago, the Greater Fort Lauderdale Realtors said Monday.

It was the seventh consecutive month that the median jumped by more than 20 percent. Home sales rose 3 percent, to 1,356.

Broward’s median condominium price last month rose 22 percent to $105,000. But condo sales declined 9 percent from June 2012.

“At one time, buyers thought they could do what they want, when they wanted, but they’re realizing now that they don’t have the control they once did,” said Carrie Hazen, a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker in northwest Broward.

Palm Beach County and statewide figures were not released Monday because of a technical problem. Those numbers are expected Tuesday.

The median price means half the properties in Broward sold for more and half for less. The percentage increase does not reflect all home values countywide.

Sellers of single-family homes last month received 96 percent of their list prices, up from 93 percent a year earlier, the Realtor group said. The typical Broward home went under contract in 29 days, down from 37.

Ken H. Johnson, a professor at Florida International University’s Hollo School of Real Estate, said some prospective buyers are frustrated by the recent price increases and are staying out of the market. But he doesn’t recommend that strategy.

“A lot of people are upset that they missed the bottom. Yes, but big deal,” Johnson said. “Prices are still affordable. Nobody should be waiting.”

A shortage of homes for sale and an abundance of investors have helped fuel the housing recovery.

Broward had 4,225 homes on the market at the end of June, down 14 percent from a year ago. 

Large investment firms, including Blackstone Group and Waypoint Homes, are buying thousands of homes in South Florida and across the country. The firms are pushing prices higher while keeping homes out of the hands of first-time and move-up buyers.

 

Housing market: Broward’s median price rises 23 percent – South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com.

Higher Rates Aren’t Enough to Stall Housing | Katonah NY Homes

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The U.S. housing recovery that began unfolding early last year faces its first serious test: In the span of just two months, mortgage rates have jumped by a full percentage point, something that has happened only twice since 1994.

Mortgage rates, which at the beginning of May stood at 3.59% for the average 30-year fixed-rate loan, jumped to 4.68% during the first two weeks of July, the latest available data, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. That is the highest level in two years.

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Bloomberg News

A ‘sold’ sign outside a home in LaSalle, Ill., last month. Economists say that even at a 4.5% or 5% mortgage rate, housing is still affordable by historical standards.

Economists say that even at a 4.5% or 5% mortgage rate, housing is still affordable by historical standards—and that rates could rise to 6% or prices could rise an additional 20% before housing would become unaffordable relative to historical levels.

The spike nevertheless represents a big payment shock for would-be buyers. Many shop for a home based on their monthly mortgage payment. The monthly payment of principal and interest—and not including taxes and insurance—on a $200,000 home with a 10% down payment just went up by more than $100, to $925, while the monthly cost of a $450,000 home just went up by around $250, to $2,095.

“That’s extremely meaningful. It is putting people on the sidelines that were really at the margins of being able to qualify,” said Ronald Peltier, chief executive of HomeServices of America Inc., which owns real-estate brokerages in 21 states.

Some agents say it’s possible that rising rates will spur purchases by dawdling buyers who had already decided they were going to buy a home. But mortgage bankers say it’s rare that higher rates actually generate net new demand.

 

Higher Rates Aren’t Enough to Stall Housing – WSJ.com.

Rising home prices cause real estate investors to retreat | Bedford Hills NY Homes

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Escalating home prices and mortgage rates prompted many investors to pull back from housing, causing current homeowners to become the main buying force behind the real estate market.

According to the latest Campbell/Inside Mortgage FinanceHousingPulse Tracking Survey, current homeowners were the only group that saw its share of home purchases increase in June — from 43.8% in May to 44.6% last month based on a three-month average. 

First-time homebuyers have backed away ever so slightly, with their market share going from 36.0% to 35.7% during the same one-month period. 

But the real highlight of the report was the investor share of home purchase transactions, which fell to 19.7%, the lowest level recorded since September 2012. 

For the fourth month in a row, the HousingPulse investor traffic index fell, this month more sharply than either the current homeowner traffic index or the first-time homebuyer index. 

The survey’s respondents linked the ongoing decline in investor activity to rising home prices coupled with less opportunity for investors to flip homes.

A shrinking supply of distressed properties is doing investors no favors either. The HousingPulse Distressed Property Index revealed that the percentage of home purchases involving foreclosures or short sales fell to 28.2% in June, a significant drop from the 40.3% level recorded a year earlier. This also represented the lowest distressed property share recorded in at least three and a half years.

 

 

Rising home prices cause real estate investors to retreat | HousingWire.

Give unrealistic sellers the ‘shock treatment’ | Bedford NY Homes

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There’s an old saying that it’s best to be the first born, second spouse and the third listing agent. So whose fault is it when a property doesn’t sell?

There are thousands of reasons that cause listings to expire. An agent may do everything possible and the property still doesn’t sell due to lack of activity in that price range or location. Other times, the listing agent didn’t market the property adequately, or conditions under the seller’s control prevented the sale. In almost every case, however, the reason most properties do not sell is the price.

A major misconception

Many people, including a large number of real estate professionals, fail to realize that it is the buyers (and sometimes the appraisers) who determine the selling price, not the sellers or agents.

The stock market provides a good analogy for understanding this situation. Assume that an investor paid $100 for a share of IBM stock. Today that stock is trading at $60 a share. If the investor insists on getting $100 a share, he will have to wait to sell until the market conditions improve. Otherwise, if he must sell now he will need to reduce his price to $60 a share.

The same is true for the real estate market. If someone paid $225,000 for a home and today similar homes are selling for $180,000, the owner has the same choices as the investor in the example above: sell at today’s prices or wait for the market to improve.

– See more at: http://www.inman.com/2013/07/22/give-unrealistic-sellers-the-shock-treatment/#sthash.IKPvdyVR.dpuf

 

Give unrealistic sellers the ‘shock treatment’ | Inman News.