Daily Archives: April 17, 2014

Fixed Mortgage Rates at Six Week Low | Pound Ridge Real Estate

 

Freddie Mac (OTCQB: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing average fixed mortgage rates easing further for the second consecutive week helping to increase home buyer affordability at the onset of the spring home buying season.

News Facts

  • 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.27 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending April 17, 2014, down from last week when it averaged 4.34 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 3.41 percent.
  • 15-year FRM this week averaged 3.33 percent with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 3.38 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 2.64 percent.
  • 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 3.03 percent this week with an average 0.5 point, down from last week when it averaged 3.09 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 2.60 percent.
  • 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 2.44 percent this week with an average 0.5 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.41 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 2.63 percent.

Average commitment rates should be reported along with average fees and points to reflect the total upfront cost of obtaining the mortgage. Visit the following links for the Regional and National Mortgage Rate Details and Definitions. Borrowers may still pay closing costs which are not included in the survey.

Quotes Attributed to Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist, Freddie Mac.

“Mortgage rates continued to ease this week as housing starts rose 2.8 percent in March but not as much as expected. Also, permits fell 2.4 percent in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 990,000, which followed a slight downward revision of 4,000 permits in February.”

Freddie Mac was established by Congress in 1970 to provide liquidity, stability and affordability to the nation’s residential mortgage markets. Freddie Mac supports communities across the nation by providing mortgage capital to lenders. Today Freddie Mac is making home possible for one in four home borrowers and is one of the largest sources of financing for multifamily housing. Additional information is available at FreddieMac.com, Twitter @FreddieMac and Freddie Mac’s blog FreddieMac.com/blog.

Realtor.com developing successor to AgentMatch search tool | Bedford Corners Real Estate

 

AgentMatch — the agent search tool from realtor.com that ranked agents by their multiple listing service transaction stats before trials in two test markets were suspended last year — will soon have a successor.

The new version of the consumer tool will still have agent transaction history data, including active listings, but will not include some of the most controversial components of the original AgentMatch site, like average days on market or list-to-sale-price ratio, according to Ernie Graham, who led the development of AgentMatch as realtor.com’s senior director of product management.

The new version will have five pillars, Graham told Realtor Magazine: Experience: including transaction history, but not list-price-to-sale-price ratio or average days on market. Expertise: Realtor certifications and designations, types of properties often sold, blogs or social networks that demonstrate specific knowledge, and showing activity in an area.

Personal connections: reveal consumers’ social media connections to agents, bios and recommendations from clients. Brand: brokerage info and whether the agent is part of a team. Responsiveness: details average response time to consumer inquiries.

“We want to [create] rich agent profiles and let consumers choose what is most important to them,” Graham said.

 

 

– See more at: http://www.inman.com/2014/04/16/realtor-com-developing-successor-to-agentmatch-search-tool/?utm_source=20140416&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dailyheadlinespm#sthash.WYZLwtoV.dpuf

Skyrocketing real estate prices trigger backlash against foreign buyers | Pound Ridge Real Estate

 

Leading overseas real estate expert Andrew Batt has told Singapore TV there is a lot of money being invested in foreign property and it will go to those countries that make it easy for investors.

Batt, international group editor of the Singapore-based PropertyGuru website, was interviewed on the Real Deal slot on Channel NewsAsia about global regulation and managing foreign investment.

He talked about property regulations for overseas buyers in Singapore and Malaysia and how changes in the U.K. market would affect Asian investors.

Batt, who is a regular guest, told presenter Annalisa Burgos, “There is a lot of money out there right now looking for investments in property, so the countries where it becomes easier to invest, where there are less tax regulations, the money is going to go to those kinds of places.”Looking at Singapore, he pointed out that the government had raised the buyer’s stamp duty by an extra 15 percent to try to deter overseas investors.

“I know there are suggestions that foreign property buyers had driven up prices, so it makes sense if you want to curb that particular sector of the buying community then you need to target it specifically.

 

 

– See more at: http://www.inman.com/2014/04/16/skyrocketing-real-estate-prices-trigger-backlash-against-foreign-buyers/?utm_source=20140416&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dailyheadlinespm#sthash.qKKGskFt.dpuf

The 10 Best Two-Bedroom Apartments $675K Can Buy in NYC | Chappaqua Real Estate

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The median price for a two-bedroom apartment in Manhattan is $1.8 million, according to StreetEasy’s active listings. In popular Brooklyn neighborhoods, the median price of luxury apartments for rent is about a million less, at $899,000, but there’s plenty available for much less. For our latest Price Points round-up we found the 10 best two-bedroom apartments for around $675,000. Most are in Brooklyn, but Manhattan has its fair share (the other three boroughs, as expected, have even cheaper offerings). First up, there’s a “penthouse” apartment in a 12-unit building on Parkville Avenue in Kensington, Brooklyn. It has an open kitchen next to the living room with French doors opening onto a private balcony. The master bedroom has an en suite bath, and the second bedroom comes with a Queen-sized Murphy bed. There’s also a full second bathroom, and a private rooftop terrace. Asking price is $675,000, and common charges are $198.

On the Upper West Side, there’s a two-bedroom in a prewar building on West 93rd Street asking $679,000. The 22-foot-long living room has four windows, and the kitchen looks roomy, with a lot of counter space and cabinets, but the second bedroom is quite small. It has a window, but only measures 7’3″ by 8’7″, so it’s best suited as a nursery or home office, though from the listing photos, it looks like the kids have the big room while the parents have the tiny one. Guess that’s why they’re selling?

Also listed $679,000, there’s a “loft-style” unit in the Kent, a full-service condo building with a terrible name, near the Clinton Hill/Bed-Stuy border. The place measures 1,062 square feet and features a washer/dryer and two full bathrooms. The building shares an outdoor space with grills, a grass lawn, and patio, plus there is a fitness center.

Not far from Hudson Yards in Midtown Westa new-to-market two-bedroom co-op is asking $674,500. It only has one full bathroom, but both bedrooms, as well as the living room, are generously sized. The kitchen has been recently renovated with new stainless steel appliances, and the elevator building has a live-in super, laundry room, storage, and parking.

garden-level co-op in a Park Slope brownstone on 9th Street is listed for $687,000. The secondary bedroom is located at the front of the house and is currently being used as a sitting room, as it connects to the living room through French doors. The kitchen and bathroom (there’s only one) have been recently renovated, and original features like fireplaces, wood-working, and wide-plank floors have been restored. In addition to the private yard, there’s a small greenhouse for the botanically-inclined.

The highlight of this 2BR condo on Conselyea Street in Williamsburg is the private 500-square-foot roof deck. But the apartment itself, renovated as it is, isn’t too shabby either (although it is pretty small). It’s asking $659,000.

In Yorkville, a renovated 2BR/2BA in a prewar co-op building is asking $650,000. It features such charming details as exposed brick walls, crown molding, and oak strip floors, and it includes two exposures. The building, on East 92nd Street, allows pets and has a laundry room.

At $700,000this for-sale-by-owner 650-square-foot unit in the East Village is the most expensive listing of the bunch. It’s just been gut renovated and features new hardwood floors, millwork, and crown moldings, as well as all new wiring for electric, cable, and internet. The open kitchen has stainless steel appliances, a tile backsplash, and an oven that vents to the outside. It’s a walk-up, but it looks pretty darn nice.

Right at the very top of the Upper West Side, this prewar 2BR/1BA co-op has exposed brick, large windows, and a spacious living room. One of the bedrooms is rather small, but at least it has a window. The place is asking $669,000.

Back in Brooklyn, there’s a large-ish “architect-renovated” Windsor Terrace co-op listed for $650,000. Some of the new architect-introduced details include “refinished ebony parquet floors, custom imported full height sliding wood doors,” and a bathroom lined with “lovely Italian bisazza tiles.” The bedrooms have built-in closets, and the building has an elevator, live-in super, and laundry room.
· Price Points archives [Curbed]

http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2014/04/16/the_10_best_twobedroom_apartments_675k_can_buy_in_nyc.php

4 Fairfield County Towns Among Top Spots For Renters Raising Families | Armonk Real Estate

 

Darien, Wilton, New Canaan and Ridgefield have all been named to Rent.com‘s Top 25 Cities for Renters Raising Families.

The towns “boast some of the nation’s best school systems, beautiful parks and affluent communities,” according to a press release. Darien ranked the highest of Connecticut towns at No. 6. Wilton was ranked 12th, New Canaan was 18th and Ridgefield was named 24th.

Rent.com has assembled the Top 25 Cities for Renters Raising Families with the help of New York-based Onboard Informatics 2014, a data and technology company.

“This list is based on cities and towns with a high concentration of family households (greater than 70 percent), population greater than 10,000 and a median household income of $50K or more,” according to the release.

Rental data and median rental rates based on Rent.com data. Cities with fewer than 1,000 rental dwellings were eliminated.

 

 

 

http://greenwich.dailyvoice.com/real-estate/4-fairfield-county-towns-among-top-spots-renters-raising-families

Old-School East Hampton Mansion for $10.5M | Waccabuc Real Estate

 

20 Apaquogue Road, East Hampton
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We wish the pictures were better with this listing. It starts out very well. “Built in 1902, this Georgica mansion sits high and majestically on meticulous grounds and is situated on the treasured Apaquogue Road in East Hampton Village.” Can’t argue with that. The 6000sf house has got six bedrooms and 5.5 baths and its own two-bedroom, one-bath carriage house. There are lovely brick pathways, mature plantings and a pool set on one acre. We’d like to see more and better pictures of the interiors. The kitchen and baths, for one. The property last sold in October 2007 for $8.5M, which would have been the top of the market. What do you think?

 

 

http://hamptons.curbed.com/archives/2014/04/15/oldschool_east_hampton_mansion_for_105m.php

 

Chatting with George Filopoulos about the New Gurney’s Inn | South Salem Real Estate

 

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Last year, struggling Montauk resort Gurney’s Inn was taken over by real estate moguls George Filopoulos and Lloyd Goldman. A multi-phase, multi-year refresh and renovation means that Gurney’s will soon have a sleek new look. First up is a brand new 38-room oceanfront building, with private verandas and floor to ceiling windows encasing custom built furniture and wire brushed hardwood floors. The new aesthetic is the work of Michael Kramer, a young designer who is already considered one of New York’s most impressive new talents.

Food and beverages will be under the stewardship of Jennifer LeRoy, daughter of Warner LeRoy, famous for Tavern on the Green and Russian Tea Room, among others. The Beach Club, launched last year, and the spa will also be refreshed, as will the fantastic sand-filtered seawater swimming pool, the only one in North America.

Thrilled that an East End icon is being saved (heck, our mom used to babysit there back in the 1950s), we sat down with George to chat about Gurney’s.

You’re a Montauk resident. How far do your roots go in Montauk? As a kid, my family’s annual vacation was a week in Montauk during the month of July. My wife and I started renting out here when we were newly married and have owned a home for the last 10 years.

 

 

 

http://hamptons.curbed.com/archives/2014/04/14/chatting_with_george_filopoulos_about_the_new_gurneys_inn.php

Sail Away on This ‘Temple of Light’ Houseboat For $1.095M | North Salem Real Estate

 

Docked in  Sausalito, Calif. and newly on the market for $1.095M, this utterly sweet Temple of Light listing combines all the seafaring fun of living aboard a houseboat with the tranquility of bunking down in one’s very own temple. While the brokerbabble fails to confirm whether the three-bedroom, 1,743-square-foot home has ever actually functioned as a meeting place religious practice, the “light” part of the hippie-esque name makes total sense, considering just how much natural sunlight the A-frame design provides. Huge skylights cover each slanting ceiling, while one entire end of the house is capped in floor-to-ceiling glass, providing both access to the jacuzzi-equipped porch and killer lake views. Take a look at the cozy home, below…

 

 

 

http://curbed.com/archives/2014/04/15/buy-this-adorable-temple-of-light-houseboat-for-1095m.php

Waterfront Robert Gurney Design Asks $2.5M In Annapolis | Cross River Real Estate

 

Location: Annapolis, Md. Price: $2,569,100 The Skinny: Think of residential architecture in and around the D.C. area, and you’ll probably picture a Georgetown row house or a sprawling suburban McMansion in Anne Arundel, but as we’ve seen before, the Beltway has at least one practitioner of modern design in the glass-lovin’ form of Robert Gurney. Here we’ve got a twofer from the AIA award-winning architect, with a glassy, angular, three-bedroom main house sharing a lot on Maryland’s Harness Creek with a traditional-ish two bedroom cottage. The main attraction, of course, is the spiky silhouette of the bigger home, with its floor-to-ceiling windows and its mix of wood siding and copper cladding. The light-filled interiors, which currently have kind of a CB2 showroom feel, are promising spaces, and the kitchen is a minimalist exercise in putting everything (including the Sub-Zero) in an island and a few teak wall cabinets. The cottage, which is used by the current owners as a rental property, has an enclosed porch and sits just a few feet from the water. The whole thing comes with an acre of land and is asking $2.569M, more than double what it sold for just over a year ago.

 

 

 

http://curbed.com/archives/2014/04/16/waterfront-robert-gurney-design-asks-25m-in-annapolis.php