Monthly Archives: July 2014

Mortgage Defaults Sink Below 1 Percent | Pound Ridge Real Estate

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Mortgage default rates fell below one percent for the first time in years, providing further evidence that the foreclosure era is all but over.

Data through June 2014, released today by S&P Dow Jones Indices and Experian for the S&P/Experian Consumer Credit Default Indices, a comprehensive measure of changes in consumer credit defaults, showed decline in default rates. After eight consecutive months of rate declines, the first mortgage default rate fell to 0.89.

“Consumer credit default rates continue to drift lower and have reached a historical low,” says David M. Blitzer, Managing Director and Chairman of the Index Committee for S&P Dow Jones Indices. “Recent economic reports are encouraging with the unemployment rate now at a six year low and strong job creation in recent months. The continued declines in consumer default rates confirm other indicators of an improving economy. Credit standards for mortgage loans continue to be somewhat restrictive and may be contributing to low first mortgage default rates.

 

 

 

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http://www.realestateeconomywatch.com/2014/07/mortgage-defaults-sink-below-1-percent/

Valuation Fraud Soared 27 Percent in Q1 | Chappaqua Real Estate

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The national Property Valuation Fraud Risk Index rose 27 percent in the first quarter and 17 percent from a year ago, evidence that an epidemic of fraudulent home valuations is sweeping certain real estate markets on the East and West Coasts.

Property valuations are increasingly being manipulated by individuals who purchase and list multiple properties in the same neighborhoods to dominate values in hyper local markets ienabling them to set fraudulent sales prices to their advantage, according to a report from Interthinx, a subsidiary of First American that helps lenders minimize risk and review appraisals.

Another contributing factor observed is the rise in the number of properties being appraised well above traditional valuation thresholds to artificially create equity.

 

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“This quarter’s report is a reminder that lenders need to be aware of emerging fraud risks. The rise in property valuation risk is troublesome because collateral values are a critical element in making sound lending decisions,” said Jeff Moyer, president of Interthinx. “To make lending decisions with increased confidence in the loan’s quality, we recommend that lenders use automated tools early in the valuation process to double check opinions of value, quality of work and regulatory compliance on issues such as licensing.”

California continues to be the riskiest state with a Mortgage Fraud Risk Index of 146, and it contains eight of the 10 riskiest Metropolitan Statistical Areas, (MSAs) and eight of the 10 riskiest ZIP codes. California also continues to dominate the type-specific lists with four of the 10 riskiest MSAs for property valuation fraud, seven of the 10 riskiest MSAs for identity fraud, six of the 10 riskiest MSAs for occupancy fraud and eight of the 10 riskiest MSAs for employment/income fraud.

 

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http://www.realestateeconomywatch.com/2014/07/valuation-fraud-soared-27-percent-in-q1/

China Posts Sharper Fall in Home Prices in June | Katonah Real Estate

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Average new home prices in 70 Chinese cities declined for a second straight month in June and fell more sharply as property developers stepped up discounts to lure home buyers amid a housing market downturn.

Home prices slid 0.47% in June, compared with a 0.15% fall in May, according to calculations by The Wall Street Journal, based on data released Friday by the National Bureau of Statistics. May’s drop was the first month-over-month decline in two years. On an annual basis, the average price in June rose 4.05%, compared with 5.35% in May.

Excluding subsidized low-income housing, prices fell 0.48% in June from May, compared with a 0.16% decline in May. Home prices fell in 55 of the 70 cities in June, a broader range than the 35 cities that posted declines in May.

Real estate and construction are important drivers of the Chinese economy, accounting for more than 20% of growth in the world’s second-largest economy when cement, steel, furniture and other related industries are factored in, analysts estimate.

To arrest the slide, property developers—many of them holding large inventories of unsold units and facing tight credit—have been offering discounts, though some analysts expect prospective buyers to wait for lower prices.

“The price cuts have only just started, and now that the discounts are getting bigger, I would think it’s better for homebuyers, if they can wait, to hold off purchasing a home now,” said Song Huiyong, research director of Shanghai Centaline Property, a real-estate consultancy. “The price cuts could last for as long as a year this time, since there is little prospect for a broad-based stimulus.”

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http://online.wsj.com/articles/new-home-prices-fall-in-chinese-cities-1405650237

Mortgage foreclosures hit their lowest level since mid-2006 | Bedford Hills Real Estate

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The number of homes facing bank auctions, default notices and scheduled auctions totaled 107,194 last month, down 16 percent from June 2013, according to RealtyTrac, a housing industry research firm based in Irvine, Calif. June’s total was the lowest since July 2006, the company said.

“Nationwide foreclosure activity in June reached an important milestone,” Daren Blomquist, a RealtyTrac vice president, said in a statement. “Over the next six to nine months, foreclosure numbers should start to flatline at consistently historically normal levels.”

The foreclosure numbers in Kansas and Missouri were mixed last month. Kansas reported 410 distressed properties in June, up nearly 33 percent from a year earlier. In Missouri, 946 properties faced foreclosure action, down nearly 43 percent from June 2013, RealyTrac said.

Through the first half of 2014, there were 613,874 properties nationwide with foreclosure filings, down 23 percent from the first six months of 2013.

Florida, Maryland, Illinois, New Jersey and Nevada had the highest foreclosure rates through the first half of 2014.

 

 

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http://www.kansascity.com/news/business/article742736.html

 

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/news/business/article742736.html#storylink=cpy

 

Mortgage Rates Tick Down Slightly | Bedford NY Real Estate

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Freddie Mac (OTCQB: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey(R) (PMMS®), showing average fixed mortgage rates moving down slightly to remain near historic lows.

News Facts

  • 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.13 percent with an average 0.6 point for the week ending July 17, 2014, down from last week when it averaged 4.15 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.37 percent.
  • 15-year FRM this week averaged 3.23 percent with an average 0.5 point, down from last week when it averaged 3.24 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.41 percent.
  • 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 2.97 percent this week with an average 0.4 point, down from last week when it averaged 2.99 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 3.17 percent.
  • 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 2.39 percent this week with an average 0.4 point, down from last week when it averaged 2.40 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 2.66 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 were little changed amid a week of light economic reports. Of the few releases, industrial production rose by 0.2 percent in June, below the market consensus forecast. Also, the producer price index for final demand rose 0.4 percent in June, rebounding from a 0.2 percent decline the prior month.”

A Bronx Rite of Passage: Jump 110 Feet Into The Harlem River | Pound Ridge Real Estate

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C-Rock is a new documentary about a pastime that, for kids in the northwest Bronx, is “like a bar mitzvah.” Except that it entails jumping dozens of feet off of rocky cliffs into the Harlem River, where that waterway meets Spuyten Duyvil Creek. (It got its name because Columbia University athletes painted a big C on the rock face.) Fellow teens and Circle Line patrons bear witness to these daring dives, while older men—always men—reminisce about their plunges, which are virtually synonymous with adolescence. Director Jordan Roth spoke to Curbed about discovering the tradition, embedding himself with its practitioners, and what it was like to take the leap himself. Also, read on to find out how you can see the whole documentary.

Curbed NY: How did you first find out about this practice, both past and present?
Roth: The summer before we shot, I read a fantastic piece in the Times by Sam Dolnick about the tradition. I thought there must already be a doc about it because it immediately struck me as so cinematic. I researched more and was captivated by the whole thing.

It’s summertime fun, but people do get hurt >>

CNY: Explain the “levels” of cliff-jumping, to those who don’t know—the names of the different ledges, and all the rest.

Roth: There are jumping spots of varying heights along the cliff going from 25 feet up to about 110. The spots have names that are taken pretty seriously—some of them passed down from older generations. Also, some of the names are kinda dirty. Balls is at about 35 feet. (Editor’s note: you learn from the film that at that height, jumpers have to cover their, well, you know.)

C-Rock Documentary Daytime.JPG

CNY: What were a few of the most bizarre things you learned as you started to follow and interview the cliff-jumpers? Basically some highlights—bad, good, wild, whatever—of the production process.

Roth: What’s probably most surprising for people first learning about all this is that it is actually a tradition and that it does go back generations. But what I discovered while interviewing and following the guys was that everyone knows each other. I tapped into a network people of different ages and they all seemed connected by this place. That was amazing to me.

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[Photo via Flickr/jag9889.]

There were so many highlights while shooting and discovering C-Rock. There were philosophies and strategies to jumping. There were anecdotes from earlier in the summer or from 40 years ago. Like, one kid in the late 60s landed badly and got a bruise all along the side of his body. He told his parents he was smacked with a broomstick. I heard a lot about the quality of the river water. It’s thankfully not bad now, but it was. Kids tried to avoid the “shit line” on the surface of the water.

There were also so many funny moments for us while shooting. The kids yelled ridiculous and terrible things to get each other to jump. Just them lounging on the rock, reminiscing, could also be hilarious. The rock face is sort of a summer afternoon home for them. Some guys leave shoes there, tucked away, because they prefer to jump in shoes. They’re like the Lost Boys, but with trash talk.

 

 

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http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2014/07/16/a_bronx_rite_of_passage_jump_110_feet_into_the_harlem_river.php

Unraveling the History of Central Park’s Bethesda Fountain | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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BethesdaFountain_Article_01.jpg
[Bethesda Fountain, 1901. Via Library of Congress]

“There’s a spot in Central Park, the Bethesda Fountain, where if you sit there long enough, the entire city walks by.”
—Matthew Perry as Alex Whitman, “Fools Rush In” (1997)

Central Park co-designer Calvert Vaux called Bethesda Fountain “the centre of the centre.” Its story is one of uplifting innovation in water transport, impressive architecture, and the novel creation of spaces dedicated to leisure in verdant surrounds; meanwhile, the little-known tale of its underdog designer getting her first shot in the art world is one that’s not touted nearly enough. The structure’s symbolic meaning, too, synonymous with love, peace, and healing, shouldn’t be overlooked. So let’s start at the beginning.

 

 

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http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2014/07/16/unraveling_the_history_of_central_parks_bethesda_fountain.php

Rentals in demand: Central Harlem back in top 5 | Chappaqua Real Estate

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With 20-somethings scavenging for more affordable rentals in Manhattan, demand for Central Harlem units among prospective renters jumped last week, according to apartment listings website Zumper.

Central Harlem made it into the top five popular neighborhoods for the first time in nearly two months. The Upper West Side, Upper East Side and East Village topped the list, followed by Central Harlem and Greenwich Village. The median rent inquiry in Manhattan fell to $2,450, largely as a result of the Harlem surge.

The priciest inquiry was for a four-bedroom Chelsea rental seeking $7,000 per month, while the cheapest was for a Washington Heights studio renting for $1,150 per month.

As for apartment sizes, two-bedrooms dominated with a bit more than a third of the leads and a median inquiry of $2,795 per month. One-bedrooms and studios were next with a 26 percent and 23 percent share of the leads, respectively. Three-bedrooms accounted for 15 percent of the leads.

 

 

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http://therealdeal.com/blog/2014/07/16/rentals-in-demand-central-harlem-back-in-top-5/