Monthly Archives: February 2015

Down Payment Assistance Available to Most Buyers | Mount Kisco Real Estate

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A study to make home buyers realize that they could qualify for a free down payment without winning the lottery found that 87 percent U.S. of US homes qualify for down payment help.

“Many homebuyers, especially Millennials, haven’t fully investigated their home financing options because they are pessimistic about qualifying for a mortgage. Our Homeownership Program Index highlights the wide range and availability of down payment programs available to today’s homebuyers. In fact, 91 percent of the 2,290 programs in our registry have funds available to lend to eligible buyers. Plus, income limits vary depending on the market and programs extend beyond just first-time homebuyers,” said Rob Chrane, president and CEO of Down Payment Resource. “It’s important for buyers to research down payment programs as part of their loan shopping process.”

“Historically low homeownership rates across nearly every age demographic have led to a public policy push to lower the barrier to homeownership through down payments as low as 3 percent, but the fact is that the barrier to homeownership is often much lower than even that 3 percent for borrowers who take advantage of one of the myriad down payment help programs available across the country,” said Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac. “Prospective buyers — or their agents — willing to put in a few minutes of time to find out what programs are available to them will put themselves in a much better position to successfully purchase a home.”

RealtyTrac looked at 2,290 down payment programs from Down Payment Resource’s Homeownership Program Index and found that out of more than 78 million U.S. single family homes and condos in 1,792 counties with sufficient home value data, more than 68 million (87 percent) would qualify for a down payment program available in the county where they are located based on the maximum price requirements for those programs and the estimated value of the properties.

 

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http://www.realestateeconomywatch.com/2015/02/down-payment-assistance-available-to-most-buyers/

 

What’s Happening to the Most Important Homes in Real Estate? | South Salem Real Estate

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What’s really happening with homes in the bottom price tiers?

These are the most important homes in the entire real estate economy.  They are where the housing ladder begins: they are then entry point for new buyers, the starter homes that MUST be available and affordable for Millennials if the housing economy is to ever function again as it was meant to.  Until families ready to move up lists their starter homes, nothing is available to buy.

Reams have been written about tight credit stopping first time buyers but almost nothing about an equally serious problem. Homes on the lowest tier haven’t appreciated sufficiently for owners to sell—or even to make it possible for them to sell.

Despite the progress that has made since the housing crash, some 5.1 million homes, or 10.3 percent of all residential properties with a mortgage, were still in negative equity as of Q3 2014, according to CoreLogic.  Another 9.4 million had less than 20-percent equity (referred to as “under-equitied”), making it virtually impossible for them to sell or refinance.  That totals some 14.3 million homes or about 28 percent of homes with a mortgage are frozen in place.

A disproportionate number of lower cost homes are among this total, according to a new analysis from Black Knight Financial Services released this week. Black Knight’s latest Mortgage Monitor Report, based on data through the end of November 2014, found that home price recovery varies significantly for properties within different tiers of home values.  .A decade after the housing crash, some 85 percent of homes valued at less than $200,000 of no equity while 94 percent of homes valued at greater than $200,000 have equity.  Home price recovery for the lowest 20 percent of property values has lagged behind those it the top price tiers.

“We looked at HPI appreciation from pre-crisis peaks to today in the 10 states currently trailing the furthest behind their pre-crisis housing maximums,” said Barnes. “The data showed a clear difference in the levels of recovery among home price tiers. The Black Knight HPI separates home values for every geographical division into five equal tiers; those in the lowest 20 percent of home values have been lagging behind their higher-valued counterparts in recovery to pre-crisis peaks, sometimes considerably.

 

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http://www.realestateeconomywatch.com/2015/02/whats-happening-to-the-most-important-homes-in-real-estate/

Down to Earth Markets | Katonah Real Estate

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Bake Up the Love: Valentine Baking Class with Christiane’s Backstube on Feb. 11th;
Brand New Vendor Debuts at Mamaroneck Farmers Market;
Ossining Winter Market Hosts Music with Shovel Ready String Band + More

February 5-11th, 2015
DowntoEarthMarkets.com
BrooklynWinterOffer
What’s New, In Season, and On Sale This Week
Dark Chocolate Challah Bread
Perfect for Valentine’s Day – offered
only once a year!
Orwasher’s Bakery
Pork & Ale Pub Pie
Stone & Thistle Farm

SALE: Save $2 when you buy two items incl. Chutneys, Frozen Samosa, Kofta, Saag, & Rajma
Bombay Emerald Chutney Company
 Valentine’s Day Cookies & Cupcakes
Regular and gluten-free
Meredith’s Bread
Click on a market to see all vendor and event details…

Ossining Winter
​
Saturdays
9:00 am-1:00 pm

Claremont Elementary School
Van Cortlandt Avenue, off of N. Highland (Rte. 9)

Mamaroneck Winter

Saturdays
9:00 am-1:00 pm

St. Thomas Episcopal Church
168 W. Boston Post Road

Headed to the city? We’ve got markets there, too. CLICK HERE for details. 

Announcements
Mamaroneck: Armelle for Kids Plays this Saturday
Calling all kids who like to dance and sing: You are in for a treat.
Larchmont-based singer, Armelle Gloaguen, and her band, The Hand Jive Tribe, know how to get kids moving and grooving to music from around the world. She sings in English, French, Spanish, Korean, Chinese, and in a Sierra Leone dialect. They’ll play from 10 am to noon – see you there!

Ossining: Shovel Ready String Band Lights Up the Stage

This Saturday, join us for the Shovel Ready String Band! This local band knows how to celebrate the joy of bringing people together at the market. They play bluegrass, country blues, snappy good time tunes – and more – so make sure to stop by between 10 am to noon to enjoy their sound.

Ossining: The 2015 Learning Center at Down to Earth Markets

Down to Earth Markets is delighted to announce our 2015 Learning Center series. Once a month, we’ll invite local food makers to share their secrets to a class held in our office at 173 Main Street, 3rd Floor, in Ossining. The kick-off event is “Bake Up the Love with Christiane’s Backstube” on
Wednesday, February 11th from 7-9 pm. Each class is $15 or $40 for three.
Click HERE to learn more and buy tickets!

For additional events, visit our Down to Earth Markets Event Calendar.

Stay tuned to all market happenings via our Down to Earth Markets Facebook page
and follow us on Instagram and on Twitter @DowntoEarthMkts.

Rotating* Vendors This Week
*Vendors who rotate through various markets during the season.
They enjoy getting to know many communities. Here’s where to find them this week:

Mamaroneck – Saturday, February 7th

Calcutta Kitchens
Hudson River Apiaries
Kontoulis Family Olive Oil
**NEW TO MARKET!** – LizBeth’s Dessert Boutique

Ossining – Saturday, February 7th

Bombay Emerald Chutney Company
Kontoulis Family Olive Oil
Taiim Falafel Shack
Wave Hill Breads

Mortgage Rates keep dropping | Bedford Hills Real Estate

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Freddie Mac today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing average fixed mortgage rates, after ticking-up slightly last week, reversing course and falling amid weaker than expected housing and economic data. Fixed-rate mortgages rates are once again back near their May 23, 2013 lows.

News Facts

  • 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.59 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending February 5, 2015, down from last week when it averaged 3.66 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.32 percent.
  • 15-year FRM this week averaged 2.92 percent with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 2.98 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.40 percent.
  • 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 2.82 percent this week with an average 0.4 point, down from last week when it averaged 2.86 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 3.12 percent.
  • 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 2.39 percent this week with an average 0.4 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.38 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 2.55 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 theRegional and National Mortgage Rate Details and Definitions. Borrowers may still pay closing costs which are not included in the survey.

Quotes
Attributed to Len Kiefer, deputy chief economist, Freddie Mac.

“Mortgage rates fell this week following the release of weaker than expected pending home sales, which fell 3.7 percent in December. Moreover, real GDP growth for the fourth quarter was 2.6 percent and the Institute for Supply Management reported slower growth in manufacturing last month, both missing market consensus forecasts.”

How to Borrow Light | Bedford Real Estate

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In 1915 the 38-story Equitable Building in New York City was the largest office building in the world. Containing 1.2 million square feet of office space, it consumed nearly every available square foot of its diminutive lot and cast an equally large shadow on its neighborhood in lower Manhattan. Its construction inspired the enactment of the city’s 1916 Zoning Resolution, which was designed to preserve access to light and air at the street level. The resolution prescribed specific limitations for a building’s envelope — its outer walls — and would go on to shape the stepped forms that you see today on many of the iconic towers in the city.This underscores the importance that access to daylight had in shaping even the largest of cities, the individual buildings that make up those cities and, more broadly, sensible building design. With an increasing focus on sustainable design practices, the smart use of natural daylight in our homes is no longer a luxury — it has become a necessity. At the heart of any good daylighting strategy is a concept of “borrowed” light: the capture of light falling on the exterior of a home and transporting it to the spaces where it’s needed.

Industrial Hall by Renzo J Nakata Architects
Renzo J Nakata Architects
The sun delivers an incredible amount of light energy to us each day. To get an idea of just how much, it helps to understand the standard by which we use to measure light intensity: the foot-candle. The light from a full moon is roughly 1 foot-candle, while the sun’s illuminance on a cloudless day is roughly 10,000 foot-candles. Of course, clouds and the filtering effects of glass can reduce the actual amount of light that reaches the interiors of our homes by 50 to 90 percent. But 1,000 to 5,000 foot-candles is still an amazing amount of light, given that we need only around 35 foot-candles to comfortably read by.
Contemporary Bedroom by Fougeron Architecture FAIA
Fougeron Architecture FAIA
Harnessing this light energy isn’t as simple as placing a window on an exterior wall. Interior rooms without access to an exterior wall or spaces oriented in a way that restricts access to adequate daylight are common problems, each with a unique solution. Here’s a look at some solutions.Walls. Interior walls built to collect and disperse light rather than restrict it are one solution. The wall shown here gathers indirect light from an adjacent light-filled bathroom and capitalizes on the reflective nature of the bath’s wall surfaces to diffuse it into the bedroom. Clear glass will transmit the greatest amount of light into adjacent spaces. And because the glass here is positioned above eye level, the bath remains private and sound-isolated.

Contemporary Bathroom by Fougeron Architecture FAIA
Fougeron Architecture FAIA
The white walls of the same bathroom act as the indirect light source for the nearby bedroom. Bright, neutral colors work well for an indirect borrowed-lighting strategy.Good solar exposure is borrowed by the bedroom simply via the glazed upper wall.

Industrial Living Room by Jane Kim Design
Jane Kim Design
Because translucent materials reflect, absorb and scatter light, they make great walls for borrowing light. The degree of translucency will affect just how much light is scattered. The effect is similar to obscuring direct sight but preserving the passage of daylight. Diffused light is comfortable and limits eyestrain.
read more…
http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/41868847?utm_source=Houzz&utm_campaign=u989&utm_medium=email&utm_content=gallery1

Earthy Decor Adds Warmth to a Modern Home | Pound Ridge Real Estate

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In 2008 these Santa Monica, California, homeowners worked with their architects to build a minimalist, modern home. Several years later they still loved their custom home, but they thought it could be cozier and more touchable. They hired an interior design team to take their rooms to a new, warmer level.
Modern Living Room by DISC Interiors
DISC Interiors
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: A landscape architect, her husband and their son
Location: Santa Monica, California
Size: 3,500 square feet (325 square meters); 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms

Interior designers Krista Schrock and David Dick of Disc Interiors picked up the design reins last year. To fully understand why they added earthy, touchable elements and nature-based colors to the pure white spaces, you have to know that the woman in the house is a landscape designer and her husband is an avid surfer who works at a nonprofit dedicated to restoring Santa Monica Bay. “They wanted us to bring in more natural elements, to make the spaces warmer and more approachable,” says Dick.

The living room illustrates the strategy — a metal sunburst hangs over furniture done in watery shades of blue and a nubby Moroccan rug. Rustic elements such as the stone-topped coffee table and pottery accessories on the shelves turn up the visual temperature several degrees.

“We sometimes like to work with opposites,” says Dick. “We were working with something that was new, white and minimal. We added elements that are the opposite: vintage, brass, glass, ceramics and touches of black — we’ve always thought a bit of black sharpens up almost any room.”

Metal sculpture: vintage Curtis Jeré; sofa: custom; coffee table: Lawson-Fenning

Modern Living Room by DISC Interiors
DISC Interiors
The designers created a custom light fixture that is like a large mobile. The black and brass light breaks up the boxiness of the room.

Given the home’s modernist nature, it’s no surprise that it has been the backdrop for several Design Within Reach catalog photo shoots. The armchair is, in fact, a DWR piece the couple owns. “We wanted to avoid the cliché of midcentury furniture in a modern house, so we re-covered the chair in a pinstripe fabric,” says Dick.

Most of the seating is now directed toward the garden, seen through the large glass doors. The sofa was moved to face the garden, and the other armchair is a swivel chair, which allows its occupant to swing around and take in the view. “Because she is a landscape designer, the rooms are all about the gardens,” says Dick. “The colors we chose were a counterbalance to the beautiful greens outside.”

Contemporary Kitchen by DISC Interiors
DISC Interiors
The couple likes to cook, and the kitchen was done to their liking. The designers added a new dimension by installing two large mica globe lights over the island. “They are a big, strong statement,” says Dick. “They are different sizes, which makes them playful and fun, and the mica shades make a beautiful, warm glow in the room.”

Light fixtures: Robert Lewis Studio; bar stools: Thomas Hayes Gallery

Santa Monica
The watery look picks up again in the dining room, where the designers used patterned curtains to create a kind of floor-to-ceiling artwork. “They make for a bold moment,” says Dick. “Every room should have one.”
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http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/33539358?utm_source=Houzz&utm_campaign=u989&utm_medium=email&utm_content=gallery0

How to Save for a Down Payment | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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Rents are projected to outpace home values by the end of the year, according to Zillow, so it’s a good time to consider buying a home. Fixed mortgage payments and a more stable market are other reasons to make the jump.

Zillow projects that by the end of 2015, millennials will become the largest home-buying age group. Whether you fall into that category or not, coming up with a down payment can be challenging. Here are some strategies to help you get there.

Reduce large expenses

Sure, skipping your morning latte may help save money over time, but why not attack your biggest expenses head on for quicker results? We’re talking about your rent, which is likely eating up over 30 percent of your take-home pay. You can try to negotiate a better rate with your landlord, move to a cheaper location, or downsize — going from a two-bedroom to a one-bedroom can drop your rent by 25 to 30 percent, depending on where you live.

You could also bring in a roommate (or two). Sharing a home isn’t just for kids straight out of college anymore. In fact, the percentage of adults living with someone other than a spouse or partner continues to rise (32 percent nationwide in 2012; up from 26 percent in 2000, according to Zillow’s analysis of the latest Census Bureau data). Jump on the bandwagon and pocket the savings.

Automate savings contributions

This is a no-brainer: Tell your payroll department that you want a fixed amount automatically deducted from your paycheck and deposited into a designated savings account.

Start small. Most people can cut their income by 2 percent without even noticing, and the payoff over time can be significant.

Stash windfalls

The average tax refund in 2014 was $3,116; this year, it’s expected to rise to $3,295. And while it may be tempting to splurge, why not exercise some restraint and put your windfall into a designated down payment account? You’ll be happy you did.

Save less for retirement

This suggestion is certainly not the norm. And just to clarify, you should not raid your retirement account. But if you have a 401(k) employer match, and are already contributing the max (6 percent), consider stopping there and allocating additional cash toward your down payment — in a separate after-tax account.

 

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http://www.zillow.com/blog/strategies-saving-for-down-payment-168290/

Preview the Historic Knickerbocker Hotel’s Modern Makeover | Chappaqua Real Estate

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The Knickerbocker, the iconic Beaux Arts hotel originally opened in 1906 by John Jacob Astor IV, is set to reopen next Thursday, and we recently got a tour inside the historic building, where the construction crew is putting in the finishing touches. Though The Knickerbocker is an individual landmark, which means that the facade must be meticulously maintained down to the smallest detail, on the inside practically nothing original remains, and the hotel has received a sleek, modern renovation (to the tune of $240 million) feature a lot ofCarrera marble, gold leaf, and other very high-end finishes. So, while the hotel may not look anything like it did back when in the days when Red Sox owner Harry Frazee met the team’s manager in the cafe to inform him that he was selling Babe Ruth to the Yankees, or when the house bartender invented the martini (depending on who you believe), it will be similarly luxurious. The 330 rooms averaging 430 square feet apiece, will start at around $500-$700 per night.

 

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http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2015/02/03/preview_the_historic_knickerbocker_hotels_modern_makeover.php

Fed Provides Deeper Look at Lending Standards on Residential Mortgages | Armonk Real Estate

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The Federal Reserve Board recently released its survey of senior bank loan officers. The January 2015 Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices (SLOOS) addressed changes in the standards and terms on, and demand for, bank loans to businesses and households over the fourth quarter of 2014.

The January 2015 iteration of the survey featured revised and expanded categories of residential real estate loans to reflect the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) qualified mortgage (QM) rules and provide more detailed information on the mortgage market. According to the survey lending standards over the fourth quarter of 2014 declined, on net, across most CFPB-defined residential mortgage categories*.

The figure below depicts the net percentage of senior bank officers reporting that lending standards at their bank had eased over the fourth quarter of 2014. The net change is calculated by subtracting the share of banks reporting tighter lending standards from the proportion reporting easier standards. According to the figure lending standards for GSE-eligible residential mortgages eased the most, 12.5%, on net.

Presentation1

While not to the degree of GSE-eligible residential mortgages, lending standards on those residential mortgages that are considered a qualifying mortgage eased more than similar residential mortgages that do not qualify. For example, lending standards on qualifying jumbo residential mortgages eased more, on net, 7.7%, then lending standards for non-qualifying jumbo residential mortgages, 3.5%. Similarly, lending standards on qualifying non-jumbo, but non-GSE eligible, residential mortgages eased more, on net, 3.4%, than lending standards on non-qualifying, non-jumbo residential mortgages. Moreover, lending standards on non-qualifying, non-jumbo residential mortgages were unchanged over the fourth quarter of 2014, similar to the lending standards on subprime residential mortgages.

In addition, lending standards on jumbo mortgages eased more, on net, than similarly-situated non-jumbo mortgages. For example, lending standards on qualifying jumbo mortgages eased more, on net, 7.7%, than lending standards on qualifying non-jumbo and non-GSE-eligible residential mortgages, 3.4%. Similarly, net lending standards on non-qualifying jumbo residential mortgages eased more, 3.5% than non-qualifying non-jumbo residential mortgages, 0.0%. Despite the greater change toward easier lending standards amongst jumbo residential mortgages relative to similarly situated non-jumbo mortgages over the fourth quarter of 2014, a previous post illustrated that lending standards on “non-conforming” residential mortgages are considered tighter, on net relative to the midpoint of the range of standards between 2005 and the second quarter of 2014, than “conforming” residential mortgages.

 

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http://eyeonhousing.org/2015/02/fed-provides-deeper-look-at-lending-standards-on-residential-mortgages/