Category Archives: Bedford Corners NY

How hard is it to get a mortgage? | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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Is it really that hard? Yes. And no. And mostly yes again. And maybe it should be.

And since January 10 when the CFPB’s Qualified Mortgage rule took effect, it is definitely harder. So yes.

But there’s more to the story than that, and it doesn’t mean only Patsy Pays Perfect can qualify anymore.

The Qualified Mortgage rule has definitely put the squeeze on would-be homebuyers seeking a mortgage. People with lower income, the self-employed, those with credit scores on the margin, and people whose income comes from tips, bonuses or other harder to document sources are definitely being are all facing an uphill battle.

Industry analysts say that anywhere from 10% on the low side to 20% on the high side of people who have a mortgage now would not qualify for a mortgage under today’s rules.

But the rules and standards for getting a mortgage were already tightening long before the CFPB put their screws to it. In fact, the industry had largely self-corrected – as if it had a choice – long before Washington put it in ink with heightened documentation and tighter standards.

Mortgage applications, the first step in the mortgage process, have been down this year almost consistently.

 

 

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http://www.housingwire.com/blogs/1-rewired/post/31082-how-hard-is-it-to-get-a-mortgage

 

Three-in-One Waterfront Glass House Wants $3.75M | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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25 images


Click here to view the full photogallery.

Location: Henry Island, Wash.
Price: $3,750,000
The Skinny: The little glass house, it seems, will always be with us, but this contemporary home on Washington State’s Henry Island adds a unique wrinkle to the basic four-glass-walls template to set itself apart. Instead of designing one small glass house (or one gigantic windowed box) the architects here divided up the 2.700 square feet of living space into three separate modules, connected in the rear by a long, low-slung breezeway. The three bedrooms are spread out across the modules, with the largest of the glass compartments containing the living areas and kitchen. All of the rooms look out onto Nelson Bay and have sliding glass walls and doors to allow for—Pacific Northwest weather permitting—indoor/outdoor living. The 24-acre property comes with a private mooring buoy and docking rights, and is located just a short sail away from Roche Harbor. It’s asking $3.75M

 

 

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http://curbed.com/archives/2014/08/13/three-waterfront-glass-houses-in-one-want-375m.php

Fannie Mae: Americans increasingly skeptical on housing | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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Consumer attitudes about the direction of the economy overall have grown more negative and Americans’ attitudes toward the housing market remain mixed, according to results from the Fannie Mae July 2014 National Housing Survey.

The share of respondents who believe the economy is on the wrong track increased by 5 percentage points from last month to 59%.

The 12-month home price change that consumers expect declined again in July, falling to 2.3%, and the share of respondents who expect home prices to climb in the next year also continued on a downward trend, falling to 42%.

“The continued cautious sentiment expressed across the range of consumer indicators this month gives weight to our view that the first phase of the housing recovery is decelerating, and 2014 will be a year of mixed housing outcomes with home prices rising more slowly and home sales falling slightly,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae.

“We have always believed that for the housing recovery to be considered robust, we will need strong and sustained full-time job and income growth. Recent data indicating the creation of more than 200,000 jobs over each of the last six months, combined with this month’s improvement in the share of consumers reporting significantly higher household income than a year ago, does provide some reason for optimism. If these trends continue, they could lead to some upside in housing in 2015,” he said.

 

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http://www.housingwire.com/articles/30959-americans-increasingly-skeptical-on-housing-economic-recovery

Affordable housing draws middle class to inland cities | Bedford Corners Homes

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Americans have never hesitated to pack up the U-Haul in search of the big time, a better job or just warmer weather. But these days, domestic migrants are increasingly driven by the quest for cheaper housing.

The country’s fastest-growing cities are now those where housing is more affordable than average, a decisive reversal from the early years of the millennium, when easy credit allowed cities to grow without regard to housing cost and when the fastest-growing cities had housing that was less affordable than the national average. Among people who have moved long distances, the number of those who cite housing as their primary motivation for doing so has more than doubled since 2007.

Rising rents and the difficulty of securing a mortgage on the coasts have proved a boon to inland cities that offer the middle class a firmer footing and an easier life. In the eternal competition among urban centers, the shift has produced some new winners.

Oklahoma City, for example, has outpaced most other cities in growth since 2011, becoming the 12th-fastest-growing city last year. It has also won over a coveted demographic, young adults age 25 to 34, going from a net loss of millennials to a net gain. Other affordable cities that have jumped in the growth rankings include several in Texas, including El Paso and San Antonio, as well as Columbus, Ohio, and Little Rock, Ark.

 

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http://finance.yahoo.com/news/affordable-housing-draws-middle-class-014410351.html

Before you judge Dodd-Frank… | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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After four years of execution and practice, it is difficult to assess just where the housing market would be if Dodd-Frank never went into effect. Would the market be better off or is that even quantifiable?

The mortgage market, en masse, seems to think two things. The first is that the impact of Dodd-Frank is, indeed, very quantifiable. And second, given the sum of its parts, everyone should hate Dodd-Frank.

As mentioned in an article from the American Banker, “In a rare public exchange in June 2011, Jamie Dimon asked then Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke what the total economic costs of the year-old Dodd-Frank Act would be.

“Has anyone looked at the cumulative effect of all these regulations, and could they be the reason it’s taking so long for credit and jobs to come back?” the head of JPMorgan Chase said.

“Jamie Dimon was so criticized for asking that question directly to Chairman Ben Bernanke,” said H. Rodgin Cohen, a partner at Sullivan & Cromwell and a leading banking lawyer. “That was not a loaded question. He wasn’t saying, ‘It was horrible.’ He was saying, ‘Has anybody looked at it?’ — which is a very legitimate question. I don’t think anybody can say they have answered that question.”

 

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Before you judge Dodd-Frank…

 

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

Banks aren’t being stingy on mortgage lending | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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The general feeling in the mortgage markets is one of constricted lending.

Many reasons are given: tighter regulations, a high cost of origination, stronger underwriting standards.

Neil Cavuto in Fox Business says don’t blame the banks because you can’t get a mortgage.

After all, they’re not being stingy, they’re being smart, he argues:

My friends, banks aren’t being tight-fisted, they’re just returning to form — and I like to think a fiscally-prudent form at that. Their demands may seem out of the recent norm, but they are very much the historical norm. You have to have a good credit score, a good employment history, and likely a good amount of dough to put down to show you’ve got serious intent. What’s more, you have to prove that intent. You have to prove promise. You have to prove you’re not flipping through the process, you’re understanding the process and the responsibility that comes with owning a home.

These might seem like outrageous demands to some today. We’re just going back to the simple demands pre go-go days! For previous generations they were the way things were done — so what’s so dangerous about returning to those basic standards now?

 

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Banks aren’t being stingy on mortgage lending

 

The greatest threat to the housing industry | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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Monday Morning Cup of Coffee takes a look at news crossing HousingWire’s weekend desk, with more coverage to come on bigger issues.

As Independence Day festivities slide into the rearview mirror, it’s time for a sobering look a the housing industry, and Sober Look takes just that, looking at why home price gains have slowed.

One of the reasons cited is the continuing weakness in wage growth. As they note, the latest data seem to indicate that in spite of the overall improvements in job creation, wage growth remains subdued – hovering around 2% per year over the past three years or so.

Click the graph below to enlarge.

“And wage growth is a key determinant in home price valuation. Merrill Lynch for example shows that current home prices may already be above where they should be, based on Merrill’s fair value index that is driven to a large extent by wages,” the report says.

 

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http://www.housingwire.com/blogs/1-rewired/post/30553-monday-morning-cup-of-coffee-the-greatest-threat-to-the-housing-industry

Demolishing all or part of the concrete in your yard | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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Concrete patios are often found in older homes, especially those built in the ’70s. But by now they’ve cracked and crumbled, leaving many homeowners wondering how to replace them, or even hoping to reclaim some of the green space lost by a particularly large patio.

If you count yourself in this group, here you’ll learn how to improve your outdoor space by removing or shrinking your concrete patio, or replacing an old cracked patio with a fresh new one that better suits your style today.

modern patio by Falling Waters Landscape
Falling Waters Landscape
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Getting rid of a concrete patio enables you to replace it with a more attractive option — like pavers, stone or a modern combination, as with this patio by Falling Waters Landscape, featuring a grid of concrete rectangles divided by permeable plantings. It can also allow you to create more lawn or garden space.

Best time to do it: When the weather is dry and temperate enough to permit heavy-duty work outdoors.

Why: “Concrete cracks, it’s not a very pretty product, and there are a lot of better solutions on the market,” says Micah Dennis of Paradise Restored Landscaping & Exterior Design.

Who to hire: This project requires heavy machinery and can have hidden pitfalls (like rebar lurking in your concrete), so it’s only a DIY if you earn your bread and butter in home improvement. If that doesn’t sound like you, it’s best to hire a licensed contractor.

Tip: Dennis warns that many contractors won’t take the project if they aren’t installing a replacement patio or garden, so have a plan in place when you start interviewing professionals.

Find a deck or patio pro near you

contemporary patio by Hart Wright Architects, AIA
Hart Wright Architects, AIA
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Cost range: Between $800 and $1,000 for demolition alone. The total cost of your project will depend on what you decide to put in the patio’s place.

Typical project length: One day.

Permit required: None for the project, although some municipalities require a permit for dumping concrete, so call ahead.

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http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/28386224?utm_source=Houzz&utm_campaign=u547&utm_medium=email&utm_content=gallery6