Category Archives: Pound Ridge

Real estate industry has never been better capitalized | Pound Ridge Real Estate

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In my talks I often preach that real innovation comes when we have the ingredients that got us to the moon: money, brains and passion.

In real estate today, these fundamentals are in place.

A new generation of passionate leaders is taking over — younger and better-educated agents, a new crop of innovative and fearless  brokers, and a slew of startup whiz kids. A recovering housing market and successful IPOs such as Zillow and Trulia are attracting supersmart professionals who want in on the largess.

Oscar Wilde said, “When I was young I thought that money was the most important thing in life; now that I am old I know that it is.”

Indeed, capital has returned to the industry and that is a good thing. The largest real estate company, Realogy Holdings Corp. ($6.16 billion market cap), has put a big dent in its debt and gone public with a fresh dose of capital (raised $1 billion with its IPO).

Re/Max has capital to invest after raising $225 million with its successful IPO this fall. One of the richest men in the world, Warren Buffett, is doubling down on real estate services with his Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices franchise. Can Keller Williams be far behind, capitalizing its rapidly growing enterprise?

Then, there are the awe-inspiring IPOs of Zillow ($2.85 billion market cap) and Trulia ($1.25 billion market cap). These two alone have a staggering amount of capital to invest in innovation, and stock prices that are perfectly poised for a slew of acquisitions. Realtor.com operator Move Inc. ($630 million market cap) will also rely on acquisitions as part of its strategy for growth

– See more at: http://www.inman.com/2013/11/13/time-for-an-industry-moon-shot/#sthash.hGLKG0oU.dpuf

Hollywood Hills Modern With Glass Garage Asks $8.5M | Pound Ridge Real Estate

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Location: Los Angeles, Calif. Price: $8,500,000 The Skinny: Some houses definitely need brokerbabble that scales the dizzying heights of Purple Prose Mountain to help make the sale, but then again, some houses really ought to be able to sell themselves. This car collector’s dream home that Curbed L.A. covered last week is definitely one of the latter. For the studio exec (for example) who wants to be able park their Bentley next to his Tesla inside a glass-walled nine-car garage, it’s a no-brainer. That being said, it’s hard to sever the bond between a broker and his or her hyperbole: “An irreplaceable property, an unparalleled history, and great location. This trophy estate of awe-inspiring indoor & outdoor living space is one of the most distinctive residential properties in Los Angeles…. comparable to 5-Star Hotel with amazing pool, spa and an opulent master suite, this is the absolute best opportunity to purchase a pristine compound in years. ..This celebrity compound is Walled & gated and sits on almost ONE ACRE of complete PRIVACY.” It goes on like that—with, oddly, just one off-handed mention of the garage—when all the listing really needs to say is “Do you have nine cars that need a glass garage to park in? Then buy this house.” The listing asks $8.5M.

Pound Ridge NY Weekly Real Estate Report | #RobReportBlog

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Pound   Ridge NY Weekly Real Estate Report11/11/2013
Homes for sale79
Median Ask Price$1,075,000.00
Low Price$285,000.00
High Price$5,700,000.00
Average Size3854
Average Price/foot$350.00
Average DOM147
Average Ask Price$1,394,316.00

Palatial Post-Modern Estate by Michael Graves Asks $5.8M | Pound Ridge Real Estate

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Have a nomination for a jaw-dropping listing that would make a mighty fine House of the Day? Get thee to the tipline and send us your suggestions. We’d love to see what you’ve got.

Location: Livingston, N.J. Price: $5,800,000 The Skinny: Looking for a home that combines the welcoming feel of a corporate campus with the homey decor of an airport hotel in a second tier convention city? Good news! This Michael Graves design in Livingston, N.J., has all those bases covered. From the faded tan exteriors to the teal blue walls of the indoor gym, the color palette of this seven-bedroom, seven-bathroom, 16,000-square-foot paean to corporatist post-modernism is spot on. The atrium will remind you of the lobby of your office building, the piano lounge will bring back fond memories of that time you spent a week in Oklahoma City on business, and the ubiquitous flat-screen TVs are just one part of the “exquisite appointments” the brokerbabble brags about. All teasing aside, the place brags some cool curved walls, huge windows, and a prime location “atop the highest point in [New Jersey’s] Bel Air.” Outside? A lawn, swimming pool, and jungle gym. The owners are asking $5.8 M for what the listing describes as a “must see for discriminating clients.”

Shanghai Raises Home Down-Payment Requirement as Prices Jump | Pound Ridge Real Estate

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Shanghai raised the minimum down payment required for buyers of a second home to 70 percent from 60 percent as house prices in China’s financial hub surge.

Counties and municipal departments should take measures to ensure the city’s annual price-control target is met, according to a statement on the local housing bureau’s website. The city also tightened the qualifications required for non-local home buyers and will increase residential land supplies, according to the statement.

Home prices in China’s four major cities jumped the most in September since January 2011, heightening concerns a bubble is forming as the national government refrains from introducing more property curbs that would hinder economic growth. Prices surged 17 percent in Shanghai from a year earlier, the biggest gain in the 70 cities the government tracks, only behind the 20 percent jump in the southern business hubs of Shenzhen and Guangzhou.

“It’s more like they are gesturing that they are serious about property curbs” after Beijing and Shenzhen’s tightening measures, said Dai Fang, a Shanghai-based analyst at Zheshang Securities Co. “The wait-and-see atmosphere may grow a little bit and sales may slow a little as fewer people can buy now.”

New home prices excluding government-sponsored social housing jumped 21 percent in Beijing in September from a year earlier, defying the strictest property curbs among all cities, according to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics. The Chinese capital raised down payment for second homes to 70 percent in March.

 

Local Measures

 

Former Premier Wen Jiabao in March stepped up a three-year campaign to contain price gains, ordering cities with excessive increases to raise down payments. Shenzhen made the move only on Nov. 1. Guangzhou, now the only of the four so-called first-tier cities that hasn’t raised down-payment requirements from 60 percent, is likely to follow suit, Dai said.

China’s average new home price surged 10.7 percent in October from a year earlier, the most this year, as homebuyers defied the government’s property curbs and developers offered more high-priced apartments to tap demand, according to SouFun Holdings Ltd. (SFUN), the nation’s biggest real estate website owner.

“Fluctuations in home prices have been noticeable this year, and upward pressure on housing prices increased recently with rising transaction volumes,” Shanghai’s housing bureau said in today’s statement.

The city government will crack down on price collusion and violations of home-purchase restrictions and will take measures to ensure the stability of the land market, according to the statement.

 

 

 

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-08/shanghai-raises-home-down-payment-requirement-after-prices-jump.html

Pound Ridge School Hosts Science Workshop | Pound Ridge Real Estate

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Pound Ridge third- graders are invited to attend a hands-on science workshop that enables students to discover magnetism at the in the Pound Ridge Elementary School Bistro on Nov. 12.

Students will have the opportunity to experience transferring magnetism through water, wood and other media. In addition, they will use electromagnets to learn about other ways to make a magnet.

There will be three 90-minute sessions, 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.; 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

The school is at 7 Pound Ridge Road.

 

 

http://mtkisco.dailyvoice.com/schools/pound-ridge-school-hosts-science-workshop

 

 

 

 

R.I. mortgage delinquency and foreclosure rates take a dip | Pound Ridge Real Estate

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Rhode Island’s rates of mortgage delinquency, foreclosure and new foreclosure starts all fell less than 1 percent in the third quarter of 2013, compared with the second quarter, according to statistics released Thursday by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Still, more than 1 in 10 mortgages in Rhode Island are either in foreclosure or behind in payments, well above historical norms.

Nationally, Rhode Island ranked 13th in delinquencies and 9th in new foreclosures started during the third quarter. The numbers come from the association’s quarterly National Delinquency Survey.

Rhode Island’s delinquency rate was 7.84 percent of mortgage loans, compared with a national rate of 6.67 percent for one-to-four-unit residential properties.

The delinquency rate includes loans that are at least 30 days past due, but it does not include loans in foreclosure. Rhode Island’s foreclosure rate in the third quarter was 3.25 percent, compared with a national rate of 3.08 percent.

For new foreclosures started during the quarter, Rhode Island’s rate was 0.75 percent, while nationally, that rate was 0.61 percent.

Jay Brinkmann, the chief economist for the bankers’ group, said the continuing high foreclosure rate is due to “underlying economic factors impacting the housing markets,” though “we’re also working through the problems of the past,” referring to the many unsustainable loans that led to massive numbers of foreclosures and the banking crisis of 2008.

 

 

http://www.providencejournal.com/breaking-news/content/20131107

4 Men With Sledge Hammers Rob New Canaan Jewelry Store | Pound Ridge NY Homes

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Four men with sledge hammers smashed display cases and stole tens of thousands of dollars worth of watches Wednesday afternoon from Henry C. Reid & Son Jewelers in downtown New Canaan, the New Canaan Advertiser reported.

Police were searching for four black men suspected in the robbery at 72 Elm St. at about 4 p.m., the Advertiser said. The four men reportedly fled on foot but could not be found, the report said.

If you have any information, contact police at 203-594-3500.

Read the full story here at the New Canaan Advertiser.

 

 

 

http://newcanaan.dailyvoice.com/police-fire/4-men-sledge-hammers-rob-new-canaan-jewelry-store