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Bedford Corners NY

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

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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

Explore the Houzz App’s New Features and Cleaner Look | Bedford Corners NY Homes

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A new version of the Houzz mobile app is now available in the Apple App Store℠. Update today to get all the latest features.

You’ll see right away that the overall look and feel of the app has been brightened up with a white interface. The clean, modern feel lets you focus on the great photos and content in the app. On your phone, tap the Houzz logo in the top-left corner to view the menu.

3 reasons borrowers fare well with ARMs | Bedford Corners Homes

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Rapidly rising interest rates have been driving a growing number of home buyers to adjustable rate mortgages, which have grown from a 3.4% share of all conforming home loans in December 2013 to a recent high of 9.9% in March 2014.

The unpredictability of ARMs has given them a bad name for some people, but ARMs are making a comeback.

ARMs have grown from a 3.4% share of all conforming home loans at the end of 2013 to just shy of 10% in March 2014.

While some have said this is a warning sign of a return to risky pre-recession lending, Cameron Findlay, chief economist at Discover Home Loans says that’s not the case at all.  Today’s ARMs are very different, Findlay says, for three reasons.

1) Safer And Smarter

There is a critical distinction to make between the hybrid ARMs offered in today’s marketplace and the interest-only products that were widely associated with the financial crisis.  Hybrid ARMs, which have fixed interest rates for an initial period of time and includes period and lifetime caps, can offer a significant benefit over 30-year fix rate mortgages.

2) Smart, Informed Borrowers

ARMs can be a viable and responsible alternative to fixed rate loans in the current market – but they are not for everyone.  ARMs will provide the most benefit to borrowers who make smart, informed choices based on their home-buying plans. Recently most ARM borrowers have chosen a 5/1 Hybrid with a 2/2/5 structure, meaning the rate is fixed for the first five years, both the initial and subsequent adjustments are capped at 2%, and the loan has a lifetime cap of 5% in adjustments.   For a borrower who only plans to live in a home for seven years, this type of loan can provide savings over the first five years when compared to a 30-year fixed rate loan in the current rate environment.

3) Sensible Alternative to Rising Rates

While there continue to be widespread misconceptions that ARMs are simply an alternative for those who cannot afford traditional loans, the market dynamics that are driving more borrowers towards ARMs tell a different story – and one that makes a great deal of sense for many consumers.  Over the 18 months, and particularly since the Fed announced its decision to “taper” its economic stimulus program, the rate for a 30-year fixed-rate home loan has risen by more than a full percentage point from 3.31 to 4.40%. In that time, the spread between Hybrid ARMs and fixed-rate loans has ballooned, as increases in adjustable loan rates have moved at a much slower pace.  Today, a 5/1Hybrid ARM is 0.96% less than a 30-year fixed rate loan.

 

 

http://www.housingwire.com/articles/29555-reasons-borrowers-fare-well-with-arms

Spring Housing Market Shaping Up as Tale of Two Coasts | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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As the spring home shopping season heats up, buyers and sellers nationwide can expect very different experiences when it comes to negotiating power. Zillow took a look at recent data to determine markets where sellers have the power and those where buyers are in control. Our analysis shows many home sellers are thriving in the Bay Area, San Antonio and Los Angeles metro areas, where price cuts are sparse and homes often sell at or near their asking price.

On the other end of the spectrum, the Cleveland, Philadelphia and Tampa metros are buyers’ markets, with homes taking longer to sell, less competition in the marketplace and more room for bargaining on prices.

In this analysis, a sellers’ market is not necessarily one where home values are rising, but rather one in which homes are on the market for a shorter time, price cuts occur less frequently and homes are sold at prices very close to (or greater than) their last listing price. In buyers’ markets, homes for sale stay on the market longer, price cuts occur more frequently and homes are sold for less relative to their listing price.

“The real estate data in markets on both coasts are telling markedly different stories. Relatively strong job markets in the West are helping spur robust demand, which is being met with limited supply, causing rapid home value appreciation and giving sellers an edge. In the East, housing markets are appreciating a bit more slowly, and homes are staying on the market longer, which helps give buyers the upper hand,” said Zillow Chief Economist Dr. Stan Humphries.

He added, “In general, buyers in sellers’ markets this spring can expect tight inventory, increased competition and a greater sense of urgency. Sellers in buyers’ markets may need to be prepared to lower their asking price, or to wait longer for the perfect buyer to come along. As we put the housing recession further in the rear-view mirror, the broad-based dynamics that applied during those days, when all markets were reacting similarly to nationwide economic conditions, are fading. Real estate has always been local, and as the spring market gains momentum, this old adage will only become more pronounced.”

 

http://homes.yahoo.com/news/spring-housing-market-shaping-tale-two-coasts-041831660.html

 

Why the mortgage business is now hyper-competitive | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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Mortgage applications are relevant to a number of industries—from banks to non-banks, to mortgage REITs like Annaly (NLY) and American Capital (AGNC), to homebuilders like KB Home (KBH), Lennar (LEN), and Toll Brothers (TOL). This series will break down the different indices and help you learn what insight you can glean from them. If you’re a bank, you’re looking at these indices and trying to determine whether you’re competitive in all the segments you want to be competitive in. If you’re a non-bank, you might be looking to see if you’re gaining share or losing share. If you’re a mortgage REIT, you’re focusing on the refinance index and what it might mean for prepayments going forward. And if you’re a homebuilder, you’re watching the purchase index as a way to gauge future demand.

 

Mortgage rates fall slightly as bonds yields increase

The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose 6 basis points, from 4.31% to 4.37%, while the ten-year bond yield rose 15 basis points as Ukrainian fears began to fade into the background. The Fed decided to start tapering at the December FOMC meeting and reduced its pace of purchases by $5 billion a month. It made a similar move at the January FOMC meeting. Given how much issuance has fallen, the Fed’s footprint was getting bigger even though it wasn’t increasing purchases. It made sense for the Fed to reduce purchases. The fear, of course, is that the absence of Fed activity will make mortgage rates rise even if the ten-year stays the same.

 

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/why-mortgage-business-now-hyper-194503535.html

Unusual Mixes of Old and New in Texas | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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Any architect will tell you that the key to a successful building is a good client. Of course, what exactly a “good client” is can vary greatly. For architect Hugh Randolph’s renovation of a 1935 house in the Clarksville neighborhood of Austin, Texas, good clients were a creative couple who were passionate about the history of their house as they and their daughters became its newest residents.
Going so far as to document their research in a blog, Ryan and Kim Battle worked with Randolph to find inspiration in the house’s history. The result is a traditional house with modern touches that are sometimes subtle and sometimes overt, ultimately making something new and personal.
Houzz at a Glance Who lives here: Ryan and Kim Battle and their 2 daughters Location: Austin, Texas Team: Architect: Hugh Randolph; interior designer: Kim Battle; builder: Risinger Homes Size: 2,890 square feet (268 square meters) Photography by Whit Preston and Casey Dunn

The decision to buy and remodel the house started with Randolph’s taking a shortcut in his car one day along Palma Plaza and seeing the house for sale. He thought of Ryan and Kim Battle, who were living in one of his modern commissions at the time but wanted something smaller and more sustainable. Six months after the discovery, the Battles bought the property and hired Randolph to help them transform it.
Looking at the symmetrical, southwest-facing front, it’s hard to see any dramatic changes, outside of the three modern dormers that replaced an existing pair, and the standing-seam metal roof. The dining room is to the left of the entrance, and the master bedroom is to the right.