Tag Archives: North Salem North Sale Real Estate

Banks willing to finance house flippers who burned them before | North Salem NY Real Estate

Homes are being flipped in Southwest Florida at the fastest pace since the housing boom, and about 1 in 4 deals involve some kind of financing — often provided by the same banks that fueled the last bubble, who have proven themselves willing to lend money to flippers who burned them during the crash, according to an analysis by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

The newspaper reviewed 1,287 property flips in Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties identified by RealtyTrac Inc., examining who was behind the flips, the source of their funding, and who the properties were sold to.

Many flippers who had defaulted on loans they’d obtained during the boom were able to finance new deals, often from the same lenders they’d burned before. Big banks that “played a central role in the financial meltdown” have been the most active in financing flips, the paper found, along with personal financiers and smaller credit unions.

So far, the deals have been profitable — the flips analyzed by the Herald-Tribune generated almost $23 million in profits, or close to $18,000 per deal. But some wonder how long that trend can last.

“We’re starting to see many of the same factors we saw during the last boom and bust,” real estate analyst Jack McCabe told the paper. “There is going to come a day of reckoning.”

 

 

 

 

Source: heraldtribune.com

Foreclosure filings creep up a slight 2% | North Salem NY Homes

Foreclosure filings crept up 2% in the most recent weekly survey, but still declined 28% from year ago levels, RealtyTrac reported Thursday.

In all, the data firm recorded 133,919 filings in October.

For the 16th month in a row, judicial foreclosure auctions increased from year ago levels, with 30,023 foreclosure auctions nationwide in October, up 10% from the prior month and up 7% from last year.

Overall, there were 58,939 properties that started the foreclosure process for the first time in October, rising 2% from September, but down 34% from last year.

This marks the 15th consecutive month where foreclosure starts have declined on an annual basis, the data firm said.

Individually, Maryland, Delaware, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Florida witnessed the largest annual increases in scheduled judicial foreclosures. In particular, Maryland and Delaware shocked with dramatic ‘judicial foreclosure’ increases of 177% and 142%, respectively.

“The backlog of delayed judicial foreclosures continues to make its way through the pipeline, with many of these properties now being scheduled for the public auction after starting the foreclosure process last year or earlier this year,” said Daren Blomquist, vice president of RealtyTrac.

 

 

http://www.housingwire.com/articles/27952-foreclosure-filings-creep-up-a-slight-2

New York Times Explores North Salem’s David Letterman’s Book Of Satire | North Salem Real Estate

The New York Times recently visited with North Salem resident David Letterman to discuss his new book, “This Land Was Made for You and Me (but Mostly Me).”

Letterman teamed up with illustrator Bruce McCall to create a book of satire that pokes fun at some fictitious habits of the cultural and financial elite.

The Times describes the book as a vehicle for some of Letterman’s ideas that he wouldn’t be able express on his late night talk show.

Read the full article here.

 

 

 

http://bedford.dailyvoice.com/neighbors/new-york-times-explores-north-salems-david-lettermans-book-satire

Flood insurance ‘crisis’ may hurt St. Pete Beach real estate market | North Salem Real Estate

City officials are worried that rising federal flood insurance costs for home and business owners will pummel the local real estate market and property tax revenue.

“There is a looming flood insurance crisis that is about to hit us,” Vice Mayor Marvin Shavlan told the City Commission this month.

Evidence of that crisis is already apparent as real estate sales fall through when buyers discover that their flood insurance bills could be as high as $24,000 a year, Shavlan said.

“It will significantly slow down the real estate market. People are scared to buy older homes,” agreed Jake Holehouse, an agent at Holehouse Insurance in St. Petersburg and a longtime St. Pete Beach resident.

“We are all very concerned about the outcome,” said Doug Swain, an agent at Re/Max Preferred in St. Pete Beach. Another agent lost a big sale this month because of the flood insurance rate increase, he said.

Congress, reacting to the extensive damage caused by Hurricane Sandy, changed the rules for flood insurance in July 2012 with the goal of collecting enough premiums to cover claims made under the federal program.

As a result, insurance rates are expected to sharply escalate beginning in October to rates that in many cases could be significantly higher than home mortgages.

Many homes in St. Pete Beach are below base flood elevation.

And anyone who purchased such a home after July 2012, absentee homeowners who live elsewhere 80 percent of the time, and any homeowners whose flood insurance policies lapsed or were canceled will feel the effect first, Holehouse said.

He cited an example. A home built in 1960 and 7 feet below base flood elevation was valued at $148,000 when it was purchased in March but will have an annual flood insurance premium of $22,400.

Similarly, Holehouse said, the new owner of a 1956 home 8 feet below flood level is now paying $1,960 but will have to pay $29,100 after Oct. 1.

 

read more…

 

http://www.tampabay.com/news/localgovernment/flood-insurance-crisis-may-pummel-st-pete-beach-real-estate-market/2138582

 

 

 

London development generates nearly $1B in sales before groundbreaking | North Salem Real Estate

Overseas buyers who account for half of new-home purchases in London are helping drive nearly $1 billion in sales in Circus West at Battersea Powerstation, a new neighborhood of 866 homes that will break ground in July, Bloomberg reports.

The project is part of London’s largest redevelopment area, which is centered around a decommissioned coal-fired power plant on the south bank of the River Thames. By 2030, as many as 16,000 new homes are expected to be constructed around Battersea Powerstation.

The old power plant, which was featured on the cover of Pink Floyd’s 1977 album, “Animals,” is said to said to be the largest brick building in Europe. A new U.S. embassy is also planned for the Vauxhall Nine Elms Battersea Opportunity Area, which will be served by an extension of London’s underground transit system. Source: bloomberg.com.

– See more at: http://www.inman.com/wire/london-development-generates-nearly-1b-in-sales-before-groundbreaking/#sthash.11pcSR3Y.dpuf

 

London development generates nearly $1B in sales before groundbreaking | Inman News.

Prepare for new Medicare taxes in 2013 | North Salem NY Real Estate

With President Obama’s victory at the polls, it is now abundantly clear that Obamacare is here to stay. So far, we’ve experienced only the easy parts of the massive health care law, but starting in 2013, the hard parts will begin to take effect. In particular, two additional Medicare taxes will kick in. These tax increases will affect only high-income taxpayers: married couples with adjusted gross incomes over $250,000, and singles with AGIs over $200,000.

This is a tiny percentage of the population — only about 4 percent of all taxpayers earn more than $200,000. However, the one-third of taxpayers who itemize could be affected by the more restrictive limits on deducting medical expenses.

Increased Medicare taxes for high-income workers

Everyone who works — whether a business owner or an employee — is required to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes. Employees pay one-half of these taxes through payroll deductions; the employer must pony up the other half and send the entire payment to the Internal Revenue Service. Business owners must pay all of these taxes themselves. These taxes consist of a 12.4 percent Social Security tax up to an annual income limit, and a 2.9 percent Medicare tax on all wage or net self-employment income.

Starting in 2013, the 2.9 percent Medicare tax will go up by 0.9 percent. However, this increase will apply only to married taxpayers with wage or self-employment income of $250,000 and single taxpayers with income of $200,000. Only the amount over these thresholds is subject to the additional 0.9 percent tax.

Thus, for example, a self-employed single person with net self-employment income of $300,000 would pay a 2.9 percent Medicare tax on the first $200,000 and a 3.8 percent tax on the remaining $100,000. If a single employee has wage income of $300,000, the employer would withhold a 1.45 percent Medicare tax up to the $200,000 threshold and 2.35 percent after that.

Employees will have to pay the entire increase out of their own pockets. Thus, employers will continue to pay a 1.45 percent Medicare tax on their employees’ wages. Employees will continue to pay 1.45 percent until their wages reach the $200,000 or $250,000 ceiling. Then they will pay the additional 2.35 percent.

If you’re a high-income taxpayer, you may wish to earn as much money as possible in 2012, rather than in 2013, when it will be taxed at higher rates.

New Medicare tax on investment income

Starting in 2013, high-income taxpayers will be subject to a brand-new Medicare tax on their “unearned income.” A 3.8 percent Medicare contributions tax will be imposed on the lesser of (1) the taxpayer’s net investment income, or (2) any excess of modified adjusted gross income over $200,000 ($250,000 for married taxpayers filing jointly).

Thus, all single taxpayers with MAGI over $200,000 and married taxpayers with MAGI over $250,000 will be subject to this tax. This is a small proportion of the population, but a significant one for the real estate industry.

The tax applies only to investment income. This includes:

  • gross income from interest, dividends, annuities, royalties and rents other than those derived from an active business;
  • the net gain earned from the sale or other disposition of investment and other nonbusiness property; and
  • any other gain from a passive trade or business.

This includes just about any income not derived from an active business or from employee compensation.

Example: Sue and Sam, a married couple filing jointly, have a MAGI of $300,000 in 2013, which includes $100,000 of net investment income. Their MAGI is $50,000 over the $250,000 threshold, thus they must pay the 3.8 percent tax on $50,000 of their investment income. This results in a $1,900 tax.

This new tax applies to rental income, except for rentals owned by real estate professionals. So, starting in 2013, real estate professionals who earn profits from rentals will have a substantial tax advantage over everyone else. For details, see “How the new Medicare tax applies to rentals.”

Reduced personal deduction for medical expenses

All taxpayers are entitled to a personal income tax deduction for medical and dental expenses for themselves and their dependents. Eligible expenses include both health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket expenses not covered by insurance. However, there are two significant limitations on the deduction, which make it virtually useless (unusable) for most taxpayers.

However, to take the personal deduction, you must (1) itemize your deductions on IRS Schedule A, and (2) only deduct the portion of your medical expenses that exceeds an adjusted gross income threshold. For many years, the threshold has been 7.5 percent of AGI. Starting in 2013, the threshold for the itemized medical expense deduction goes up to 10 percent of AGI. However, people 65 or older will be exempt from the increase until 2017.

Example: In 2013, Sue and Sam have an AGI of $100,000 in 2013 and $30,000 in uninsured medical expenses. They may deduct only the portion of their expenses that exceeds 10 percent of their $100,000 AGI: $10,000. Thus, they may deduct only $20,000 of their expenses.

Because of this tax change, it’s advisable to pay as many medical expenses as possible in 2012, rather than waiting until 2013. See “Deducting health expenses will become more difficult in 2013.”