Tag Archives: South Salem Luxury Real Estate

Step Inside the 1946 Offices of Architect Morris Lapidus | South Salem Real Estate

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Despite being best known for speckling Miami with the Neo-baroque and Modern hotels that have since defined old Miami architecture, in the 1940s, architect Morris Lapidus actually had an office headquarters on New York City’s 49th Street. These photos, snagged from the Library of Congress’ Gottscho-Schleisner Collection, were taken years before Lapidus got his most famous commission, Miami’s (James Bond-approved!) Fontainebleau Hotel, and in fact the interiors are far from bold, a surprise coming from a man whose design philosophy was “if you create the stage setting and it’s grand, everyone who enters will play their part.” Sure, there may be no sweeping curves or layer-cake chandeliers, though the photos are far from boring. Have a look at the midcentury office delights—floating bookcases! wood paneling! glass partitions! a hand coming out of a wall!(??)—in the gallery below.

 

 

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http://curbed.com/archives/2014/05/02/step-inside-1948-offices-of-architect-morris-lapidus.php

Mortgage Rates up slightly to 4.33% | South Salem Realtor

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Freddie Mac (OTCQB: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing average fixed mortgage rates following an uptick in the 10-year treasury note and amid a week of soft housing data.

News Facts

  • 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.33 percent with an average 0.6 point for the week ending April 24, 2014, up from last week when it averaged 4.27 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 3.40 percent.
  • 15-year FRM this week averaged 3.39 percent with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 3.33 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 2.61 percent.
  • 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 3.03 percent this week with an average 0.5 point, unchanged from last week. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 2.58 percent.
  • 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 2.44 percent this week with an average 0.5 point, unchanged from last week. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 2.62 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 the Regional and National Mortgage Rate Details and Definitions. Borrowers may still pay closing costs which are not included in the survey.

Quotes Attributed to Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist, Freddie Mac.

“Mortgage rates edged up following the uptick in the 10-year Treasury note late last week. Existing home sales were essentially flat with a 0.2 percent decline in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.59 million. However, new home sales fell nearly 15 percent in March to an annual rate of 384,000, well below consensus.”

Freddie Mac was established by Congress in 1970 to provide liquidity, stability and affordability to the nation’s residential mortgage markets. Freddie Mac supports communities across the nation by providing mortgage capital to lenders. Today Freddie Mac is making home possible for one in four home borrowers and is one of the largest sources of financing for multifamily housing. Additional information is available at FreddieMac.com, Twitter @FreddieMac and Freddie Mac’s blog FreddieMac.com/blog.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau taking mortgage complaints seriously | South Salem Real Estate

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A Realtor friend of mine recently asked me about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: “Do they really do anything when somebody submits a complaint about their mortgage company? Can I tell clients that it’s not a waste of time to complain to the CFPB?”

Here’s what I said: The CFPB puts out numbers and reports on its complaint resolution activities — the latest annual report came out March 31 — detailing complaint volume, the names of the companies that are the subjects of complaints and the current status of each case.

I have only one direct, personal experience with a complaint to the CFPB, so my frame of reference is limited.

But the result was stunning. A little over a year ago, the son of a 91-year-old widow living in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., contacted me in a panic. His mom was about to be foreclosed upon — the date for the auction was set just weeks away, her entire life was tied up emotionally in that house and she was deathly afraid of being evicted. Her son wasn’t sure “how long she’ll last” if the foreclosure took away her home, he told me.“The whole thing is so unjust,” he said in a phone conversation.

“There’s no reason why this should be happening.”Years earlier, his father and mother had taken out an FHA-insured reverse mortgage. When they refinanced the original loan in 2007, the loan broker handling their application persuaded them that only the husband needed to sign the documents

 

 

– See more at: http://www.inman.com/2014/04/22/consumer-financial-protection-bureau-taking-mortgage-complaints-seriously/?utm_source=20140422&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dailyheadlinespm#sthash.8BhxsVy6.dpuf

Building a Foolproof Low-Slope Roof | South Salem Homes

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Carolyn Wood is building a house 80 miles north of Vancouver, British Columbia, and if nothing else she’d like to get all the details in the roof assembly right, since in her last home, she had to get several hail damage roof repair services throughout the years. The question is whether the house is too far along to let her reach that goal.

The roof, with a 2-in-12 pitch, is framed with I-joists, strapped with 2x4s, and sheathed with 1/2-in. plywood. Above the roof sheathing, the roofers plan to install NovaSeal roofing underlayment and standing-seam metal roofing.

Below the sheathing are two layers of Roxul mineral wood insulation, providing a total of R-36. Wood plans to finish the ceiling with 1×6 tongue-and-groove boards. Against her builder’s advice, there will be no polyethylene vapor barrier in the ceilings or in the walls, but Wood would like to know whether, as she has recently heard, there should be a layer of drywall between the T&G ceiling boards and the insulation.

As currently built, an experienced tampa roofing company says the roof assembly has 1-inch-high ventilation gap between the top of the insulation and the underside of the roof sheathing, Wood writes in Q&A post at GreenBuildingAdvisor, but the question is whether 1 inch will be adequate. That’s the topic for this Q&A Spotlight.

http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/qa-spotlight/building-foolproof-low-slope-roof

Chatting with George Filopoulos about the New Gurney’s Inn | South Salem Real Estate

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Last year, struggling Montauk resort Gurney’s Inn was taken over by real estate moguls George Filopoulos and Lloyd Goldman. A multi-phase, multi-year refresh and renovation means that Gurney’s will soon have a sleek new look. First up is a brand new 38-room oceanfront building, with private verandas and floor to ceiling windows encasing custom built furniture and wire brushed hardwood floors. The new aesthetic is the work of Michael Kramer, a young designer who is already considered one of New York’s most impressive new talents.

Food and beverages will be under the stewardship of Jennifer LeRoy, daughter of Warner LeRoy, famous for Tavern on the Green and Russian Tea Room, among others. The Beach Club, launched last year, and the spa will also be refreshed, as will the fantastic sand-filtered seawater swimming pool, the only one in North America.

Thrilled that an East End icon is being saved (heck, our mom used to babysit there back in the 1950s), we sat down with George to chat about Gurney’s.

You’re a Montauk resident. How far do your roots go in Montauk? As a kid, my family’s annual vacation was a week in Montauk during the month of July. My wife and I started renting out here when we were newly married and have owned a home for the last 10 years.

 

 

 

http://hamptons.curbed.com/archives/2014/04/14/chatting_with_george_filopoulos_about_the_new_gurneys_inn.php

How will school-boundary changes affect the DC real estate market? | South Salem Real Estate

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Homebuying just got a little more complicated in the District of  Columbia.

Many buyers, whether or not they have children, want to know they’re moving into  an area with good schools. For those with children, it’s an immediate concern. For  those without children, it’s a question of resale value.

This week, Mayor Vincent Gray unveiled a proposal to overhaul school boundaries,  including changes to the way school assignments are determined. It’s the first  proposal to change the boundaries in decades, and it comes as the D.C. real estate  market has heated up, including in neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River.  Darrin Davis, owner of Anacostia River Realty, says, “The D.C. market is hot. I  just sold five houses this week.”

So will changes to school boundaries cool that market?

Eldad Moraru, with Long and Foster, says D.C. has become a desirable place — not  just for young career-minded singles, but for families too. And the proposed  school-boundary changes raise questions.

“Some of them — I won’t say all of them, but some buyers are holding off on  making decisions until this plays out to its completion.”

Moraru, who is licensed in D.C., Virginia and Maryland, says the uncertainty  created by Gray’s proposals could send buyers elsewhere. “I’m sure there are some  people who’ve opted to go ahead and purchase in other school districts like  Maryland and Virginia because of this, but others are taking a wait-and-see  approach.”

Davis says buyers who are looking to Anacostia, where the housing stock is  plentiful and the prices are within reach for many priced out of other  neighborhoods, tend to be young singles. Schools may not be a major consideration  for those buyers right now, but he says, “I do see that being an issue five to ten  years down the line.”

 

 

http://www.wtop.com/109/3600068/How-will-school-boundary-changes-affect-DC-real-estate

L.A.’s ‘Unsellable’ Fleur de Lys Just Sold for $102M… in Cash | South Salem Real Estate

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Nobody freak out, but it seems that Los Angeles’ Fleur de Lys, the estate that broke records when it hit the market in 2007 for $125M and, despite years of floundering, stuck stubbornly to its exorbitant ask, has sold for $102M, a record for L.A. county. What’s more, the “trophy estate,” as the L.A. Times dubs it, apparently sold amid a bidding war that engaged three billionaires, with the winner (previously reported to be businessman and “junk bond king” Michael Milken) agreeing to pay all cash for this 100-room mansion, as well as its rare Louis XIV and Louis XV antiques.

Designed by Richard Robertson III and completed 2002, Fleur de Lys comes with 35,000 square feet of marble walls and spindly furnishings, all spread across 12 bedrooms, 15 bathrooms, accommodations for a 10-person staff, a 50-seat screening room, and a three-bedroom caretaker’s house. As the Los Angeles Times writes, “The 3,000-square-foot wine cellar and tasting room is larger than most American houses, as is the manager’s house.” The jumbomanse was built for billionaire David Saperstein and his then-wife, Suzanne. After David’s much-publicized affair with their Swedish nanny, the two went through a much-publicized divorce that left his ex with the palace. This, of course, all went through in 2007, when a recession made it extremely difficult to sell megalomansions.

Much like the largest private residence in the country, Fleur de Lys took inspiration from Versailles—practically a requirement for homes of this stature, apparently. The property first hit the market in 2007, slinked off the market in October 2009, and again listed for its original ask—a staggering $125M—in July 2011.

Thought it was once rumored to have sold to Formula One heiress Tamara Ecclestone, it seems Fleur de Lys actually went to Milken, a businessman/philanthropist and onetime so-called “junk bond king.” The buyer was initially identified as an anonymous French billionaire, but the paper has since uncovered that “taxes will be mailed to the Milken Institute in Santa Monica.”

 

 

http://curbed.com/archives/2014/03/31/las-unsellable-fleur-de-lys-just-sold-for-102m-in-cash.php

Fully Reno’d ‘House of the Day After Tomorrow’ Asks $5.5M | South Salem Homes

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Location: Lake Forest, Ill.
Price: $5,499,000
The Skinny: When George Fred Keck designed a forward-looking sequel to his 1933 World’s Fair “House of Tomorrow” (inevitably, if unfortunately, dubbed the “House of the Day After Tomorrow”) there’s little chance that he could have foreseen what the the actual future had in store for his speculative creation. Originally built in 1936, the home received an extensive 1990s “renovation” which, according to a recent profile of the place in the Journal, added a second story and ballooned the floorplan to a whopping 15,400 square feet. Which begs the question: how much of a home can you drastically change while still attributing its design to the original architect? A look inside provides an answer, of sorts, where the etched glass, water feature, and recessed lighting scream “I come from the ’90s!” and the only remaining design aspect that can be attributed to Keck is its energy efficiency. The seven-bedroom, nine-and-three-tenths-bathroom manse (what exactly constitutes three-tenths of bathroom? A closet with a sink?) is asking $5.499M.

 

http://curbed.com/archives/2014/03/05/fully-renod-house-of-the-day-after-tomorrow-asks-55m.php

Do You Understand Income Tax Considerations of Rental Properties? | South Salem Real Estate

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A rental property can generate “taxable losses” that can be used to reduce your normal salary income, hence the federal income taxes you pay. It’s difficult for most people to understand how taxes work, and even more confusing once we get into the realm of rental properties and taxes. Note that understanding how taxes impact personal residences are a completely different topic, as those are governed by totally separate tax codes and go elsewhere on your 1040 form.

Below are some of the basics to understanding rental properties and federal income taxes.

Often I hear people saying that they want to buy some real estate to save money on income taxes. However, depending on your tax situation, owning real estate might not save you a dime on taxes. It wholly depends on your specific tax picture and the IRS rules about Passive Activity Loss Limitations.

First and foremost you should never make real estate investment decisions based solely on tax considerations. The first order of business is do your due diligence and determine if an investment makes sense based on cash flows, cash on cash returns, renovation costs, rental income, financing, and the risk of any particular property. Once you believe it makes sense in every other sense, then you can contemplate the tax effects.

Important note: Always have a CPA, attorney or licensed tax professional guide you through your individual tax picture — this article is an illustration of one scenario but your scenario can be very different based on your financial picture.

To better understand, let’s first quickly discuss the IRS 1040 form.

The 1040 form you fill out each year does two things:

 

http://homes.yahoo.com/news/understand-income-tax-considerations-rental-properties-184514095.html

Zillow signs NY State MLS as latest member of partnership program | South Salem NY Homes

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Zillow is set to acquire listings directly from NY State MLS, a multiple listing service (MLS) with more than 10,000 members that covers all 62 counties of New York state.

The deal adds the MLS to a roster of others that have joined the Zillow Partnership Program while further tightening Zillow’s strong grip on New York.

In exchange for providing listings, Zillow will offer brokers and agents who belong to the NY State MLS enhanced branding and other perks, as it does for all MLSs that join the Zillow Partnership Program.

Zillow dangles such incentives because access to MLS feeds allows it to improve the freshness of its inventory. Listing feeds from some sources don’t allow for frequent updating, but direct feeds from MLSs let Zillow refresh listings as often as every 15 minutes.

“We understand our members’ desire to display the most up-to-date listing data while maintaining maximum exposure,” said Dawn Pfaff, president of NY State MLS, in a statement. “This partnership ensures listings sent to Zillow are updated multiple times per day and kept current for prospective homebuyers.”

Listings fed to the Zillow program appear on the Zillow Real Estate Network, which includes Yahoo Homes, Google Now, HotPads, HGTV’s FrontDoor.com and AOL Real Estate.

– See more at: http://www.inman.com/2014/03/03/zillow-signs-ny-state-mls-as-latest-member-of-partnership-program/?utm_source=20140303&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dailyheadlinespm#sthash.JCO3rqep.dpuf