Jun 16
Luxury Comes at Different Costs Local markets equate luxury housing differently. For example, in Los Angeles, the luxury market may come at about $4 million and up – that is double the amount Nick Segal of Partners Trust says that he would have put it at eight years ago. But in Houston, luxury housing could …
Jun 13
Amazon and Google as Mortgage Brokers? Apparently, many people would prefer to get a mortgage through Google or Amazon. A new study by consulting firm Accenture reveals that a large number of Americans would be willing to do their banking with non-financial technology institutions if the companies offered such services. If given the opportunity, about …
Jun 12
6 Ways to Turn Off Buyers at Open Houses Open houses can be a great way to show off a property to many potential buyers all at once, but you want to be careful to leave a good impression. USA Today describes common open-house mistakes that could be a turn-off to would-be buyers. Among some …
Jun 11
Buyers, Sellers Show Reluctance to Act Now Despite favorable attitudes toward the housing market in recent months, Americans are showing reluctance to buy or sell, which has restrained activity below typical seasonal trends, according to Fannie Mae’s May 2014 National Housing Survey. “Consumers’ lukewarm income expectations and reticence about the economy seem to be …
Jun 10
One Expense Buyers Underestimate Sixty-five percent of home owners with private mortgage insurance say that the additional cost of PMI prompted them to pay a higher monthly mortgage payment than they had originally expected, according to a new survey released by TD Bank of more than 2,000 Americans who purchased a home in the past …
Jun 09
Economic Woes Continue to Plague Housing Economic confidence is waning, as many Americans continue to face stagnant wages or high unemployment and underwater home values. Americans are earning about $4,700 a year less than they would have been if the economy had not undergone the Great Recession, Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National …
Jun 06
Make Mortgage Approval Easier With new mortgage rules and regulations in place, buyers may face more obstacles when applying for a mortgage. “Buying a home is likely the biggest purchase anyone will make, and community bankers are an excellent resource to help guide consumers through the process,” says John Buhrmaster, chairman of Independent Community …
Jun 05
‘Ferris Bueller’ house finally sells The memorable modernist home seen in the classic movie “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” has finally sold, some five years after coming onto the market. The buyer, whose identity was not disclosed, paid $1.06 million for the boxy two-building estate located in Highland Park, Ill., a suburb of Chicago. …
Jun 04
Home Owners Doing Record Number of Cash Deals A record number of home owners are using the increased equity in their current homes to buy their next homes in cash and avoid the mortgage process altogether, Bloomberg reports. About 29 percent of non-investment buyers used cash to fund their housing transactions in the first …
Jun 03
Trouble Looms for 2 Million Borrowers About 2 million borrowers with modified mortgages are facing interest rate hikes, according to Black Knight’s April Mortgage Monitor Report. What’s more, about 40 percent of those borrowers currently remain underwater, owing more on their mortgage than their home is currently worth. The lack of equity is one of …
Jun 02
Foreclosures Drop to Lowest Level Since Great Recession Over the last 12 months, completed foreclosures have fallen to the lowest level since the Great Recession began in 2007, according to CoreLogic’s April National Foreclosure Report, which shows completed foreclosures fell to 599,000 nationwide. Completed foreclosures – the total number of homes actually lost to foreclosure …
May 30
When a Home Poses an Environmental Risk Real estate professionals often must evaluate environmental risks associated with property deals. Identifying, assessing, and minimizing such risks has become more complicated in light of several recent developments: most notably, changes to risk evaluation standards; a renewed regulatory emphasis on environmental compliance and enforcement; and a spate of …
