New York City Real Estate Blog

HGTV's Dream Home(Winter Park, Colorado)

Kitchen

Form and function unite in an elegant room that’s well planned and purposeful. The counter and huge kitchen island are tiled in deep blue Silestone. The glossy ceramic backsplash is a matching shade of blue, while balsa walnut cabinets add warmth.

Explore HGTV Dream Home 2007!

Homebuilding showed surprising strength in November

“New homes sold at an annual pace of 1.05 million, up from the revised annual rate of 1.01 million in October. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast that home sales would rebound to a 1.02 million pace.

The median average home price came in at $251,700 in November, up from the $248,500 level in October. The median price, that is, the point at which half the homes sell for more and half sell for less, had shown declines earlier in the fall because of a glut of homes available for sale on the market.

The supply of completed new homes available for sale continued to creep up, setting yet another record at 169,000. But all new homes available for sale, which includes those with permits but not yet started as well as those under construction, was slightly lower. That took the inventory of new homes on the market down to an estimated 6.3 months' supply in November, compared to 6.7 months in October and 7.2 months in July, when new home sales slowed to a crawl.”

New homes sales: Back from the dead?(CNNMoney)

New Jersey is getting longer on wealth

“A state short on cachet, New Jersey is getting longer on wealth: New figures from the Internal Revenue Service show that those who moved in last year have more money than those who left, a result, some experts say, of the rising cost of buying a home in the state.

The data from 2005 tax returns show that the median adjusted gross income of households coming to New Jersey from other states was $34,081, compared with $31,491 for those departing New Jersey. New Jersey seems to be absorbing more affluent taxpayers at New York’s expense: Last year, 30,082 households, with a median income of $42,889, moved from New York to New Jersey; the 19,381 households that New Jersey lost to New York had a median income of $34,003. ”

Newcomers to New Jersey Earn More Than Those Who’ve Left, Figures Show(
NYT)

 

 

The latest version of a handbook for adjustable-rate borrowers

The revised "Consumer Handbook on Adjustable Rate Mortgages," issued this week by the Federal Reserve Board and the Office of Thrift Supervision (and also available in Spanish), warns of a scenario that many borrowers in volatile markets are already facing:

"Sometimes home prices rise rapidly, allowing people to quickly build equity in their homes. This can make some people think that even if the rate and payments on their ARM get too high, they can avoid those higher payments by refinancing their loan or, in the worst case, selling their home. It's important to remember that home prices do not always go up quickly--they may increase a little or remain the same, and sometimes they fall. If housing prices fall, your home may not be worth as much as you owe on the mortgage. Also, you may find it difficult to refinance your loan to get a lower monthly payment or rate. Even if home prices stay the same, if your loan lets you make minimum payments (see payment-option ARMs), you may owe your lender more on your mortgage than you could get from selling your home."

Good Joke!

"The days when real estate agents were the gatekeepers for the housing market have gone the way of typewriters and printed MLS books. The key to coping in today's online housing market is to provide as much information as possible and let the consumer decide."

via MarineRealEstateBUBBLE

Steve Brown, Dallas Morning News

Right neighborhoods & the right building for pet owners

New York City has always had a complicated relationship with its pets. While New York is the undisputed dog and cat capital of the country - the ASPCA estimates that there were 5 million owned and stray animals in 2005, and the Health Department issued 101,274 dog licenses last year - the city's standard lease does not allow for pets. And many co-ops are notoriously strict in keeping out dogs and birds.

But New Yorkers are also unflinchingly loyal to their pets, from the Harlem man who couldn't bring himself to part with his 425-pound Bengal tiger back in 2003, to the cat-happy resident with a dozen felines that can be found in many buildings.

And now, it's easier than ever to be a pet owner.

"All the new buildings are pet-friendly," says Gregg Oehler, executive director for pet resource site petstyle.com, and former publisher of New York Dog magazine.

Madeline Dale, a Halstead Property broker who tracks the city's best pet-friendly haunts, is more blunt: "Most New York City dogs are treated better than kids," says Dale.

For years, pet fanatics were forced to choose the right neighborhoods, rather than the right building.

"None of the old buildings have accommodations for pets," says Dale. "They have a bike room" rather than pet amenities.

"Some are incredibly friendly - they give out dog biscuits - but they always put in storage or a playroom" instead of a pet spa. ”

RAISING CANINE(NYPost)

Falling prices were attracting buyers who held off during years of home price increases

“The National Association of Realtors reported today that sales of existing homes increased 0.6 percent over October, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.3 million, in the second consecutive monthly gain. But sales remained significantly behind last year’s levels, falling 10.7 percent from November 2005.

The median price, the midpoint of prices for homes sold in November, dropped to $218,000, down 3.1 percent from a year earlier and half a percentage point below October’s level.

Economists said falling prices — November was fourth straight month in which the price of a previously owned home dropped year over year — were attracting buyers who held off during years of double-digit home price increases.”

Sales of Previously Owned Homes Rise in November (NYT)

 

Looking for a Condo in Ft. Greene

• The 182 condos in the Williamsburgh Savings Bank at One Hanson Place range in price from around $400,000 to $2 million.
• The 30 floors of the Clarett Group's Forté will offer 108 units hitting the market by early 2007, selling for around $750,000 to $1 million each.

Space-age architecture is just part of a general residential explosion in Fort Greene. Plans for 739 new condo units were submitted to the state Attorney General's office for approval this year through the third quarter, the most of any other any Brooklyn neighborhood other than Williamsburg, which had 812 units. In the last two quarters, new unit plans for Fort Greene outpaced those for Williamsburg.
Condo plans submitted to the Attorney General's office include more than 500 total units at the 40-story 306 Gold Street and its sister tower, the 35-story 313 Gold Street. Those projects won't hit the market until 2008. The towers are being built by developers Ron Herscho and Dean Palin, who are presenting them as located in Downtown Brooklyn.

via: http://www.therealdeal.net/issues/DECEMBER_2006/1164959314.php

 

 

Expectations about future inflation

“Inflation is a greater risk to the economy than slower growth, and the Federal Reserve may need to raise interest rates if price increases don't subside, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Richard Fisher said.

``The risk of unacceptably high inflation still outweighs the risk of substandard economic growth,'' Fisher said today in the text of a speech to the Rotary Club of Longview, Texas. With inflation ``too high,'' Fisher said he would ``have no choice but to advocate tightening monetary policy further if inflation does not ratchet downward.''

Today's speech was the first on the U.S. economy by a policy maker since the Federal Open Market Committee voted to hold interest rates steady on Dec. 12. In its statement, the committee suggested a softer outlook for economic growth while noting that inflation risks remain. Fisher is a non-voting member this year. ”

Fisher Says Rate Rise May Be Needed to Slow Inflation(Bloomberg)

 

“Rental agents shouldn’t wear suits"

“Rental agents shouldn’t wear suits. In my opinion it gives off the wrong impression. When it costs an average of $10,000 to move (first month, one month security and fee), most of my clients aren’t exactly sucking financial wind. They usually pull in a lot more dough than I do, and would it be too obvious to mention that they enjoy far better careers as well? In fact, in typical, smug, New Yorker fashion, they consider themselves experts on any number of subjects, most notably real estate. At least half of my previous clients have in one way or another insisted that they know more about the business than I do. A suit won’t overcome hubris. 

When initially looking for a chop shop to hold my license, I interviewed at one of the large rental factories in Midtown Manhattan. With the bar hovering just above my beat up shoes and too low to trip over, my job interview wasn’t exactly intensive. As education prior sales experience, and a basic grasp of English aren’t mandatory requirements, there is really very little to discuss. “So, you actually live in an apartment yourself? That will be useful. You’re hired.”

RENTAL DEMENTIA(NYPress)