Monthly Archives: July 2015

Hamptons real estate sales slowing down | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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After a record breaking number of home sales in the Hamptons in 2014, things are beginning to cool down in the luxury real estate destination.

Both sales and median prices of Hamptons real estate are down in 2015 from where they were last year, according to a report by Douglas Elliman Real Estate.

The median sales price for a home in the Hamptons declined 6.5 percent to $849,000 compared to 2014, according to the report. The number of homes that were sold fell 15.7 percent to 590 this year, down from 700 sales at this time last year. However, average home price rose 2.5 percent year over year.

The conflicting data are a result of a reaction in the market from last year’s sales, said Jonathan Miller, president of Miller Samuel Real Estate Appraisers, who authored the report.

Last year saw an explosion of pent-up demand as people began to consider real estate again for the first time since the housing crisis, Miller said. That demand resulted in 700 sales, a record number.

“That demand has mostly been absorbed, so what we have now is the prices showing mixed trends, but sales are down,” he said. “There isn’t the same sense of urgency by buyers that there was a year ago, but there is still above-average activity occurring. It’s just not at the breakneck pace it was last year.”

The current market in the Hamptons is just returning to normal, the CEO of Douglas Elliman, Dottie Herman, said. While sales aren’t record breaking, they are still healthy.

She also noted that in a small market like the Hamptons, big outliers can move data.

For the fabulously wealthy, a Hamptons property is soon to hit the market at $95 million, according to real estate agents at Sotheby’s. The estate, known as Burnt Point, is an 18,000-square-foot shingle traditional built on 25 acres with water on three sides. The home is being sold by the Stewart J. Rahr Foundation, and the proceeds will continue to fund the foundation’s philanthropic efforts.

 

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http://finance.yahoo.com/news/hamptons-real-estate-sales-slowing-150105444.html;_ylt=AwrC1CkpeLJVE28AVDLQtDMD;_ylu=X3oDMTByOHZyb21tBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzcg–

New homes selling at slowest pace in seven months | Chappaqua Real Estate

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Sales of new single-family homes dropped in June to the slowest pace in seven months, according to data released Friday that signaled a hiccup for the market.

The annual sales pace for new single-family homes in the U.S. fell 6.8% last month to 482,000, with drops in three of four regions, the U.S. Commerce Department. Only the Northeast saw the sales pace rise.

Economists polled by MarketWatch had expected a June sales rate of 550,000, compared with an original May estimate of 546,000. On Friday the government revised May’s rate to 517,000.
While June’s result is disappointing, economists caution over reading too much into a single monthly report. A confidence interval of plus-or-minus 12.5% for June’s drop of 6.8% shows that the government isn’t sure whether the sales pace rose or fell last month.

Trends signal improvement, with June’s sales pace up 18.1% from a year earlier.

“Even the disappointing June reading still represents progress over a longer time horizon,” said Stephen Stanley, chief economist at Amherst Pierpont Securities. “I view today’s reading for the typically volatile new home sales data as statistical noise.”

The median price of new homes fell to $281,800 in June, down 1.8% from a year earlier.

Recent new-home sales and building rates remain far below long-term averages. But a strong jobs market is expected to support rising home sales by helping more families afford ownership. Earlier this week, mortgage-finance giant Fannie Mae raised its 2015 expectations for U.S. home sales, upping its forecast for new and used homes. A mortgage-industry group also cranked up its forecast this week, raising its expectations for mortgage originations.

Elsewhere in the housing market, a recent report on existing homes, which make up the bulk of the residential-sales market, showed strong growth for June. However, economists warned about getting too excited over that flurry of activity, noting that some of the recent buying growth may reflect buyers rushing to lock in mortgage rates before they rise further.

 

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http://www.marketwatch.com/story/new-homes-selling-at-slowest-pace-in-seven-months-2015-07-24

Housing Construction Trends Heat Up in June | North Salem Real Estate

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Total housing starts expanded 9.8% month over month in June, reaching a 1.174 million annual starts pace, which was led by a surge in multifamily development.

Single-family starts were effectively flat, recording a 0.9% monthly decline to a 685,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate but were up 14.7% year over year. As measured on a three-month moving average, the pace of single-family starts hit a post-recession high in June. Looking forward, single-family permits were up 0.9% for June and 6% year-over-year, reaching a 687,000 annual rate. Regionally, single-family starts were up 6.8% for the month in the South, but down 27.3% in the Northeast, 7.1% in the West, and 4% in the Midwest.

Pointing to future growth, the July NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index reached 60 in July, which is the highest level since November 2005. Two of its three components also rose to levels last seen in late 2005. The index of current sales rose one point from the June level to 66, the highest in 10 years. The index for expected sales rose two points from June’s 69 to 71, also the highest in almost 10 years. The index for traffic fell one point to 43 from the six-month high in June of 44.

And more good news from June: The National Association of Realtors measure of existing home salesexisting home sales increased 3.2%, reaching the highest level since February 2007. Given that most new home sales are to move-up buyers, a rise in the volume of existing sales bodes well for additional single-family construction. Inventory of resale homes continues to be limited, falling to a five-month supply in June as the current sales rate.

However, the standout of the June housing starts report was multifamily construction, which for units in buildings with five or more units climbed to a 476,000 annual rate with a 28.6% monthly growth rate. Permits also expanded greatly, jumping 16.1% to a 621,000 annual rate. NAHB expects this level of apartment development to cool in the coming months.

On the supply side of the market, the most recent Producer Price Index data from the BLS revealed a small increase for wood products in June after trending down for the start of 2015. Softwood lumber prices rose 1% for the month but are down 9.1% from a recent high in September 2014. Prices for OSB rose 2.4% in June after a 20.4% slide that followed the collapse in prices that ended in July 2013. Gypsum prices slipped 1.5% in June after being flat in May, increasing to 5.3% the retreat from a February peak.

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http://eyeonhousing.org/2015/07/eye-on-the-economy-housing-construction-trends-heat-up-in-june/

Mortgage Rates at 4.04% survey says | Armonk Real Estate

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Freddie Mac  today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing fixed mortgage rates reversing course once again and moving lower amid mixed economic and housing data.

News Facts

  • 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.04 percent with an average 0.6 point for the week ending July 23, 2015, down from last week when it averaged 4.09 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.13 percent.
  • 15-year FRM this week averaged 3.21 percent with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 3.25 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.26 percent.
  • 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 2.54 percent this week with an average 0.3 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.50 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 2.39 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 theRegional and National Mortgage Rate Details and Definitions. Borrowers may still pay closing costs which are not included in the survey.

Quote
Attributed to Sean Becketti, chief economist, Freddie Mac.

“U.S. Treasury yields dropped following announcements that many blue chip companies’ earnings failed to meet expectations. This drove the 30-year fixed rate mortgage down 5 basis points to 4.04 percent this week. Housing continues to be the bright spot in the economic recovery. Existing home sales beat market expectations coming in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.49 million homes. This is up 9.6 percent from a year ago and the fastest pace since 2007. Also, housing starts jumped 9.8 percent responding to strong demand in the multifamily market.”

US housing market is on fire | South Salem Real Estate

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We just got another sign the housing market is on fire.

On Wednesday, we learned that existing home sales jumped to the fastest pace since February 2007.

Sales rose 3.2% month-over-month to an annualized pace of 5.49 million.

Economists had forecast a rise of 0.9% to an annualized pace of 5.40 million.

In the release from the National Association of Realtors, Lawrence Yun noted that the past two months were the strongest for sales since early 2007.

“This wave of demand is being fueled by a year-plus of steady job growth and an improving economy that’s giving more households the financial wherewithal and incentive to buy,” Yun said.

Ian Shepherdson, chief US economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said in a note out after the report, “In one line: strong across the board.”

But this isn’t the first sign the housing market is roaring back. On Friday we got housing data that posted eight-year highs from the Census Bureau, showing that housing starts rose 9.8% to an annualized pace of 1.174 million, the highest since July 2007.

Building permits, which point to the pace of future construction, rose 7.4% to an annualized pace of 1.343 million.

In Wednesday’s release, NAR president Chris Polychron said that even with the uptick in home prices, demand is still solid across the board.

“The demand for buying has really heated up this summer,” Polychron said, “leading to multiple bidders and homes selling at or above asking price. Furthermore, tight inventory conditions are being exacerbated by the fact that some homeowners are hesitant to sell because they’re not optimistic they’ll have adequate time to find an affordable property to move into.”

fredgraphconstrution spendingFRED

And as we highlighted over the weekend, the housing market is reflecting a bigger macroeconomic story of a US economy that is picking up steam.

Deutsche Bank’s Joe LaVorgna spelled this out in a note to clients on Tuesday, writing:

“We remain positive on the housing outlook. The economy has created nearly 3 million jobs over the past year, the unemployment rate is almost a percentage point lower, and consumers have saved well over $100 billion in energy costs over the last 12 months. Moreover, as we highlighted in the latest US Economics Weekly, commercial banks continue to ease lending standards for mortgages …”

LaVorgna continued:

In short, there are several positive tailwinds for the housing sector that should result in a more pronounced pickup in activity over the next several quarters. If this is the case, policymakers should become more confident that consumer spending, which accounts for roughly 70% of GDP, is on firm footing.

And it’s not just economists who are bullish on housing. The Federal Reserve’s latest beige book noted an uptick in real-estate activity in several of its 12 districts. The bullish signs are everywhere.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/existing-home-sales-july-22-2015-7#ixzz3gdhXWob8

 

 

Homes are officially being sold at the highest prices, ever | Mt Kisco Realtor

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Thanks to rising demand and shrinking supply, the median existing-home price for all housing types reached an all-time high in June.

According to the latest data from the National Association of Realtors, the median existing-homes sales price rose to $236,400, which exceeds the previous peak median sales price set in July 2006 of $230,400.

June’s total also rose 6.5% above June 2014.

In May, the median existing-home price for all housing types was $228,700, which was 7.9% above May 2014.

That marked the 39th consecutive month of year-over-year price gains, making June the 40th straight month of year-over-year price gains.

Despite record prices, existing-home sales also reached their highest pace in more than eight years.

Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, increased 3.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.49 million in June from a downwardly revised 5.32 million in May.

Sales are now at their highest pace since February 2007 (5.79 million), have increased year-over-year for nine consecutive months and are 9.6% above a year ago (5.01 million).

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said that buoyed by June’s solid gain in closings, this year’s spring buying season has been the strongest since the crisis began.

“Buyers have come back in force, leading to the strongest past two months in sales since early 2007,” Yun said. “This wave of demand is being fueled by a year-plus of steady job growth and an improving economy that’s giving more households the financial wherewithal and incentive to buy.”

According to NAR’s report, total housing inventory at the end of June rose slightly by 0.9% to 2.30 million existing homes available for sale, which is is 0.4% higher than the same time period a year ago (2.29 million).

Unsold inventory is at a 5.0-month supply at the current sales pace, down from 5.1 months in May.

“Limited inventory amidst strong demand continues to push home prices higher, leading to declining affordability for prospective buyers,” said Yun. “Local officials in recent years have rightly authorized permits for new apartment construction, but more needs to be done for condominiums and single-family homes.”

According to NAR’s report, the percent share of first-time buyers fell to 30% in June from 32% in May, but remained at or above 30% for the fourth consecutive month.

One year ago, first-time buyers represented 28% of all buyers.

NAR President Chris Polychron said that Realtors are reporting “drastic imbalances” of supply in relation to demand in many metro areas — especially in the West.

“The demand for buying has really heated up this summer, leading to multiple bidders and homes selling at or above asking price,” Polychron said. “Furthermore, tight inventory conditions are being exacerbated by the fact that some homeowners are hesitant to sell because they’re not optimistic they’ll have adequate time to find an affordable property to move into.”

 

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Homes are officially being sold at the highest prices, ever

Sales of used homes rose 3.2% in June | Waccabuc Real Estate

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Existing homes sold in June at the fastest pace in more than eight years, and the median sales price hit a record, according to data released Wednesday.

Sales of existing homes rose 3.2% in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.49 million, the fastest pace since February 2007, the National Association of Realtors reported. Meanwhile, the median sales price rose 6.5% over the past year to a record of $236,400.

Some buyers may be rushing to lock in mortgage rates before they rise further, according to NAR. There’s also a “solid foundation” for more home sales, given healthy jobs growth, said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist.
Economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast a sales rate of 5.42 million for June, compared with an original May estimate of 5.35 million. On Wednesday NAR revised May’s pace to 5.32 million.

Wednesday’s report gives markets a look at how buying activity is faring during this year’s hot home-selling season. The sales pace is down about 24% from a bubble peak.

While the growing economy and jobs market, as well as still-relatively-low mortgage rates, are supporting sales, there are also challenges facing the housing sector. Lenders have strict credit standards, erected in the wake in the financial meltdown, looking to protect themselves from the financial and legal risks attached to making loans that end up going bad. Also, while the U.S. housing market as a whole is growing stronger, there are still pools of deeply distress borrowers in the country.

Elsewhere in the housing market, there are signs of uneven improvement. Recent government data showed that new home building sprang higher last month, but the gains were lopsided, led by apartment building. Construction starts in buildings with at least five units made up 41% of total new home construction in June — the largest share in 42 years.

 

 

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http://www.marketwatch.com/story/existing-homes-sell-at-fastest-pace-in-more-than-eight-years-2015-07-22

Why Our Credit Scores Are Improving | Cross River Real Estate

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As of March 2015, credit scores have never been higher! In fact, The Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that the average credit score was 699. It is even predicted that if present trends continue, the average credit score could cross the 700 threshold within coming months.
The increase in the average credit score can benefit consumers by increasing their flow of credit. This in turn encourages more people to apply for new credit. Additionally, with increasing scores, banks are more willing to lend to the consumer.
Before 2008, getting approved for a new line of credit or for a loan from a bank was relatively easy. However, after the banking crisis, this ‘easy credit’ that consumers were so used to changed drastically. Banks were no longer willing to give out loans unless borrowers had a stable income they could document and could afford the loan they were applying for. This forced consumers to reduce their bad debt by deleveraging and to start paying attention to how credit scores work.
Some articles suggest that increasing credit scores are due to time frames that have gone by since the banking crisis. A recent article in Forbes stated that since the crisis occurred in 2008 and negative information on credit comes off after 7 years, this is why credit scores will continue to rise. There may be a certain amount of individuals that have seen higher scores due to time passing from the crisis, but many began experiencing losses years after the crisis hit and continued to have damaged credit. Individuals lost employment as well as their homes over many years, so it is highly doubtful that scores are on the rise due to the time passing from the banking crisis and the time frames for negative information to remain on credit.
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Interest Only Mortgages are back | Katonah Real Estate

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They were the villains of the housing crash. Federal regulators called them toxic. Now interest-only mortgages are making a comeback, but these are not the loans of yesteryear or yester-housing booms.

“I think it’s opening the door back to responsible lending, giving people choices,” said Mat Ishbia, president and CEO of Michigan-based United Wholesale Mortgage, the second-largest lender through brokers in the nation.

The company announced Monday it is now offering interest-only loans through brokers, with significant safeguards. Borrowers must put 20 percent down, ensuring that they have the “skin in the game” that so many did not during the heady days of the housing boom. They must have at least a 720 FICO credit score, which is well above average, and they must qualify on what the payments will be once they’re adjusted higher, not at the starter rate.

Real estate

Mike Powell | Getty Images

“These people can afford these mortgages. They’re savvy homeowners,” said Ishbia. “We’re giving them the choice. It is no more risk to us. We actually think it’s less risk.”

United Wholesale Mortgage does not hold the loans but sells them to investors. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-backed mortgage giants, do not buy these types of loans.

The mortgage begins as a five-year adjustable-rate product. Without paying principal, a borrower using, for example, a $300,000 mortgage, would start at 4.125 percent today, the same as a 30-year fixed. Without paying principal, however, the borrower would save $420 per month.

The interest rate can then adjust higher after five years, depending on market rates, but borrowers for this product are underwritten at a rate above 6 percent to ensure they could handle that adjustment. Borrowers are also required to start making principal payments after 10 years; of course they can also refinance the loan whenever they want.

In 2013, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued rules to protect consumers from what it deemed “irresponsible mortgage lending.” So-called qualified mortgages under the new regulations would give lenders certain protections, should the loans go bad. Under the QM rules, according to the news release at the time, there would be:

No toxic loan features: A qualified mortgage cannot have risky loan features, such as terms that exceed 30 years, interest-only payments, or negative-amortization payments where the principal amount increases. In the lead up to the crisis, too many consumers took on risky loans that they didn’t understand. They didn’t realize their debt or payments could increase, or that they weren’t building any equity in the home.

Interest-only loans therefore fall under the definition of a qualified mortgage. During the housing boom, they were used to help borrowers buy homes they really couldn’t afford. Now, more lenders are starting to do them again, but with much tighter restrictions. They are mostly offered to high net worth individuals in the jumbo loan category, and banks hold the loans on their balance sheets.

 

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http://www.cnbc.com/2015/07/20/interest-only-mortgages-theyre-baaack.html

1910-1963 The destruction of Penn Station | Bedford Hills Real Estate

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C. 1910

IMAGE: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

Penn Station did not make you feel comfortable; it made you feel important.
HILARY BALLON, ART HISTORIAN

In 1910, when New York City transportation terminal Pennsylvania Station opened, it was widely praised for its majestic architecture. Designed in the Beaux-Arts style, it featured pink granite construction and a stately colonnade on the exterior.

The main waiting room, inspired by the Roman Baths of Caracalla, was the largest indoor space in the city — a block and a half long with vaulted glass windows soaring 150 feet over a sun-drenched chamber. Beyond that, trains emerged from bedrock to deposit passengers on a concourse lit by an arching glass and steel greenhouse roof.

This may sound unfamiliar for present-day residents of New York City, who know Penn Station as a miserable subterranean labyrinth.

Though the original Penn Station served 100 million passengers a year at its peak in 1945, by the late 1950s the advent of affordable air travel and the Interstate Highway System had cut into train use. The Pennsylvania Railroad could not even afford to keep the station clean.

1911

IMAGE: GEO. P. HALL & SON/THE NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY/GETTY IMAGES

1911

IMAGE: GEO. P. HALL & SON/THE NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY/GETTY IMAGES

In 1962 plans were revealed to demolish the terminal and build entertainment venue Madison Square Garden on top of it. The new train station would be entirely underground and boast amenities such as air-conditioning and fluorescent lighting.

Vocal backlash and protests ensued, but the plan moved forward and Penn Station was demolished.

The outrage was a major catalyst for the architectural preservation movement in the United States. In 1965, the New York Landmarks Law was passed, which helped save the iconic Grand Central Terminal and more than 30,000 other buildings from similar fates. 2015 marks its 50th anniversary.

Since the demolition of the old Penn Station, train ridership has grown tenfold. The new station, a tangle of subway lines and commuter rail, is the busiest terminal in the country and bursting at the seams. Plans are currently underway to renovate and expand the station, and restore a modicum of its original glory.

1911

IMAGE: GEO. P. HALL & SON/THE NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY/GETTY IMAGES

1910

IMAGE: DETROIT PUBLISHING COMPANY/LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

It is a poor society indeed that has no money for anything except expressways to rush people out of our dull and deteriorating cities
ADA LOUISE HUXTABLE, NEW YORK TIMES ARCHITECTURE CRITIC

1911

IMAGE: GEO. P. HALL & SON/THE NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY/GETTY IMAGES

1911

IMAGE: GEO. P. HALL & SON/THE NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY/GETTY IMAGES

c. 1925

IMAGE: EWING GALLOWAY/GENERAL PHOTOGRAPHIC AGENCY/GETTY IMAGES

c. 1950

IMAGE: HULTON ARCHIVE/GETTY IMAGES

1942

IMAGE: MARJORY COLLINS/LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

1942

IMAGE: MARJORY COLLINS/LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

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http://mashable.com/2015/07/20/original-penn-station/