October 2013 Home Prices | FHFA Housing Stats October | Cross River Homes
Leave a reply
Category Archives: Cross River NY
NYC agent count surges in 2013, especially in Brooklyn | Cross River NY Real Estate
It’s been an active year (to say the least) for New York City real estate, so it should come as no shock that the number of real estate agents and brokers licensed in the five boroughs has increased.
The rise was concentrated in Manhattan and Brooklyn. In Manhattan, headlines about mega-luxury apartments and reality shows about high-flying brokers who sling them prompted many to get into the business, while in Kings County the continuing tide of gentrification (and its attendant rising rents) may have brought on the nearly 10 percent increase in licensed agents.
The number of licensed real estate salespeople in New York City grew by 7.2 percent, to 29,503 from 27,530 since last year at this time, data from the New York State Department of State provided to The Real Deal show.
In Manhattan alone, the number was 15,798, up 7.4 percent from 14,708 last December. In Brooklyn, the ranks of salespeople burgeoned 9.2 percent, to 5,210 from 4,772, the data show.
In the Bronx, there were 54 new agents licensed with the state this year, bringing the total in the borough to 1200; in Queens the ranks of salespeople swelled 6.3 percent – to 5,887 from 5,538. Meanwhile, on Staten Island, the 1366 agents added less than 50 new licensees to their ranks, to reach a total of 1408 salespeople in Richmond County.
The volume of licensed brokers citywide ticked up slightly as well, to 23,690 from 23,134 last year –an increase of 2.4 percent. (Agents are typically greener salespeople, while licensed brokers must have at least two years of industry experience and pass a licensing test to earn the designation.)
While the DOS figures do not distinguish residential from commercial brokers, anecdotal evidence suggests that the bulk of agents are in the residential sector. And while commercial leasing had an up and down year and may have even shed brokers, the commercial sales industry thrived, said David Behin, head of investment sales at commercial and residential brokerage MNS.
http://therealdeal.com/blog/2013/12/23/nyc-agent-count-surges-in-2013-especially-in-brooklyn/
Latest Figures Show New Home Sales and Prices Decline in New York | Cross River Real Estate
In August, the New York, NY market saw a decline year-over-year in new home closings, and with a percentage decline steeper than July 2013, there were suggestions the market may be worsening. Closings sank 29.5% from a year earlier to 665. This was after the housing market saw a 25.0% fall year-over-year in July.
A total of 7,252 new homes were sold during the 12 months that ended in August, down from 7,530 for the year that ended in July.
Out of all housing closings, new home closings made up 4.8%. This is down from the 7.5% of closings a year earlier. Closings of new and existing homes increased year-over-year in August after also rising in July year-over-year.
How Much Does it Cost to Install Countertops? | Cross River NY Real Estate
Whether in the kitchen or bathroom, the countertop can be the star of the room. A countertop should fit both your aesthetic style and your lifestyle. How much you pay for your countertops will depend on the sizes needed, the materials used and the labor involved.
Countertops usually get a lot of use. You don’t want to spend money on something that loses its beauty quickly or chips easily. The more you plan to use your counters, the more durability must be a major concern.
Laminate Countertops
Laminate provides the best selection of colors and patterns at the lowest prices. Laminate can be used to form a seamless cove backsplash to keep spills from seeping behind the cabinets. They’re also cheap and easy to install. The down sides? Laminate scratches or chips easily. It can be tough to clean, and its colors can fade over time.
Ceramic Tile Countertops
No surface offers more choices than tile. The price you pay for tile will largely depend on where you get them. Go for a big box store and you can go as cheap as $10 per square foot. Contact an artist in Florence, and you could pay $5,000 per tile. Tile can adapt as easily to Mexican fiesta as it can to Tokyo contemporary. There are two downsides of tile. One is that it can expensive to install, depending on the square footage of your counters. The other is grout lines, which attract crumbs and stains and require periodic sealing to repel moisture.
Stone Slab Countertops (Granite, Marble, Quartz, etc)
Not much can add dazzle to your kitchen or bathroom like a stone slab countertop. The sheer beauty, amazing selection and durability of stone makes it an excellent choice for your home. The depth and character of natural stone cannot be matched by any man-made surface (though some made-made alternatives have taken great strides.) Natural stone does not depreciate with time and this stone will consistently add value to your home. The costs of the stone depend on how rare its elements, the size and particularly the length of the necessary cuts, which must be finished, buffed and polished. You can sometimes save big money on stone slabs by shopping through remnants.
Acrylic Countertops
The most popular of the acrylics is Corian by DuPont. Corian provides the color versatility of laminates with a rich look (and price) that rivals stone slabs. It’s easy to maintain. Scratches and nicks can easily be buffed out. If you want to create a seamless look, Corian can even be formed into sinks, so there’s no gap between the counter and the sink. Price is determined largely by square footage.
Other Expenses
You may want to also add a new sink or new faucets to your installation. This can be an additional cost, not only in purchasing the hardware, but the installation as well. If you’re going with a stone slab, you have the additional cost of cutting the hole. You also may need to hire a plumber, especially if you want to install something new like an instant hot water dispenser or side spray.
If you are upgrading and replacing your existing counters, you may have to pay for their removal from not only their current location, but from your home as well. Debris removal is normally not a huge expense, but it’s one you should talk with your contractor about nonetheless.
11 Reasons to Paint Your Ceiling Black | Cross River Homes
12 East 69th Street NYC | Cross River Homes
Foreclosure filings plummet in November | Cross River Homes
U.S. foreclosure filings plummeted 37 percent in November from a year ago and 15 percent from October, according to the latest report from foreclosure data aggregator RealtyTrac.
The 113,454 properties that were served with a default notice, scheduled for auction or repossessed by a bank in November represented the biggest month-over-month drop in foreclosure activity since November 2010, when foreclosure activity dropped 21 percent after the robo-signing scandal broke.
“While some of the decrease in November can be attributed to seasonality, the depth and breadth of the decrease provides strong evidence that we are entering the ninth inning of this foreclosure crisis with the outcome all but guaranteed,” said Daren Blomquist, vice president of RealtyTrac, in a statement.
Only three of the 20 largest U.S. metros posted annual increases in foreclosure activity: Baltimore (up 46 percent), Philadelphia (up 34 percent), and Washington, D.C. (up 6 percent).
– See more at: http://www.inman.com/2013/12/11/foreclosure-filings-plummet-in-november/?utm_source=20131212&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dailyheadlinesam#sthash.xJyMjjbG.dpuf
Toll Brothers earnings fall in 4Q, drop year-over-year | Cross River Real Estate
Toll Brothers (TOL), the nation’s largest luxury homebuilder, reported a 65% drop in its net income for fiscal year 2013 versus fiscal year 2012, following a fourth quarter that beat estimates, but was still down from last year.
The firm’s fiscal-year 2013 earnings declined to $170.6 million, or $0.97 per share diluted, compared to earnings of $487.1 million, or $2.86 per share diluted, for fiscal year 2012.
Fourth-quarter earnings for 2013 were $94.9 million, or $0.54 per share diluted, compared to $411.4 million, or $2.35 per share, in fiscal year 2012.
A tax benefit in the fourth quarter of last year could account for some of the disparity.
Toll Brothers’ deferred-tax asset valuation allowance reversal was $394.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2012, versus $4.6 million for their fourth quarter in 2013.
Douglas Yearley, chief executive officer for Toll Brothers, focused on the positive growth the company saw in 2013.
“With revenues and contracts up over 40%, backlog up over 50% and operating income up over 200%, fiscal year 2013 was an excellent year for Toll Brothers,” Yearling said.
Fourth quarter 2013 revenues rose 65% to $1.04 billion compared to the fourth quarter of 2012, with a 36% increase in units to 1,485 deliveries.
The average price of homes delivered rose to $703,000 in the fourth quarter, topping $651,000 in the third quarter of 2013 and $582,000 in the fourth quarter last year.
Concern Grows that Aging Home Equity Loans Threaten New ‘Wave of Disaster’ | Cross River Real Estate
Nearly half of the nation’s outstanding second lien home equity lines of credit (HELOC) will amortize over the next several years, raising monthly payments and increasing the risk of a rash of new delinquencies that could result in new defaults and foreclosures.
Lender Processing Services today joined Equifax in raising alarms about prospect that aging HELOC loans written in the final years of the housing boom could result in a huge number of defaults, creating a “wave of disaster.”
Some 48 percent of outstanding second lien home equity lines of credit, which were originated between 2004 and 2006, will begin amortizing on their tenth anniversaries.. As the payments on these HELOCs become fully amortizing, many borrowers may see monthly payments increase. Recent increases in new problem loans among HELOCs originated prior to 2004 that have already begun amortizing indicate the huge wave of newly amortized loans poses increased risk of more delinquencies ahead, LPS said.
“In the aggregate, the home equity market is experiencing lower delinquencies,” said LPS Senior Vice President Herb Blecher. “However, among the HELOC population that has already begun amortizing, we are actually seeing an increase in new seriously delinquent loans. As of today, only 14 percent of second lien HELOCs have passed this 10-year mark, leaving a very large segment of the market at risk of payment increases over the coming years. Nearly half of all of these lines of credit were originated between 2004 and 2006, with the oldest set to begin amortizing next year. If this trend toward post-amortizing delinquencies carries over, we could be looking at significant risk to the home equity market over the coming years.”
NJ’s priciest listing comes with 2 barns and a silo | Cross River NY Homes
If it’s not clear what you might do with a 20,000-square-foot home that sits on 127 acres and comes with two barns and a 50-foot silo, the address should clue you in that the answer is not “farm.”7 Yearling Path, in Colts Neck, N.J., is being marketed as an “exquisite equestrian estate” that, in addition to all the amenities for horses, comes with some nice perks for humans, too — like marble showers in the 10 bathrooms, a kitchen that can serve 250 people, a gym, and a theater with platform seating.
At the moment, it’s the priciest single-family listing in New Jersey, Marlboro-ColtsNeckPatch reports. The property taxes alone set the current owner back $67,634 in 2012, according to details about the listing, represented by Pamela “Pam” Molloy of Coldwell Banker Holmdel, published by the brokerage. Source: coldwellbankermoves.com
– See more at: http://www.inman.com/wire/priciest-nj-listing-9-bedroom-equestrian-estate-on-127-acres-for-34-999m/#sthash.83wN5XHW.dpuf