1. Price it right
2. Price it right
3. Price it right
3 Best Ways to Market your Home | Katonah Real Estate
Leave a reply
Category Archives: Katonah
30 Year Mortgage Rates Average 4.08% | Katonah Real Estate
Freddie Mac today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing average fixed mortgage rates reaching new 2015 highs heading into the holiday weekend and ahead of the June jobs report.
News Facts
- 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.08 percent with an average 0.6 point for the week ending July 2, 2015, up from last week when it averaged 4.02 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.12 percent.
- 15-year FRM this week averaged 3.24 percent with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 3.21 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.22 percent.
- 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 2.99 percent this week with an average 0.4 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.98 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 2.98 percent.
- 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 2.52 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 2.38 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.
“Overseas events are generating significant day-to-day volatility in interest rates. Nonetheless, the week-to-week impact on most rates was modest — the 30-year mortgage rate increased just 6 bps, to 4.08 percent. The MBA composite index of mortgage applications fell 4.7 percent in response to what is now three consecutive weeks of mortgage rates over 4 percent. Other measures, however, confirmed continued strength in housing — pending home sales rose 0.9 percent, exceeding expectations, and the Case-Shiller house price index recorded another solid increase.”
Boost Your All-White Color Scheme | Katonah Real Estate
Love the look of fresh white but don’t want to feel like you live in a cold, minimalist compound? Here’s how to boost white to get a livable, inviting look that feels airy, open and full of personality.
Colorful Accessories
A kitchen can be mostly white surfaces and still have a sense of life with just a few colorful accents. Notice the red dials on the range, which add personality, as well as the occasional accessory and plant life. These add up to a feeling of a more diverse palette without any single hue taking over from white as the focus.
Open shelves are an especially effective way of revealing some hits of color through everyday dish ware. With the plant life below, this kitchen feels miles from all-white.
For a seasonal pop of color, try removable chair covers in a saturated hue. They’ll help add interest to an all-white scheme, are easy to clean and can be stored away between seasons to switch up the look throughout the year.
read more…
http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/49212922?utm_source=Houzz&utm_campaign=u1429&utm_medium=email&utm_content=gallery2
Home-builder confidence rises to nine-month high | Katonah Real Estate
A gauge of confidence among home builders rose five points to 59 in June, hitting a nine-month high, according to National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo data released Monday. Economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires had expected a June result of 55.
Gauges of builders’ views on present and upcoming home sales each hit their highest level since late 2005, shortly before the housing bubble burst. Readings above 50 signal that home-construction companies, generally, are optimistic about sales trends, and June marks the 12th consecutive month of above-50 readings.
NAHB said a barometer of builders’ views on present sales of single-family homes rose seven points to 65 in June, while a gauge of their views on upcoming sales increased six to 69, and an index of prospective-buyer traffic rose five to 44.
read more..
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/home-builder-confidence-rises-to-nine-month-high-in-june-2015-06-15
U.S. house prices accelerate in April | #Katonah Real Estate
U.S. house prices accelerated further in April, as low inventories and growing sales push costs higher, a leading data provider said Tuesday.
CoreLogic reported a 2.7% monthly advance to take the year-on-year gain to 6.8%.
The spring is traditionally the strongest portion of the year for housing, and data from CoreLogic and other providers suggest an upturn.
“Old-fashion supply and demand, fueled by historically low mortgage rates and improving consumer finances and confidence, continue to push home prices up,” said Anand Nallathambi, president and CEO of CoreLogic.
Dallas and Houston prices are showing few signs of let-up despite the collapse in energy prices. Dallas prices were up 10.3% in the 12 months to April, and Houston prices were up 9.5%. The Washington, D.C., area brought up the rear with just a 1.6% advance.
South Carolina was the strongest state, with an 11.4% advance, while Massachusetts saw a 1.7% drop, one of only four states to register a decline.
CoreLogic is the first of the three major house-price trackers to report results. The Case-Shiller/20-city composite rose 5% in the year to March, and the FHFA house price report showed a 5.2% gain in the 12 months to March.
read more…
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-house-prices-accelerate-in-april-corelogic-says-2015-06-02
New home sales jump in April even as prices gain | Katonah Real Estate
Sales of new single-family houses in April 2015 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 517,000, according to estimates released jointly today by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
This comes after a big drop in March which saw just 481,000 new home sales, the biggest drop in almost two years and primarily driven by a precipitous drop in sales in the Northeast in March.
This is 6.8% above the revised March rate of 484,000 and is 26.1% above the April 2014 estimate of 410,000.
The big driver of the gain was one of the smaller home regions, the Midwest, which saw a jump from 57,000 to 78,000 sales. In April the West and Northeast both saw declines.
The median sales price of new houses sold in April 2015 was $297,300; the average sales price was $341,500 – both up from March.
read more…
http://www.housingwire.com/articles/33989
Behold, the 15 Oldest Houses For Sale in NYC Right Now | #Katonah Real Estate
New York City may have nothing on Europe when it comes tohistoric architecture, but compared to the rest of the country, things here can be pretty darn old. The age between one building and the next on a New York City block can span a century, and to prove it, we’ve picked through the 15 oldest houses for sale in New York City right now with the help of StreetEasy. Here’s a hint about how old they get: the oldest house on this list is way older than Canada and lightbulbs, and was built the same year Thomas Jefferson died. Curious? Read your way through the list to find out just how old the oldest house on the market is.
read more…
http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2015/05/12/
Westchester Property Taxes win Title for Highest | Katonah Real Estate
Barring floods and asbestos, property taxes are the highest cost of homeownership after a mortgage — and taxes never end.
In 2013, the median U.S. property tax bill was $2,132, according to a Zillow analysis that used the most recent data available.
That’s a whole lot less than residents paid in Westchester County, NY, where the median tax bill was $13,842. In Tunica County, MS, the median tax bill was $216.
All 10 of the most expensive counties for property taxes, based on the median paid for single-family homes, are in the same vicinity:
| County | Median taxes |
| Westchester, NY | $13,842 |
| Rockland, NY | $10,550 |
| Bergen, NJ | $9,546 |
| Essex, NJ | $9,288 |
| Nassau, NY | $9,091 |
| Passaic, NJ | $8,978 |
| Union, NJ | $8,926 |
| Morris, NJ | $8,549 |
| Hudson, NJ | $8,407 |
| Hunterdon, NJ | $8,392 |
Four of the 10 least expensive counties are in Alabama, with the other six scattered among several states..
http://www.zillow.com/blog/property-taxes-2015-173854/
Non-Revolving Credit Drives Consumer Credit Growth | Katonah Real Estate
The Federal Reserve Board recently reported that consumer credit outstanding rose by a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.6%, $186.2 billion, in February 2015. Consumer credit outstanding now totals $3.343 trillion.
The expansion of total consumer credit outstanding reflected an increase in the outstanding amount of non-revolving consumer credit. Non-revolving consumer credit includes auto loans and student loans. According to the report, non-revolving credit outstanding grew by a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 9.4%, $230.3 billion, in February 2015, 3.6 percentage points faster than the 5.8%, $141.6 billion, growth recorded in January 2015. There is now $2.459 trillion in outstanding non-revolving credit, 74% of the total amount of consumer credit outstanding.
The growth in non-revolving credit was partially offset by a contraction in the outstanding amount of revolving credit. Revolving credit outstanding is largely composed of consumer credit card debt. After recording a small decline of 1.4%, $12.0 billion, in January 2015, revolving credit outstanding registered a larger decrease, 5.0% or $44.1 billion, in February 2015. As of January 2015, revolving credit outstanding totals $884.8 billion, 26% of total consumer credit outstanding.
An earlier post showed that the increase in consumer credit outstanding largely reflects an expansion in non-revolving credit outstanding. As a result, non-revolving credit outstanding as a share of total consumer credit outstanding has risen. However, while the overall composition of consumer credit outstanding is skewed to non-revolving credit, the composition of consumer credit varies by type of holder. Depository institutions, nonfinancial businesses and pools of securitized assets hold more revolving credit than non-revolving credit. In contrast, finance companies, credit unions, the federal government, and nonprofit and educational institutions hold primarily on non-revolving credit. Both the federal government and non-profit and educational institutions focus only on non-revolving credit.
As Chart 2 illustrates, of the consumer credit held by depository institutions, 54% of it represents revolving credit while the rest, 46%, is non-revolving credit. Of the consumer credit held by pools of securitized assets and nonfinancial businesses, 58% and 52% respectively is held as revolving credit while the rest, 42% and 48% respectively, is held as non-revolving consumer credit. Meanwhile, of the consumer credit held by credit unions and finance companies, 15% and 9%, respectively, is revolving credit and the rest, 85% and 91% respectively, is non-revolving credit.
Although 3 types of institutions hold more revolving credit than non-revolving credit, 2, nonfinancial businesses and pools of securitized assets, account for only 3% of consumer credit outstanding combined but the third, depository institutions, is the largest holder of consumer credit outstanding. Although the current composition of consumer credit outstanding held by depository institutions is currently near evenly split, this has not always been the case. As Chart 3 illustrates, the consumer credit holdings of depository institutions were largely of non-revolving credit and very little revolving credit. However, over the last 46 years, 1968-2014, the share of revolving consumer credit has steadily risen while the share of non-revolving credit has declined. In 2010, a large spike in the holdings of revolving credit by depository institutions that was related to the shift of consumer credit pools of securitized assets to other categories due to implementation of the FAS 166/167 accounting rules, pushed its share past 50%. In contrast, the share of consumer credit held by depository institutions that was non-revolving credit fell below 50%. At the end of 2014, 54% of depository institutions’ consumer credit holdings were revolving credit and the rest, 46%, was non-revolving credit.
read more….
http://eyeonhousing.org/2015/04/non-revolving-credit-drives-consumer-credit-growth/
Stronger Demand and Thin Inventories Push Prices up 7.5 Percent | Katonah Real Estate
Persistently tight inventories—not a good sign as the spring season nears—coupled with an uptick in sales pushed prices up 7.5 percent in February
The median existing-home price2 for all housing types in February was $202,600. This marks the 36th consecutive month of year-over-year price gains and the largest since last February (8.8 percent), according to the National Association of Realtors.
Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, rose 1.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.88 million in February from 4.82 million in January. Sales are 4.7 percent higher than a year ago and above year-over-year totals for the fifth consecutive month.
Total housing inventory at the end of February increased from January by 1.6 percent to 1.89 million existing homes available for sale, but remains 0.5 percent below a year ago (1.90 million). For the second straight month, unsold inventory is at a 4.6-month supply at the current sales pace.
Concerns are growing about the low inventory levels have persisted through the winter months. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said, “Insufficient supply appears to be hampering prospective buyers in several areas of the country and is hiking prices to near unsuitable levels,” he said. “Stronger price growth is a boon for homeowners looking to build additional equity, but it continues to be an obstacle for current buyers looking to close before rates rise.”
“With all indications pointing to a rate increase from the Federal Reserve this year – perhaps as early as this summer – affordability concerns could heighten as home prices and rents both continue to exceed wages,” adds Yun.
A NAR study released earlier this month found that the disparity between rent and income growth is widening in metro areas throughout the country and is making it harder for renters to become homeowners.
read more…
http://www.realestateeconomywatch.com/2015/03/8633/