Category Archives: Waccabuc NY

The Solidity and Stature of NYC’s Central Savings Bank | Waccabuc Real Estate

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Welcome back to Curbed Classics, a column in which writer Lisa Santoro traces the history of a classic New York City building. Have a building to nominate for a future installment? Please suggest it to the tipline.

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Banking and commerce are integral to the city’s livelihood, so it’s no wonder that New York City’s banking institutions are designed to look important. This is certainly the case with Central Savings Bank, which stands out even among the noteworthy classical structures that are its neighbors. The building is easily accessible to the public and warrants a closer look.

The Central Savings Bank (currently Apple Bank), located at 2100-2108 Broadway at West 73rd Street, was built between 1926 and 1928 by the architecture firm of York & Sawyer. The bank had been founded in 1859 and was originally known as The German Savings Bank in the City of New York, with its first location inside the Cooper Union building. Just five years later, in 1864, the bank would move a bit uptown to Fourth Avenue and 14th Street, eventually occupying a new bank building that was constructed in 1872. Decades later, during World War I, the bank changed its name to “Central Savings Bank.” Though the name change may have been due to anti-German sentiment, the bank continued to flourish and the trustees banked (sorry) on the Upper West Side’s business and residential development and chose to open an uptown branch.

CSBold_8_13.jpg [The Central Savings Bank, via NYC-architecture.]

York and Sawyer was an obvious choice for the new building. In addition to both working for the prolific firm of McKim, Mead and White, York and Sawyer were experienced in designing other noteworthy banking institutions, such as the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Liberty Street and the Bowery Savings Bank on 42nd Street. The Central Savings Bank commission would be especially stately given its unique location atop a trapezoidal lot adjacent to Verdi Square. With the latitude to design a building free from the confines of adjacent structures, and complemented by nearby open space, the designers were able to create a unique, iconic structure.

CSBdoor_8_13.jpgThat structure was a six-story freestanding building designed in the style of an Italian Renaissance palazzo. Constructed of rusticated limestone, the building was adorned with decoration that would in fact be very fitting for a palazzo. This included the two lions surrounding the clock above the main entrance, cartouches featuring the heads of classical figures and shields containing the caduceus motif&151;two snakes ensnarled around a staff—which has become the modern symbol of commerce and negotiation. In addition, the exterior features stunning wrought iron doors, gates, grilles and lanterns designed by Samuel Yellin, considered the country’s master iron craftsman during the 1920s. The building is still not as highly decorated and elaborate as its Parisian-inspired neighbors to the south, the Ansonia and the Dorilton, but is instead serious and refined.

 

 

 

 

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http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2013/08/21/the_solidity_and_stature_of_nycs_central_savings_bank.php

 

Protect your data from cloud-based storms | South Salem Realtor

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The recent crash of the dotloop e-signature platform highlights the challenges related to going paperless and relying on someone else’s server for your protection. Whether it’s your email, your website, your e-signature platform or anything else that you store in the cloud, what can you do to protect yourself from cloud-based storms?

In my recent series of articles on the differences between the various e-signature platforms, I outlined the dangers of using a PDF-based e-signature platform such as dotloop that relies exclusively on its company website to track document changes in the cloud. A dedicated web server is one of the basic requirements for any organization in today’s business world. It is used to host the websites of the company or the whole enterprise and possesses the requisite resources for the task. The bandwidth and storage space provided by a dedicated hosting server can never be matched by a shared server, and the exclusivity provided by this server is unparalleled. These servers are usually hack – proof, and are not targeted by malwares, viruses and spywares due to the heightened security provided by the web hosting company. Now that you have finally decided to go for a dedicated server hosting and selected one that suits your business’ demands, you have to think about managing it. You can either manage it yourself or give this task to the firm which is providing you with the server. It is always advisable to hand this task over to the dedicated web server company, which will deal with all the nuances involved in setting up, hosting and managing the server. Even though you can always learn how to manage it, the task will be arduous and take a lot of your time, which is precious for your business’ growth. Typically, Fully Managed Dedicated Server Hosting consists of server monitoring, software updates, reboots, security patches and operating system upgrades. This provides you with ample time to concentrate on other tasks while the hosting company handles your server managing demands. Also, the firms which hire the services of the dedicated web server are provided with individual server administration add-on tools in the standard deals. Therefore, you can be at ease with even the standard deals and see your business achieve new heights due to the fully managed hosting option. Most people choose shared hosting for their website at the beginning. Shared hosting is a hosting account on which you host your website on a shared server with hundreds of other people’s websites. Shared hosting is usually very affordable due to the number of websites sharing the space and resources on each server. The downside of this is your website has to share the resources on the server such as processing power and memory. This means if particular websites are very busy and getting loads of traffic, they will obviously draw more processing power and server memory. This can lead to your website being slow to open and your potential customer won’t wait for your website to display; they’ll just go elsewhere! The other drawback with sharing a server with so many websites is a server is only as reliable as the scripts being written to it. If a particular website uses a bad script it can take the whole server down. Your website will go down as well and through no fault of your own. If your online business is mission critical and you want to avoid suffering any downtime or slowness, your best option is your own dedicated server. And if you are not at all technical then the best option of all is a fully managed dedicated server.You can visit https://www.knownhost.com/managed-wordpress-hosting.html for more information.

A fully managed dedicated server is managed for you by your hosting provider. You won’t have full root access to it but you will get a control panel which you use to set up your website space and that’s it. So in a way, similar to a shared server, except it’s yours with only your websites using it. This used to be quite an expensive option but prices have come down and there are wide ranges of hosting providers who offer fully managed dedicated servers from as low as £50 or £60 a month. The other advantage of your own dedicated server is you can install any software you want. On a shared server you are only able to use the pre-installed software and components provided and this can be limiting. If it’s fully managed your hosting provider will install the software for you and they may make a small installation charge. You also get far more web space to use – if the hard drive on the server is 80GB then you can use about 74GB of that for your websites and software. And with a dedicated server you will get far more bandwidth to use than you would on a shared server. In fact, there are a number of hosting providers who now offer 1 terabyte of monthly bandwidth use which is more than enough for most online businesses.

When I was researching the articles, I posed the following question to dotloop’s CEO, Allison Austin: “What happens if your system goes down, is hacked, or if you go out of business?” His response cited dotloop’s multiple backup systems and that it would be highly unlikely that that would happen. At RadiusBridge we help your business manage internal and external data with a focus on the best use of data to grow your business.

When the dotloop system went down, its users lost access. All digital transaction management platforms send users their documents via email, where they can be archived and accessed for future use.

But unlike DocuSign, Instanet or zipLogix’s Digital Ink products that provide the double protection of both a PDF document trail and independent tracking of changes within the document itself, dotloop users had no backup unless they did one of three things prior to the outage: (1) printed the documents to paper beforehand; (2) downloaded the documents into a separate PDF file on their computer; or (3) stored the documents in another cloud-based solution.

It’s not if they will fail, it’s when Of course, whether you are Google, Amazon, Microsoft or any other technology provider, sooner or later the system goes down. On Aug.16, Google went down for a few minutes. The blackout was “unprecedented.” The result: a 40 percent decrease of global traffic on the Web, according to a CNET article.

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http://www.inman.com/2013/08/22/protect-your-data-from-cloud-based-storms/#sthash.MlrkSiPy.dpuf

Fannie reconsiders low downpayment mortgages | Waccabuc Real Estate

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According to the Wall Street Journal, Fannie Mae is in talks to reduce portfolio risk. This gut-check prompted the GSE to consider scaling back on its purchases of minimum downpayment loans. The Wall Street Journal further notes that:

In recent months, a series of changes in the mortgage market have led to an uptick in low-down-payment loans available for sale to Fannie. That prompted a review of the company’s lending policies, and officials are said to be working on a plan to limit the company’s purchases of these loans.

                    Source: Wall Street Journal

 

Sales of New U.S. Homes Fell More Than Forecast in July | Waccabuc NY Homes

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Purchases of new U.S. homes plunged 13.4 percent in July, the most in more than three years, raising concern higher mortgage rates will slow the real-estate rebound.

Sales fell to a 394,000 annualized pace, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. The reading was the weakest since October and was lower than any of the forecasts by 74 economists Bloomberg surveyed.

A jump in borrowing costs over the past three months may be prompting buyers to hold back, showing the difficult job ahead for Federal Reserve officials as they try to wean the economy from monetary stimulus while sustaining growth. The falloff in demand is in contrast to a surge in confidence among builders such as Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL), which suggests they remain optimistic about the long-term outlook as employment improves.

“It’s definitely a rate shock,” said Doug Duncan, chief economist at Fannie Mae in Washington. “You could see another month or two of weak sales or it could go longer. This is a sustainable recovery, but we’ve also said it’s not robust. Along the way, there will be some hiccups. This is certainly a hiccup.”

Stocks rose, with the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index’s posting its first two-day gain in three weeks, as investors weighed the housing data against signals from Fed policy makers on stimulus cuts. The S&P 500 climbed 0.4 percent to 1,663.5 at the close inNew York.

The median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a decrease to 487,000. Forecasts ranged from 445,000 to 525,000. The Commerce Department also marked down readings for each of the previous three months with June’s sales pace revised down to 455,000 from a previously reported 497,000 pace.

Economic Surprise

The difference between July’s outcome and the average estimate of economists surveyed was 7 times larger the poll’s standard deviation, or the average divergence between what each economist forecast and the mean. That was the biggest surprise since April 2010. The S&P Supercomposite Homebuilding Index, which includes companies such as Lennar Corp. (LEN) and KB Home (KBH), fell 1.5 percent in the first 30 minutes after the figures were released. It was down 3.1 percent at 1:12 p.m. in New York.

New-home purchases were 6.8 percent higher in July than the same period in 2012 on an adjusted basis, today’s report showed. The median price increased 8.3 percent last month from a year ago to $257,200.

That’s one reason builders are becoming more upbeat, with the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo confidence index rising this month to the highest level since November 2005.

 

 

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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-08-23/sales-of-new-homes-in-u-s-plunged-more-than-forecast-in-july.html

 

Wells Fargo loans make up 22% of all mortgages | Waccabuc Real Estate

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According to Inside Real Estate, Wells Fargo (WF) continued its reign as the top mortgage lender and provided 22% of all U.S. mortgages in the second quarter of 2013. Following suit was JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Bank of America (BOA) and Quicken Loans.

A complete chart, showing each mortgage bank’s originations can be found by clicking on the red link provided below.

                    Source: Inside Real Estate

Designing Your Outdoor Landscape Lighting | Waccabuc Real Estate

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Outdoor lighting isn’t just about safety and security. There’s no reason the  curb appeal of your home should be limited to the daytime.

The tree you’ve also  loved, the garden you’ve worked hard to cultivate, the pond you bought with your  hard-earned money, and all the other landscape features you’ve painstakingly  chosen for your home can achieve some of their best effects at night with good  outdoor landscape lighting.

Low Voltage Outdoor Lighting The electricity running into your home  holds a potentially dangerous 120 volts.

To create low voltage outdoor lighting  you’ll need to install one or more transformers. This will reduce the voltage of  your outdoor landscape lighting to a tame 12 volts. If your wiring gets exposed  by inclement weather and the abuse of the elements, this voltage poses no danger  to you, your family members, or your pets.

The downside to the low voltage outdoor lighting is that light fixtures  become dimmer the further away they are from the transformer. If this becomes a  problem, there are a number of easy solutions. You can upgrade to a higher-rated  transformer or a heavier-gauge cable.

You can use multiple transformers. You can  also simply reduce the number or the wattage of your light fixtures. Moving the  transformer and/or rearranging the layout of the lighting system can reduce the  cable length to each fixture, minimizing the dimming path.

You might also  consider using the dimming as an intentional effect. This is popular in path  lighting, where each light fixture gets stronger as you move closer to your  home.

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http://www.homeadvisor.com/article.show.Designing-Your-Outdoor-Landscape-Lighting.14319.html#ixzz2cndXvQKb

How to Build a Natural Swimming Pool | Waccabuc Real Estate

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Though fairly common in Europe, natural swimming pools (like the one pictured  above in an Austrian family’s backyard), are in their infancy in the United  States. Ask most American swimming-pool contractors to build a backyard pool and  chances are they’ll roll out a long list of goods, including rebar, gunite,  fiberglass, chlorine and an energy-sapping filtration system. If you need to resurface your pool visit https://willshapools.com/resurfacing/. But in recent  years, a few builders and a growing number of homeowners have learned how to  build pools without relying on a mass of manufactured materials and chemical  additives. They’ve found it’s possible to construct pools that are more about  building with nature and blending into the natural landscape. Natural swimming  pools use gravel stone and clay in place of concrete or fiberglass, and aquatic  plants instead of harmful chemicals and complicated mechanical filtering  systems. The plants enrich the pool with oxygen, support beneficial bacteria  that consume debris and potentially harmful organisms, and give habitat to  frogs, dragonflies and other water life. The result is a beautiful, ecologically  diverse system that is relatively inexpensive to construct. (A natural pool can  he constructed for as little as $2,000 if you do it yourself, while conventional  pools can cost tens of thousands of dollars.) Natural swimming pools require no  harmful chemIcals, are fairly low-tech, and once established call for only a  modicum of management. You won’t have to drain the pool each autumn. Except for  topping it off now and then, you’ll fill the pool only once.

DIG IT

The cheapest and most ecologically sound way to build a swimming pool is  simply to hollow a hole in the ground. You can make your pool as shallow or as  deep as you want, but the key is to make sure the sides slope: Otherwise the  soil will cave in. The ratio should be a 1-foot vertical drop for every 3  horizontal feet. “It’s not a bathtub effect, but more like a soup bowl,” says  Tom Zingaro, partner with Denver-based Blue Lotus Designs, a pool-and  pond-architecture company. One of the main reasons traditional swimming pools  are constructed with a steel framework is to ensure the walls stay vertical and  perpendicular to the bottom surface of the pool. Construct a pool with sloping  sides and you’ll eliminate the need for any steel reinforcement.

ZONING

Reserving at least 50 percent of your pool’s surface area for shallow plants,  either at one end or in a ring around the sides, eliminates the need for  chlorine and expensive filters and pumps. You’ll want to separate the swimming  area of your pool and the filtration area, or plant zone (see the illustration).  A rim within an inch of the water’s surface keeps plants in their place but  allows water from the swimming area to move to the plant zone for filtering, As  water passes through the fibrous root structure of the plants, bacteria  concentrated on the plants’ roots act as a biological filter, removing  contaminants and excess nutrients in the water. Decomposer organisms, also found  in the plants’ root zones, consume the bacteria, effectively eliminating  underwater waste buildup.

Inside the plant zone, the water should get steadily deeper, reaching a  maximum depth of 18 inches near the swimming zone. The outermost 6 inches of the  plant zone will be 2 to 3 inches deep, providing a home for taller aquatic  plants. Submergent and floating vegetation occupy the deeper area.

Besides cleaning the water and making your pool beautiful to behold, the  shallow plant zone warms the water quickly and provides habitat for frogs and  many invertebrates. They’ll appreciate the shallow water for breeding grounds  and repay the favor by eating mosquito larvae.

 

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Read more: http://www.motherearthnews.com/print.aspx?id={4FBE3EA7-1220-4861-A190-A7421DF6BD4A}#ixzz2cWEgLrUB

New Renderings Revealed Of Metropolitan By COMO Hotel | Waccabuc Real Estate

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With construction progressing rapidly towards a December opening, new renderings (and what look like interior designer schematic thingies) have dropped of the Metropolitan by COMO on Miami Beach. The hotel, a renovation of the long-shuttered art deco Traymore Hotel, will have a rooftop spa and hydrotherapy pool, a beachside pool with direct beach access, a private dock on Indian Creek, two restaurants, and interiors by italian designer Paola Navone.

HotelChatter suggests that “We envision guests using the hotel’s own private dock on Miami’s Intracoastal Waterway to be transported from the airport to the property” to which we say, that would be sooo awesome, but although the airport’s adjacent to the Miami River, there’s gotta be some major infrastructural issues to work out there. (not to mention, the hotel is actually on Indian Creek, no the Intracoastal, but that’s just splitting hairs)

The Hottest U.S. Housing Markets | Waccabuc Real Estate

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Housing prices were up in May, and they are only expected to soar in the coming year. The housing market is hot, and that is a good thing for everyone. You can buy, sell, or invest to reap the benefits of the recovering market easily.

But this is not true everywhere. You only have to look at Detroit to see an example. Knowing where to get your foot into the housing market is important because some cities are doing better than others are.

san franciscoThe Best Cities for Housing Market Investing

1. San Francisco

San Francisco is the hottest housing market. The supply of homes in the city is plummeting, down as much as 80% since 2008. When supplies are down, people scurry to find a house, and they are willing to pay more for when they find one that meets their needs and wants.

People aren’t having trouble with paying more either because the state has a low unemployment rate of 6.5%, as of June. Home prices have gone up 24.5%, according to S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, and they should continue to rise as much as 12.7% over the next year, projected by Veros Real Estate Solutions.

2. Los Angeles & San Jose

The boom in San Francisco has spread over to Los Angeles and San Jose too, and housing prices are expected to experience an 11.6% value increase and 11.1% increase, respectively, according to Veros.

3. Philadelphia

On the other side of country, Philadelphia’s housing market is heating up as well. Houses are bought within 30 days of listing date – an incredible selling rate.

4. Texas

Texas is known for its low house prices, but that’s about to rise too. This state expects to see a home valuation increase of 11.1%.

5. Phoenix

Analysts expect home price increases of 10.9% in the next year, and that may be quite accurate because, according to Zillow, Phoenix’s housing market rose 24 percent from year to year.

 

 

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http://www.wealthdaily.com/articles/the-hottest-us-housing-markets/4570

Richmond real estate market getting stronger | Waccabuc Real Estate

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The real estate industry has been showing signs of sustained growth over the past year.

That’s good news for an industry that has been in a severe contraction since the recession of 2007-2009.

Residential investment grew by double digit rates in the nation over the past four quarters ending with the 2013’s second quarter, according to the gross domestic product report released last week.

The second quarter housing report released by George Mason University for the Richmond Association of Realtors points to improvements in the Richmond metro area market as well.

Sales in the greater Richmond area — a broader statistical area of four cities and 12 surrounding counties — rose 12 percent compared with the same period in 2012.

In the Tri-Cities area, home sales grew at a double-digit rate in the second quarter compared with a year ago in all jurisdictions except Dinwiddie County.

 

The average days that a home was on the market before it is sold also has continued to inch downward in the broader statistical area. It is now 57 days compared with 76 day two years ago.

 

 

Christine Chmura: Local real estate market getting stronger – Richmond Times-Dispatch: Richmond’s Latest Business & Economic News.