↑ In Boerum Hill, this brick townhouse is asking $3.795 million. In addition to numerous dead animal parts, the 1860s house features period moldings, original wood floors, pocket doors and shutters, and five original marble fireplaces. There’s also a pretty large garden.
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http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2014/04/27/boerum_hill_townhouse_asks_38m_and_more.php
Real estate and mortgage experts in Denver say houses across the state are selling in days, leaving few options for potential buyers to choose from.
Coldwell Banker Managing Broker Andy Sommer said metro Denver is a true hot market — attributable to job growth in the region and low supply — because those who already own likely refinanced and have a great rate and have no desire to leave.
“Many of our listings are sold within the first day and most of them with multiple offers,” said Sommer. “People are set. They’re financially sound, they don’t have to go anywhere and they are solid in their jobs.”
Jim Perkins, with First City Mortgage-Megastar Financial said northern Colorado is the same story.
“The most I’ve heard on one property was 16 offers on one house,” said Perkins.
For buyers who find something, experts say keep your eyes on it and make a move quickly, because if you don’t someone else will.
The most in-demand price range for buyers right now is anywhere in the $200,000 to $300,000 range — even up to $350,000.
If a home goes up for sale at that price and it’s priced right, experts said sellers are looking at an average of eight offers within two to three days.
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Numbers released by the Commerce Department Wednesday suggest that last year’s rapid housing recovery is continuing to slow.
Housing starts rose 2.8% in March to a seasonally adjusted rate of 946,000. This is higher than the month before, but 5.9% lower than the rate one year earlier. Housing starts measure actual groundbreakings on new construction and are thus a timely measure of market conditions.
Other data also suggest a slowdown. Building permits, a good indicator of the future, were 990,000 (seasonally adjusted) in March. That’s 2.4% below the revised February rate, the fourth drop over the last five months.
The numbers missed expectations by economists surveyed by both Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal; economists surveyed by Bloomberg predicted housing starts at 965,000 and permits at 1.01 million.
Yesterday’s National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index showed builder confidence a bit slack; the index rose just 1 point in March to 47. A score of 50 or higher indicates that more builders view conditions as good than poor.
However, the March data shows starts of single-family homes at 635,000 (seasonally adjusted), a rate that is 6% above February’s revised figure. Construction of single-family homes dropped in January but has been steadily rising each month since.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/erincarlyle/2014/04/16/housing-starts-rise-2-8-in-march/
Charlie Dresen, SteamboatsMyHome.com
Want to add value to your home? Plant a garden in the sky.
Rooftop gardens are quickly becoming one of the most popular ways to wow buyers and shore up the value of your home, real estate agents say.
Homes in big cities benefit the most from a rooftop garden, where homeowners sacrifice yard space for the urban experience. But even suburban homeowners are taking advantage of deck and roof space to grow gardens with an elevated view.
“It’s just such a luxury to have somewhere you can go that’s outside of your four walls,” said Leslie Piper, consumer housing specialist for the Realtor.com and a real estate agent. “Buyers really see it as something indulgent.”
That’s actually part of the reason why for a time interest in outdoor spaces like roof gardens had been withering. But as the housing market recovers, buyers’ appetites for these unique outdoor havens have returned.
When Realtor.com surveyed 1,000 buyers about what makes them fall in love with a home, outdoor living spaces came out on top, beating out their desire for open floor plans and curb appeal. About 51 percent of those surveyed said that outdoor space was the most attractive quality in a home.
“It’s certainly cropping back up as something that’s becoming more important to homeowners,” Piper said.
Buyers are specifically looking for outdoor fireplaces, wet bars and a lounge area for entertaining, as well as a place to grow their own fresh herbs and vegetables, she added.
Most of the amenities for an outdoor space can be added by the homeowner, so they tend to be a relatively inexpensive way to add value to a home.
“You can go online now and look at all these great resources that are out there, and in the past you didn’t know where to start,” Piper said. “That kind of access to ideas is really spurring these spaces.”
If you are looking for an attractive roof garden built in to a new home, check out these seven homes.
http://www.cbsnews.com/media/7-beautiful-rooftop-gardens/
Government officials charged Poppi Metaxas, former president and CEO of Gateway Bank, in Oakland, Calif., with bank fraud, bank fraud conspiracy and perjury.
Christy Romero, Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, Loretta Lynch, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, George Venizelos, assistant director-in-charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office and David Montoya, inspector general of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General announced that an indictment was unsealed Wednesday.
In 2009, SIGTARP said that Metaxas fraudulently caused Gateway to execute a sham “round trip” transaction in which the bank self-funded a down payment to make it appear that Gateway had sold toxic, non-performing mortgage loans.
According to the indictment, in February and March 2009, Metaxas allegedly engaged in a scheme to defraud Gateway in connection with Gateway’s sale of non-performing mortgage loans to three entities in exchange for $15 million.
“Metaxas allegedly orchestrated a fraudulent scheme to give the appearance that the bank was shoring up its finances by selling problem loans to outside investors,” Romero said.
“Metaxas purportedly hid from the bank’s board and regulator the fact that she, with the help of others, made a sham loan to those investors to fund in secret the 25% ‘down payment’ of $3.64 million, a loan that was later written off. Crimes related to TARP will be investigated and prosecuted by SIGTARP and our law enforcement partners,” Romero added.
Freddie Mac today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing average fixed mortgage rates up a bit from last week, applying additional pressure for those local markets that are already feeling an affordability pinch.
News Facts
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 the Regional and National Mortgage Rate Details and Definitions. Borrowers may still pay closing costs which are not included in the survey.
Quotes Attributed to Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist, Freddie Mac.
“Mortgage rates rose following the uptick on the 10-year Treasury note after comments by the Federal Reserve Board Chair Janet Yellen indicated a possible increase in interest rates as soon as early 2015. Also, the S&P/Case-Shiller® 20-city composite house price index rose 13.2 percent over the 12-months ending in January 2014.”
Freddie Mac was established by Congress in 1970 to provide liquidity, stability and affordability to the nation’s residential mortgage markets. Freddie Mac supports communities across the nation by providing mortgage capital to lenders. Today Freddie Mac is making home possible for one in four home borrowers and is one of the largest sources of financing for multifamily housing.
The Caramoor Center for Music and Art of Katonah will be honored by ArtsWestchester at its Arts Awards luncheon on Friday, April 4 at the Westchester Marriott.
Caramoor Center will receive the Innovator Award for In the Garden of Sonic Delights, a large-scale outdoor sound art exhibition that runs from June through November 2014 at five sites in addition to Caramoor: Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art (Peekskill), Jacob Burns Film Center (Pleasantville), Lyndhurst (Tarrytown), the Neuberger Museum of Art at Purchase College (Purchase), and Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture (Pocantico Hills).
The project has been in development for more than five years and features 15 new site specific works by nationally-recognized artists including Laurie Anderson, Bruce Odland and Bob Bieleck.
The complete list of winners is on the ArtsWestchester website.
The awards luncheon will at the Westchester Marriott on April 4. A reception begins at 11 a.m. followed by luncheon at noon. Tickets, sponsorships and luncheon journal ads may be reserved by calling (914) 428-4220 x326 or emailing afabrizio@artswestchester.org
http://bedford.dailyvoice.com/news/katonahs-caramoor-will-be-honored-artswestchester
