Just in case you haven’t been paying attention, most cities are now in a “buyer’s market” for home sales. That means there are more houses and condos listed for sale than there are qualified home buyers actively in the market. Nationally, home sales volume is down about 10 percent compared to 2005.

The best way to tell if your area is in a buyer’s or seller’s market is to check the average number of days homes are on the market before selling. When this number rises above 60 days, it’s definitely a buyer’s market. That means it’s a great time to be a buyer, but not such a great time to be a home seller. Another method is to look at the number of months’ supply of homes for sale at the current sales pace. Just divide the number of local homes sold during the last 30 days into the number of homes listed for sale. If the result is more than a six-month supply of homes, the oversupply of listed homes shows it’s a buyer’s market. Fall is usually the second-best season to sell a home (spring is the best because that is when the largest number of prospective home buyers are in the market). But 2006 is proving to be unusual. (more…)

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Freddie Mac today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMSSM) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 6.40 percent with an average 0.5 point for the week ending September 21, 2006, down from last week when it averaged 6.43 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 5.80 percent.

The 15-year FRM this week averaged 6.06 percent with an average 0.5 point, down from last week when it averaged 6.11 percent. A year ago, the 15-year FRM averaged 5.37 percent.Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 6.08 percent this week, with an average 0.5 point, down from last week when it averaged 6.10 percent. A year ago, the five-year ARM averaged 5.31 percent.One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs averaged 5.54 percent this week with an average 0.8 point, down from last week when it averaged 5.60 percent. At this time last year, the one-year ARM averaged 4.48 percent. (more…)

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When it comes to eventually moving into that dream home you’ve always wanted, keep in mind that many of the choices we make on a house are really driven by lifestyle desires, rather than lifestyle needs. More bedrooms means more time to clean, more expensive to repaint and carpet/floor in the future. The bigger the house and the larger the lot, the more you’re going to pay for it both in time and financial resources. The main three decision factors are larger lot, more space and more stuff. Each of these come with a price tag.

Depending on the acreage, the lot is going to cost the owner in regards to acquisition, monthly payment, and upkeep. First is the acquisition. Larger lot means larger price, thus larger down payment and monthly payment. In metropolitan areas, the closer in to the epicenter of town, the more the extra space is going to cost you. If you decide to get it cheaper by moving out of town, then you’ll be paying more for gas and be losing the ever elusive minutes of your life. (more…)

search for : dream home, bedrooms, down payment

The once-sizzling housing market may be rapidly cooling, but not all residential property owners are worried — especially if they happen to own apartment buildings. Landlords are enjoying booming times these days as more people are choosing to rent. Apartment vacancy rates are at five-year lows, averaging 5.6 percent nationwide and only 2.9 percent in the New York metropolitan area, according to the latest data from Reis Inc., a research company. Meanwhile, rents are up nearly 4 percent, on average, over last year, the biggest rise in six years, the company said.

Fewer people have been eager to buy homes lately, in light of lofty prices and higher mortgage rates. What is more, industry analysts say, the supply of rental units is tighter, partly as the result of the conversion of rental apartments to condominiums at the height of the housing surge. And demand is intense as the children of the baby boomers, sometimes called the “echo boomers,” move out on their own. “The apartment landlords have a lot of room to raise rents even more,” said Louis W. Taylor, a senior real estate analyst at Deutsche Bank Securities, who predicts the industry will continue to thrive in the next 9 to 12 months. (Rents, averaging $1,143 a month for a two-bedroom nationwide, according to Reis, could jump 5 to 9 percent next year, Mr. Taylor said.)
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Many headlines and cable news programs are touting a pending real estate bubble. Sure this helps increase their ratings, but there are too many factors in favor of real estate to worry about the naysayers. All you have to do is look back to the early `90s. In the early part of the decade, prospects for real estate investments were looking about as good as they are today. After Japanese investors paid extravagant prices for Hawaiian hotels and Los Angeles office properties sent the real estate market climbing, the `80s real estate boom was topped off when a Japanese consortium purchased the iconic Pebble Beach golf course for $500 million.

The examples above are just a few of the national real estate players. On the local level, I know there are thousands of individual investors and real estate speculators that have been piling up cash while waiting for housing prices to begin to fall. Once they start falling, these investors are going to have to outbid each other to get their hands on these depressed properties. One final point is that houses have utility value. That’s economic parlance for a tangible use. After all, you can live in a house. Other examples of items with utility value are a hammer (because it can hammer nails) and a washing machine (because it washes clothes). These items have value as tools to make your life easier. (more…)

search for : real estate investments, Japanese investors, real estate

Creating an outdoor oasis is touted as the second most popular home remodel behind a kitchen makeover. “We’re bringing the inside out because island barbecues come with refrigerators, storage drawers, side burners. Our islands are [designed] so you can put CD stereos in them, televisions, mood lighting,” says Frank Camarena, Cal Spas. But with summer winding down and the seasons turning colder, is it too late to put this remodel in the works? Not if you plan to make your outdoor oasis useable 365 days a year by creating a sunroom.

Today, many homeowners are turning sunrooms into home offices, second bedrooms, and extra sitting rooms. Inside sunrooms homeowners are building pools, spas and other relaxing amenities. A sunroom is different from a standard room addition “because of the panoramic view that you can achieve with a sunroom, you get the real feeling of having an outdoor feeling but being protected from the [weather] elements, the temperature, the bugs,” explains Chavez. Whether you’re considering an outdoor oasis or a sunroom, the most important things to consider are the size of space you want to dedicate to the addition, the glass technology that you’ll use (if you’re building a sunroom), and, as with any remodel, do your homework to find a reputable, trustworthy contractor to do the work. (more…)

search for : outdoor oasis, island barbecues, remodel, sunrooms