Divorce - The New Real Estate Niche

Real Estate Pros Discovering 'Divorce Niche'

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | TUESDAY, APRIL 02, 2013

Some real estate professionals are finding a big source of their clients are coming from breakups. Real estate professionals who find themselves an agent in a divorce situation say it’s not easy to navigate, particularly if they’re representing two people who aren’t even speaking to one another or when the one partner wants to make sure the other doesn’t come out ahead. 

“We specialize in it,” Vicki Stout, an agent at Keller Williams Suburban Realty in Livingston, N.J., told The New York Times. Stout and her business partner Bob Bailey-Lemansky say real estate transactions involving breakups make up about half of their business.  

In finding what works in the “divorce niche,” Stout and Bailey-Lemansky say that having one man and one woman on the sales team can make couples more comfortable. They realize they will have to have every conversation at least twice and navigate carefully when couples are fighting or even when clients have restraining orders on one another. 

Many brokers say they try to keep the word “divorce” quiet in a real estate transaction so buyers don’t then think “fire sale,” and that the sellers are desperate.  For example, Frances Katzen, managing director at Douglas Elliman, says that even if a closet looks bare on one side, she’ll rearrange it so the home looks less like a divorce situation. 

The real estate professionals who specialize in working with divorce clients say the transactions can be emotionally heated but when the home does eventually sell, it often means more business for the agent. The parting couple then will look for separate places to live and often call on that agent again.

Source: “After the Breakup, They Help Sell the House,” The New York Times (April 1, 2013)

Huge Desire for Buyers

Americans Showing More Desire to Buy

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | TUESDAY, APRIL 02, 2013

The percentage of U.S. residents who say owning a home is an essential part of the American dream has hit a three-year high, reaching 79 percent, according to the CNBC-All-America Economic Survey. What’s more, the number of Americans who say it is better to own than rent grew by four points to 69 percent, according to the survey. 

More Americans also believe owning a home is a better long-term investment than stocks. 

“The housing numbers are all heading in the right direction,” reports Diana Olick for CNBC. “Home prices up, foreclosures down and, perhaps the most important, consumer confidence in housing is swelling.” 

Still, first-time home buyers will be the “wild card” in the spring-summer home buying season, says Thomas Popik, research director for Campbell Surveys. “We see strong first-time homebuyer traffic, but it’s still not clear that the traffic will translate into increased purchases because first-time home buyers are dependent on low downpayment financing, such as FHA mortgages.” 

Source: “People Are Becoming More and More Confident in Housing Market,” CNBC (April 1, 2013)

Remember These??? Interest-Only Loans ReAppear

Interest-only Mortgages Begin to Reappear

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 06, 2013

Well-off borrowers increasingly are turning to interest-only mortgages, the same ilk of loan that drove many home owners into foreclosure in recent years. With this product, borrowers pay interest but no principal during the first few years of the loan. The monthly payments can be 30 percent to 40 percent lower than regular mortgages.

Interest-only mortgages accounted for about 14 percent of private mortgage originations from January 2012 through October, according to the latest data from real estate analytics firm CoreLogic. Under new mortgage rules by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, lenders that continue to provide interest-only mortgages starting in 2014 could face greater liability in lawsuits filed by borrowers who end up in foreclosure.

Lenders say they provide these loans only to lower-risk, affluent borrowers with significant assets. Some borrowers find these mortgages are more flexible, but they do come with risks. Borrowers will not build equity in homes with interest-only payments, and a fall in housing prices could leave borrowers owing more on the home than it is worth.

Source: "The Return of Interest-Only Mortgages," Marketwatch (03/01/13)

Copyright © 2013 Information, Inc.

Christopher Pollock

Loan Demand Surges!

Loan Demand Surges as Rates Fall

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 06, 2013

Mortgage applications for home purchases -- viewed as a leading indicator of future home sales -- rose a whopping 15 percent for the week ending March 1, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s weekly mortgage application activity index. 

Overall, the index -- which includes applications for home purchases and refinancings -- rose 14.8 percent, reaching its highest level since mid-January. 

Last week’s surge was a reversal of course after three consecutive weeks of declines in home mortgage applications.

Refinancing applications make up the biggest bulk of the index, and rose 14.8 percent last week. 

Applications rose as mortgage rates dropped last week. For example, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.70 percent last week, down 7 basis points from the previous week, MBA reported. 

Source: “Mortgage Applications Surged Last Week as Rates Fell,” Reuters (March 6, 2013)

Christopher Pollock

10 States with HIGEST Vacancies

10 States With the Highest Home Ownership Vacancies

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 06, 2013

The housing market is heating up, but some metros are still posting a large percentage of vacancies. The U.S. Census Bureau released a report of home ownership rates for the 75 largest metro areas for 2012. 

The following are the 10 metros with the largest number of home ownership vacancies (and that metro's vacancy rate). 

• Bakersfield, Calif.: 4%
• Greensboro, N.C.: 3.5%
• Las Vegas: 3.4%
• Toledo, Ohio: 3.3% 
• Riverside-San Bernardino, Calif.: 3.3%
• St. Louis: 3.1%
• Virginia Beach: 2.9% 
• New Orleans: 2.9% 
• Providence, R.I.: 2.9% 
• Chicago: 2.8%

Meanwhile, the metros with the lowest home ownership vacancy rates were El Paso, Texas (0.1%); Springfield, Mass. (0.4%); Oxnard, Calif. (0.5%); and Rochester, N.Y. (0.5%).

Source: “Which Metros Have the Highest Home Ownership Vacancy Rates?” Jacksonville Business Journal (March 4, 2013) 

Christopher Pollock

Immigrants will BOOST home PRICES and Values

Report: Immigrants to Help Shape Future Housing Demand

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 06, 2013

Home ownership and rental demand may both get an uptick as a large number of immigrants are expected to enter the United States and call it home by 2020, according to a new study sponsored by the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Research Institute for Housing America. 

The study makes projections to the year 2020 on the growth of U.S. home owner households headed by immigrants. 

The number of foreign-born home owners continues to grow bigger each decade, according to the report. For example, the number of foreign-born home owners rose 800,000 from 1980 to 1990; by 2.1 million from 1990 to 2000; and then by 2.4 million from 2000 to 2010. 

For the 2010 to 2020 period, researchers project that number to rise 2.8 million. 

The home ownership rate has particularly grown among the Hispanic immigrant population. In 1990, Hispanic immigrants had a 15 percent home ownership rate, which grew to nearly 53 percent in 2010. By 2020, Hispanics’ home ownership rate is expected to rise above 61 percent, according to researchers. 

The states with the greatest demand from the foreign-born on home ownership are California and New York. 

"As the housing market continues its recovery, it is important to understand the demographic trends which are likely to impact housing demand in the years ahead," says Michael Fratantoni, RIHA’s executive director.  "This study provides information for lenders, builders, and policymakers regarding the future shape of housing demand, which the authors clearly show will be substantially impacted by the housing choices of foreign-born households, whether they are renters or home owners."

Source: “Housing demand to grow as new immigrants arrive,” HousingWire (March 5, 2013)

Christopher Pollock

HUGE Home Prices Jump

Another Big Leap for Home Prices

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 06, 2013

Another home price index is showing home prices surging: CoreLogic’s home price index shows that home prices nationwide in January rose 9.7 percent year-over-year, posting their largest percentage increase since April 2006. 

It was the 11th consecutive month of month-over-month increases in existing-home sales, according to CoreLogic’s index. 

"Home prices continued to gather steam across a broad swath of the country in January, continuing the positive trend we saw during most of 2012," says Anand Nallathambi, president and CEO of CoreLogic. "Many states across the western U.S. and along the East Coast saw average price gains of more than 6 percent, which is likely to boost home sale activity into the first half of 2013.”

The states seeing the biggest year-over-year rises in home prices in January were Arizona (20.1%), Nevada (17.4%), Idaho (14.9%), and California (14.1%), according to CoreLogic’s index. The only states not seeing year-over-year price increases were Delaware (-0.1%) and Illinois (-0.4%). 

Source: “Home Prices Take Biggest Leap in 7 Years,” Inman News (March 5, 2013)

Read More

More Real Estate Pros Optimistic About Home Values
Are Home Prices Rising Too Fast?

Christopher Pollock

2017 - Where are Home Prices Headed

Where Are Home Prices Heading Through 2017?

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | THURSDAY, MARCH 07, 2013

Home prices are expected to continue their trajectory upward, projected to rise 3.7 percent between the third quarters of 2013 and 2014, according to Fiserv, which used data from the Federal Housing Finance Agency for its projection. 

Following the third quarter of 2014, Fiserv predicts home prices to rise an average 3.3 percent annually over the next three years. 

“Although some recent real estate activity has been speculative, it seems as if buyers have more realistic expectations about housing market returns after having lived through the largest housing market crash in U.S. history,” says David Stiff, Fiserv’s chief economist. “2012 was the first year since 1997 that the housing market has resembled something recognizable as normal. For the past 15 years, home-price changes and sales volumes have either been boosted by a bubble mentality or crushed by crash psychology.” 

In 1997, home prices grew at a 3 percent rate, Stiff says, but from 1998 to 2006, prices started soaring above 5 percent and even saw double-digit increases in some of those years. 

By the end of 2013, Fiserv expects that home prices will increase in nearly every U.S. metro area, while some markets may see short-term double-digit price increases. 

Source: “Home Prices Expected to Rise at Least 3.3 Percent Annually Through 2017,” RISMedia (March 6, 2013)

Read More

Another Big Leap for Home Prices

Christopher Pollock

Quicken Loans Now #3

Quicken Loans Grabs Mortgage Market Share

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | THURSDAY, MARCH 07, 2013

Quicken Loans is growing its market share in the mortgage business, having just surpassing Bank of America as the third-largest mortgage lender in the U.S., according to rankings compiled over the last three months of 2012 from the Mortgage Daily. 

Quicken Loans had 5 percent of the market share in the fourth quarter, totaling $25.1 billion in originations. Bank of America is now the fourth-largest lender, with 4 percent of the market share and $22.5 billion in mortgage originations during the fourth quarter. 

Wells Fargo continues to be the leader in this space with 23 percent of the mortgage market share and $125 billion in origination volume in the fourth quarter. Chase comes in second with 10 percent of the mortgage business and $51.6 billion in volume.

For 2012, overall mortgage originations grew 30 percent, reaching $1.89 trillion. 

Source: “Quicken Loans surpasses BofA in home lending,” Inman News (March 6, 2013)

Christopher Pollock

Construction Jobs Way UP

Construction Job Gains a Sign of Positive Growth

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2013

On March 8, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its February Employment Report and the numbers are promising. “We’re seeing the very early fruits of recovery,” explains Dr. Peter Muoio, head of the research division of online real estate marketplace Auction.com.

While commercial construction job growth is most impressive—a 3.1 percent seasonally-adjusted gain over year-ago figures and an addition of 15,500 jobs in the past 3 months—residential construction employment isn’t lagging too far behind. The sector was up 0.6 percent over the last 3 months, reflecting the 3,300 jobs added over that time.

“When we compare the residential numbers in a year-over-year basis, for the first time we’re seeing that it is marginally positive, with a 0.1 percent gain,” Muoio says.

The senior economist explained that the expansion comes from growth in the multi-family and single-family home construction markets from numbers reported in February 2012. According to Muoio, multi-family home building has made significant strides since then and single-family home construction—typically the bigger portion of the sector—is showing “glimmerings of growth.”

With renewed life for the home building industry, Muoio is confident this development will boost related industries, such as home furnishing and home manufacturing. Their growth may serve to reinforce the idea that the housing sector is gaining speed.

“You buy a house and then you need to furnish it, get the draperies and curtains, and do some painting,” Muoio says.

By Melissa Kandel, REALTOR® Magazine

Source

Christopher Pollock

Are you a Mega Commuter?

About 600,000 Americans travel more than 90 minutes each way—more than 50 miles—to get from home to work each day, according to a new U.S. Census Bureau report. 

“Megacommutes” are known for being worst in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and New Orleans. Megacommuters tend to be male, older, married, and paid higher than the average worker, according to Census data. 

Nearly 11 million people have what’s considered just “long commutes” from home to work, averaging just over an hour each way, according to the report. New York averaged the most “long commuters,” followed by Maryland and New Jersey. 

Source: “600,000 Americans Have 'Megacommutes' of Over 90 Minutes,” CNNMoney (March 6, 2013)

Christopher Pollock

10 Costliest Cities

New York is the lone U.S. city to land in the top 10 most expensive residential real estate markets in the world, according to a new report from Knight Frank. 

But with luxury homes in New York costing anywhere from $2,030 to $2,240 per square foot, it’s only about half  as expensive as the most expensive housing market in the world: Monaco. There, luxury homes can cost $5,350 to $5,920 per square foot. 

The following are the top 10 priciest housing markets in the world and the average cost per square foot in U.S. dollars, according to the report:

1. Monaco: $5,350 to $5,920
2. Hong Kong: $4,570 to $5,050
3. London: $3,890 to $4,300
4. Geneva: $2,720 to $3,010
5. Paris: $2,350 to $2,600
6. Singapore: $2,340 to $2,580
7. Moscow: $2,040 to $2,260
8. New York: $2,030 to $2,240
9. Sydney: $2,020 to $2,230
10. Shanghai: $1,820 to 2,020

Other U.S. cities rounding out the top 20 list were Miami at number 13 (priced between $1,300 to $1,440 per square foot) and Los Angeles at number 15 (priced between$1,210 to $1,340 per square foot).

Source: “Here Are the World’s Most Expensive Real Estate Markets,” The Business Insider (March 7, 2013)

Christopher Pollock

HUGE Housing Gains 88%

88% of U.S. Cities See Housing Price Gains

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

As the housing recovery broadened in the fourth quarter of 2012, the National Association of REALTORS® reports that prices for single-family homes rose in nearly 88 percent of U.S. cities. 

According to the report, the median sales price rose on an annual basis in 133 of 152 metro areas tracked. In the July-through-September period, by comparison, just 120 areas had registered gains. 

Researchers cite low interest rates coupled with an improving job market as the main reasons for the higher home prices.  Those two factors combined have fueled demand for a tightening supply of listings. 

According to NAR, the national median price for an existing single-family home was $178,900 in the last three months of 2012 — a 10 percent increase from the fourth quarter a year prior and the biggest gain since 2005. 

Here's a look at the top-performing metro areas:

• Phoenix: Prices soared 34 percent from the fourth quarter of 2011 
• Detroit: Prices rose 31 percent
• San Francisco: Prices rose 28 percent 
• Cape Coral, Fla.: Prices rose 26 percent 

The Kingston, N.Y., area had the biggest decline in the NAR report — down 7.9 percent in the quarter — followed by Kankakee, Ill., with an 7 percent drop.

Source: "Home Prices Increase in Most Metro Areas" Fort Worth Star-Telegram (02/12/13)

Christopher Pollock

Younger Generations Rate Home Ownership Higher

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

Younger Americans place more importance and hold more favorable views toward home ownership than older generations, according to a new survey from Prudential Real Estate of about 5,000 potential buyers and sellers. 

About 77 percent of those aged 25-34 and 78 percent of those aged 35 to 44 rate home ownership as “very important.” The millennials and Generation X age group represent the ages between 25 and 44. 

“Millennials and Generation X — about 85 million people strong — face a unique opportunity in U.S. housing,” says Earl Lee, president of Prudential Real Estate. “They are generally optimistic about home ownership and, by nature, share a strong sense of community. As important, many were not impacted by the real estate downturn and are looking at today’s buying opportunities with keen interest.” 

Seventy-four percent of all survey respondents say that interest rates at historically low levels make it a great time to purchase a home. The primary drivers for owning a home, according to the survey, were for more control over space, safety, and as an investment. 

Still, consumers are cautious about the real estate process. Sixty-two percent of respondents say that obtaining financing is more challenging, and 72 percent say that having a trusted partner as a reliable source of information is important to them. 

“It’s been a tough road but the momentum we are seeing across the economy and real estate market appears sustainable,” says Stephen Phillips, chief operating officer for HSF Affiliates LLC. “Real estate agents have a real opportunity to develop new relations with a younger generation ready to invest in a home, and with others who are returning to the market thanks to improving conditions.”

Source: Prudential Real Estate

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Christopher Pollock

Rates are RISING

As Rates Rise, Mortgage Applications Drop

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2013

Loan demand dropped last week as interest rates rose for the fourth straight week, the Mortgage Bankers Association reports. 

The index measuring mortgage application activity, which includes applications for refinancing and home purchases, fell 6.4 percent for the week ending Feb. 8.

Separated out, refinancing applications during the week dropped 5.5 percent while applications for home purchases, viewed as a leading indicator of home sales, fell 9.5 percent. 

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.75 percent last week, up from 3.73 percent the previous week. The 30-year rate is at its highest level since September 2012, according to the MBA. 

Source: “U.S. Mortgage Applications Slumped Last Week as Rates Rose,” Reuters (Feb. 13, 2013)

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