Archives for 2012
Foreclosure Inventory: Highest & Lowest States*
June 1, 2012 By Leave a Comment
*as a percentage of all mortgaged homes
One in four homes sold in Q1 were distressed properties
June 1, 2012 By Leave a Comment
New data from RealtyTrac shows falling prices and increasing frequency of sales of distressed properties, with improving process times for aggressively priced short sales.
Short sales and foreclosures
According to RealtyTrac, one in four homes sold in the first quarter of 2012 were distressed properties, reaching 26 percent of all sales, up from 22 percent the previous quarter. RealtyTrac data also reveals that foreclosure homes sold for an average of $161,214, a 27 percent discount compared to non-distressed homes sold. Short sale homes accounted for 12 percent of all homes sold in the first quarter, for an average price of $175,461, the lowest level since RealtyTrac began tracking foreclosures seven years ago.
“Foreclosure-related sales picked up in the first quarter, particularly pre-foreclosure sales where a distressed homeowner is selling to avoid foreclosure — typically via short sale,” said Brandon Moore, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. “Those pre-foreclosure sales hit a three-year high in the first quarter even as the average pre-foreclosure sales price dropped to a record low for our report.”
Moore continued, “Meanwhile the average price of a bank-owned home is stabilizing and even increasing in some areas where a slowdown in REO activity over the past year has resulted in a restricted supply of REO homes available. Still, REO sales did increase on a quarterly basis in 21 states, indicating that lenders are still working through a bottleneck of unsold REO inventory in many areas.”
Processing times, regional performance
During the first quarter, it took an average of 306 days to complete a short sale, and 370 days to process a foreclosure. “Lenders are approving more aggressively priced short sales, which in turn is resulting in more successful short sale transactions,” Moore said.
As short sales and foreclosure sales rose in the first quarters, REOs fell 15 percent over the year, accounting for only 14 percent of all sales during the period.
Nevada, where housing bubbled during the boom and sank during the bust, had more distressed property sales than any other state, followed by California and Georgia, RealtyTrac said.
Among the nation’s 20 largest metropolitan statistical areas, those with the biggest annual increases in pre-foreclosure sales were Atlanta (78 percent), Detroit (75 percent), San Antonio (74 percent), Sacramento (70 percent), and Dallas (69 percent).
Metro areas with the biggest annual increases in REO sales were Minneapolis (33 percent), Boston (30 percent), Philadelphia (22 percent), Atlanta (15 percent), and Chicago (13 percent).
via: Tara Steele
12 Spring Fix-Ups That Save You Money
June 1, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Yearly Upkeep
It’s time to prep your house and yard for warmer weather. Target these 12 trouble spots and DIY upgrade opportunities to slash utility bills, boost curb appeal, and up your comfort all year long.
1. Stain the Fence
Why Now: Sunlight degrades the lignin that bonds wood fibers, allowing water to penetrate and causing the surface to gray. A semitransparent stain fortified with UV blockers can halt damage while giving pressure-treated pine a warm tone that mimics pricey hardwood.
How to Do It: Knock debris and flakes off the wood with a broom. Brush on a nontoxic deck cleaner, then rinse and let dry. Use a landscape pump sprayer to evenly apply a penetrating stain, such as Penofin Verde (about $56 per gallon; decksdirect.com). This high-tech finish, made from Brazilian rosewood oil, comes in 18 colors, offers 99 percent UV protection, and has zero VOCs, so it’s safe for you and the environment.
The Payoff: Extend the life of your fence, and get the look of cedar for about half the price.
Read the rest at ThisOldHouse.com
Working Tunes: What You Should Listen to on the Job [Infographic]
May 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Depending on what type of job you might have, different songs and types of music can have varying effects on your productivity or working environment as a whole. For instance, while heavy metal might not be the best choice for, say, a kindergarten teacher, a trucker driving cross-country might benefit from the loud, fast music as it will help him stay alert and awake.
If you’re a desk jockey who works with boring numbers all day there is really nothing you shouldn’t listen to, as long as the song has a beat. If you’re working with programming, though, the ability to stay focused is important so you might want to skip over the heavier tracks or punk songs.
Today’s flowchart-style infographic comes from audio equipment outlet Sonos and gives you a chance to see what music might (and might not) be best-suited for your particular work environment.
For more examples and to see what tunes your job might be best suited for please refer to the infographic below. [Via]
Luxury Floats: Lovely Modern Home on Seattle’s Lake Union
May 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment
This stunning home on Seattle’s Lake Union from Vandeventer + Carlander Architects is an unconventional take on the well-loved Seattle floating home. Offering spectacular views on all sides – downtown to the south, Gas Works Park to the north, Queen Anne Hill to the west and the lovely Lake Union all around – the home is in an indisputably desirable location.
But what really makes the home stand out is its upside-down floor plan. The private spaces – that is, those usually reserved only for the residents – are on the first floor and encased in huge, glittering windows.
The public spaces – those normally shared with guests – are located on the second floor. This unusual layout offers incredible views from the living room, dining room and open kitchen.
Outdoor living spaces are incorporated into the home’s design to further strengthen its connection to the beautiful location. Dual terraces and a rooftop deck let residents and visitors enjoy the spectacular views at any time.
The modern architecture of this floating home is perfectly offset by its luxurious setting and a few elaborate appointments, such as the spiral staircase leading to the rooftop deck. It is a home that is uniquely Seattle, through and through.
The Unspoken Appraisal Problem
May 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment
As lenders, buyers, sellers, and real estate agents, the big unknown after a deal is put together is the appraisal. A proper pre-approval can smooth out the other components of the mortgage approval (income, assets, and credit- even title issues can be uncovered before the contracts are signed), so the only “unknown” is the appraisal.
The spoken challenges:
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An appraised value has always been loosely defined as “what a reasonable buyer would pay to a reasonable seller”, meaning that both sides were of sound mind and under no external pressure. But in today’s environment of foreclosures and short sales, the whole concept of “reasonable” is muddled. So, appraisers are challenged, through no fault of their own, in determining a home’s value because they can’t ignore the data and the distressed transactions, but should they be considered “reasonable”?
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Add to it the prevalence of seller’s concessions today (wherein the seller agrees to pay the buyer’s closing costs) and the appraiser is faced with a further dilemma> If the seller is willing to pay $10,000 of the buyer’s closing costs, doesn’t that mean that they believe the “reasonable” value of their home is less than the actual price? Many will argue that the seller’s merely looking to make their home more financially attractive to solicit more interest in it, creating more competition, and thereby securing the highest price for themselves.
So, appraisers are in a difficult position, for sure. But, there is a problem with appraisals today that goes beyond a property’s worth. It’s the unspoken challenge.
With the advent of post real estate bubble regulations (predominantly HVCC in terms of appraisals), most lenders order their appraisals through a third-party company. This company gives the appearance of independence- a company immune to the pressures of a loan officer or a real estate agent who might push a value too high. But, in fact, many of these Appraisal Management Companies are owned or controlled by the lenders themselves. And these AMCs don’t actually do the appraising. In many cases, they subcontract the work out to actual appraisers, but only pay them a fraction of the monies collected.
So, appraisers, besides being under tremendous scrutiny, today have a tougher job and they are asked to work for less money. Is it surprising that they would be conservative in their evaluations? The bubble was not the appraisers fault. There were multiple reasonable buyers willing to pay the prices in 2006, and the values reported were valid at the time. The appraisers didn’t create outrageous underwriting guidelines that allowed too many unqualified buyers to bid on those homes.
Let’s get rid of HVCC and let the appraisers do their job; otherwise, home appraisers will not be showing appreciation in any real estate market.
(via)