Emmanuel Fonte | Music | Art | Leadership
If music be the food of love, play on. Emmanuel Fonte website is about music, art, real estate, architecture, design and decor. Occasionally, I talk about my other passion, hockey.
The latest trend in Seattle’s real estate market has homeowners looking up for some quick cash. Depending on where you live, the air above your house could be worth a lot of money.
source: Realestate.msn.com
Collectively, immigrants have added $3.7 trillion to U.S. housing wealth, helping stabilize communities across the United States. The map below, the result of research by AS/COA and Partnership for a New American Economy, shows the net change in a county’s immigrant population from 2000–2010 and the corresponding effect on median home value. Learn more about how immigrants boost U.S. economic vitality through the housing market and view methodology.
Click on the map, you’ll be able to scroll over a county or type in a zip code in the bottom right to see the impact of immigration on average home values.
source: http://www.as-coa.org/interactive-impact-immigration-housing-market
source: KCM
After a large, large slump, the housing market is on the rebound. House prices are finally rising and a few markets appear to be headed in a strong and healthy direction for 2013. We are finally moving in a positive direction!
Today’s infographic profiles ten all-star cities, that are sitting pretty in the 2013 housing market. By analyzing median house and rent prices in cities with strong job markets and low vacancy rates, a solid list of cities emerge. This list is a great reference, with valuable information about each city and and plenty of financials to boot.
The list includes Seattle. I you are planning a move here, give today’s infographic a quick read! [Via]
Gallup just released its poll, American Dream of Owning Home Lives On. Their conclusion?
“Gallup data on homeownership provide strong support for the idea that the American Dream of owning a home continues to be alive and well.
The majority of Americans who own a home plan on continuing to do so in the future, and most of those who don’t own a home plan on buying one.”
A recent study by mortgage giant Fannie Mae showed that 90 percent of renters aspire to be home owners one day, and the top reason behind that desire is for the sense of gaining greater control over their living arrangements.
The survey revealed the following top reasons why renters want to own:
In the survey, renters identified the following reasons for why they are renting:
Source: “Why It’s True: You Should Own, Not Rent,” TheStreet.com
In some markets, home buyers are facing steep competition for the home they want to buy. For example, in May, nearly 70 percent of the offers written by Redfin real estate agents faced multiple offers. However, that is down slightly from 73.3 percent of offers with multiple bids in April, according to the real estate brokerage’s May 2013 Bidding War Report, which compiled stats from 2,000 offers written by its agents. As the number of home sales increases in many markets, competition is easing somewhat in many markets, according to the report.
California continues to hold some of the most competitive housing markets, with buyers most often facing multiple bid situations.
According to the Redfin report, the following markets were the most competitive in May:
1. San Francisco
Percent of offers that faced competition: 87.9%
Percent of offers that were over the asking price: 96.8%
2. Los Angeles
Percent of offers that faced competition: 86.1%
Percent of offers that were over the asking price: 25%
3. Orange County
Percent of offers that faced competition: 83.9%
Percent of offers that were over the asking price: 58.1%
4. San Diego
Percent of offers that faced competition: 72.6%
Percent of offers that were over the asking price: 60.9%
5. Boston
Percent of offers that faced competition: 68.1%
Percent of offers that were over the asking price: 56.5%
6. Seattle
Percent of offers that faced competition: 67.4%
Percent of offers that were over the asking price: 60.6%
7. Washington, D.C.
Percent of offers that faced competition: 66.8%
Percent of offers that were over the asking price: 36.1%
Source: Redfin
We just got the Case-Shiller report showing house prices through March.
The annualized gain of over 10% was the hottest reading since April 2006.
Not only are home prices increasing, the recovery is accelerating.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-of-the-day-march-case-shiller-2013-5#ixzz2UhDTzPOO
Every potential home buyer has to stop for at least a moment and consider this question. Today, we want to look at one of the many financial reasons to buy instead of rent: the housing expense moving forward.
According to the latest Existing Home Sales Report from the National Association of Realtors, the median sales price of a home in the U.S. is $184,300. The mortgage payment (principal & interest) on that purchase would be $661.89 assuming a 20% down payment and a 3.5% mortgage interest rate. Currently, the median asking rent in the U.S. according to the Census Bureau is $717 a month.
We realize that the two payments do not necessarily reflect the housing cost on a similar residence. However, that is not the point of the post. All we are saying is that the monthly housing expense on a median price home is $661.89 and the median rent is $717. We now want to discuss what will happen to these costs over time.
The principal and interest portion of the mortgage payment is locked in for the next 30 years. We know real estate taxes may be included in the payment and will increase to some degree over that time. We also acknowledge that the homeowner will have occasion to spend money on repairs. They also receive many tax advantages as a homeowner.
However, the actual monthly housing expense remains the same for the next 30 years.
Now, let’s look at what happens to a rent payment. The best thing to do to predict the future is to study the past. Here is a graph of the median asking rent since 1988 based on Census Bureau data:
We believe rents will follow their historically pattern and increase dramatically over the next 30 years. Buyers have a choice: either lock in your housing expense or deal with the uncertainty of rental increases.