You are here: Home \ 2010 \ September

From the monthly archives:

September 2010

Would Lower Market Rates Pump Up Sales?

by John TayebSeptember 30, 2010 Foreclosures

Will mortgage rates ever drop to zero percent? Zero percent financing has long been a loss leader in the automotive industry, but Keith Gumbinger, vice president of HSH Associates, a provider of mortgage information, says that scenario is unlikely. You’d have to find an investor who would buy a security with a zero return – [...]

1 comment Read the full article →

Housing Tax Incentives Benefit Young Owners the Most

by Tayeb Realty GroupSeptember 30, 2010 Real Estate in New York

Housing tax incentives mostly benefit younger households, according to research from the National Association of Home Builders. The average mortgage interest deduction peaks for taxpayers in the 35 to under-45 age group, followed by the 18-to 34-aged taxpayers, and declines as the taxpayer gets older, according to the research, “Any tampering with this deduction would [...]

1 comment Read the full article →

Warning: getimagesize() [function.getimagesize]: Couldn't resolve host name in /home/newyorkr/public_html/wp-content/themes/tizishtheme/lib/functions/post_images.php on line 63

Warning: getimagesize(http://loanmodsman.com/Images/foreclosure_sale.jpg) [function.getimagesize]: failed to open stream: operation failed in /home/newyorkr/public_html/wp-content/themes/tizishtheme/lib/functions/post_images.php on line 63

Fannie and Freddie Offering Hard to Beat Deals

by John TayebSeptember 29, 2010 Foreclosures

Beginning this week, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are trying to sell off 150,000 foreclosed homes by offering low down payments, no requirement for mortgage insurance, and up to $30,000 added to the mortgage for renovations. In addition, the real estate practitioner selling the property gets a $1,500 bonus. In some neighborhoods, these properties undercut [...]

1 comment Read the full article →

Applications to Purchase Homes Rose Last Week

by Tayeb Realty GroupSeptember 29, 2010 Foreclosures

Mortgage applications to purchase homes rose 2.4 percent last week, compared to the previous week, on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the weekly report from the Mortgage Bankers Association. The increase was driven by a 4.5 percent rise in applications for government-guaranteed mortgages, including FHA and VA loans. Conventional purchase applications increased 0.8 percent. [...]

1 comment Read the full article →

Business Is Brisk in the Trendy Hamptons

by John TayebSeptember 23, 2010 Housing Market News Update

This summer, sellers in New York’s Hamptons dropped their prices, and buyers were willing to raise their price expectations. Or as Jonathan Miller, president and chief executive of Miller Samuel, a real estate consulting firm, put it, “Sellers capitulated, and buyers weren’t looking to buy things for $1.” Practitioners said that there was a lot [...]

11 comments Read the full article →

Zillow.com May Go Public

by Tayeb Realty GroupSeptember 22, 2010 commercial real estate

Rumors that Zillow.com is about to file for an initial public offering and go public are being fueled by executive changes at the top. Rich Barton, who is a co-founder and who has been CEO, announced last week that he would become executive chairman. Spencer Rascoff, Zillow’s chief operating officer and the founder of Hotwire, [...]

1 comment Read the full article →

White Can Be the Key to a Dramatic Room

by John TayebSeptember 22, 2010 home improvement

Interior designer Vicente Wolf’s new book, Lifting the Curtain on Design, says simply, “White can do everything. Painting a room white simplifies the environment. It brings it to its essence.” Wolf, who has spent most of his career trying to expand small places in New York City, relies on white strategically throughout an apartment. His [...]

1 comment Read the full article →

Are Cramdowns the Answer to Underwater Properties?

by Tayeb Realty GroupSeptember 22, 2010 commercial real estate

The rising number of home repossessions could encourage Congress to pass cramdown legislation, something lenders fought vigorously and prevailed against when bankruptcy laws were reformed. But the cramdown concept has been working successfully in Chapter 12 of the bankruptcy code, which affects farmland. Cramdowns, or more properly “bifurcation,” divide the value of the debt between [...]

1 comment Read the full article →

Fannie, Freddie in the Home-Selling Business

by John TayebSeptember 21, 2010 commercial real estate

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac repossessed more than 191,000 homes during the first six months of 2010, twice as many as a year earlier. The mortgage financiers must act carefully to avoid flooding the market with foreclosures, which tend to depress neighborhood home prices in the process. As an alternative, Fannie Mae has launched a [...]

1 comment Read the full article →

4 Tips for Setting the Right Sales Price

by Tayeb Realty GroupSeptember 21, 2010 Foreclosures

Sellers think their homes are worth more than their real estate professional recommends, and buyers think these same homes are worth less. It’s a difficult disconnect that makes selling properties a challenge. Successfully marketing a home requires that the price be set carefully — or it will languish on the market. Among the considerations: How [...]

2 comments Read the full article →
Page 1 of 41234»