Parts of Salt Lake City have experienced amazing jumps in home values over the last few years. In fact, some areas of the city have seen home values grow between 51% and 63%. While these are the extremes, other areas of the city have experienced double digit growth in the area of 10-20% in previous [...]
The First Republic Prestige Home Index(TM) conducted by First Republic Bank announced that luxury home values posted small gains in Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco in the second quarter of 2006. The Index reports that: Los Angeles values rose 3.0% from the first quarter of 2006 to the second quarter and climbed 12.8% [...]
With the real estate market cooling in most areas of the country, one predicted problem is beginning to rear its ugly head. For some time, critics within the industry have warned of the potential problem of inflated home appraisals. Sure, they were great when home prices were rising fast, and market values could quickly catch [...]
Across the country, developers are attempting to sweeten the deal in order to sell their condos. Unfortunately, incentives such as free plasma TVs and $5,000 home renovation gift certificates aren’t getting buyers to rush in and sign on the dotted line. In fact, the rush to offer additional incentives may actual be counter-productive. Many buyers [...]
In 2006, single-family mortgages are expected to top $2.48 trillion. Three years ago, the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals estimated that undocumented Latino immigrants could represent as much as $44 billion in new mortgage loans. Others estimate that amount may even be higher and continue to grow with only 49% of Hispanics currently [...]
The last time home affordability fell to an all time low was in 1981 when interest rates jumped from 13% to 16%. As a result, renting instead of owning a home was popular. But, what’s happening to today’s market? Interest rates haven’t climbed as high as they did in 1981, yet, more and more people [...]
Heard of an anti-concurrent causation clause before? Chances are if you haven’t, you will over the next few months as more and more lawsuits move through the court systems. An anti-concurrent causation clause has been around since the mid-1980s when insurers started putting them in their homeowner’s policies. The clause typically says something like this, [...]
For the seventh consecutive year in a row, farm real estate values in North Dakota have increased. This year’s average value of $560 per acre is a jump of nearly 11 percent from last year and 23 percent higher than 2004. Nationally, farm real estate values average $1,900 per acre, up 15 percent from last [...]
With the real estate market and the economy, as a whole, slowing down, and inflation nipping at our heels, the big question is will the Fed finally stop increasing interest rates. The big answer will come tomorrow, but many Wall Street experts are predicting that Federal Chairman Bernanke will not raise interest rates. Furthermore, that [...]
One of New York’s hotest real estate investment spots is noticing a visible slow down in the market. Home sales in the Hamptons have recently dropped 18%. A total of 1,727 homes were sold during 2006′s first half which is down from 2,106 a year earlier. According to the U.S. Commerce Department, the average price [...]