Real Estate Archives - First Preston HTFirst Preston HT

10October

Dress for Success – What to Wear

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As a Realtor, what you choose to wear and how you present yourself to your clients will make an everlasting impression. So with constantly changing fashion trends, how do you decide what to wear?

It’s important to always look clean, neat and professional but where you work (i.e. large city, small town) can dictate your style. Business attire is more appropriate in larger metropolitan cities while casual attire may be more appropriate for smaller towns. One of my favorite rules – you can never be overdressed.

Women can wear a pant suit, or skirt with a shirt or sweater and a jacket. Men can wear a suit and jacket with a tie or dress slacks with a button down shirt. If you chose to wear an item that is more trendy/flashy, like colorful shoes, opt for the rest of your outfit to be more conservative. This will create a balanced look that still allows your style and personality to show through.

24September

Lessons on How Not to Annoy your Real Estate Agent

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Having a good relationship with your real estate agent can make things easier and it’s important to remember that treating them kindly can go a long way and will encourage them to go the extra mile for you. Here are a few things NOT to do to your real estate agent:

Don’t cheat on your agent. Find one agent to work with that you like and stick with them. They work hard for you in hopes of getting paid.
Don’t haggle over price. If you are selling your home and your agent thinks you have received a great offer, don’t hold out for a better one. If you are buying, don’t significantly low-ball the asking price.
Don’t skip out on showings. If you set up an appointment with your agent to see a home, don’t be a no-show. This is inconsiderate to your agent.
Don’t waste your agent’s time. If you aren’t serious about making an offer on a particular property, do not request multiple showings pretending that you are interested.
Don’t stick around for an open house. If your agent is trying to sell your home, it’s proper etiquette to leave the premises until the event is over. This allows potential buyers to feel more comfortable to explore your home.

5August

Pay Your Mortgage Off Quicker

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As people inch closer towards retirement, owning their home outright can help give a since of financial security. Especially for those that have lived through a financial crisis and/or the recent foreclosure crisis. About two-thirds of the nation’s homeowners are paying on a mortgage while more than 20 million own their homes free and clear. What are some ways you can get closer to making that last mortgage payment?

Pay more than you owe – You can do this monthly or once a quarter. Paying a few extra dollars a month or making an extra payment each quarter can help you get closer to your goal. When you pay more than you owe, the extra amount goes towards the principal which effectively decreases the amount of interest you will owe over the course of the loan.
Refinance your mortgage or pretend you did – Obtaining a 15-year fixed rate mortgage will have higher payments than a 30 year fixed rate but you won’t have to pay twice as much. If you are unable to refinance you can act like you did by making payments as if your loan were a 15-year mortgage. This can lead to a lot of interest savings.
Split up your payments – By taking your regular monthly payment and breaking it up into 2 monthly payments or weekly payments during the month you avoid paying extra interest since interest accumulates daily. If you made biweekly payments on a 30-year mortgage you could end up paying off the loan six years earlier depending on your loan’s terms.

For information on effective ways to manage institutional and individual portfolios nationwide, or to shop for real estate visit First Preston HT. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

29July

Pocket Listings on the Rise

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You might be familiar with the term pocket listing by now since it has become more popular during this current housing market. A pocket listing, also known as a “quiet” or “off-market” listing, is a property for sale that an agent doesn’t officially list on the MLS (multiple listing service), but instead keeps in their “pocket.”

Pocket listings started several years ago as a way to market expensive homes or properties of high-profile people while staying under the radar. This allows the seller and agent to test the market’s reaction of the property sales price without the days-on-market clock ticking as it does when listed on the MLS. The agent can also potentially reap commissions from both the buyer and the seller.

Housing inventories have remained low but pocket listings could be skewing the numbers since they are not tracked. Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the Realtors said, “Statistically it appears that we are getting back to very balanced market conditions. However, the sentiment out there is that we still have a shortage of inventory, and I think that is due to the prevalence of pocket listings in some markets.”

For information on effective ways to manage institutional and individual portfolios nationwide, or to shop for real estate visit First Preston HT. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

3July

Will Rental Prices Affect Mortgage Rates?

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It’s no secret by now that the rental market across the U.S. is hot as rental prices are growing at their fastest pace in 5 years. The national vacancy rate was 4.1% during the second quarter of this year and the asking rent increased to an average of $1,099 a month (0.8% increase from the first quarter). So with the cost of renting creeping upward, will this affect those that are looking to buy instead of rent?

Some economists believe mortgage rates could increase as rent continues to rise. Lawrence Yun, The National Association of Relator’s chief economist made a statement, “Given that housing is the biggest weight to overall consumer price inflation, if this rent trend continues, and it could easily because vacancy rates are falling and falling, then the overall CPI inflation will be higher than anticipated, which will then force the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates sooner than later.” There are other economists; however that disagree and feel that interest rate policy will not hinge solely on apartment rents.

Mortgage rates have not seen much action over the past year (30-year fixed rate mortgage rate is 4.17%) but if they were to increase this wouldn’t be beneficial to homebuyers. For housing to grow legs it is important to see job growth and income growth become stronger than it has been. An increase in supply could also help push prices down.

For information on effective ways to manage institutional and individual portfolios nationwide, or to shop for real estate visit First Preston HT. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

25June

Real Estate Values Driven by Walkability

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Home prices have continued to grow over the past year. The Case-Shiller Index noted an increase of 10.8% in home prices year-over-year ending in April. One of the factors that has been linked to the rise appears to be a city’s walkability.

George Washington University School of Business and Smart Growth America joined together to release a report ranking the walkability of 30 of the largest cities in the US. They concluded there is a distinct correlation between real estate values and walkability for both residential and commercial properties. Chris Leinberger, Research Professor of Urban Real Estate at GWU commented, “Walkable, urban for-sale housing is by far the most expensive housing in the country. The range, depends on the market, between 40% and 200% greater than driveable, suburban housing. Twenty-five years ago that relationship didn’t exist because walkable (cities back then) was not valued.”

The younger generation of Millennials tend to prefer transportation via car ride-shares, walking, bike shares and rapid transit in an effort to be more environmentally conscious. Washington, D.C. was ranked number 1 as the most walkable city. Those cities boasting more walkable neighborhoods have seen home real estate values bounce back quicker and higher than those with less.

For information on effective ways to manage institutional and individual portfolios nationwide, or to shop for real estate visit First Preston HT. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

3June

Summer Real Estate in the Hamptons

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For years the Hamptons has been a hot summer destination for New York City dwellers to escape to, along with other vacationers from across the country. The recession took its toll on the summer destination spot along with the real estate market, but this summer the Hamptons look to be coming back strong.

The summer of 2007 was the last big boom the Hamptons saw and this summer is shaping up to be even bigger. So far the high-end real estate has seen a remarkable amount of activity as vacationers seek to rent houses during their stay and investors look for investment properties. The colder and longer than normal winter left potential buyers and renters putting off planning for their summer vacations and now they are scrambling to pin down their plans.

Prices have been on the rise and the Corcoran Report cites increased closed sales were up 38% in the first quarter of the year along with sales volume jumping 27%. The lack of available land in some of the hot spots has contributed to higher prices and some recent big home sales in the area have encouraged other homeowners to put their properties on the market while it’s hot.

What is the Hamptons buyer looking for today in a property? Lots of natural light, open floor plans, plenty of square footage and a combination of indoor and outdoor living space.

For information on effective ways to manage institutional and individual portfolios nationwide, or to shop for real estate visit First Preston HT. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

13May

Home Prices are Hot

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Home prices continue to rise in what is undoubtedly a seller’s market. According to Zillow, prices have increased so quickly that about 1,000 local housing markets have reached records in new home prices.

Real estate brokerage firm, Redfin, noted that 40% of the sellers it surveyed plan to price their homes above market value when they list during the second quarter this year. This is a 33% increase from the start of the year. Fannie Mae reported in April that 42%, an all-time high, of their 1,000 surveyed homeowners and renters believe that it is a good time to sell.

Home sellers are more likely to receive the asking price from the buyer that pays in all cash. In markets with fewer cash buyers, home sellers have indicated they are willing to hold out if it doesn’t sell quickly. For some homeowners they need to get their full asking list price in order to pay off a current mortgage.

For information on effective ways to manage institutional and individual portfolios nationwide, or to shop for real estate visit First Preston HT. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

6May

Homeownership Hits a 19 Year Low

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The American dream used to entail owning a home but has this traditional dream shifted? The U.S. Census Bureau reported that homeownership rates have dropped to 64.8% in the first quarter of 2014, which is the lowest rate since 1995. Home prices have soared and home sales have not been keeping pace as first-time homebuyers, in many cases, have been priced out of the market and are still finding it hard to gain access to credit. Investors are still playing a large role in the single-family real estate market.

Robert Shiller of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices commented on this topic, “This institutional investor dynamic is a whole new era I think. As institutional investors start to play in the single-family market, that just changes it fundamentally.” Those who aren’t buying are renting instead which isn’t necessarily a worse scenario. Some prefer not having a large mortgage to worry about and not being saddled with repair costs when something in the home breaks down.

Trulia’s chief economist, Jed Kolko, pointed out, “Ironically, adding renter households could cause the homeownership rate to fall, even though these new rental households are a sign of recovery and will spur more construction starts.”

For information on effective ways to manage institutional and individual portfolios nationwide, or to shop for real estate visit First Preston HT. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

25April

U.S. Home Builder Focuses on Entry-Level Homes

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The current housing market’s supply of homes continues to be tight with the majority of homes available for sale being higher-end properties. This leaves those who would be first-time homebuyers with fewer choices. But the nation’s largest home builder (by market value), DR Horton, is shifting its attention from high-end homes to building entry-level residences.

The company’s new line of homes, Express Homes, will start at $120,000-$150,000 and will be be rolled out in Texas, Georgia and Florida. Executives of the company see a strong demand for this market segment that is lacking in supply. D.R. Horton CEO Donald Tomnitz said, “We wouldn’t be getting into Express Homes if we didn’t think it was the next segment of the market to recover… As we move into this recovery we’ll see some encouragement from the government in terms of trying to get more people into entry-level homes.” Pictured above is an Express Home in Dallas, TX and below is another located in Houston, TX.

Outside analysts also see this shift in the market place. Stephen East from research firm ISI Group commented, “We view it as the right move. Horton’s cost structure and operational experience at the entry level makes them one of the few builders that can do this profitably. Also, we are firmly convinced the first-time-buyer segment is getting access to more credit, which will lead to more demand for this low-entry level product.”

For information on effective ways to manage institutional and individual portfolios nationwide, or to shop for real estate visit First Preston HT. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.