Author Archive for Editor

First-Time Homebuyer Part 3: Excuse Me, I Need to Speak with my Lawyer

Published
by
Editor
on July 6, 2009
in Uncategorized
. 6 Comments

When you live in New York, you’re bound to get screwed over at some point. I’ve gotten screwed over by locksmiths, dry cleaners, bike repair shops and mango ladies — and I’ve only lived here for 8 months. The last thing I want to find is a real estate lawyer.

This isn’t because I think they’re crooks — we’re talking about real estate, not personal injury law — but I hate paying people for things I think I can do myself. I made an offer before consulting a lawyer. I have a Master’s degree in how-to-read. Literally. I should be able to read and interpret a document. Hell, I read Ulysses.

But before I got any more stubborn and ridiculous, I realized that contract-amending time called for a new, in-state lawyer that I’d just have to guess has the negotiating skills and helpful attitude I need. One that hands me a a hot cup of coffee and a bulleted list, with references, of the highlights in my offering plan and contract revisions. One that gives great massages.

So I settled for the lowest bidder that’s closest to my office. No massages, but he gets the job done. As I imagined, there are at least a hundred laws and customs particular to New York real estate that aren’t relevant to any other place I’ve lived, so my new attorney is making me feel more and more, er, insecure about my knowledge with every fact he throws on the table. This is a good thing.

My real issue? Being under 30 and stating phrases like “I spoke to my lawyer today…” are altogether horrifying and a little obnoxious. Maybe I should go back to school and become one.

Or, maybe I’ll suck it up and learn something.

A First-Time Homebuyer in 2009 Part 2: The Five Stages of Grief

Published
by
Editor
on June 29, 2009
in Home Buying
. 8 Comments

If only New York didn’t have to be so special. If only the rent-versus-buy calculator gave me a more concrete answer — I wouldn’t have jumped off the Renter ship so quickly. And so, I mourn a little.

Okay, a lot.

When the sponsor of my future potential condo accepted my offer, I was shocked. Shocked because I got an answer within two hours. Shocked because — for all I know — buying property in New York could be a secret, terrible money pit of which I am completely unaware. “No,” I thought. “There must be something wrong. There has to be a catch.” Renting is something I know. I don’t have any first-hand experience with owning. Which led to…

Anger! Renting is so easy. Real estate people make me mad. You’re telling me I have to stay in one place for more than five years? That makes my young, restless heart tremble.

And so I bargained with myself (before I’d have to bargain with my landlord). I understand that I could have a nice hedge against inflation and an $8,000 gift from the government, but my heat and hot water is currently included in my rent. Can I take that with me to my new place? Can I?

Nah. I have to leave my tolerable, slightly annoying rented apartment, just slightly too far from public transportation and amenities. I have to give up the cockroaches. I have to leave my quirky Sicilian landlord. I must abandon my cheap rent and carefree lifestyle for one that’s slightly more you’ll-thank-yourself-later.

And so, I accepted it. I am no longer a renter; I am, as some friends have called me, an “adult”. I am crossing the threshold into an unknown world at the signing of a contract and a down-payment check. And now: real estate lawyers.

A First-Time Homebuyer in 2009: Part 1

Published
by
Editor
on June 22, 2009
in Uncategorized
. 2 Comments

I gave them a lowball offer they could refuse. I got an acceptance two hours later.

And that’s the story of a first-time homebuyer in 2009.

As I’ve been a militant renter for my adult life so far, I didn’t exactly plan on buying a home, even with Obama’s $8,000 late Christmas gift for first-timers. But slowly, surprisingly, every roadblock that made renting better than owning began to come down. Like the Berlin wall, but way less revolutionary.

The first step was overcoming my fear and loathing of new construction condominiums. With a slower rate of appreciation, an uncomfortable feeling of being obnoxious and a bad taste in my mouth from a bad purchase on the South Shore of Boston (not mine, personally), I really didn’t like condos. Your beautiful personal property was oddly managed by a mysterious Other who could raise your fees at the drop of a hat, you’ve got that weird feeling of faux-luxury that could all fall apart at any moment, and you still have very, very close neighbors.

On the flip side, you have equity, laundry, security and no Sicilian landlords from Queens.

Doing the math a few months back, I decided that excessive New York property taxes, common fees, a ridiculous mortgage and closing costs did not make buying any better than renting my utilities-included railroad apartment just a little too far away from everywhere I need to go.

That’s when a 15-unit condo a couple of train stops closer to Manhattan decided they actually wanted to sell the units they developed at the cusp of the bubble burst. After my borderline obnoxious skepticism, I realized exactly what that meant: I can finally buy a place for the cost of renting. Granted, it takes a little up-front cash; but if you got it, use it.

And so the process begins – I will continue to write about my triumphs and travails as a first-time homebuyer in the post-bubble apocalypse. Will it be worth it? Time will tell.

I Want My Artificially Low Interest Rate!

Published
by
Editor
on June 11, 2009
in Market Conditions
. 4 Comments

In spite of efforts to buy up securities to keep mortgage rates low, those rates are a-climbin’ up to 5.59 percent this week.

Is this promising? Not very much.

Here’s One Way to Get Ahead in the Real Estate Market

Published
by
Editor
on June 9, 2009
in Online Resources and Progressive Trends
. 11 Comments

A friend of mine over at Blommit.com (a hilarious blog, by the way) made a, ahem, modest proposal to get ahead in real estate. Check out their blog this week for a humorous take on our very subject at hand: Real Estate.

Editor’s Confession: I’m A Buyer

Published
by
Editor
on June 8, 2009
in Home Buying
. 3 Comments

We all make mistakes.

I simply forgot the three things that could turn my die-hard renting self into a motivated buyer:

1) No closing costs.
2) Local 25 year tax abatements.
3) Defeated developers making fire-sales.
4) $8k tax credit for first-time buyers this year.

When you put these three things together, my hypothetical mortgage and fee payment looks a lot more like my monthly rent. In other words, it’s finally happening — you know it’s the bottom when buying makes sense again.

Rapidly gentrifying, YUPPIE misgivings aside, I am completely enthralled by a particular new development. Right in the center of my favorite neighborhood in Brooklyn (not for the faint of heart, by the way) and 3 blocks from a superior subway line, the local amenities make it a no-brainer. After putting in an honest effort to find anything structurally wrong with the place, I’ve found myself defeated. Defeated in my stubbornness not not to buy a place while the getting’s good.

Dear Realtors

Published
by
Editor
on May 31, 2009
in Uncategorized
. 11 Comments

It’s spring. Don’t do this.

Economists: Recession Will End In ‘09

Published
by
Editor
on May 27, 2009
in Market Conditions
. 21 Comments

A recent poll of economists concludes that the recession will end by the end of the year, according to NPR. Since there is no trigger of growth, however, the economy will remain sluggish well into 2010. What do you think is going to be the leading industry that will take us out of the recession?

Read more about it here.

Deutsche Bank Says: “Affordability Is Key”

Published
by
Editor
on May 26, 2009
in Market Conditions
. 27 Comments

Here we are at the end of May, enjoying one of the biggest slumps in housing since the Depression. Hope everybody had a great weekend!

Among the blooming flowers and singing birds have been the last gasp of heavy layoffs and an expected drop in home values, but Torsten Slok from New York City’s Deutsche Bank is saying the drop has “improved affordability and…is key to the housing market’s recovery.”

As my angry old neighbor tells me weekly, “common sense is universal.” Let’s follow his lead and start smiling about this increasingly afforable market. Heck, in my neck of the woods, rent has dropped to the point where Manhattan is…affordable! That’s right: those of us who are still employed can actually live remotely close to where we work! Huzzah!

Similarly, reasonably priced condos are abound. Combined with low interest rates and a decent credit score, those among the employed can enjoy the kind of bargains that might just bring us back to normal by next spring.

Patience, Grasshopper.

RealityonRealty, Meet TheUpTurn!

Published
by
Editor
on May 21, 2009
in Online Resources and Uncategorized
. 228 Comments

 

Friends, here’s a lil’ press release about our friend (with benefits), TheUpTurn.