Archive for the 'Uncategorized' Category

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 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.

Dear Realtors

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

It’s spring. Don’t do this.

Some Agents Make a Bigger Impression Than Others

Published
by
kmunsell
on May 28, 2009
in Uncategorized
. 131 Comments

At least that’s what one real estate couple, Melinda and Scott Tamkins believe.

A Las Vegas real estate agent named Melinda mysteriously dies. Mortgage broker husband,  Scott, is the key suspect in the case. Oh, and did I forget to mention that shady husband Scott is also a heavy drinker and an aficionado of porn and S & M? 

Does this sound like something you’d see on TV or what? It should, because it is. In fact, this storyline played out on a recent episode of CSI, and Southern California real estate agents Melissa and Scott Tamkin believe that these characters so closely resemble them, that this episode has hurt their business (even more than the downard spiraling economy has). In fact, they are suing CSI writer/producer Sarah Goldfingerfor $6 million in damages claiming defamation of character and invasion of privacy. The CSI characters reportedly bear a resemblance to the real-life couple, and the characters’ original last name was Tamkin, until the scrip was later revised.  

Could these claims be true? Here are the known clues: In 2005, writer Goldfinger entered into a real estate transaction to purchase a home listed by the Tamkins. The purchase was never completed, as Goldfinger pulled out of escrow, reportedly on amicable terms. You decide. Whatever the facts of this case ultimately are, it’s clear that the Tamkins believe that their impression on former client Goldfinger was big enough to manifest itself nearly five years later. 

It seems ludicrous to me that prior to the lawsuit, the vast majority of people never would’ve related this one CSI episode to this couple, but now, even I (a person who’d never heard of the Tamkins before) make the association. Could a brief transaction really have such an impact this far down the road? I think back to all the real estate agents I have know, and yes, indeed, there are a few that stand out. There are a few that stand out as heroic in my mind (and remain good friends to the day), and yes, there are a few that are worthy of their own Dateline story. Either way, it goes to show that transactions that involve hearts, minds, and homes can stay with you long after the paperwork is filed.

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.

Back to the ‘Burbs

Published
by
kmunsell
on April 16, 2009
in Progressive Trends and Uncategorized
. 133 Comments

As they say, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Not one year ago, we nervously watched gas prices as they crept skyward each day. Heightened awareness of rising fuel costs and excess waste prompted Americans to run toward the cities, and those nestled in the ‘burbs wondered if these outlying areas would soon become ghost towns, once again blamed again for eco-hostility and more.

However not one year later, the first victims of the mortgage crisis, the ‘burbs, are showing new signs of life as the first to begin the rise from foreclosure devastation. For example, sales of existing homes increased in many regions over the last few months and much of the activity is taking place in the suburbs.  The strongest resurgence in suburban sales is occurring in the Sunbelt, including Arizona, Nevada, Florida, and California, where at the beginning of the mortgage crisis some of the greatest increases in prices caused buyers to turn to subprime loans.

Feeding the continued survival of the ‘burbs is the changing geography of the workplace as more and more employers move away from city centers. A newly released Brookings Institute report finds the steady decentralization of jobs; between 1998 and 2006, 95 out of 98 metropolitan areas saw a job shift away from the urban core, though the overall number of jobs increased in all metropolitan areas. In fact, researchers identified a shift away from city center in almost every one of the 18 major industries analyzed and more than half of all major metropolitan areas experienced rapid job sprawl.

However, it’s not only the jobs that are keeping the ‘burbs alive. The bottom line is that time and time again, the ‘burbs get the blame, but in reality suburban living is a preferential lifestyle that will not likely fade. The fact of the matter is that suburbanites like their style of living. Many enjoy a quiet, more relaxed style of living, and study after study has shown that single family homes remain a strong preference to many; Pew Research asked residents to rate overall satisfaction with their current communities and suburbanites were the most satisfied (42%) of any residential group, including those who live in cities (34%), small towns (25%), or rural areas (29%).

So throw your sticks and stones and blame the ‘burbs for what you will but know that the more things change, the more the ‘burbs are here to stay.

Neighborhood Blogs: Everybody’s Got One

Published
by
Editor
on April 16, 2009
in Online Resources and Uncategorized
. 11 Comments

I love my local neighborhood blogs. I even read the ones that aren’t close to my neighborhood. There’s something about extremely local (like, more local than the local news) that is bringing a whole new idea of community to the sparse, isolated communities in which many of us were raised.

From Cincinatti to individual neighborhoods in Brooklyn, the rise in local blogs shows an increasing demand to 1) know exactly what’s going on around you and 2) to build a community online that actually reflects your outside physical surroundings. The neighborhood of Park Slope , for example, has a listserv for Park Slope Moms that has enraged thousands of stroller-pushers when they asked for a $25 yearly subscription fee. Obviously, these moms got angry because they really, really need and rely on their online community. Maybe they will eventually forfeit a few lattes to keep it going.
 

Why do I love my own neighborhood blog? I get all the news about the latest crimes, restaurant and bar openings, community events, and bargain real estate. I always know what’s going on over the weekend. Essentially, this service is a catalyst for me to spend my money in my own neighborhood (and, say, avoid the large metropolis that is 20 minutes away). Local blogs, basically, help keep your community going.

Isn’t that nice?

If Banking Became Boring Again
Guest Post by Jeff Eckman

Published
by
Editor
on April 12, 2009
in Progressive Trends and Uncategorized
. 129 Comments

Paul Krugman’s recent op-ed piece suggests how wonderful life would be if banking became boring again. It is a brilliantly simple take on patterns in the past century of banking, and articulates something I’ve questioned for years: what do financial services do for me? What is the value of this service to anyone other than the bankers themselves?

Krugman writes, “During this first era of high finance, bankers were, on average, paid much more than their counterparts in other industries. But finance lost its glamour when the banking system collapsed during the Great Depression.”

Of course, there is great value in what people can do with capital, but should we seek capital for the sake of capital? No. We should seek capital for the sake of adding real value in the world.

Currency is a tool. Capital is a tool. We often get into trouble when we obsess more about the tool than the actual value the tool provides.

Here is my real estate take on this: mortgages should be boring. But the actual use of the mortgage, the home, the house, the life, should not. How will this change the way we see home ownership?

Give me a nice, simple, boring 30-year fixed with 5% down, and I’m a happy housing consumer and value-adder!

Chinese Bargain-Hunting in America

Published
by
Editor
on March 30, 2009
in Market Conditions and Uncategorized
. 2 Comments

I’ve heard plenty of stories about foreclosure bargain hunting around the country, but this article shows just how many people are holding off for the elusive “Rock Bottom.” An investor tour group, SouFun, has been bussing 40 Chinese investors at a time through foreclosure-heavy cities around the U.S., where they can find better deals than in the major cities of the rapid-growing East.

Here, you can trade in your Beijing studio for a three-bedroom house in Chicago, so your child can get a good, American education! Who WOULDN’T want to try a little window shopping? It’s SouFun!

But for serious — the important point of this article might be the best news I’ve heard yet. Not one of the last 40 visitors invested in any property, showing that they either weren’t so serious, or the deals aren’t as good as they thought. Many of the Chinese investors believe our market hasn’t hit bottom (wise), and others aren’t trusting the sales pitches directed toward them (wiser).

While it’s inevitable that foreign money is going to pour into slumpy U.S. real estate, it may not happen as quickly or as robustly as I first imagined when foreign bus tours were heading through Detroit. Let’s face it — if everybody is holding their cash in their hands, watching the race on seven television screens, waiting in real-time for the ultimate Rock Bottom Moment, it will pass us by. There are just too many people in this global economy, watching for anything dramatic to happen.

Maybe the disappointed Chinese tour bus is proof that our Rock Bottom Moment isn’t as spectacular as we hoped. And while foreign investment (like the Willis Tower) in the U.S. is inevitable — at least it isn’t happening at a bus-tour-per-month pace.

How will foreign investment shape the U.S. market in the next ten years? Time will tell.

Real Estate, Meet Eliot Spitzer

Published
by
Editor
on March 9, 2009
in Market Conditions and Uncategorized
. 3 Comments

Lucky us! Just one year after Eliot Spitzer’s resignation from the Governor’s post in New York, he has decided to jump into real estate mogul-dom. Apparently, his fathers own success in real estate is what got him the governor’s spot in the first place.

Does anyone want to ahem, “do business” with Mr. Spitzer? He’s ready and willing.