Milton, Mass. made it to CNN Money’s top 10 Best Places to live
May 9, 2008 | Filed Under Real Estate News, Real Estate Trends and Statistics, Real Estate Investment, Boston Real Estate | Leave a Comment
As every year, CNN Money prepares a list of the 100 best places to live in the US. This year’s list focused on smaller places that offered the best combination of economic opportunity, good schools, safe streets, things to do and a real sense of community.
Milton, MA made it to number 7 in the prestigious list, and this is why: “Just eight miles south of the heart of Boston, Milton borders the Blue Hills Reservation, a 7,000-acre park with hiking, swimming and skiing. Proximity to the city is what brings - and keeps - Milton residents where they are. Its loyal citizens do age, but even then they don’t move.”
CNN Money: 10 Markets Set For Steep Losses
May 9, 2008 | Filed Under Real Estate News, Real Estate Trends and Statistics, Real Estate Investment | Leave a Comment
The worst isn’t over for Miami, Phoenix, and hard hit areas of California, which are forecast to see big price drops in the next 12 months, according to Money Magazine. Here are the top 3:
Miami, FL: -29.9%
Fort Lauderdale, FL: -22.2%
Orland, FL: -20%
Boston was not on the list…
Louisiana Home to Fastest-Growing Counties
March 23, 2008 | Filed Under Real Estate News, Real Estate Trends and Statistics, Real Estate Investment | 1 Comment
Two Louisiana parishes were the nation’s fastest-growing counties in 2007, according to recent population estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau. St. Bernard County, which led the nation in population loss after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, saw its population increase 42.9 percent from July 2006 to July 2007. Orleans county, also hit by Katrina, rose 13.8 percent in the same period. Nine of the top ten fastest-growing counties were located in the South or West.
Of the ten counties that had the greatest numerical increase in population, half were in Texas, two were in North Carolina, one was in California and one was in Nevada. Maricopa County, Ariz. led the pack with an increase of 102,000 residents between 2006 and 2007.
Although the population in Los Angeles County decreased by 2,000 from 2006, it remained the nation’s most populous county with 9.9 million people.
Fed cuts rates by 3/4 of a point
March 18, 2008 | Filed Under Real Estate News, Real Estate Trends and Statistics, Real Estate Investment, Mortgage and Finance, Boston Real Estate | Leave a Comment
The Fed threw in a change-up today, instead of its usual fastball. While the Fed funds futures market was pricing in a 94 percent probability of a 100 basis point cut today, the FOMC instead settled on a less aggressive 75 basis point cut in the Fed funds rate. Today’s action brings the Fed Funds target rate down to 2.25 percent, three percentage points lower than where it was last August. The real Fed funds rate, which adjusts for current inflation, is at a negative 1.75 percent — a highly accommodative monetary policy stance. The Fed concurrently cut the discount rate 75 basis points, bringing that borrowing rate down to 2.5 percent.
The Fed wanted to remind the market today that they are in charge of monetary policy and not the Fed funds futures market. The Fed is subtly trying to reassert itself and disabuse the markets that whatever it asks for it gets.
It is also clear that there is increasing concern among some on the FOMC that free-wheeling rate cuts are creating a significant problem with the Fed goal of anchoring inflation expectations. There were two votes against. Both Plosser and Fisher wanted less aggressive action. Every time the Fed cuts rates the U.S. dollar takes it on the chin, threatening higher import and price inflation. Moreover, record oil and gold prices seem at odds with a deflationary spiral scenario that would warrant a one-percentage point or lower Fed funds rate.
The Fed is hoping that its efforts to restore market liquidity and ease the credit crunch through more direct measures such as the TAF, TSLF and Discount window will mitigate the need for the Fed to continue to pull its most powerful, but bluntest monetary policy leaver, the Fed funds target rate.
Bottom-line: the Fed is still open to further rate cuts if the economic and credit outlook continues to deteriorate, but we are much closer to an end point on Fed easing than we were at the start of the year. We expect the Fed to cut again in April, bringing the Fed funds target rate to 2.0 percent, though beyond that there will need to be more signs that the economic and financial downturn is still intensifying and that unemployment is rising rapidly.
Some Investors Abandon 1031 Exchanges
March 15, 2008 | Filed Under Real Estate News, Real Estate Investment | 1 Comment
Some real estate investors are opting to pay the capital gains tax on the sale of investment property now rather than defer the gains in a 1031 exchange amid concerns that a new presidential administration might raise the tax rate, according to the Wall Street Journal. A 1031 exchange, also called a like-kind exchange, lets a property owner roll over the capital gains from the sale of an old investment property to a new one, if certain conditions are met. Some investors believe that the current 15 percent capital gains tax rate could rise to 20 percent or 25 percent, so they are choosing to pay the taxes now, the Journal reports.
U.S. Is Top Global Market For Foreign Investment
February 9, 2008 | Filed Under Real Estate News, Real Estate Trends and Statistics, Real Estate Investment, Boston Real Estate | 2 Comments
The United States was ranked the top global property market among foreign investors, but Asia is close behind, according to a new survey by the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate (AFIRE). China ranked second behind the U.S. for the second time in three years, and the gap between the two countries narrowed from 27 percent in 2005 to less than 5 percent in 2007.
The U.S. was also considered the most stable and secure for real estate investments by 56 percent of those surveyed, followed by Germany, the United Kingdom, Australia and Japan. New York City and Washington, D.C. were ranked the top two global cities for foreign investors’ real estate dollars, followed by London, Paris and Shanghai.
Other significant changes in 2007 where:
- Singapore, up to 6th place (tied with Tokyo) from 24th place in 2006
- Sydney, up to 9th place from 15th place in 2006
- Hong Kong, up to 10th place from 11th place in 2006
Top U.S. cities are:
- New York
- Washington DC
- Los Angeles
- San Fransisco
- Seattle
Boston was not mentioned in this survey.
Source: AFIRE
On low-balling. News from the front.
February 6, 2008 | Filed Under Real Estate Trends and Statistics, Real Estate Investment, Boston Condos, Boston Real Estate | 1 Comment
As a real estate professional watching the Suze Orman show the other night, I was disturbed to hear Suze encouraging buyers to put in low-ball offers due to the market. Now, I usually agree with most of what Suze has to say, but real estate is local and she often seems to forget that.
As a Boston real estate agent living everyday on the front lines of Boston’s real estate market, my perspective is somewhat different. First off, the Boston market has seen a slowdown, but even though fewer properties are selling, the median price continues to rise in Boston’s prime neighborhoods. Sellers also understand that if they really want to sell, they will need to price their home competitively and make sure it “shows” well. By offering a low-ball of 10-20 percent on a correctly priced home, the buyer is doing a disservice to his or herself and is most likely to get a flat “NO”. The buyer will need to either wait a good three months or come back with a higher price…a negative negotiating position. You don’t want to move twice while the other party hasn’t budged; it shows your cards.
I have seen buyer after buyer lose properties this way in the past few months. I have seen buyers shocked as their bid is not only rejected, but another competing bid is accepted within days. In order to understand if a low-ball offer is a good idea, speak with your buyer’s agent. If he or she is an Accredited Buyer’s Representative, the agent should be able to tell you if the home is competitively priced for the value, or if it is a good idea to low-ball.
Cash-flow investments
October 25, 2007 | Filed Under Real Estate Trends and Statistics, Real Estate Investment, Mortgage and Finance | 3 Comments
So you want to invest in real estate. You want to buy a condo and rent it out for a decent cash-flow, say 7%-10% return on investment (down payment) per year, after all expenses of course. You have heard all over the media that it’s a buyer’s market and foreclosures are up; so why can’t you find a condo with positive cash-flow?
The large majority of properties currently on the market, even in the student saturated neighborhoods of Allston and
The benefit of buying in bulk.
August 15, 2007 | Filed Under Real Estate Investment | 1 Comment
So you just bought a great condo in a new development. You think you got a great deal. You bought pre-construction when the prices were low (and yeah, non-negotiable) and you know that you would still make a decent profit if you sold today. You are feeling pretty good until you meet your new neighbors in the hall, who you soon discover, also bought at pre-construction prices, but somehow paid 5% less per square foot and got a year paid condo fees from the developer. All you can think about between small-talk tidbits about the weather is how fast you can call your Realtor to give him or her a mouthful.
As it turns out, your Realtor was right; the price for YOUR condo was non-negotiable. Pre-construction pricing is almost always non-negotiable, but it is also almost always far lower than the price once completed. Buyers get a bargain price because they accept a certain amount of risk that a post-construction buyers don’t. So how did your neighbor’s Realtor negotiate? By thinking big.
When you purchased your two-bedroom condo for say, a wee $650,000, you thought you were an important client for the developer. Well, you weren’t as important as your neighbor, who purchased five units in the building. He got the discounts because while you were a $650,000 deal, he was a $3.25 million deal. For the developer, a big freaking fish.
Don’t worry if you don’t have the cash to buy in bulk. A good Realtor has a list of clients interested in purchasing in pre-construction buildings. If four or five people from the list buy at the same time, chances are the developer will take notice.
If you are interested in joining The Bushari Team’s list of interested pre-construction buyers, please e-mail Elad at elad@bushari.com.
As Boston Real Estate professionals, our mission is to provide you with the best home-buying or home-selling experience in Boston. Search MA properties through MLS on our website, www.bushari.com. We pride ourselves on exceptional customer service, and look forward to sharing that service with you.
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