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Aug

31
2009

Blame the market, not appraisers

By Inman News, Monday, August 31, 2009.

Re: '"Bad appraisal" dims financing options' (Aug. 27)

Dear Editor:

After reading both of these articles -- "'Bad appraisal' dims financing options" and "Low appraisals sabotage more deals" -- I take exception to the characterization of "bad appraisals" and "low appraisals."

Have the media and the borrower given any consideration to the fact that appraisers are doing their job? Their job is to report the current market value of the property being appraised. In the case of the letter, which describes a borrower renovating her home, I have seen this situation often and it is a reflection of the current market, not necessarily a "bad" appraisal.  more...

Aug

27
2009

Broken ARMs hurting housing

By Curbed.com, Thursday, August 27, 2009.

Tales of mortgage woe are often boring and complicated, but the New York Times' John Leland has a good story today about how option ARMs have replaced subprime as the housing industry bogeyman.

Between 2004 and 2007, $750 billion in adjustable-rate mortgages -- with very low payments that reset to very high payments in a few years -- were taken out by homeowners, many of whom figured they'd sell or refinance when the rates reset thanks to continually increasing home values (oops). Foreclosures are up, and some analysts see the loans as a threat to a recovery.  more...

'Bad appraisal' dims financing options

By Inman News, Thursday, August 27, 2009.

Re: 'Low appraisals sabotage more deals' (Aug. 26)

Dear Editor:

I am a Realtor, but we are experiencing an appraisal nightmare with our own home. In the process of trying to close out our construction loan, a new appraisal was required. Preconstruction, we had two appraisals that came in at more than $500,000.

Knowing the market, I knew that values had dropped a bit, but our new appraisal, post-remodel, came in at $280,000. The comps were in the area, but not "comps" at all -- just houses chosen to get the job done. The square-footage was off; the condition was completely different; etc. This did not just affect a purchase or sale -- we are trying to figure out how to finance the home that we have lived in for years. Oh yeah, the house behind us is also being remodeled. In our neighborhood, you don't remodel to sell; you do it to stay in the area -- which does not help for appraisal purposes.  more...

Aug

26
2009

When a legal right is still wrong

By Inman News, Wednesday, August 26, 2009.

Re: 'Investors defaulting to make money' (Aug. 24)

Dear Editor:

This article describes the same moral framework that allowed subprime mortgage brokers to continue to push subprime ARM loans upon the unsuspecting public.  more...

Aug

25
2009

Real estate pros: Invest in yourselves

By Inman News, Tuesday, August 25, 2009.

Re: 'Put  "Professional" in real estate title' (Aug. 17)

Dear Editor:

The problem is that in this day and age to switch a salesperson's hat to one of a consultant requires more knowledge and expertise than most salespeople have: Knowledge about financing, ability to produce a good comparative market analysis, and use of tools available to get the most and the right information to advise the seller or buyer.  more...

'Plucky' buyers moving to SoCal suburbs

By Curbed.com, Tuesday, August 25, 2009.

Back in September 2008, right about the time when the financial markets were really starting to get scary, the real estate stories were about bobcats moving into a foreclosed home in suburban Southern California.

This past weekend, the New York Times ran a real estate story about plucky buyers moving into foreclosed homes, a piece that looked at eight houses on one cul-de-sac in Moreno Valley in the Inland Empire (a neighborhood about 60 miles from Los Angeles). Among other things, the story shows the tension between those still living on the street and those families moving in to take advantage of the prices of the foreclosed homes (three of the eight homes have been sold).  more...

Aug

24
2009

Desperately seeking first-time buyers

By Inman News, Monday, August 24, 2009.

Re: 'Expand the homebuyer tax credit' (Aug. 21)

Dear Editor:

It's fascinating to me that all the "experts" who supposedly have all the intelligence and run big companies continue to use their clout in Washington to push for an expansion of the tax credit to be available to "all" homebuyers, not just "first time" homebuyers. I pose this question: Besides first-time homebuyers, who exactly are "all" these other buyers? Answer: trade-up buyers.

Newsflash: Trade-up buyers have to SELL before they become "all those" other buyers.  more...

Aug

21
2009

Expand the homebuyer tax credit

By Inman News, Friday, August 21, 2009.

Re: 'First-time-buyer tax credit is "unfair" ' (Aug. 18)

Dear Editor:

I completely disagree with Marcie Geffner's conclusions about the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit -- all except the last one.

Unlike so many aspects of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act signed into law last February, the First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit is actually working as intended -- as a true economic stimulus. Your math stops short of the real point -- that the broader economic impact of home sales goes far beyond the real estate industry.  more...

Expand, contract

By Curbed.com, Friday, August 21, 2009.

Grist has an interview with Planetizen's managing editor and recent Angeleno Tim Halbur. He says he's fallen in love with L.A., but also that Portland and New York are the U.S.'s greenest cities, that we need to be living more densely, and that city living should involve "a little chaos and grit."

Still, Halbur is intrigued by L.A.'s strong point, sprawl -- he curated "The Story of Sprawl," a DVD compilation of short films from the early to mid-20th century that illustrate Americans' abandonment of cities, and the rise of freeways and suburbs.  more...

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