First-Time Buyer Share Edging Up

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | MONDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2015

First-time home buyers comprised 32 percent of existing-home sales in August, up from 29 percent a year ago, according to the August 2015 REALTORS® Confidence Index Survey.

“Sustained net job creation, a low interest rate environment with 30-year fixed rates at below four percent for most of 2015, and better pricing of FHA-insured mortgages appear to be helping first-time home buyers,” according to the REALTORS® survey.

Buyers age 34 and under accounted for 29 percent of sales reported by the respondents. Nearly half of buyers were 35- to 55-years-old. Renters, meanwhile, accounted for 38 percent of sales.

REALTOR®s surveyed report that tight inventory, increasingly unaffordable prices, and weak credit profiles that fail to meet tighter underwriting standards are conditions that continue to work against first-time home buyers.

Source: “Sales to First-Time Buyers: 32 Percent of Sales in August 2015,” National Association of REALTORS® Economists’ Outlook blog (Oct. 6, 2015)

Easy Autumn Home Maintenance Tasks

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 07, 2015

It's a week into October and fall is officially here. The change of seasons is always a good time for your clients to do a little maintenance and spruce up the interior and exterior of their homes before winter hits.

Read more: 5 Yard Maintenance Tips for Fall

Here’s a checklist of things home owners, and those thinking about selling their homes in the next few months, might want to accomplish:

1. Interior

• Check the windows and doors for energy efficiency. It will help keep the home warm and save cost. Swap summer screens for storm shutters on windows and check weatherstripping around doors.
• Inspect the batteries in the smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector – or better yet just replace them all together.
• Think ahead to the holidays and see if there are changes to make to living spaces that might host gatherings, especially the dining room.

2. Exterior

• Keep up with raking leaves as they fall, to avoid an exhausting job once they are all on the ground.
• Clean out the gutters and inspect the roof to help prevent winter weather damage.
• Remove hoses and shut off water in exterior pipes to protect against freezing.
• Replace exterior light bulbs and consider installing additional lighting if it’s necessary for the evenings that get darker earlier.

3. Fun

• Decorate the home with gourds and pumpkins. Not only are they fun and inexpensive, they add a nice burst of seasonal color to the interior and exterior of the home.
• Avoid the holiday crowds and start planning a gift list now. This is especially true if making homemade presents is on the agenda. Planning now will save a lot stress and running around as the holidays approach.

For an in-depth list of tasks, be sure to check out all 15 steps on Houzz's Fall Maintenance Checklisthere.

Source: “Your October Home Checklist,” Forbes (Oct. 2, 2015)

Livability Ranks 10 Top Cities for Singles

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 07, 2015

The number of single households is growing: About three in 10 households in the U.S. now only have one person in them. With the number of single households thriving, Livability.com set out to find out the top small-to-medium sized cities for singles in 2015.

Read more: Single-Person Households Are on the Rise

For the rankings, the research site identified the highest concentrations of singles, the largest percentages of the population in prime marriage-level age (considered 20 to 34), places that offer a vibrant single scene with entertainment, as well as cost of living.

The following 10 cities topped Livability.com’s list:

1. Carrboro, N.C.
2. Hoboken, N.J.
3. West Hollywood, Calif.
4. Oxford, Miss.
5. San Marcos, Texas
6. Ypsilanti, Mich.
7. Ames, Iowa
8. Miami Beach, Fla.
9. Athens, Ga.
10. Moscow, Idaho

Source: Livability.com

Zombie’ Homes Spook Fewer Neighborhoods

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 07, 2015

Vacant foreclosures – known as “zombies” – plunged 43 percent in the third quarter compared to a year ago, according to RealtyTrac’s latest U.S. Zombie Foreclosure and Vacant Property Report. As of the end of the third quarter, about 20,050 residential properties were in the foreclosure process and vacant, but had not yet been repossessed by the foreclosing lender.

Read more: 10 Places Where Foreclosures Are Problematic

“The overall inventory of homes in the foreclosure process has dropped 36 percent over the past year so it’s not too surprising to see a similarly dramatic drop in vacant zombie foreclosures,” says Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac. “What is surprising is there are so many vacant homes where the home owners do not appear to be in financial distress — with only 3 percent in foreclosure or bank owned, and only 6 percent that are underwater. More than 63 percent of these vacant homes are not even encumbered by a loan, owned free and clear by the owner. The fact that the home owners are not selling given the recovering real estate market in most areas indicates that many of these properties are in poor condition and in neighborhoods that have been left behind by the housing recovery.”

The following states are still haunted with the most vacant “zombie” foreclosures, according to RealtyTrac’s report:

• New Jersey: 3,997
• Florida: 3,512
• New York: 3,365
• Illinois: 1,187
• Ohio: 1,028

The following states have the highest share of vacant “zombie” foreclosures as a percentage of total vacant properties:

• New Jersey: 9.4%
• New York: 8.2%
• Nevada: 2.7%
• Massachusetts: 2.5%
• Illinois: 2.1%

On a metro level, the following areas had the highest share of vacant “zombie” foreclosures as percentage of all vacant properties:

• Rochester, N.Y.: 14.3%
• Trenton, N.J.: 10.5%
• New York: 10%
• Albany, N.Y.: 7.9%
• Allentown, Pa.: 5.2%

Source: RealtyTrac

REALTORS®’ Price Expectations By State

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 07, 2015

REALTORS® overall expect home prices to rise 3.5 percent over the next 12 months, according to the August 2015 REALTORS® Confidence Index Survey, which is based on the responses of a monthly survey to more than 50,000 real estate professionals.

REALTORS® from Florida are the most upbeat about price expectations, with a median expected price growth in the 5 to 6 percent range over the next 12 months. Washington, Oregon, Colorado, and Georgia real estate professionals expect median price growth to be 4 to 5 percent – the next highest expectations across the country.

REALTORS® surveyed by NAR say that sharp price increases in recent months have made homes unaffordable for many potential home buyers and that they expect prices to moderate in the coming weeks.

The median price of all existing homes sold in the U.S. as of July was $234,000, a 6 percent increase on an annual basis. Home prices have risen at a faster pace than annual growth in median household income of 2 percent since 2010, according to NAR’s report.

“Strong demand amid tight supply has pushed up prices,” according to NAR’s report. “While rising prices are lifting home owners out of negative equity, the strong price recovery amid the modest growth in incomes is also making homes less affordable and dampening demand.”

Source: “REALTORS® Expect Price Growth Moderate in Next 12 Months,” National Association of REALTORS® Economists’ Outlook blog (Oct. 5, 2015)

10 Shortcuts to Make Your Move Easier - http://blog.rismedia.com/2015/10-shortcuts-to-make-your-move-easier/

10 Shortcuts to Make Your Move Easier - http://blog.rismedia.com/2015/10-shortcuts-to-make-your-move-easier/

Gearhart considers regulating rentals - Local News - The Daily Astorian

Gearhart considers regulating rentals - Local News - The Daily Astorian