Tag: sell your home

  • Spruce Up Your Home- Design Trends in 2014

    For recent buyers, or soon-to-be sellers, here’s ten big design trends in 2014:

    1.) Wider reclaimed wood and wood-like porcelain floors
    Floorboards are becoming wider, sometimes up to 5-6 inches. Mixing in different types of wood, even reclaimed boards, and keeping the stain colors warm is becoming popular. Porcelain flooring is also becoming more popular as it’s very sturdy and comes in a wide variety of styles, sizes, and colors. These types of flooring can look good with either traditional or contemporary styling.

    2.) Simple cabinets and big drawers
    Warm gray colors are replacing oranges and browns in the kitchen. Styles are becoming more modern and clean, rather than traditional. Hardware is also becoming less visible and more modern. Having large lower drawers instead of cabinets is becoming the preference because large drawers allow easier access, and can be fitted with removable storage receptacles.

    3.) Color Palettes
    Brighter colors are being sought after. Instead of beiges and whites, warm grays are becoming very popular. This is being accented with colors such as lighter greens and blues, lavender, soft corals, shell colors, and even some darker purples and metallics. Blue is being used a lot throughout decor. Four main color palettes are making a comeback: black, white and gray with warmer woods and textures; flesh tones, beiges, gray, and off-white; bolder and darker colors such as purples, reds, golds, and teals; and very bright colors balanced with neutrals.

    4.) Indoor/Outdoor Living Spaces
    French Doors that open to the outside, large windows, and screened or covered porches are continuing the trend of blending indoor and outdoor areas. Pool houses are being remodeled to include living areas, kitchens, and fireplaces. People are also adding in fire pits, and propane heaters to outdoor areas.

    5.) Kitchen colors and appliances
    Home owners are adding in kitchen appliances with bold colors, and that are more energy-efficient. New counter top materials such as metals instead of granite are also becoming popular.

    6.) Luxury bathrooms
    Big steam showers with rain heads, large whirlpool tubs, anti-fogging devices, and even installing a T.V. are making bathrooms even more luxurious than before.

    7.) More Technology
    Technology is being integrated more and more from anything to lighting and heat, windows/window treatments and doors, to digital displays for watching T.V. or cycling through photos. This is becoming more popular due to less costly wireless technology.

    8.) Global Styles
    Mixing ethnic elements in with traditional or modern spaces can be a great way to add color into a space. Whether it’s a rug, artwork, or embroidered fabrics.

    9.) Unique Qualities
    People are becoming more willing to spend money on unique one-of-a-kind design elements for interior spaces. Metal or sculptural furnishings, creative rugs, and a wide variety of other unique products are being used.

    10.) Accent Chairs
    Accent chairs are becoming more common in order to provide more seating space, and also pops of color throughout a room. They’re also a smaller, more affordable way of introducing a new style to a room.

  • 2013 Home Sales Strongest In 7 Years

    Home sales in December 2013 went up, closing the 2013 year with the highest amount of home sales since 2006.

    There were 5.09 million home sales throughout all of 2013, which is a 9.1% higher increase from 2012. Housing has been steadily recovering over the past two years. Home sales have risen almost 20% since 2011.

    The median home price for all housing types in December 2013 was 9.9% higher than those in December 2012. Home sales of foreclosures and short sales made up 14% of total home sales in December 2013, whereas in December 2012 it made up 24%.

    The average time that homes were on the market increased in December due to the extreme weather throughout the U.S. but overall the housing market is making a good recovery in comparison to the past few years.

  • Buyer Urgency!!

    Buyer Urgency Expected to Drive 2013

    DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2012

    Home shoppers will likely have more urgency in the new year, wanting to buy before home prices rise even more.

    Home prices are edging up in most markets, and buyers are taking notice. Buyer surveys recently have shown that home shoppers expect home prices to continue to inch up, and they want to cash in before they rise too much higher.

    “Every single thing about housing is flashing green” with household formation rising, inventory falling, and affordability hovering at record highs, James Dimon, chief executive of J.P. Morgan Chase told CNBC last month.

    In 2013, rising rents are expected to push more renters to buy, The Wall Street Journal reports. Also, investors who’ve had a big appetite for housing in recent years may start to decrease their share in some markets that have seen prices rise, such as Phoenix, and focus on other markets still in recovery mode, like Chicago and Atlanta.

    “Rising prices could eventually encourage more sellers to put their homes on the market, which would help boost demand even further,” The Wall Street Journal reports.

    To meet the expected increase in demand in 2013, some real estate companies are going on a hiring spree. For example, Redfin says it plans to increase its 400 agents nationally by 50 percent by the end of January after having to send about half of its referrals to other companies earlier this year because demand outstripped its supply of agents.

    Source: “2013: How Rising Prices Could Boost Housing Demand,” The Wall Street Journal (Dec. 18, 2012)

  • 4 Million Renters Say They’re Eager to Buy

    According to a new survey by Zillow of renters in the 20 largest housing markets in the U.S., 10% of renters say they want to buy a home in the next year. If those 10% of renters all buy homes in the next year, it’ll amount to 4.2 million first-time home buyer sales. That number is double the amount of first-time buyers in 2013.

    Normally, first-time home buyers make up about 40% of the housing market. NAR recently released a report though saying that the share of first-time home buyers has fallen to the lowest number on record since 2008. First-time home buyers only accounted for 26% of the housing market in January.

    However, more renters are now expressing a desire to buy homes, especially as the housing market is recovering and home prices rise. In some of the areas that were hit the hardest during the housing downturn, such as Miami, Atlanta, and Las Vegas, renters showed the strongest home ownership aspirations.

    Stan Humphries, a Zillow’s chief economist commented, ” Even after a wrenching housing recession, this data shows that the dream of home ownership remains very much alive and well, even in those areas that were hardest hit. But these aspirations must also contend with the current reality, and in many areas, conditions remain difficult for buyers. The market is moving toward more balance between buyers and sellers, but it is a slow and uneven process.”

  • Jumbo Mortgages Are More Affordable

    Wealthy home buyers are paying lower average rates on jumbo mortgages and sometimes, they don’t even have to come up with a large down payment or mortgage insurance.

    In the last several months interest rates on jumbo loans (mortgages that are $417,000 or more or $625,000 or more in high-priced markets) have been lower than what average borrowers pay. The average rate on jumbo loans, for example, was 4.24 percent the last week, compared to 4.36 percent for a 30-year, fixed-rate conventional mortgage.

    lenders also have reduced their down payment requirements, requiring as little as 10 percent down, which is about half the normal rate. Some lenders are even waiving the private mortgage insurance requirement.

    Several banks have lowered their credit score standards for jumbo loans. In the past, most jumbo loan borrowers were required to have at least a 700 credit score to qualify, but now lenders are approving some applicants with credit scores as low as 650.

    Banks are seeking out jumbo loan customers in order to gain them as clients for other banking services too, such as retirement planning, says Malcolm Hollensteiner, who is the head of retail lending for TD Bank. Jumbo borrowers tend to have better track records in repaying their loans and have fewer mortgage defaults, so more banks are willing to take a chance on them.

  • Low Inventory May Drive Prices Up

    For the first time in 16 months, inventory of homes available for sale dropped last month, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Although the decline was slight, less than 1 percent, per month, the drop does indicate “a reversal to the general growth of listings that had been occurring throughout 2014,” writes Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, at the Economists’ Outlook blog. “More inventories are needed, not less. Or else, home prices could re-accelerate.”

    In the month of December, the supply of existing-homes on the market was 4.4 months; 6 months is considered healthy by most economists’ standards.

    By the end of December, 1.85 million homes were listed for sale, that’s an 11 percent decline from November and 0.5 percent drop from year ago levels, according to NAR housing data. A drop in inventory is common from November to December, but Yun notes “what is of interest is the year-over-year decline in inventory because this hints at possible acceleration in home prices in upcoming months.”

    Home prices may have already begun “re-accelerating” in some markets, Yun writes. In spring and summer last year, the median price was rising at 4 to 5 percent. In November and December, the prices rose by 6 percent.

    Source: National Association of REALTORS® Economists’ Outlook Blog (Jan. 26, 2015)