Tag: whitefish montana

  • 7 Tips for Remodeling a Bathroom

    Average bathroom remodels can be pretty up there in price, but here’s some simple tips to help get you a budget-friendly bathroom remodel with the maximum value for your investment.

    1.) Planning is important.
    DO NOT improvise. Think beforehand about how you want to use the space available, what materials you want to use, and just how much you’re willing to spend. This is no area to just start the renovation with no idea in place. And once you’ve made the plan, stick to it. Making last minute changes and alterations adds cost, and many contractors charge more for changing original plans.

    2.) Keep the same floor plan.
    Keeping the same amount of square-footage saves you time and money, and cuts down on demolition. Make the most of the space that you already have. Glass doors on showers and tubs open up spaces. A pedestal sink takes up less space than a vanity. Maybe use a medicine cabinet for storage instead of just a mirror.

    3.) Make lighting a priority.
    The lighting in a bathroom space  will make the overall space look better. Use two ceiling or soffit-mounted fixtures with 60/75 watts each, and side fixtures or sconces with 150 watts each. Four bulb lighting fixtures also work well for side lighting.

    4.) Air Ventilation.
    This is important as it reduces mirror fogging, slippery bathroom floors, and mold and mildew growth. And it also improves the air quality of your home. Excess humidity can cause cabinet damage, and mold is often very expensive to remove. A bathroom vent and water closet fan should exhaust the air outside, not just to the space between ceiling joists.

    5.) Additional Storage.
    Finding areas for additional bathroom storage is tricky. Add storage vertically by installing shelves over towel racks, or multi-tiered shelf units designed to fit over toilet tanks to take advantage of unused wall space. You can add moveable storage by adding baskets or a floor-standing coat rack for towel storage. Add slide-out trays to vanity cabinets.

    6.) DIY Labor.
    Take off some cost by doing some projects yourself. Maybe install a window, add baseboard trim, paint the walls, install a toilet, or add a towel bar or shelves.

    7.) Use a soft color scheme.
    Use neutral colors for permanent fixtures and surfaces. But add color in small items and areas that can be easily changed. Use colorful towels or bath rugs or add a pop of color to the walls.

  • 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)

  • 59 Metros Back to Normal

    According to National Association of Home Builders/First American’s latest Leading Markets Index, 59 out of 350 housing markets across the country have returned to, or exceeded their last normal level of housing and economic activity.

    Markets nationwide are running at around 87% of their normal economic and housing activity. The Leading Markets Index evaluates metro areas to see if they’re getting close to, or even exceeding, their previous levels of normal activity. This factors in average single-family permits, home prices, and employment levels for the past 12 months and then compares it to that market’s past levels.

    At the top of the list of major metros is Baton Rouge, L.A. which is now performing at a 41% higher rate than its previous levels of activity. Some other top markets include: Oklahoma City; Honolulu; Austin and Houston, Texas; and Harrisburg and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. All of those markets are experiencing more activity than in the past.

    There are also some smaller metros that are experiencing double their activity in comparison to activity prior the recession, like Odessa, Texas and Midland, Texas. Some other strong smaller metros are: Casper, Wyoming; Bismarck, North Dakota; and Grand Folks, North Dakota.

    David Crowe, a chief economist for NAHB, says, “The strong energy sector is at the forefront of the recovery and centered in many small and mid-sized markets in Texas, Louisiana, North Dakota and Wyoming. In fact, these four states account for eight of the top 10 markets on the LMI and 45 percent of the markets that are at or above normal.”

  • 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.

  • 5 Most Affordable Housing Markets

    According to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index, nearly 65% of new and existing homes sold between the beginning of October and the end of December, were affordable to families earning an average income of $64,400. This is largely unchanged from the third quarter index.

    The NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index shows that Youngstown-Warren Boardman, Ohio-PA, is the most affordable major housing market in the country. 89.4% of all new and existing homes sold in the fourth quarter of 2013 were affordable to families earning an average of $53,900.

    These are the top five most affordable major housing markets:

    1. Youngstown-Barren Boardman, Ohio-PA.

    2. Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA.

    3. Syracuse, NY.

    4. Buffalo-Niagara Falls, PA.

    5. Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA.

    The most affordable smaller market was Kokomo, Ind. 96.3% of homes sold in the fourth quarter of 2013 were affordable to people earning $60, 100.

    The index also showed that the most expensive major housing market in the country continues to be, for the fifth consecutive quarter in a row, the San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, CA area. Only 14% of homes sold in the fourth quarter of 2013 were affordable to the area’s average income of $101,200.

    The National Association of Realtors also released its Housing Affordability Index, which shows that rises home prices are starting to hamper affordability throughout certain parts of the country, specifically in the West.

    While the vast majority of home owners have had significant gains in equity over the past two years, which is helping the economy, home prices are rising faster than incomes, and mortgage interest rates are rising. This is starting to affect housing affordability.

  • No Spring Slowdown for New-Home Sales

    In January, single family new-home sales surged to a five and a half year high, which is giving hope that the new-home sector isn’t going to slow down in Spring after all.

    New-home sales role 9.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 468,000 units in January. That is the highest it’s been since January 2008.

    Throughout the U.S. in January, new-home sales rose 73.7% in the Northeast, 10.4% in the South, and 11% in the West. However, due to a cold snap throughout the Midwest, new-sales slipped 17.2% there.

    Kevin Kelly, a chairman for the National Association of Realtors commented that, “The fact that the cold weather that hit much of the country didn’t stop home buyers from going out and purchasing a piece of the American dream is a great sign. However, the very low supply of new homes on the market and the continued concern of available buildable lots still have builders cautious about getting ahead of themselves.”

    The new homes for sale inventory generally remained steady throughout January, staying at a tight 4.7 month supply at the current sales pace. Housing starts had posted their largest decline in nearly three years last month, which gave concern about that the new-home sector was going to hit a downward spiral between rising home prices and mortgage rates.

    However, in January, new-home sales rose 2.2% from last January, and the average price of a new home rose to $260,100, a 3.4% increase from last year. The pace of rising home prices has also slowed in the past few months.

  • 12 States With the Lowest Amount of Foreclosures

    Many homeowners in the U.S. are still dealing with the after-effects of the housing bubble and credit meltdown. However, the foreclosure market is starting to show signs of slowly improving.

    The amount of completed foreclosures in December dropped 14% in comparison to December 2012. There were 45,000 foreclosures in December 2013, whereas there were 52,000 in December 2012. However, that’s still higher than the monthly average of foreclosures seen from 2000-2006 where there were only around 21,000 foreclosures per month.

    Anand Nallathambi, president and chief executive officer of CoreLogic remarked that 2013 was a transitional year for residential property in the U.S. However, higher home prices, lower shadow inventory levels, and the slowly improving economy are positive signs. The housing market is expected to continue healing in 2014, but progress will remain slow.

    There are presently 36 states that have a lower foreclosure inventory level than the national foreclosure inventory. These are the 12 States with the lowest foreclosure inventory level throughout the U.S.

    1. Wyoming

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.4%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: 854

    2. Alaska

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.5%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: 854

    3. North Dakota

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.6%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: 417

    4. Nebraska

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.6%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: 1,673

    5. Colorado

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.6%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: 9,652

    6. California

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.7%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: 39,149

    7. Minnesota

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.7%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: 9,364

    8. Montana

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.7%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: 1,006

    9. South Dakota

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.7%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: N/A

    10. Virginia

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.8%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: 12,409

    11. Missouri

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.8%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: 13,811

    12. Arizona

    Foreclosure Inventory: 0.8%
    Completed Foreclosures in 2013: 19,831

  • Spring Selling Rush Coming Early

    Spring is usually the busiest time of year for the housing market, when more people are putting their homes up for sale. However, the spring selling rush seems to be starting earlier this year. Some homeowners are already putting their homes up for sale to advantage of the rebounding home prices and improved equity.

    Sellers are also starting to put home on the market early because they don’t know whether there will be a lot of people listing in the spring- which can cause a big counterbalance towards too much inventory- or if there will be a housing crunch again. Homeowners are trying to get ahead of the market and sell early to be done with it.

    Last year, there was a major home inventory shortage. The availability of homes for sale leading into spring was at a 12-year low. The shortage of homes helped boost prices a little bit, but it gave buyers very little options when looking for a home, and often sparked bidding wars in many markets. The construction of new homes in now at a third of its peak from 2006, which likely is going to keep home inventory tight in the spring. However, it is anticipated that because of improved home prices, there will be more homeowners listing their homes in the spring this year, which will help relieve the inventory crunch.

    During the last four months of 2013, home inventory levels began to increase after a 30-month decline. Inventories also increased in some of the states with the highest tightest markets. Some of these were Arizona, California, Georgia, and Florida.

    Due to the expected rise in inventory levels, home prices are expected to only rise 4% in 2014, as compared to 11% in 2013.