Category: Real Estate

6 Top Landscaping Trends for 2017 | Realtor Magazine

Smart technology, thoughtful — yet simplistic — design, and sustainability are the keywords when it comes to landscapes today.

“Savvy homeowners are seeking smart landscape solutions, which means we’re finding new ways to adapt to environmental elements, making continued advances in technology and taking outdoor living to the next level,” says Missy Henriksen, vice president of public affairs at the National Association of Landscape Professionals. “At the same time, a return to simple plantings reflects that although innovation in landscaping continues to accelerate, savoring the effortless beauty of the outdoors remains a top priority.”

The National Association of Landscape Professionals released their list of the top trends to watch in landscapes this year:

1. Incorporating a variety of greenery. Greenery isn’t just Pantone’s Color of the Year for 2017 but the color is adding pop to exteriors too. “Combining greenery of various textures and shades, such as a formal hedge of green velvet boxwood, a border of green lilyturf, and dense Boston ivy-covered trellises, is just as impactful as a garden filled with a rainbow of colorful flowers,” NALP notes.

2. Infusing “hygge.” Hygge is a Danish concept that is centered on creating an atmosphere of coziness and embracing the simple pleasures of life. “Decorating with light, arranging seating for close-knit conversations, planting aromatic flowers, and adding water features to encourage mindfulness are a few ways to integrate hygge into landscapes, and to find more enjoyment and fulfillment in outdoor spaces,” NALP notes.

3. Cooking up tech-centered outdoor kitchens. More homeowners are adding exterior kitchens, but they’re going beyond your basic grilling station and dining set. Outdoor kitchens are now including smart home technology, such as built-in consoles on refrigerator doors, mobile app-controlled LED lighting, and ovens integrated with Wi-Fi.

4. Combining materials. More landscapes are interweaving several forms of hardscape materials, such as pebble paths with stone planters or wooden decks with iron gates and railings. The pairings of different materials are creating a less formal look to landscapes, NALP notes.

5. Adding pollinator gardens. “Increased attention on the importance of pollinators to our ecosystem has inspired homeowners to develop gardens that specifically attract vital honeybees, hummingbirds, and butterflies,” NALP notes. “More homeowners are asking landscape professionals how to select native plantings that are abundant, year-round nectar sources throughout their yards, and the best ways to maintain these natural havens.”

6. Creating smart lawns. Landscape professionals have made advancements in developing cultivated grass varieties, called cultivars, that are known as being a form of smart grass. “They can better withstand the elements while still delivering an aesthetically beautiful and healthy lawn, making them especially desirable in drought-prone areas,” NALP notes.

7 Cities With the Most Pest Infestations | Realtor Magazine

Pests are a homeowner’s nemesis, no matter where you live. But some cities are seeing a big increase in pest infestations.

For example, in New York, complaints about rats rose 7 percent from 2015 to 2016 and rose by 16 percent in Boston, according to the newly released American Housing Survey by the Census Bureau. In 2015, 11 percent of households encountered rats or mice and 12 percent spotted cockroaches, according to the survey. Bedbugs are on the rise in many cities too, according to a report by Orkin, a nationwide pest-control company. 

“We have more people affected by bedbugs in the United States now than ever before,” says Ron Harrison, an entomologist and director of technical services at Orkin. “They were virtually unheard of in the U.S. 10 years ago.”

Realtor.com®’s research team went on the hunt for critters. They sought to determine which cities have the highest prevalence of rat, cockroaches, mosquitoes, termites, bedbugs, fleas and ticks, and scorpions. They found that rats tend to reign in the Northeast while insects taunt the South. 

Here are the seven cities with the most pest infestations: 

1. Houston, Texas
2. New York, N.Y.
3. Washington, D.C.
4. Atlanta, Ga. 
5. Philadelphia, Pa.
6. Miami, Fla.
7. Tampa, Fla. 

NerdWallet: January, February Prime Months To Purchase A Home

New year, new home?

The NerdWallet team says January and February are the prime months to purchase a home, thanks to lessened competition, lower home prices and higher mortgage rates looming ahead.

Take advantage of savings now

According to two years of realtor.com data that includes the 50 most populous metro areas, home prices in January and February are, on average, 8.45 percent lower than prices in July and August — two of the most popular homebuying months.

This trend is expected to hold true in 2017, but realtor.com chief economist Jonathan Smoke says the savings won’t be as large as seen in years before.

 

The fall 2016 housing market, which the National Association of Realtors dubbed the “autumn revival,” was especially strong, which means sellers didn’t feel the pressure to lower their sales prices in order to get their home off the market.

Despite this, Smoke still suggests homebuyers grab whatever savings they can get because spring home prices will likely increase more than normal.

Cold weather keeps competition at bay

According to NerdWallet, home sales in January are 47 percent lower than in June, which means less competition for buyers looking for the perfect home.

But there’s one caveat — buyers will still have to battle with low housing inventory, although the offset in competition helps.

“You basically face almost half of the competition with almost the same amount of inventory in the market,” Smoke says.

For the savvy buyer and agent, this can lead to savings through tactful negotiations with sellers. NerdWallet says the median home sold in January sold for $7,003 less than the listing price. Score!

Higher rates ahead

Out of the three reasons to buy a home now, homebuyers are most likely concerned about higher mortgage rates, which are predicted to rise to nearly 5 percent.

“As we look toward spring and later in 2017, that’s another reason to buy in January and February,” said Smoke. “Because rates are expected to be about 50 basis points, or half a percent, more as the year goes on.”

Tips for Selling Your Home to a Family Member – ZING Blog by Quicken Loans | ZING Blog by Quicken Loans

What happens when your house is on the market and a family member wants to buy it? Selling your house to a stranger can be pretty straightforward, but selling to family is a little different. We reached out to experts for tips on how to make this a smooth process.

Hire a Professional Title Company

Doug Gartley, Associate Broker at In House Realty, says a real estate agent is not always necessary when selling your home to a family member. He mentions that not only does this save you on commission costs, but you won’t have to prepare your home for showings.

If you decide to not use an agent, it’s still important to use a title company as a mutual third party. Gartley explains that a title company will prepare your purchase agreement and closing documents. You’re able to put your offer together in writing through your title company, which could get you ready to close in 45-60 days.

Put Everything in Writing

Putting everything in writing is extremely important.

“Make certain everything is spelled out, clear and concise, all the way down to whether the furnishings, fixtures and which appliances will be staying.” says Chantay Bridges, Premiere Real Estate Expert at Los Angeles Real Estate Now.

 

It may also prevent any misunderstandings or unexpected surprises down the road.

This is also important for your title company. Having the details about the buyer, seller, price and terms in writing helps them put the title and purchase agreement together correctly. Details that should be put in writing include anything from the listing price of the house to whether or not you’re taking the refrigerator with you.

Get an Appraisal

Before you sign an agreement with your family member, get your home appraised. An appraisal will determine the true market value of the home, and won’t leave you and your family member unsure of how much the house is worth. This will also stop you from accidentally selling your house well below market value.

Mike Size, a Senior Appraisal Review Analyst at Title Source, has over 30 years of experience in the real estate business. He even has experience buying and selling property to and from relatives.

“My advice is to get an appraisal to establish a starting point for the sale. Get all of the parties working from the same playbook.” Size says.

Not only is an appraisal important, but it’s also necessary for most mortgage lenders. Size explains that many lenders, for financial reasons, will require an appraisal in order to get a loan.

Get a Home Inspection

Although home inspections are not always mandatory, it’s still important to get one done. A home inspection will let you and your family member know if anything is wrong with the house so there are no surprises when your family member moves in.

A home inspector will check everything from the plumbing to the foundation of the house. If you’re looking for help on what to check during a home inspection, take a look at our checklist that highlights areas that are typically inspected.

Understanding the process before selling your home to a family member is important before you start packing your bags. If you’ve ever sold your home to a family member and have any tips, share them in the comments below!

Mortgage Rates Take a Breather This Week | Realtor Magazine

Mortgage rates barely budged this week compared to the previous week, as the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage held its 4.19 percent average, Freddie Mac reports.

“The 10-year Treasury yield fell 5 basis points this week following a tepid advance estimate of fourth-quarter GDP and the Fed’s decision to leave rates unchanged,” says Sean Becketti, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “The 30-year mortgage rate remained flat at 4.19 percent, starting the month 47 basis points higher than this time last year. Despite the uncertainty in the market, the pending home sales index increased 1.6 percent in December, up from a decline of 2.5 percent the month prior.”

Freddie Mac reports the following national averages with mortgage rates for the week ending Feb. 2:

• 30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 4.19 percent, with an average 0.5 point, unchanged from last week. Last year at this time, 30-year rates averaged 3.72 percent.
• 15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 3.41 percent, with an average 0.5 point, rising slightly from last week’s 3.40 percent average. A year ago, 15-year rates averaged 3.01 percent.
• 5-year hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages: averaged 3.23 percent, with an average 0.4 point, increasing from last week’s 3.20 percent average. A year ago, 5-year ARMs averaged 2.85 percent.

Sellers See Biggest Profits Since 2007 | Realtor Magazine

Homeowners who sold in 2016 saw an average home price gain since purchase of $38,206 – or a 21 percent, on average, increase since purchase, ATTOM Data Solutions repots in its Year-End 2016 U.S. Home Sales Report. That’s up from an average 13 percent gain in 2015, and it is the highest increase since 2007.

The largest metro areas to see the highest average percent gain since purchase for home sellers in 2016 were:

• San Francisco, Calif.: 69% gain
• San Jose, Calif.: 69%
• Santa Rosa, Calif.: 52%
• Los Angeles, Calif. 49%
• Seattle, Wash.: 48%

The median home sales price across the country in 2016 was $218,175, according to ATTOM Data Solutions, which is up 6.8 percent from 2015. Of the 201 largest metro areas with populations of at least 200,000, 179 of the areas posted a year-over-year increase in home prices. Twenty-seven of the metros posted double-digit year-over-year price gains. Notably, the following cities posted the highest gains:

• Tampa-St. Petersburg, Fla.: up 14%
• Jacksonville, Fla.: 12.9%
• Portland, Ore.: 12.1%
• Denver, Colo.: 11.3%
• Orlando, Fla.: 10.1%

Meanwhile, the following counties had the highest actual median home prices in 2016:

• New York County (Manhattan), N.Y.: $1,400,000
• San Francisco County, Calif.: $1,175,000
• San Mateo County, Calif.: $1,075,000
• Marin County, Calif.: $950,000
• Santa Clara County, Calif.: $860,000

Tips to freshen up your home on a budget

Small changes can have a big impact on your home. Ross Neilson, for example, got rid of a free-standing bureau in the bedroom of his London apartment. “It looked cluttered, so I added closet shelves and drawers under my bed instead,” he says, adding: “That freed up floor space and made the room feel more spacious and light.”

January is usually a time for renewal, and your home is the natural place to begin. A redesigned room is a tangible signal of a fresh start—one that will endure long after resolutions waver. It doesn’t have to cost much—or anything at all. It just requires a willingness to see lived-in rooms in a new light.

For ideas on how to refresh your home in 2017, we turned to the pros: Christina Hingham, an interior designer for the Studio at One Kings Lane, and Ashley Redmond, director of design at Decorist. Here are some tips:

1. Get organized

Cleanliness carries real psychological benefits. It helps you sleep better, reduces stress, and increases productivity. At the start of any redesign, think about storage options for clearing visual clutter. Simply gathering earrings or paper clips into a teacup can provide a greater sense of order.

Magazines and books often crowd a well-used living room, so slip them inside a storage ottoman or bench. Hide a messy stack of files on a desk inside a bright lacquer box. In a children’s bedroom, Hingham puts toys in woven African baskets—which can later be repurposed after the kids have grown up and leave the house.

2. Shuffle the art

“You can move a painting from one room to another, and create a completely different feel,” says Redmond. As the new centerpiece of a space, a piece of art can inspire subtle changes to the color of accessories. The cerulean hues of a landscape, for instance, could be picked up in cobalt throw pillows or sky-blue blankets. “Use tones from the picture to create layers of color,” she says. “It makes a room feel cohesive.”

3. Conceal your TV

The television doesn’t have to dominate your living room décor. Rather than hang it alone on a blank white wall, Hingham says, consider clustering framed artwork around it to make the flat screen appear like part of the gallery wall. Play a similar visual trick by nestling it within black bookshelves or painting the wall slate grey to help the television blend in.

4. Incorporate houseplants

“Plants are inexpensive and add life to any room,” says Redmond. Easy to grow, palms and philodendron are classic choices. For a bit more character, however, try the sculptural fiddle leaf fig—a design world darling that can grow several feet tall. 

5. Throw a rug on the kitchen floor 

Vintage rugs can enliven a tired, post-holiday kitchen. “It’s a cool look that adds color and interest,” says Hingham, who likes cotton kilim rugs that are inexpensive and easy to clean. “Just adding a little vintage to your home will give it a lot of character and personality.” Bonus: A long runner helps conceal unattractive linoleum floors.

6. Change your hardware

One of the easiest ways to perk up a kitchen or bedroom is to change knobs and drawer pulls. Costing as little as $2, they usually require only a screwdriver to install. Try candy-colored handles in a kid’s room or brushed gold finishes for a refined office.

7. Add an accent wall

When you paint or wallpaper a portion of a room, it draws the eye and becomes a focal point of the space. “It’s inexpensive to buy a gallon of paint but it’s high impact,” says Redmond. “You could even use chalkboard paint to create a family messaging center.” She also recommends self-adhesive, removable wallpaper as an affordable way to add patterns. You might paste it above the oven as a backsplash or behind the shelves of a built-in bookcase. 

8. Create a calming bedroom

“Think about your bedroom as the relaxation zone where you can unplug,” says Redmond. Bring in neutral tones with a new duvet cover, cozy throw pillows, or soft linen curtains.

Try to banish technology for a better night’s sleep. Hingham suggests buying a retro bedside clock to use as an alarm, instead of your smartphone. “It looks awesome—and you can check your phone in the morning,” she says.

9. Switch the light fixtures

Trade harsh overhead lights for warm table lamps or pendants. “It will make a huge difference in your space,” says Hingham. “People are scared to change lighting because they think it’s expensive, but you can get a fabulous chandelier for around $200.”

Consider adopting the interior design trend of mixing traditional and modern styles, such as a midcentury floor lamp beside a tufted sofa. Such eclectic juxtapositions lend character to a room.

What you should know about rising interest rates – morning-times.com: Real Estate

(BPT) – Homeowners planning to refinance and buyers searching for a home may have an idea of what’s in store for them with regards to interest rates, but they never really know until they lock in a rate. This is in part because rates can change direction fast, and when they rise—as they have been recently—it can cost borrowers a great deal of money and time.

The effect of rising interest rates on your home purchase

Today, the median existing home price in the United States is around $235,000, and the average mortgage interest rate is near 4 percent. If you were to buy a home at that price, an interest rate increase of half a percent would cost you an additional $70 per month on your loan payment. And that assumes you’ll put the standard 20 percent down in advance. A more dramatic rate increase—say from 4 percent to 6 percent, even over time, would increase your monthly payment by almost $300.

Home price gains

For homebuyers, it’s not just rising interest rates that can increase your payment, but so can home price appreciation. In fact, in most markets, housing prices have increased past highs previously set before the financial crisis in 2007/2008. For example, in citing this recovery, the Federal Housing Finance Agency recently increased the maximum loan amount for mortgages that meet Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guidelines for the first time in more than a decade.

The new conforming loan limits increased only slightly, to $424,100 in most parts of the country. This will enable home buyers in higher-cost areas to access larger home loan amounts and more affordable loan products, in line with local housing prices.

The home buying season may start early this year

Spring/summer is traditionally the busiest home buying time of the year as many sellers wait to list their homes after the cold winter weather is over and to coincide with the summer school break. However, with both home prices and interest rates on the rise, more buyers are expected to enter the home buying market earlier this year, making for a more competitive home buying season. Potential buyers will need to be aggressive to find the home they want at a rate they can afford.

Starting your loan search today

If you’re in the market but haven’t found the home of your dreams yet, there are tools available to guard against increasing mortgage rates. Lenders like loanDepot help customers save by giving them the opportunity to lock a quoted rate and hold (lock in) that rate for 45 to 60 days, protecting them from potential fluctuations in the market. And with rates rising, now is a great time to lock your loan at a more favorable interest rate.

If you do choose to lock your loan, you’ll need to provide an appraisal deposit which can range from $450 to $750. This is not a fee, and is returned when working with loanDepot if there is no appraisal performed on a home.

Mortgage Words You Should Know | Realtor Magazine

The mortgage industry loves jargon and it can quickly confuse a real estate professional and all the moreso a borrower. The Fannie Mae Sellers Guide alone has 91 different acronyms and abbreviations.

The National Mortgage News recently offered up a few of the most common acronyms buyers and professionals should know while going through the homebuying process.

DTI: Debt to income

• Underwriters turn to this ratio to determine if a borrower can financially meet a mortgage obligation.

UETA: Uniform Electronics Transactions Act

• One of this Act’s purposes is to help harmonize state laws with the recognition of electronic signatures on documents.

PITI: Principal and interest plus taxes and insurance

• Lenders often will break a borrower’s monthly payment down into this equation.

ATR: Ability to repay

• The Dodd-Frank Act mandates that lenders ensure borrowers have the ability to repay their debt.

HOEPA: Home Ownership Equity and Protection Act

• The law helps to determine when a loan becomes considered a high-cost mortgage.

SFHA: Special Flood Hazard Area

• Lenders must monitor flood maps to see if the property has been placed into these zones.

2016 New-Home Sales Near Decade-Long High | Realtor Magazine

New-home sales posted a strong rebound in 2016, the latest data release from the Commerce Department shows. Sales of newly built single-family homes increased 12.2 percent in 2016 year over year, reaching 563,000 units. That is the highest annual rate since 2007.

“We are encouraged by the growth in the housing sector last year, and by the fact that builders increased inventory by 10 percent in anticipation of future business,” says Robert Dietz, chief economist of the National Association of Home Builders. “NAHB’s forecast calls for continued upward momentum this year, with housing starts expected to rise 10 percent over the course of 2017.”

Still, new-home sales failed to keep pace closing out 2016. The Commerce Department reported Thursday that new-home sales plunged 10.4 percent in December month over month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 536,000 units. Inventories of new-home sales was 259,000 in December, a 5.8-month supply at the current sales pace. The median sales price of a new house sold was $322,500.

Across the country, new-home sales saw the largest spike in the Northeast in December, with new-home sales jumping 48.4 percent. Meanwhile, sales plunged 41 percent in the Midwest, by 12.6 percent in the South, and by a more modest decrease of 1.3 percent in the West, the Commerce Department reported.

“To ensure sales continue to move forward in 2017, builders need to price their homes competitively, especially given that mortgage interest rates are expected to rise this year,” says NAHB Chairman Granger MacDonald.