Thursday, March 26, 2020 / by Vanessa Saunders
Inman News, the real estate industry's leading online information source, reported today that the economic slowdown during the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting home sales negatively. From Mar. 9 to Mar. 16, Google traffic saw a 35 percent decrease in home searches.
The report quoted one broker who said, "Over 350 homes withdrew or canceled from MLS across Massachusetts in the past four days alone.” The broker went on to point out that "One in four properties had already reduced their price. One out of 20 had reduced their price by 10 percent or more, and one out of 12 were listed for less than the assessed value."
What this tells us is that sellers need to be more realistic about setting their asking prices. Setting the right price for your house is one of the most important things you can do.
With prices slowing from their previous pace, homeowners must realize that pricing their homes a little over market value to leave room for negotiation will actually dramatically decreas ...
Read More
hudson valley real estate, hudson valley property, hudson valley home, buying a home, hudson valley home sellers, 'urb to 'burb, housing sales, selling your home, making an offer on a house, sales strategies, house pricing, negotiating price, the economy, health crisis
Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / by Vanessa Saunders
By Vanessa Saunders, MBA, MIMC , Broker Owner, Global Property Systems
A study published in October of 2019 by the Yale School of Management found that when single women invest in the housing market, they’re generally losing money compared to their single male counterparts. As unbelievable as it may seem, men and women can unknowingly walk away with very different financial outcomes when the deal closes.
According to the report, "Single men earn one percentage point higher un-levered returns per year on housing investment relative to single women…The gender gap grows significantly larger after adjusting for mortgage borrowing: men earn 6 percentage points higher levered returns per year relative to women. Data on repeat sales reveal that women buy the same property for approximately 2% more and sell for 2% less.”
How can this happen, in an age where mortgage lending and real estate regulations should make the process gender-blind? In its summary, the ...
Read More
hudson valley real estate, hudson valley property, hudson valley home, buying a home, home investment, orange county ny, 'urb to 'burb, westchester county, rockland county, ulster county, sullivan county, housing sales inventory, dutchess, manhattan, why work with a realtor, mortgage process, making an offer on a house, negotiating price
Thursday, January 30, 2020 / by Vanessa Saunders
By Vanessa Saunders, MBA, MIMC , Broker Owner, Global Property Systems
I recently attended a real estate conference in New York sponsored by Inman News, the nation's largest online real estate news publication. I met a lot of old friends, made some new ones, and heard some interesting discussions. But the discussions I heard at Inman this time weren't about best practices and how to service clients better. Many of the attendees - brokers, bankers, techs and yes, agents - were discussing one thing: Are real estate agents soon to be extinct?
The reason so many were talking about this dystopian view of the real estate profession is that the handwriting appears to be on the wall for REALTORS® as we know them. Sean Black, a long-time real estate expert, Co-Founder & CEO of Knock.com and a founding team member of Trulia summed it up this way in a recent article in Forbes: "This arcane, inefficient structure is the way residential real estate has been done for the past 50- ...
Read More
hudson valley real estate, hudson valley property, hudson valley home sellers, orange county ny, 'urb to 'burb, westchester county, rockland county, ulster county, sullivan county, selling your home, dutchess, manhattan, why work with a realtor, first time home buyer, blockchain, new technology, negotiating price, cryptocurrency, the future of real estate
Monday, November 4, 2019 / by Vanessa Saunders
It is estimated that one in five residential loan applications for buying a Hudson Valley home commit mortgage fraud. According to a CoreLogic study, income fraud ? "misrepresenting the existence, continuance, source or amount of income used to qualify for a mortgage" ? was the most common type of fraud the company saw in residential loan applications it reviewed from 2017 to 2018, at more than 22 percent.
Mortgage fraud carries a penalty of up to 30 years in jail or $1 million in fines, and most people think it's a crime committed by a lender. All it takes is a little white lie on a mortgage application to put a potentially put a borrower in big trouble.
Here are five common forms of mortgage fraud, in case you're one of worried about getting a knock on your door.
1. Inflating your declared income.
If you're dying for a certain home but it's just a little out of your budget, it may be tempting to fudge your income to qualify for a larger loan. This is especia ...
Read More
hudson valley real estate, hudson valley property, hudson valley home, buying a home, 'urb to 'burb, mortgage process, down payment, fha, real estate scams, negotiating price, scam alert
Thursday, October 17, 2019 / by Vanessa Saunders
If you’re searching for a home online, you’re not alone; lots of people are doing it. The question is, are you using all of your available resources, and are you using them wisely? Here’s why the Internet is a great place to start the home-buying process, and the truth on why it should never be your only go-to resource when it comes to making such an important decision.
According to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), the three most popular information sources home buyers use in the home search are:
Online website (93%)
Real estate agent (86%)
Mobile/tablet website or app (73%)
Clearly, you’re not alone if you’re starting your search online; 93% of home buyers are right there with you. The even better news: 86% of buyers are also getting their information from a real estate agent at the same time.
Here are 3 top reasons why using a REALTOR® in addition to a digital search is key:
1. There’s More to Real Estate Than F ...
Read More
hudson valley real estate, hudson valley property, hudson valley home, why work with a realtor, making an offer on a house, first time home buyer, negotiating price
