Joel's Blog

Hop on The real estate Bus

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 12:31:04 -0500

The latest news from Las Vegas.

Looks like this will be the newest trend

Busloads of home buyers are hopping aboard the foreclosure bandwagon in search of bargains, and real estate agents and brokers are supplying the wheels and deals in markets across the country. Last month, they began offering free real estate tours of bank-owned foreclosure properties and builder-discounted new homes in the Las Vegas area. The bus trips are free and include lunch
The response from consumers is tremendous. There are first-time home buyers, people who want to move up, and we have investors -- it's pretty much across the board right now,
The response from consumers is tremendous. We have first-time home buyers, people who want to move up, and investors -- it's pretty much across the board right now,
Group tours of foreclosure properties are gaining traction in other cities, too -- from San Diego to Orlando -- as real estate professionals work to drum up business in a down market while catering to price-conscious consumers.

Loan Limits

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 13:13:25 -0500

TEMPORARTY INCREASE ON LOAN LIMITS

The Economic Stimulus Act of 2008, signed into law on February 13, 2008, establishes temporary increases to Fannie Mae’s conventional loan limits for first lien mortgage loans in high-cost areas, as defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). This new legislation is intended to bring stability, liquidity and affordability to an important part of the housing finance system.

The purpose of this Announcement is to outline Fannie Mae’s requirements for the origination, underwriting, delivery and servicing of “jumbo-conforming” mortgage loans. A jumbo-conforming mortgage loan is any conventional conforming mortgage loan for which the original principal balance exceeds our conforming loan limits in effect prior to the temporary increase up to the new limits set by HUD for the area in which the property is located. Unless otherwise stated in this Announcement, all requirements of Fannie Mae’s Selling Guide and Servicing Guide apply to jumbo-conforming mortgage loans.

Loan Limits

Fannie Mae will purchase jumbo-conforming mortgages secured by one-unit properties only. The new loan limits are applicable only to high-cost areas and will be calculated based on the location of the subject property as follows:

• 125 percent of the area median home price in high-cost areas, not to exceed $729,750 except in Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands

• In situations where 125 percent of the area median home price is less than $417,000, the loan limit will remain at $417,000 ($625,500 for Alaska, Guam, Hawaii, and the U.S. Virgin Islands)

Short Sales

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 10:24:39 -0500

TAX BREAK ON SHORT SALE

President Bush signed into law a new measure giving tax breaks to homeowners who have mortgage debt forgiven. Under preexisting law, the debt forgiven by a lender, such as for short sales and refinances, was generally taxable to the borrower as debt discharge income. With the passage of the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, a taxpayer does not have to pay federal income tax on debt forgiven for a loan secured by a qualified principal residence.

This tax break applies to debts discharged from January 1, 2007 to December 31, 2009. Qualified principal residence indebtedness is debt incurred in acquiring, constructing, or substantially improving the residence (up to $2 million for refinances).

For purposes of calculating capital gains, any debts discharged excluded from income under the new law must be subtracted from the basis of the taxpayer's principal residence (but not below zero). However, taxpayers may generally exclude from capital gains income up to $250,000 (or $500,000 for married couples filing jointly) for properties owned and used as their principal residence for at least two of the last five years.

Targeting the Gen-Y Group

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 11:13:17 -0500

          o They’re big. Gen Y ranges from 72-78 million nationwide and 2 billion worldwide.
          o The Web is their playground. They track down their friends on MySpace, they download their songs from iTunes, and they send e-mails from their phones while waiting on line at Starbucks. And, you better pay attention to their e-mails because they expect a fast response.
          o They buy young. One average, Gen Yers buy homes at age 26, three years earlier than most Generation Xers, according to a Century 21 Real Estate study in 2006.
          o They have hectic schedules. Their lives are a lot busier than their parents were at their age. They are always moving.
          o They do their research. Don’t try to pull the wool over their eyes. You better know what you are talking about, because they will have done their research.
* Consider using a smart phone to easily send and receive e-mail from the field.
    * Have a great website. It’s a given that young buyers will search for homes online, make sure your site is out there for them.
    * Include tons of photos, virtual tours, and informational resources to help Gen Yers do their research.
    * Advertise listings on Craigslist, which is hugely popular with Web-savvy Gen Yers.

Short sale

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 12:14:15 -0500

WHAT IS A SHORT SALE?

For all the homeowners who are upside down and can no longer make their mortgage payment (because of either a job loss, divorce, or an option ARM that’s resetting higher), up to now the only option was, well, letting the bank foreclose. That’s not a good option since a foreclosure sticks on your credit record for at least 10 years. But some experts are now advocating a “short sale.” This is a case of a distinction with a difference: If your bank agrees to a short sale, you then hire an agent to find a buyer for the house, you sell the house for a loss, and with the bank’s blessing, they agree to eat the loss (although they could still demand the homeowner make some kind of payment or share the loss).

Peter Lynch says:

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 11:58:41 -0500

Ignore the Headlines!!! Thats no easy thing he says. How can you filter out the medias stuff about the economy, real estate, oil, Iran and now Spitzer. That media hype according to Lynch makes us stay put and not make any purchase. "But," he says, "What are you waiting for."

This is a time when you could be scared enough to panic and do nothing. When the economy is down and prices are down, you need to get tough and be disclpined enough to buy stocks, a home, or gold. The article quotes John D. Rockerfeller, "The time to make money is buy when blood is running in the streets."

Right now is the time, Prices of homes have plummeled. The Fed is dropping interest rates. So, while everyone else is retreating you can stick to the plan and be happy in the years ahead.

Okay, you think the market could keep dropping, but the recession could be half over - may be we have avoided one, you never know.

Lynch says, "Risks always seem most acute when the headlines give you ulcers. But that's exactly when you should think long term-and get off your thumbs."

More newsF

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 12:45:54 -0600

Famed Money Manager Peter Finch is perhaps best known for his timeles wisdom that you can beat the pros by focusing on stocks of companies whree you either work or shop or have some other edge. but a more relevant Lynchismtoday is this gem: Ignore the headlines.

Real Estate Headlines

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 12:27:51 -0600

Ignore the headlines, except this one. Sure, housing's in a hole. But there's apotent case for buying now, whether itr's real estate or stocks. Stay tuned for more from famed money manager Peter Finch, Right on Your Money

Real etate and farm Stands

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 14:21:12 -0600

With the change from a truck farm to incorporating enterainment in farming the character of Southold changed. The preservation of land for farming was increased since the farmers were still able to be profitable (the Farm Stand). Now all real estate became valuable and the demand and price escalated.

Following is an exerpt from a "Norh Fork Guide to farm stands"

Around 1980 the Main Road Farm stand era began. There are some very small farm stands and that number seems to swell during the fall. Many farmers are adding corn mazes, hay rides, roasted corn and other forma of entertainment. Now agri-tainment farm stands are developing renewed interest and are competing with the many wineries.
This guide will attempt to depict the farm stands from the smallest to those who provide all the varied forms of agri-tainment.

This guide is available at the Daniel Gale Southold office and the Mattituck Chamber of Commerce Information booth in Laurel.

A URL for your RFeal seate web site

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 14:12:22 -0600

I just came accros a web site that gives you all the information regarding zip codes. In fact there is more information than one might need. that URL is zipskinny.com

Real Estate Auction

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 07:27:53 -0600

I just spoke with a fellow real estate person who had this novel idea. Well it seemed to ne novel. Anyway he said it was working for him.

He was selling homes by creating an auction. He advertised an open house auction party wine cheese and such. People came out and actually were intrigued by the idea and in this peal estate market the homes sold.

It seems like arealy great new and fascinating way to msrket homes today. It would certainly bring out the buyers.

Farm Stands and Real Estate

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Sat, 03 Nov 2007 09:58:04 -0500

You might wonder what do farm stands have to do with real estate. Out here on the eastern end of Long Island and especially the North Fork there is a huge relationship. It is all about saving whats left and open spaces. I believe that the introduction of the wineries started the preservation of our farms and open spaces. The natural follow-up was the farmer who now has less land (bought by the wineries) has to find a way to make a profit on less acreage. And so the roadside farm stand. No longer trucking the produce to the city the farmer now draws the city folk out with entertainment or agri-tainment. Therfore the retention of open space keeps my area the North Fork a somewhat rural and second-home market.

Because I do so love this type or community I decided to write and publish a North Fork Guide to Farm Stands. What follows are exerrpts from that publication, one that will soon start its second edition.

Although recently recog- nized for their world class wines, the North Fork has its roots deeply entrenched in Farming. In order to continue this 200 year plus activity the farmers have modified their operation. No longer trucking the produce to the West, the farmers slowly turned to retail sales in front of the farm.

Photography

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 12:30:45 -0500

As a resident realtor/photographer I was out roaming the North Fork for some additional photos. I have also published a North Fork Guide to Farm Stands. I was looking to add some fall photos when I was directed to Krupskis Farm in Peconic New York by our office manager, Sharon Ortatepe. She advised he of the wonderful carved pumpkins on display. Those photos are the ones you see here, along with a photo of a local farm stand in Cutchogue. You can Stop by the Real Estate office to pick up a copy of my Guide and at a local farm stand to savor the tastes of the North Fork.

A typical summer rental

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 12:24:39 -0500

Summer Rentals

Joel Reitman (Daniel Gale Sotheby) — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 18:53:25 -0500

It seems that summer rentals have been on the decline lately. Well I am here to tell evryone that will change this coming summer, Why you ask well the stock market trend is up and those who summer will be more able to aford it. As we can see the high end real estate market lives on