Mile Square Real Estate

I am proud to say I recently earned my Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE)designation. I am not alone, at the RE/MAX International convention in Las Vegas on March 3, RE/MAX Chairman and Co-founder Dave Liniger announced the corporation’s plans of having 7,500 RE/MAX Agents earn the Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) designation this year.

“The CDPE designation is one of the most important and timely educational products I have seen in over 40 years in the real estate business,” said Liniger. “I will do whatever it takes to get as many agents as possible through this course so they can help homeowners, the economy and our country.”

The Distressed Property Institute, based in Boca Raton, Fl. and launched in January 2008, offers the Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) designation after comprehensive on-site or online training on how to handle short sales. The institute was founded by dynamic real estate veteran Alex Charfen.

“The fact that a global real estate powerhouse like RE/MAX has committed to training its agents on short sales demonstrates that this is a market all Realtors® must understand,” Charfen said. “Realtors® are in a position to help people avoid foreclosure. They can be a great catalyst for the recovery of this housing crisis.”

Nationally, only 12 percent of short sales are approved. Among CDPE designated Realtors®, more than 80 percent of short sales are approved. According to the National Association of Realtors®, more than 45 percent of existing home sales in the fourth quarter of 2008 were foreclosures and short sales. In a short sale transaction, homeowners sell their property for less than the mortgage amount, but avoid the foreclosure process.

The CDPE designation has been endorsed by many major U.S. brokerages.
Andres Garcia
Sales Associate, CDPE
RE/MAX Gold Coast Realty
56 Newark Street
Hoboken, NJ 07030
Direct: 201 795-5200 x340
Andres@MileSquareRealty.com
http://www.MileSquareRealty.com

Labels: CDPE, Dertified Distressed Property Expert, Foreclosure, Hoboken Real Estate, Hudson County real estate, Jersey City real estate, Short Sale

Posted by Andy at 4/24/2009 02:14:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

I often hear the argument from buyers that they can save on the commission by working directly with the seller's agent. While giving up your advocate isn't necessarily in the buyer's best interest, the questions remains. Can a buyer save on commission?

Agents are wrong when they say you can't save money by buying a home directly through the listing agent. In many cases you can save at least 1/2 of 1% of the total purchase price. This is how that can happen. A seller lists their home. In the listing agreement the seller negotiates with their agent to offer a 1% commission reduction if the listing agent sells the home. As a buyer, you view that home and like it. You place an offer at what you are willing to pay -1%. The seller counters your offer at what they were willing to net plus full commission and fees. But wait, why full commission, why aren't they giving up the 1%? Oh, that's right, the seller put the 1% savings in the contract to save themselves 1%, not to give it to you, the buyer who had nothing to do with the original negotiation! Now what? Well if all goes well you negotiate and split the 1%. You each get 1/2%. The seller saved 1/2%. You gave up your representation and saved 1/2%. Maybe a couple of thousand dollars.

Oh but wait, I forgot, we haven't taken into account your opportunity costs. What is that you ask? That is all the opportunities you gave up using your time buying your home on your own rather then spending it in another more productive or enjoyable way. In this market it's not unfair to say my clients will look at 20 homes before deciding on one. That is 20 out of the 100 that may fit their needs. But why did they only look at 20 then? What about the other 80? Well after sitting down and speaking to my clients and viewing a few homes with them I get an idea of what they are looking for. Based on this information and knowing the homes I pre-view every day I can eliminate many of the homes on the market for one reason or another. Searching on your own you will have to pre-view your own homes. This will likely add a few weekends to your search over the course of a couple of months. Also add hours to your search in having to meet multiple Realtors all the time for individual showings. Once you have found a home add the redundancy of going over everything twice, once with your. . I mean the seller's agent and once with your attorney. After all you'll likely not entirely trust the Realtor you have chosen to work with knowing they don't have your best interests at heart. Now here's the really rough part. Take the late night at the office that you won't get overtime for. Since you don't have an advocate, you are coordinating your own closing, your lawyer, title company, mortgage company, appraiser, inspector, etc.. After all we can't trust the seller's agent to do all this, can you?

In today's world you can do everything on your own. You can invest your own money using E*Trade research. You can write up legal documents using an Office Depot CD. You can self diagnose their illness using WebMD. You can find your next home using Realtor.com. While there is an abundance of information out there, what you need is knowledge because information without understanding is useless.

We all know a few hours of research on the Internet can not replace years of experience, education, and knowledge of the market. For example, I have already spent 10 full days in conventions, seminars, and earning my Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) designation this year. Add to that my 4 years of experience, the scores of closed transactions, and the 10-15 days of education I received every year for the last 3 years and you will see there is a lot to know in this ever changing industry.

So yes, a buyer can possibly save 1/2 of 1% going to the listing agent. The questions is, is it worth it to you? I know I value my clients time, I hope you do too.

Andres Garcia
Sales Associate, CDPE
RE/MAX Gold Coast Realty
56 Newark Street
Hoboken, NJ 07030
Direct: 201 795-5200 x340
Andres@MileSquareRealty.com
http://www.MileSquareRealty.com

Labels: Buyer rebate real estate commission, Buyer save on real estate commission, Hoboken Real Estate, Hudson County real estate, save commission placing offer through listing seller agent

Posted by Andy at 4/22/2009 10:46:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

With mortgage rates at historic lows, CNBC talks to Susan Wachter of Wharton Business School and Howard Glaser, a mortgage industry consultant, about whether there will be a springtime recovery in the housing market. Wachter said the economy still needs to turn around before the housing market really improves. Glaser said the money the federal government has been pumping into the system has gotten stuck at the level of the major banks and isn't trickling down to consumers.

Labels: Hoboken Real Estate, Hudson County real estate, Jersey City real estate, Mortgage rates

Posted by Andy at 3/25/2009 09:00:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

Since the Federal Stimulus bill was passed a lot of people have been asking about the new first time home buyer tax credit so here is a short synopsis:

For homes purchased in 2009 a first time home buyer will receive a tax credit up to $8000. (if the home was purchased in 2008 that credit is $7500)

There are certain criteria which have to be met in order for a first-time home buyer to qualify. The main criteria are:

1) The home must be your primary residence.
2) You have not owned a main home within the last 3 years.
3) You purchased the property after April 8, 2008 and before December 1, 2009.
4) Your adjusted gross income is less than $75,000 (if you file jointly the adjusted gross income cannot exceed $150,000). As your adjusted gross income exceeds $75,000 ($150,000 for joint filers) the amount of credit you receive decreases until it is phased out entirely at $95,000 ($170,000 for joint filers).

The 2009 credit differs from the 2008 credit in the fact that it DOES NOT need to be repaid under most circumstances. The 2008 credit has to be repaid over a 15 year period.

This information is for general purposes only. Please speak to your tax consultant to see if you are eligible for this tax credit.

Labels: Federal first time home buyer tax credit, First time home buyer, Hoboken Real Estate, Hudson County real estate, Jersey City real estate

Posted by Andy at 3/11/2009 10:38:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

Most people know that the lower your mortgage interest rate, the less money you waste in interest payments to the bank. However, did you realize the lower your mortgage rate, the faster you build equity in your home

Let's say our friend in Hoboken is currently paying $1,000 a month in rent, and would rather spend that $1,000 a month on a mortgage payment instead (I know, you'd be hard pressed to find a $1,000 Hoboken rental but work with me, it's a nice round number). If he got a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at 7%, that would cover a $150,000 loan. Since $1,000 a month for 360 months works out at a total of $360,000 in mortgage repayments, on average about 42 cents of his mortgage-payment dollar will go towards building equity. What's more, most of that is back-ended: after five years, he will have paid down his principal amount outstanding by just $8,820.64, or less than 15% of his total payments.

On the other hand, a $1,000 payment on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at 4.5% would cover a $200,000 loan -- which means that 56 cents of every dollar you spend on your mortgage goes towards equity. And after five years, he will have paid down his principal amount outstanding by $17,450.82, which is 29% of his first five years' payments.

So yes, the house is $50,000 more expensive, but it's just as affordable, and you're building up more equity, not less, with the lower mortgage rate. If you look at an amortization curve for a high-interest-rate mortgage, it starts off pretty flat: most of your mortgage payments are going to interest. The lower that mortgage rates fall, the more equity you build up in the early years.

Labels: Hoboken apartment, Hoboken Condo, Hoboken Real Estate, Hoboken real estate market, Hudson County condo, Hudson County real estate, Mortgage rates, rent vs buy

Posted by Andy at 12/22/2008 11:24:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

Mortgage applications surged by the largest amount on record last week as a new Federal Reserve program pushed interest rates down to their lowest level in more than 3 years, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage applications, which includes both purchase and refinance loans, for the week ended November 28 soared a record 112.1 percent to 857.7, the highest reading since the week ended March 21 when it reached 965.9.

Potential borrowers were lured by enticing mortgage rates, which dropped dramatically after the Federal Reserve unveiled a plan last week to buy up to $500 billion of mortgage securities backed by government-sponsored enterprises, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae. The program also entails buying up to $100 billion of debt issued by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks.

Consumers who were previously on the fence to refinance or purchase a home are in a position to take advantage of the decline in rates.

In the Hudson county area rates for a 30 year fixed mortgage are currently around 5.5%.

Labels: Hoboken real estate market, Hudson County real estate, Jersey City real estate, Mortgage rates

Posted by Andy at 12/03/2008 11:28:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

The Federal Reserve attempted to end price declines in the housing market on Tuesday with two new programs aimed at making it easier for consumers to obtain loans for homes, cars and on credit cards.

Under the new mortgage program, the Fed will buy up to $100 billion of debt issued by government-sponsored mortgage enterprises Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks. It will also buy up to $500 billion of mortgage securities backed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae. The Fed said that the actions were taken "to reduce the cost and increase the availability of credit for the purchase of houses, which in turn should support housing markets and foster improved conditions in financial markets more generally."

Fannie Mae's current-coupon 30-year mortgage-backed security, which is tightly correlated on a spread basis to Freddie Mac's weekly survey of consumer mortgage rates, has fallen 38 basis points on the day, which means that the 30-year mortgage rates are likely to fall a similar amount. If they do, it would bring the average rate to 5.66%, its lowest since January when the average 30-year mortgage rate was 5.48% (the 2008 average is 6.11%). In Hudson County rates were as low as 5.50% as of Tuesday morning.

Labels: Hoboken Condo, Hoboken Real Estate, Hoboken real estate market, Hudson County condo, Hudson County real estate, Jersey City condo, Jersey City real estate, Mortgage rates

Posted by Andy at 11/25/2008 01:04:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

77 Hudson St - This September developer K. Hovnanian opened the sales center for their 42 story, 420 unit condominium tower. The projects one, two, and three bedroom homes are priced from the $500,000s to $3,000,000. A four alarm fire that struck the building in early October is not expected to delay the project.

Trump Plaza Jersey City - The 50 and 55 story buildings of Trump Plaza Jersey City will be New Jersey's tallest residential buildings. With 74 percent of the first tower's 445 units sold as of early September, sales at the second tower are slate to begin in early 2008.

For more information on these, or any other projects, Contact us

Labels: 77 Hudson St, Hudson County condo, Hudson County real estate, Jersey City real estate, Trump Plaza Jersey City

Posted by Andy at 11/16/2007 10:16:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

With all the condo conversion over the past decade taking hundreds of rentals off the market, it's no surprise rents in Hoboken are at an all time high. However, with Upper Grand's 1000 Jefferson switching to rental at the last minute, the dearth of new rental construction is coming to an end. With 1000 Jefferson now experiencing brisk leasing activity more of the new buildings you see going up are likely to be rentals.
The buildings going up on 7th St between Grand and Adams and the new Upper Grand building going up south of ShopRite are two buildings designed and being built as rentals. However, other building originally conceived or designed as condos have now switched course as well. Recent additions to the rental supply include Velocity at 6th and Jackson as well as The Cliffs on the west end of town on Paterson Plank Rd. This new supply will likely not lead to lower rents since it will only put a dent in the local rental shortage. Hopefully though, it will at least make the process of finding an apartment in Hoboken a little less painful.

Labels: Hoboken apartment, Hoboken Condo, Hoboken real estate market, Hudson County real estate

Posted by Andy at 11/15/2007 09:10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

Like warm beer and David Beckham, Foxtons Inc. looks like another popular British concept that will fail in the U.S. The residential real estate brokerage firm reported Wednesday that it may go out of business due to slumping home sales.

A representative of the West Long Branch, N.J. firm, which has branch offices throughout New Jersey and southern New York State told The Asbury Park Press Wednesday that it is considering bankruptcy protection and will lay off 350 of its 380 workers. It also said it will continue to keep 4,400 listings on the market.

Senior vice president John Blomquist told the newspaper that the company no longer has the liquidity to operate as a going concern and may have to consider bankruptcy.

Several calls to company headquarters and branch offices were not returned today, and the recording this morning said to call back during business hours.

Foxtons, which had great success in London, opened in the U.S. in March of 2000. It tried to differentiate itself from competitors by undercutting the industry's 6% commission standard by paying its agents salaries and charging customers only a 2% commission.

But that policy was later modified to get better participation in showing Foxtons' listings from other Multiple Listing Services listing agents who adhered to the 6% commission policy.

According to its website, Foxtons' claims a unique employee-based business model that includes "branded' company cars for agents, the most conspicuous of which are British Mini Coopers emblazoned with the company logo. It also said its agents are all equipped with the latest communication technologies and that it had Internet virtual tours and a Web page for every home it listed.

It also said agents work "8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week."

But apparently not this week, as calls to various Foxtons' offices went unanswered.

Marshall McKnight, a spokesman for the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance, which also monitors real estate licensing, said today that after checking with the state's investigators, "as far as we know Foxtons is still open for business. That's what they told us this morning.

"We've had several calls [from concerned Foxtons customers], so we're monitoring them for branch compliance, because if they do close an office they have to tell us. I can't explain why they're not answering the phone," McKnight said.

According to a source, employees at one branch turned in their laptops and company cars in the building parking lot at 11 a.m. today and were told the building was off limits and that they would be getting their paychecks tomorrow.

"I guess people will be able to get a great deal on a Mini Cooper with Foxtons logos all over them," she said.

Financial Week
By Frank Byrt
September 27, 2007

Labels: discount real estate brokerage, Foxtons, Foxtons bankruptcy

Posted by Andy at 9/27/2007 07:20:00 PM | Permalink | Comments