Enough is Enough

Thanks to the media pundits and agendicized politicians, fear seems to be the theme. Weather or not you believe we will experience a double dip, the numbers tell a different story. On a seasonally-adjusted basis, Case-Shiller's 20-city index was up three tenths of a percent -- the seventh consecutive monthly improvement in pricing. US Housing Starts have reached record lows, why is this bullish?

With less new development on the horizon the market will start to absorb what we call the resale. Inventory has creeped up recently, with housing start numbers lagging it will take a few months to factor in this level of improvement. All in all weather your in Hoboken, Jersey City or the tri state area, the numbers show a different story and as educated consumers we should recognize we are NOT heading into a great depression.

The New Market

Despite what we know about the market and what could possibly happen, we have data that backs a recover that we have not seen before. is it possible that we have learned from our mistakes in the past and used this downturn to our advantage?

I believe so and heres why:

As I have said in previous posts, real estate has not come down since 1945. Buyers, instead of fearing the market they lean right into it hoping to make a killing once the market bounces. I believe this may be cause of a new kind of american investor or home buyer willing to take on risk in turn for big gains in the future.

The only problem hovering over the horizon is the dollar. The dollar is dropping and dropping fast. Real Estate is measured in dollar value. Hence if the dollar drops then purchasing power of the investor drops as well causing overall market values to disintegrate.

As I always tell my clients, no one has a crystal ball, however we can give our best guess if we do enough research and work hard at understanding how our economy works.

Here are the facts

Real Estate Market Facts

Despite the national trends and statistics you might have heard, the old adage that all real estate is local has never been truer. Market facts in New Jersey, combined with national incentives, make now a good time to get active in New Jersey’s real estate market. Here's why:

- First-time buyers can get up to an $8,000 tax credit.

- Seven-year real estate appreciation in the Garden State at 80% is double the national average.

-Mortgage rates are near historic lows, (last mortgage I did for a client we locked in 4.7%!) giving buyers a better chance to secure low payments for years to come.

-Housing affordability, determined by home prices, income data and other factors, is high in New Jersey.

-Increased Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loan limits means more money is available, expanding your purchasing power.

Buyer incentives help sellers. The more buyers able to enter the market, the larger your potential pool of purchasers will be. Plus, sellers can utilize those buyer benefits if they decide to trade up.

Here are the facts of the real estate market today. Lets go people, get your property on :)

Tips on refinancing your mortgage

If you are thinking of refinancing your mortgage, remember to shop around, compare loan terms and negotiate with lenders. Refinancing allows you to switch to a different mortgage with terms that you think are more beneficial. If your credit score has improved, you may be able to get a loan at a lower rate. Or you may want to refinance for a longer term to lower your monthly payments. (suggestion from a seasoned real estate professional like myself, at least 3 or 4 opinions are necessary).

Be prepared however to pay closing or settlement costs to refinance. Lenders are required by federal law to provide a "good faith estimate" of your closing costs within three days of receiving your loan application.

A refinancing calculator that I use for my clients is located at www.federalreserve.gov

You can cut your property taxes by 47% in hoboken?

Apparently here in hoboken and jersey city one developer had a sign saying they could cut your Hoboken property taxes by 47%. Actually offended hobokens mayor Dave Roberts. If its the truth why get so offended? typical politics. The sign actually referenced Hobokens state takeover and subsequent massive tax hike. The overall property tax rate for hoboken property owners increased 47 percent for the fiscal year that ends june 30.

They claimed to be nice guys although legally not binded to take it down.

So if you live in Hoboken you CAN cut your property taxes down. so DO IT!

Where can we go from here?

According to Cnn analysts "The National Association of Realtors said that existing home sales rose last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.72 million million units, up 5.1% from a rate of 4.49 million in January. February sales were down nearly 5% from year ago levels"

All in all I think people are more educated about opportunity and willing to take risks. This being the case condo and co-op sales have increased by 4.5% in hudson county. If you buy now at these ridiculous levels you will make out in the end.

The point is very simple, will we continue to go down throughout the year? I think so and so do the top economists, however real estate in the right areas will boom like nobodies business and the reason is simple, people that leave the city and go into Urban/Suburbs like in towns such as Hoboken, Jersey City have the attraction of lower rent, mortgages and taxes.

Wouldnt you rather look at the beautiful New York City landscape from a far anyway?

New IRS program will go over well with common folk...

Recently the government has been putting together an online tax service to make it easier and with less mistakes done on tax returns.

Its always good to quickly get your hands on your tax refund - and in today's economy its doubly important for many Americans.

The E-File program totaled nearly 90 million tax returns in 2008. Almost 58 percent of all returns were filed electronically. Last year, there was a surge in e-file from home computers.

What does this mean? basically this is the best way to complete your taxes for the year

Looking to move?
contact me at (201)533-3070