Open Houses or Patriots vs Jets? No contest.
In my Open Houses and the Patriots post I quoted a survey which said that 64% of real estate agents did not schedule Open Houses when the Patriots were playing. I suspect that number may fluctuate somewhat with the stage of the season and the identity of the opponent. Well today, the Pats are playing the Jets, and a win for the Pats would secure the number 1 seed while also knocking out the Jets from the play-offs.
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Why you understand mortgage rates better than many commentators do
Just over a week ago the Federal Reserve increased short-term interest rates and I explained in What the Fed’s rate increase mean for mortgage rates that the 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate was not affected by the Fed Funds rate but by the yield on the US 10 year Treasury.
If you read my article and were a journalist you would not have written articles I saw this week with headlines such as “Defying Fed hike, 30-year mortgage rate slips” or “30-year mortgage rate drops in spite of Fed hike”. (more…)
Essex County property tax rates for 2016
Essex County property tax rates for 2016 have been announced. Here is a map (so that you can compare tax rates in neighboring towns) and the changes over the last two years, followed by my comments:
How property tax rates are calculated
I wrote How your property taxes are calculated earlier this year.
There are two main points to understand:
The dollar amount raised by property taxes is based on a simple formula: the dollar levy for the previous year plus 2 1/2% (Prop 2 1/2), plus any new growth (e.g. new construction), plus any voter-approved overrides or debt exclusions.
The tax rate is then calculated by dividing the dollar amount by the Assessed Value of all property. For FY2016 (July 2015-June 2016) Assessed Values are based upon sales during 2014.
Thus, the dollar amount will always increase from year to year, but the tax rate depends upon what happens to Assessed Values (AV). Here are examples. All assume a 4% increase in the dollar amount to be raised from taxes.The variable is the change in the AV. In the years when AVs were declining, tax rates rose. As AVs are now increasing we should expect to see tax rates flat to down.
Tax rate changes in 2016
Of the 34 cities and towns in Essex County, 14 have announced decreases in their tax rate while 20 have had increases approved.The median change was an increase of just 0.2%.
Of the decreases 7 were 1% or less, while the largest decrease was the 6.8% in West Newbury.
While there were more increases, 9 were 1% or less. The largest increase by far was the 9.9% in Ipswich.
Outlook for 2017
With one week left in the year it seems the median price of a Single Family Home in Essex County will increase about 3.5% in 2015, and it is 2015 sales which will be used in calculating FY2017 tax rates. Since the dollar amount to be raised from property taxes will naturally continue to increase, at this stage it seems reasonable to expect little overall change in tax rates for FY2017, but there will, as always, be fluctuations from town to town.
I am publishing below a downloadable spreadsheet showing tax rates by city and town for the last 5 years.
Essex County Residential tax rates_2012_16_
If you – or somebody you know – are considering buying or selling a home and have questions about the market and/or current home prices, feel free to contact me on 617.834.8205 or Andrew.Oliver@SothebysRealty.com.
Read Which broker will find the buyer for my house?
Andrew Oliver is a Realtor with Harborside Sotheby’s International Realty. Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated
You can REGISTER to receive email alerts of new posts on the right hand side of the home page at www.OliverReports.com.
@OliverReports
Home sales plunge – or do they?
A recent article headlined a home sales plunge in November, but as always it pays to look into the numbers in more detail.
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) used a more moderate headline in its Existing home sales suffer setback in November report.
So what actually happened in November? (more…)
What the Fed’s rate increase means for mortgage rates
For the first time since before the introduction of the iPhone the Federal Reserve (Fed) members voted to increase the target rate for federal funds (FF). The increase is 1/4% and was widely expected. What does this mean for mortgage rates? The key is to understand which rates are impacted by the Fed Funds rate and which are dependent upon interest rates set by the market.
Which rates are based upon the Fed Funds rate?
30 year fixed rate mortgages (FRN) are not based on the FF rate, but are most closely tied to the yield on 10 year US Treasuries(10T). More on that in a minute. (more…)
2016 property tax rates: waiting on Rockport
There are 34 cities and towns in Essex County and 33 of them have announced their 2016 property tax rates. The exception is Rockport which has posted this on its website: “The first half of Fiscal Year 2016 Real Estate taxes have been delayed.”
Once Rockport makes it announcement I shall post a full list of 2016 tax rates. (more…)
The world’s most expensive house
According to London’s Daily Telegraph this Paris chateau has become the world’s most expensive house, selling for about $300 million.
Read Paris chateau sold for Pds 200 million for fuller details, but here are some of the features:
– 50,000 sf of living space
– indoor and outdoor pools
– cinema, squash court, two ballrooms and a nightclub
– a meditation room under the moat
– a maze
I wasn’t sure this was the house for me until I saw that it has two ballrooms. That was the clincher for me. Had there been only one I would probably not have been interested. (more…)
Marblehead condo sales: best since 2008
Next week Marblehead condo sales for 2015 should reach 50, a number last seen in 2008. Sales, however, remain well down from the heady days of 2002-05 when they averaged over 70 each year.
My full review of the year will appear early in January.
If you – or somebody you know – are considering buying or selling a home and have questions about the market and/or current home prices, feel free to contact me on 617.834.8205 or Andrew.Oliver@SothebysRealty.com.
Read Who will actually sell my house?
Andrew Oliver is a Realtor with Harborside Sotheby’s International Realty. Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated
You can REGISTER to receive email alerts of new posts on the right hand side of the home page at www.OliverReports.com.
@OliverReports
New Listings in time for Christmas
Holy bat-panic – 6 days to Christmas and nothing to put under the tree? Quick, check out these new listings and make an offer on one next week! (more…)
Where retirees want to live: Boston?
The National Association of Realtors has released a report listing the 10 markets which are expected to see the most retiree buying activity in 2016. And where do retirees want to live? Boston.
The NAR expects people aged 65 to 74 to make up the third largest home-buying segment in 2016 and says that “unlike first-time buyers overwhelmed by options, they know what they want: new construction and the ability to customize their home to get what they want.”
Then the NAR looked for “senior-friendly” markets based upon the median household income for 65-74 year old head of housholds.
The number 1 pick? Boston, where according to the NAR the median household income for 65-74 year old head of households is $56,000 and the maximum affordable home price is $236,000.
$236,000 for new construction in Boston? Really? What is this, 1960? The NAR report identified one property in “Boston”. Actually, it is in West Roxbury, a condo of 845 sf in a 1963 building.
New construction? Boston? Um, I wonder who else is on the list.
Read Here’s where retirees will want to live in 2016 to find out.
If you – or somebody you know – are considering buying or selling a home and have questions about the market and/or current home prices, feel free to contact me on 617.834.8205 or Andrew.Oliver@SothebysRealty.com.
Read How should I choose the broker to sell my house?
Andrew Oliver is a Realtor with Harborside Sotheby’s International Realty. Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated
You can REGISTER to receive email alerts of new posts on the right hand side of the home page at www.OliverReports.com.
@OliverReports
8 Predictors of Housing Prices
The National Association of Realtors has published a report looking at different factors as predictors of housing prices.
The study looks at 8 factors:
– gas prices
– proximity to Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods
– proximity to sports facilities
– legalization of marijuana
– effect of temperature change
– nearness to casinos
– closeness to highways
– whether there are trees on the street
Click here to read the report and find out how these factors affect housing prices.
If you – or somebody you know – are considering buying or selling a home and have questions about the market and/or current home prices, feel free to contact me on 617.834.8205 or Andrew.Oliver@SothebysRealty.com.
Read Which broker will actually sell my home?
Andrew Oliver is a Realtor with Harborside Sotheby’s International Realty. Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated
You can REGISTER to receive email alerts of new posts on the right hand side of the home page at www.OliverReports.com.
@OliverReports
Marblehead’s Unknown Oceanfront Properties update
A while back I published Marblehead’s Unknown Oceanfront Properties, referring to houses on or oceanside of Atlantic Avenue between Preston Beach and Beach Street.
In that article I pointed out that: “there are a lot of small streets that lead to the water and have 1 or 2 or maybe 3 or 4 houses sitting directly on the ocean at the end. And for the most part these houses sit on the rocky Atlantic coast and are high enough that flooding is not a concern, while many of them face South, have great views of Ram Island and down the coastline, and are well protected from the nor’easters that can impact more exposed areas.”
This section of Marblehead is seeing price appreciation as evidenced by the number of properties with Assessed Values over $2 million. That number was 29 in 2014, 32 in 2015 and has now jumped to 44 in the recently released assessments for 2016.
How much longer will this area be a secret I wonder?
There are two Open Houses today of oceanfront property in this stretch of town:
11 Crown Way from 12:00-2:00
and 2-4 Coolidge Road from 12:00-1:30
If you – or somebody you know – are considering buying or selling a home and have questions about the market and/or current home prices, feel free to contact me on 617.834.8205 or Andrew.Oliver@SothebysRealty.com.
Read Which broker will actually sell my house?
Andrew Oliver is a Realtor with Harborside Sotheby’s International Realty. Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated
You can REGISTER to receive email alerts of new posts on the right hand side of the home page at www.OliverReports.com.
@OliverReports
The weather is mild, interest rates are low – visit these Open Houses
Twelve days until Christmas. Buy one of these, wrap it and put it under the tree: (more…)
First-time home buyers at near 30 year low
According to a recent National Association of Realtors (NAR) report, the share of first–time buyers declined for the third consecutive year and remained at its lowest point in nearly three decades,
The share of first-time buyers declined to 32% from 33% a year ago and remains well below the historical average of 40%.
According to the NAR’s chief economist, Lawrence Yun: : “there are several reasons why there should be more first–time buyers reaching the market, including persistently low mortgage rates, healthy job prospects for those college–educated, and the fact that renting is becoming more unaffordable in many areas.”
Mr. Yun continues: “Unfortunately, there are just as many high hurdles slowing first–time buyers down. Increasing rents and home prices are impeding their ability to save for a down payment, there’s scarce inventory for new and existing–homes in their price range, and it’s still too difficult for some to get a mortgage.”
“First–time buyers reported that debt (all forms) delayed saving for a down payment for a median of three years, and among the 25 percent who said saving was the most difficult task, a majority (58 percent) said student loans delayed saving,” he said. “With a median amount of student loan debt for all buyers at $25,000, it’s likely some younger households with even higher levels of debt can’t save for an adequate down payment or have decided to delay buying until their debt is at more comfortable levels.” (more…)
Who is the Typical Home Buyer and Seller?
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has released its report on the profile of the typical home buyer and seller nationally. The infographics below show the highlights of the report:
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