Archive for October, 2006

Mortgage Demand Slows in 3rd Quarter, 2006

While not a surprise, the Federal Reserve announced formally that mortgage demand declined over the past 3 months. With layoffs, slower homes sales, and higher interest rates, I would have been very surprised if the activity had increased.

Demand for both residential mortgage loans and commercial real estate loans weakened over the last three months, [...]

31Oct2006 | Tom Royce | 0 comments | Continued

Note To Sellers, Buyers are Looking Online for Homes Not the Newspapers

If you are selling a home, here is a tip. Advertise online quickly and you will be ahead of your competitors and also in front of your potential customers. Real Estate classified advertising spending is moving online, but sellers tend to want their agents to advertise in print first, then head online. Meanwhile, buyers start [...]

30Oct2006 | Tom Royce | 2 comments | Continued

Corporate Housing Options Growing Nationally

For those looking at relocating to a new job and are scared that you will be stuck in a hotel for forever, there are some options out there that can help you. Corporate housing is an alternative that is coming more and more into favor for those looking to relocate and need a short term [...]

30Oct2006 | Tom Royce | 1 comment | Continued

Top 10 Haunted Houses in America

For a little break as Halloween comes up, I found this list of the top 10 haunted houses in the United States. I figured there could not be a haunted house without real estate so lets enjoy it.
Top 10 Haunted Houses in America

Headless Horseman, Ulster Park, New York (www.headlesshorseman.com)
Netherworld. Atlanta, Georgia (www.fearworld.com)
The [...]

29Oct2006 | Tom Royce | 18 comments | Continued

Top 10 Cities With Shortest Commute

If you areÂ not a big fan of driving andÂ do not mind being outside of the larger metropolitan area’s, hereÂ isÂ the 10 tenÂ cities with the shortest commute.Â
Cascade County, Mont. â€” 14.0 minutes
Grand Forks County, N.D. â€” 14.1 minutes
Laramie County, Wyo. â€” 14.3 minutes
Dubuque County, Iowa â€” 14.7 minutes
Taylor County, Texas â€” 14.8 minutes
Wichita County, Texas â€” 14.8 [...]

28Oct2006 | Tom Royce | 1 comment | Continued

Selling a Home Via Auction Growing in Popularity

If you are looking at selling your home quickly, a growing trend in the country is using the auction system. Homes sold via auction increased by 5.9 percent in 2006 and auctions have been trending upwards over the past 5 years.
While using an auction may seem unconventional, people interested in a quick sale have used [...]

27Oct2006 | Tom Royce | 11 comments | Continued

Housing Prices Adjust, Rental Rates Soar

As we predicted when the speculators fell out of the market, housing prices would come down a bit. The numbers released state a drop of 9.7 percent nationwide but compared to the multiple years of double digit appreciation this is not so bad. The nugget in the numbers is that home sales increased, not decreased, [...]

26Oct2006 | Tom Royce | 5 comments | Continued

New Investor In The Mills Corp Asks To Stop Sales Attempts

The Mills Corp. was once a high flyer in the building of mega-malls around the country. But the combination of a few setbacks and turnover in the executive ranks has had the company looking to sell out. That is, until yesterday when Gazit-Globe’s Chairman Chaim Katzman expressed concern to Mill Corps. CEO Mark Ordan that a [...]

26Oct2006 | Tom Royce | 1 comment | Continued

Real Estate Agent Bubble Starting to Burst

There is an article in the San Jose Mercury News that shows there is anectdotal evidence that the number of real estate agents in California is starting to decrease. With there being one agent for every 52 citizens, the ability to make a living as a new agent in California is slim to none. I [...]

26Oct2006 | Tom Royce | 0 comments | Continued

Chicago Sees Real Estate Slowdown for 2006

The slowdown has hit Chicago with sales down 26 percent over last years speculator infused numbers. Real estate analysts see things remaining slow for the next 6 months on a year over year basis, and then picking up in the spring of 2007. This is another example of a hyper market returning to normal after [...]

26Oct2006 | Tom Royce | 0 comments | Continued