News About Properties – Page 238 – News about properties and real estate

In cool market, luxury homes still hot sellers

In cool market, luxury homes still hot sellers

Last year wasn’t bad for Naples Realtors Bruce Babcock and Merry Coolidge.

While many others struggled to sell homes in 2006, the duo at John R. Wood Realtors made the biggest sale through the Multiple Listing Service in 2006.

In November, they sold a waterfront estate in the exclusive neighborhood of Port Royal for $14.9 million. It was far from the only multimillion-dollar sale made last year.

Luxury homes continue to move, despite a cooling in Southwest Florida’s once red hot real estate market.

Housing values on rise [Midwest]

Housing values on rise [Midwest]

What housing bubble?

While much of the nation suffers from continued falling housing prices, Lake County will see 3.2 percent growth over past year in residential real estate value in 2007, according to a report by Fortune magazine. This places Lake fifth in the Midwest and 30th in the nation in a ranking of 100 real estate markets conducted by the magazine.

Porter County was not included in the survey, but realtors said housing values there mirror its sister county: rising slowly and steadily.

And realtors here say the 3.2 percent is an average. Houses in some areas, such as St. John and Crown Point, could see even bigger increases in value.

Advice for First-Time Home Buyers

Find out where to find the money to get your foot in the door and your key in the lock.

Anh Nguyen always dreamed of having a walk-in closet. So the first thing she did after buying her Arlington, Va., duplex a year ago was make that dream a reality: Racks and shelves of clothes and shoes now line the walls of what was once a tiny bedroom. Creating her dream closet led to polishing up a finished basement to create a real third bedroom. Nguyen needed the space for two roommates, her best friends, who would be moving in to help cover the costs of ownership.

The 25-year-old IT consultant qualified for a $320,000 mortgage on her own, but having roommates keeps her firmly in the comfort zone. At a 5.3% interest rate, her monthly mortgage payment is $2,000, and she covers more than half of that with rent money from her roommates. The three share the cost of utilities, making Nguyen’s budget even more manageable. “I really lucked out,” she says. “Aside from my roommates’ financial support, they make the house feel like a home.”

‘It’s a good thing,’ home builder thinks [Central Florida]

‘It’s a good thing,’ home builder thinks [Central Florida]

Lifestyle diva Martha Stewart is bringing her taste in homes and decor to Central Florida real estate.

The first Stewart-inspired development in Florida will be built by KB Home on 31 acres southwest of Windermere, company representatives confirmed this week.

The model homes should be completed by May for a grand opening of the Avellino community, designed for 143 homesites and a “new urbanism” look,” said George Glance, president of KB Home’s Orlando division.

“It’s a huge deal,” Glance said of the project, which is in unincorporated Orange County just west of County Road 535 and just south of Overstreet Road.

Inman Consumer News

DEAR BOB: My husband and I own five rental houses together. We are very happy you encouraged us, years ago, to invest in rental houses. By making extra mortgage principal payments, two of the rental houses are now free and clear. The others will have their mortgages paid off in a few years. We now enjoy the positive cash flow from the rentals. Meanwhile, the houses have appreciated at least $100,000 each in market value. My husband recently had a “close call” with a heart attack, but he had a bypass operation and is now in good health. But it made me think about the many “stepped-up basis” questions you answer. Is there any limit to the number of properties for stepped-up basis? –Mildred H.

DEAR MILDRED: No. When a co-owner dies, whoever inherits that deceased owner’s share receives a new stepped-up basis on the inherited share. In community property states, the entire property basis is stepped up to market value on the date of death.

There is no limit to the number of inherited properties than can receive a stepped-up basis to market value on the date of death.

Homework and teamwork needed for ‘fixer uppers’

If you are not yet addicted to tennis, golf or boating, you may be thinking about buying a fixer-upper. Take two aspirin and lie down.

Can’t get the notion out of your head after that? Then you’ll want to contact a real estate agent. The more speculative the investment, the more you need help. The cheapest residence – house or condo – is not necessarily the best investment. You need to find the property with the best value.

Value. This is not just real estate “speak.” Buyers of fixer-uppers need to work the figures backwards. They need to know how much the residence will be worth after the renovation, so they know how much to pay for the renovation. Also crucial: buyers need to know who will live in the house or condo, and for how long. Maybe the buyer is fixing a place for personal use. If the idea is to flip it – that is, to sell it after the renovations have been completed – then the buyer needs to know a lot about the next buyer.

The value after the renovation needs to be compatible with other houses in the neighborhood and, more particularly, other units in a condo. It needs to fit in with what the next buyer expects to find and can afford.