Calculated Risk: Credit Markets: "It’s never been this bad."

Calculated Risk: Credit Markets: “It’s never been this bad.”

I told you before that it’s felt like we were in the eye of the hurricane and now we’re heading toward the other side. Don’t read what CR has to say about it unless you really want to know…..

Tom

Calculated Risk: Credit Markets: "It’s never been this bad."

Calculated Risk: Credit Markets: “It’s never been this bad.”

I told you before that it’s felt like we were in the eye of the hurricane and now we’re heading toward the other side. Don’t read what CR has to say about it unless you really want to know…..

Tom

Project Bloodhound

Project Bloodhound: And they called it puppy love

I don’t think I’ve ever had anyone call me a puppy before and considered it a compliment!

Seriously, I’m honored to have been invited to join the group of professionals at Bloodhound Blog. I’ve been a follower and reader at www.bloodhoundrealty.com/bloodhoundblog for quite some time and I’ve learned a lot from them.

I look forward to further discussions and the opportunities to engage and challenge and hopefully help improve the real estate business.

Check it out some time.

Tom

What did Ben Do?

Fed leaves rates unchanged, ending 9-months of rate cuts – Jun. 25, 2008: “The widely expected move comes at a time when many economists are focusing more on inflation than on an economic slowdown. Some are predicting that the Fed will need to soon raise interest rates in order to keep rising prices in check.

In its statement, the Fed said it still expects inflation pressures to ease later this year, but cautioned about the upward pressure on prices caused by rising oil and other commodity prices.”

Love the home you’re stuck with

Jun. 24, 2008
Money.cnn.com has a good article about home improvements that can be worthwhile in terms of ways to make the house that you are living in comfortable. I’ve put highlights from it below…..

Trapped in a house you don’t want but can’t sell? Here’s how to make it more livable while you wait for the rebound.

(Money Magazine) — ……..

Well, here’s a crazy idea. Rather than tackling improvements as a way to move on up, why not do them to make yourself happier staying put for a while? You might not have a choice. With home sales down nearly 18% over the past year, it’s a spectacularly lousy time to put your place on the market.

So if you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with. Give your house the features you’ve been wanting the next one to have, from a luxe breakfast bar to a spa bathroom.

Create the illusion of size. If you’re saddled with the claustrophobic rooms (and overabundant doors) of the typical Cape or other starter home, begin with this simple and cheap fix: Take unneeded doors off their hinges and stow them away. Either live without them or install glass French doors in their place (they run about $400 each). The interior of your home will immediately feel lighter and more spacious, designers say.

If that’s not enough, get out the sledgehammer. Surveys show that 40% of homeowners want only a half wall separating the kitchen from the family room; another 38% want no wall at all. Removal costs vary ($1,500 to $4,500), with load-bearing walls at the high end of the range.

Convert wasted space into living space. There may be no need to add to your current floor plan. Just finish your basement or another underused area, suggests Heather Harrison, a realtor in White Plains, N.Y.

Add an outdoor room. In the past few years there’s been a surge of interest in creating outdoor living space, according to surveys of architects.

Add a second sink. You can make a master bath – or any shared bathroom – more efficient by adding his-and-hers sinks.

Build a laundry room. Most homeowners think of a separate laundry room as a “must have,” according to a recent survey. But the vast majority don’t want to have to trek to a dark, dingy basement to get to it.

Add central air.

Turn the master bath into a spa. “Make it spacious and uncluttered and give it a calming color, stone and wood surfaces, and a big soaking tub,” says New York City realtor Deanna Kory.

Upgrade the kitchen. Nothing says luxury like a great-looking kitchen.

“Who knows if granite will still be the In surface in 10 years, but it certainly won’t be passé,” says Schaumburg, Ill. realtor Joe Stacy. One thing he guarantees: The Formica you’ve got now will not be back in style. Ever.

Love the home you’re stuck with

Jun. 24, 2008
Money.cnn.com has a good article about home improvements that can be worthwhile in terms of ways to make the house that you are living in comfortable. I’ve put highlights from it below…..

Trapped in a house you don’t want but can’t sell? Here’s how to make it more livable while you wait for the rebound.

(Money Magazine) — ……..

Well, here’s a crazy idea. Rather than tackling improvements as a way to move on up, why not do them to make yourself happier staying put for a while? You might not have a choice. With home sales down nearly 18% over the past year, it’s a spectacularly lousy time to put your place on the market.

So if you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with. Give your house the features you’ve been wanting the next one to have, from a luxe breakfast bar to a spa bathroom.

Create the illusion of size. If you’re saddled with the claustrophobic rooms (and overabundant doors) of the typical Cape or other starter home, begin with this simple and cheap fix: Take unneeded doors off their hinges and stow them away. Either live without them or install glass French doors in their place (they run about $400 each). The interior of your home will immediately feel lighter and more spacious, designers say.

If that’s not enough, get out the sledgehammer. Surveys show that 40% of homeowners want only a half wall separating the kitchen from the family room; another 38% want no wall at all. Removal costs vary ($1,500 to $4,500), with load-bearing walls at the high end of the range.

Convert wasted space into living space. There may be no need to add to your current floor plan. Just finish your basement or another underused area, suggests Heather Harrison, a realtor in White Plains, N.Y.

Add an outdoor room. In the past few years there’s been a surge of interest in creating outdoor living space, according to surveys of architects.

Add a second sink. You can make a master bath – or any shared bathroom – more efficient by adding his-and-hers sinks.

Build a laundry room. Most homeowners think of a separate laundry room as a “must have,” according to a recent survey. But the vast majority don’t want to have to trek to a dark, dingy basement to get to it.

Add central air.

Turn the master bath into a spa. “Make it spacious and uncluttered and give it a calming color, stone and wood surfaces, and a big soaking tub,” says New York City realtor Deanna Kory.

Upgrade the kitchen. Nothing says luxury like a great-looking kitchen.

“Who knows if granite will still be the In surface in 10 years, but it certainly won’t be passé,” says Schaumburg, Ill. realtor Joe Stacy. One thing he guarantees: The Formica you’ve got now will not be back in style. Ever.

There’s two ways to take off a Band-Aid…..

Home prices in another steep drop – Jun. 24, 2008: “The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city Home Price Index fell to a record low of 15.3% on a year-over-year basis, and was down 1.4% from March. The 10-city index was down 16.3% year-over-year and 1.6% for the month.”

You can rip it off milimeter by milimeter and it takes a long time and hurts a little for a long time. Or you can rip it off all at once and it hurts a lot for a short period.

Until we get housing prices and incomes back in line, it’s going to be painful. The fact that this index shows they are adjusting means we are making a step down the road towards finding a bottom and going up from there.

Does that make sense?

Tom

There’s two ways to take off a Band-Aid…..

Home prices in another steep drop – Jun. 24, 2008: “The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city Home Price Index fell to a record low of 15.3% on a year-over-year basis, and was down 1.4% from March. The 10-city index was down 16.3% year-over-year and 1.6% for the month.”

You can rip it off milimeter by milimeter and it takes a long time and hurts a little for a long time. Or you can rip it off all at once and it hurts a lot for a short period.

Until we get housing prices and incomes back in line, it’s going to be painful. The fact that this index shows they are adjusting means we are making a step down the road towards finding a bottom and going up from there.

Does that make sense?

Tom

Consumer confidence skids

5th lowest reading ever – Jun. 24, 2008: “The New York-based Conference Board said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index dropped to 50.4 from a revised 58.1 in May. The reading was the lowest since February 1992, when it was 47.3.

Economists had expected the index to decline to 56, according to a consensus compiled by Briefing.com.”

What do you think? Did it drop because conditions are really as bad as they seem or did it drop because of the push of the mainstream media to tell the bad side of things?

Tom

Economists vs. Traders on the Fed

Bloomberg.com: News: “While Bernanke’s warning that the Fed will “strongly resist” a jump in inflation expectations led traders to bet on a rate increase, economists are more skeptical. All 101 in a Bloomberg News survey said the Federal Open Market Committee will keep the benchmark rate unchanged tomorrow and most analysts this month predicted officials will stand pat until 2009.”

My emphasis added. There’s quite a discrepancy between the traders and the economists. If you look at the nature of the jobs, I’d be inclined to say that traders would get more “caught up” in the emotions of the moment and economists would look at things more rationally and analytically.

I’m with the economists. For the Fed to raise rates this year, it would just be a nasty blow to the economy.

Tom

Next Page »