Case-Shiller Home Price Index down 18%

The most recent Case-Shiller Home Price Report has nationwide prices down 18% year over year. This figure is a composite of a 20 Metropolitan Area study. This study has New York down 7.5%, one of the better performing areas. Figures range from -4.4% (Charlotte) to -32.7% (Pheonix).

Taking the First-Time Home buyer Credit

Below is an excerpt from an article written by Joshua Levine of Levine Lawyers. The entire article can be seen here. Joshua can be contacted directly at joshua@levinelawyers.com.

Home buyers could be eligible for a tax break, essentially an interest-free loan worth as much as $7,500, under The Housing Assistance Tax Act of 2008.

* Known as the first-time home buyer credit, the tax break is available if you purchase a home on or after April 9, 2008 and before July 1, 2009, and meet certain income and other requirements.
* The credit is equal to 10 percent of the home purchase price, up to a limit of $7,500.
* Unlike other tax credits, this one must be paid back to the government, over a 15-year period.

Who is considered a "first-time" home buyer?

Any taxpayer who has never owned a home as a principal residence. However, you could qualify if you’ve owned a home before, but not as your principal residence during the three years prior to the purchase. Married couples cannot qualify for the credit unless both spouses meet the three-year rule.

-continue reading-

Montclair Open Houses - Sunday December 21st

Click the link below to search for the days' open houses around town:

http://new.gsmls.com/publicsite/openhouse.do?method=getopenhousesearch

Housing starts down nearly 19%

According to a recent Bloomberg.com article, housing starts for November are down 18.9%, the slowest pace for nearly a half-century. While this may be a bad sign for housing and many look at it as a bad sign for the entire economy, I see it as a step in the right direction! One of the many current causes (and results...it's a vicious cycle) of the current market conditions is the excess inventory of homes currently on the market. The first step to lowering the inventory...STOP BUILDING NEW HOMES!!! When this happens, more of the unsold inventory will get sold, markets will stabilize, and buyer confidence will return. Couple this with interest rates below 5% (guest post coming soon!) and we could see a return to normalcy sooner than later. Just don't wait for your favorite 10 o'clock news show or online news source to tell you things are better, because by then it'll be too late!

Remember to check back every month when I publish the most recent sales figures for local towns...in the meantime check the most recent figures.

Montclair Open Houses - Sunday December 14th

Click the link below to search for the days' open houses around town:

http://new.gsmls.com/publicsite/openhouse.do?method=getopenhousesearch

the green book

the green book is written by Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas M. Kostigen. It is essentially a collection of green and sustainable living tips that can be done every day to help the environment, and often save you some money. Interspersed within the book are snippets and quotes from celebrities ranging from Justin Timberlake and Will Ferrell to Faith Hill and Martha Stewart. A forward was written by architect William McDonough and actress Cameron Diaz. There are many useful tips in this book including the best lightbulbs to use (CFL's), saving paper by declining ATM receipts, and dozens of ways to save water (turn it off when brushing teeth, taking shorter showers, etc...). This book is definitely a good starting point for anyone interested in how to lessen their impact on the planet by following a few of their 'simple steps.' As you read along, however, you notice many of the tips are repeated. I found the most useful section of the book to be the 'references' section that actually took up the final 50 pages of this relatively short (200 page) book. Overall, I would recommend this book to those looking to get a basic overview of how to live a little 'greener'.

Montclair Stats Jan-Nov 2008

Here are the statistics for single family and multi family home sales in Montclair and surrounding towns, year to date. I will update this on a monthly basis as the figures become available. If you want statistics for any other local towns, please email me.

http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pRaMQh_aPpNjZwM6qERYLXA

My blog...why and what?

Why blog? A question I had asked myself and others many times before deciding to go ahead and get started. I'm sure many bloggers have asked the same question before getting started. My answer is to keep in touch with and provide useful information to my current and future clients.

What is my blog about? My blog will provide information on a number of different topics, but will all center around real estate local to Montclair, NJ. My secondary focus, a subject very important to me, will be Green and Sustainable Living. Growing up and living most of my life in NJ, I see first hand the importance of making smart decisions to lessen the impact we each make on the world. NJ is, and has been for years, the most densely populated state in the US. The impact that we have on the environment here is magnified due to our high population. I will try to pass along some of the knowledge I have gained in order to live a more sustainable (and healthy) lifestyle. My third area of focus will be anything that interests me or I feel is important about this great area that I live and work in. Northern NJ has A LOT to offer, I will feature some of the high points (restaurants, shopping, transportation info, local politics and other areas of interest).

Some other things I may blog about included: book reviews (relating to real estate and sustainable living), websites I find helpful/interesting, news items affecting local real estate, and other general items that I may find important, interesting, funny, or sad.

If you decide to read my blog, and decide to visit often, I hope you enjoy what I have to say, find the information I provide useful, or even learn a thing or two. Please feel free to comment or email me if you have anything to add.