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Housing market: Home price increases to soften | Bedford Hills Homes | Bedford New York Real Estate | Bedford NY Homes by Robert Paul Realtor

Suppliers of glass, drywall and wood products, who reduced output during the slump, are testing the vigor of the rebound by boosting prices before committing to restore capacity. Builders, including Lennar Corp. (LEN) , Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL) and KB Home, are asking homebuyers for more money as a result or are delaying sales, posing a temporary hurdle for the industry that has become one of the pillars of the economic expansion. Building-material manufacturers “are raising prices dramatically, and once they’re convinced that these prices are going to stick, they’ll start reinvesting in those plants,” helping ease supply constraints, said John Burns , chairman of Irvine , California-based John Burns Real Estate Consulting, which provides research to developers, construction-product manufacturers and investors. “Those can take a year to get up and running.” In a sign demand remains strong, a report yesterday showed sales of new houses advanced in March, capping the best quarter for ...

Home prices increased more in 2012 than they have since have since the summer of 2006 in both of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices. S&P reported today that average home prices increased 7.3 percent for the 10-City Composite and 8.1 percent for the 20-City Composite in the 12 months ending in January 2013. All 20 cities posted year-over-year gains with Phoenix leading the way with a gain of 23.2 percent. Nineteen of the twenty cities showed acceleration in their year-over-year returns. Despite posting a positive double-digit annual return, Detroit was the only city to show a deceleration. After 28 months of negative annual returns, New York came into positive territory in January. In January 2013, the 10- and 20-City Composites posted respective annual increases of 7.3 percent and 8.1 percent, and monthly increases of 0.2 percent and 0.1 percent. “The two headline composites posted their highest year-over-year increases since summer 200...

Data released in the Obama administration’s January Housing Scorecard show signs that the housing market is continuing to strengthen, with the number of underwater borrowers  declining while home prices improve. Officials warn that, while the recovery is in full effect right now, there is regional variation and the overall U.S. economy still remains fragile. "The Obama administration’s efforts to speed housing recovery are showing continued progress as the January scorecard indicators highlight clear forward momentum in the housing market," said the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Affairs Kurt Usowski. Broken down, the housing recovery looks promising. The inventory of existing homes for sales continued to decline, dropping from a 4.8 months’ supply on the December scorecard to a 4.4 months’ supply, according to data from the National Association of Realtors . The significance of this is highlighted when looking...

via socialmediaexaminer.com

Some metro areas across the U.S. are experiencing steep discounts on foreclosed properties – upwards of 27% in some cases – but the overall mark-down is not as deep as it seems, Zillow said in a new report. The online real estate listing firm said the national-foreclosure discount on distressed properties is about 7.7%, a paltry amount considering how much lower REOs sell for in certain locales. Truth is, there are fewer foreclosures out there. Last month, RealtyTrac the online marketplace for foreclosures, reported a yearly decrease in 131 out of the nation’s 212 metropolitan areas. “Two-thirds of the nation’s largest metros posted decreases in foreclosure activity in the third quarter, indicating that most of the nation’s housing markets are past the worst of the foreclosure problem” said Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac. Zillow uses a different methodology, of course, and compares the sales price of a foreclosure to the estimated-non-distressed sale level of t...

via economistsoutlook.blogs.realtor.org

Town of Bedford Report for Sunday 3pm  |   Bedford Hills NY Real Estate Recovery efforts continue. The Town of Bedford is working at reopening roads and most are passable. The Town is heavily dependent on the electric utilities to neutralize fallen wires so trees can be removed and roads can be reopened.  A state of emergency still exists and unnecessary travel is prohibited. Do not panic about gas, there are gas stations open in Bedford Hills and Katonah and they have gas.  Come to the Town House at 321 Bedford Road to warm up – charge your phones – we have Wi-Fi In addition we have dry ice and water.  We are open today Sunday till 6PM and 9 to 6PM all week.   Day warming shelter and charging stations are also available at all 3 fire houses  -- Bedford Fire Department --  34 Village Green, Bedford, NY 10506  (914) 234-3133  -- Bedford Hills Fire Department --  332 Bedford Road, Bedford Hills, NY 10507  (914) 666-8253...

via businessinsider.com

The Dow Jones Industrial average plunged 205 points, or 1.52%, closing at 13,343 on Friday, adding a dose of pessimism to mildly optimistic housing data from the week. The Dow's drop, which analysts compared to the 1987 stock plunge, didn't necessarily kill the momentum homebuilders found earlier in the week when home starts were reported to be on the rise. But bank and builder stocks finished the week with mostly unimpressive results. Bank of America's ($9.44 -0.03%) stock barely moved the needle when comparing Friday's close to the company's price at opening. Wells Fargo's ($34.34 -0.23%) stock edged down slightly, along with JPMorgan Chase ($42.32 -0.69%) . Citigroup ($37.16 -1.26%) took the biggest hit with its stock down 3% at market close before rising somewhat in after-hours trading. The banking giant made headlines earlier in the week when its CEO Vikram Pandit stepped down. Homebuilders, on the other hand, are still feeling some momen...

via trulia.com

  Chappaqua            15 months Bedford Corners      16 months Cross River            16 months Katonah                 17 months Bedford Hills           18 months Bedford                   18 months Pound Ridge            18 months   National Association of Realtors considers six months of  unsold inventory a healthy market.         

The other day I was facilitating a strategy meeting with a group of executives. During the meeting, I started to notice a familiar pattern of listening that you all have observed in the past. Of the 8 participants, two of them would ask questions of the others in the room, and shortly into the answers from others, these two would interrupt and throw in their opinions without letting the other person finish. As facilitator, it was my job to redirect the conversation back to the person who was interrupted. During the break, I put on my executive coaching “hat” and took the two executives to the side and shared my observations with them. And not surprisingly, they were totally unaware of their behavior. Upon some further questions and dialog, it became clear that both of them had fallen into a similar trap.  Prior to asking the question, they both had decided what the answer should be and once answers to their questions started down a divergent path from their answer, they simply...

  Bedford NY Snow Storm today!! <!--deafdc1ac9144945bb7709cc9e29f405-->

You plan to build your dream home. You've pored through home plan books, picked out the perfect design, found a beautiful lot in a great neighborhood and worked out a deal with a well-regarded builder. After years of rental apartments and settling for less, you've earned this home. You've promised yourself some of the amenities you've always wanted and, not surprisingly, a few well-placed fireplaces top that list. Your new home will include a fireplace in the family room so that, after a day of sledding, the kids can warm chilled fingers and toes and hang soggy mittens and mufflers up to dry. A second fireplace in the living room adds an elegant touch to formal gatherings, and in the master suite, yet another fireplace serves as a romantic backdrop. Perhaps even more important than adding some old-time charm and comfort to your new home, a fireplace also answers that nagging question, "Where will we hang the Christmas stockings?" Before you settle d...