I just wanted to thank you both for everything. It’s a rough market out there right now and I appreciate everything you guys have done and what you have to go through in these types of transactions. Thanks for your efforts in helping us, especially in regards to your hard work, your excellent availability and tenacity in a tough market. I will certainly recommend you to anyone I know in the area if they go looking to sell (or buy for that matter).

Kevin M. - 10/17/08

Thank you Kevin for those kind words. My partner, Paul Musso, and I helped sell Kevin’s home in West Babylon. It was a great house to market, as it was always ready to show. When we first began the listing, I thought it would be a fast sale, quick and easy. This market proved otherwise. We managed to still sell it in 78 days, but I first thought we would sell it within the first 30 days because it was a great house, a cut above the rest in the area. Through our efforts of aggressively following up with other agents and buyers, we managed to sell it and help Kevin and his family move on. Congratulations and good luck!

Dear Tom,

This card is just to say thank you for all your help and direction. You made this experience enjoyable with your sense of humor during a very scary time. It has been a dream come true and you played a very big part of it. You are honest and hard-working and those are qualities you don’t see often today. So hopefully this is only the beginning of a long friendship.

Thank you from our hearts,
Carmine & Mary A.

First let me say thank you to Carmine and Mary for allowing me the opportunity to work for them and secondly for the very nice comments. Thanks.

Carmine and Mary came to me via a referral from my wife’s CEO at her job. They were first-time homebuyers didn’t know much about buying a home, other than it costs a lot of money!
Carmine and Mary were committed to purchasing a home and we all worked hard - but always had a lot of fun. They both asked a lot of questions and became very well educated first-time homebuyers. The home Carmine and Mary purchased was a Cape with beautiful dark hardwood floors and a finished basement.

So to Carmine and Mary, I say, “Congratulazioni!” (congratulations!)

The STAR program for New York state is one of those elements of Long Island real estate that talked about alot, but understood very little. Most people refer to the STAR program as a simple real estate property tax decrease. STAR is an acronym for School Tax Relief.

The STAR program application is completed by homeowners one time and provides an exemption from school taxes for non-owner occupied, primary residents. The deadline for filing is generally March 1st of each year, however it is best to check with your local tax assessor.

A great resource for information on the STAR program is http://www.orps.state.ny.us/star/index.cfm.

Long Island short sales are on the rise. The numbers are staggering. According to the Long Island Board Of Realtors, short sales will continue to rise and real estate agents will be scrambling to assist homeowners in danger of losing their homes to foreclosure.

However, in my travels as a professional real estate salesperson, I find that many homeowners do not know anything about “short sales”. A short sale occurs when the seller’s lender (the bank that holds the mortgage on the house) accepts a discounted pay off in order to release the existing mortgage. Basically, the bank agrees to take less than what is owed on the property and the homeowner is able to walk away from the property without having any further debt owed to the lender.

On Long Island, short sales are becoming increasingly “popular” with homeowners who cannot pay their mortgage due to mortgage resets on adjustable rate mortgages.

The main reason why short sales are the most viable loss mitigation alternative is because the effect on the homeowner’s credit is much less damaging than a foreclosure. On a FICO score, the average loss is 300 to 400 points when a homeowner goes through the process of foreclosure. However, if the homeowner chooses to negotiate a short sale, the drop in FICO score may only be 80 to 100 points, assuming their mortgage is the only debt they can’t pay.

The short sale “package” that many homeowners will need to submit to the bank will include a hardship letter written by the owner(s) which explains the circumstances surrounding their inability to pay the mortgage. The lender will also require an authorization form allowing the real estate agent and/or attorney for the seller, to speak to the bank and negotiate the sale approval. Additionally, the lender will want proof that the money coming into the household is insufficient to cover the mortgage, so W-2’s, bank statements, and check stubs will be required.

The agent you choose to assist you must have extensive knowledge of the short sale process. On Long Island, many real estate agents do not have the experience to successfully complete a short sale transaction. Many agents will just tie up a property in a long listing agreement, only to poorly advise the seller and ultimately pass the point at which a short sale will even be acceptable to the lender.

As a homeowner, it is imperative that certain objectives are met with regard to the conducting of a short sale. Since I consider these objectives privaleged information I will not list them here. If you are a homeowner and would like to discuss the process in depth, I am available at 631.831.9048.

For more information on Long Island foreclosures - click here.

(c) Copyright 2008 www.tommcgiveron.com

By Thomas McGiveron, Licensed Real Estate Salesperson

I have been writing articles about the Long Island real estate market for some time now and I came across the perfect information that illustrates what homeowners might expect during the next few years. I thought about the title to this article and decided to just lay it all out there.

What you’re about to read is not just my opinion. I’m not as self-absorbed or diluted as our typical politicians who seem to know it all when things are good and point the finger when they’re not. No, I don’t, and will not, publish articles about what I think or feel. Rather, I publish articles about information.

You may click the image(s) to enlarge it. The information is forwarded-looking in nature and deals with what’s down the road for real estate values. I find myself talking with many homeowners who ask me “my opinion” about what’s in store for the Long Island real estate market. As I explain to them the ramifications for “holding on” and not selling now, or asking a 2005 price for their home in 2008, I get alot of, “Well, you don’t know what’s going to happen in the future…” or “I think it’s going to come back next spring…”

Well Freddie Mac doesn’t think so according to Bloomberg News who quoted officials citing the S&P Case/Schiller Home Price Index. (I’m scratching my head)…So I guess the average homeowner who is a teacher or a plumber or a doctor knows more about the real estate market than Freddie Mac or Bloomberg News or Case and Schiller. See the next slide.

I took this quote directly from the previous slide: Radar Logic publishes price-per-square-foot data used as the basis for the Residential Property Index, or RPX market, used by most hedge funds and institutional investors to hedge their mortgage-related bets. The 2011 estimate is not the company’s own, but is based on a forward curve produced from futures trading in the RPX market.

This information is gathered and based on hard data. Data that people collect at Radar Logic that make up the RPX market, cited on Sqawk Box, Mad Money and other financial-related news programs. The data suggests that home values will continue a downward direction across the nation. So do you still think next spring will bring back the 20% equity loss during the past 3 years? Enter the last slide.

Before clicking on this last slide, I want to address my cynical tone in this particular article. I’ve found that being “Mr. Niceguy” with regard to my presentation of information really doesn’t hit home as well as being somewhat cynical and hard-nosed. “Mr. Niceguy” is boring and “Mr. Cynical-In-Your-Face” helps to nail down the point. However, keep in mind that I own a home, my sister owns a home along with my Mother, other family members and friends as well and I do not take any pleasure at all from watching home values drop.

But I digress. Click the next slide.

What this slide shows is probably the single most important piece of information. It shows five year increments of the market since 1980. Now real estate values tend to increase (appreciate) about 5% per year. And during the previous 20 years, home values have appreciated a total of about 106%. So if you bought a home in 1980 for $100,000, your home in 2000 would be worth about $256,000 (appreciation values compound: 100,000 + 25% = 125,000 + 27% = 158,750, etc.).

During those 5 year increments, you’ll notice, about a 5% or more average increase - per year. Now from 2000 to 2006, you’ll notice a tremendous 89% home appreciation figure. That’s a whopping 14.8% appreciation - per year. So in 6 years, the real estate market and definitely Long Island included, realized a surge which rivaled the previous 20 years. And on Long Island, the numbers are staggering when we discuss appreciation from 2002 through 2006.

What this last slide represents is the inflated values and what experts would refer to as a signficant economic anomaly (deviation from the norm). What we’re seeing now is a market correction which may very well overcorrect itself in the form of the following:

A. Buyers not being able to get mortgages

B. Buyers refusing to buy (or “hold out for the bottom”).

C. A combination of both.

In any event, I am writing this article to inform my readers, especially homeowners, that this real estate market is not something you treat lightly or “go with your gut” when it comes to making major financial decisions about the sale or holding of your property.

I am available anytime to my clients for further discussion (as they know I am only a phone call away). If you would like to become one of my clients and hire me to help market to sell your home, please call me at 631.831.9048. For a closer look at the Long Island real estate market or to schedule a one-on-one personal meeting with me, call today.

I welcome the opportunity to assist you in any way I can.

(c) Copyright, 2008 www.tommcgiveron.com

By Thomas McGiveron, Licensed Real Estate Salesperson

Recent economic events affecting the mortgage industry.

The Fed announced plans to create a market place for illiquid mortgage debt. This should do a lot of long-term good to help the housing and lending environment. As if that weren’t enough, the Securities and Exchange Commission also placed a temporary ban on the short selling of 799 different financially related stocks.

What prompted these dramatic actions? Very dramatic happenings earlier in the week.

After 158 years in existence, Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy last Monday due to overexposure of high risk loans in the mortgage arena. Then, the Fed gave insurance giant AIG an $85 Billion lifeline to keep it from going into bankruptcy, after initially stating it would not intervene. Then it was announced that Merrill Lynch is being acquired by Bank of America, which will save them from the same fate as Lehman Brothers, and now troubled bank Washington Mutual is looking for a buyer as well.

Also playing a role was the fact…

Click here to read the rest of the article

In my previous article, Long Island Real Estate Market: It’s Starting To Look Ugly, I struggled with that title for the simple reason, it just sounds aweful. So I wanted to make the next article a bit more positive in tone.

The content of the previous article is filled with facts about declining prices. I wrote it not to discourage homeowners, but to warn them of what lies ahead. While we have a long way to go before prices settle and the Long Island real estate market begins an upward tend, there are many national statistics indicating an end to the market decline.

• “Sales of new homes rose by 2.4% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 515,000 units the Commerce Department said Tuesday.” Source: Commerce Department 8/25/08 - Courtesy of Steve Harney, Keeping Current Matters
• “Existing sales were up 3.1% in July. The sales rate was the highest since February. Sales averaged a pace of 4.95 million the past three months, the same rate as the previous period, indicating that purchases may have touched a bottom.” Source: Bloomberg 8/25/08 - Courtesy of Steve Harney, Keeping Current Matters
• “In a sign that the U.S. housing market may strengthen in coming months, an index of sales contracts on previously owned U.S. homes rose 5.3% in June from the prior month.” Source: MarketWatch 8/07/08 - Courtesy of Steve Harney, Keeping Current Matters

Now these statistics are positive. However (I’m beginning not to like this word very much), these improvements in the marketplace are lagging behind the negative impacts on our financial markets and housing supply vs. demand ratios.

My hesitancy to jump for joy in my articles is simply because I do not want to give the wrong impression to homeowners wanting to sell. It’s imperative that homes are priced aggressively. One of the mistakes people make in listening to the news is they hear terms like, “improvements in sales” and translate that to, “improvements in sale prices”. And that is not the case. We may have sold more homes throughout the Long Island real estate market within the last month or so, but that does not mean, prices improved. It means several other things like, prices dropped to a point where buyers paid the respective price(s), mortgage rates dropped, gasoline prices dropped, and real estate agents marketed their properties harder than ever before.

This paragraph above is key for homeowners to understand. So please, read it again so that you build an understanding of the business of real estate and how the market works.

In closing, I’d like to leave you with some positive quotes from some pretty respectable names in the news. Hopefully they will help us in our attempts to continue moving forward.

• “I am now telling you that between now and the next six months you have to buy a house.” Source: Mad Money Blog 7/23/2008 - Courtesy of Steve Harney, Keeping Current Matters
• “We’re hopefully getting in the vicinity of a bottom,” says David Resler, chief U.S. economist at Nomura Securities International Inc. in New York. Courtesy of Steve Harney, Keeping Current Matters

(c) Copyright, 2008 www.tommcgiveron.com

By Thomas McGiveron, Licensed Real Estate Salesperson, New York State




Sep

20

Long Island Real Estate Market: It’s Starting To Look Ugly

Filed Under Buyers, Sellers, Sellers & Buyers | Leave a Comment

For the Long Island real estate market, as we move forward into the abyss…no scratch that…

As we move forward towards certain doom…nope, not going there…

As we look toward the dark days that lie ahead…no, no…

As we look toward the future…(breathe)…there are definitely going to be some bumps in the road. Okay, that was much better. I recently went ahead and started taking a close look at individual towns throughout the Long Island real estate market and their last 30 days of activity. I focused on a few characteristics and I will share them in this article.

They are:
1. Highest-Priced Sold Home in the Area.
2. Average Selling Price in the Area.
3. Number of Units (houses) Sold.

I will be delivering an updated foreclosure report in the coming weeks, because ultimately, the situation with home values is going to be crushed by the wave of pending foreclosures throughout the Long Island real estate market.

The following is a breakdown of towns that I randomly chose to include in this article. If you want information on a specific town, not featured in the article - leave a comment or call me.

Town
Deer Park
$435,000 = Highest-Priced Sold Home
$345,267 = Average Selling Price
15 = Number of Units Sold

West Islip
$994,000
$478,308
13

Babylon
$618,000
$472,125
8

Farmingdale
$575,000
$379,265
17

Amityville
$725,000
$493,688
8

Huntington
$1,600,000
$581,597
39

Smithtown
$810,000
$476,556
23

Brentwood
$450,000
$278,735
26

Massapequa
$1,200,000
$481,940
34

Elmont
$450,000
$357,639
15

W. Babylon
$380,000
$313,091
11

Riverhead
[Only 4 closings in the previous 30 days – data insufficient]

Manorville
$495,000
$406,214
7

Mastic
$295,000
$214,472
12

Now after looking at these numbers, you can see that the amount of closings is siginificantly low. For example, in Mastic, New York, there are over 500 homes for sale. With only 12 closings in the last 30 days, that translates to less than 2% of the market selling. In Riverhead, New York, there were less than 5 closings during the last 30 days.

Additionally, in West Babylon, the average selling price for the previous 30 days was less than $315,000 and in Farmingdale, the average has dipped below $400,000 down to $379,265.

While some high end homes closed in towns like Huntington, West Islip and Massapequa, you can tell by their averages that most of the homes in those areas are signficantly less in selling prices and, those homes that did sell for over 1 million dollars have lost signficant equity value to sell at those prices.

With the continued increase of foreclosures throughout the Long Island real estate market, homeowners must take into consideration that it is not going to get better overnight. Anyone who wants to sell their home should know this information and take it very seriously.

If you would like more information on the Long Island real estate market, please feel free to email me at
th om as . m c g i v e r o n @ topproducer.com (please remove all spaces - I do this to avoid spambot emailing). Or feel free to leave a comment on this article.

(c) Copyright, www.tommcgiveron.com

By Thomas McGiveron, Licensed Real Estate Salesperson, New York State




Sep

1

Long Island Real Estate Market: Mortgage Matters August, 2008

Filed Under Buyers, Mortgage Matters, Sellers, Sellers & Buyers | 1 Comment

WHY SELLERS SHOULD “SELL” AND BUYERS SHOULD “BUY” RIGHT NOW!

Lately many buyers are asking themselves is this the right time to buy? It seems a major contributor to this uncertainty and question is because buyers are wondering if they would be better off taking the gamble that home prices will continue to fall. Is this gamble a smart one? Should you wait and take that risk? The answer to both of these questions is “no”! While yes, it’s true that home prices are likely to continue to fall some, the more important factor that needs to be considered, and is also likely to occur, is that home mortgage rates will continue to climb. This is in large part due to the fight of growing inflation, increased foreclosures and the sub-prime mortgage mess. While the average mortgage rate for a conventional 30-year fixed rate is still relatively low compared to historic rates, aggressive buyers who wait around for rates to go lower have little time to react once rates start to climb.

But what about the seller? Should they wait to see if a buyer is willing to pay what they’re asking or even close to the asking price? Well, to answer that question, we have to consider several factors. 1- What is the motivation of the seller? Are they looking to purchase another home or even better yet, are they already in contract to purchase their next house? In a majority of cases, this seems to ring true for a large portion of sellers. If this is the case, it is far better for a seller to consider lowering the price of their house ”now”, or have a realistic price set in their minds that will attract buyers, than to wait for that “one “ buyer who is willing to pay top dollar…it’s not going to happen, not in this market!

Click Here To Read The Rest Of The Article

Aug

29

Long Island Foreclosure Statistics: 2nd Quarter 2008

Filed Under Buyers, Foreclosure Info, Sellers, Sellers & Buyers | 3 Comments

Sellers Beware! Buyers Beware!

According to www.LIRealEstateReport.com , Suffolk County saw a dramatic increase of foreclosure filings, as did Nassau County. Nearly $870,000,000 of real estate inventory in Suffolk County is facing foreclosure. As of July, 2008, there were 18,638 total listings in Suffolk County according to the Multiple Listing Service. There are currently 2,723 Lis Pendens filings in Suffolk County alone. Let me repeat - 2,723 homes facing foreclosure in Suffolk County.

Click here for help to avoid foreclosure

In Nassau, there are 1,620 facing foreclosure with a median price tag of about $380,000, while Suffolk’s price tag for a home in foreclosure is about $319,000.

This data suggests that the epidemic of foreclosures facing our area alone is very concerning.

If you are on the market now, drop your price. If you are thinking of selling your home, find out your exact motivation for doing so. If you need to get out (and really ask yourself the tough questions to get the real answers), then don’t wait around. With every home that enters into foreclosure in your area, the impact on your home’s value will drop approximately $8,000. That’s instant equity loss.

I have written on this subject numerous times. I just hope who ever is reading my articles that they actually take into consideration the severity of the housing and foreclosure crisis that faces us.

I’m not a doom and gloom type. In this market, there’s a great opportunity to sell your home. You won’t be selling it for the price you could have gotten a few years ago, but remembering the 25% annual appreciation that was realized from 2003 to 2005/2006, should help remind you about that great benefit to your home’s value, even now.

For buyers, there’s two main things to consider. One is that it’s a great time to consider buying a foreclosure or short sale. There are a few legal items to consider, so make sure you consult your attorney before buying a foreclosure, pre-foreclosure at auction or short sale.

Secondly, for buyers, it’s important to know what’s going on in the area you’re looking in. This is very important. I work as a buyers agent, representing buyers in the largest financial transaction of their lives. I pride myself on providing them with the best information possible about any area so that they make an informed decision.

For a Comprehensive Market Analysis of your home’s value, or to call me to inquire about finding a home to buy (or both), call me at (631)831-9048.

(c) Copyright, 2008 www.tommcgiveron.com

By Tom McGiveron

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REAL ESTATE MARKET UPDATES

• Mortgage Shopping
• Mortgage Rates: Oh My Goodness…What Are You Waiting For?
• Long Island Real Estate Market: Foreclosure Update, December 2008
• Long Island Home Prices: How Real Estate Offices Are Being Affected
• Long Island Short Sales: Announcing New Website
• Closing Cost Assistance for First Time Homebuyers
• Long Island Real Estate Market: Numbers That Add Up To “WOW”
• Long Island Real Estate Market: Home Pricing Update
• How Do You Buy A Home?
• Client Testimonial: Kevin M.

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