From US News:
Spring Housing Market: Eager Buyers, Patient Sellers
More than half of Americans have at least one regret when it comes to buying or renting a home, according to real estate information site Trulia, which surveyed more than 2000 adults about their housing choices.
The top regret among current homeowners was not purchasing a large enough home, with 34 percent of those surveyed wishing they would have opted for more square footage over other perks such as location or decor updates, the survey showed. Another 27 percent wished they had put more sweat equity into their homes by remodeling and updating key rooms, and almost a quarter of homeowners surveyed said they wished they had more information about their future abode before they signed the deed.
“Although the recession, tight credit, and foreclosures lowered homeownership in America, people would still buy – and buy big – if they could,” Jed Kolko, Trulia’s chief economist, said in a release. “Even after the housing crisis, Americans’ main housing regrets are that they didn’t invest more in their homes.”
Financial regrets also figured into homeowners’ hindsight towards their purchase. Almost 20 percent wished they’d saved up more for a larger down payment, and 16 percent said they wish they would have been more financially secure before making such a large purchase.
While homeowners have a fair share of regrets when it comes to their home purchases, buyers’ overall remorse is abating. About 55 percent of those who bought a home between 2010 and 2013 have regrets, compared to 63 percent who bought between 2003 to 2009. Record affordability, low mortgage rates, and conservative bank lending could have played a role in helping consumers steer clear of less-than-ideal investments, but that could change given the real estate landscape becoming ultra-competitive in recent months.
“People want to buy and rental vacancies are very low,” says Kolko. “That means they’ll be in a rush and could make mistakes they’ll later regret.”
Good Morning New Jersey
I did what I had to do and saw it through without exemption
Just turned down a 1750 sqft place for that very reason, too small. On the other hand, 3,000 sqft is way too large for just wife and I. We’re having a hard time finding something in-between a 1ba, front-door-in-the-livingroom older home and a McMansion.
From the NJ Herald:
NJ official: State to buy flood-prone homes in ’13
New Jersey officials plan to unveil a plan in the next two to three weeks for buying out roughly 1,000 flood-prone homes from owners who want to sell them, a state Department of Environmental Protection spokesman said Tuesday.
Since Superstorm Sandy struck the state nearly six months ago, the idea of rebuilding has drawn a lot of attention, but officials are also trying to decide whether some places are too flood-prone to inhabit again. Some environmentalists have called for a broad program of buying out homeowners and turning their property into floodplains.
In recent months, Gov. Chris Christie has laid out a few details of his intentions: He wants to buy swaths of land, not just scattered properties so that floodplains can be made; he does not want to force people to sell; and he’s hoping the federal government will send the state $250 million in flood-relief funds for the program.
In a legislative hearing Monday, state Environmental Protection commissioner Bob Martin said the hope is to buy about 1,000 homes.
Larry Ragonese, a spokesman for Martin, said Tuesday that sales would begin this year and would follow a plan that’s to be made public in the next few weeks.
Ragonese said DEP employees have spoken with a few dozen communities in their hunt for places that are subject to serious flooding and where property owners want to sell in a quest for the right place. He said about a dozen towns have serious interest.
In the Sub-2k space, room sizing and layout are critical in having good feel and function.
Square footage cures many design ills, which is probably why so many feel they need larger.
The worst offender is usually the 4/2.1 split level with the 400 square foot great room off the back. These usually tick in at 2200, which raises your hopes it’ll be a winner, but they feel more like 1600. 3br upstairs and a room at ground level, making it not a true 4br, and the master bath is typically small with a stall shower. Inevitably one of the upstairs bedrooms is also very small. In fact all the bedrooms feel small because most of the house is dedicated to redundant living spaces (dining room, main living room, downstairs den, and the great room off the back). Most people would walk in wishing they could trade the great room for a couple extra feet in the bedrooms and maybe a usable closet or two.
Re 5. True. Realize builders can’t satisfy everybody. In the NV Homes development where we’re looking, the models have open space on first floor with a loft like feel. Would much prefer that to the typical formal dining room where the backs of the dining room chairs touch the walls when you slide the chair away from the table. Looks like it will be a trade off between space versus location.
New construction is a different matter entirely, especially ground up and not reno. You tend to get a much more proportional space, and you usually get good closets. The open concept is just builders building to the current design trends. Who knows, in 30 years we might be hating open concept and putting up walls again.
Person of Interest?
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BICVI8YCMAIff7i.jpg:large
God damn that’s compelling
very
Is that from some kind of semi-reputable source or is that some viral crap thats going around on facebook?
I thought people go larger to store Chinese stuff bought at Target.
Square footage cures many design ills, which is probably why so many feel they need larger.
And nobody carries a backpack in that way. It would usually be over one shoulder, over two shoulders or with one hand by the handle between the straps, not one arm through both shoulder straps.
Another day of sheer madness. Radio off, TV off.
That’s what my wife said, right after she said the guy looked creepy. I’ve got to agree there, but the opinion is probably fraught with bias.
LOL. If you search for the image URL, It shows up at exactly two sites. Lunatic Outpost and NJ Real Estate Report.
http://lunaticoutpost.com/Topic-The-REAL-Bomber?page=1
17- And NJ Real Estate Report may also be known in some circles as Lunatic Outpost.
[9] juice
Damn.
[17] expat,
Or my FB friends list. Some days I wonder why some of my friends hang out with total whackjobs.
Grim just crowdsourcing to help the FBI.
Photos were taken yesterday.
Here he is smiling:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/95016916@N04/8657689302/
[22] expat,
That appears to be a sitting crowd. So I would doubt the provenance based on that. But I was going to point out, and perhaps you did obliquely, that we don’t even know if this is Boston.
One final point: I used to know that block very well. In the afternoon, much, if not all of it is in shadow, and the bomb films confirm that I believe. Just saying, as lib pointed out, no point in jumping to conclusions.
[23] That’s my point. It’s a hoax/inside joke on Lunatic Outpost.
#14
Carrying a backpack that way is a smart idea in a crowd like that. Keeps someone from unzipping the front pouch to pull stuff out. Also, if you’re moving around, you don’t smack people with the backpack.
Jumping to conclusions like it was an Iranian?
I know there are 12 people reading these comments right now. I was the second view of that picture on flickr and then right after I posted the link it jumped to 14 views.
[24] expat
Oh, I think you are trying to deceive us from seeing the false flag attack!
http://www.infowars.com/boston-marathon-emergency-false-flag-warning/
I’m not sure but I think these flakes are in my area. I see their lawn signs and graffiti in parts of ChesCo, and don’t recall it elsewhere.
The flickr pic just jumped to 36 views. Who wants to bet someone will be posting the original pics to their FB account and it will be viral by mid morning?
I think Obama did it so no one would notice the immigration reform legislation sliding through.
[28] redux
I stand corrected. They have an Austin, TX address.
The WHDH photos of the route are pretty compelling. And actual. Showing the likely second bomb package.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2310200/Boston-bomb-FBI-photographs-Is-second-bomb-just-seconds-exploded.html
8. Grim,
Easier to put up walls in an open concept home than to take them down in a closed concept one if load bearing.
Grim, my realtor is telling me other realtors are listing , then restricting showings to create a frenzy. True?
34 – This was the methodology used very successfully by Schweppe/Burgdorf in Montclair and Glen Ridge for years. They would list the property at a very compelling price, likely tens of thousands (if not more) under what the market price would have otherwise dictated. They would restrict public showings for approximately a week, sometimes a bit longer, always including at least 1 weekend in the mix. They’d do a brokers open sometime mid-way. After the first weekend of showings (which was always a madhouse), they would usually set a date for offers to be submitted (I recall Tuesday was a popular one).
The purpose of this was to create the maximum amount of buyer interest in a short period of time, inevitably causing a bidding war, and it worked every time.
The property that “started this blog” was one of the above. Asking price was in the 4’s, it closed over 6. Hell, my realtor was bidding against me, unbeknownst to me. I assume a number of buyers were using Burgdorf to bid, which creates a questionable arrangement (the agents have visibility into all offers simultaneously).
We beat this model to death in the early days of the blog, we coined it the “eBay effect”. Buyers are much more likely to pay a higher price for a property in an incremental bidding situation than otherwise.
#32
I think the lone wolf theory can be discarded for now. If the swept the street with a canine an hour before the explosion, it would take multiple people to coordinate the timing. It’s probably also why the detonation thankfully was delayed until after the winners finished(crowd had begun to shrink).
36 – That’s doubtful. However, I wonder if you’ve hit on the reason for the pressure cooker. The things are *air-tight* at normal pressure. I suppose if you built one with diligence and did not to get any explosive material on the outside of the container, it would be undetectable by bomb dogs.
I don’t know, this collapse in the gold price and a terrorist attack days later leads me to believe the Illuminati must be involved on some level.
One thing I’ve noticed recently is a lot of homes in one subdivision are getting their stucco replaced. An owner said the builder didn’t flash properly, with predictable results. 100-120k to re-side.
Coincidentally, I noticed that stucco homes here tend to sit. Not surprising when you consider that stucco is a material intended for arid environments, and all the negative press for synthetic stucco.
Sadly, there are a lot of homes here from the likes of toll bros or NV that were built in the 80s and 90s. And they all have stucco and heat pumps, two things that homes in Southeastern PA shouldn’t have (unless you think this area is going desert from global warming). So the bulk of the housing stock in this part of Chester County is crap.
I think we’ll keep renting.
I just have a hard time believing that there isn’t any visual evidence from some camera in the vicinity of someone with any of said backpacks…..seriously….this area is downtown Boston…..I smell something fishy…..you can’t even buy a Starbucks in Times Square without the NYPD knowing you have a wedgie…..
nwnj says:
April 17, 2013 at 9:37 am
#32
I think the lone wolf theory can be discarded for now. If the swept the street with a canine an hour before the explosion, it would take multiple people to coordinate the timing. It’s probably also why the detonation thankfully was delayed until after the winners finished(crowd had begun to shrink).
39 – Almost all “stucco” homes built in the last 25 years are “synthetic”, I’d wager that very few homes built, even in the $1m+ range, were built with traditional/masonry stucco over block. It’s all sandy paint over styrofoam.
The $100k repair prices you quote seem to be way too high. Even if large portions of the sheathing/framing were rotted due to water infiltration, the costs shouldn’t be that high.
Nice work from the Boston police for letting that large, unattended package remain on the sidewalk. Idiots.
42 – Impossibility to manage given the crowds and an event this size. Everyone’s got a bag at something like this, to hold their clothes, jackets, kids stuff etc. In addition, folks waiting at the finish lines for friends/families, likely carrying their change of clothes, etc. If they are tourists, they may have done some shopping, etc. And this all separate from the runners bags, etc.
I’d disagree chi. There were dozens of police in this area. They should have asked “Is that your bag?” to the people standing next to the very large, unusual looking bag sitting on the sidewalk.
The Boston Marathon was a high profile event, with apparently no one looking for suspicious activity. Post 9-11, this is basic stuff.
I mean grim, not chi.
42 You mean like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0EXrlI9k84
Smart Cop
boo-hiss to this comment. It could have easily been on the inside of the barricade or under the mailbox and had the same effect. Before Monday it wouldn’t even seem out of place to a person next to the perp (unless he vamoosed real quick). If I was carrying a shopping bag and was up against the barricade being crowded by other spectators I might even think to put my bag down in front of the barricade where I could see it, grab it back whenever I wanted, and not have it crushed.
Nice work from the Boston police for letting that large, unattended package remain on the sidewalk. Idiots.
How many people do you see in this photo carrying handbags, backpacks, etc.
http://img.gawkerassets.com/img/18ku22s096ytrjpg/original.jpg
People may disagree. To me an officer asking “Is that your bag?” does not seem a very high burden, given the police presence that day, and and the visibility of the event.
Well presumably that bag had to be sitting there for a while or else the perp would have been one of the casualties. The cops are always harping on the public re strange packages etc. You’d think they’d have had their eyes open for that. Nice sunny day though with a lot of hot chicks running around maybe they got distracted?
2nd Ricin laced letter addressed to Obama intercepted.
[41] grim,
I didn’t get a quote. I got that from one of the owners in this subdivision. So it is second or third-hand. Also, these are McMansions so there is a lot of area. Replacement work looks like hardiplank and stone facing. Whether these make a diff., I don’t know.
All I know is that this surface was one I never much cared for before the synthetic issues b/c of installation and water infiltration issues. Seems most buyers feel similarly and it is showing in the inventory that is sitting around out here.
Same thing for septic issues. I just saw a price reduction on a house that I considered excellent. Well-maintained, dry, updated, a perfect house for us in a great neighborhood. Only issues were an ugly tiered lot near a small wetland and the fact that some neighbors had to redo their septic systems. I think this latter issue is scaring off buyers b/c the township had been very aggressive over septic in the past, insisting on escrows and agreements to remediate future issues, and this killed at least one deal I know of. The township has purported backed off but that isn’t giving comfort to buyers who fear that they might be in for the same treatment.
It is interesting that the buyers seemed to be very clued into the prospect for major future costs, or the prospects for resale. Some of the houses here have sat for a very long time, either because of septic/stucco/other issues, or because they are white elephants that cannot easily be resold.
[52] brian
If true, I doubt that there’d be just two.
Big gold sell off and all these attacks. Three syllables – Bilderberg!!!
Just about BTFD time on gold. Or, maybe we should just wait until all the liquidation is done to meet the margin calls that are coming in a couple of months, when it all turns to shit.
Glad that ricin letter didn’t get to Bojangles. He might have thought it was choom.
To be clear, my point is not about pure failsafe prevention…..it is simply ….you know the location of the fcuking bag that blew up…you know what it looked like ex-ante…..aren’t there some photos/surveillance of the person(s) with said bag…I’m mean come on……..
Brian says:
April 17, 2013 at 11:30 am
How many people do you see in this photo carrying handbags, backpacks, etc.
http://img.gawkerassets.com/img/18ku22s096ytrjpg/original.jpg
55 – first thing i said to myself as well. What are the odds of a record naked short sale in gold the same day as a terrorist attack.
Poor Aryan Brotherhood getting blamed for something they did not do. Funny how this all started from theft of a few computers, cost just a drop in the bucket for an attorney.
Funny how small things can escalate sometimes.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/18/us/woman-charged-in-texas-prosecutors-killings.html
FBI says they have pictures of the bomber dropping the second bomb
Re: [60];
I think that is what happens when the ‘justice’ system breaks down. It’s supposed to be a civilized alternative to vendettas and grudges. Where do you go when the ‘law’ is the oppressor?
Funny how this all started from theft of a few computers, cost just a drop in the bucket for an attorney.
Funny how small things can escalate sometimes.
Well, you’re assuming that the charges were valid and the defense was not. Exactly why would an successful attorney steal a $300 computer? Even if the defense is flimsy, why crush the guy’s livelihood over it? Couldn’t the whole matter have been settled with a civil fine, no admission of guilt, maybe even surrendering his JoP commission?
Bri [61];
Did you see where it was left? I’d be shocked that they didn’t have pictures.
We’ve made all the Islamists into Palestinians…. and they’ve made us all Israelis.
(62)
Moose,
You must work for the SEC or Justice Dept…. recommending civil fines without admission of guilt for criminal theft. I know nothing of Texas law, but what would $300 theft be a misdemeanor?
Now whether or not this particular case was ‘politically motivated’ or he was wrongly convicted… does not negate the fact that criminal behavior deserves criminal sanctions.
http://imgur.com/a/sUrnA/noscript
Much better series of photos here. We’ll know more in 1 hr.
yome,
Here is all the cash on the sidelines…
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2013/04/cash-cow-of-50-largest-us-companies-who.html
65 – Crowdsourced CSI – I’m impressed
The Internet sleuths went crazy on this one. I guess everybody wants to help any way they can.
WCTV- BOSTON says there was an arrest.
http://www.wcvb.com/
CNN picked it up too.
now conflicting reports no arrest etc.
Joyyce [64];
OK, excise the word “civil”, and the rest still stands. $300 is my guess over what a used, out of date government contract acquired computer would be worth.
criminal behavior deserves criminal sanctions.
And a fine is one. Ever get a speeding or parking ticket? Ever plead it down? Paid a (criminal) fine? Who lost their livelihood over it?
Moose,
I understand your point and do not entirely disagree.
However, I’ve been told numerous times that countless “infractions” (including traffic) are ‘quasi-criminal.’ The attorney invented realm in which the police and courts retain all their power yet the defendant loses certain protections such as trial by jury.
Anyway, back the judge in the article. (and again, this is assuming he is guilty and not wrongly convicted) Yes, I think he should be fired for theft. How many employers would not fire their employees for theft?
[62] Moose – Which livelihood are you referring to? His day job as officer of the court, his night-time gig as thief, or his new start-up in assassination/homicide?
Well, you’re assuming that the charges were valid and the defense was not. Exactly why would an successful attorney steal a $300 computer? Even if the defense is flimsy, why crush the guy’s livelihood over it? Couldn’t the whole matter have been settled with a civil fine, no admission of guilt, maybe even surrendering his JoP commission?
Re: Boston
I feel like whomever did this was correct in his assumption that this was possible to pull off, but stunts like these need to end with a bullet to the head. These guys were delusional in thinking they could get away with this. Cameras on every corner, backpacks, pressure cookers, come on… they have days at best and then it’s off to the big house to play pool and soak corks for cigarettes.
CNN and fox scheduling their court dates already. Man, losing credibility by the minute. Verify your source dummies!
Anyone recommend a place to buy gold / silver coins retail or online -Blanchard?
Evac at the Boston courthouse Reporters/Media included. I gather our person of interest may be arriving?
Got a feeling that the person(s) who pulled off Boston are going down in a hail of bullets when they are discovered.
Joyce [74];
Fired from one job is one thing. Forbidden from getting another like it, or any comparable using a decades-long developed skill set is another. Listen, I’m not here to defend the accused. I’m just trying to decide which hypothesis best fits all the known facts. $300 thieves don’t often murder prosecutors or their spouses.
We can call the guy a simple thief, and believe that this was a black swan event; or we can consider that he was retaliating for having his living unjustly taken away from him at the hands of a corrupt justice system. How many $300 thefts even merit an indictment, much less go to trial?
I think of it kind of like how I viewed Columbine — people asked ‘why did this happen here?’ Well, it might be because the kids were mercilessly tormented psychologically by their peers. Did that mean the kids who did it and others deserved to die for their sins? No — but that is most likely why it happened there. Was it worth the yuks?
All people will behave very differently when they perceive that there is no consequence for their actions. Including a prosecutor who is or is in the pocket of the “Boss Hogg” equivalent of some rural Texas town. The next prosecutor can’t help but think about that when he decides whether and how to prosecute a $300 theft of government equipment.
Clot [80];
Depends on who finds them first — BPD or the Feds.
Who’s more likely to shoot ’em up?
(81)
Is it the norm that a lawyer convicted of theft would have his license suspended?
I would think they’d be safer with the Feds. Though in both instances may slip and fall down stairs in their attempt to evade authorities.
Theo [83];
I gotta believe BPD if more likely to mow them down — if they still have enough of the Irish left in them. Bush43/Ashcroft would be likely to just put a well placed sniper shot. I’d also think the Clinton/Reno DoJ would have no qualms in opening the can of whoopazz.
However, the current empty-suit-in-chief and his bagman AG need a headline show trial — to further the bosses ‘shiny object’ policy of government by distraction; and to make up for the egg on their face over the abortive “Live (& Dead) from New York, its KSM!”
[84] Joyce,
Yes.