The reality of real estate

From a price perspective, the UAE market still offers plenty of opportunities for those looking to invest

Real estate has always been the surest way to accumulate wealth – and is likely to remain so. Yet, the financial crisis of 2008 changed the game, and brought a healthy dose of reality back to the real estate sector. Today, as investors look at this asset class again with renewed optimism, we need to ask ourselves if we have truly learned the lessons of the past five years.

If you look back over historical data, real estate has provided investors with a stronger and steadier return than any other investment option. It has an uncanny ability to bounce back after a downturn and outperform other asset classes.

The 2008 crisis was a case of the pursuit of profit crowding out sensible investment decision making. True, a few speculators managed to come out unscathed, but most did not. Many lost vast sums of capital when property values plunged by half. Thankfully, it appears we have reached the bottom and are on the way back. But for those investors with memories still fresh from the crisis, is real estate once again an asset class worth considering?

The GCC region is characterized by its rising populations and increasing wealth both contributing to a flourishing economy. Major real estate developers in the UAE reached peak valuations in 2008 before crashing in the crisis due to difficult credit and economic conditions.

Abu Dhabi and Dubai real estate sales showed a significant upward trend from Q4 2011 to Q2 2012. Despite a slowdown during the third quarter, year-on-year activity was still higher, suggesting that Abu Dhabi and Dubai’s real estate market is well on the path to recover.

From a price perspective, the UAE market still offers plenty of opportunities for those looking to invest. On average, the price per square foot is very affordable, and with the absence of property taxes and income tax, the value becomes extremely competitive, especially compared to other major cities around the world.

From a returns perspective, we are unlikely to see pre-2008 growth levels anytime soon. But this is something we should welcome.

That’s because we can look forward to greater price stability, thanks to more people investing in completed projects rather than speculating on off-plan developments. Additionally, mortgage reform – and the requirement for larger down payments if implemented by the Central Bank – puts less strain on the financial systems by decreasing the number of defaults, and providing more liquidity. Most significantly, potential new Central Bank regulations, if applied, could eliminate speculators from entering the market and prevent them from falsely “heating up” the market – causing undue price stress, inflated values and an another property bubble.

For investors and home buyers alike, real estate in this country has been a reliable source of wealth generation for many, and yet a great source of heartache for others. Thanks to the confluence of a number of factors, from the introduction of new regulations to the changing of old attitudes, the real estate climate today is very different from the one in pre 2008 crisis.

At ADCM we are very positive about growth in the GCC, and more specifically in the real estate sector in in the UAE. The UAE’s sophisticated regulatory milieu, highly developed financial infrastructure, and a legal system increasingly following rules of global best practices, provides a healthy investing environment for both home buyers and investors alike. In addition to the solid commercial infrastructure, the time is right to capitalise on the underlying value waiting to be unlocked in the UAE real estate sector.

Mustafa Kheriba, Chief Operating Officer, Abu Dhabi Capital Management. Opinion expressed here is his own and do not necessarily reflect that of Gulf News.

For the original post visit: http://gulfnews.com/business/property/uae/the-reality-of-real-estate-1.1141361

Aussies upsizing homes

AUSTRALIANS are living in houses that would be considered under-utilised by international standards, adding more bedrooms to their homes despite fewer occupants.

The average number of bedrooms has climbed from 2.5 to 3 from 2001 to 2011, while occupancy per house has slipped from 2.8 to 2.6, figures reveal.

Housing can no longer be simply regarded as a "place of shelter'', says social researcher Mark McCrindle, who believes the upsize trend is a result of homes becoming status symbols and "multi-generational''.

"Look at how long children stay at home, and we have an ageing population with only one in 10 people aged over 65 moving into retirement villages,'' Mr McCrindle said.

"We have an expectation that every kid has their own bedroom, and we use our homes for more things in terms of lifestyle. We're getting more from our homes than 30 years ago.''

Mr McCrindle said 100 years ago Australia's average household size was 4.5 people, but modern-day homes were more about social trends than demographic changes. Household sizes continue to fall, although demographic and real estate experts expect this trend to stabilise or reverse.

The number of bedrooms per house in Australia jumped from 2.6 to 3.1 between 2001 and 2011.

Australia's average household size in 2011 was 2.6 people, Bureau of Statistics data shows. It's the same as 2001 but down from 2.8 people in 1991.

He said it was likely that Australia's next census might show an increase in people living in each house as "multi-generational households'' became more popular.

He said four-bedroom homes were here to stay, and his research had found that for every person downsizing, twice as many were upsizing.

Real estate academic Peter Koulizos said the size of new homes had probably reached a plateau because people were not building as many McMansions.

"Through the good times from 2001 to 2010 people were building bigger homes with more bedrooms and living areas because they could,'' he said.

"A home is like a status symbol - the bigger the house the higher up the social ladder you are.

"The most popular-sized home is three bedrooms but four-bedroom homes won't become dinosaurs because people will find other uses for them. The five and six bedroom homes will become dinosaurs because we are not having as many kids.''

Mr Koulizos said home design trends were constantly changing.

"We got rid of the formal dining room because we discovered we were not using it. Preferences change.''

For the original post visit: http://www.heraldsun.com.au/realestate/investing/aussies-upsizing-homes/story-fndcursx-1226546953341

Twin Cities Real Estate Market Goes Up; 2013 Promising

It was a good real estate year in 2012 and experts expect that trend to continue in 2013 for home sellers.

The average home sale price went up 10-percent in 2012 in the Twin Cities, according to real estate expert, Herb Tousley, of the University of St. Thomas. Tousley says home inventory has also gone down from 20-thousand to just 14-thousand available homes on the market in 2012.

Tousley says low interest rates and fewer homes on the market will continue to drive up prices in the Twin Cities real estate market. Tousley says that makes 2013 a very good year for sellers. Tousley also says the percentage of foreclosure, or short sales, has fallen to less than 40-percent in 2012. At the peak of the recession in 2009 and 2010, Tousley says, distressed home sales accounted for 55 to 60-percent of all home sales.

For the original post visit: http://kstp.com/news/stories/S2882597.shtml?cat=1

Vietnam's real estate industry stagnates with no signs of recovery in 2013

Vietnam's real estate market has been in the doldrums for the past five years, but more especially in 2012, and there are no indications of recovery in the coming year.

"If the government does not intervene with appropriate and timely measures, the real estate sector would suffer more," an executive of a real estate firm, who declined to be named, told Xinhua in an interview.

The executive has been working in a city-run housing trading and brokerage company since 1989. The company has now been converted into a share-holding company. At one time, his company had up to 600 employees, but now it only has a staff of 60.

"I have to reduce my staff to the minimum, which helps in lowering our budget and in going through the current tough and competitive environment," the executive said.

He said that in 2012, the year-end bonus for their employees would be equal to only one-month salary compared to three-month salary years ago.

"I have no choice. The company's profit this year was only one- tenth of the previous years' figure that reached up to 200 billion VND (roughly 10 million US dollars) per year.

Some years ago, the real estate sector was considered the most profitable business in Vietnam.

However, since the real estate market has hibernated along with Vietnam's economy, apartments and houses have been left unsold, and investors are losing money.

Though many projects have been on sale with big discounts, sales have continued to dip.

Land price in Vietnam is believed to be the most expensive in the world. In 2011, the Vietnamese people's average income was ranked 120th in the world while its real estate price ranked 20th.

Analysts are worried that the real estate bubble in Vietnam will burst if the government does not make remedial measures to help the ailing real estate industry.

One analyst said that if the government has enough capital reserves, it can come up with a timely stimulus package to support key sectors of the economy, including real estate.

"Apart from a stimulus package, flexible legal regulations relating to real estate should also be applied so investors can re- adjust their business plan," the analyst said, adding that lowering the land rental tax for investors would be a significant move.

According to him, having a strong capital reserve is a big problem for real estate investors, especially those who have to borrow money from banks to run their business. Only those with enough capital reserve can survive during this difficult time, he said.

In Vietnam today, residential houses are selling quite well because the average-income families can afford to buy them backed by low-rate bank loans. However, this still can not solve the problem of high inventories in the overall real estate business.

Nguyen Khanh Phuong, director of a property transaction company in Hanoi, seemed to be a "lucky" businesswoman, as she told Xinhua that her business went "okay" throughout this year, despite lots of difficulties.

"We have to re-adjust our business lines to suit to the market's fluctuations and to meet the buyers' diverse demands," Phuong said, adding that "there are clients from different walks of life, with different income levels, and we try to satisfy each one of them."

Ha My and her husband are among Phuong's clients who bought high-class apartments at the Golden Palace building in the newly- developed hub at My Dinh area in capital Hanoi. The project is scheduled to be completed in 2014.

The couple, who are in their thirties and both working for foreign companies for more than 10 years, bought a 105-square- meter apartment through Phuong's company.

They have to pay for their future apartment (32 million VND, or 1,600 US dollars, per square meter) in four installments, with the first one covering 30 percent of the house's value paid when they signed the purchase contract, and the final one in 2014 when they move into the house.

"My clients, like My and her husband, are not rare. They buy houses where they can live with the help of the bank. I hope we can sell more products. But I think the country's real estate market can only recover in 2014, and thrive again from 2015," Phuong said.

Official statistics showed that at the end of the third quarter in 2012, the turnover of real estate businesses listed in the stock markets decreased by 20-25 percent and their profit fell down by 35-40 percent year on year.

Le Dat Chi, head of the Financial Investment Department of the HCM City Economics University, said that because of the current unfavorable global economy and limited sources of capital at home, investors can't expect a faster economic growth without which the government could not afford to have a stimulus package for the real estate industry.

"There will be a pessimistic scenario for the national economy in the coming years, and investment channels, including the stock market and real estate industry, are going to be affected," he said.

For the original post visit: http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/753181.shtml

2013 May Bring Buyer’s Market in Residential Real Estate

Las Vegas CBS KXNT – Las Vegas home prices rose sharply this year, but they could be headed back down in 2013 if lenders let the foreclosure genie out of the bottle.

Real estate professionals say there are between 80 and 100 thousand distressed properties in Las Vegas where the notice of default has yet to be filed, and more on the horizon.

Kevin Mikrut with First Prime Realty Group estimates it will take about five years to hit price equalibrium.

In November, the number of notices of default was about four times higher than in the early summer, Mikrut told KXNT. That means lenders have adjusted their foreclosure practices to comply with a state law that’s kept them from taking back delinquent properties.

In the short-term, prices are bound to drop as a glut of distressed properties to the market next year, he said.

Lenders have been skittish about foreclosing since October of 2011 because the state’s anti-robosigning law contains criminal penalties for faulty procedures.

Supply tightened in the Las Vegas valley over the past year as delinquent homeowners stayed in place without paying on the mortgage, and banks declined to initiate foreclosure. That’s pushed prices up at a rate not seen since last decade’s boom.

For the original post visit: http://lasvegas.cbslocal.com/2012/12/26/2013-may-bring-buyers-market-in-residential-real-estate/

SOFAZ purchases real estate in London

Baku. Vahab Rzayev – APA-Economics. State Oil Fund of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ), announced on December 17, 2012 its first real estate investment, with the purchase of 78 St James’s Street, an office complex in London’s West End for £177 350 000.

The seller was RREEF Real Estate, the real estate investment business of Deutsche Bank’s Asset and Wealth Management division. Jones Lang LaSalle and Clifford Chance were the advisors to SOFAZ on this deal.

St James is a well-known prime location for exclusive office properties within London. 78 St James Street is located in one of the most prestigious parts of St James and is a Grade II listed building. 78 St James Street building was built in 1845 and was completely renovated in 2003 behind the historical facade and now corresponds to “A” class office building. The total area of this prime asset is 11 018 square meters and is entirely leased to HSBC Bank, which uses it as HQ of its Private Bank in the UK, until 2023. Annual rental income is £9.65 million and the net initial yield is 4.5% p.a.

Shahmar Movsumov, Executive Director of SOFAZ commented: “Sovereign Wealth Funds across the globe are looking for ways of diversifying their risks by expanding their investments beyond traditional asset classes. For the last decade SOFAZ has been growing rapidly both in terms of the size of the assets under management and its investment universe. Today I am delighted to announce SOFAZ’s first direct real estate investment. This newly acquired office building in London is the first in a row of planned property acquisitions in prime business districts of major cities around the world. The secure income that this type of investment will generate over the years coupled with strong fundamentals of prime office spaces in major world capitals are the determining factors in our investment rationale.”

The State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan, the sovereign wealth fund, was set up in December 1999 by the Presidential Decree as an extra-budgetary entity which accumulates and manages oil and gas revenues of the country. The Fund’s primary objectives are to help maintain macroeconomic stability in the country and to generate wealth for present and future generations. As of 01 December, 2012, assets of SOFAZ totalled USD 33 895 million.

Purchase of this property was realized in accordance with the amendments under the Presidential decree № 519 dated October 27th, 2011 made to "Rules on management of foreign currency assets of the State Oil Fund of the Republic of Azerbaijan". By the investment policy overall value of the investment portfolio can be invested into the gold, equities and real estate with maximum limit of up to 5 % per each financial tool.

For the original post visit: http://en.apa.az/news/184578

Greek MPs detail assets and real estate

A real estate portfolio of almost 60 properties, multiple bank accounts with millions in cash, shares, antique cars and yachts are among the details contained in the wealth declarations of Greek MPs.

The declarations, which some 500 sitting and former ministers, MPs and MEPs had to submit, relate to 2010, when the country applied for its first bailout.

In his return, Antonis Samaras, then main opposition leader and now prime minister, and his wife declared an income of €190,600, ownership of 13 properties and eight bank accounts with deposits of about €300,000.

Beating Mr Samaras in terms of property holdings and bank balances was then defence minister and current socialist Pasok leader Evangelos Venizelos. Along with his wife he earned €162,000, had €2.3 million in the bank and owned 27 properties.

More modest were the returns, published on Tuesday, of left-wing leaders.

Syriza’s Alexis Tsipras declared €81,000 in earnings, €11,000 in savings and a motorbike, while the head of the Communist Party, Aleka Papariga, declared a total income of €120,000, a bank account containing a meagre €832 and one property.

59 properties

Occupying the highest rung on the parliamentary property ladder was Pasok MP Anna Dalara, who declared ownership of 59 properties in her own name and jointly with her husband, renowned singer George Dalaras.

Many of the entries showed a huge gap between declared income and bank deposits, raising eyebrows among a sceptical public facing steep tax and electricity rate rises in 2013.

While Greece’s European commissioner Anna Damanaki declared an annual income of €260,000 – a figure more than double the prime minister’s salary and treble that of an MP – her total bank deposits amounted to €17,600 and £1,690.

The encryption used to publish the handwritten documents online means they cannot be easily printed or downloaded.

The returns will remain accessible online for only a month.

For the original post visit: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2012/1213/1224327804142.html

Real estate is Austin's hot commodity; Is it too late to buy?

For much of the past five years I’ve reported on real estate in a market that prides itself most of the time about being one of the most real estate-driven markets in the country: Phoenix. Of course I showed up in what’s called the Valley of the Sun in 2007, right before the economy tanked and the bottom fell out of the Phoenix real estate market. But never fear, that economic engine is already revved up and ready to go once again.

Meanwhile, in April of this year I transferred to the Austin Business Journal, and since I showed up here, there’s been an all-systems-go mentality regarding real estate in what has typically been a government, education and technology driven market. I never thought I’d be in a market so real estate-centric as Phoenix, but times are a changing.

That’s the word this morning at the 2013-2014 Annual Economic Forecast sponsored by Angelou Economics. Economic guru Angelos Angelou emphasized that real estate is going to play an increasingly formidable role in the city’s future fortunes.

Hotels and apartments already are cropping up rapidly, along with several mixed-use projects. Office and industrial developments are sure to follow suit.

Several of the experts opined that this is the time to buy a single-family home with inventories at historically low levels of a three month’s supply, far below the six month’s supply that normally is considered a balanced ratio of supply and demand.

The average home price locally, according to Angelou, is $261,000. Coincidentally, the Austin Business Journal also reported this morning that home prices in Austin have risen 2.9 percent in the 12 months between the third quarters of 2011 and 2012. That’s the seventh-highest increase among major metropolitan areas based on the Federal Housing Finance Agency scale.

As an interesting aside, Phoenix ranked first in home appreciation in the same survey.

But given the statistics, I think the optimal time for buying a house in Austin has passed — at least based on price points. An average home price of $261,000 is pretty hefty, especially for Texas.

However, that’s not to say anyone should delay buying a house. Prices are certain to continue their upward trajectory barring any economic or government catastrophe. So buy now, assuming you can find a house and financing to meet your needs. Come 2014 prices may be out of reach for many Austinites.

For the original post visit: http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/blog/at-the-watercooler/2012/12/real-estate-is-austins-hot-commodity.html?page=all

Families Liking Real Estate Again

By Christiana Cefalu

According to Dani Evanson, the managing director of California real estate investment firm RMA, many of her high net worth clients have historically looked to real estate for aggressive capital appreciation gains. That is, they bought fixer-uppers, added value, and then flipped them, cashing out with a lucrative payday at the end of the effort. No longer. In the quest for a stable source of yield, wealthy families these days are supplementing their fixed income investments with real estate deals that yield a solid, steady return.

Evanson says that client-thinking in the past was, “if it’s going to be alternative or illiquid” they wanted to see returns, from capital appreciation, around the mid-teens. Now, she sees more and more clients investing in quality, low-upkeep properties with the aim of earning steady yields of around 4% to 6%.

“I think people didn’t believe that interest rates were going to stay low as long as they have,” Evanson said, so by now, “they thought their fixed income products would start to bump up.” With all signals pointing to interest rates remaining low for the next few years, however, her clients see real estate as an alternative, fairly low-maintenance money-maker. Private clients have moved “away from aggressive behavior” and are mimicking the real estate investments traditionally favored by long-term institutional investors.

Consider the now popular triple net leases, wherein the commercial tenant, let’s say Taco Bell, is responsible for the entirety of the property’s maintenance, while paying you, the landlord, rent. Triple net leases are attractive to investors because the messy job of maintenance falls largely on the tenant, and, as such, are considered by some the closest real estate equivalent to low-maintenance bonds. Investors can get 4%-5% out of such real estate deals, Evanson claims, compared with 1.5%-2% on their fixed income portfolio. That higher yield makes it easier to tolerate the more illiquid nature of the real estate investment.

The pitfalls? Investors who own or owned Best Buy locations, for example, reasonably thought they had a solid triple net investment. The struggling retailer has been closing stores all year. It can also happen that the value of the property decreases over the course of the investment, and the steady yield you enjoyed won’t make up the difference. Remember, your total return is calculated by adding your annual yield to the property’s capital appreciation when it comes time to cash out.

Multi-family units are another property-type favored by families looking for decent yield. In markets like New York or San Francisco, where demand is high and volatility is low, an apartment could yield 3%-4%. The same asset in rural Texas, meanwhile, could yield 12%, she says, due to risk of finding suitable tenants for properties most likely to get hit in a downturn.

If wealthy investors’ post-2008 concern about real estate illiquidity has been overcome, as Evanson’s observations suggest, that’s yet another sign that the nation’s real estate crisis is ending.

For the original post visit: http://blogs.barrons.com/penta/2012/12/10/families-liking-real-estate-again/

Commercial real estate listings

Sales

Bridger Group purchased a 21,220-square-foot building at 15510 Wright Brothers Drive in Addison. Lee & Associates’ Nathan Denton negotiated the sale with Pat Haggerty representing seller Fifteen Five Ten Partners.

Sigma Supply Inc. bought a 109,200-square-foot building at 1414 W. N. Carrier Parkway in Grand Prairie. Michael Stanzel of NAI Robert Lynn Co. brokered the sale with Cannon Green and Bates Arnot of Stream Realty Partners.

Twinkle Brands purchased a 4,552-square-foot building sale at 2314 Irving Boulevard in Dallas from Dawn Henderson. Lee & Associates’ Matthew Smith and Mark Graybill negotiated the deal with Robert Blankenship.

A joint venture of Stacy McVey and N3 Real Estate bought a 1.65-acre tract at the southwest corner of FM 1709 and Nolen in Southlake for the construction of a new retail development project anchored by Starbucks. Dusty Renfro of Gridiron Capital brokered the sale with W. Thurston Witt Jr. of United Commercial Realty.

California investor PS Silveron LP purchased a 35-acre development site in Lakeside Business District in Flower Mound. Tom Grunnah of Henry S. Miller Brokerage arranged the sale by Wells Fargo Bank.

Pallet Repair Services bought a 53,109-square-foot building at 1012 West Wintergreen in Hutchins. Matt Elliott of NAI Robert Lynn Co. brokered the sale with Cannon Green of Stream Realty.

An investor bought a 60,000-square-foot retail building site with a Kwik Kar Lube and Suds Carwash at 6330 Frankford Road in Dallas. Tony F. Todora of Todora Commercial Properties brokered the sale with Ray Ellis of Kwik Industries.

Leases

Maintenance Supply Headquarters leased 91,745 square feet at DFW Trade Center II at 2525 Esters Boulevard at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Steve Trese of CBRE Group negotiated the lease with Noel Hutcheson of Colliers International.

Cadillac Asset Management leased 78,827 square feet of space at 306 Airline Drive in Coppell. Adam Hammack and Steve Trese of CBRE Group negotiated the lease with and Raj Sohbani of Keller Williams.

Road Armor leased 54,500 square feet of industrial space at 4650 Simonton Drive in Dallas. Bob Kent of Structure Commercial negotiated the lease.

KW International leased 36,870 square feet of industrial space at 921 W. Bethel Road in Coppell. Chris Teesdale, Tom Pearson and Ward Richmond of Colliers International negotiated the lease.

Recycling Technologies signed a lease for 22,597 square feet of industrial space at 8101 Tristar Drive in Irving. Lee & Associates’ Mark Graybill, Adam Graham and Matt Smith negotiated the lease with Sandy Kee of Kee Commercial Realty.

Sam’s Appliances and Furniture leased 20,192 square feet of retail space at 1735 N. Story Road in Irving. Eric Deuillet and Brian Cyphers of Structure Commercial negotiated the lease with Michelle Caplan of Weitzman Group.

The Recognition Source Inc. leased 16,891 square feet of office-warehouse space at 3109 E. Randol Mill Road in Arlington. Michael Stanzel of NAI Robert Lynn Co. negotiated the lease with Campbell Henry of CNL Commercial Real Estate.

SA Quality Metals leased 11,200 square feet of industrial space at 2515 Willowbrook in Dallas. Ryan Boozer of Mercer Co. negotiated the lease with Todd Marchesani of Sealy & Co.

USMD Inc. expanded its lease to 27,000 square feet at Las Colinas Corporate Center on State Highway 161 in Irving. Dave Curran negotiated the lease with Mike Dement, Jon Altschuler and Rebecca Rambie of Altschuler and Co.

Associated American Industries Inc. leased 21,027 square feet of office-warehouse space in Twin Creeks Business Center at 1307 N. Watters Road in Allen. Susan Singer and Michael Grant of Bradford Commercial Real Estate Services negotiated the lease with Transwestern.

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney leased 14,317 square feet of office space at 8383 Preston Center Plaza Drive in Dallas near Preston Road. Jon Altschuler and Rebecca Rambie of Altschuler and Co. negotiated the lease.

Power Clinic Inc. leased 12,078 square feet of office-warehouse space in Marsh Business Park East at 3732 Arapaho Road in Addison. Susan Singer and Jason Miller of Bradford Commercial Real Estate Services negotiated the lease with Matt Middendorf of Certus Group.

The Art of Hair Salon & Day Spa leased 7,500 square feet of space in an office project at 915 Skyline Drive in Arlington. David Zoller of The Weitzman Group handled negotiations.

Dollar World leased 6,000 square feet of space at 2722 W. Irving Blvd in Irving. Brian Cyphers and Eric Deuillet of Structure Commercial negotiated the lease.

Taco Cabana leased a 55,757-square-foot building site at Frisco Trails shopping center at the southeast corner of Eldorado Parkway and the Dallas North Tollway in Frisco. Michelle Caplan and Earl Harris of The Weitzman Group handled negotiations with Dan Garrett of John T. Evans Co.

Source: http://www.dallasnews.com/business/commercial-real-estate/headlines/20121102-commercial-real-estate-listings.ece

Fridley Residential Real Estate: Prices Higher, Sales Fewer

Real estate is officially a hot investment again.

The Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors (MAAR) announced Wednesday that for the sixth consecutive month, local real estate prices were higher in August on a year-over-year basis. The median price, regionwide, was up 15.5 percent from the same month last year, to $179,000. And the average sales price was $222,922, up 10.4 percent and marking the seventh consecutive month of annual increases.

Even in the boom period from January 2003 to January 2004, median prices in the Twin Cities area were only increasing by about 7 percent a year.

In Fridley, the story was even better:

• The median sales price went up by 21.0 percent, from $116,100 in August 2011 to $140,450 in August 2012.
• The average sales price went up by 30.8 percent, from $107,657 in August 2011 to $140,813 in August 2012.

Regionwide, nearly every housing market measure has indicated improvement for at least six months now. In August, for instance:

• There were 4,877 pending sales, up 19.5 percent and marking the 16th consecutive month of increase.
• There were 4,883 closed sales, up 12.3 percent, marking the 14th consecutive month of increase.
• In June 2012, closed sales fell just six units short of a nearly six-year high. 

Part of the reason for rising prices is supply, which has declined compared to demand. In August, there were 16,348 homes for sale, down 30.5 percent from the same month last year and marking the 19th consecutive month of decreases. Inventory levels are at their lowest since the hot market of December 2003, a nearly nine-year low.

That was true in Fridley, too:

New listings in August 2012 totaled 35, down 18.6 percent from the total of 43 in August 2011.

Inventory levels, in fact, have come down a total of 54.5 percent from their July 2007 peak, when the market was at its worst.

"With inventory levels nearing 10-year lows, buyers are scrambling to find the perfect house," said Cari Linn, MAAR’s president. "The next step of recovery will be getting hesitant … sellers back into the market."

Also, the “distressed” market is making less and less of an impact on Twin Cities area home prices. In August, foreclosures and short sales comprised less than a third of the new listings, a far lower rate than was seen during the depths of the area’s real estate downturn.

Source: http://fridley.patch.com/articles/fridley-residential-real-estate-prices-higher-sales-fewer

Investment opportunities in real estate and industrial in developed markets

Although global economy remains flagging, Chinese enterprises are strengthening their Merge & acquirement in overseas markets, especially in the European zone and America.

According to KPMG Quarterly Review of China's Economic Globalization (2012, Q2), in the first half of this year, developed economies are the major investment destination for Chinese companies.

America, especially North America, accounts for the largest amount of transitions, where more than 50% of transitions sum came from this area. Europe's transition sum reached US$5.3 billion, 24% of all transition fees.

Energy and electric power are industries that enjoyed the most investment from Chinese enterprises, with transition volume about US$ 9.2 billion. Material, media, entertainment, daily necessities and industrial sector are ones that experienced trading volume over US$ 1.5 billion respectively.

Among industrial sectors, European Union member countries attract most investment, accounting 78 percent of whole industry, with a trading volume of 1.3 billion euro.

Investments in other European countries focus in the area of daily necessities and account up to 88 percent.

Feng Yuqin, Chairman of Global China Business Development Center KPMG, indicated that factors such as appreciated Chinese yuan, policy spur, as well as financial crisis in the Europe and America are the momentum for China to boost its oversea investments in above area.

“Along with maintaining investments in the traditional energy and resource sectors and in emerging markets, there are more investment opportunity in the infrastructure projects and traditional manufactures in the European and American markets for the next stage” Feng told our report.

21CBH: What’s your prediction for the global macro economy in the next stage?

Feng: Our basic view is that in coming months the European crisis will be difficult to find a solution, and on-going American election will advance uncertainties to the global economy. Therefore, neither the global recovery will come too soon nor sustaining global economic recession will collapse out of sudden.

21CBH: under this prediction, what trend will the global international M&A show?

Feng: Amid slowing global macro economy, investors will remain cautious attitudes, international investment will be reduce, accordingly, numbers of M&A cases will continually drop. According to our research, there is slight divergence between the direction of global investment and that of China. Until now, China mainly focuses on investment in the area of resource and energy, while global M&A cases mainly happen in food, beverage, and industrial sector and of course also in resource and energy.

21CBH: where is the investment opportunity for China in the next stage?

Feng: I think downward economy in Europe and America will provide investment opportunities for China to break oversea developed markets. Statistics disclosed that China enjoyed aggressive investment in the Europe and America during the past two years, with outstanding performance in resource, energy, mechanic manufacture, and so on. I believe there are two areas in which China will expand its development: one to invest in infrastructure projects, and another in traditional manufacture industry in developed countries.

Source: http://www.morningwhistle.com/html/2012/PoliticsSociety_0910/213921.html

Real Estate Investment Seminars Promise Millions. In Reality, They Mostly Just Empty Your Wallet.

Last week, I visited one of those free real estate investment seminars that purports to teach you how to cash in with their “Guaranteed” investment methods after I’d heard their advertisement on a local radio station. I’ve heard about these seminars in the past and, forever a skeptic, decided to check it out for myself.

After hearing the ad, which promised that I’d “Make a lot of money” investing in real estate, I knew that there’d be some kind of catch, so naturally, I registered.

The seminar was at a conference center here in town, and there were 60 or 70 people present when we showed up (I brought a colleague along with me), all of whom seemed eager for the event to begin. In the meantime, we watched a promotional video for the company that also made promises about “Fast money” and all the “Financial freedom” that flipping homes for profit has to offer.

Once the seminar itself started, it was more of the same: fuzzy math reviewed incredibly quickly, revealing the potential for “tens of thousands in profits every time you make a deal,” along with vague definitions of common house flipping methods like wholesaling and rehabbing. But mostly, the seminar amounted to a pep talk designed to make the “Students” feel like they were made to invest in real estate.

Of course, the whole point of the seminar revolved around a 3-day real estate investment “Course” the business offered. The cost? $1200, “Unless you register today—if you do, you get $1000 off.” There were also books, cds, and dvds offered as bonuses for signing up. During the seminar, various other “Master classes” and “Coaching” programs for “Elite” investors were alluded to at several points, though there wasn’t any word about just how much those would cost.

At the end of the seminar, the presenter encouraged the crowd to make their way to the back, hand over their credit cards and sign up for the 3-day course. About 1/3 of the group stood in line, waiting to pay the “reduced” $200 fee.

The verdict? Ultimately, any kind of real estate investment seminar will only get you so far. It’s entirely possible that if you’re interested in investing, you might learn a thing or two from these so-called “gurus.” There really aren’t any secrets to investing; just like anything else, in order to make a living, you have to work hard at it. Given time, hard work and maybe a little luck, you can have some good investments turn out to be lucrative. But paying hundreds, perhaps thousands of dollars for coaching? It’s probably not going to get you too far.

If you’ve come across a real estate investment seminar that you think might be a scam, know that if it sounds too good to be true it probably is. We love to look at these kinds of things, so if you have anything to report, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Source: http://www.bbb.org/blog/2012/07/real-estate-investment-seminars-promise-millions-in-reality-they-mostly-just-empty-your-wallet/

Property not always safe as houses

WELCOME to week two of Myth-Busting Month, and today we're examining a real estate saying that everyone has heard before: "Safe as houses''.

It's a funny term, safe as houses. Of course, houses keep us physically safe from things such as pigs falling from the sky, but don't expect any protection from an asteroid no matter how much you spend on bricks and mortar.

The financial meaning of safe as houses, however, suggests that it's always a secure place to invest. This term is a cousin of "property always rises'' - a myth that has been well and truly been smashed in recent years.

Try telling a property owner in the US or Ireland that houses are a safe place to put your money - those poor souls have suffered 30 per cent-plus falls since 2007.

Here in Australia the falls have been much milder, although those who own high-end real estate may disagree.

In Australia we say the safest investment is cash in the bank, but investors in several European countries have been withdrawing their money because they fear their banks will collapse.

So safe is just a perception, and the perception that property is always safe is a myth.

However, this doesn't mean we should abandon property ownership and investment. Its long-term price growth over many decades has been spectacular.

Real Estate values have easily outpaced inflation, which means real growth for its owners. And investors who hold for the long term also get the benefit of rising rents that will eventually wipe out the mortgage.

Some people have been claiming a property price crash is still coming, but most economists believe that's not going to happen.

Even Reserve Bank of Australia assistant governor Guy Debelle told a mortgage industry forum in Adelaide a couple of weeks ago that fear of a house price crash ``is not something that keeps me awake at night''.

"The level of housing construction is about where it was 10 years ago but the population is 15 per cent higher. When we look at (mortgage) arrears they are going sideways and have been at a pretty low level for the last 18 months,'' Dr Debelle told the forum.

Most experts see slow growth ahead for real estate in the next few years, and some say the boom times may be over for good.

The reality is that no type of asset is safe. Not even cash in the bank if you live in the wrong country.

We are fortunate to live in the right country, blessed with natural resources, population growth and government policies such as negative gearing and tax-free capital gains on homes.

These factors help make Australian housing safer than most assets. But always remember that if you don't plan and invest carefully, it can still bite you.

Anthony Keane is editor of Your Money, which appears in New Limited's metropolitan papers on Mondays.

Source: http://www.news.com.au/realestate/experts/property-not-always-safe-as-houses/story-fneofxxf-1226426929246

Terrace real estate market favours sellers

THE LOCAL real estate market has shifted in favour of sellers, says one real estate agent in commenting on the latest statistics released by the BC Northern Real Estate Board.

John Evans from Remax calls the change to what he calls a “soft sellers’ market” a product of stable sales growth. Sellers are now getting closer to asking prices if not above, said Evans.

“We’ve had a few bidding wars,” said Evans. “I think that we’ve made that transition from a buyers’ to a sellers’ [market].”

Property sales statistics for the first six months through the Multiple Listings Service indicate 150 properties sold in the first six months of this year compared to 135 for the same period last year. The dollar value also rose, from $25 million last year to $29.3 million this year.

“I’m getting more grey hair and it’s busier and things are good,” said Evans. “There’s just a real different tone out there with buyers.” And that tone is seen in the number of people looking for homes on the market — which, while getting hotter, is stable enough in its rise to create optimistic attitudes on both sides of transactions, said Evans.

“The nice thing about our market is it is nice, stable growth,” said Evans. “Sometimes when the market is surging too quickly, buyers tend to hold back when they should be jumping in.”

The abundance of buyers and positive attitudes despite rising prices can be attributed to low interest rates and a still-varied selection of homes on the market, said Evans.

At June’s end, 287 properties of all types were listed and fixed term mortgage rates at various banks touched as low at 3.2 per cent. Looking back at the last six months, 93 single family detached homes sold, of which half went for under the $199,000 mark.

The average selling price for a single family detached house for the first six months of this year was $211,733 compared to $208,044 when 79 single family homes sold in the first six months of 2011, $202,342 when 57 single family homes sold in the first six months of 2010 and $207,525 when 77 single family homes sold in the first six months of 2009.

The average selling time for a home so far this year has been 71 days, said the real estate board report.

Also, 11 parcels of vacant land, five half duplexes and 14 homes on acreages sold.

Source: http://www.terracestandard.com/business/161679815.html

Money Matters: Good news in real estate

(NECN) - Lawyers for pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline will be in a Boston courtroom Thursday pleading guilty in a massive fraud case: the largest health care fraud settlement in U.S. history.

The drug giant agreed to pay a $3 billion fine for promoting two drugs for unapproved uses.

Federal prosecutors say the company encouraged kids to use the anti-depressant Paxil even though it's not approved for people under 18.

Glaxo is also accused of promoting Wellbutrin to treat conditions other than major depressive disorder.

Big banks are taking steps to help you understand their lists of complicated fees.

According to the Boston Globe, Bank of America, TD Bank and Citi-Group have all pledged to condense pages of rules and regulations into one simple form.

The banks will use a template designed by the pew charitable trusts.

The single page covers the basic terms for most checking accounts, including minimum balances, a-t-m fees, and over-draft policies.

There is some good news in the real estate market.

New home sales are up and the number of foreclosures is falling.

According to the Commerce Department, sales of new single family homes rose 8-percent in May, and a survey shows the number of foreclosures is down 25-percent from a year ago.

That's good news for homeowners because foreclosures are often listed at such low prices that other homes in the neighborhood can't compete.

Source: http://www.necn.com/07/05/12/Money-Matters-Good-news-in-real-estate/landing_business.html?blockID=735624&feedID=4209

Aspen-area real estate rides out rough first half

ASPEN — A June swoon contributed to a poor first half of the year for the Pitkin County real estate market in terms of total-sales dollar volume.

Despite the sale of a ranch and adjoining property in early June for $49 million by Prince Bandar bin Sultan, the dollar volume of all sales for that month were down 11 percent compared with June 2011, according to deeds filed with the Pitkin County clerk and recorder.

For the first half of 2012, the dollar volume of all sales was $600.23 million. That is down 15.5 percent from $709.57 million last year.

Despite the dismal numbers, real estate agents aren't ready to throw in the towel yet on this year. Craig Morris, a partner in Aspen Snowmass Sotheby's International Realty, said he foresees a strong second half for several reasons.

“I'm normally not a rah-rah cheerleader type. I'm pragmatic about it and tell it like it is,” Morris said.

There has been consistency in sales prices and in the price per square foot over approximately the past 18 months, according to Morris. That is a positive development, given that prices had dropped significantly early in the recession, he said.

“There are clear signs the market is level and it has firmed up,” Morris said.

Another encouraging factor is the types of buyers. Morris said his firm has had a lot of real estate showings this summer, and many deals are scheduled to close in coming months.

“For the first time in several years, buyers are coming up with reasons to buy rather than finding reasons not to buy,” he said.

In addition, the market was infused with new inventory this summer. Many prospective sellers who were on the sidelines have decided the time is ripe.

“Last week and this week there's a ton that's entered the market,” Morris said. A key building momentum is pricing the property at an appropriate level for the current market. Some of the residences that were recently listed for sale are “overpriced,” he said.

Tim Estin of Coldwell Banker Mason Morse Real Estate said the slide in the total dollar volume is an important indicator of how the real estate market is faring, but not the only factor.

“It's the bottom-line number and at the end of the year, it's the one that everyone looks at,” he said. Estin believes several factors contributed to the dollar volume falling. Last year there was a surge in sales of homes prices above $10 million. There haven't been as many sales in that price range this year.

This year there are more macro-economic issues affecting the psyche of buyers — the Euro-zone crisis, the so-called fiscal cliff of mandatory cuts facing the U.S. government if Congress cannot approve a budget that achieves certain reductions, and the November election.

Given that level of uncertainty, Estin said he is pleased by the number of transactions this year, even though the dollar volume is down. Estin writes a quarterly market analysis called The Estin Report and he takes a snapshot look each month. For his report, he examines sales data for Aspen, Snowmass Village, Old Snowmass and Woody Creek. He doesn't look at fractional-ownership sales because mass closings at any given time can skew data, he said.

In the geographic area where he is looking, the number of transactions during the first half of 2012 was “so close” to the same period of 2011. That is significant, he said, because that shows buyers are out there.

In Pitkin County as a whole, there were 336 real estate transactions during the first half of 2012 compared to 389 during the first half of last year. However, in the market segments that Estin examines, there were only 11 fewer transactions for a decline of 7 percent.

Like Morris, Estin anticipates a robust market over the next few months. One particularly promising development this year is the sale of raw land. There were five sales of vacant lots in June 2012 compared to zero for the month the year before. For the first half of 2012, there were 20 sales of vacant land compared to nine for the first half of 2011.

Estin said inventory of speculative homes has dwindled drastically because so few have been built since the recession struck. There is demand for that type of house so developers that can get financing are rushing to fill the void, Estin said.

“Typically, when land sales start to pick up, it is an important marker of a market transition,” Estin wrote in his second-quarter report.

Andrew Ernemann, a real estate agent with B.J. Adams and Co., noted that 2011 started strong, then fizzled. This year the number of transactions has been stable, suggesting the dollar volume will equalize. Other positive indicators for the upper-valley market are a stable inventory and a decrease in the size of discounts needed to close a sale, according to Ernemann. In many cases, the average sales discounts are 10 percent lower than asking prices, an improvement over the recession-plagued years.

Prices are “very stable” in Aspen's single-family home market despite the drop in dollar volume, Ernemann wrote in his mid-year report.

Morris said he expects the deficit in the total sales dollar volume from the first half of the year to be erased by the end of summer.

“There's a lot of positive energy out there,” he said.

scondon@aspentimes.com

Source: http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20120703/NEWS/120709965/1077&ParentProfile=1058

Palm Beach County property values increase for first time since 2006

By Jennifer Sorentrue

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Palm Beach County’s tax base grew this year for the first time since 2006, a signal that the free-falling real estate market may finally be on the mend.

After five years of declining property values, Property Appraiser Gary Nikolits on Thursday said the county’s total taxable value increased by 0.3 percent this year over last year — from $124.2 billion on the first day of 2011 to $124.6 billion on the first day of 2012.

This year’s valuation, which is based on real and tangible property values as of Jan. 1, does not include new construction projects that were completed last year, so the same number of parcels are being compared for 2011 and 2012.

The county, its cities and towns, and other taxing authorities use these tax roll numbers to set their tax rates and budgets each year. These numbers, known as the July 1 taxable value estimates, also are used to calculate homeowners preliminary tax notices sent out in August.

“I would like to think that we have finally hit the bottom, and we are going to bounce along the bottom for a couple of years,” Nikolits said.

Thursday’s numbers were slightly better than a preliminary estimate released by Nikolits’ office last month, which predicted a 0.4 percent drop in the countywide tax roll.

Nikolits attributed the change largely to an increase in countywide tangible property values, which are assigned to machinery equipment and other property of businesses. The property appraisers’ staff found the increase as it refined its preliminary estimates over the last month.

Liz Bloeser, director of the county’s financial management and budget department, said her office was still evaluating how the boost would affect next year’s budget proposal.

The county’s Value Adjustment Board this month finalized the 2011 tax roll, and those numbers were slightly lower than county officials originally expected, Bloeser said.

That will likely have an impact on the budget proposal for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1, she said.

County Administrator Bob Weisman’s $3 billion budget proposal for 2012-2013 does not include any major cuts in services.

Palm Beach Shores saw the biggest change from last month’s preliminary estimate. Nikolits’ office had predicted a 12.8 percent drop in the town’s property values, but Thursday’s estimate put the decline at just under 3.5 percent.

The town had been bracing for a shortfall of as much as $500,000, but Town Manager Cindy Lindskoog said Thursday’s revised numbers would reduce the deficit.

The property appraiser’s office said the change in Palm Beach Shores was the result of last minute adjustments to the value assigned to timeshares in the town.

“We were very relieved that it ended up being a much lower number then what we had originally been told to expect,” Lindskoog said.

West Palm Beach officials also got 0.4 percent boost, so that their property values dropped only 3.2 percent last year instead of the 3.6 percent drop estimated last month. The city has been bracing for as much as a $6 million shortfall next year. “It’s good news for us,” City Manager Ed Mitchell said. “Obviously we think the economy is picking up in West Palm Beach, and that will help us close the budget gap.”

In Greenacres, City Manager Wadie Atallah said a boost in the revised property-value forecast would generate another $10,800 in revenue for the city, enough to reduce slightly the amount the city plans to take from reserves for the budget year that begins Oct. 1. But the city is still showing a 4.8 percent decline in values since last year.

Fifteen of Palm Beach County’s cities and towns showed year-over-year taxable property increases, including 2.3 percent for Palm Beach; 1.2 percent for Palm Beach Gardens, Tequesta and Boca Raton; 0.8 percent for Wellington; 0.7 percent for Juno Beach; and 0.1 percent for Jupiter.

“I know the city’s increase is only one percent,” Palm Beach Gardens Mayor David Levy said. “But the important thing is we are up.”

Jupiter Town Manager Andy Lukasik welcomed even the ever-so-slight increase, saying that it “signals the stabilization of the community’s property values.” Others didn’t fare as well.

In Lake Worth, values fell 5.6 percent since last year, slightly less than the 6.1 percent drop estimated by Nikolits’ office last month.

City Manager Michael Bornstein said he isn’t concerned about the minor month-to-month change in the city’s tax base. Instead, he is focusing more on long-term goals such as reducing city electric rates and creating clear land-development regulations. “It’s all about the long-range views,” Bornstein said.

Staff writers Andrew Abramson, Bill DiPaolo, Hana Engroff, Willie Howard and Jodie Wagner contributed to this story.

Source: http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/business/real-estate/pb-county-tax-base-increases-for-first-time-since-/nPhKj/

Real estate may be coming back slowly

Amid a halting economic recovery, there are signs of life in the housing market, a real estate industry economist said Wednesday.

"We are in the midst of a lukewarm, moderate recovery," said Leslie Appleton-Young, chief economist for the California Association of Realtors, who spoke at the annual meeting of the Monterey County Association of Realtors at Embassy Suites Monterey Bay in Seaside.

Appleton-Young said both hard and anecdotal data are starting to show growing confidence among would-be homebuyers who have been hunkered down to wait out the drop in home prices.

"I think there's a feeling that we have hit bottom," she said.

Locally, the median home price in Monterey County shot up 19 percent in May over a year ago, according to MLSListings. Inventory levels statewide and locally have dropped. And nationally, home sales in May jumped to their highest level in the past two years, according to data released Wednesday by the National Association of Realtors.

While economic indicators — from consumer confidence to housing permits to job growth — remain a mixed bag, looking ahead, Appleton-Young said she thinks "the housing numbers are going to be stronger than anything you'll be seeing from the national economy."

But there's still plenty of uncertainty. It's hard to gauge the so-called "shadow inventory" in California — homes in pre-foreclosure or in the process of foreclosure and bank-owned homes. That number remains high in California but has dropped slightly. At the end of last year, 30 percent of all residential properties with mortgages were in negative equity in California, according to CoreLogic.

The Federal Reserve is keeping interest rates low through 2014, Appleton-Young said, but there's only so much the Fed can do. And now the hitch may be that the mortgage market is too tight.

While in 2005, "if you fogged a mirror, you could get a loan," she said, now the opposite problem may be at play: "I don't think every family in California should be homeowners ... but certainly I think the pendulum has swung too far the other way."

Kate Moser can be reached at 646-4487 or kmoser@montereyherald.com.

Source: http://www.montereyherald.com/local/ci_20955447/real-estate-may-be-coming-back-slowly-says

Real estate sales strong in Erie

Howard W. "Hoddy" Hanna III wears a shiny green button on his suit coat that makes a simple promise: "If you list it, we will sell it."

Hanna and a number of other area real estate agents are feeling pretty confident in that message these days.

Through June 12, the number of homes sold by the Greater Erie Board of Realtors was up more than 4 percent from the previous year, while the average price of those homes was up nearly 8 percent.

Numbers for the first three months of the year were even more dramatic.

Through the end of March, home prices in Erie County were up 16.6 percent, the third largest jump of any major market in the United States, according to a report in Real Estate Broker's Insider.

To a lesser degree, there's mounting evidence that the U.S. real estate market as a whole is improving.

A report Tuesday from the Standard & Poor's Case-Shiller home price index shows that housing prices improved during April in 19 of our 20 largest cities.

And a measure of national prices rose 1.3 percent in April from March, the first increase in seven months.

Hanna can easily explain the improvements in Cape Coral, Fla., and Grand Rapids, Mich., the two markets that top the list of most improved. Both, he said, were hit hard during the recession and are showing signs of bouncing back.

Erie was different. The area's steady-as-she-goes real estate market saw only modest declines, during even the darkest days of the most recent recession.

Now, both statistical and anecdotal evidence suggest that the usually plodding real estate market is riding a wave.

Some of the reasons are simple, Hanna said.

"What is going on is supply and demand," he said. "We are in a rising market. There is pent-up demand."

Toby Froehlich, owner of Coldwell Banker Select Realtors in Erie, said the numbers don't entirely surprise him.

"We didn't get hit as hard with the foreclosure issues," he said. "Two, the local economy is stronger than anyone wants to admit. You have jobs, you have record-low interest rates. It was a lot of things going on for us."

A growing number of competitive bidding situations is more evidence of a stronger real estate market.

Hanna said his agents are making frequent use of a new program that allows prospective buyers to automatically submit a second bid if their first offer is met or surpassed.

Strong sales figures could be substantially better if it were not for one shortcoming, said John Peluso, senior vice president and regional market manager for Howard Hanna.

There aren't enough houses to sell, particularly in the middle price range of $125,000 to $250,000, he said.

"We could probably be doing twice as much business if we had the houses," he said.

Hanna said the inventory of houses for sale is at its lowest point since 2004.

Froehlich said local Realtors have about 1,350 single-family homes listed at the moment, about 150 fewer than he considers ideal.

Froehlich and Hanna see another soft spot in the local real estate market. Fans of new construction don't have many options, they said.

"Construction is very weak," Froehlich said. "There are very few builders who can get financing and very few developers who can get financing."

Mortgage financing is available at historically low interest rates, Hanna said. But securing a loan can take time.

"There are a lot of hoops we have to jump through," he said.

Hanna said evidence suggests that more people are deciding homeownership is worth jumping through those hoops.

After falling into the low 60 percent range during the recession, those numbers and interest in buying a home are bouncing back, he said.

JIM MARTIN can be reached at 870-1668 or by e-mail.

Source: http://www.goerie.com/article/20120627/NEWS02/306269907/Real-estate-sales-strong-in-Erie