Take Pet Pampering to the Next Level with These Fabulous Dog Houses

Just For Fun!!

Excerpt: Dog owners are infamous for providing their furry ones with a better lifestyle than their own. For instance, you might recall the time Paris Hilton had a replica of her mansion done for her pet Chihuahua.
We don’t need to go there, but there are definitely plenty of crazy options in the market. Who knows, one of them might catch your fancy.
Check out Mediterranean Villa, Victorian and 2 Mansions.

My comment: check out the fotos!! Wonder what my cat would think about these Dog Houses? I need a Big Cat House, way up high on a pedestal, with mice ;>

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Pets and Homebuying – Animals are family members

2017 NAR survey
Excerpts:
Among pet-owning homeowners who responded to NAR’s survey, 99 percent said they did indeed view their animals as a family member… Eighty-nine percent said they would not give up their pet in deference to housing restrictions or limitations. Nineteen percent said they would consider moving to accommodate their pet, and 12 percent said they have actually done so.

Eighty-three percent of pet-owners surveyed own a dog which, NAR says, helps explain the overwhelming popularity of dog-related projects. Forty-three percent were cat owners, 9 percent own birds, reptiles, or other small animals, 8 percent a fish and 5 percent own a farm animal.
My comment: Very interesting article. Sorta fits with the Dog House article above ;>
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I Messed Up (Really!)

By Richard Hagar, SRA
Excerpts: A client contacted my office and asked a simple question concerning an appraisal.  We messed up and didn’t get back to them within 24 hours.  That was a rude mistake that’s bad for business.  We didn’t send some cheezy email to repair the damage however… I made a personal phone call, fell on my sword and apologized. The client said the problem was minor, so don’t worry about it… but the apology was a nice touch (Yes! Score one for being businesslike). Then the client continued, “That’s nothing compared with what we are dealing with every day, let me tell you……”

My comment: Read the article and the comments. As always, Hagar has a great article. Also, his webinars and live classes are Most Excellent.

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New In the May issue of the paid Appraisal Today, Available May 1!! 

  • Fannie Fiction and Fact: comp selection, adjustments, market conditions, appraisal resubmissions, and lots more, including AQM and Risk Scores.
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The World’s Most Stubborn Real Estate Holdouts

In the face of development, some steadfast souls refuse to budge.
Excerpt: Everyone loves an underdog story-and real estate holdouts, such as Edith Macefield’s house in Seattle, are revered examples. Macefield was an elderly resident who refused to sell to developers who wanted to build a shopping mall where her home stood; they ended up constructing the mall around three sides of the house.
Here are a few:
– Narita Airport Farms, Tokyo
– Road through high rise office building in Japan
– House inside a shopping mall – Rotterdam
My comment: Very Interesting!! Good fotos and writeup.
When I googled real estate holdouts, I came up with a lot of links. Two are below:
https://hyperallergic.com/284655/holdouts-the-solitary-resistors-of-real-estate/  More holdouts including one surrounded by a Donald Trump Casino
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ASA and NAIFA to Vote on Merger in October 2017

ASA and NAIFA will hold their annual member meeting in October of this year. At this meeting, members will be given the chance to vote for the merger. Upon approval, the merger will be effective July 1, 2018.
This has been discussed in the past. Real property appraisal associations have been declining since appraiser licensing. Merging is a good move for both organizations.
ASA is multi-disciplined with about 5,000 members. Real Property (mostly commercial) = 700, Business Valuation = 2,235, Review & Management = 65, Machinery and Technical Services = 1,255, Personal Property = 490, Gems & Jewelry = 120. My favorites are Personal Property and Gems & Jewelry, of course ;>
NAIFA has about 760 members. All are Real Property Appraisers, mostly residential.
They have been working on a merger for about 5 years and had a joint national conference 2 years ago. They have had some joint education offerings and work together on advocacy.

NAIFA, with about 760 members, will double the number of real property members to about 1,160, plus offer good education. ASA has more total members but fewer real Property members. ASA’s Business Valuation is very strong and is not declining, which helps the merged association. The other disciplines are also not declining. The merged organizations would save by eliminating duplicate offices, etc.

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Ocwen Sued, Shut Down in Multiple States

Excerpt: There are bad days, and worse days, and there are days like Ocwen Financial Corporation (OFC) had on Thursday.  The company was not only sued on multiple grounds by both the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the State of Florida, but saw its operations effectively shut down by the North Carolina Commissioner of Banks.
Another article, including Ocwen’s response:
CFPB, 20 states take sweeping actions against Ocwen

https://www.nationalmortgagenews.com/news/cfpb-20-states-take-sweeping-actions-against-ocwen 

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HOW TO USE THE NUMBERS BELOW. Appraisals are ordered after the loan application. These numbers tell you the future for the next few weeks. For more information on how they are compiled, go to www.mbaa.org
Note: I publish a graph of this data every month in my paid monthly newsletter, Appraisal Today. For more information or get a FREE sample issue go to https://www.appraisaltoday.com/products.htm or send an email to info@appraisaltoday.com . Or call 800-839-0227, MTW 8AM to noon, Pacific time.

Mortgage applications increased 2.7 percent from one week earlier

WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 26, 2017) – Mortgage applications increased 2.7 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending April 21, 2017.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 2.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 3 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index increased 7 percent from the previous week. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 1 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index increased 0.1 percent compared with the previous week and was 0.4 percent higher than the same week one year ago.

The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 44.0 percent of total applications from 42.4 percent the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 8.7 percent of total applications. The average loan size for refinance applications increased to its highest level since September 2016, $266,900.

The FHA share of total applications decreased to 10.0 percent from 11.0 percent the week prior. The VA share of total applications decreased to 10.9 percent from 11.1 percent the week prior. The USDA share of total applications decreased to 0.8 percent from 1.0 percent the week prior.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($424,100 or less) decreased to its lowest level since November 2016, 4.20 percent, from 4.22 percent, with points increasing to 0.37 from 0.35 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with jumbo loan balances (greater than $424,100) remained unchanged from 4.15 percent, with points increasing to 0.27 from 0.23 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate increased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages backed by the FHA decreased to 4.03 percent from 4.09 percent, with points decreasing to 0.34 from 0.36 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to its lowest level since November 2016, 3.46 percent, from 3.50 percent, with points increasing to 0.50 from 0.41 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.

The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs decreased to its lowest level since November 2016, 3.22 percent, from 3.27 percent, with points decreasing to 0.18 from 0.26 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.

The survey covers over 75 percent of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications, and has been conducted weekly since 1990. Respondents include mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts. Base period and value for all indexes is March 16, 1990=100.

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