The National Association of Realtors (of which I am a member) is reporting home sales increased 4.3% last month.  That might not sound like a lot, but that’s the highest level since May 2010!  This puts sales of previously occupied homes at the fastest pace in nearly two years!  This bodes well for the Spring real estate season.

I believe the Spring season has started already.  I wrote four offers last week and closed two homes.  Buyer traffic is also up.  I’m seeing more showings on my homes listed for sale and open house traffic has been great.  Additionally I have 4 homes about to hit the market and more buyers shopping now than I’ve seen in the past couple of years.

Maybe it’s the beautiful weather here in Dallas or maybe just that Uptown Dallas is such a desirable place to live.  Economists tell us the Dallas Fort Worth area had the third largest employment growth in the nation.  We were behind Houston (first place) and New York City (second).  We added 45,700 jobs!

Other indicators things are looking up:  Uptown Dallas had a 2% increase in sales over all but in the $500,000 and up price range we had a 10% increase in sales.  The stock market rally seems to be pushing this higher price range sales surge.

Looking ahead to the remainder of this year I think we’ll see 2012 look a lot like 2011.  Factors that will continue to help this recovery:

DFW economic recovery outpacing US average.

Home prices seem to have stabilized.

Interest rates likely to remain low the rest of the year.

I think this Spring will be the best time to buy a home with the best prices we’re likely to see and the lowest interest rates.  If only I had a crystal ball.  We’ll see how this plays out in our market here in Dallas!

If you have questions please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Alan Shaffer, Realtor

CLAY STAPP+CO

214-335-8956

www.AlanShaffer.com

http://claystapp.com/listing/4230-travis-8/

Summer

The main reason I believe many potential buyers continue to flinch is from fear that home prices will fall further after they’ve committed to a purchase. Despite all the banking stimulations, historically low interest rates, high lease prices, and low sale prices, buyers knees are still shaky. Words of fear fill our radio waves and cable boxes. “It’s not a good time to buy”, analysts say. “Consumers are hesitant, they’re tightening their checkbooks, they’re cutting expenses.” News pundits seem to take pleasure in hammering this message into American homes each night… and so the panic continues.

Wait a minute though. I thought this was called a “buyer’s market”? Haven’t the wise always taught us to buy low and sell high? Funny, it doesn’t seem many people follow that principle. Five years ago, when home prices were at historic highs, everyone and their dogs were getting a piece of the action. Anyone with a pulse could obtain financing… but, they were paying a premium price along with a premium interest rate for it.

Fast forward to today. Home prices are at all time lows as are the interest rates. But where are all the buyers running in to get themselves a great deal? Well, most people deceive themselves, believing they are safer hanging with the crowd. When the consensus says, “Buy!”, they buy, and they pay for it. When it says, “Don’t Buy!”, they don’t… and they actually pay for it then too.

Make no mistake, we are at the bottom of the market. 2012/2013 projections show housing prices to begin a slow appreciation process. The bottom is here, it is now. But sadly, the majority of buyers won’t enter the market until it’s too late, until the appreciation is well underway or until the market is at another peak. The opportunity train will have left most in the dust.

While many are “waiting for things to turn around”, the few are swooping in and grabbing as much property as possible, and they happen to be saving some serious $$$ as they do it. These few are the ones who don’t follow the crowd or consensus. These few are the ones who actually adhere to the principle of “buy low, sell high”. These few don’t allow groupthink or peer pressure to dictate their actions. And not surprisingly, these few will eventually be known as “investors” and become most peoples’ landlords.

-David Stapp

“We have about 16 acres left,” said Neal Sleeper, president of Cityplace Co. “We started with 130 acres 20 years ago.”

Today, the project includes more than 1,700 homes and almost 400,000 square feet of retail space.

Things have changed from their original plans.  And for the better I think.

After pouring more than $300 million into buying land and building the first 42-story skyscraper, Southland announced in 1987 that it wouldn’t put any more money into the big project. Three years later, investors including Dallas’ Don McNamara and Fort Worth’s Robert Bass forked over $24 million to buy the undeveloped land from Southland. “All of our same original partners are in the deal,” Sleeper said.

Southland had planned to build blocks and blocks of 10- to 30-story towers. The new owners began studying the surrounding neighborhoods. “We tried to figure out what was really needed in the area,” Sleeper said. “The two things high on everybody’s agenda were retail and trying to get housing back into the inner city.” The West Village project that opened in 2000 brought apartments and shopping and set the tone for much of the neighborhood.

“Everyone told us it would never work,” West Village developer Henry S. Miller III said. “Now all everyone wants to do are mixed-use projects like the West Village.”

Miller credits Cityplace’s owners with keeping development standards high and sticking to their long-range plans. “They have been careful about the development there,” he said. “They’ve had lots of opportunities to do stuff that ultimately wouldn’t have been good for the area, and they passed on it. “We appreciate their ownership because they have had the patience and finances to hold that property as long as they have.”

The last phase of the Cityplace project will continue the mixed-use plan that has worked so well.

Inland American Communities is finishing its designs for a retail and apartment complex on the site of the old Loews Cityplace movie theater on Haskell Avenue. The project will include a Kroger supermarket, an LA Fitness and 350 apartments. “We are working on the plans right now and hope to break ground in the first quarter,” Inland’s John Allums said.

‘Icing on cake’

The vacant land along the west side of North Central, including property that previously housed the Hank Haney Golf Center, will be developed into some of the highest density uses in the project, Sleeper said. It will be a mix of residential and commercial space. “We are planning on the last 16 acres being the icing on the cake,” he said. “This project has definitely been done in fits and starts. “We had periods where things were going fast and then nothing was being done for a while,” Sleeper said. “We were always confident we could make it work.”

We’re excited to see this new phase of development beginning for the West Village Area.  This will add needed apartments and retail to the area and continue the upgrade of Uptown that started in 2000.  If you have questions or need info on these developments just give me a shout and thanks for reading my blog on Uptown Dallas!

For more information please contact, Alan Shaffer

Within Dallas home and condo sales, the recent statistics have seemingly started to swing in favor of potential buyers. The current median listing price has dropped nearly seven percent from mid 2011, when it was near $224,000. Currently sitting at $214,000 the present median listing price is also five percent lower than November’s numbers.

As apartment rental rates continue to go up, they could spell good news for real estate professionals and home sellers throughout the area. Dallas apartments are currently going through a hike in both one and two bedroom statistics. Both figures have experienced a three percent jump since late last year. Sellers could be overly excited with these figures because potential buyers are often deciding between continuing renting a place and going to buy their first homes.

Besides rental rates that continue to jump throughout the country, the record low mortgage rates are good news for potential buyers and sellers. Potential buyers can now take advantage of mortgage rates that continue to drop to unseen levels throughout the second half of 2011. In the Dallas area, a 30 year fixed rate mortgage is currently at 4.252 APR. In perspective, this number is considerably low, even when compared to mid year when the rates were at the 4.75 level for 30 year fixed mortgages.

Buyers can also currently take advantage of more time to decide on a home purchases. Time on the market in the Dallas area has risen in the past two months considerably over the first 10 months of 2011. Right now, a potential buyer has about 20 days more than what had been seen throughout the year. This extra time can give families and interested individuals a little more time to make a qualified buying decision in the end.

One of the only drawbacks the Dallas real estate market saw within the last few months of the year was a cut in new listings in November and December. Even though it had been expected, there was still a hike in new listings from November into December, which could signal a more solid start to the 2012 year. Despite this declining statistic late in the year, the other trends could certainly have an impact on the Dallas area real estate market for the outset of 2012.

For more information Please contact Alan Shaffer.

Dear Candy,

I have a home with what they call a popcorn ceiling. My Realtor thinks I should get rid of it, but doing so is going to make a huge mess. And guess what? I am a princess and do not like messes. Do you think I need to follow her advice, sand down that ceiling (ugh, makes me sneeze just thinking about it) or let it go. Don’t buyers have any imagination these days?

Thanks, Lita

Wow, is that really your popcorn ceiling? I’ve only seen one more like it, and that was in San Antonio with sparkles! Someone really liked — pink!

OK in a word, YES, get rid of that damn ceiling. Pretend it’s toxic: it is, to your home sale. Not to be mean, but where have you been these past three years. We are in a RECESSION and it’s hard as hell to move properties. Buyers think of every excuse possible not to buy unless they are IN LOVE with a property. Just think of a buyer who loves your home, but all she can think of is that pink popcorn ceiling and how hard and messy it will be to get rid of, capiche?

I have an argument with my husband daily, he being of the “drop the price and let the buyers do whatever they want” school. I am of the “buyers have zero vision. Period. End of story.” school. Why? Because they don’t, and it’s getting worse: Gen Y just doesn’t tinker in the home much — they  tinker on PED’s! Just go get lots of plastic and cover everything up, get a Miele vacuum (the best, at Capital Distributing).

Remove all of the furniture from the room before you start. Or move it all to the center of the room and cover it with plastic sheeting. Next, tape plastic sheeting to the corner formed where the walls meet the ceilings. Make sure the plastic hangs to the floor, covering all the walls, windows and doors. Tape the plastic to the floor. Completely cover the floor with drop cloths, not plastic. It’s too easy slip on plastic.

Cover you, too. Wear long pants, a long-sleeved shirt and a hat or cloth painter’s hood, and grab a respirator and eye protection.

“Popcorn” is the nickname for sprayed-on textured coating. It was “the look” in the 1960s and ’70s. Some ceilings even had sparkles mixed in, and oh my, I have seen those. Eyes still hurting.

Until around 1978,  the sprayed-on coating likely contained asbestos – ostensibly for its fire-retardant qualities. In 1978, asbestos was banned as a carcinogen. Any post-1978 “popcorn” should be asbestos-free. So it’s quite possible that a 1968 (or older) popcorn ceiling contains asbestos.

If you were planning to remove it, first test for asbestos. If positive, you will have no choice but to hire a licensed, insured and bonded hazardous material contractor. If the test is negative, you could save money and do-it-yourself. Remember, asbestos is dangerous only if it is crumbling. …

Experts laud the wet and scrape method, basically wetting the ceiling until the popcorn crap falls off, or peels off with a scraper. Once it’s all off and the ceiling is dry, re-texture whatever your heart desires, then paint and presto — you are all done! Bye bye popcorn ceiling!

Note: Homes built prior to 1978 require a Lead Based Paint Disclosure to be completed and signed by the seller. The seller must disclose if they have any knowledge or reports of lead based paint on the property. The key words are knowledge and/or reports.

This does not address asbestos. They must note on the standard seller’s disclosure if there have been any repairs or treatments to remediate environmental hazards such as asbestos. There is also nowhere on the seller’s disclosure where a seller must disclose that their popcorn ceiling may or may not contain asbestos.

For more information Please contact Alan Shaffer.

Museum Tower Update

As I’m sure you’ve noticed the beautiful silvery new building going up in the arts district is Museum Tower. The 42-story skyscraper with a $200 million dollar price tag is right in the middle of the Dallas Arts District and adjacent to the Park which is under construction roofing Woodall Rodgers Freeway. What a spectacular location for some lucky home buyers! It was designed by Los Angeles architect Scott Johnson.

Who’s buying these pricey condos in the sky you ask? The developers say 60% of current buyers use Dallas as their primary home and the remaining 40% are out of state owners with multiple homes.

There were 128 planned units, but that number is quickly shrinking as buyers combine units to make larger homes. Units range in size from 1,600 square feet to a jaw dropping 9,000 square feet. And at $800 a square foot one of these beauties will set you back a wad of cash. But the developer has cut no corners and if you appreciate quality this could be your next home.

Additional amenities include a fitness center and spa, a studio overlooking the Zen garden for Yoga and Pilates, guest suites for visitors at a nominal fee to put up friends when they visit, a ground floor owners lounge and an outdoor terrace overlooking the lawn. A lawn that has room for a bocce court, outdoor fireplace, cooking areas, dining spaces, dog park and a 82 foot pool with private cabanas! Add in the support staff – doormen, valets, concierge and don’t forget Ms. Ashley Tatum the on site art curator and you are set!

Museum Tower promises to be the next hottest thing in an already smoking hot area of downtown.

If you would like more info on these great homes or to schedule a tour please contact me

Alan Shaffer