U r b a n T r e k k e r

September Madness Chart

The financial edition of September Madness. Saw it on Big Picture, via Tech Crunch.

This was reportedly created by a general partner at Sansome Partners named Mark Slavonia.

or, for larger view click here.

Obama is Good for Housing, Sez Zillow

Counting down to November 4: The election is in 35 days.  According to a survey of 2,016 adults conducted by Harris Interactive for Zillow, 58 percent of Americans think that Obama will be a better candidate for housing than McCain. 

Slicing it deeper, between homeowners vs. renters, via RIS Media:

Which candidate do you think will better address the current state of housing market?	US Adults (n-2016)	Non-homeowners (n-675)	Homeowners
Barack Obama	58%	67%	52%
McCain	42%	33%	48%

This is a very interesting trend. Among homeowners there's a 4% margin between the two candidates. Renters tend to go for Obama. Almost 2/3 of renters respondents were for Obama - which shows that the housing gap between Obama and McCain - is 34%. That's a big margin right there.. it's not even close.

Younger voters? Maybe. Because youth vote is overwhelmingly for Obama 4 to 1.

Other than housing, these are the top 5 important issues of the day that matter most to respondents:

• Energy (82%)
• U.S. Debts (70%)
• Housing/mortgage/foreclosure (63%)
• Social Security (61%)
• Iraq (61%)

For full story read here.

DC Solar Homes Tour Is Baaack

image: a solar home in Arlington

The 2008 solar homes tour even will be held this coming Saturday and Sunday, October 4 and 5. There will be more than 50 homes participating scattered throughout DC, MD and Northern Virginia. If you've been to one, you'll notice that some of the homes were part of the tour in 2007. (Hey, 50 homes - that's quite a number of homes to check out).

Each home has its features listed on the booklet. So, you can pick and choose where to go.

There are 2 ways to get the tickets.

1. Pay $5 for the 44-page color booklet at REI stores, Greenbelt Coop, etc.

OR,

2. FREE if you download it from here.

For solar newbies: The home owners will be available to guide you through the house or answer questions you might have about going solar.

What Were They Thinking

THIS HOUSE is on the market for $1.395 million. Just shy of $1.4 mil. Wondering how to market this house and justify the price? For one. It sits on a tiny corner lot on Old Dominion Drive - a very busy street in McLean - connecting McLean and Arlington. It's a three level home with side garage.

Then. Look at the design.

For $1.4 mil. Just wondering... Who would want to buy this kind of house? The location is already bad enough - for resale. The lot. No comment. Add to it the not-so-attractive design.

Okay. You get the picture.

Check out the COMPS here. Other new homes on the market in McLean for the same price  range. (link only good for 30 days)

The two homes around my hood. The first one was a rebuilt (not a complete tear down) from this old house. (link to old post). Originally listed for $1.44 mil. Since no bite at that price, they drop it to $1.295 mil.

This one is a tear down. Built from the ground up.

List price: $1.475 mil.

Same thing: What were these guys' thinking? Granted that there is 'no' new homes in the price range. Uhm, maybe that's what went inside those builders' mind.

The thing is..with jumbo loans 30-year fixed rates hovering in the 9+ percent (BTW, Wells Fargo today's rate is at 9.4% APR)! - the challenge for prospective buyers (if they want to have first trust to stay under $729k 2008 FHA limit) - is to come up with $700,000 down payment or, 50% of sales price.

In this environment? That's quite a stretch.

Ownership Society

image: MSNBC

Real Estate Weekly News Roundup

Towns that Could Be Hit Hardest by Financial Crisis
How many former Lehman Brothers bankers or AIG (AIG) executives are likely to be buying a Park Avenue apartment or a home in Darien, Conn., this year?

Welcome to My Bank, WaMu Customers
Yeah, I'm sure all those concerns about the stability of the nation's financial system are overblown.

House Prices and a Bailout: What Gives?
Suppose we were to suddenly receive news that Treasury Secretary Paulson and his helpers in the Congress had dotted the last "i" on the financial bailout that's consumed the attention of most market minions during the past week.

What Bailout Means for Mortgage Rates
Falling home prices are the main culprit behind the big fat mess the American economy finds itself in now.

Great Websites for DIY Projects

Best of Dwell: Renovations

Shower Cleaners: Powders Prevail; One Green Cleaner Shines
We recently pitted a dozen spray, powder, and aerosol shower cleaners against each other to find out which are the best at removing deep-seated soap scum, rust stains, and mildew from shower tiles.

Crisis Put Home Loans Out of Reach
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com)  -- Wall Street's meltdown has put the squeeze on all sorts of lending, and home loans are no exception.

OTHER NEWS FROM AROUND THE REGION:

• In the Chesapeake, a Place Apart [NYT]
• Loudoun Transit Planners Seek Input from Area Residents [Leesburg Today]
• VA Highway Fund in Trouble [Fairfax Times]
• DC Maintains as Nation's Second Longest Commute [DC Examiner]
• Tysons Plan Looks at Success, Pitfalls of Rosslyn, Ballston [WTOP]
• Most real estate insiders Don't See Market Stabilizing Until 2010 [WashBizJournal]
• Upscale Housing in Virginia [WHG]

Money Quote

When is a good time to buy bank-owned foreclosures?

"At the end of the year, there will be a fire sale as everyone tries to clean up their balance sheets for 2009," Kelman says.

For home buyers, that means the holiday season could bring an extra reason to celebrate.

source: Is This the Right Time to Buy?

..Just Windows 1&3?

image: Cagle

Land Use Task Force Recommendations for Future of Tysons

With the coming of four metro stations part of Dulles Rail slated for Tysons Corner, Tysons Land Use Task Force envisioned the creation of a liveable and vibrant urban place for people to live, work and play. Fairfax County sees Tysons population predicted to swell from 17,000 to 100,000 denizens and from currently at 105,000 to 200,000 jobs by 2050. A lot of growth in a very short time. That's why the plan for Tysons' future growth is concentrated in areas within 1/8 of a mile from a metro station. And this translates to: higher density.

In a nutshell, this is how they see the future of Tysons Corner:

• Tysons 1700 acres will be divided into eight mixed-use districts.
• Ninety-five percent of the new housing will be transit-oriented-development or TOD within 3 minutes of walk (pretty ambitious, you think) from station and from buses. Then there is a plan for circulator which connects the four metro stations with areas not served by metrorail.
• It put emphasis on high environmental standards. New buildings must be green construction standards and all buildings must be LEED silver certified by 2013.
• Strong focus on affordable and workforce housing. The plan requires 20% of residence be set aside as work force/ affordable housing. Fairfax's median income for work force/ affordable housing is between 60 to 120 percent of area median income.
• 160 acres of green and open space throughout the hood which effectively would double the existing green space.

From here the plan goes to Planning Commission and Planning staff for comprehensive plan text before coming up with the final version. So, it'll be months before we see anything close to the final touch.

CROSSPOSTED at In Tysons Space

source: Fairfax County

Money Quote

Looking 'where' to invest in real estate?

Stay away from luxury properties, because they won't command enough rent to cover your equity investment. And working-class neighborhoods will continue to have job losses--though small, easy-to-manage multifamily properties in close-in areas can be opportunities. I would buy mid-priced houses in areas with good schools, transportation and job growth. When the market improves, your tenants may want to buy the property.

- R. Donohue Peebles via Wall Street Journal