Teaching is a job to which expats tend to gravitate, but pay in Cambodia is low. Source: Khmer440.com
The life of an expat may contain many surprises, the Wall Street Journal noted in an article not so long ago.
It turns out, according to a survey on which the article is based, that Ecuador provides the most happiness to expats and that Europe, unsurprisingly, offers the best education.
But would you imagine that Ireland falls behind Russia, Oman and Continue reading
Brooklyn’s fast-climbing home prices make it nearly as expensive as Manhattan
Transaction volume strongest in years, even with diminished supply
Graphic demonstrates depth of Manhattan inventory
Bicycles becoming new amenity in some buildings
Permits for new residential buildings skyrocket in first quarter
In this seller’s market, every minute counts
So does the right strategy in a bidding war
Looking north from Battery Park City’s South End Avenue on a Sunday.
There is nothing quite like Battery Park City, that enclave built on landfill at the southwest tip of Manhattan.
Among its characteristics is a large concentration of playgrounds, parks and promenades,\; astounding views of the Hudson River, the Statue of Liberty and New Jersey (for what that last perspective is worth); proximity to the Financial District; and its remove from the overwhelming bustle and hustle found elsewhere in New York City.
Like Roosevelt Island and some other areas on the fringes of Manhattan’s centers of energy and commerce, Battery Park City (which, of course, is practically on Wall Street, is not for everyone. To me, Battery Park City feels remote. To other folks, the pace could not be more agreeable.
Compared with other areas of the city, Continue reading
Manhattan a tale of two markets
Real Estate Brokers Predict a Tough Time for Buyers
Buyers ask, brokers try to answer
Tight inventory leads buyers to risk their down payments
Popular keywords enable listing agents to sell fast
Booming Hamptons market pushes renters east
And Fire Island fights Sandy’s effects on housing market as summer approaches
For trophy properties, $100 million is the new $50 million
City official says two, three more micro-unit developments in the offing
Sanitation Department schedules disposal events for hazardous products in five boroughs
Social media bigwig accused of trashing apartment in Chelsea and purchases big Greenwich Village loft for $8.15 million
(Source: the U.S. National Archives)
The headline went like this:
“Can I Buy Your House, Pretty Please?”
In the Wall Street Journal, the article by Joann S. Lublin noted that the housing market has changed in some areas. As the subheading observed:
With inventory tight and prices rising, buyers in competitive markets like Silicon Valley and Seattle are returning to a boom-era tactic: writing heartfelt letters to sellers explaining why they should win the house. Signing with a paw print.
The piece is accurate in pointing out that an emotionally charged letter from a buyer can sway a seller who is considering more than one offer.
Referring to the missives as “pitch letters” or “love letters,” Lublin correctly reported that Continue reading
Housing prices below 2008 peak, sales 21.8 percent lower than 2007 peak
But 2012 median lowest since 2004 adjusted for inflation
Beachfront houses wrecked by Sandy being sold ‘as is’
Assembly, Senate pass renewal of co-op/condo tax abatement
Building in Williamsburg tops list of 10 best-selling new developments in 2012
Region’s foreclosures tick up in November
Maintenance fees now average $1.70 per square foot, up 30 percent since 2008
Multi-talented writer finally does good all by himself in sale of $11.25 million Hollywood home
Brooklyn Nets guard makes successful $15.8 million play for Tribeca penthouse
Can you see me now? (flickr photo by dunkr)
If celebrity endorsements didn’t matter, you wouldn’t see stars (many of them on the wane) shilling insurance, pills or perfume.
So it is hardly surprising that building developers like nothing more than to rub shoulders with notables of the silver and pixellated screens. Real estate brokers are just the same.
It is, indeed, true that proximity to stars sells real estate, as the news media regularly remind us — for example, the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times not so long ago. But why? Continue reading
A robust rainy-day fund is essential and may be one reason to avoid a second mortgage. (Flickr photo by Only Fabrizio)
The allure of a 15-year mortgage is inescapable: As everyone knows, the cost is lower than it is for a 30-year loan over the life of the loan.
How many folks do you know have held a mortgage for 30 years or even 15 years? Even 15 years is twice as long as most Americans waited before selling and buying a new place — until the housing bust descended and caused a drag on the market.
The Wall Street Journal has done the math:
Say you have a mortgage of $300,000, and your financing options are a 30-year mortgage at 3.75 percent or a 15-year at 3 percent. The 15-year would cost you $683 more a month. . . but in five years, you’d save $14,735 in interest and have $55,679 more in equity. By year 15, you’d have saved more than $68,000 in interest.
That’s all well in good, but Continue reading
I, on Cambodia 