Real Estate Learning Center
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real estate prices “doubling
Florida Real Estate Bubble Stock Market Crash History Bear Market Forecasting Stock Market Crash! - The authority on the market crash phenomenon Home | Site Map | Blog | News Term Glossary | Book Review | Bear Market Sites Florida Real Estate Bubble The 1920’s, in America, were a time of great prosperity. Skilled and educated working Americans had jobs providing numerous fringe benefits, paid vacations and pensions. In addition, automobiles were becoming commonplace for the wealthy and middle class allowing cross country travel. This good fortune set the stage for the Florida real estate bubble . Starting in 1920, many Americans became enamored by the materialistic and prosperous lifestyle of the time. During this time, the stock market was moving forward at an extremely fast pace. Many investors were becoming quite wealthy. Florida became a hot spot for these newly rich people, who didn’t enjoy the cold. Many whole families took vacations to Florida. It was at this point that tourism started booming and land prices were skyrocketing. Many astute investors took notice and started buying Florida real estate. The population in Florida was growing exponentially and housing couldn’t meet the demand. Florida became the “playground of the rich and famous”. Illegal casinos and drinking parlors became widespread in Miami. At this point, almost anybody could invest in Florida, even without much money. Credit was plentiful and soon everybody in Florida was either a real estate investor or a real estate agent. In 1922, the Miami Herald became the heaviest newspaper in the world as a result of its humongous real estate advertisements. People in the North heard about the real estate prices “doubling and tripling”, causing a snowball effect. Capital was rapidly pumped into the real estate market. Whole golf communities were developed, such as Temple Terrace. Resorts and retirement communities were developed almost overnight. Mansions were sprawling in every area, as were swimming pools. As always, waterfront property was the most desirable. Florida was seen as a veritable Utopia. Real estate prices quadrupled in less than one year. An elderly man invested $1,700 in property and by 1925 the property was worth over $300,000! It seemed you could do no wrong by just buying any property in Florida and become a millionaire. By 1925, real estate prices had become so exorbitant that buying land wasn’t affordable any longer. New investors failed to arrive and old investors started to sell. Panic arrived, as it always does, and the real estate market crashed. Prices kept moving downwards as heavily indebted investors tried to sell to avoid bankruptcy . In most cases, no buyers arrived, and the investors were bankrupt from the enormous mortgages. To make matters even worse, a highly destructive hurricane ravaged South Florida in September 1926. The 125 mile an hour winds eventually turned Palm Beach County into swamp lands. After the storm, a huge tidal wave crashed upon the towns of Belle Glade and Moore Haven. Due to these horrible turn of events, over 13,000 homes were destroyed and 415 people died. Additionally, the arrival of the Mediterranean fruit fly obliterated the large citrus industry. It took years for Florida to fully recover, even through the highly prosperous time from 1925 to 1929. Florida was barely affected in the stock market crash of 1929 and the Great Depression , because of its poor financial state from the start. Market crashes always occur in the same manner. Regardless of the market, the same simple psychological underpinnings are always at work. People who are caught up in a bubble never look back for historical examples. For this folly, they become paupers. “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Links to other Florida Real Estate Bubble Websites The Biggest Market Crashes in History: The Florida Real Estate Bubble Bear Market Articles • What Exactly is a Market Crash? + The inner details • Does Everyone Lose in a Crash? + The answer may surprise you! + What it takes to be an insider • Can Crashes be Forecasted? + Learn the warning signs + Take action! • The Housing Bubble + Why it is destined to pop + How you will be affected • The Coming Crash! + Prepare for the worst Financial Crisis History 1. Tulip Bulb Mania - Read about the Dutch tulip craze in the 1630's 2. South Sea Bubble - Learn about England's disastrous stock market crash in the early 1700's 3. Mississippi Bubble - The financial scheme which caused a stock market crash in 18th-century France 4. Florida Real Estate Bubble - The speculative boom and implosion of Florida property in the 1920's 5. Stock Market Crash of 1929 - The Great Crash + Depression 6. Stock Market Crash of 1987 - Mayhem and program trading 7. The Nikkei Bubble - The downfall of the Japanese titan 8. The Collapse of Barings Bank - Read how England’s oldest, most established bank was collapsed by a single trader. 9. The Nasdaq Bubble - The mania of Silicon Valley and Wall Street Home | Site Map | Blog | News Term Glossary | Book Review Bear Market Sites
Selling Home
Century 21 Real Estate: home buying, home selling, financing and property listings. español Put My Century 21 to work for you, simply register your email address and create a password. Once you're registered, you'll be able to save property descriptions store your search criteria file agent information build a custom library Find out more or register now! Already registered? Sign in . -- Welcome to Century 21 Real Estate Century 21 Real Estate is your online resource for home buying, home selling, financing and property listings. Whether it's a house, condo, or any other type of property, we can assist you with your real estate needs. Search for Properties Looking to buy a new home, condo or any other property? Search thousands of properties in our real estate listings. Search Property Listings » First Time Homebuyers Guide » View Our Buyer Service Pledge » International Century 21 Real Estate LLC is part of the largest real estate referral network in the world - with over 110,000 brokers and sales associates in over 30 countries and territories. Access our world offices today» Sell a Property Let our real estate agents create a customized marketing plan to sell your property. List your Property » View Our Seller Service Pledge » View Mortgage Rates View current mortgage rates, apply for a home equity loan, crunch numbers with home mortgage calculators and more! Apply for a Mortgage Now» Use Our Mortgage Calculators » Find an Office or Agent Find and contact a CENTURY 21 Office or Agent to handle your real estate needs. Find an Office or Agent » Quick Vote! Your vote counts! Let us Know Where do you spend the most time? Bedroom Living Room Kitchen Bathroom Dining Room ©2005 Century 21 Real Estate LLC. An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Each CENTURY 21 Office Is Independently Owned And Operated. All rights reserved. Information appearing on this site has been produced by or obtained primarily from Century 21 Real Estate LLC and its representatives and from CENTURY 21 franchisees. Century 21 Real Estate LLC is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of the broker information, sales associate information, listing information or other information provided by our franchisees appearing on or through this site. Such information has been provided by independent third parties who are solely responsible for such content. Certain conditions and restrictions apply to System promotions. Terms and Conditions of Use.
Home Loan Bank of
Welcome to the Home Loan Bank of New York ----commented out ------- MEMBER LOGON From the President December 29, 2005 2005: A YEAR OF ACCOMPLISHMENT We have completed a year in which the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York achieved a number of distinct and transforming accomplishments. Completed SEC Registration One of the most significant and transforming of the accomplishments occurred in late August. After three years of preparation and hard work, the registration of the Banks stock under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 was declared effective by the SEC. The Home Loan Bank became one of only two banks in the Home Loan Bank System to satisfy the registration requirements of the SEC within the time frame set by our regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Board. The Home Loan Banks filings with the SEC are available on the SECs EDGAR system, accessed at http://www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml . If you have not done so, I encourage you to review these reports containing detailed financial and other information about the Bank. Completed Capital Exchange With the completion of the SEC registration process, the Home Loan Bank then proceeded with the implementation of the new Capital Plan. Prior to the opening of business on December 1, outstanding shares of capital stock owned by the Home Loan Bank of New Yorks community member stockholders were automatically exchanged for shares of the Banks new Class B stock. The new Capital Plan was mandated by the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, and more closely ties member capital requirements with advance usage. Improved Financial Results In addition and more importantly, the Home Loan Bank continued to achieve solid financial results in 2005. The Bank manages to a risk/reward profile that generates sustainable and predictable earnings. For example, we continued with a low-risk, tightly controlled, conservative approach to investing in Mortgage-Backed Securities. At the same time, we also remained a member-focused, advances-oriented Home Loan Bank: approximately 75% of the assets of the Bank are in the form of advances to our members. Only a few other Home Loans rival this high percentage. Further, advance demand has remained solid. In November 2005, advances averaged $60.9 billion, down slightly (about $600 million) from October 2005. We ended the month with $61.4 billion in advances on our books. Product innovation has continued in the area of advances. In June, the Bank introduced the Fed Funds Floating Rate Advance, a new adjustable alternative for members. The "Fed Funds Floater" Advance is designed to help fund a portion of members' cash positions. The products rate is tied to the Fed Funds rate and resets daily. The Home Loan Bank also furthered its record of providing a fair return on our members capital investment. In fact, profits improved over 2004 and the Home Loan Bank is now providing among the highest capital investment returns in the Bank System. At the same time, the level of pre-dividend retained earnings increased more than 22% from the 2004 year-end balance to approximately $273 million at the end of November. As we total up the results for the full year, I want to express my personal appreciation to each stockholder for the business you brought to the Bank in 2005. We are here to help our members play a key role in the delivery of housing and community financing. With an outstanding Board of Directors, a solid management team, and a dedicated staff, we have set the course and put in place the plans that have made the FHLBNY an exemplary organization. The Home Loan Bank team is dedicated to providing quality services, and we look forward to maintaining a high level of service in 2006. In closing, we value your relationship with the Home Loan Bank and we are ready to assist you in meeting your commitments to your customers. And we appreciate the opportunity to serve you. All of us at the Home Loan Bank wish you and yours the very best in 2006! Sincerely, Alfred A. DelliBovi President & CEO FHLBNY UPDATES December Edition 4-Year Floating-Rate Advances Priced at 3-Month LIBOR Plus 2 Basis Points! Convertible Advances at FHLBNY Repo Convertible Advance Rates FHLBNY NEWS With the filing of an amendment to its registration statement on Form 10 on August 29, 2005, with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the HLB became an SEC registrant. Federal Home Loan Bank of New York Implements Risk-Based Capital Plan Capital Exchange Information Statement and Capital Plan View the Capital Exchange Webinar Capital Exchange Webinar Slides SITE HIGHLIGHTS 1LINK sm MPF PROGRAM FIRST HOME CLUB sm AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROGRAM 2005B ROUND APPLICATION PACKAGE QUICK LINKS B ank Forms Application for an OLOC line Site Best viewed in Internet Explorer 4.0+ browser and at screen resolution of 800x600. General Terms and Conditions of Use | Privacy Policy | Forward-Looking Statements Our friendly lawyers have asked us to tell you that visitors remaining in session with this site IMPLICITLY CONSENT to our General Terms and Conditions of Use and our Privacy Policy, and ACKNOWLEDGE our Cautionary Language Regarding Forward-Looking Statements. Please exit this session if you do not agree with the foregoing. 2005 Federal Home Loan Bank of New York, 101 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10178. All rights reserved .
home equity lines of
What You Should Know About Home Equity Lines of Credit ESPAÑOL More and more lenders are offering home equity lines of credit. By using the equity in your home, you may qualify for a sizable amount of credit, available for use when and how you please, at an interest rate that is relatively low. Furthermore, under the tax lawdepending on your specific situationyou may be allowed to deduct the interest because the debt is secured by your home. If you are in the market for credit, a home equity plan may be right for you. Or perhaps another form of credit would be better. Before making a decision, you should weigh carefully the costs of a home equity line against the benefits. Shop for the credit terms that best meet your borrowing needs without posing undue financial risk. And remember, failure to repay the amounts youve borrowed, plus interest, could mean the loss of your home. What is a home equity line of credit? What should you look for when shopping for a plan? Costs of establishing and maintaining a home equity line How will you repay your home equity plan? Lines of credit vs. traditional second morgage loans What is a home equity line of credit? A home equity line of credit is a form of revolving credit in which your home serves as collateral. Because the home is likely to be a consumers largest asset, many homeowners use their credit lines only for major items such as education, home improvements, or medical bills and not for day-to-day expenses. With a home equity line, you will be approved for a specific amount of credityour credit limit , the maximum amount you may borrow at any one time under the plan. Many lenders set the credit limit on a home equity line by taking a percentage (say, 75 percent) of the homes appraised value and subtracting from that the balance owed on the existing mortgage. For example: Appraised value of home $100,000 Percentage x 75% Percentage of appraised value = $ 75,000 Less balance owed on mortgage - $ 40,000 Potential credit $ 35,000 In determining your actual credit limit, the lender will also consider your ability to repay, by looking at your income, debts, and other financial obligations as well as your credit history. Many home equity plans set a fixed period during which you can borrow money, such as 10 years. At the end of this draw period, you may be allowed to renew the credit line. If your plan does not allow renewals, you will not be able to borrow additional money once the period has ended. Some plans may call for payment in full of any outstanding balance at the end of the period. Others may allow repayment over a fixed period (the repayment period), for example, 10 years. Once approved for a home equity line of credit, you will most likely be able to borrow up to your credit limit whenever you want. Typically, you will use special checks to draw on your line. Under some plans, borrowers can use a credit card or other means to draw on the line. There may be limitations on how you use the line. Some plans may require you to borrow a minimum amount each time you draw on the line (for example, $300) and to keep a minimum amount outstanding. Some plans may also require that you take an initial advance when the line is set up. What should you look for when shopping for a plan? If you decide to apply for a home equity line of credit, look for the plan that best meets your particular needs. Read the credit agreement carefully, and examine the terms and conditions of various plans, including the annual percentage rate (APR) and the costs of establishing the plan. The APR for a home equity line is based on the interest rate alone and will not reflect the closing costs and other fees and charges, so youll need to compare these costs, as well as the APRs, among lenders. Interest rate charges and related plan features Home equity lines of credit typically involve variable rather than fixed interest rates. The variable rate must be based on a publicly available index (such as the prime rate published in some major daily newspapers or a U.S. Treasury bill rate); the interest rate for borrowing under the home equity line changes, mirroring fluctuations in the value of the index. Most lenders cite the interest rate you will pay as the value of the index at a particular time plus a margin, such as 2 percentage points. Because the cost of borrowing is tied directly to the value of the index, it is important to find out which index is used, how often the value of the index changes, and how high it has risen in the past as well as the amount of the margin. Lenders sometimes offer a temporarily discounted interest rate for home equity linesa rate that is unusually low and may last for only an introductory period, such as 6 months. Variable-rate plans secured by a dwelling must, by law, have a ceiling (or cap ) on how much your interest rate may increase over the life of the plan. Some variable-rate plans limit how much your payment may increase and how low your interest rate may fall if interest rates drop. Some lenders allow you to convert from a variable interest rate to a fixed rate during the life of the plan, or to convert all or a portion of your line to a fixed-term installment loan. Plans generally permit the lender to freeze or reduce your credit line under certain circumstances. For example, some variable-rate plans may not allow you to draw additional funds during a period in which the interest rate reaches the cap. Costs of establishing and maintaining a home equity line Many of the costs of setting up a home equity line of credit are similar to those you paywhen you buy a home. For example: A fee for a property appraisal to estimate the value of your home An application fee , which may not be refunded if you are turned down for credit Up-front charges, such as one or more points (one point equals 1 percent of the credit limit) Closing costs, including fees for attorneys, title search, and mortgage preparation and filing; property and title insurance; and taxes. In addition, you may be subject to certain fees during the plan period, such as annual membership or maintenance fees and a transaction fee every time you draw on the credit line. You could find yourself paying hundreds of dollars to establish the plan. If you were to draw only a small amount against your credit line, those initial charges would substantially increase the cost of the funds borrowed. On the other hand, because the lenders risk is lower than for other forms of credit, as your home serves as collateral, annual percentage rates for home equity lines are generally lower than rates for other types of credit. The interest you save could offset the costs of establishing and maintaining the line. Moreover, some lenders waive some or all of the closing costs. How will you repay your home equity plan? Before entering into a plan, consider how you will pay back the money you borrow. Some plans set minimum payments that cover a portion of the principal (the amount you borrow) plus accrued interest. But (unlike with the typical installment loan) the portion that goes toward principal may not be enough to repay the principal by the end of the term. Other plans may allow payment of interest alone during the life of the plan, which means that you pay nothing toward the principal. If you borrow $10,000, you will owe that amount when the plan ends. Regardless of the minimum required payment, you may choose to pay more, and many lenders offer a choice of payment options. Many consumers choose to pay down the principal regularly as they do with other loans. For example, if you use your line to buy a boat, you may want to pay it off as you would a typical boat loan. Whatever your payment arrangements during the life of the planwhether you pay some, a little, or none of the principal amount of the loanwhen the plan ends you may have to pay the entire balance owed, all at once. You must be prepared to make this balloon payment by refinancing it with the lender, by obtaining a loan from another lender, or by some other means. If you are unable to make the balloon payment, you could lose your home. If your plan has a variable interest rate, your monthly payments may change. Assume, for example, that you borrow $10,000 under a plan that calls for interest-only payments. At a 10 percent interest rate, your monthly payments would be $83. If the rate rises over time to 15 percent, your monthly payments will increase to $125. Similarly, if you are making payments that cover interest plus some portion of the principal, your monthly payments may increase, unless your agreement calls for keeping payments the same throughout the plan period. If you sell your home, you will probably be required to pay off your home equity line in full immediately. If you are likely to sell your home in the near future, consider whether it makes sense to pay the up-front costs of setting up a line of credit. Also keep in mind that renting your home may be prohibited under the terms of your agreement. Lines of credit vs. traditional second morgage loans If you are thinking about a home equity line of credit, you might also want to consider a traditional second mortgage loan. A second mortgage provides you with a fixed amount of money repayable over a fixed period. In most cases the payment schedule calls for equal payments that will pay off the entire loan within the loan period. You might consider a second mortgage instead of a home equity line if, for example, you need a set amount for a specific purpose, such as an addition to your home. In deciding which type of loan best suits your needs, consider the costs under the two alternatives. Look at both the APR and other charges. Do not, however, simply compare the APRs, because the APRs on the two types of loans are figured differently: The APR for a traditional second mortgage loan takes into account the interest rate charged plus points and other finance charges. The APR for a home equity line of credit is based on the periodic interest rate alone. It does not include points or other charges. Disclosures from lenders The federal Truth in Lending Act requires lenders to disclose the important terms and costs of their home equity plans, including the APR, miscellaneous charges, the payment terms, and information about any variable-rate feature. And in general, neither the lender nor anyone else may charge a fee until after you have received this information. You usually get these disclosures when you receive an application form, and you will get additional disclosures before the plan is opened. If any term (other than a variable-rate feature) changes before the plan is opened, the lender must return all fees if you decide not to enter into the plan because of the change. When you open a home equity line, the transaction puts your home at risk. If the home involved is your principal dwelling, the Truth in Lending Act gives you 3 days from the day the account was opened to cancel the credit line. This right allows you to change your mind for any reason. You simply inform the lender in writing within the 3-day period. The lender must then cancel its security interest in your home and return all feesincluding any application and appraisal feespaid to open the account. The information on this site is adapted from the brochure "What You Should Know about Home Equity Lines of Credit." Single or multiple copies of the brochure are available without charge. Order the brochure by telephone, mail, or fax . Order online . Glossary | Where to go for help | Checklist Home | Consumer information | Publications | Brochures Accessibility | Contact us Last update: March 1, 2004