From the 6/6/06 Enquirer:

 

 

Officials call for housing changes

Feds want more homes included in rental survey

BY DAN HORN | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

Federal officials want to change the way Hamilton County sets rents for subsidized, low-income properties.

 

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has asked city housing officials to include more properties this year in the annual survey it uses to determine appropriate rents.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060606/BIZ01/606060326/1059/rss13

 

Rehabs boost sale prices in Covington

BY MIKE RUTLEDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

Northern Kentucky's hottest real-estate areas aren't on its fast-growing edges, but are in Covington's core neighborhoods.  From 2004 to 2005, the average home sale price leapt 13.9 percent in Covington's collection of older neighborhoods north of Latonia. That was the biggest Northern Kentucky jump, and third in the region, behind only Goshen and Miami townships in northern Clermont County.

 

The same Covington neighborhoods also saw the biggest increase in their average sale price from 2001 to 2005: a 34.3 percent gain to $95,933 last year, up from $71,447.  Tasteful rehabs of houses 50 years old or more are driving the Covington growth.  The jump doesn't surprise 17-year real-estate veteran Gerri Jones of Re/Max Unlimited, who specializes in historic properties.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060611/BIZ01/606110343/1002

Housing system 'not valid'

HUD tells county to revamp policies

BY DAN HORN | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

Hamilton County's method of setting rents for subsidized housing is so flawed it's impossible to tell if tenants, landlords and taxpayers are getting a fair deal.

 

That's the message from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which recently sent housing officials here a letter demanding they come up with a better way to determine rents.

 

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060709/NEWS01/607090380/1077

Region's home sales down 1.3%

Region's drop in June follows drop in May

BY JEFF MCKINNEY | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

Home sales in Southwest Ohio fell about 3 percent in June compared with June 2005. It’s the second consecutive monthly drop in the area’s largest housing market.  Sales in Northern Kentucky in June came in at 724, up 2.1 percent in the same period.  For the overall region, sales dropped 1.26 percent compared with a year ago, local Realtors reported today.

 

Moreover, the number of houses for sale in June in Southwest Ohio was up 27 percent from the same month a year ago. That follows a 28 percent jump in the number of houses for sale in May compared to May 2005. Southwest Ohio accounts for about 80 percent of the region’s total sales.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060725/BIZ01/307250023/-1/

Everything is low before it skyrockets!

A buyer's market

After years of booming home sales, the tide has turned: Demand is flat, supply is high and sellers offer breaks

BY JEFF MCKINNEY/ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

A dramatic rise in the number of homes for sale in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky has created opportunities for buyers but will make it tougher for sellers to fetch the prices they want.  Jamie Smith, a 33-year-old project engineer working on construction jobs, has taken full advantage of the market conditions.

 

He bought a three-bedroom house in April in Colerain Township for $96,000, about $4,000 less than the original asking price of $99,900.  The seller even agreed to pay $2,500 in closing costs and gave Smith $1,500 to cover repairs on the home's two-car garage.

 

"By the time the deal actually closed, the sellers cut their price by $7,900 when you figure in all the concessions they made," he said.  Smith, who moved into his new home in June, has reaped the rewards of a cooling real estate market, in which rising interest rates and other factors have slowed demand and created a housing glut that has put buyers in the driver's seat.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060726/BIZ01/607260371

None of these articles are surprising to me.  :(  Our house has been on the market for the past five months.  Had we tried selling last year, we probably would have sold it in 4-6 weeks.

Yeah - I always check out houses for sale in Clifton area - some have been on the market for months even after sellers have slashed prices by more than $50K.

Not only that for rent signs are every where. It's a bad time to be selling a home. You are going to have to wait a WHILE.

 

Are people selling to make a quick buck or to get out of Hamilton county?

None of these articles are surprising to me.  :(  Our house has been on the market for the past five months.  Had we tried selling last year, we probably would have sold it in 4-6 weeks.

P-Ridge right? My parents recently put the house up for sale in P-Ridge again. I noticed theres tons of houses for sale in P-Ridge :(

Someone needs to buy it so that I don't have to go over there and cut the grass and weeds for them every week.

Too many luxury condos?

The mad downtown riverfont rush has slowed

BY JON NEWBERRY | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

After setting a sizzling pace for much of last year, sales at some riverfront and downtown condominium projects have slowed to a comparative trickle in 2006.  Rising mortgage interest rates, which are crimping housing sales in general, may account for a bit of the slowdown.

 

But there are other factors also at play in what had been the booming "urban condo" market in and around downtown Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky's riverfront.  "I think it's cooled a bit in the last six months. Anybody who tells you otherwise is not telling you the truth," said Arn Bortz, a partner at Mount Adams-based Towne Properties.

 

Besides interest rates, the increased number and variety of condos now available are also having an impact because buyers have more choices and feel less urgency to put their money down, Bortz said.  "There's a tremendous amount of supply coming on line," he said.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060730/BIZ01/607300331/1076/BIZ

^ Do you think it's the pricing of these units that is causing a slow-down?  My impression is that most of these condos on the riverfront are $400K and higher. 

I think it has to do with the pricing and also the fact that urban condos just aren't for everybody. This is the midwest and people enjoy their space more than the urban environment. Developers always seem to be extremely confident. It seem like the way they think is that if they build something people will automatically come because it's new.

 

I have a hard time understanding why two thirds of condo buyers come form single family homes. That seems a little strange  :|

I have a hard time understanding why two thirds of condo buyers come form single family homes. That seems a little strange  :|

 

Not really.  Sometimes homeowners are tired of all the work involved with a house.  For example, empty nesters may find that they no longer need a big house, which requires a lot of work.  I can also see single, divorced, and widowed people selling their house to buy a condo as well.  Houses are a lot of work for one person.  A condo is a nice solution because you still own the property, yet you are paying for someone else to maintain the outside. 

 

I am moving from a single family home to a condo.  The main reason we are doing this is because if you want to buy something downtown, it's pretty much condos.  But I do have to say that we are looking forward to the condo lifestyle.  We find that the amount of time and money spent on a yard is not worth it.  Granted, several people do like yard work and such, but we are not among those people.  Houses can be a hassle.  In the three years we've lived in this house, we have replaced the roof, repaired the sidewalk (expensive because a tree root had mess it up), fix up the lawn, resealed and stained the deck, and various other small tasks.  The tasks I mentioned are things condo owners do not have to worry about because their fees cover this stuff. 

 

 

Are people selling to make a quick buck or to get out of Hamilton county?

 

In our case, no.  We're trying to sell so that we can move downtown. 

 

None of these articles are surprising to me.  :(  Our house has been on the market for the past five months.  Had we tried selling last year, we probably would have sold it in 4-6 weeks.

P-Ridge right? My parents recently put the house up for sale in P-Ridge again. I noticed theres tons of houses for sale in P-Ridge :(

Someone needs to buy it so that I don't have to go over there and cut the grass and weeds for them every week.

 

Yes, Pleasant Ridge.  So if anyone wants to buy a nice small home that is in move-in condition and in walking distance the business district and the park, let me know.  :)

I have a hard time understanding why two thirds of condo buyers come form single family homes. That seems a little strange  :|

 

Not really.  Sometimes homeowners are tired of all the work involved with a house.  For example, empty nesters may find that they no longer need a big house, which requires a lot of work.  I can also see single, divorced, and widowed people selling their house to buy a condo as well.  Houses are a lot of work for one person.  A condo is a nice solution because you still own the property, yet you are paying for someone else to maintain the outside. 

 

I am moving from a single family home to a condo.  The main reason we are doing this is because if you want to buy something downtown, it's pretty much condos.  But I do have to say that we are looking forward to the condo lifestyle.  We find that the amount of time and money spent on a yard is not worth it.  Granted, several people do like yard work and such, but we are not among those people.  Houses can be a hassle.  In the three years we've lived in this house, we have replaced the roof, repaired the sidewalk (expensive because a tree root had mess it up), fix up the lawn, resealed and stained the deck, and various other small tasks.  The tasks I mentioned are things condo owners do not have to worry about because their fees cover this stuff. 

 

 

Good point.. I wasn't thinking about all of the divorced/widowed people. I guess it's the price range then. Only a small percentage of the population buys a property over 400k anyway.

Not sure what the point of this article is, every city has this problem.

 

Old homes weigh down county

To get what they want, families heading out

BY GREGORY KORTE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

Cincinnati and Hamilton County have some of the oldest housing stock in the country - and it's getting older, according to census data to be released today.  Less than 4 percent of the homes in Hamilton County have been built since 2000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2005 American Community Survey. That puts Hamilton County in the bottom 15 percent of the 787 counties surveyed. Almost 30 percent of the homes were built before 1939.

 

As Cincinnati and Hamilton County both lose population at rates faster than just about any other urban area in America, inner-city issues such as crime and education usually get the blame.  But city planners say the age of the city's housing has been a crisis generations in the making.

 

"Families with children are moving out of the city in search of schools," said Caleb Faux, the chairman of the Cincinnati Planning Commission. "But also, one of the things you have to acknowledge is that younger people with children want a newer housing product. That doesn't exist in the city of Cincinnati. So they go where they can find it."

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061003/NEWS01/610030328

It is a legitimate problem. I don't think people can tip-toe around it any longer.

 

<i>"Bortz is co-chairing a mayoral task force that will look at housing policy as part of an overall development strategy. Among the ideas being considered: tax breaks for "infill" housing, a city land-banking fund to assemble vacant parcels and more aggressive use of eminent domain to clear blighted neighborhoods."</i>

 

I like the sound of this. Of course residents are going to scream, but there's a lot areas that need aggressive help. Sometimes I think the residents themselves are the biggest problems. And watch out if they tried to clean up the poorer areas. It's will be an uphill battle.

Well, I don't agree that a broad based assumption that "old homes are weighing down county" is valid.  I would say that it is more true that tastes and needs have changed over the years as homeowners wanted  larger houses on larger lots, more garages, etc.  The American Dream house changes every 10 years or so, what was hot in the 50's, 60's, etc. even the 80's, are not in demand today.  What are you going to do, tear down all the old houses and make suburban cookie cutter homes all over the city?  I don't really see an easy answer to the problem.  Also, certain neighborhoods of old homes seem to be doing great, Mt. Lookout, Hyde Park, E. Walnut Hills, Mt. Adams, downtown, etc.  seem quite popular and demand some of the highest prices in the region.

Home prices boom in 'burbs

 

Boone County boasts the highest valued homes in Kentucky, while Warren County has the most expensive in Greater Cincinnati, according to U.S. Census Bureau statistics for 2005 released today.  Three of the top five large counties for financial worth of homes in Kentucky are in Northern Kentucky - Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties, the statistics show.

 

In Ohio, Warren County has the fourth highest valued homes in the state among large counties. Butler County ranks eighth, Clermont County is 11th and Hamilton County is 16th.  Dave Otto, president of the Cincinnati Area Board of Realtors, said he was pleased with the region's housing values.  "It is absolutely good news," he said. "Greater Cincinnati is doing great.

 

"The statistics indicate the strength and diversity of our economy, the strength of our school systems and our high quality of life. People see value in living in southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky.  "Other areas have seen a run-up in housing prices due to speculative buying, followed by a decrease in prices. Even as the overall housing market cools somewhat, our area isn't seeing a decline in prices as many other markets are seeing."

 

The census data breaks down the statistics for each state and for counties of more than 65,000 people.  The median housing value of owner-occupied homes in Boone County - meaning an equal number of houses fall above and below that figure - is $160,000, compared with the Kentucky average of $103,900.  Campbell County's median housing value is third highest in Kentucky at $135,200 and Kenton County's is fifth highest at $133,800.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.cincypost.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061003/BIZ/610030386

Read the above two articles together and you can see the stupidity of our land use policies.  Someday, Boone County will be full of old, less desirable homes.  It's a dumb, vicious cycle.

City improves home-ownership percentage

Cincinnati Business Courier - 5:02 PM EDT Tuesday

 

Cincinnati has improved its home-ownership rate, but still lags the Tri-State in several key areas, including vacant units and median home value, according to figures released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

 

The bureau's 2005 American Community Survey showed 42.2 percent of the city's housing units are owner-occupied. That's up from the mid-30-percent range several years ago, but far below the U.S. average of 66.9 percent. Vacant housing units comprise 18.8 percent of the total, compared to 10.8 percent nationwide, and the median worth of an owner-occupied Cincinnati home is estimated at $121,000.

 

Read full article here:

http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2006/10/02/daily25.html

Cincinnati can boost its homeownership rate by 20% by merging with hamilton county into a single entity.

>Read the above two articles together and you can see the stupidity of our land use policies.  Someday, Boone County will be full of old, less desirable homes.  It's a dumb, vicious cycle.

 

I know over 1,000 people in Cincinnati and I know of only one person who grew up in Cincinnati who moved to Northern Kentucky, and he only lived there for a year before moving back.  If people are moving there from Cincinnati suburbs, it's people who transplanted to Cincinnati from somewhere else.  A family picking up and moving to Northern Kentucky from the neighborhood I grew up in was absolutely unthinkable.       

 

 

I know over 1,000 people in Cincinnati and I know of only one person who grew up in Cincinnati who moved to Northern Kentucky, and he only lived there for a year before moving back.  If people are moving there from Cincinnati suburbs, it's people who transplanted to Cincinnati from somewhere else.  A family picking up and moving to Northern Kentucky from the neighborhood I grew up in was absolutely unthinkable.       

 

I completely agree - I know two people who moved over to Ky as part of a great deal with new jobs, and they moved back a year later.  I have seen this guy from the data center make this quote before.  I would say most people who move in Ohio are moving to other parts of Ohio within the metro.  Northern Kentucky is doing great in some development, but it is not exactly considered a hip, hot place to move to (not that Ohio is that hip either).  They do have some of the same advantages of the suburban Ohio counties - plenty of room to build.  Back to the topic, the city needs to continue to promote new housing and condos to slowly "move the needle".  I also agree that this is a vicious cycle - as a region we need to adopt more smart growth to promote re-development and investment close to the city or what is new today will have the same issue in a few years, especially considering the lack of quality and poor aesthetics of some of these developments.

Northern Kentucky's has problems with ethnic diversity, getting better (see some recent articles) but it still is lacking.

^ I doubt it. Just goto any apartment complex and you will see the diversity.

For condo boom, rent comes due

October 13, 2006 by Dan Monk & Mark Bowen

 

"You've got to go with the market," said Frutkin, owner and founder of City Center Properties.  In summer 2003, Frutkin sold 18 condo units in three weeks in the 1400 block of Main Street, sparking a three-year explosion in downtown condo sales. Fueled by record-low interest rates and a weak rental market, developers launched dozens of new condo projects. Hundreds of units sold, at price points higher than many thought were possible three years ago.

 

But the market is shifting again. Interest rates are rising, home sales slowing. For the first time in four years, apartment rents are on the rise again. So, Frutkin is placing his bets on rental units, not condos.  "We feel like the apartment market is a much broader market," he said. "I think we're at the beginning of a long-term increase in stability and valuation."

 

Frutkin is not alone in that view. At the Cincinnati Development Fund, which manages loan portfolios for a consortium of local banks, every penny of the $5.5 million in loans closed since the fiscal year started in April have been for rental properties. In the prior two fiscal years, only a third of all units financed were rental units; two-thirds were for-sale properties, most of those condos.

 

New market research from David Lockard, a CB Richard Ellis broker who specializes in multifamily apartment sales, finds local rents have risen to a five-year high of $671 a month, or 74 cents per square foot. With occupancy rates now above 91 percent, Lockard is forecasting a 2.6 percent increase in rents for 2006. Rising mortgage rates -- particularly the jump in one- and three-year adjustable rate mortgages -- have "put the brakes on home buying," Lockard said. "The spread between the cost of renting and owning is widening, so people are staying in apartments."

 

Read full article here:

http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2006/10/16/story3.html

From the 10/15/06 Enquirer:

 

 

Public housing scarce in east

BY CLIFF RADEL | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

COLERAIN TWP. - Jeff Ritter has tossed some gasoline onto the long-smoldering East Side vs. West-Side debate.

 

The Colerain Township Trustee has found "a very disturbing disparity in the distribution of public housing in Hamilton County."

 

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061015/NEWS01/610150341/1077/COL02

 

The east side of the county and the city both have much more political capital than the west side (*money*).  Is anyone actually surprised?  The 2002 HUD report stated of the jurisdictions in Hamilton County, Cincinnati has 82% of the Section 8 vouchers and 96% of the permanent public housing, but only about 35% of the population.  (this may have decreased slightly). As long as race and poverty are interwined in the public collective conciseness the affluent, supermajoritarian white suburbs will resist any efforts by the government or market forces to bring about changes that would lead to racial and economic diversity. 

An upscale influx

Housing prices soar with new homes, condos

BY JEFF MCKINNEY | November 2, 2006

 

Some of Cincinnati's poorest neighborhoods are seeing a reversal of fortune:  Amid worries about crime and population losses, property values are soaring.  Buyers are paying double and triple what they did just three years ago to live in single-family homes and condos in the East End, West End and Over-the-Rhine, an Enquirer analysis of property data shows.

 

Other historically high-crime neighborhoods, including Walnut Hills, Pendleton and Lower Price Hill, also show some of the highest appreciation in property values.  Experts say construction of new condos and townhomes has boosted property values across the city. But the biggest increases are happening in some of the most struggling neighborhoods - strong evidence that developers and new residents are willing to take a chance there.

 

"What we're seeing is a remaking of some city neighborhoods spurred by new residential housing developments marketed to higher-income buyers," says Larry Harris, senior planner for the city. "The new development is changing the mix of housing and people we have in those neighborhoods."

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061102/BIZ01/611020338/1076/BIZ

What the hell has gotten into the Enquirer lately?  That's like 4-5 positive articles this week alone.

so someone actually does like in the gateway condos!  i agree...this article seemed way too positive. 

^I was also quite surprised, but it is a pleasant surprise to say the least....they should run nothing but pro-city propaganda for the next 20 years to make up for the injustice they have done the city over the past.

Sound the trust fund alarm:

 

Layla Dotson, 21, is typical.  She bought a one-bedroom condo in Over-the-Rhine for $151,000 after moving from Florida in June.

 

Yeah, she's typical all right. 

 

only 18 condos under contract for One River Plaze does not sound like good news to me.  I would have assumed there would have been more.  Even the Edge has more than that. 

Sound the trust fund alarm:

 

Layla Dotson, 21, is typical.  She bought a one-bedroom condo in Over-the-Rhine for $151,000 after moving from Florida in June.

 

Yeah, she's typical all right. 

 

 

If Cincinnati can attract more Layla Dotson's of the world, at least DT would be a much sexier place.

The price points at One River Plaza probably have something to do with that.

so someone actually does like in the gateway condos!  i agree...this article seemed way too positive. 

 

I think that condo looks pretty sweet from the picture.

only 18 condos under contract for One River Plaze does not sound like good news to me.  I would have assumed there would have been more.  Even the Edge has more than that. 

 

I'm a bit suprised that at the 18 number as well, and numbers tend to get exagerated for the press. It may be that the edge has been on the market a bit longer, there's a model in the building, and the view of the Taft is pretty nice from the window.

The price points at One River Plaza probably have something to do with that.

 

youre right but it seems one river plaza is a more high profile project with more advertising, press, and more to offer so I would have certainly figured they would have already sold more.  i dunno, maybe all the possible tenants are already under contract in the ascent.

The price points at One River Plaza probably have something to do with that.

 

That's probably what it is - the price points.  Right now, people have several downtown options in that price range.  Anything below $200K seems to go faster.

^btw, xumelanie, have you figured out where youre going to move to yet?

Analyst: City to rebound

BY JAMES MCNAIR | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

A national housing industry economist gave local builders the bad news first Thursday - that the housing market is in worse shape than reported - but ended his speech on an upbeat note by forecasting an earlier rebound for Greater Cincinnati than the nation as a whole.

 

Of the 125.8 million housing units in the nation at mid-year, 13 percent were vacant, a notch higher than the usual 12 percent, said Michael Carliner, vice president of economics for the National Association of Home Builders. Most of the vacancies are second homes, he said, but a swelling number are vacant homes for sale - 1.73 million, up 42 percent from 2002.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061103/BIZ01/611030345/1076/BIZ

>If Cincinnati can attract more Layla Dotson's of the world, at least DT would be a much sexier place.

 

Heh, didn't realize there were pics on the link.  I'm not going to argue against having more young women running around, but even if she somehow managed to graduate by age 21, unless she's renting to own or put the condo on layaway there was a down payment that came from unidentified sources.  Must be nice.   

 

I'm not going to argue against having more young women running around, but even if she somehow managed to graduate by age 21, unless she's renting to own or put the condo on layaway there was a down payment that came from unidentified sources.  Must be nice.   

 

Or...

 

Maybe she didn't do to college but entered the military after high school, got deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq, or both.  She decided not to re-up, got a job at a corporation that loves giving jobs to veterans (like many companies do), and bought the place on a no down payment VA loan (or saved her meager military salary for a down payment while she was deployed).

^Perhaps, but no matter the circumstance, hers is not "typical". But what I'm pointing out is that any young adult coming out of college or grad school with the national average student loan and credit card debt (something like $17,000) and average starting salary (something like $32,000) isn't going to be able to buy much at all, let alone get a mortgate for a $158,000 house or condo.     

>If Cincinnati can attract more Layla Dotson's of the world, at least DT would be a much sexier place.

 

Heh, didn't realize there were pics on the link.  I'm not going to argue against having more young women running around, but even if she somehow managed to graduate by age 21, unless she's renting to own or put the condo on layaway there was a down payment that came from unidentified sources.  Must be nice.   

 

 

It is possible to buy a home without a down payment.  5/3 offers a first time home buyers loan that requires no down payment with no PMI.  We used that program to buy our first home.

xumelanie is right.  She has a $151,000 mortgage which probably costs her between $700-$800/month if she does an interest only arm.  That means, after her tax break, her real cost is probably $550-$650/month.  And remember, this is new construction.  So she only pays taxes on the land divided by 30 (or however many units are in the building). That is less than $100/month.  I'm going to assume her utilities would cost the same as if she were renting.  So worst case scenario she is paying $900/month total or $10,800/year.  At $200/month utilities that's $1100/month or $13,200/year. (I feel these are pretty conservative numbers.)  If she makes $32,000/year (an d P&G like most corporate employers probably heavily subsidizes or completely pays for her medical insurance) she probably nets $22,000-$24,000/year after taxes.  I would say that's pretty typical and pretty easy to do unless you have no idea how to manage money, even if you throw in student loans and moderate credit card debt.  She probably doesn't clear much but it's entirely possible based upon where you place your priorities.   

It's no big deal to get financing on $150k as long as you have a decent income.  Probably $40k/year would do it.