If inhaled or swallowed, lead can be very toxic, especially to small children. If ingested, it accumulates in the body’s bones and other tissues and is known to impair the physical and mental development of children and aggravate blood pressure problems in adults. In older homes lead is principally found in the paint and plumbing. Continue reading “QUERIN LAW: Lead Based Paint”
The governing statutes are ORS 105.462 to 105.490. ORS 105.464 sets forth a form of disclosure statement that, subject to limited exceptions, all sellers of Oregon residential property must complete. The disclosure statement consists of 50+ questions about the property being offered for sale. The representations are not warranties; they are based upon the seller’s best knowledge. Continue reading “Oregon’s Seller Property Disclosure Law”
If you have never been involved in a boundary dispute you’ve been fortunate. Over the years, I’ve seen many, and the take-away is this: The principle of adverse possession, which is a well-established doctrine of the Common Law[1], can make enemies of neighbors. I’ve seen disputants spend more money fighting each other over a sliver of land than the land is actually worth. “It’s the principle.” Continue reading “Realtor® Alert: Understanding Adverse Possession”
Closed sales: Decreased by 6.4% (2,511) from 2,682 in May. But year-to-date, they increased 11.9% over June 2012 with 2,244 closed sales. [Comment: There could be several reasons. But we know one harsh reality: In May, 2013 the rate of interest jumped from 4.39% to 4.51%, the largest hike since July 2011. See discussion here. That could have disqualified some borrowers for mortgage loans.] Continue reading “At a Glance: Portland Metro Residential Real Estate Stats – June, 2013”
It is no secret that my regard for the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (“the CFPB”) is akin to my regard for Bubonic Plague; they both grow exponentially, can be difficult to eradicate – and they both come from rats. For background about this regulatory Leviathon, see my rants posts here and here. Continue reading “The CFPB – Spawn of Frankendodd”
For the last several years, the Federal Reserve has pursued an unorthodox (read “last resort”) fiscal policy known as “Quantitative Easing.”[1] Fed Chair Ben Bernanke had originally stated that QE would continue until unemployment fell to 6.5%. Even though we are not there yet, and likely won’t be for a while,[2] in May, Mr. Bernanke gave an indication that he might take his foot off the QE pedal a little sooner than expected. The credit markets and stock markets went crazy. To understand why, we need to understand: (a) What QE is all about; (b) How it affects stocks and interest rates; and (c) What will be the effect when QE is discontinued. Continue reading “Unease About Quantitative Easing”
Background. As mentioned in an earlier post here, the Niday case, which I have previously commented on here and here as it was winding its way up the appellate process, and its companion case, Brandrup, were recently decided by the Oregon Supreme Court.
- Brandrup presented to the Court four “certified questions” for the judges, sitting as a full panel “en banc”, regarding MERS and its role as henchman for the Big Banks in the Oregon trust deed foreclosure process. The Brandrup opinion is found here.
- Niday, was decided based of the Court’s answers to the certified questions in Brandrup. The Niday opinion is found here. Continue reading “Will The Niday & Brandrup Rulings Change How Foreclosures Are Conducted In Oregon? Not Likely!”
“The average sales price so far this year is $299,900, up 14.9% from the same period in 2012, when the average was $261,100. In the same comparison, the median price increased 15.0% from $220,000 last year to $253,000 in the first five months of 2013.” June, 2013 RMLS™ Market Action Report for the Portland-Metro area. [Based on May 2013 numbers.]
What Do These Statistics Mean To Sellers And Buyers? Let’s assume a 15% rolling 12-month price appreciation figure. That translates into a 1.25% per month increase in value [15%/12 = 1.25%]. Assume that a seller listed their home at $250,000 and received a full-price offer in 30 days. Then, assume that the transaction was subject to the buyer obtaining financing, and the closing date was scheduled for 60 days hence. Continue reading “QUERIN LAW: The Time-Value of Money in Portland’s Appreciating Real Estate Market”
How low can housing inventory go? According to Oregon’s Regional Multiple Listing Service (“RMLS®”), May’s inventory dropped to 2.5 months. To clarify, according to RMLS®, “inventory in months”:
“…is calculated by dividing the Active Listings at the end of the month in question by the number of closed sales for that month. This includes proposed and under construction homes.”
Here are the numbers from 2011 to date:
Continue reading “2013 Portland Metro Housing Inventory = Feeding Frenzy”
One of the most notable bi-products of the foreclosure disaster, was another disaster – the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act; a 2300 page tome bearing the names of two of the primary beneficiaries of the Lender Lobby, Chris Dodd, charter member of the “Friends of Angelo” [as in Angelo Mozilo, CEO of Countrywide] who gave sweetheart loans to his political cronies, and the irascible Barney Frank, whose distinction lies in the fact that while heading the Financial Services Committee in 2006, he patently ignored the credit and housing bubbles, while taking campaign money from one of his two largest contributors, the American Bankers Association. And both men – in what can best be described as “biting the hand that fed them” – co-authored the uber-regulatory bill that bears their names, then promptly retired from the Senate, leaving the bureaucrats to write the 400 rules interpreting this wildly aspirational set of laws.[1] Continue reading “CFPB – A Bad Case of Mission Creep”