Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Thinking about highrise living?
Rangers, Real Estate & Performance Halls
Tonight may not be a hand-wringing affair quite yet, but we will be at the Ballpark in Arlington trying to beat Oakland A's! Magic number is still 5.... What a great sports town we live in here in Dallas! Not only a great sports town! We attended a Classical Guitar performance at the new City Performance Hall last Sunday, and the acoustics were perfect! No amplification required and the smaller venue, at the front door of One Arts Plaza, is the final building to be completed in our incredible Arts District. The buildings are all works of art, and these are just two great reasons to live in Dallas, Texas!
Can't forget to mention our perfect September-October weather, and the fact that my buddy Grammy-nominated Russ Hewitt will be performing his original nuevo flamenco Saturday night at the Lakewood Theatre. And of course, we'll be attending the music concert Thursday night at the Dallas Arboretum, enjoying the Chihuly nights exhibit.....!!!
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Wait a minute, what about publishing CRE prices?
Many of our residential clients and realtors aren't too happy about the new MLS rule effective October 15, 2012, where residential home sales prices will now be disclosed. No more Z sales! The two main objections have been: 1) an immediate increase in property tax value because the sale price is significantly higher than current DCAD value and 2) the concern that the sale price, if considerably less than last list price, will negatively affect comps in the neighborhood.
If the alternative is for DCAD to use the last list price as the new appraised value, the new rule is a good one. Appraisers need the comps to value homes for lenders, homeowners need comps to assist in pricing their homes, and buyers need comps to help them determine value for a property they are looking to buy. Of course, the appraisal district needs them to tax residential property properly!
Here is what REALLY BOTHERS ME! This same rule needs to apply to Commercial Real Estate sales, e.g. the 55 story office tower sales, the large multi-family transaction, the land sale in the Design District. Commercial property owners need to share the property tax burden fairly instead of laying it off on homeowners. Let's level the playing field; if a Commercial Seller makes $25 million in profit on a sale, does not have to publish the sales price, and the property is valued by DCAD far below market, how is this fair to the City of Dallas, Dallas County, and the homeowner? Maybe the tax rate could be reduced if everyone played by the same rules. Just sayin'...
If the alternative is for DCAD to use the last list price as the new appraised value, the new rule is a good one. Appraisers need the comps to value homes for lenders, homeowners need comps to assist in pricing their homes, and buyers need comps to help them determine value for a property they are looking to buy. Of course, the appraisal district needs them to tax residential property properly!
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Trinity River coming alive in Dallas
Quality of outdoor life activities on the blackland prairie is about to be catapulted to a "better than good" rating here in the urban areas of Dallas! Yesterday, the City Council said yes to a 4.5 mile concrete trail along the Trinity, connecting to both the Katy Trail and Santa Fe Trail. Last month, construction bids were being collected for the first 2 miles of the Trinity Strand Trail in the design district, and developers in the Market Center and Medical District areas have decided to add trail behind their property along the new DART Rail line. The City is saying we may even have one of the planned lakes by 2016!
Did you know we have visiting Roseate Spoonbills, local Texas Wood Storks and River Otters (along with the wild pigs) that you can see at Lemmon Lake, or possibly while paddling on a 10 mile river trail? The Trinity Audubon Center continues to add hiking trails, as does Dogwood Canyon Audubon Center.
Whether you live in or move to Uptown, Oak Lawn, Park Cities, Greenway Parks, Greenway Crest, Lakewood, M Streets, Devonshire, Bluffview, the Design District, Downtown, North Oak Cliff, Downtown Dallas, the Arts District, Lake Highlands, Preston Hollow, Midway Hollow or in any neighborhood I missed, you will soon be able to walk, bike, or skate to a place where you can stand up paddle, canoe, kayak or crew! Which is good, since the last month we've been envying and enjoying the land and water trails in Memorial area of Houston, everywhere in Austin (!) and along the ocean in the Florida Panhandle. Kudos Dallas!
Sunday, July 22, 2012
2012 -- First Half Joy!
1st half of 2012 update -- the Ebby Halliday Companies, including us at Dave Perry-Miller & Associates, have sold more than 1300 residential properties so far in 2012. We are in a dynamic market, which everyone reading or listening to the media knows by now. When Buyers are asked what are the reasons for their motivation, they say "it's a great time to make a good deal", or "these mortgage rates are insanely low", and it looks like they've been saving up over the past 5 years to make the 20% down payment. A large down payment gives them the opportunity to increase their equity as time goes on, instead of losing it immediately with a 1% down payment, a job change, market shift or life event. Buyers are believing in real estate again as a good investment, they feel better about our "American Dream" of owning your own piece of the world. Now, if the lenders, leaders and policy-makers refrain from greediness (right), maybe the residential markets will continue to settle down and be a place where people want to stake their claims. Go Texas!
Dave Perry-Miller and Associates, Luxury Homes, Dallas, Texas
Our new listing -- a private, exquisite property on 1.6 acres!
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