The Housing Comeback - Prices Going Up And Couple Spends Over 2 Years Searching For A Home
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - All this week, WCBS 880 is looking at what's happening in the housing market.
Realtors and builders say the housing market is finally turning around, Ginny Kosola reported.
"I think the feeling is now that prices are not going to go down, and that's really inducing and bringing people into the market," said Mike Slattery of the Real Estate Board of New York, who sees the change.
Special Series: The Housing Comeback - Finding A Home / Prices Going Up
So does George Vallone, President of The Hoboken Brownstone company. He also teaches real estate finance at Rutgers University.
"It was a combination of the economy starting to pick up, interest rates at an all-time low, and people suddenly became more confident about their jobs," he said.
Kosola also spoke with new homeowners in Brooklyn.
"Is this my dream home? It's pretty pretty close," said Suzanne Reich, who, along with her husband Jonathan and their kids, just moved into their own brownstone in Park Slope a few weeks ago.
They needed more space when they had twin daughters.
The process took two-and-a-half years.
"We probably went to at least 200 listings and open houses or appointments with brokers," she said.
No matter where they looked in Brooklyn, they were priced out.
"If a large brokerage was listing a house for under $1 million, that house was going to go for way over $1 million to someone who's paying all cash," she said. "That just became the reality of it and that was just not the place that you could get your foot in the door."
Then one day she saw a listing on a sandwich board in front of a local realtor.
The home needed work, but, she said "It had a new boiler, it had a great water heater, it had kind of all the bones we could work with."
With 20 percent down and good credit, their bid was accepted.
Their success is a sign of what's happening.
Philip DeFranzo of NorCom Mortgage in Connecticut says it's changed for lenders too.
"You definitely feel a sense of optimism this spring," he said, adding that if you have good credit and a good job, you should shop for a lender. "Some people may not offer the VA program and you may be a veteran that could qualify for that."
In the far-reaching suburbs of New York City, you might even qualify for a mortgage intended to preserve rural neighborhoods.
"The USDA has a website you can go on to show you what communities are rural communities. They can do something at 100 percent financing," he said.
DeFranzo added your lender should pull your credit score for you for free, if not that then for a small fee.
Check back on Tuesday when Ginny Kosola will check out Connecticut and New Jersey.
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