Posts

New ‘2030 District’ vows to slash downtown energy use by 50 percent

An Mlive article released December 14, 2015 by staff writer Jim Harger is the latest example of how Grand Rapids, Michigan continues to be a leader in the field of greening, conservation, and cooperation. It is encouraging and refreshing to see local business leaders take part in such a forward-thinking initiative.

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“Can downtown Grand Rapids cut its total energy, emissions and water use by 50 percent in the next 15 years? That’s the goal set by Grand Rapids 2030 District, a collaboration of private and public groups. It’s part of an effort that includes 11 other North American cities…”

Full article here.

Interview with Grand Rapids Superintendent Shows Optimism for Future of Education

Great article today in Rapid Growth. I’d urge you to subscribe if you haven’t already.

Call it a comeback: Grand Rapids Public Schools on the upswing, poised to thrive

Excerpt:

Under Weatherall Neal’s leadership, her team sifted out three goals for the Transformation Plan:

  • Ensuring children reach their academic potential with equal access to high quality schools and the most talented principals and teachers
  • Replicating and expanding what’s working and stopping what’s not
  • Offering quality choices that are academically and financially sustainable

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Will Downtown Grand Rapids get a Streetcar after all?

“The Rapid public-transit system is paying HDR Inc. $293,895 to refine the 2008 study, updating what an electric streetcar line would cost and how the money could come together. An advisory committee started meeting last month.

“‘We’re going to build on that (2008 study),’ said John Logie, a former Grand Rapids mayor who is chairman of the committee. ‘We think the timing is right. The economy is coming back.'”

streetcar

 

LINK TO FULL GR PRESS ARTICLE

Grand Rapids Home Values Up 16 Percent After Healthy Spring Market

With the Spring Market well underway in Grand Rapids, its time to look back and see if the ecomonists favorable yet conservative predictions from 2012 have come true.  After the big and constant decline over the past few years, I’m happy to say that Real Estate is trending upward, probably faster than we were expecting.

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Comparing January-April 2012-2013, the numbers are looking great. Here are a few facts that point to a recovering market:

Heritage Hill & surrounding historic district, Grand Rapids:
In 2012, 42 homes in the surveyed downtown area were sold from the beginning of the year through April, as compared to 43 homes sold during that same period in 2013. The average sale price was $189,000 in 2012, and $215,000 in 2013. That is a healthy increase of around 14% from last year to this year.

Other neighborhoods of note:

Grand Rapids Downtown Historic District: up 14%
Grand Rapids Northeast: up 11%
Walker: up 15%
Northwest Neighborhoods: up 17-27%
Northeast Side: up 5-38%
East Grand Rapids: up 20%
Southeast Areas: up 2-23%
Wyoming: up 15-23%
Grandville: up 9%
Kentwood Neighborhoods: up 9-13
West Side: up 8%
Grand Rapids Township: up 26%
Cascade: up 25%

Overall, the Greater Grand Rapids area has had a similar number of listings and sales in Spring 2013 as compared to Spring 2012, but the average sale price this year is $132,688 as compared to least year’s Spring average of $114, 626. That’s an almost 16% increase across the Greater Grand Rapids area.

Right now, consumer confidence is up and foreclosure listings are down. Over the next 2-3 years, the banks will be selling the rest of their Shadow Inventory, which are the foreclosures that remain from the dark period we just experienced. Still, there are far fewer foreclosure listings now than there have been in recent years, and the confidence of home sellers continues to grow along with sale prices.

With inventory this low and lots of buyers out there, the market seems to favor the seller. Still, there are some foreclosure listings in the mix, which jostle the recent memory of a heavily-weighted buyers market. Right now, it is a great time to engage in this Real Estate market, whether you plan buy or to sell. Buyers are faced with historically low interest rates coupled with low prices. Sellers are experiencing the most success since prior to 2008. These are good times.

All statistics courtesy of Grand Rapids Association of Realtors

West Michigan Real Estate Market Continues Noticeable Recovery

By Pete Bruinsma

Great news for people in West Michigan, the real estate market is finally recovering!

According to research on sold homes within the Grand Rapids Association of Realtors data range, February is when this year’s Spring market really kicked in, showing a 40% increase in sales volume in the region as compared to the year before.

Current reports show that the strengthening of West Michigan market will continue. Not only are total number of homes increasing, but value is also increasing. This is a good sign for people worried about foreclosures dragging down prices, bad news for those looking to capitalize on home flips and property investments.

GRAR stats from May 2011 show that 1100 homes were sold in West Michigan, as compared to 1400 in May 2012. Total sales volume in May of 2011 was $123 Million as compared to $180 Million this year.  That’s a 20% increase in number of homes sold, and a 32% increase in value.

June continues to be a hectic month for Realtors in the area, and listings continue to sell.

The numbers above are a good indicator that West Michigan is selling fewer “fire sale” listings, and more on normal terms. So how do these numbers translate to property value? CNN Money predicts that the average home in West Michigan will appreciate by 3.6% in the next year. People in West Mighigan, get ready for your homes to start appreciating again!

All Rights Reserved, © Pete Bruinsma 2012

I Could’ve Saved $38,000!

In 1998, I purchased my very first home with an interest rate just over 7% and I was thrilled. It is a 2-unit, I still have it as an investment, and I refinanced just this past week to an non-owner-occupant rate of 4.5%. Being a numbers guy, I calculated that with no re-fis, I would have paid $96,353 in interest until now. If I’d had an original rate like I received this week, my to-date interest would have been $58,377.  That’s a difference of $38 Grand!

When I think about it, it is astounding how great the buying climate is today for buyers. You’ve heard that home prices are at a long-time low, but money is also very cheap. This is a wicked combination! I’m focusing on interest rates only for this post. Here is a chart of interest rates, from when I personally started purchasing until now:

Bringing it Home

What does this mean for you, a buyer in today’s market? Here’s an example:

You qualify now for a $100,000 mortgage. All factors the same, we warp you back to 1998 with 7.1% interest rates. You are now qualified for a $77,000 purchase.

Lets modernize this. Say you qualify in Fall 2011 for a $100,000 mortgage at 4% interest. You wait awhile and interest rates go back up to 5.85%, a rate we saw a couple of years ago. You are now qualified for a purchase price of just over $85,000 with the same down payment and loan terms.

Lets flip it around:

You purchase a $100,000 home and put $3,000 down. Here’s how much interest you pay over the life of the 30 year loan:

7.1% (like 1998): $137,674
4.0% (like right now): $69,713
5.85% (like…the future): $109,007


$100k will get you this home in West Michigan, or one of many others:

A $100,000 West Michigan home, MLS# 11038124.

 

 

Buyers, I have news for you: Now is the time!

Time to make a choice!

(a) Now
(b) Later

Pete Bruinsma is an Associate Broker at Grand Rapids Realty in West Michigan. © www.PeteBruinsma.com

How to I find a home for sale by Land Contract in Grand Rapids?

Link: Question and Answer

Good question…many homes for sale by land contract are not listed on the MLS because sellers just dont like paying commission before they are free and clear of the home. Say you buy a listed home on land contract, you close two weeks later, 6% of the 10% down payment from the buyer is split by the listing and selling broker. The seller is left with the remaining 4% or so minus closing costs, and a 3-5 year loan to keep track of. “Might as well just rent it and wait for the market to pick up” is something Realtors hear often these days.

I have two answers for you. First, there a lot of investors in town selling homes on land contract. Often a sign in the yard sells a home like that in a good neighborhood and good schools. You’ll want to talk to a Realtor who knows who those investors are, and which ones are worth contacting and which are not. Second, if you have at least a good 10% to put down on a house, look for your ideal home in the ideal neighborhood that is currently for rent, and make an offer. Just because its not listed does not mean its not for sale! And…you’ll want a good Realtor to represent you so you dont get ripped off in terms of value, terms, interest rate, and general business conduct.

Grand Rapids Association of Realtors (GRAR) Joins SWMRIC

MLIVE ARTICLE

From GRAR

The Grand Rapids Association of Realtors, or GRAR,  is now part of the South and West Michigan Regional Information Center, or SWMRIC.

The biggest change will involve the MLS, the Multiple Listing System, which is how all the homes currently on the market can be viewed by Realtors, Clients and the general public. GRAR was using Solid Earth for their MLS, but to join with SWMRIC, converted over to that system, using Rapattoni instead. And while for the most part, all the listings transferred over, there are still a few gliches being worked on. In addition, the number of characters for property descriptions is also limited to 1000, so many Realtors will need to downsize their comments.

SWMRIC covers available Real Estate in the South and West Michigan counties of Allegan, Barry, Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, Cass, Hillsdale, Ionia, Kalamazoo, Kent, Lake, Manistee, Mason, Mecosta, Montcalm, Muskegon, Newaygo, Oceana, Osceola, Ottawa, St. Joseph, Van Buren and beyond.

Serving the following Realtor Associations: Battle Creek Area, Branch County, Grand Rapids, Greater Kalamazoo, Hillsdale County, Mason-Oceana-Manistee, Montcalm County, Southwestern Michigan, St. Joseph, West Central Michigan and West Michigan Lakeshore.

Community Groups Address Housing Concerns at GR City Commission Briefing

Link to full RAPIDIAN ARTICLE

A coalition of 24 community organizations will be presenting a position paper to the Grand Rapids City Commission at 10:30am tomorrow (7/27/2010) calling for cooperation to address growing housing concerns as a result of the recent changes in the real estate market.

The position paper calls for three primary issues to be addressed.

* Ensuring a minimum standard of quality among all rental units by adding single family rental units to the City’s rental inspection and certification program.

* Redesigning the City’s vacant property inspections program to mitigate the negative effects that the foreclosure crisis has had on property values, crime, and neighborhood stability.

* Creating a comprehensive, accessible, and accurate database of parcel information.