Category Archives: residential real estate

For builders, inflation continues to be a MAJOR issue!

Residential Construction Costs Continue To Soar! Courtesy of Wolf Street (a great blog to subscribe to!)… ‘…Construction costs of single-family houses spiked by 17.5% year-over-year in December, according to separate data from the Census Bureau today. This was the worst spike in the data going back to 1970. Compared to two years ago, construction costs […]

Imagine Excluding Current Mortgage Debt Service From The DTI Calculation For A New Mortgage!

DTI Calculation Excluding Current Mortgage Payments! Back in 2019 we highlighted a fantastic national mortgage program being offered by a major money-center institution, Citicorp, that actually excludes current mortgage payments from the debt-to-income (DTI) calculation for a homebuyer who is actively looking for a new home and will be selling the current one! Given the current […]

Feeding Frenzy For Suburban Residential Property – All Good, Or Bubble-like?

Exodus of population from dense environments has led to a scarcity of inventory and a sharp escalation in residential real estate prices in the suburbs…Can it all be sustained? Pandemic has caused property in less dense locales to be in high demand and short supply, leading to sharp increases in prices. Add to the mix […]

With the Supreme Court in the headlines, the right to choose takes center stage!

  The Supreme Court and the nomination, now confirmation, of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to serve as an Associate Justice of the United States highest court, has been in focus for many weeks! In New York State the right to choose is a topic that’s in the forefront of everyone’s mind, and at Hallmark Abstract Service […]

3 Often Overlooked Expenses in Home Ownership

3 Often Overlooked Expenses in Home Ownership Perhaps your family has outgrown the small apartment you’re currently renting, or maybe you want to expand your already thriving collection of vacation properties. Whatever your reason might be for purchasing a new home, it’s important to ready your bank accounts for this major undertaking. Recent months have […]

CLOSING ON YOUR HOME REMOTELY IN A PANDEMIC, Michele Cea, Esq. Guest Author

As a bonus to the readers of the Hallmark Abstract Service blog, we will periodically feature industry experts as guest authors. In this role they provide an inside look at topics surrounding the New York residential and commercial real estate industry with information that is invaluable! If anyone would ever like to contribute, articles need not […]

Apartment Rental Agents in New York City: What Happens When a Potential Death Blow Hits?

Update September 10, 2020: A New York judge temporarily blocked a new state rule barring brokers from charging tenants. For now, tenants will once again be paying fees to brokers! The new state of the apartment rental real estate industry in New York City (as of Tuesday), reminds one of the Abbott and Costello routine ‘Who’s […]

The 2019 New York State Budget Includes Real Property Transfer Tax And Mansion Tax Increases!

Follow Hallmark Abstract Service on social media 2019 New York State Real Property Transfer Tax And Mansion Tax Increases or, Just When You Thought Your Tax Burden Couldn’t Get Any Worse! As New York State’s Governor Cuomo embarked on a search for new sources of tax revenues, ultimately residential real estate and real estate transactions […]

Guest Author – ‘Challenging Your NYC Property Value Assessment May Be Easier Than Ever’ by Darya Shneyder

New York City photo

New York City property value assessments, like those on Long Island, can often be based on data that is often considered by the owner to be somewhat inaccurate and/or open for debate. Maybe you should think about appealing! (Challenging Your NYC Property Value Assessment May Be Easier Than Ever originally appeared in the Commercial Observer, […]

Why Is The Residential Real Estate Market Under-performing Its Potential?

single family home photo

Is it a good time to buy a home? A good time to sell? Time to sit on your hands and do nothing? Looking at simple statistics such as new home sales, existing homes sales, and housing starts may not tell the entire story or provide any real insight! So is there a metric that […]