We recently received this from our client:

"Dear Dan,

I want to thank you for being a great help to me during this whole process. You and your team have been friendly, responsive, and informative every step of the way. My wife and I are really glad to have you on our side.

Thank you again. - T.W."

It is a real pleasure to be able to help our clients through whatever challenges they are having.

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Trump’s Transition Team Pledges to Dismantle Dodd-Frank Act

- Nov. 10, 2106, Jesse Hamilton, Elizabeth Dexheimer 

President-elect Donald Trump is translating some of his populist campaign rhetoric into policy statements, including the contention that the Dodd-Frank Act should be scrapped because it has made Wall Street banks an even bigger threat to the nation’s economy and working families.

After the government’s answer to the 2008 financial crisis, the “big banks got bigger while community financial institutions have disappeared at a rate of one per day, and taxpayers remain on the hook for bailing out financial firms deemed ‘too big to fail,’” says a statement posted on Trump’s official transition website. “The Financial Services Policy Implementation team will be working to dismantle the Dodd-Frank Act and replace it with new policies to encourage economic growth and job creation.”

U.S. bank stocks climbed for a second straight day on Thursday as investors bet a Trump presidency will lead to less regulation and sideline industry critics in Congress led by Senator Elizabeth Warren.
The 24-company KBW Bank Index advanced 3 percent at 3:16 p.m. in New York, led by Wells Fargo & Co., which rose 7.4 percent. Bank of America Corp. advanced 4.5 percent, while JPMorgan Chase & Co. climbed 4.4 percent.

Trump Antagonist

The call to scrap Dodd-Frank isn’t likely to go over well with Warren, the Wall Street scourge and Trump antagonist who said Thursday that she’d be willing to work with the incoming administration to enact economic and banking policies so long as he didn’t loosen existing rules. In remarks prepared for an AFL-CIO labor federation event in Washington, Warren cited issues they agree on, including the need to curtail Wall Street influence in politics, reinstate Glass-Steagall Act limits on banking activities and reform trade deals.

“When President-elect Trump wants to take on these issues, when his goal is to increase the economic security of middle-class families, then count me in,” the Massachusetts Democrat said on Thursday. “I will put aside our differences and I will work with him to accomplish that goal.”
 
In addition to repealing Dodd-Frank, Trump’s transition website outlines several policies that will be familiar to those who followed his campaign, including calls for a moratorium on new rules so existing measures can be reviewed. It also broadly addressed a tax-code overhaul, saying Trump’s plan “can be summarized as lower, simpler, fairer, and pro-growth.”

The new administration’s plans for financial regulation could pull from a proposal released earlier this year by Representative Jeb Hensarling, the Texas Republican who leads the House Financial Services Committee. His bill -- dubbed the Choice Act -- calls for ripping up core parts of Dodd-Frank, including a provision that empowers the government to dismantle failed banks. He also wants to do away with Volcker Rule restrictions on banks’ trading and investments, and to weaken the reach of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Warren’s pledge offers a first glimpse of a strategy she may use next year when Republicans control the White House and both chambers in Congress.
“Americans want to hold the big banks accountable,” Warren said. “If Trump and the Republican Party try to turn loose the big banks and financial institutions so they can once again gamble with our economy and bring it all crashing down, then we will fight them every step of the way.”

Read the entire article here and contact us for any questions or guidance you need. We are here to help you.
  
Daniel Barli, Esq.
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Why You Should Avoid Zillow at All Costs

by Kristina Modares

Why You Should Avoid Zillow at all Costs....and Trulia and Realtor.com...etc

In a society obsessed with technology and social media, we are bombarded by loads of content. Today, anybody can post information online and just because something’s popular doesn’t mean it’s accurate. Now more than ever, we need to be very conscious of where our information comes from. Does the founder of this website have a motive for posting certain content? What is the real reason this website exists?

In real estate, most websites exist to extract your contact information. They’re giant traps created as a lead machine for Realtors (the ones who pay anyway). Websites such as Zillow, Realtor.com and Trulia are all designed with the sole purpose of creating (weak) leads for Realtors, and in turn, revenue for the websites. At the same time, these are the exact sites where buyers begin their home search and where sellers look to find the value of their current home. This creates a variety of problems due to the false advertising and inaccurate data. 

 Of all the online real estate databases, Zillow may be the very worst. It’s the most commonly used site despite the false advertising and information. I was first introduced to Zillow leads when I left my previous real estate team. It was my first time working entirely on commission, and I was doing whatever I could to generate leads. An agent in my brokerage told me about the Zillow leads she paid for. She offered to share a few of them as she didn’t have enough time to contact all of them in a timely manner. It seemed so easy. The first Zillow lead email she forwarded me included the name, number and email address of somebody who was interested in a South Austin home. At the time, I didn’t realize how the Zillow lead system worked. So, I called this lead, ready to give them more information on the home, happy to help and excited to talk to a potential client.

The voice on the other end of the line sounded exhausted, “You’re the 20th Realtor to call me in the past hour. Please stop calling.” Not exactly the type of response I was hoping for when following up on these “hot leads”. I instantly felt guilty and apologized. The image below shows that the potential buyer was interested in talking to somebody about the property and did inquire about it. Little did he know he’d get dozens of calls from multiple agents over the next week.  

I understand sales jobs are competitive and finding good leads is key to survival, but was this even a way to obtain strong, profitable leads?  
 
Zillow creates a lose-lose situation. The potential buyer is angry, the agent is paying way too much money to compete with way too many agents, and it’s overwhelming for a buyer who is only on Zillow to browse through the home photos. During the timeline of these first searches, many buyers are in no way ready to transact on a property. I’m sure some Realtors thrive using Zillow leads, but it puts a sour taste in my mouth. It’s not honest, and it’s not accurate. Who is winning here? Zillow.

Let’s look into this a bit more. What is the lowdown on Zillow and similar sites?
  
Inaccurate information
For buyers:
Many of the homes listed on Zillow may not be for sale. For example, a client of mine was intrigued by a house they saw on Zillow. Zillow’s data showed the house was currently for sale, had been on the market for almost a month and was in the area and budget they wanted. What I found via the MLS is that the house had sold in three days a month prior and for over asking price.

Another way Zillow can provide inaccurate information is through the agent listed with the property. You would think this is the “listing agent” or the “seller’s agent.” Wrong. It’s usually attached to a paying Realtor client of Zillow. It’s misleading advertising, and it’s taking advantage of people. So instead of turning to a massive online real estate database like Zillow, turn to friends and family. A simple social media post asking for a great local Realtor will probably get you great results!

For sellers:
Zestimates are Zillow’s algorithm-produced appraisals. They provide people with a basic estimate of what a particular property is worth. Are Zestimates ever accurate? Rarely. According to economist John Wake, the typical Zillow Zestimate error is $14,000. “You don’t know if it’s $14,000 too high or $14,000 too low. And it gets worse because HALF the time Zillow Zestimates are off by a lot more than $14,000”. How can they be accurate when there are so many factors to determine how much a house is worth. No two houses are the same which makes it impossible for a computer to determine it’s value. Zillow uses a computer generated algorithm based on what has sold in the area, the square footage and the number of bedrooms. The basics. They don’t have inspectors checking out each property making sure their data is accurate. That’s the only way to determine a property’s worth. Yet, many sellers will only look to Zillow when they start thinking about putting their house on the market.

Unwanted Communication

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Daniel Barli, Esq.
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May 12, 2016 -

N.J. continues to lag nation on clearing foreclosures

By KATHLEEN LYNN, The Record

New Jersey led the nation in foreclosure starts in the first quarter, as the state continues to grapple with the fallout from the housing crash, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Thursday.

About 11.5 percent of New Jersey mortgages were either in foreclosure or late on payments in the first quarter, almost double the national average of 6.5 percent, the MBA said.

While national foreclosure rates are back to pre-recession levels, New Jersey’s court system is still dealing with a large backlog of distressed properties. Last year, almost 36,000 residential foreclosures were filed in the state. So far this year, an average of about 2,500 foreclosures have been filed each month, according to the state Judiciary.

Mortgage troubles don’t just affect the homeowners involved, said Patrick O’Keefe, an economist with the accounting firm CohnReznick in New York and Roseland. They also “influence the value of neighboring properties,” he said, because homes in foreclosure tend to be poorly maintained and sell at a discounted price. That affects appraisals and prices of nearby homes.

The national foreclosure and delinquency numbers in the first quarter reflect “a consistent downward trend that began in the second quarter of 2012,” according to Marina Walsh, an MBA vice president.
New Jersey has lagged the nation for several reasons. First, it is one of about two dozen states that require foreclosures to go through the courts, which takes longer. And the process was further slowed several years ago, when courts imposed a near-freeze on foreclosures while the mortgage industry responded to allegations it was abusing homeowners’ rights in the rush to evict.

In addition, New Jersey’s rate of job creation took a while to catch up to the national rate. While the unemployment rate has dropped in New Jersey to 4.4 percent, lower than the national rate of 5 percent, the Garden State still has not made up all the jobs lost in the recession, a milestone the nation passed two years ago.

A check of the properties heading for foreclosure auction in North Jersey showed many properties in lower- and middle-income places like Hackensack, Garfield, Elmwood Park and Paterson, with unpaid mortgages in the $100,000 to $300,000 range.

But more affluent towns have not been immune. Lenders have filed foreclosure actions against properties with million-dollar mortgages in Allendale and Upper Saddle River, as well as an Alpine home where $2.6 million is owed.

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 Daniel Barli, Esq.
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Sale of Ironbound lot could pave way for new era in iconic Newark neighborhood

By Dan Ivers, on December 14, 2015 at 11:38 AM

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NEWARK - Bidding has opened on a large piece of property in the Ironbound District that stakeholders say could forever change the course of Newark's most iconic neighborhood.

The owners of the famed Iberia restaurant placed the 5.2-acre site on the open market earlier this month, and are courting developers who may see it as a prime parcel for a high-rise office or residential tower.

Frank Giantomasi, a real estate attorney with Chiesa, Shahinian & Giantomasi who is representing the owners in the potential sale, said the site - with frontage on major thoroughfares Market Street and Ferry Street - could be key in the city's plans to attract new professionals seeking both easy access to Newark Penn Station and amenities including restaurants, shopping and nightlife.

"This could be the first development that truly creates a walking class of commuters," he said.

While skyscraping buildings are commonplace downtown, the structures have always remained west of Penn Station. Similarly, boons of retail and mixed-use development have popped up downtown around the Prudential Center and Military Park, though Giantomasi said similar growth in the Ironbound would open up even greater possibilities.

"This says positive things for Newark, shows that the development is not all on the downtown side. This is more community development, as opposed to being driven by the arena or the performing arts center," Giantomasi said.

The Ironbound District, with its vibrant population of Portuguese and Brazilian immigrants living in the dense neighborhoods of brick and clapboard houses, is often counted as among the most unique in all of New Jersey – a distinction locals would like to maintain.

The Iberia property is currently home to both the restaurant and two storage facilities, but is mostly occupied by blacktop parking spaces, which city officials have often lamented as a deterrent to major development as they look to create a transit-oriented district similar to what has sprung up around the PATH station in Harrison.

"We're slowly losing against towns like Harrison, Jersey City, Hoboken to develop the area around Penn Station, so we can create the conditions to attract new people,'' East Ward Councilman Augusto Amador told the Star-Ledger last year.

Development has recently begun to bubble in the area, however, with national chains beginning to appear alongside more deeply entrenched family businesses, and plans for a boutique hotel and new apartment buildings underway.

Though similar declarations of a new age in the Ironbound have come and gone before, Giantomasi said he believed the neighborhood has too much to offer not to rise to even greater heights.

"Ferry Street is a unique street in America," he said. "It's the closest thing we have to a Bourbon Street or something like that, with restaurants, nightlife, eating and drinking."

Dan Ivers may be reached at divers@njadvancemedia.com. 

Daniel Barli, Esq. http://www.barlilaw.com
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