The 10 Coolest Cities in the United States

As a Los Angeles native, I am used to a fast paced lifestyle in a city many people consider to be “cool”. Considering this, an entry on the blog “The Real Estate Bloggers” caught my attention since it lists the top ten coolest cities in the United States. Some of the cities that were ranked did not surprise me while others did.

New York and Las Vegas were ranked first and second. This was no surprise to me. I’ve visited both of these cities and I can confidently say that they have earned their rank as two of the coolest places in the country. After all, New York has the reputation as “the city that never sleeps”. The nightlife and attractions here are second to none. Las Vegas is just as awesome. Considered to be the gambling capital of the west coast, this oasis in the desert is home to some of the best restaurants, hotels, and nightclubs in the country.

Los Angeles and Miami were ranked eighth and ninth. These standing were hard to believe at first. As an L.A. resident who is constantly told how fun his home city is, I was expecting a higher rank closer to Las Vegas and Chicago. The social scene and nightlife here is pretty impressive. The same can be said for Miami, which has some of the most pristine beaches in the country.     

Time Square- New York City

the Las Vegas strip

Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch- An Investment?

Investors have been busy buying foreclosed and discounted properties hoping to make a profit since the mortgage meltdown began. I learned from a March Wall Street journal article that Tom Barrack, Colony Capital CEO, recently purchased the world famous Neverland Ranch, once owned by Michael Jackson. This property was foreclosed on right after Jackson’s death and is currently being restored to its former glory. Barrack says that he is not planning on “doing anything commercial with it and that he is just a steward of a very special place.” To be perfectly honest, I find this hard to believe.

Although Tom Barrack’s plans for Jackson’s ranch seem harmless, I would not be surprised if he turns this famous property into a moneymaker for his company. After all, he is still an investor. I can easily imagine Neverland as a major tourist destination open to the public for a fee of course.  

Neverland Ranch

Just a few of the many rides Michael Jackson bought for this property

The main entrance of Neverland Ranch

Tom Barrack

Philanthropy and Foreclosures

Who would have ever thought that some good could come out of the current mortgage crisis? After reading an article titled “Chase Bank foreclosures being ‘donated,’ and sold at ‘steep discounts’ to nonprofits”, I learned that several banks have joined forces to help distressed communities. Lending institutions such as JP Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo have been remodeling and re-selling foreclosed homes at huge discounts to needy families. In some cases, houses were even given away to non-profit organizations. The shear scale of this generosity is what shocked me the most. According to the article, “Chase has donated and/or sold about 1,200 homes” in the last two years.

Although I applaud these organizations for their philanthropic efforts, it’s the least they can do. After all, their poor lending practices were one of the main causes of the financial meltdown. Rather than being responsible lenders, banks around the country got greedy and gave out as many loans as possible. At times, people received a mortgage without a down payment or even a simple credit check! Many Americans who were clearly incapable of paying back loans still qualified. 

I still have very little trust in American banking. However, this article has improved my views. It impresses me to see that lenders and large organizations have more than money on their mind.  

Is a Developer Seriously Building an Amusement Park in Las Vegas?

I was completely shocked after reading an article titled “Las Vegas? Surely someone is spiking the Kool-Aid” that I found on the blog Housing Doom. This entry tells the reader about one company’s plans to build an amusement park in sin city. Keep in mind the market for real estate in this here is one of the worst in the country. Home prices have dropped more than 50% according to zillow.com, an online real estate database. The foreclosure rate is also staggeringly high.

Many income-generating properties have been losing money or closing down over the past few years. Clearly, it’s not the right time to develop a theme park in a city where real estate is in limbo. I think the overly optimistic company behind this project is making a huge mistake. Many expected the newly built City Center to revive Las Vegas, but it too is struggling to fill its rooms and make a solid profit. This multibillion- dollars hotel’s lack of success makes it clear that property development should be put on hold until the market recovers.

A sketch of the proposed amusement park

Allen Iverson has Officially Been Foreclosed on

Eleven- time NBA all-star Allen Iverson can officially join Nicholas Cage as one of the few celebrities that has been foreclosed on. I was shocked when I heard about this since Iverson currently has a contract with the Denver nuggets worth almost twenty one million dollars. Clearly, he has the money to afford this home. Why would he stop paying his mortgage payments? This is a question I wish I had a solid answer for. My best guess would probably be poor financial planning, a growing trend among athletes.    

The 6,848 square foot Denver mansion has six bedrooms and originally cost $3.875 million. It just sold for about $2.85 million dollars. This decrease is just one example of how much property values have fallen over the last few years. 

A $60 Million Modern Palace

Most of my blog’s content has been pretty academic. However, this entry is different. One of my friends emailed me a video about a newly built house that is on the market for sixty million dollars on an island off the coast of Miami. Yes, I said sixty million dollars! As if this home’s price tag isn’t surprising enough, it’s being sold during one of the worst economic downturns in our country’s history.

I don’t think this mansion will sell anytime soon. It’s almost impossible to even finance it. This home’s gutsy developers will probably lose money on their investment since property tax alone cost them $1 million per year. Regardless if this mansion sells or not, I still think a description of what sixty million dollars can buy in the current housing market is worth mentioning.

           

           This compound consists of five separate buildings, providing residents about 30,000 square feet of living space and ten bedrooms. As if multiple waterfalls, a koi pond, wine cellar, and a vertical garden aren’t extravagant enough, a private beach with sand imported from the Bahamas is another benefit of living here. The master bedroom’s closet is just as oversized as the house itself. I’ve seen smaller apartments. Without a doubt, I think two of the most pointless features of this home are its five kitchens and twelve refrigerators. Is it even possible to take full advantage of this level of luxury? Since I’m not a billionaire, I’m sure I don’t understand the value in what this home has to offer. 

Cash Only Home Sales on the Rise

It’s no secret that home prices have fallen over the last few years. This downturn in the market has harmed most Americans. However, a select few investors have taken advantage of these low prices by investing in distressed houses. These foreclosed properties are usually sold for a fraction of what they are actually worth, creating an opportunity for people with capital to make a profit. Nonetheless, investors have been forced to use unconventional methods of funding.

The number of homes in California purchased using cash has skyrocketed over the last year. 30.9% of new homes were purchased without a mortgage in 2010. Compared to just 13.9% ten years ago, this is the highest level in at least 24 years, says DataQuick Information Systems.

These figures do not surprise me. After all, qualifying for a mortgage is no easy task. With home prices expected to fall further this year, I predict that the number of cash purchases will continue to increase.