Silicon Valley Needs To Relocate…To Cleveland

Matthew Yglesias

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an Francisco is a great American city. And Google is a great American company. But the two are having some trouble getting along. Last week, anti-eviction protestors surrounded one of Google’s private shuttle buses, which transport employees from their urban homes to the company’s suburban campus, and staged a phony incident in which an alleged Googler unleashed his contempt for the city’s lower orders.

Then, just in time for the backlash to the anti-Google backlash, prominent local startup CEO Greg Gopman delivered the real deal in the form of a Facebook rant decrying the San Francisco poor as, in essence, uppity. In other cities, Gopman wrote, “the lower part of society keep to themselves” and “realize it’s a privilege to be in the civilized part of town and view themselves as guests.”

With tensions running high, perhaps a breakup is in order.

The Bay Area is sick and tired of the antics of entitled techies, and the nouveaux riches want a place where they’ll be appreciated. It’s time for federal authorities to step in and move the show someplace else. Cleveland, say.

After all, every big city has its share of obnoxious protesters and obnoxious overclassers. What makes the tensions in the Bay Area especially extreme is the fearsome competition over scarce resources—specifically housing and office space.

The influx of money, young people, and business investment into Silicon Valley hasn’t led to a construction boom and the urbanization of the area. Instead, the local towns continue to insist on strict, suburban-style zoning that essentially rules out new housing supply. Nor are city officials in San Francisco interested in rezoning to allow for more population in a city that’s currently only about half as dense as Brooklyn.

The Architecture of Ascent: The Most Spectacular Staircases In The World

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he architecture of the staircase combines form and function, upper and lower space. It can represent power or status, or symbolise spiritual elevation and the climb to knowledge.

We showcase spectacular staircases featured in a new book published by Thames & Hudson - The Staircase: The Architecture of Ascent.

Infinity and beyond

The steps of the Toltec-Maya pyramid at Chichen Itza, Mexico are an early example of the simple, straight-flight staircase - the ancestor of all stair design. Appearing to stretch up to the sky, this style of staircase came to symbolise an ascent to heaven and infinity, and has captured artists’ imaginations from the Odessa Steps in Eisenstein’s film Battleship Potemkin to the steps in Orson Welles’s The Trial. 

Let there be light

The ‘lantern’ at the dome of a staircase is an important design feature — allowing the light to stream in. The view shown here of the lantern of the chateau of Chambord in the Loire, France, shows the flat ceiling embellished with coffering. Flanking the large windows are eight niches intended to hold statues. The chateau marks a high point in the development of the staircase, illustrating the Renaissance architects’ fascination with the spiral structure around an open space.

Chinese Billionaire's Hong Kong-Listed Real Estate Business Seeks $318M In Stock Sale

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anda Commercial Properties (Group), a Hong Kong-listed real estate investment company controlled by China’s richest man Wang Jianlin, said today it plans to raise $318 million in a stock sale from existing shareholders.

Funds will be used for investments in China and overseas “when suitable opportunities become available,” as well as for general working capital.   Investors will be allowed to buy three shares for each held at a price of HK$2.88 each, according to a statement. The company also said it plans to change the number of board lots per traded share.

Wang, whose Wanda Overseas owns 65% of Wanda Commercial Properties, topped the 2013 Forbes China Rich List published in October with wealth of $14.1 billion. Forbes Asia, the Asia edition of Forbes magazine, named Wang as its Businessman of the Year for 2013 last month.

Wanda Commercial Properties shares have climbed 10-fold in the past year, mostly since Wang disclosed plans to acquire control of the business which was formally known as Hengli Properties Development. The company’s name has since been changed to Wanda Commercial Properties (Group).   Wang’s movie chain AMC, which he purchased for $2.6 billion last year, is currently seeking to go public in the United States.

Why Today’s Homebuyer Needs A Real Estate Agent More Than Ever

Teresa Boardman 

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ast summer I got an email from a local real estate attorney who wanted to buy a house. He’d just gotten engaged and wanted to save some money by representing himself.

This attorney wanted to do all the work an agent would do to find and buy his first home, and get paid a commission for his work. I explained to him that the commission is payable to the listing agent who agrees to pay a portion of it to the Realtor representing a buyer.

Usually, if there’s no buyer’s agent, the seller’s agent gets the entire commission. Some agents will accept a reduced commission for representing both parties. The seller saves some money that way. Sometimes the savings get passed along to the buyer.

I get several emails each year from homebuyers, usually first-timers, who want to know how they can get a real estate license so they can save money on the purchase of a home. They find me through my blog, and apparently decide that I am too scary to work with, but not so scary that they can’t ask me a question or two.

I always let them know that they do not need a license to buy a home, and that they do not need a real estate agent. After I explain to them how to get a license — and that they have to work through a broker, who generally gets a percentage of each commission — they start to let go of their dream of being paid to find their own home.

The buyers who want to do this are usually planning on buying a home that costs $300,000 or more — higher than average for a first-time homebuyer in this market — and planning on saving at least $9,000 by doing the work themselves.

Last summer I got an email from a local real estate attorney who wanted to buy a house. He’d just gotten engaged and wanted to save some money by representing himself.

This attorney wanted to do all the work an agent would do to find and buy his first home, and get paid a commission for his work. I explained to him that the commission is payable to the listing agent who agrees to pay a portion of it to the Realtor representing a buyer.

Usually, if there’s no buyer’s agent, the seller’s agent gets the entire commission. Some agents will accept a reduced commission for representing both parties. The seller saves some money that way. Sometimes the savings get passed along to the buyer.

QUOTE

Nigeria is the top foreign direct investment (FDI) destination in sub-Saharan Africa with about $20 billion of FDI over the last three years. - FORBES

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Nigeria’s economy has achieved consistently high growth of about 6 percent a year over the last decade, largely driven by a fast-growing non-oil sector. In fact, non-oil sector has quietly grown at a rate of up to 8 percent a year...FORBES

GowinSiuta Studio Wins 2013 “Changing the Face” Competition in Warsaw

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oland-based GowinSiuta Studio has won “Changing the Face 2013 Rotunda Warsaw,” an annual design competition (now in its 13th year) to revamp the “sawtooth-topped Rotunda, a favourite landmark and meeting spot in central Warsaw.” Alongside being awarded the $15,500 prize money, the practice also plans to see their proposal realized by 2015. The studio’s proposal, entitled Modern Urban Oasis/Warsaw City Lounge, transforms the Rotunda into an integral part of a public square.

 

See here for full details.

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'A man is not a man until he has a house of his own' - Nelson Mandela

Lagos Tightens Noose Around Estate Agency Practice, Plans Training Academy

Chuka Uroko

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n the coming days and months, it would no longer be business-as-usual in the estate agency practice in Lagos State as the state government is out now with stringent regulations and codes of conduct for practitioners.

The state government says it is worried by the fraudulent and unwholesome activities of bad elements in the practice whose mission is to defraud and extort money from unsuspecting members of the public looking for houses to buy or rent. And to underscore its resolve to sanitise this practice, the state government has created a department in the Ministry of Housing known as Lagos State Real Estate Transaction Department (LASRETRAD).

Jimoh Ajao, the special adviser to the governor on housing, explained at the inauguration of the department, about a year ago, that it was set up to monitor compliance with the state’s Tenancy and Criminal Laws as they relate to real estate transaction and other legislation on land transactions in the state; license estate agents, issue and renew their licenses annually and ensure that payment of necessary charges and fees are made.

Also weekend at a workshop organised by the department for the estate agents, Ajao announced that a training academy was being planned for the untrained and unenlightened estate agents because, according to him, confidence in the business of real estate in the state must be established.

In his keynote address at the workshop with the theme, ‘Code of Conduct of Estate Agency Practice in Lagos State’, Ade Ipaye, the state’s attorney general and commissioner for justice, noted that housing was critical to good governance, stressing that estate agency practice was of essence to the state.

He noted that the challenge of government’s effort at sanitising this practice is never to go back, hence the need for the practitioners to take LASRETRAD seriously and ensure that they not only get registered but also comply with the necessary regulations and code of conduct for the practice.

Source: BusinessDay

Why Sellers Shouldn't Wait Until After The Holidays to List Homes

​Brendon DeSimone

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ith the holidays approaching, sellers often wonder if they should keep their properties on the market or take them off? Or if they haven't listed their homes yet, should they wait until after the first of the year? Maybe hold off until spring?

Conventional wisdom used to be that you shouldn't even try to sell your home during the busy holiday season. Potential homebuyers were too preoccupied with attending parties, cooking meals, buying presents or planning vacations. With all that going on, there just wasn't time to ride around with a real estate agent, looking at properties.

But with the Internet, smartphones, tablets and our always-on lifestyle, that conventional wisdom isn't relevant anymore. The reality is, the homebuying season is now year-round. Here's why you should consider listing your home during the holidays, or even in January.

Today's buyers never stop looking online: Serious buyers are always looking -- and the holidays are no exception. They may check out the latest listings in a Zillow Mobile app before bed or while waiting for the kids' school holiday show to start. Our hectic lifestyles also play a role.

Many serious buyers today work hard. They don't shift into holiday mode until the last minute. Even during the holiday break, they're still squeezing in work. There's no such thing for them as "going off the grid." So why not continue to monitor real estate listings, too?

The inventory -- and the competition -- is usually lighter: Despite our always-on lifestyles, many sellers still believe buyers can't be bothered to look for a home between, say, Thanksgiving and Valentine's Day. At the same time, sellers who've had their homes on the market often take them off during the holidays. The net effect is that the inventory for good homes often tightens this time of year. So there's less competition for sellers, at a time when motivated buyers are out there looking -- and no doubt wishing there were more properties to see.

If you've been considering selling, are motivated, are flexible on timing and have a home that truly sparkles, after Thanksgiving there's still a window of several weeks to get buyers into your home before the end of the year. And those buyers flipping through listings at their kids' basketball game will be excited to see something new and awesome hit the market -- especially if there's a lack of good inventory in their area. These buyers will be motivated to see your home, regardless of what the calendar says.

Home not selling? Now's the time to lower the price or change your strategy: If your property has been on the market for months, most buyers and their agents will see it as stale or overpriced and disregard it no matter how great it is or how light the competition is. In that case, it's time to take action, and the year-end holidays can be a great opportunity to shift course. Dramatically reducing the price or overcoming some major obstacle that's been preventing the sale might be what's needed to sell your home.

If you received lower offers early on but weren't ready to accept them, or you keep hearing there are issues with how your property shows, this is a good time to show the market you're listening and are serious about selling. The motivated buyers, desperate for good inventory, will notice you and take a look. You might even get a sale closed before the end of the year.

Before you make any big changes, talk it over with your real estate agent, as always.

Don't want to be bothered during the holidays? List in January: Admittedly, the thought of keeping the house clean, holding open houses and vacating to accommodate last-minute showings during the holidays is a deal killer for some would-be sellers. If so, consider listing your property after New Year's Day.

Traditionally, not much inventory comes onto the market in January. It's cold in most places, the leaves are off the trees and landscaping is dead. Many sellers wait until the spring instead, a more conventional time to sell.

January inventory is still very tight. And yet, each January, buyers call up agents, wanting to get into the market. Often, new buyers -- with their fresh New Year's resolutions to stop wasting money on rent and buy a home -- are ready to jump into the market as soon as possible. Some buyers are motivated to search for a home in January because of year-end tax planning.

Whatever the buyers' motivation, for sellers it means one thing: Demand for homes can increase at a time when inventory is traditionally low. And that means if you're ready to sell, you'll have an even more "captive" audience during the holidays, all the way through January.

Note: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author. 

Source: AOL Real Estate