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Addison County house values holding their own

admin — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 17:05:59 +0000

Seen in the Addison County Independent:

Despite nationwide gloom and doom in the real estate sector and a drop in home sales in Vermont and Addison County, there is evidence that the values of the homes that most state and local residents own have held their own.

According to information on the Vermont Department of Taxes Web site, the median value of homes on 6 acres or fewer (described as R-I homes on property transfer returns) sold in Addison County through the first nine months of 2008 is $213,500. That represents an increase of about $6,000, or 2.9 percent, from the median value over the entire 12 months of 2007.

Read the full article.

tankless water heaters: can they take the heat?

admin — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 12:34:31 +0000

The Nelson Project, a real estate blog based out of Austin Texas, recently published an informative article about the pros and cons of tankless water heaters.

“Tankless heaters run by cleaner renewable gas (with electronic ignitions) use about 20% less energy than traditional gas run storage water heaters based on an average usage of 78 gallons of hot water a day (which is about 3 showers, 1 laundry load, running dishwasher once and the faucet 9 times). Does this reflect your typical household usage? This percentage of savings is according to the October 2008 issue of consumer reports. Manufacturers tend to claim 30%-50% energy savings, and the green guide comes in at 34% (which is the average of all claims above).”

Read the full article here.

Vermont still holding steady with foreclosure numbers

admin — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 02:02:19 +0000

According to , Vermont’s foreclosures more than tripled in August 2008 over its July 2008 numbers. But that total of 18 foreclosures in August still keeps Vermont ranked low in the foreclosure totals nationwide. Last month, Vermont had the fewest in the nation; this month it ranks 49th out of 50.

“new urbanism” a Vermont building trend

admin — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 17:12:54 +0000

According to a recent story on WCAX, South Village in South Burlington is using Vermont villages as a building model, being designed with “narrower streets [and] buildings on smaller lots” to help create a sense of community in the development. Upon completion, there will be a total of 335 units in the development, including condos, townhouses, and single family houses. The site will also include “an organic farm and a program to eradicate invasive plant species.”

Read the full story here.

Bankrate.com ranks Vermont 47th in closing costs

admin — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 12:55:58 +0000

According to the latest report published by Bankrate.com, Vermont now ranks 47th in closing costs in the US, dropping from 30th in the 2007 survey. The US average is $3,118 on a $200,000 loan, assuming good credit and 20 percent down. New York is the highest at an average cost of $4,015.


	Vermont	Loan amount: $200,000

Item	Burlington, Vt.
Origination fees
Points ($)	$903.67
Application fee	$330.00
Commitment fee	$565.00
Document preparation	$285.00
Funding fee	$0.00
Origination or lender fees	$1,031.67
Processing	$419.00
Tax service	$60.57
Underwriting	$300.00
Wire transfer	$0.00

Title and closing
Appraisal	$290.00
Attorney, closing or settlement fee	$378.75
Credit report	$16.20
Flood certification	$11.98
Pest, other inspection	$50.00
Postage/courier	$28.19
Survey	$237.50
Title insurance	$609.33
Title work: title search, plat drawing, name search, endorsements	$207.50

Total origination	$1,537.00
Total title and closing	$1,335.00
Total origination plus title	$2,872.00

Downloadable PDF

See a chart of all the states here, and read the complete report here.