A:  This is an excellent question. Many individuals get confused when it comes to high balances on different types of credit & the impact they have on credit scores. High balances drop scores most when they are on “revolving credit” accounts. Revolving credit is credit cards, overdraft on a checking account, and some lines of credit. Hi debt on car loans, student loans, and mortgages has less of an impact on credit scores than revolving credit balances do. Paying the revolving credit balances down as low as possible is the best step to take when trying to improve credit through balance reduction.

A: Safety colors like gray and beige are getting tiresome so homeowners are starting to add pop to social areas like the living room with more lively colors like burnt orange and coral. You can’t go wrong with a color scheme if you start by pulling colors from the largest pattern piece in the room, whether it be artwork or a rug. Whichever colors you choose, don’t go overboard with offensively bright colors like lemon yellow and bring in elements of glass and metal to enhance the colors of a room.

A: If it is accurate to say you are paying higher taxes because of your location across from the street an historic park, then that means the location was likely valued by the town assessor with a higher assessed value because of the location across from the park – ultimately resulting in your higher taxes. The statement “the appraiser said there is no avail calculation for appraisers to consider this type of issue” contradicts their role as an appraiser to provide an opinion of current market value to the bank. If it is reasonable to assume that a buyer of your home would recognize the premium for the location, then this should be considered in the appraisal. The appraiser’s response could suggest that they were not familiar with your market, a common problem in the mortgage appraisal industry today.

But always keep an open mind – I am not saying that the appraiser was wrong. In fact the appraiser could have been right about their value and your higher taxes might have nothing to do with the location near the park.

Hiring your own appraiser is not effective in these matters because the bank cannot consider appraisals for mortgages where the bank did not engage the appraiser directly, no matter how competent the appraiser may be.

Banks are now very reluctant to challenge the initial appraisal results. One suggestion might be to let the bank know that you were concerned that the appraiser did not have “local market knowledge” and you want them to engage an appraiser with local experience. I believe the use of this phrase is more effective because their regulators use it, but it is not a guarantee that the bank will reconsider your appraisal by ordering another.

Hope that helps!

A: Based on recent sales in the neighborhood, the current average for the West Village is approximately $1.40 per square foot per month. The rates for studios and 1-bedrooms are nearly identical right now.

A: There are many aspects to this question and the answer is complicated. Charge offs and collection accounts occur when a consumer defaults on a credit extension or a due payment. After a period, the debt or account goes to charge off or collection. Many consumers assume that a charge off means that they no longer owe the debt to the creditor, but this is NOT the case. If you have this type of derogatory, your credit score will be very poor, even after you settle any portion of it, or even the full balance. Negative credit can stick for 7-10 years, depending on what type of delinquency you have. Charge offs and collection accounts will typically cause scores to drop by hundreds of points, and remain low for long periods of time.

In situations like this, it’s best to speak with a credit expert and get feedback on what strategy is best for your unique credit profile and future goals. The only thing that I can say to you without seeing and discussing your full credit reports is that charge offs and collections are devastating to credit, even if paid. They can sometimes be removed or changed depending on the situation and circumstances surrounding the event. Traditional personal loans happen to be one of the toughest types of credit to get approval for, and credit will be a major factor in that approval process.

A: The real estate market has really heated up in Manhattan, and it’s recommended that you start your apartment search at least 6-8 weeks prior to your anticipated move-in date. Many of your rental options may be in condominiums that are being offered for lease, in which case there will be an application process that can take up to two weeks. We also recommend that you establish a banking relationship in New York and bring your written recommendations from previous landlords so that if you do “fall in love” with an apartment, you can react quickly to secure it. Wishing you the best in your search. Please let us know if we can put you in touch with an Elliman Rental Specialist to assist you with your search.

A: I’ve created a price per square foot index for most neighborhoods in Manhattan. Here is the Soho PPSF Index for co-ops and condos. If you’d like to look at co-ops only, condos only, average sales price, or would simply like to explore indices in other Manhattan neighborhoods, you can do so here.

A: The answer, in short, is “not really.” Dottie doesn’t mention these types of appraisals because your assumption is a fairly common misperception among consumers. To clarify the point, there are generally 3 types of report formats used by appraisers: self-contained, summary, and restricted use.

• Self-contained appraisals are usually presented in a narrative format and include all the raw information that is viewed during the preparation and research for the assignment. The report can be the size of a phone book and is rarely ever used.
• Summary appraisals are what most consumers are familiar with. They tend to be presented on a form and contain the information you generally need to understand how the appraiser came to their value conclusion. Most single-family bank appraisals are summary reports. Incidentally, the appraisal process is the same as with the self-contained report, but without the volumes of data and materials attached to the report.
• Restricted use appraisals contain the least amount of material of the 3 report options, but use the same research and process that the other 2 versions require. The name refers to limiting the readership of the report to one party already familiar with the appraisal so that clerical shortcuts would not theoretically be confusing to the reader. This format is more commonly used with financial institutions who may be updating a mortgage portfolio and want a simpler presentation when updating hundreds of appraisals already completed for the file – the same analysis is done as that in a “summary,” but it is not formally presented to the client. Usually when a consumer sees “restricted use” label on the cover of an appraisal, it’s because the appraiser mistakenly thinks it limits their liability for the results of the report, but it does not.

So the time it takes to perform any one of these 3 single-family home appraisals is fairly consistent across the board; the primary cost difference among them is instead due to the amount of time spent on the clerical presentations themselves.

With computers and appraisal software packages, the clerical aspect of an appraisal assignment has become a nominal cost. As with most things today, you can probably find someone who can perform one at a bit of a cheaper rate; however, it’s vital that you check their credentials to ensure that they have the necessary local market knowledge to provide you with a reliable appraisal that you can confidently reference and base your informed decision on. Saving $50 on an appraisal report may cost you a lot more in the long run. As Dottie constantly advises on her WOR radio show: “You get what you pay for.”

A: This is a good question, and the answer is yes, this could damage your credit score. Since this is a credit card and falls into the revolving credit category, when it closes you will lose the utilization allowance that the limit on the card gives you. If the balance-to-limit ratio on your aggregate revolving accounts is high, it will drop scores. Here is a good example of a consumer who had 3 credit cards:

• Card 1: limit of $10,000; balance of $5,000
• Card 2: limit of $5,000; balance of $5,000
• Card 3: limit of $5,000; no balance

Once you close Card 3, which has a $5,000 limit, the aggregate balance-to-limit ratio changes from 50% to almost 70%. This could drop scores 20, 40, or more points, depending on the rest of your credit and your original credit score.

Having higher aggregate limits gives consumers more leeway to increase balances without hurting credit. The lower your balances are on revolving credit, the better it is for Fico credit scores.

A: Demonstrating your financial qualifications is a recommended way to help the seller feel comfortable when evaluating your offer, as it lets them know whether or not you have the financial credentials that their co-op would look upon favorably. What a seller will accept is not for the broker to determine unless specifically acting under the seller’s instruction. If your offers are based on current data (comparables), and have been rejected, perhaps the sellers are not working with the same information. An alternative strategy may be to stipulate that upon receipt of a Price Agreement between you and the seller, you will provide full financial disclosure.