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April 2016 - Tech Revolution

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54 | TH E M R EP O RT O R I G I NAT I O N S E R V I C I N G A NA LY T I C S S E C O N DA R Y M A R K E T ANALYTICS THE LATEST 15 Neighborhoods to Know Investors would be well served to add these live- well, play-well enclaves to their watch lists. T rulia gave investors a leg up on where to look for properties with its latest Live Well maps, which highlight America's best neighborhoods for those looking to stay active and healthy. The index measures such aspects as the percentage of quiet streets and recreational amenities. According to the maps, the best neighborhood for living well in small metros, where the population is less than 1 million people, is Locust Grove, just north of downtown Charlottesville, Virginia. Here, properties sell for an average $160 per square foot and the neighborhood has a Live Well score of 87. Noelridge Park in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (86), is the cheapest investment on the list, with properties averaging $83 per square foot. Riviera-Westchester in Bakersfield, Calif. (86), sells for an average $139 per square foot; Burns Park in Ann Arbor (83) for $267 per square foot; and Campus Farm in Tucson (82) for $103 per square foot. The best neighborhood for living well in mid-size cities (1 million to 2 million people) was Outer Sunset in San Francisco, which had the highest overall Live Well score of 93.6. However, it also was the priciest neighborhood in midsized cities, going for an average of $623 per square foot. West Riverside in New Orleans, which came in second at 88.7, is a better deal, with its $266-per-square-foot average. Crestview in Austin (86) sells for an average of $262 per square foot; Driftwood in Ft. Lauderdale (83) for $129 per square foot; and Riverwest in Milwaukee (82.5) for $86 per square foot. In large metros, the best neigh - borhoods Trulia found were in San Diego, Los Angeles, and Seattle. Ocean Beach in San Diego scored a Live Well rating of 93 but also had a per-square-foot average of $671. L.A.'s Plaza (90) sells on aver - age for $422 per square foot, while the city's Sunpark (89) and Beverly Center (88) neighborhoods sell for $752 and $636 per square foot, respectively. Sunset Hill in Seattle closed out the top five large metro neighborhoods, scoring 87.5 on the Live Well scale and selling for an average of $334 per square foot. All neighborhoods on Trulia's list are between one and two square miles in area— "neighborhoods large enough to have a decent number of live-well features but small enough to actually feel like a neighborhood," according to the report. Originations Down in 40-to- 60 Age Group Saddled with debt balances, middle-aged borrowers seem loath to take out mortgages. M ortgage originations among middle-aged borrowers, ages 40 to 60, have been on a fast-paced decline since 2004. With the tightening and loosen - ing of credit standards over the years, many just can't find the right moment to jump into the housing market or may be burdened with outstanding debt balances. A report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York titled "The Graying of American Debt" found that debt balances are weighing heavy on older borrow - ers for two reasons: • One possibility is that the cred- it boom preceding the Great Recession built higher consum- er debt levels. Afterward, un- derwriting standards tightened across the board in 2008–2009 so that any new potential bor- rowers had little opportunity to take out new loans. An accel- eration and then slowdown in lending across the board would lead loans, and their associated borrowers, to be older today on average than in 2003. • Alternatively, the shift to- ward older borrowers could have resulted from new loan

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