Oakland Beach Warwick, Rhode Island

Oakland Beach Warwick Rhode Island a beachfront community

Photo credit to http://www.rigreenways.com/
Oakland Beach

This is the first in a series that I promised to do on all the little villages in Warwick, Rhode Island

I am going to start with Oakland Beach.

First, Oakland Beach has one of the lowest elevations in Rhode Island.
Because of this, it was almost wiped out completely during the hurricane of "38.
Oakland Beach used to be a great amusement park up until then.

40-50 years ago, Oakland Beach was the place to go for a summer vacation.

People from Providence and surrounding areas would rent homes there and enjoy the beaches and views, along with the boardwalklike main road consisting of restaurants, complete with a Merry-go-Round. I remember staying there with my aunt and uncle when I was young and those memories are pleasurable.

After awhile, Oakland Beach started to degenerate. A lot of the homes there are and were quite small. Most of them had been beach houses, now converted to year round homes. Some were badly neglected and the neighborhood values deteriorated, attracting a more transient type of person who was not interested in keeping up their home.

Now, after the increase in Real Estate values in Rhode Island, especially in waterfront communities, Oakland Beach has started to awaken from its slumber.
Take a drive through and see the new construction, homes being redone, smaller homes being torn down. Yes, there are still some of the neglected homes, but the trend is definitely on the upswing.

I predict Oakland Beach to be a good investment for anyone who is considering beach property and cannot afford some of the higher priced areas in Rhode Island.

To learn more about Oakland Beach or to search for properties there email me at Karen Hurst

Exotic Mortgages

For all you homebuyers that are "stuck" in a poor mortgage situation and for all new homebuyers, you need to read this post by Jeff Belonger, posted to the Active Rain Real Estate Blogging site this am.
http://activerain.com/blogsview/16063/Rules-that-aim-to

NAR reports Pending Sales increasing last quarter!

October 2, 2006
Pending Home Sales Index Rises 4.3%

Pending home sales have increased, showing that the housing market continues to stabilize, according to the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®. NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed in August, rose 4.3 percent to a level of 110.1 from a reading of 105.6 in July, but is 14.1 percent lower than August 2005.David Lereah, NAR’s chief economist, says the higher index reading is a hopeful sign for the real estate market. “Our sense is that home sales may have reached a low in August,” he says. “The Pending Home Sales Index shows home sales should be fairly stable over the next two months, although a minor decline is possible. Prices to Rise at Slower Pace in '07"With fewer new listings coming on the market, we should be able to draw down the inventory supply early next year to the point where home prices will rise, but at a slower pace than historic norms,” Lereah adds.The index is a leading indicator for the housing sector, based on pending sales of existing homes. A sale is listed as pending when the contract has been signed and the transaction has not closed, but the sale usually is finalized within one or two months of signing.An index of 100 is equal to the average level of contract activity during 2001, the first year to be examined, and was the first of five consecutive record years for existing-home sales. There is a closer relationship between annual changes in the index and actual market performance than with month-to-month comparisons; analysis shows a strong parallel between changes in the index from a year ago and the actual pace of home sales in coming months.

Biggest Increase Is in the West Regionally, the index reading for the West rose 9.2 percent in August to 112.7 but was 16.9 percent below August 2005.

The index in the South increased 4 percent to 126.8 in August but was 9.4 percent below a year ago.

In the Northeast, the index rose 3.6 percent in August to 95.4 but was 12.4 percent below August 2005.

The index in the Midwest was unchanged at 93.8 in August and was 20.4 percent lower than a year ago.

Mortgage Market Week of September 18, 2006

This is a blog post from Ken Allen on the Activerain site. I think its very informative.
Mortgage Market Update for the week of September 18th, 2006

DEBT FREE

My son has been addling me for a month or two about listening to the Dave Ramsey show. He said that the new sign of wealth was a paid-for home not a BMW. Since I really wanted a Mercedes, I did not get to the show for awhile, until today. You can listen to archives of what Dave Ramsey has to say here www.daveramsey.com and decide for yourself. The first one I listened to, a couple called in to say they paid off $64,000. in debt in 18 months! Absolutely unbelievable. If you want to be a homeowner, you definitely need to take this mans advice. Even if you don't want to be a homeowner, why be in debt? All it takes is one-mindeness and concentration. You too can do it!

Rhode Island Coastal Property

Where can you find great beaches? Seaside cottages, smell of the ocean, lots of Lighthouses, old fashioned Victorians, charming cottages, castles? Why Rhode Island of course! The Ocean State. This is the first blog in a series on Rhode Island started on Labor Day Weekend. I will talk about Sailing on the Narragansett Bay to Block Island or to Marthas' Vineyard and Nantucket. (and Prudence and Patience Islands for RI boaters)
Keep tuned!