The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers this week issued a Regulatory Guidance Letter in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Hawkes v. United States.
In that decision, the court said that a jurisdictional determination—in which the Corps decides whether a piece of land should be subject to federal oversight under the Clean Water Act—is something that a developer can take to court.
The guidance letter clarifies the differences between the two kinds of jurisdictional determinations and how builders and developers can obtain them.
Jurisdictional determinations are important because developers have no way of knowing whether a feature is jurisdictional simply by looking at it. However, once the Corps issues a jurisdictional determination, it carries significant legal and financial consequences on everything from lending practices to state rules and regulations.
The Supreme Court said in Hawkes that when the Corps determines the precise boundaries of jurisdictional waters on a landowner’s property, that landowner can dispute the determination in court.
The new guidance—the first of its kind issued by the Obama Administration—accepts the Supreme Court decision and provides guidance to the Corps’ staff (and public) explaining when it is appropriate to issue an approved jurisdictional determination or preliminary jurisdictional determinations or not make any determination at all.
The Corps guidance explains that approved jurisdictional determinations are official determinations that jurisdictional waters exist on one’s property, while preliminary jurisdictional determinations are not legally binding. Finally, the guidance provides the forms that property owners are to use when requesting that the Corps conduct an approved jurisdictional determination or preliminary jurisdictional determinations.
The Home Builders Association of Greenville are your neighbors and community leaders providing education and support for building industry professionals. We create jobs, encourage homeownership, and promote responsible growth throughout the upstate of South Carolina.
Thursday, November 3, 2016
Wednesday, November 2, 2016
The Chili Cookoff was a Delicious Success
Our annual Chili Cookoff was another great success this year! Thank you to more than 100 of our members who showed up to try the different chilis, take a look at the newly renovated Ferguson showroom, have some oysters, and enjoy a night among friends. We are grateful to have such a wonderful community in our industry!
A big congratulations to our Chili Cookoff and Dessert Contest winners!
Hottest Chili
Tex Mex Heat
Eddie Howard, APB, Howard Custom Builders
Best Presentation
Sweet Beats Heat
Bryn Brutosky, APB, Ryan Homes
Best Chili
Gale's $10,000 Chili
Richard Bernath, Southern Traditions Window Fashions
Best Dessert
Ferg-a-licious
Susan Smith, Ferguson Kitchen and Bath
The Professional Women in Building Council hosted a balloon pop and raffle to raise money for the South Carolina Builders Political Action Committee. Thank you to everyone who popped a balloon and entered the raffle, and congratulations to our many winners!
Thank you also to our sponsors for helping us with this event--thank you to Ferguson for hosting and being the presenting sponsor; thank you to Clark's Termite and Pest Control for providing and cooking the oysters; and thank you to Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet for sponsoring the chili and dessert contests.
Monday, October 31, 2016
Federal Housing Finance Agency Indices Show Little Movement in Mortgage Interest Rates in September
From the Federal Housing Finance Agency:
Nationally, interest rates on conventional purchase-money mortgages were nearly flat from August to September, according to several indices of new mortgage contracts.
The National Average Contract Mortgage Rate for the Purchase of Previously Occupied Homes by Combined Lenders Index was 3.61 percent for loans closed in late September, up 3 basis points from 3.58 percent in August.
The average interest rate on all mortgage loans was 3.60 percent, up 1 basis point from 3.59 in August.
The average interest rate on conventional, 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages of $417,000 or less was 3.73 percent, down 1 basis point from 3.74 in August.
The effective interest rate on all mortgage loans was 3.73 percent in September, up 1 basis point from 3.72 in August. The effective interest rate accounts for the addition of initial fees and charges over the life of the mortgage.
The average loan amount for all loans was $302,900 in September, down $19,800 from $322,700 in August.
Nationally, interest rates on conventional purchase-money mortgages were nearly flat from August to September, according to several indices of new mortgage contracts.
The National Average Contract Mortgage Rate for the Purchase of Previously Occupied Homes by Combined Lenders Index was 3.61 percent for loans closed in late September, up 3 basis points from 3.58 percent in August.
The average interest rate on all mortgage loans was 3.60 percent, up 1 basis point from 3.59 in August.
The average interest rate on conventional, 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages of $417,000 or less was 3.73 percent, down 1 basis point from 3.74 in August.
The effective interest rate on all mortgage loans was 3.73 percent in September, up 1 basis point from 3.72 in August. The effective interest rate accounts for the addition of initial fees and charges over the life of the mortgage.
The average loan amount for all loans was $302,900 in September, down $19,800 from $322,700 in August.
Thursday, October 27, 2016
Interested in Running for Office? Attend the Upstate Political Leadership Institute
The Greenville Chamber of Commerce will host its Upstate Political Leader Institute on November 9 and 10 from 5- 8 p.m. There will be different topics covered, ranging from "How I Did It" to Raising Money for a campaign. Home Builders Association of Greenville members can get complimentary admission, as we are the sponsor of the event. Please contact Michael Dey and he will get you registered.
Supreme Court to Hear Property Rights Case
The U.S. Supreme Court docket includes a Fifth Amendment “takings” clause case that will undoubtedly affect home builders: Murr v. Wisconsin.
This case deals with the “relevant parcel” rule under the takings clause and can be explained in terms of fractions.
If you own 100 acres and the government takes 40 acres of your land, the fraction is 40/100. The “relevant parcel” is the denominator (100), the total that property courts should use to decide how much of that land has been taken by the government.
In the example, it is easy to determine the relevant parcel, but the Murr case shows why this issue is not as simple as it looks.
In the late 1950s, William Murr bought a small parcel of lakefront property, Lot F, on which he built a family cabin. A few years later, William separately purchased Lot E, the unimproved lot directly adjacent to Lot F. In time, the titles for both lots were passed on to Murr’s children.
In 2004, the Murr children began to look into upgrading the family cabin, but they required the proceeds from the sale of the unimproved Lot E to finance these upgrades. Unfortunately, local regulations prohibited the children from selling Lot E by itself because of minimum lot size restrictions. Further, the children could not develop Lot E because of a local ordinance prohibiting development of adjacent lots if owned by the same person.
In short, the Murr children were left with no options for Lot E except to keep it in its unimproved condition.
The Murr children brought a claim for the 100% taking of Lot E only. They did not include any claims for Lot F. However, the government argued that the relevant parcel for purposes of takings analysis was Lot E combined with Lot F; thus, the taking would be far less than 100% since Lot F is not affected by the government regulation.
The Wisconsin appellate court agreed with the government, and ruled that because the two lots are geographically contiguous and under common ownership, takings analysis requires combining the two parcels when determining the loss of economic value. This is despite the fact that Lot E and Lot F were created as legally separate lots, taxed separately, purchased at separate times, and passed on to the children at separate times.
As a legal side note, there is a huge difference when a landowner claims a complete taking (100%) of property as compared to a partial taking under 100%. A landowner subject to a complete taking is automatically entitled to just compensation (referred to as a Lucas taking). A landowner subject to a partial taking is subject to an additional hurdle: the Penn Central legal test. Penn Central takings cases are very difficult for property owners to win.
It is easy to see how this decision could affect the home building industry. For example, if a home builder has completed the first phase of a project and the government prohibits the development of Phase II, it would be very difficult for the builder to establish an unconstitutional taking if the relevant parcel includes the entire site.
National Association of Home Builders submitted an amicus brief to ensure that the interests of home builders are heard by the Supreme Court. The court has not scheduled a date for oral argument, but it is likely to take place sometime in 2017.
This case deals with the “relevant parcel” rule under the takings clause and can be explained in terms of fractions.
If you own 100 acres and the government takes 40 acres of your land, the fraction is 40/100. The “relevant parcel” is the denominator (100), the total that property courts should use to decide how much of that land has been taken by the government.
In the example, it is easy to determine the relevant parcel, but the Murr case shows why this issue is not as simple as it looks.
In the late 1950s, William Murr bought a small parcel of lakefront property, Lot F, on which he built a family cabin. A few years later, William separately purchased Lot E, the unimproved lot directly adjacent to Lot F. In time, the titles for both lots were passed on to Murr’s children.
In 2004, the Murr children began to look into upgrading the family cabin, but they required the proceeds from the sale of the unimproved Lot E to finance these upgrades. Unfortunately, local regulations prohibited the children from selling Lot E by itself because of minimum lot size restrictions. Further, the children could not develop Lot E because of a local ordinance prohibiting development of adjacent lots if owned by the same person.
In short, the Murr children were left with no options for Lot E except to keep it in its unimproved condition.
The Murr children brought a claim for the 100% taking of Lot E only. They did not include any claims for Lot F. However, the government argued that the relevant parcel for purposes of takings analysis was Lot E combined with Lot F; thus, the taking would be far less than 100% since Lot F is not affected by the government regulation.
The Wisconsin appellate court agreed with the government, and ruled that because the two lots are geographically contiguous and under common ownership, takings analysis requires combining the two parcels when determining the loss of economic value. This is despite the fact that Lot E and Lot F were created as legally separate lots, taxed separately, purchased at separate times, and passed on to the children at separate times.
As a legal side note, there is a huge difference when a landowner claims a complete taking (100%) of property as compared to a partial taking under 100%. A landowner subject to a complete taking is automatically entitled to just compensation (referred to as a Lucas taking). A landowner subject to a partial taking is subject to an additional hurdle: the Penn Central legal test. Penn Central takings cases are very difficult for property owners to win.
It is easy to see how this decision could affect the home building industry. For example, if a home builder has completed the first phase of a project and the government prohibits the development of Phase II, it would be very difficult for the builder to establish an unconstitutional taking if the relevant parcel includes the entire site.
National Association of Home Builders submitted an amicus brief to ensure that the interests of home builders are heard by the Supreme Court. The court has not scheduled a date for oral argument, but it is likely to take place sometime in 2017.
Tuesday, October 25, 2016
FHFA House Price Index Up 0.7 Percent in August
From the Federal Housing Finance Agency:
The Federal Housing Finance Agency monthly House Price Index is calculated using home sales price information from mortgages sold to, or guaranteed by, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. From August 2015 to August 2016, house prices were up 6.4 percent.
For the nine census divisions, seasonally adjusted monthly price changes from July 2016 to August 2016 ranged from no change in the West North Central division to +1.2 percent in the New England division. The 12-month changes were all positive, ranging from +3.3 percent in the Middle Atlantic division to +7.9 percent in the Pacific division.
Monthly index values and appreciation rate estimates for recent periods are provided in the table and graphs on the following pages. Complete historical downloadable data and House Price Index release dates for 2016 and 2017 are available on the House Price Index page.
For detailed information on the House Price Index, see House Price Index Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). The next House Price Index report will be released November 23, 2016 and will include monthly data through September 2016 and quarterly data for the third quarter of 2016.
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
Historic Beattie House For Sale
The Beattie House, constructed in 1834, is the third oldest structure in Greenville, and is located in the East Park Avenue Historic District in downtown Greenville. The property and house are up for sale, with the Offering Memorendum available on October 21st. Click here for more details.
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