According to a recent Coldwell Banker Real Estate survey, older and younger baby boomers have similar and different attitudes toward buying property. On one hand, both groups – 47 to 55 years old for the younger and 56 to 64 for older – explain that the economy is putting a hold on plans to sell their homes, but they still desire to own property.

Aside from this similarity, the types of properties both age groups want to purchase differ. 31 percent of younger boomers want larger homes, compared with six percent of the older group. 80 percent of older boomers aim to downsize their homes, compared with of 52 percent of the younger group. Additionally, younger boomers seem to strive for single-family homes, while the older group appears to be going after condos and townhomes. Jim Gillespie, CEO of Coldwell Banker Real Estate, stated about the survey:

“The baby boomer generation has driven the U.S. economy for years, and like many Americans, they may be anxious about their next real estate decision. I know baby boomers are a very diverse group and cannot be described in generalities, but our survey clearly indicates that those boomers who are financially secure are actively seeking to buy their retirement home, or a second home, and they are taking advantage of the opportunities and value available in today’s market.”

Just how, exactly, are boomers taking advantage of the current market? Becoming a landlord, over using fixed annuities or bank CDs, is one increasing option for a retirement strategy. For financially-secure boomers, purchasing property to rent out ideally creates regular income and may result in an additional $200 to $1,000 after monthly expenses.

On the other hand, being a landlord has its drawbacks. Although rent payments can create steady monthly income, you need to deal with tenants, maintenance expenses, and taxes.

You’d think that, with the recession resulting in changed lifestyles across all age brackets, priorities would have shifted: having a career becomes simply holding onto a job, and owning a home turns into just having a roof over your head. Rather, a recent survey conducted by Harris International on behalf of Trulia shows the latter is not the case. Instead, a large percentage of Americans still aim for owning a home and consider it part of the American dream.

Since 2008, Trulia has been tracking American attitudes toward homeownership. Trulia reports that 70 percent of Americans, a figure unchanged since January 2011, still want to own a home. But, contrary to statistics, the draw to go out and buy a home just isn’t happening, even with low home prices. Home sales, instead, remain at record lows, and instability may be to blame. About their findings, Trulia’s chief economist Jed Kolko states: “Despite the slow and weak economic recovery and stumbling housing market, the American dream of home ownership is alive and well.”

On a similar note, President of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors Gene Lentz said: “The survey confirms that long-term demand for housing exists. Once our economy overcomes obstacles we face today, especially on the tight lending side, we are certain the market will recover.”

Aside from this major finding, the Trulia survey uncovered other perspectives toward homeownership. 57 percent of homeowners think that owning property is one of the best long-term investments, even more so than a 401K or retirement account. At the same time, common barriers to owning a home include large down payments, not enough money to make payments, mortgage qualifications, and poor credit.

Where and how individuals are living have also shifted. Boomers are downgrading, while young professionals are moving, or want to move, closer to their jobs. Ideal house size, similarly, has decreased down to 3,200 square feet.

Real estate in Connecticut is weakest in the eastern portion of the state. Factors contributing to this distinction include less job growth, greater job losses, and more foreclosure filings. Numbers for foreclosure filings, however, have decreased slightly since 2010.

The Norwich Bulletin reported recently that eastern Connecticut real estate in the largest area – New London and Windham Counties – has experienced growth during the third quarter of 2011. The Eastern Connecticut Association of Realtors reports that sales of single-family homes increased 5.6 percent, as of September 30. More specifically, 681 units were sold, compared to 645 a year ago. Condo sales also increased notably. While the median price dropped from $165,000 to $132,000, sales for condominiums went up 30.4 percent.

Although these increases are certainly positive, eastern Connecticut has also seen marked decreases, particularly for commercial real estate. While commercial real estate’s role in the recovery can be debated (is it needed for more job growth, or does more job growth increase sales of commercial real estate?), eastern Connecticut’s saw a drop of 55.56 percent. Additionally, sales of mobile homes, multi-family homes, and land decreased during the same period.

Added to this are drops in prices. Aside from the $30,000 drop for condos, the median home price slipped from $210,000 to $200,000. The number of foreclosures and short sales still on the market in eastern Connecticut is expected to influence the average price through next year.

About the current state of eastern Connecticut real estate, John Bolduc, chief executive of the local Realtors association, stated: “The good news is the number of sales are up; the bad news is there is still some downward pressure (on prices).”

Real estate in Connecticut, of course, varies by area, but as we reported earlier, foreclosure filings in the state are some of the lowest in the nation.

Although areas like Las Vegas are seeing large amounts of foreclosures, Connecticut ranked 13th out of 50 states for foreclosure filings. According to the Connecticut Tribuna, the state has a handful of positive conditions that prevent large amounts of foreclosure filings: high income stability, reasonable property values, and low interest rates. Although the state ranks 30th for mortgage delinquencies, only 0.97 percent of all loans are foreclosure filings.

Part of this trend can be attributed to Connecticut Attorney General George Jepson, who has a goal of reforming the mortgage foreclosure process. While Connecticut foreclosures are either strict or by sale, Jepson doesn’t want to change the filing process itself; rather, he is addressing how large banks are handling foreclosure filings and loan modification programs. Robo-signing has been an issue with larger banks, but although this illegal practice has supposedly been eliminated, the processes for foreclosure filing and loan modification are still murky. Jepson told the Tribuna:

“The national banks that service residential mortgage loans – including Wells Fargo, Ally Financial, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America and Citibank – have repeatedly violated state law by failing to treat financially distressed homeowners fairly and honestly. […] Any settlement will have to include substantial bank assistance for foreclosure relief programs and other programs to help distressed homeowners stay in their homes where possible and responsible to do so – a result that is compassionate to families and beneficial to the larger economy.”

Jepson is presently negotiating with banks. Ideally, he mentioned to the newspaper, large banks would have billions of dollars set aside for loan modification, rather than taking time with paperwork.

If you have filed for foreclosure or loan modification with a large bank, in Connecticut or another state, what was your experience? How was your file handled? Do you agree with Jepson that reform is needed for these processes?

New York was listed as the top spot for real estate investment for the first time since 2007, according to a report by Cushman & Wakefield, Inc. released recently. Bypassing London on a global scale, New York saw investments grow 166 percent over the past 12 months (August 2010 to August 2011); the total figures for investment in the city were $29.7 billion. Although investments in London, too, increased, the percentage was significantly smaller – 2.4 percent; the total amount for London — $27.2 billion – didn’t trail too far behind New York, however. Cushman & Wakefield expect the trend to continue for New York:

“The next 6 months is likely to see increased levels of capital looking at the top ranked cities as investors continue their flight-to-quality and look for safe opportunities in core, regulated markets.”

Aside from New York, other U.S. markets experiencing increased investing include Boston, Chicago, and Atlanta. Market conditions, however, vary on both sides of the pond. In the U.S., the commercial mortgage-backed security market is rising again, and improved access to financing also resulted in more investments.

Internationally, Europe as a whole is managing with distressed debt, which is making new funding a greater risk. Tokyo, additionally, saw negative growth as a result of the earthquake. Cushman & Wakefield summed up the reasoning behind these trends in their report:

“With investors likely to stay risk-averse, many are expected to remain focused on the top-ranked cities in the year ahead and pricing for the best space is likely to increase further in all regions, with investors and occupiers facing a shortage of quality space in the best locations. […] The opportunities for the less risk-averse will therefore be split between creating modern space in top cities or finding the next tier of cities and city locations to benefit from supply shortages in the core.”