Just wanted to say hi to everyone. I'm still in New York. I'll be here until Friday evening. Then on Saturday I'll be back to work in California. Things have been pretty hectic over here. I've been waking up at 5am - New York time ( = 2am California time) to get work done over here. I added a new link on the right sidebar, "Calendar" which I'm going to use to just jot down some of the events that I have. If you'd like to get an idea of when I'll be free, you can feel free to check my schedule online at any time!
Now for today's top real estate stories.
Higher Loan Limits in '06. As many as perhaps a million home buyers will catch a slight interest rate break next year, thanks to one of the largest increases on record in the so-called conforming loan limit. Beginning Jan. 1, the ceiling on loans that can be purchased or securitized by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will jump nearly 16 percent, to $417,000. The current maximum is $359,650. The ceilings of government-based FHA and VA loans also will rise next year. The change in the Fannie-Freddie maximum means that buyers and refinancers who would have exceeded the old limit in 2006 will see their loans costs decline by from 0.25 to 0.5 percent, as long as they remain under the new ceiling. Click here to read more.
Action by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight to increase the conforming loan limits for single-family mortgages purchased by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac doesn’t do much to help California, say two of the state’s major real estate players. "While this is good news for many homebuyers, Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's new loan limits do not go far enough to benefit most homebuyers in California," says Vince Malta, president of the California Association of Realtors. "Conforming loan limits need to more accurately reflect the cost of housing in California, where the median price of a home is more than double that of the nation." The current median home price in California is $538,770, an increase of 17.2 percent compared to a year ago and more than 29 percent higher than the national conforming loan limit of $417,000. In addition, California has 19 counties with a median-home price above the national conforming loan limit. Click here to read more.
As many economists worry about a slowdown in the residential real estate market nationwide, a Southern California expert is confident the Coachella Valley’s red-hot housing market will continue to perform well in 2006. Why is he optimistic and what does it mean if you’re a buyer, seller or investor? Check out the analysis compiled by Patrick Veling, founder and president of Real Data Strategies in Brea, Calif. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Wednesday, November 30, 2005
Tuesday, November 29, 2005
Real Estate News for Tuesday, November 29th, 2005
Hope everyone is doing great! I'm posting from New York today! But I'll stick with California real estate news, because that's what I do best!
Politician faces up to 10 years in huge bribery scandal. The case began when authorities started investigating Cunningham's sale of his Del Mar house to defense contractor Mitchell Wade for $1,675,000. Wade sold the house nearly a year later for $975,000 - a loss of $700,000 in a hot real estate market. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Politician faces up to 10 years in huge bribery scandal. The case began when authorities started investigating Cunningham's sale of his Del Mar house to defense contractor Mitchell Wade for $1,675,000. Wade sold the house nearly a year later for $975,000 - a loss of $700,000 in a hot real estate market. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Monday, November 28, 2005
Real Estate News for Monday, November 28th, 2005
Sales frenzy slows, in real estate market and at malls. The real estate market is showing more signs of slowing down, according to two reports today. Nationwide, sales of existing homes declined 2.7 percent in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 7.09 million houses and condominiums, according to the National Association of Realtors. The decline would have been even larger if it hadn't been for home buyers who were displaced by the Gulf Coast hurricanes. The median selling price nationwide was $218,000, 16.6 percent higher than a year earlier. But the number of unsold homes on the market reached 2.87 million, a 19-year high. Click here to read more.
California luxury real estate values break records. But trend is slowing, index says. Luxury home values rose to all-time highs in three major California cities in the third quarter of 2005 compared to a year ago, according to an index that tracks luxury homes. Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco all saw jumps in home prices, according to the First Republic Prestige Home Index by First Republic Bank. Click here to read more.
Real estate sales slip in California. Median prices remain higher than a year ago. Existing-home sales cooled in California last month, the California Association of Realtors reported today, down 2.8 percent compared with October 2004. Meanwhile, the median price of an existing home in California in October increased 17.2 percent compared with October 2004. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
California luxury real estate values break records. But trend is slowing, index says. Luxury home values rose to all-time highs in three major California cities in the third quarter of 2005 compared to a year ago, according to an index that tracks luxury homes. Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco all saw jumps in home prices, according to the First Republic Prestige Home Index by First Republic Bank. Click here to read more.Real estate sales slip in California. Median prices remain higher than a year ago. Existing-home sales cooled in California last month, the California Association of Realtors reported today, down 2.8 percent compared with October 2004. Meanwhile, the median price of an existing home in California in October increased 17.2 percent compared with October 2004. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Sunday, November 27, 2005
Real Estate News for Sunday, November 27th, 2005
Average mortgage rates and indexes. Weekly survey of 60 Southland lenders as of Nov. 23, 2005.
Compiled by National Financial News Services. Click here to read more.
In softening market, adopt a new attitude. Instead of double-digit appreciation rates, look for 4% or 5% appreciation in 2006. Instead of mortgage rates at historic lows, look for conventional 30-year rates in the 7% to 8% range and a couple of points higher for sub-prime borrowers. Plan for slower-moving sales, more unsold housing inventory sitting on the market and scaled-back listing prices. This is the "soft landing" scenario that many — but hardly all — economists expect to be the final phase of the current cycle. Others forecast harder landings in the frothiest cities of the West and East coasts if interest rates get out of hand. based on observations of what happened — and what worked — in earlier cyclical downturns during the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Prospective sellers and buyers in 2006 will need to be much closer students of the dynamics and psychology of their local markets than they had to be during 2003 and 2004, when sellers held most of the cards and buyers begged them to take their money. If you are seriously thinking about selling your primary home or an investment property next year, first you've got to comprehend precisely where your real estate is positioned inside its own sub-segment of the overall market. Click here to read more.
Moving issues, how can we prepare for the big move? Figuring out what you're going to do ahead of time can help. According to the American Moving and Storage Association (www.moving.org), you should start planning your move at least eight weeks in advance. Eight weeks out, obtain a floor plan of your new property, inventory your household goods, solicit bids from legitimate moving companies, choose a mover, contact your insurance company to find out whether your homeowners' policy will cover your goods when you move, create a file for your moving paperwork, and begin the process of transferring your children's school records. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Compiled by National Financial News Services. Click here to read more.
In softening market, adopt a new attitude. Instead of double-digit appreciation rates, look for 4% or 5% appreciation in 2006. Instead of mortgage rates at historic lows, look for conventional 30-year rates in the 7% to 8% range and a couple of points higher for sub-prime borrowers. Plan for slower-moving sales, more unsold housing inventory sitting on the market and scaled-back listing prices. This is the "soft landing" scenario that many — but hardly all — economists expect to be the final phase of the current cycle. Others forecast harder landings in the frothiest cities of the West and East coasts if interest rates get out of hand. based on observations of what happened — and what worked — in earlier cyclical downturns during the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Prospective sellers and buyers in 2006 will need to be much closer students of the dynamics and psychology of their local markets than they had to be during 2003 and 2004, when sellers held most of the cards and buyers begged them to take their money. If you are seriously thinking about selling your primary home or an investment property next year, first you've got to comprehend precisely where your real estate is positioned inside its own sub-segment of the overall market. Click here to read more.
Moving issues, how can we prepare for the big move? Figuring out what you're going to do ahead of time can help. According to the American Moving and Storage Association (www.moving.org), you should start planning your move at least eight weeks in advance. Eight weeks out, obtain a floor plan of your new property, inventory your household goods, solicit bids from legitimate moving companies, choose a mover, contact your insurance company to find out whether your homeowners' policy will cover your goods when you move, create a file for your moving paperwork, and begin the process of transferring your children's school records. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Saturday, November 26, 2005
Real Estate News for Saturday, November 26th, 2005
Realtors' bullish housing outlook questioned. The National Association of Realtors asserts in a new report that a healthy housing market is here to stay and prices aren't likely to decline. But that sounds awfully upbeat given recent data showing that home-builder sentiment has plunged and that price inflation in certain markets, including California and Florida, has started to slow. At the same time, inventories are up, mortgage applications are down and real-estate lending, particularly home-equity loans, remains soft. Click here to read more.
How to Buy a Home Real Estate or Property from HUD. HUD takes properties back when homebuyers fail to make payments on FHA loans. It is in HUD’s best interest to not lose money on these deals. In an effort to curb losses HUD has assigned various professional brokerage firms around the country to handle their asset sales. For instance in Southern California HUD has assigned Pemco to handle all HUD foreclosure sales. In New York HUD assigned National Home Management Solutions to provide the brokerage services. HUD has a link to the various assigned brokerage firms throughout the country. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
How to Buy a Home Real Estate or Property from HUD. HUD takes properties back when homebuyers fail to make payments on FHA loans. It is in HUD’s best interest to not lose money on these deals. In an effort to curb losses HUD has assigned various professional brokerage firms around the country to handle their asset sales. For instance in Southern California HUD has assigned Pemco to handle all HUD foreclosure sales. In New York HUD assigned National Home Management Solutions to provide the brokerage services. HUD has a link to the various assigned brokerage firms throughout the country. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Friday, November 25, 2005
Real Estate News for Friday, November 25th, 2005
Uncle Sam has made homeownership a great deal. Not only does the tax code allow you to deduct the interest you pay on your mortgage when you itemize your return but also it lets couples reap $500,000 in capital gains from a home sale ($250,000 for single filers) every two years without owing any tax. Although there are plenty of tax advantages to owning investment properties, avoiding capital gains taxes isn't one of them. But just because you can't avoid those taxes doesn't mean you can't postpone them. That's because the tax code does allow you to exchange one income-producing property for another, under certain rules, and not pay any gain on the sale. Click here to read more.
Section 1031 of the U.S. tax code allows anyone such tax-free exchanges or rollovers of "like-kind" income property. The Skaries did that, with a twist. Instead of chasing after another income property to buy and manage again, they rolled their money into TICs. What's a TIC? -- Tenants in Common -- exchanges, allow you to sell your property and roll the proceeds over to shared property where you own a separate, tenant-in-common interest. Many married couples will recognize the tenants in common designation as the way they hold title to their own homes. But in the investment arena TIC has been used as a way to own property without being hamstrung by your partners' refusal to sell when a good offer comes along. Click here to read more.
For decades, Mammoth has been the place to ski for Southern Californians who don't want the hassle or expense of flying to trendier locales such as Aspen or British Columbia's Whistler resort. Of the 1.5 million people who skied in Mammoth last season, 80 percent were from Los Angeles, San Diego or nearby counties. The trip is a half-day's drive from San Diego up state Route 395, which runs along the eastern edge of the Sierras, through vast stretches of desert dotted with minuscule outposts of civilization such as Lone Pine, Independence and Bishop. The mountain itself is massive: 150 trails of every degree of difficulty, with an annual average of 400 inches of snow. Last year, the ski area opened in October and didn't close until July. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Section 1031 of the U.S. tax code allows anyone such tax-free exchanges or rollovers of "like-kind" income property. The Skaries did that, with a twist. Instead of chasing after another income property to buy and manage again, they rolled their money into TICs. What's a TIC? -- Tenants in Common -- exchanges, allow you to sell your property and roll the proceeds over to shared property where you own a separate, tenant-in-common interest. Many married couples will recognize the tenants in common designation as the way they hold title to their own homes. But in the investment arena TIC has been used as a way to own property without being hamstrung by your partners' refusal to sell when a good offer comes along. Click here to read more.
For decades, Mammoth has been the place to ski for Southern Californians who don't want the hassle or expense of flying to trendier locales such as Aspen or British Columbia's Whistler resort. Of the 1.5 million people who skied in Mammoth last season, 80 percent were from Los Angeles, San Diego or nearby counties. The trip is a half-day's drive from San Diego up state Route 395, which runs along the eastern edge of the Sierras, through vast stretches of desert dotted with minuscule outposts of civilization such as Lone Pine, Independence and Bishop. The mountain itself is massive: 150 trails of every degree of difficulty, with an annual average of 400 inches of snow. Last year, the ski area opened in October and didn't close until July. Click here to read more.~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Thursday, November 24, 2005
Real Estate News for Thursday, November 24th, 2005
Super Happy Thanksgiving! I think we all need to take a break, so to celebrate, I won't be posting the news today.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
Real Estate News for Wednesday, November 23rd, 2005
Just so you know, I'm posting today's blog from a Toyota dealership!
Sell first, then buy. Or vice versa? Homeowners agonize over decisions about timing. In today's tight market, purchase offers made contingent upon the sale of another home often are dismissed out of hand. This leaves home buyers to consider such questions as: Can they afford two mortgages if their old home doesn't sell quickly? Should they apply for a home-equity line of credit or a bridge loan to see them through the transactions? Are they willing to move into a rental temporarily, if they must? And, if they sell and don't find a house to buy, how unhappy will they be sitting on the real estate sidelines while the market appreciates without them? Click here to read more.
Housing prices in Riverside have risen along with the rest of the Southland, but it's still possible to buy a family-sized house for $350,000 to $400,000 in the Magnolia Center area. Most new housing in Riverside is going up on hills to the east, extending toward March Air Reserve Base. But there are some infill projects, including one by MDC Holdings under the banner of Richmond American Homes. Their Liberty Square project on Dewey Avenue will offer 55 three- and four-bedroom homes of up to 2,043 square feet, starting around $375,000, according to Emily Hetrick, an MDC spokeswoman. Residents, however, will have to tolerate increasing train traffic along Union Pacific railroad's main line, which parallels Dewey. On the plus side, although many Southland cities advertise themselves as "family friendly," Riverside claims to be one of the nation's first "senior-friendly" communities. The Magnolia Center neighborhood has a large share of the city's senior housing and activities. The spacious and modern Janet Goeske Senior Center on Sierra Street at Streeter Avenue is adjacent to a 162-unit senior housing complex that offers subsidized apartments ranging from $313 to $626 a month. A few blocks away on Central Avenue, Raincross Senior Village is under construction and is expected to open in May. The project will offer 168 market-rate units, 74 assisted-living apartments and 22 garden cottages of up to 1,200 square feet. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Sell first, then buy. Or vice versa? Homeowners agonize over decisions about timing. In today's tight market, purchase offers made contingent upon the sale of another home often are dismissed out of hand. This leaves home buyers to consider such questions as: Can they afford two mortgages if their old home doesn't sell quickly? Should they apply for a home-equity line of credit or a bridge loan to see them through the transactions? Are they willing to move into a rental temporarily, if they must? And, if they sell and don't find a house to buy, how unhappy will they be sitting on the real estate sidelines while the market appreciates without them? Click here to read more.
Housing prices in Riverside have risen along with the rest of the Southland, but it's still possible to buy a family-sized house for $350,000 to $400,000 in the Magnolia Center area. Most new housing in Riverside is going up on hills to the east, extending toward March Air Reserve Base. But there are some infill projects, including one by MDC Holdings under the banner of Richmond American Homes. Their Liberty Square project on Dewey Avenue will offer 55 three- and four-bedroom homes of up to 2,043 square feet, starting around $375,000, according to Emily Hetrick, an MDC spokeswoman. Residents, however, will have to tolerate increasing train traffic along Union Pacific railroad's main line, which parallels Dewey. On the plus side, although many Southland cities advertise themselves as "family friendly," Riverside claims to be one of the nation's first "senior-friendly" communities. The Magnolia Center neighborhood has a large share of the city's senior housing and activities. The spacious and modern Janet Goeske Senior Center on Sierra Street at Streeter Avenue is adjacent to a 162-unit senior housing complex that offers subsidized apartments ranging from $313 to $626 a month. A few blocks away on Central Avenue, Raincross Senior Village is under construction and is expected to open in May. The project will offer 168 market-rate units, 74 assisted-living apartments and 22 garden cottages of up to 1,200 square feet. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
Real Estate News for Tuesday, November 22nd, 2005
Hope everyone is ready for the Thanksgiving holiday! I want to apologize for the late posts on my website lately. I'm actually out of town this week to visit family. So please bear with me for a while, I can only post when I have free time and anywhere I can find dial-up or a coffeeshop with wireless internet! Thank you!
~Tina.
Washington, California, and Texas Are Top Three States for Home Searches, According to HomePages.com HomePages™ reports that since launching over a month ago The Evergreen State, Golden State, and The Lone Star State have generated the highest number of visitors shopping for homes and neighborhood information. Illinois and Virginia round out the top five states, followed by New York (6), Florida (7), Colorado (8), New Jersey (9), and Georgia (10), respectively. In addition, HomePages found Seattle to be the top city in terms of consumers shopping for homes, with two of the top five cities hailing from Texas: Fort Worth (2) and Dallas (5). Not to be outdone by Texas, California claims seven of the top 25 cities including: Los Angeles (3), San Francisco (9), Sacramento (13), Sunnyvale (14), San Diego (15), San Jose (17), and Irvine (22). Click here to read more.
San Diego is seen as the top city in the nation for investors seeking to buy commercial real estate in 2006, according to a widely watched survey of industry experts. While that's good news for current owners of office, industrial and apartment buildings, the survey also suggests that sky-high prices and rising interest rates may be starting to cool investor demand for commercial properties. It's a great time to sell. It's not going to get much better than this," said Dean Schwanke, vice president of the Urban Land Institute, which compiles the survey with PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Click here to read more.
Realtors group hopes to combine state's roughly 70 multiple listing services into one, predicting benefits for agents, buyers and sellers.
SoCalMLS: Based in Anaheim, it serves all but two Orange County cities, plus much of southeast Los Angeles County and parts of the Inland Empire. With 35,000 members and at least 10,000 properties listed for sale, it is one of the largest listing services in the nation.
Newport Beach Association of Realtors: Serving Costa Mesa and Newport Beach. Its MLS is expected to merge with SoCalMLS by 2006.
GSB: Great South Bay MLS, serving cities from Carson and San Pedro to just south of Los Angeles International Airport. Some, but not all, of its members participate in the alliance.
CLAW: Combined Los Angeles-Westside MLS, stretching from central Los Angeles west to Malibu.
Southland: Serving the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys and the Simi Valley area.
i-Tech MLS: Serving Glendale and the Pasadena and foothill areas.
MRMLS: Multi-Regional MLS, stretching from northeast Los Angeles County into the Inland Empire.
DAM:Desert Area MLS, serving Palm Springs and surrounding communities.
These Southern California MLS's are not in the MLS Alliance:
Sandicor: San Diego County Regional MLS, covering cities from Oceanside to San Ysidro.
DCAoR:Desert Communities Association of Realtors, covering Twentynine Palms, Morongo Valley, Needles and Yucca Valley.
Big Bear BOR:The Board of Realtors in the Big Bear area.
RIM: Rim of the World MLS, serving the Lake Arrowhead area.
Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
~Tina.
Washington, California, and Texas Are Top Three States for Home Searches, According to HomePages.com HomePages™ reports that since launching over a month ago The Evergreen State, Golden State, and The Lone Star State have generated the highest number of visitors shopping for homes and neighborhood information. Illinois and Virginia round out the top five states, followed by New York (6), Florida (7), Colorado (8), New Jersey (9), and Georgia (10), respectively. In addition, HomePages found Seattle to be the top city in terms of consumers shopping for homes, with two of the top five cities hailing from Texas: Fort Worth (2) and Dallas (5). Not to be outdone by Texas, California claims seven of the top 25 cities including: Los Angeles (3), San Francisco (9), Sacramento (13), Sunnyvale (14), San Diego (15), San Jose (17), and Irvine (22). Click here to read more.
San Diego is seen as the top city in the nation for investors seeking to buy commercial real estate in 2006, according to a widely watched survey of industry experts. While that's good news for current owners of office, industrial and apartment buildings, the survey also suggests that sky-high prices and rising interest rates may be starting to cool investor demand for commercial properties. It's a great time to sell. It's not going to get much better than this," said Dean Schwanke, vice president of the Urban Land Institute, which compiles the survey with PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Click here to read more.
Realtors group hopes to combine state's roughly 70 multiple listing services into one, predicting benefits for agents, buyers and sellers.
SoCalMLS: Based in Anaheim, it serves all but two Orange County cities, plus much of southeast Los Angeles County and parts of the Inland Empire. With 35,000 members and at least 10,000 properties listed for sale, it is one of the largest listing services in the nation.
Newport Beach Association of Realtors: Serving Costa Mesa and Newport Beach. Its MLS is expected to merge with SoCalMLS by 2006.
GSB: Great South Bay MLS, serving cities from Carson and San Pedro to just south of Los Angeles International Airport. Some, but not all, of its members participate in the alliance.
CLAW: Combined Los Angeles-Westside MLS, stretching from central Los Angeles west to Malibu.
Southland: Serving the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys and the Simi Valley area.
i-Tech MLS: Serving Glendale and the Pasadena and foothill areas.
MRMLS: Multi-Regional MLS, stretching from northeast Los Angeles County into the Inland Empire.
DAM:Desert Area MLS, serving Palm Springs and surrounding communities.
These Southern California MLS's are not in the MLS Alliance:
Sandicor: San Diego County Regional MLS, covering cities from Oceanside to San Ysidro.
DCAoR:Desert Communities Association of Realtors, covering Twentynine Palms, Morongo Valley, Needles and Yucca Valley.
Big Bear BOR:The Board of Realtors in the Big Bear area.
RIM: Rim of the World MLS, serving the Lake Arrowhead area.
Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Monday, November 21, 2005
Real Estate News for Monday, November 21st, 2005
Real Estate Classifieds Company Provides Services Similar to Google Base. To enhance its ability to compete against Google, Just Real Estate Listings™ has launched a new self-service advertising module which offers free advertising to Realtors and local advertisers who offer products and services of interest to the new home buyer. Similar to Google Base, Just Real Estate Listings currently offers free real estate listings, as well as a free data integration service that regularly and automatically updates listings from real estate and advertising content feeds. To enhance its ability to compete against Google, Just Real Estate Listings™ has launched a new self-service advertising module which offers free advertising to Realtors and local advertisers who offer products and services of interest to the new home buyer. Located at www.JustRealEstateListings.com advertisers can sign up and create a free, full page HTML advertisement with a user friendly, interactive online WYSIWYG editor. Click here to read more.
What's Behind the Boom? The debate now is whether the boom will lead to a soft landing, with gentler price increases, or to a long, painful bust, in which prices fall considerably in some places before buyers regain confidence. However the current boom ends, longer-term forces are reshaping the housing industry. Here is a look at some of them. Click here to read more.
Here's what consumers can look forward to when the midnight bell-ringing comes to a stop: sharply higher home heating bills, holiday credit card bills, rising interest rates -- and now what looks like a slowing real estate market. So forget about the typical holly jolly tidings for 2006. Economists interviewed for this story all say that they're "concerned" about whether cash-strapped Americans have much gas left in the tank to keep being the main driver of economic growth in the months ahead. Some experts are more skeptical than others. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
What's Behind the Boom? The debate now is whether the boom will lead to a soft landing, with gentler price increases, or to a long, painful bust, in which prices fall considerably in some places before buyers regain confidence. However the current boom ends, longer-term forces are reshaping the housing industry. Here is a look at some of them. Click here to read more.Here's what consumers can look forward to when the midnight bell-ringing comes to a stop: sharply higher home heating bills, holiday credit card bills, rising interest rates -- and now what looks like a slowing real estate market. So forget about the typical holly jolly tidings for 2006. Economists interviewed for this story all say that they're "concerned" about whether cash-strapped Americans have much gas left in the tank to keep being the main driver of economic growth in the months ahead. Some experts are more skeptical than others. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Sunday, November 20, 2005
Real Estate News for Sunday, November 20th, 2005
Investors like valley housing. But experts warn they'll dump their homes when prices decline. Here's a new name for the San Joaquin Valley: "Affordable California." That's what real estate economist Kenneth Rosen has started calling the valley, which attracts commuters and investors from California's high-priced coastal counties. "A significant number of homes — 20 to 40 percent of those sold (from Merced to Bakersfield) — are being purchased by investors," Rosen said. "We're worried too many people are buying houses for investment, not occupancy." He warned that if interest rates rise, the valley's house prices may decline and investors could dump their investment homes. Click here to read more.
Economic Risks Rising into 2006, Expert Says. Economic growth will most likely moderate in 2006, but an unexpected shock could trigger a sharp correction and significant decline in housing prices, according to an East Bay economist's closely watched annual projections. He said there is a 60 percent chance that rising interest rates and energy prices, combined with declining consumer confidence, will slow gross domestic product and job growth in 2006 to 3.1 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively. Housing prices in California and elsewhere will likely decline slightly, as home owners move to realize profits from the enormous run-up during the past few years. Click here to read more.
Normal a relative term in today's home-buying market. Normal market not seen in years. Home sales in the San Fernando Valley plunge an annual 16 percent in October and the median price of a used house soars 27 percent, right back into record territory. And market watchers conclude that things are getting back to normal. This market has not behaved in a normal fashion over the past 19 years, though. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Economic Risks Rising into 2006, Expert Says. Economic growth will most likely moderate in 2006, but an unexpected shock could trigger a sharp correction and significant decline in housing prices, according to an East Bay economist's closely watched annual projections. He said there is a 60 percent chance that rising interest rates and energy prices, combined with declining consumer confidence, will slow gross domestic product and job growth in 2006 to 3.1 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively. Housing prices in California and elsewhere will likely decline slightly, as home owners move to realize profits from the enormous run-up during the past few years. Click here to read more.
Normal a relative term in today's home-buying market. Normal market not seen in years. Home sales in the San Fernando Valley plunge an annual 16 percent in October and the median price of a used house soars 27 percent, right back into record territory. And market watchers conclude that things are getting back to normal. This market has not behaved in a normal fashion over the past 19 years, though. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Saturday, November 19, 2005
Real Estate News for Saturday, November 19th, 2005
The Open House at 2200 W. Wilson St. #133, Banning, CA 92220 went pretty well this morning. I was able to meet and greet a few neighbors! If you'd like more details on this home, click here. If you would like to see the home in person, please give me a call anytime! Thank you! Now for today's news...
The unemployment rate edged higher in San Diego County and statewide last month, as the pace of job growth slowed, dragged down by a cooling in the housing market. In California, employers added 6,800 jobs to their payrolls in October, after seasonal adjustments to the data. That was less than half the monthly job growth over the past year. In San Diego County, payrolls rose by 6,200 jobs. But that figure – which was not seasonally adjusted – was boosted by more than 6,000 education-related jobs as teachers and school staff members returned to work. California's jobless rate rose from 5.1 percent to 5.2 percent. Nationwide, unemployment slipped from 5.1 to 5.0 percent. Economists blame the sluggishness in the job market partly on the slowdown in the real estate market. "Over the past couple years, employment has been completely driven by real estate," said Christopher Thornberg, senior economist at the Anderson Forecast of the University of California Los Angeles. "But now the real estate market is cooling off, and the state isn't adding many jobs anywhere else." Click here to read more.
S. California housing price growth slows. Is real estate boom at the end of its run or just taking a breather? Southern California's housing market continued to lose steam last month as the pace of sales declined and the rate of price appreciation leveled off, data released this week showed. Rising inventories, higher interest rates and growing buyer wariness are working to temper the region's hot real estate market, experts said. "There is a bit of a slowdown," said real estate agent Jon Strum, who sells homes on the west side of Los Angeles for Boardwalk Realty. "There is more caution among buyers." Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
The unemployment rate edged higher in San Diego County and statewide last month, as the pace of job growth slowed, dragged down by a cooling in the housing market. In California, employers added 6,800 jobs to their payrolls in October, after seasonal adjustments to the data. That was less than half the monthly job growth over the past year. In San Diego County, payrolls rose by 6,200 jobs. But that figure – which was not seasonally adjusted – was boosted by more than 6,000 education-related jobs as teachers and school staff members returned to work. California's jobless rate rose from 5.1 percent to 5.2 percent. Nationwide, unemployment slipped from 5.1 to 5.0 percent. Economists blame the sluggishness in the job market partly on the slowdown in the real estate market. "Over the past couple years, employment has been completely driven by real estate," said Christopher Thornberg, senior economist at the Anderson Forecast of the University of California Los Angeles. "But now the real estate market is cooling off, and the state isn't adding many jobs anywhere else." Click here to read more.
S. California housing price growth slows. Is real estate boom at the end of its run or just taking a breather? Southern California's housing market continued to lose steam last month as the pace of sales declined and the rate of price appreciation leveled off, data released this week showed. Rising inventories, higher interest rates and growing buyer wariness are working to temper the region's hot real estate market, experts said. "There is a bit of a slowdown," said real estate agent Jon Strum, who sells homes on the west side of Los Angeles for Boardwalk Realty. "There is more caution among buyers." Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Friday, November 18, 2005
Real Estate News for Friday, November 18th, 2005
A real estate analyst says the California housing market "is definitely showing signs of cooling down, but it's still healthy." The statewide rate of housing price growth narrowed last month to the lowest level in two years. That's according to the real estate information service DataQuick. The median price of a California home jumped 14.9% to 454,000--the lowest annual rate of home appreciation since June 2003 when it was more than 23 percent. October's median price was down point-two percent from 455-thousand dollars in September. Home sales dipped slightly in last month. A total of 53-thousand-700 new and resale houses and condos were sold statewide, down one-point-one percent from October 2004 and nine-point-nine percent from September. Click here to read more.
Shot realty agent upgraded to "stable." Two men charged in connection with shooting. The medical condition of a new real estate agent who was shot while prospecting near his home after ending a 10-year military career just days earlier has been upgraded from "critical" to "stable." Separately, two men have been charged in connection with the agent's shooting and a fund has been established to help cover the cost of his fast-rising hospital bills and meet related expenses for his wife and four children. Click here to read more.
Some Inland residents purchase or inherit their homes from family members, reaping the benefits of a great financial deal from relatives. Others are looking for the comfort and memories of their youth, even passing on their old bedrooms to their children. But people who seek to buy back their childhood home once it's out of the family are rare. And once they return home, these buyers have even found possessions left behind years earlier, from family mementos to antique appliances. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Shot realty agent upgraded to "stable." Two men charged in connection with shooting. The medical condition of a new real estate agent who was shot while prospecting near his home after ending a 10-year military career just days earlier has been upgraded from "critical" to "stable." Separately, two men have been charged in connection with the agent's shooting and a fund has been established to help cover the cost of his fast-rising hospital bills and meet related expenses for his wife and four children. Click here to read more.
Some Inland residents purchase or inherit their homes from family members, reaping the benefits of a great financial deal from relatives. Others are looking for the comfort and memories of their youth, even passing on their old bedrooms to their children. But people who seek to buy back their childhood home once it's out of the family are rare. And once they return home, these buyers have even found possessions left behind years earlier, from family mementos to antique appliances. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Thursday, November 17, 2005
Open House on Saturday, November 19th, 2005
Click the image to enlarge.
I'm hosting an open house this Saturday. Everyone is invited! So please stop by if you have a chance. The home is located at 2200 W. Wilson St. #133, Banning, CA 92220. Click here for a Google Map. If you would like more information on the home, or will not be able to make the open house and would like to make an appointment please call me anytime! Click here for the MLS info. Thank you!
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Real Estate News for Thursday, November 17th, 2005
Real estate sales slump continues in S.F. Bay Area. Median prices up 17% since October 2004. San Francisco Bay Area home sales declined on a year-over-year basis for the seventh month in a row in October, according to DataQuick Information Systems, a real estate information company. The median home price in October was up 17.2 percent since October 2004 but slipped 0.3 percent from September 2005. Sales have been lower compared to 2004 every month since April. So far this year 107,099 Bay Area homes have been sold, 5.1 percent fewer than 112,873 for the same ten-month period last year. "We look at today's market as normalizing. Everybody seems to have gotten used to the records set last year and the year before. The fact is that last month was the third-strongest October since we started keeping records in 1988. It was about 20 percent above average," said Marshall Prentice, DataQuick president. "Indicators of market distress are still largely absent. Foreclosure rates are low, down payment sizes are stable and there have been no significant shifts in market mix," DataQuick reported. Click here to read more.
San Francisco Real Estate Buyers Celebrate Better Bargaining Position. Real Estate buyers in San Francisco find themselves with more negotiating power than they have had since the mid 1990’s. For the first time in years, buyers are acquiring San Francisco homes at prices below asking. Supply and demand are the fundamental barometers that economists watch to forecast whether prices rise or fall -- and the balance is swinging to the advantage of buyers for the first time since 2001. In San Francisco, inventories are rising, some prices are dropping, and some properties are going unsold. With inventories growing, buyers are beginning to understand that they can take their time and be more selective. They have more listings to look at typically.. Click here to read more.
Seniors Reveal More Browsing For Housing Versatility. Not quite as many older buyers as the general population use the Internet when shopping for a home, but they are just as versatile in their surfing and use the Net to go well beyond just browsing for housing. Nearly half of all home buyers 50 years and older use the Internet as a part of the home buying process. Among that group 92 percent research comparable prices, 61 percent look for a specific real estate agent and 19 percent research neighborhoods. Overall, the percentage of home buyers who used the Internet as an integral part of the home buying process increased to 62 percent in 2005, compared with 56 percent the previous year. Among that group, none of those surveyed said the Internet information was more useful than that obtained from their agent. "Home buyers ultimately turned to their Realtor for both interpretation of information gleaned from the Internet, and for their Realtor's expertise and judgment throughout the home buying process. Home buyers clearly view the Internet as a tool to enhance their ability to research the real estate market, rather than a replacement for a Realtor's expertise in the field," said Jim Hamilton, CAR president. Click here to read more.
Real estate's November report card. Guest perspective: New-home sales strong despite seasonality. The housing market is going through its usual seasonal slowdown this year. New-home builders, which have migrated more to the higher-priced segments of the market, are experiencing more than a 28 percent decline, as higher-priced home sales typically slow down more because their buyers have children in school. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
San Francisco Real Estate Buyers Celebrate Better Bargaining Position. Real Estate buyers in San Francisco find themselves with more negotiating power than they have had since the mid 1990’s. For the first time in years, buyers are acquiring San Francisco homes at prices below asking. Supply and demand are the fundamental barometers that economists watch to forecast whether prices rise or fall -- and the balance is swinging to the advantage of buyers for the first time since 2001. In San Francisco, inventories are rising, some prices are dropping, and some properties are going unsold. With inventories growing, buyers are beginning to understand that they can take their time and be more selective. They have more listings to look at typically.. Click here to read more.
Seniors Reveal More Browsing For Housing Versatility. Not quite as many older buyers as the general population use the Internet when shopping for a home, but they are just as versatile in their surfing and use the Net to go well beyond just browsing for housing. Nearly half of all home buyers 50 years and older use the Internet as a part of the home buying process. Among that group 92 percent research comparable prices, 61 percent look for a specific real estate agent and 19 percent research neighborhoods. Overall, the percentage of home buyers who used the Internet as an integral part of the home buying process increased to 62 percent in 2005, compared with 56 percent the previous year. Among that group, none of those surveyed said the Internet information was more useful than that obtained from their agent. "Home buyers ultimately turned to their Realtor for both interpretation of information gleaned from the Internet, and for their Realtor's expertise and judgment throughout the home buying process. Home buyers clearly view the Internet as a tool to enhance their ability to research the real estate market, rather than a replacement for a Realtor's expertise in the field," said Jim Hamilton, CAR president. Click here to read more.
Real estate's November report card. Guest perspective: New-home sales strong despite seasonality. The housing market is going through its usual seasonal slowdown this year. New-home builders, which have migrated more to the higher-priced segments of the market, are experiencing more than a 28 percent decline, as higher-priced home sales typically slow down more because their buyers have children in school. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Real Estate News for Wednesday, November 16th, 2005
Here's the news for today.
Faulty renovation puts real estate at risk. Leaky window requires immediate attention. There are three types of building professionals who might help. The first is a certified home inspector. Next is a structural and pest control contractor, also know as a termite contractor. Finally, a licensed and experienced general contractor may be able to shed light on the problem. A home inspector typically inspects the entire house in search of defects from roof to foundation. Structural and pest control operators limit their inspections to damage from fungus or insects. A good general contractor has a working knowledge of building structures and thus is in a position to make an informed opinion of the cause of the leakage. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Faulty renovation puts real estate at risk. Leaky window requires immediate attention. There are three types of building professionals who might help. The first is a certified home inspector. Next is a structural and pest control contractor, also know as a termite contractor. Finally, a licensed and experienced general contractor may be able to shed light on the problem. A home inspector typically inspects the entire house in search of defects from roof to foundation. Structural and pest control operators limit their inspections to damage from fungus or insects. A good general contractor has a working knowledge of building structures and thus is in a position to make an informed opinion of the cause of the leakage. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Real Estate News for Tuesday, November 15th, 2005
Home-Price Appreciation Stays Hot in Most Metro Areas Says NAR. Strong annual increases in median existing-home prices were common in most metropolitan areas during the third quarter, according to the latest report by National Association of Realtors(r). The association's third-quarter median existing single-family home price survey, covering changes in 147 metropolitan statistical areas (see note), shows 69 areas with double-digit annual price increases. Six metros had small price declines. The national median existing single-family home price was $215,900 in the third quarter, up 14.7 percent from the third quarter of 2004 when the median price was $188,200. The median is a typical market price where half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less. Ninety-seven metros -- two-thirds of the total -- experienced increases greater than the U.S. historic average of 6.4 percent. David Lereah, NAR's chief economist, said the pace of price appreciation in the third quarter is far from being normal over time. "These historically high home price gains are the simple result of more buyers than sellers in the market," he said. "The good news is that inventory levels are improving, and housing supply will come close to buyer demand in 2006. In other words, we expect a healthy and more balanced market next year." Click here to read more.
U.S. real estate prices post healthy gains. Median third-quarter metro area home prices ranged from $72,800 in Danville, Ill., to nearly 10 times that amount in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont area of California where the median price was $721,900, according to National Association of Realtors statistics. The second most expensive area in the United States was Anaheim-Santa Ana in Orange County, Calif., at $710,700, followed by the Honolulu area and San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, Calif., which tied at $615,000, NAR announced today. Click here to read more.
Outlook sours for real estate. Many indicators point to a major slowdown in home prices. Did homeowners who sold in September get out just in time? The latest report on third-quarter home prices, released Tuesday by the National Association of Realtors, showed continued strength. But increasingly there are signs that prices have plateaued. Of 147 markets, 69 had gains from a year ago of more than 10 percent -- only six metro areas experienced declines. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Monday, November 14, 2005
Real Estate News for Monday, November 14th, 2005
Economy's fate hinges on real estate. Construction and other industries dependent on housing market will suffer if real estate bubble bursts. "The collapse of the housing bubble will throw the economy into a recession, and quite likely a severe recession," warned a July report by the Center for Economic and Policy Research. In recent weeks, many major investment firms have concurred. Said a Lehman Brothers report, "(A) turn in the housing market is central to our economic forecast." "The demographic story behind the housing market boom, as we always thought, was a giant hoax," wrote Merrill Lynch & Co.'s North American Economist, David Rosenberg, in a recent report. Click here to read more.
Click the image to enlarge.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Click the image to enlarge.~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Sunday, November 13, 2005
Real Estate News for Sunday, November 13th, 2005
Jim Gillespie to appear on BusinessWeek Weekend TV today. Jim Gillespie, president and CEO of Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation, will be featured on the Sunday, November 13th edition of BusinessWeek Weekend, a nationally syndicated business show seen on most ABC-TV affiliates. The "Destination CEO" segment will take a 5-minute look into Jim's rise from Illinois farm boy to head of Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation and focus on what makes Coldwell Banker a strong organization. Consult your local TV listings to determine the time in your area!
THE "Pocket Idiot's Guide to Reverse Mortgages" is required reading for anyone over 62. It's a concise source that compares reverse mortgage choices in an easy-to-understand format. Reverse mortgages are financial devices that pay money to senior citizen homeowners who are at least age 62. No repayment is required until the homeowner sells, moves out or dies. Click here to read more.
Beginning Jan. 1 and running through the end of 2007, Uncle Sam will allow tax credits of up to $500 for owners who make such building envelope improvements as new windows, insulation and high-efficiency heating, ventilating and air-conditioning systems. By using compact fluorescent bulbs instead of incandescent bulbs, you can cut your lighting costs in half. CFLs use only a fourth of the energy and last up to 10 times longer. The rule of thumb with lighting is to replace at least the five highest-use bulbs with CFLs, and there's probably no room in the house where the lights are bright the longest than the kitchen. Click here to read more.
Six more Question and Answers with Bob Bruss. Condo building weeds out renters? A seller counters above asking price? Making money off security deposits? Need bump up in liability coverage? These tax savings come at a cost? Interest-only mortgages won't put U.S. at risk? Click here to read more.
What are you willing to trade off in today's housing market? One in five new homeowners in California spends more than half their gross household income on a home loan. Half of new homeowners spend more than the federally recommended limit of 30 percent of household income on the mortgage. That means more new buyers have little or no financial cushion if they find themselves out of work, develop health problems or can't meet the rising payments on an adjustable-rate mortgage. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
THE "Pocket Idiot's Guide to Reverse Mortgages" is required reading for anyone over 62. It's a concise source that compares reverse mortgage choices in an easy-to-understand format. Reverse mortgages are financial devices that pay money to senior citizen homeowners who are at least age 62. No repayment is required until the homeowner sells, moves out or dies. Click here to read more.
Beginning Jan. 1 and running through the end of 2007, Uncle Sam will allow tax credits of up to $500 for owners who make such building envelope improvements as new windows, insulation and high-efficiency heating, ventilating and air-conditioning systems. By using compact fluorescent bulbs instead of incandescent bulbs, you can cut your lighting costs in half. CFLs use only a fourth of the energy and last up to 10 times longer. The rule of thumb with lighting is to replace at least the five highest-use bulbs with CFLs, and there's probably no room in the house where the lights are bright the longest than the kitchen. Click here to read more.
Six more Question and Answers with Bob Bruss. Condo building weeds out renters? A seller counters above asking price? Making money off security deposits? Need bump up in liability coverage? These tax savings come at a cost? Interest-only mortgages won't put U.S. at risk? Click here to read more.
What are you willing to trade off in today's housing market? One in five new homeowners in California spends more than half their gross household income on a home loan. Half of new homeowners spend more than the federally recommended limit of 30 percent of household income on the mortgage. That means more new buyers have little or no financial cushion if they find themselves out of work, develop health problems or can't meet the rising payments on an adjustable-rate mortgage. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Saturday, November 12, 2005
No News Today
Sorry, it's been a pretty rough day, didn't have time to post the news. But things will be up and running for Sunday, don't you worry! Thanks for understanding.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Friday, November 11, 2005
Real Estate News for Friday, November 11th, 2005
Not much in the news today, so let's get it over with!
State commercial market strong. Real estate loan delinquency rates remain low. For seven years running, the delinquency rates for loans on California commercial real estate have been below a half percent, according to a new survey by the California Mortgage Bankers Association. The most recent quarter's delinquency rate of 0.14 percent was the lowest in 30 months, the group said. For purposes of the survey, a loan was considered delinquent if the borrower fell behind on payments by two or more months. The Sept. 30 survey covered $70.6 billion of commercial mortgages being serviced by 17 state mortgage banking firms. That amounts to 12 delinquent accounts of 10,201 commercial real estate loans being handled by the firms surveyed. Fifteen of the 17 companies reported no loans delinquent by more than 30 days. Click here to read more.
I thought this tech article was really interesting. Check it out if you have some extra time.
Tools such as e-mail and instant messaging may have been around since the dawn of the internet era, but it has taken a wireless communications revolution to turn them into a constant and inescapable fact of life for a growing part of the population. WiFi networks - a low-cost technology that can beam large chunks of data over short distances using part of the radio spectrum that was previously the preserve of gadgets such as garage door openers and baby monitors - assure the digitally addicted of a permanent and ubiquitous connection to the wider world. At the same time, more versatile mobile phones have turned text messages into the communications tool of choice for teenagers in Asia and Europe, if not yet the US, while also bringing e-mail to many handsets. For those in the grip of these new networks, life has changed. There’s no such thing as solitude any more, no fragment of time that cannot be filled with digital chatter. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
State commercial market strong. Real estate loan delinquency rates remain low. For seven years running, the delinquency rates for loans on California commercial real estate have been below a half percent, according to a new survey by the California Mortgage Bankers Association. The most recent quarter's delinquency rate of 0.14 percent was the lowest in 30 months, the group said. For purposes of the survey, a loan was considered delinquent if the borrower fell behind on payments by two or more months. The Sept. 30 survey covered $70.6 billion of commercial mortgages being serviced by 17 state mortgage banking firms. That amounts to 12 delinquent accounts of 10,201 commercial real estate loans being handled by the firms surveyed. Fifteen of the 17 companies reported no loans delinquent by more than 30 days. Click here to read more.
I thought this tech article was really interesting. Check it out if you have some extra time.Tools such as e-mail and instant messaging may have been around since the dawn of the internet era, but it has taken a wireless communications revolution to turn them into a constant and inescapable fact of life for a growing part of the population. WiFi networks - a low-cost technology that can beam large chunks of data over short distances using part of the radio spectrum that was previously the preserve of gadgets such as garage door openers and baby monitors - assure the digitally addicted of a permanent and ubiquitous connection to the wider world. At the same time, more versatile mobile phones have turned text messages into the communications tool of choice for teenagers in Asia and Europe, if not yet the US, while also bringing e-mail to many handsets. For those in the grip of these new networks, life has changed. There’s no such thing as solitude any more, no fragment of time that cannot be filled with digital chatter. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Thursday, November 10, 2005
Real Estate News for Thursday, November 10th, 2005
Real estate affordability sours Californians. But residents may be gaining ground in housing struggle. Despite a drop in the percentage of California households in September able to afford a median-priced home compared to a year ago, affordability conditions made a slight improvement from the month before, according to a report released today by the California Association of Realtors. Click here to read more.C.A.R. Reports California's Housing Affordability Index Fell Four Points to 15 Percent in September. C.A.R.'s monthly housing affordability index measures the percentage of households that can afford to purchase a median-priced home in California. C.A.R. also reports housing affordability indexes for regions and select counties within the state. The Index is the most fundamental measure of housing well-being in the state. The minimum household income needed to purchase a median-priced home at $543,980 in California in September was $128,270, based on an average effective mortgage interest rate of 5.90 percent and assuming a 20 percent downpayment. The minimum household income needed to purchase a median-priced home was up from $107,440 in September 2004, when the median price of a home was $463,630 and the prevailing interest rate was 5.70 percent. The minimum household income needed to purchase a median-priced home at $212,000 in the U.S. in September 2005 was $49,990. At 26 percent, the High Desert region was the most affordable C.A.R. region in the state, followed by the Sacramento region at 20 percent. The Northern Wine Country region was the least affordable in the state at 7 percent. Click here to read more.
The Fading Housing Frenzy. Luxury Home Sales Slow, Speculators Look Gulfward. Friedman pointed to areas such as Washington, D.C. and Northern California as signs of slowing housing markets, but said that the Midwest and South were still going strong for real estate. In fact, the Commerce Department reported unexpectedly strong construction and sales of new homes in those areas for September. Many real-estate speculators, perhaps stung by declining residential housing prices in major markets, are flocking to the devastated Gulf Coast and Florida, looking for potential new commercial and residential deals to get in on. Click here to read more.
Local Homeowners Would Feel Pinch From Proposed Tax Plan. If you own a home in Long Beach, have children living at home, and pay your fair share of state taxes, the latest tax proposal out of Washington D.C. could reach deep into your pocket book. The new “Simplified Income Tax Plan” would eliminate the deductions for state and local tax payments on your federal taxes, remove the childcare credit, and cap your mortgage tax break at 15% of interest paid on mortgages up to $412,000 on your first mortgage only (well below the cost of a median home in Long Beach, listed at $485,500 last year). The good news for Long Beach residents in that boat is that it is unlikely all that will make its way through the Congress and be signed by the President, said Joseph Magaddino, chair of the Office of Economic Research at California State University, Long Beach. Click here to read more.
No Bubble Here: California Commercial Loan Delinquency Ratio Reaches 30-Month Low. California Mortgage Bankers Association announced yesterday that the quarterly delinquency ratio for commercial loans in California has reached a low, matching the ratio of Dec. 31, 2002. For the 28th successive quarter, the California commercial loan delinquency ratio is under one half of one percent. "There is certainly no bubble that is about to pop," California Mortgage Bankers Association Commercial Real Estate consultant Peter Ulrich (pictured) told CPN. "It is a very healthy commercial market." Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
Real Estate News for Wednesday, November 9th, 2005
The Inland Empire remains among the strongest markets in the country for industrial real estate, with warehouses and other buildings being sold and used at near record rates. A third-quarter report released by real-estate services firm Grubb & Ellis ranked the two-county area second in two key measures. Only Los Angeles County had a lower rate of empty buildings than the Inland Empire's 2.8 percent at the end of the quarter. Companies have snapped up nearly 16 million square feet of industrial space in the Inland Empire this year, a figure second only to Chicago's 17.4 million. The Grubb & Ellis report said the strongest markets are national transportation hubs, where companies are building and buying distribution centers to import and move goods. Scott Ostlund, a principal for real-estate firm Lee and Associates, said the pace of development has largely swept through the west end of the Inland Empire, pushing the construction of large new warehouses further east, toward Redlands and Moreno Valley. Ostlund said rising land and construction costs, combined with increasingly rare empty space, is pushing rents higher, particularly in communities such as Ontario and Rancho Cucamonga, where most of the industrial land is developed or already spoken for. In a growing trend, Ostlund said 16 of 17 buildings in the Spectrum Business Park in Rancho Cucamonga are in escrow, with the project three months from completion. Alan Deszcz, senior adviser for industrial real estate for Sperry Van Ness in Ontario, said some buildings that have been available for years are filled for the first time. Developers are also looking to follow residential development with new, large warehouses in communities in the Pass area and potentially further into the desert. Click here to read more, registration needed.
Real estate agent 'critical' after shooting. Decorated vet obtained sales license to avoid dangers of Iraq. A brand-new real estate licensee who ended a decade-long stint in the military last month out of fear he might make a widow out of his wife and four children remained in critical condition late Tuesday, after being shot in the back while prospecting for listings near his own home in suburban Los Angeles. The shooting of Eric Russell Hinks, 29, has left his family and friends struggling for answers. But it also served as a reminder that there are some perils virtually all real estate salespeople will always face, no matter how many safety precautions they may take or how well they might prepare for danger. Click here to read more.
California's Buildings Are Highly Vulnerable to an Earthquake. "It is important to note that California is not alone in its vulnerability to earthquakes as there have been at least 26 American cities that experienced significant earthquakes and that are at risk for another earthquake. We are pleased that several of our speakers will deliver critical insight into the vulnerability of the nation's buildings to earthquakes as well as provide an overview of the technologies and practices that should be employed to mitigate the impact of such eventualities." Click here to read more.
Chino dairies are drying up as urban shift accelerates. This shift in land use from agriculture to urban development is going on throughout the state, but none is more dramatic than the mass exodus currently taking place in the Chino dairyshed, where family farms have thrived for more than 50 years. What's happening in the Inland Empire now, however, is an astounding acceleration of that shift to upscale housing developments. Homes are being built and occupied before dairy farmers can even get their cows out. Golf courses sit cheek to cheek with dairy hay piles. Click here to read more.
Is that the hissing sound of the real-estate bubble deflating? Some investors thought so on Tuesday. Shares of Toll Brothers (TOL: 33.81, -0.10, -0.3%) fell 14% to $33.91 after the luxury home builder warned that it wouldn't build as many homes as planned next year. The Horsham, Pa.-based Toll, the nation's No. 1 luxury builder, now expects to deliver between 9,500 and 10,200 homes in fiscal 2006, ending Oct. 31, down from previous guidance of between 10,200 and 10,600. Toll delivered 8,769 homes in fiscal 2005. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Real estate agent 'critical' after shooting. Decorated vet obtained sales license to avoid dangers of Iraq. A brand-new real estate licensee who ended a decade-long stint in the military last month out of fear he might make a widow out of his wife and four children remained in critical condition late Tuesday, after being shot in the back while prospecting for listings near his own home in suburban Los Angeles. The shooting of Eric Russell Hinks, 29, has left his family and friends struggling for answers. But it also served as a reminder that there are some perils virtually all real estate salespeople will always face, no matter how many safety precautions they may take or how well they might prepare for danger. Click here to read more.
California's Buildings Are Highly Vulnerable to an Earthquake. "It is important to note that California is not alone in its vulnerability to earthquakes as there have been at least 26 American cities that experienced significant earthquakes and that are at risk for another earthquake. We are pleased that several of our speakers will deliver critical insight into the vulnerability of the nation's buildings to earthquakes as well as provide an overview of the technologies and practices that should be employed to mitigate the impact of such eventualities." Click here to read more.
Chino dairies are drying up as urban shift accelerates. This shift in land use from agriculture to urban development is going on throughout the state, but none is more dramatic than the mass exodus currently taking place in the Chino dairyshed, where family farms have thrived for more than 50 years. What's happening in the Inland Empire now, however, is an astounding acceleration of that shift to upscale housing developments. Homes are being built and occupied before dairy farmers can even get their cows out. Golf courses sit cheek to cheek with dairy hay piles. Click here to read more.
Is that the hissing sound of the real-estate bubble deflating? Some investors thought so on Tuesday. Shares of Toll Brothers (TOL: 33.81, -0.10, -0.3%) fell 14% to $33.91 after the luxury home builder warned that it wouldn't build as many homes as planned next year. The Horsham, Pa.-based Toll, the nation's No. 1 luxury builder, now expects to deliver between 9,500 and 10,200 homes in fiscal 2006, ending Oct. 31, down from previous guidance of between 10,200 and 10,600. Toll delivered 8,769 homes in fiscal 2005. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Tuesday, November 08, 2005
Real Estate News for Tuesday, November 8th, 2005
Riverside County taking a stand against history as dumping ground for coastal areas. Riverside County isn't as naive as it used to be. That's what some activists and political observers are saying about the prevailing attitude in the once predominantly rural inland area, whose wide-open spaces often have been coveted by heavily populated coastal counties for their unwanted projects. Los Angeles, for example, has proposed dumping its trash in the eastern Riverside County desert. Orange County has been content to let western Riverside County house much of its work force. And earlier this year, a company proposed mining gravel for San Diego's freeways in the mountains near Temecula. "In the past, we have been relegated to being the utility room for the rest of Southern California," said Riverside County Supervisor Bob Buster in a recent interview. "That is beginning to change," he said. Click here to read more.
Area housing prices in a froth, a bubble or a water balloon? For years, some experts have been predicting that real estate couldn't possibly get more expensive. And for years, they've been wrong. Experts don't even agree that there is a bubble. Nominated Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke told Congress last month that there's no such thing. Housing cost increases "largely reflect strong economic fundamentals," like a thriving economy and strong demand for houses, he said. Slightly less optimistic, current Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan has eschewed the bubble metaphor in describing desirable locations like Los Angeles, deciding instead to refer to a housing "froth." To Leslie Appleton-Young, the chief economist for the California Association of Realtors, the housing boom is a "water balloon," with people moving further inland because of the huge increase in coastal home prices. Click here to read more.
New Foreclosures in U.S. Rise, Total Inventory Remains Stable During October. According to data released today by Foreclosure.com, 87,794 foreclosed residential properties were available for sale in the United States during October -- almost unchanged from September. The total number of new foreclosures listed for sale in October -- 21,998 -- increased eight percent from September. The re-listing of available U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-owned properties in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas, resulted in the increase of new foreclosures in October. By September 29, HUD identified all the properties it would set aside for the victims of the storm and started re-listing inventory on October 6. For the remaining areas of the country, there was less than a one percent increase in new foreclosures from September to October. "Foreclosure levels in the U.S. remain low compared to the beginning of this year," said Brad Geisen, president and CEO, Foreclosure.com. "While there are still pockets of increasing inventory in the Midwest and Northwest, foreclosure levels in most of the country have remained flat during the past six months." Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Area housing prices in a froth, a bubble or a water balloon? For years, some experts have been predicting that real estate couldn't possibly get more expensive. And for years, they've been wrong. Experts don't even agree that there is a bubble. Nominated Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke told Congress last month that there's no such thing. Housing cost increases "largely reflect strong economic fundamentals," like a thriving economy and strong demand for houses, he said. Slightly less optimistic, current Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan has eschewed the bubble metaphor in describing desirable locations like Los Angeles, deciding instead to refer to a housing "froth." To Leslie Appleton-Young, the chief economist for the California Association of Realtors, the housing boom is a "water balloon," with people moving further inland because of the huge increase in coastal home prices. Click here to read more.
New Foreclosures in U.S. Rise, Total Inventory Remains Stable During October. According to data released today by Foreclosure.com, 87,794 foreclosed residential properties were available for sale in the United States during October -- almost unchanged from September. The total number of new foreclosures listed for sale in October -- 21,998 -- increased eight percent from September. The re-listing of available U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-owned properties in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas, resulted in the increase of new foreclosures in October. By September 29, HUD identified all the properties it would set aside for the victims of the storm and started re-listing inventory on October 6. For the remaining areas of the country, there was less than a one percent increase in new foreclosures from September to October. "Foreclosure levels in the U.S. remain low compared to the beginning of this year," said Brad Geisen, president and CEO, Foreclosure.com. "While there are still pockets of increasing inventory in the Midwest and Northwest, foreclosure levels in most of the country have remained flat during the past six months." Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Monday, November 07, 2005
Real Estate News for Monday, November 7th, 2005
Some San Francisco real estate agents can literally feel the market changing these days. The “tour sheet,” the weekly MLS list of new properties available for agents to preview, has jumped from an average of 20-25 to almost 50 pages—and some agents are beginning to feel the weight. “For reasonably priced properties, the market is still strong- right now,” notes Michael LaPeter, a San Francisco Realtor® who currently has listings in both South Beach and the Inner Mission District. “On the buyer side, I’ve got clients who are still competing on single family homes against multiple offers.” As the inventory increases, however, it remains to be seen how many buyers will be left. “In the beginning of October, there were 31 active listings in South Beach. Less than three weeks later, there were 46,” notes Michael. “Inventory is increasing across the board, along with time on market, and I believe it’s more than just seasonal.” Click here to read more.
Last year, half a million Americans left California for other parts of the United States, while fewer than 400,000 moved there. The net outflow has risen fivefold, to more than 100,000, since 2001, an analysis by the research company Economy.com shows, although immigration from other countries has kept the state's population growing. But the change appears to be most pronounced in California, which has long been a beacon that draws people from all over the world, with its sun-drenched coasts and dynamic economy. The past few years appear to be one of the few times on record that California has lost domestic population when its job market was as healthy as the rest of the country's, economists and demographers said. Click here to read more.
People desperate enough to own a home in this hyperactive real estate market have long resorted to a risky exercise in group dynamics: Sharing a multimillion-dollar mortgage on a small apartment building with a bunch of friends or even strangers. The advantages of the increasingly popular route to homeownership known as “tenancies-in-common” are obvious in a city where three-bedroom homes average about $800,000. The hazards are also well-known and include deadbeat partners and the difficulty of extracting equity. That’s why a bank’s offer of individual mortgages to TIC buyers sent shivers of excitement and fear through the city this summer. By making TICs less codependent and more like individually owned condominiums, the Bank of Marin’s fractionalized mortgages were designed to make the option attractive to even more first-time buyers. Click here to read more.
If an overhaul of the U.S. tax code fails, the alternative minimum tax, or AMT, may live to bedevil taxpayers for yet another year. The AMT, adopted in 1969, was designed to ensure that millionaires don't escape taxation. Due to inflation and congressional cowardice, it's a levy that increasingly punishes middle-class families who lose deductions for personal exemptions, mortgage interest, miscellaneous expenses and state and local property taxes. Unless it's eliminated or adjusted for inflation, the AMT by 2010 probably will ensnare almost 30 million U.S. taxpayers, a quarter of the total. While a report last week from the president's panel on tax reform called for AMT elimination, political pressures may bury the panel's proposals and the tax may survive. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Last year, half a million Americans left California for other parts of the United States, while fewer than 400,000 moved there. The net outflow has risen fivefold, to more than 100,000, since 2001, an analysis by the research company Economy.com shows, although immigration from other countries has kept the state's population growing. But the change appears to be most pronounced in California, which has long been a beacon that draws people from all over the world, with its sun-drenched coasts and dynamic economy. The past few years appear to be one of the few times on record that California has lost domestic population when its job market was as healthy as the rest of the country's, economists and demographers said. Click here to read more.
People desperate enough to own a home in this hyperactive real estate market have long resorted to a risky exercise in group dynamics: Sharing a multimillion-dollar mortgage on a small apartment building with a bunch of friends or even strangers. The advantages of the increasingly popular route to homeownership known as “tenancies-in-common” are obvious in a city where three-bedroom homes average about $800,000. The hazards are also well-known and include deadbeat partners and the difficulty of extracting equity. That’s why a bank’s offer of individual mortgages to TIC buyers sent shivers of excitement and fear through the city this summer. By making TICs less codependent and more like individually owned condominiums, the Bank of Marin’s fractionalized mortgages were designed to make the option attractive to even more first-time buyers. Click here to read more.
If an overhaul of the U.S. tax code fails, the alternative minimum tax, or AMT, may live to bedevil taxpayers for yet another year. The AMT, adopted in 1969, was designed to ensure that millionaires don't escape taxation. Due to inflation and congressional cowardice, it's a levy that increasingly punishes middle-class families who lose deductions for personal exemptions, mortgage interest, miscellaneous expenses and state and local property taxes. Unless it's eliminated or adjusted for inflation, the AMT by 2010 probably will ensnare almost 30 million U.S. taxpayers, a quarter of the total. While a report last week from the president's panel on tax reform called for AMT elimination, political pressures may bury the panel's proposals and the tax may survive. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Sunday, November 06, 2005
Real Estate News for Sunday, November 6th, 2005
Ready to grab and go? You can't take the filing cabinet. But you can prepare for an evacuation with technology that makes papers and inventories portable. It's one less thing to worry about. With the recent onslaught of hurricanes, floods, and locally, wildfires, disaster preparedness is a practical response. And as observers learned from the victims of Hurricane Katrina — many of whom lost all of their personal, professional and medical records — residents can't depend on local offices and government agencies to keep documents intact in a widespread disaster. Technology, in the form of portable hard drives, flash or other memory cards and digital cameras, can make it easy to back up personal-paper trails and have them secured well ahead of a fire or earthquake. Click here to read more.
Bob Bruss Question and Answers! With 8 days, agent can shop around for better offers? $500 prepayment penalty: Shell out? First preapproval, then make offer? Capital gains on rental-sale profit? Missing person might hold up sale? Should renter pay the repair bills? Builder must allow choice of lenders? Click here to read more.
The cost to homeowners of simplifying the tax system. Under current tax law, homeowners can deduct the interest on mortgages up to $1 million, plus interest on another $100,000 in home equity loans. The benefit you get depends on how high your income is. Under current tax law, if you spend $10,000 on mortgage interest in a given year, and you itemize on your federal income tax statement, the tax benefit you receive depends on your tax bracket. Click here to read more.
Average mortgage rates and indexes. Weekly survey of 60 Southland lenders as of Nov. 2, 2005. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Bob Bruss Question and Answers! With 8 days, agent can shop around for better offers? $500 prepayment penalty: Shell out? First preapproval, then make offer? Capital gains on rental-sale profit? Missing person might hold up sale? Should renter pay the repair bills? Builder must allow choice of lenders? Click here to read more.
The cost to homeowners of simplifying the tax system. Under current tax law, homeowners can deduct the interest on mortgages up to $1 million, plus interest on another $100,000 in home equity loans. The benefit you get depends on how high your income is. Under current tax law, if you spend $10,000 on mortgage interest in a given year, and you itemize on your federal income tax statement, the tax benefit you receive depends on your tax bracket. Click here to read more.
Average mortgage rates and indexes. Weekly survey of 60 Southland lenders as of Nov. 2, 2005. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Saturday, November 05, 2005
Real Estate News for Saturday, November 5th, 2005
It's a common lament among home builders: Land is hard to come by. In places like California, what they mean is there isn't that much land suitable for building on in the first place. It doesn't help either that in many popular areas the entitlement process -- the regulatory means by which developers obtain the proper zoning and planning approvals for their projects -- can easily stretch for five years and more. Even though they make their money by building and selling houses, the home builders may soon see it as a blessing that they don't have a lot of land on their hands. If the housing market cools substantially -- and data about the number of months' supply of houses for sale at the current sales pace would indicate we are already seeing some slowing -- an oversupply of build-ready land is the last thing you want on your books. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Friday, November 04, 2005
Real Estate News for Friday, November 4th, 2005
Panel revises real estate loan interest tax writeoff. Proposed cap on tax deduction for home mortgages raised to 25%. Responding to sharp criticism of its initial proposal to slash the tax deduction for home-mortgage interest, President Bush's tax-restructuring panel offered a revised and final plan Tuesday to increase its proposed cap on the write-off by 25 percent, media accounts said. But the new level -- ranging from $227,147 to $411,704 depending on a region's housing prices -- still would be far below the average mortgage in high-price markets such as the San Francisco Bay Area, New York City, Washington, D.C., and South Florida. Homeowners now can write off interest on up to $1.1 million in mortgage debt. The tax panel's mortgage-interest recommendation is viewed as a long shot to become law. Even boosting the proposed cap by 25 percent didn't stop the panel's plan from being criticized by officials ranging from California's state treasurer to leading Democrats in the House of Representatives from San Francisco, Maryland and Illinois. The panel's report notes that fewer than 30 percent of American taxpayers benefit from the mortgage-interest deduction, and fewer than 5 percent of mortgages would be affected by reducing the $1 million cap. The panel said current policies raised the question of "whether the tax code encourages overinvestment in housing at the expense of other uses," according to media reports. Click here to read more.
Paperless Crusade Unites Industry Leaders to Support Electronic Real Estate Transactions. Inman News today announced The Paperless Crusade, a task force of residential real estate companies dedicated to making the fully digital housing transaction a commonplace reality. The Crusade will include transaction software vendors, researchers, journalists and major brokerages working together across a broad range of informational, promotional and technological fronts to raise awareness of paperless transactions and improve the paperless customer experience. Click here to read more.
Realtors respond to growing Latino housing market. The real estate industry is polishing up its Latino allure. Realtor groups are sponsoring seminars and classes to teach their members about cultural idiosyncrasies that can affect the homebuying process. Major home lenders are opening branches staffed by Spanish speakers and stocked with bilingual marketing materials. Mortgage brokers are lining up loans for those without traditional credit histories or sometimes even Social Security numbers. The efforts reflect a two-fold recognition by the industry: the number of Latino homebuyers is rapidly increasing, but financial, cultural and language barriers are keeping many more potential buyers out of the market. Click here to read more.
The Asian Real Estate Association of American recently installed its 2006 president at a gala celebrating Asian culture at the Argent Hotel in San Francisco, California. Traditional Japanese Taiko drums began the festivities as Allen Okamoto of T. Okamoto & Co. took the oath of office to become AREAA’s newest president. Former National Association of Realtors® President Walt McDonald attended the event to install Okamoto as the association’s second volunteer leader. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Paperless Crusade Unites Industry Leaders to Support Electronic Real Estate Transactions. Inman News today announced The Paperless Crusade, a task force of residential real estate companies dedicated to making the fully digital housing transaction a commonplace reality. The Crusade will include transaction software vendors, researchers, journalists and major brokerages working together across a broad range of informational, promotional and technological fronts to raise awareness of paperless transactions and improve the paperless customer experience. Click here to read more.
Realtors respond to growing Latino housing market. The real estate industry is polishing up its Latino allure. Realtor groups are sponsoring seminars and classes to teach their members about cultural idiosyncrasies that can affect the homebuying process. Major home lenders are opening branches staffed by Spanish speakers and stocked with bilingual marketing materials. Mortgage brokers are lining up loans for those without traditional credit histories or sometimes even Social Security numbers. The efforts reflect a two-fold recognition by the industry: the number of Latino homebuyers is rapidly increasing, but financial, cultural and language barriers are keeping many more potential buyers out of the market. Click here to read more.
The Asian Real Estate Association of American recently installed its 2006 president at a gala celebrating Asian culture at the Argent Hotel in San Francisco, California. Traditional Japanese Taiko drums began the festivities as Allen Okamoto of T. Okamoto & Co. took the oath of office to become AREAA’s newest president. Former National Association of Realtors® President Walt McDonald attended the event to install Okamoto as the association’s second volunteer leader. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Thursday, November 03, 2005
Real Estate News for Thursday, November 3rd, 2005
Realtor shot while door-to-door canvassing in Diamond Bar. "He was just hoping to make a sale before Christmas, and he gets shot," said Jean Bethel, the mother-in-law of the real estate agent, Eric Hinks. Hinks remains hospitalized with a shattered shoulder and pelvis and severe damage to his intestines, Bethel said. He has four children under the age of 5 and is his family's only breadwinner, she said. Click here to read more.
Real estate inheritors learn value of living trusts. Time-consuming probate court raises costs, invites capital gains tax. More question and answers with Bob Bruss. Click here to read more.
The California Association of REALTORS(R) Leadership Team for 2006 is now in place. Vince Malta is the Association's 2006 president, Colleen Badagliacco is president-elect, James Liptak is treasurer and Joel Singer is state secretary. The officers for 2006 began their official terms at the close of the National Association of REALTORS(R) Conference and Expo in San Francisco Oct. 31. Click here to read more.
San Diego Edges Out Washington, D.C. as Top Market; Los Angeles Ranks Third. Although a continuous flow of capital has kept the real estate industry stable overall, growth over the next year is likely to be more moderate compared to the robust levels of recent months, with much depending on what happens with a variety of factors such as consumer spending, energy prices, housing demand, job growth, corporate productivity gains and inflation, according to Emerging Trends in Real Estate(R) 2006, just released by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Real estate inheritors learn value of living trusts. Time-consuming probate court raises costs, invites capital gains tax. More question and answers with Bob Bruss. Click here to read more.
The California Association of REALTORS(R) Leadership Team for 2006 is now in place. Vince Malta is the Association's 2006 president, Colleen Badagliacco is president-elect, James Liptak is treasurer and Joel Singer is state secretary. The officers for 2006 began their official terms at the close of the National Association of REALTORS(R) Conference and Expo in San Francisco Oct. 31. Click here to read more.
San Diego Edges Out Washington, D.C. as Top Market; Los Angeles Ranks Third. Although a continuous flow of capital has kept the real estate industry stable overall, growth over the next year is likely to be more moderate compared to the robust levels of recent months, with much depending on what happens with a variety of factors such as consumer spending, energy prices, housing demand, job growth, corporate productivity gains and inflation, according to Emerging Trends in Real Estate(R) 2006, just released by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Wednesday, November 02, 2005
Real Estate News for Wednesday, November 2nd, 2005
Coldwell Banker today announced that its first-ever College Market Home Price Comparison Index has found Lubbock, Texas, the home of the Red Raiders, to be the most affordable college town in the nation, with an average home price of $164,133. At the other end of the scale was Palo Alto, Calif., home of Stanford University, which topped the charts as the most expensive college town in the index at $1,550,000. "College towns can be great places to live because they are family-friendly, lively communities with an abundance of activities ranging from sports and entertainment to high culture," said Jim Gillespie, president and chief executive officer of Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corp. "A large majority of these towns are also very affordable, making them ideal for first-time homeowners or Baby Boomers looking for a second home near their alma mater. And lately, many parents of college students are foregoing paying room and board to schools, preferring to own a home for their child to live in and collect rent from their roommates to apply to the mortgage." Gillespie noted that through an enhanced Home Price Comparison Index section on http://hpci.coldwellbanker.com, consumers can calculate what their homes might be worth in these 59 college communities. Click here to read more.
Overheated housing market is cooling. Selling a house the past few years has been easy. Put up a "For Sale" sign. Host an open house. Sift through multiple offers. Pick a buyer willing to fork over more cash than you initially asked for. Then brag about how much you got. That was then. And now? While there's still a plentiful pipeline of home buyers looking to make a deal, finding one willing to make a split-second decision to buy and pay whatever it takes to get in the door is no longer a lock, real estate agents say. In what could signal a mood shift in the feverish real estate market, tales of bidding wars and 30% annual price gains are quietly fading. Instead, there's nervous chatter about the recent increase in the number of homes for sale, sellers cutting their asking prices and builders wooing buyers with incentives. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Overheated housing market is cooling. Selling a house the past few years has been easy. Put up a "For Sale" sign. Host an open house. Sift through multiple offers. Pick a buyer willing to fork over more cash than you initially asked for. Then brag about how much you got. That was then. And now? While there's still a plentiful pipeline of home buyers looking to make a deal, finding one willing to make a split-second decision to buy and pay whatever it takes to get in the door is no longer a lock, real estate agents say. In what could signal a mood shift in the feverish real estate market, tales of bidding wars and 30% annual price gains are quietly fading. Instead, there's nervous chatter about the recent increase in the number of homes for sale, sellers cutting their asking prices and builders wooing buyers with incentives. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
Real Estate News for Tuesday, November 1st, 2005
Hope everyone had a fun Halloween, but now we all have to get back to work... so here's today's news!
California households are nearly $74,000 short of the $127,950 qualifying income needed to purchase a median home in the state, according to the California Association of Realtors Homebuyer Income Gap Index report for the third quarter of 2005, released today. According to the report, potential home buyers in the Central Valley, with a median household income of $41,460, had the smallest income gap at $43,170, and needed a qualifying income of $84,630 to purchase a median-priced home at $361,090. The San Francisco Bay Area had the highest gap in the state at $100,670, where potential home buyers had a median household income of $68,520 but needed a qualifying income of $169,180 to purchase a median-priced home at $721,850. Click here to read more.
The economic outlook for 2006 looks a lot like it has been in 2005 – slow, steady growth – but that picture could darken if interest rates rise too high or the housing market tumbles, a panel of economists told a conference of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce yesterday. But Christopher Thornberg, economist with the Anderson Forecast of the University of California Los Angeles, downplayed the effect of interest rates on the economy. He was more concerned by a potential slowing of the housing market. "All of the prosperity that we've experienced over recent years has a single root: real estate," he said. "Where real estate goes, so goes the California economy." Over the past several years, employment growth in California has been tied to the continuing growth of the housing market. The fastest growing job segments have been construction, credit and retail. "That reflects people building new homes, financing new homes and furnishing their homes," Thornberg said. Thornberg does not expect homes to dramatically lose value. Instead, he predicts that within the next couple years, home prices will stop growing at their double-digit rates and grow a percent or two above the inflation rate, which is now about 2 percent. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
California households are nearly $74,000 short of the $127,950 qualifying income needed to purchase a median home in the state, according to the California Association of Realtors Homebuyer Income Gap Index report for the third quarter of 2005, released today. According to the report, potential home buyers in the Central Valley, with a median household income of $41,460, had the smallest income gap at $43,170, and needed a qualifying income of $84,630 to purchase a median-priced home at $361,090. The San Francisco Bay Area had the highest gap in the state at $100,670, where potential home buyers had a median household income of $68,520 but needed a qualifying income of $169,180 to purchase a median-priced home at $721,850. Click here to read more.
The economic outlook for 2006 looks a lot like it has been in 2005 – slow, steady growth – but that picture could darken if interest rates rise too high or the housing market tumbles, a panel of economists told a conference of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce yesterday. But Christopher Thornberg, economist with the Anderson Forecast of the University of California Los Angeles, downplayed the effect of interest rates on the economy. He was more concerned by a potential slowing of the housing market. "All of the prosperity that we've experienced over recent years has a single root: real estate," he said. "Where real estate goes, so goes the California economy." Over the past several years, employment growth in California has been tied to the continuing growth of the housing market. The fastest growing job segments have been construction, credit and retail. "That reflects people building new homes, financing new homes and furnishing their homes," Thornberg said. Thornberg does not expect homes to dramatically lose value. Instead, he predicts that within the next couple years, home prices will stop growing at their double-digit rates and grow a percent or two above the inflation rate, which is now about 2 percent. Click here to read more.
~Tina Jan~
Coldwell Banker Kivett-Teeters
1655 E. Sixth St.
Beaumont, CA 92223
Work: 951-845-5520 Ext. 105
Fax: 951-845-4916
Cell: 909-446-2666
Toll-Free: 1-877-TINAJAN
tina.jan@coldwellbanker.com
www.tinajan.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)