Real cost of a home less than in 1980s. A study by research company, Moody's Economy.com, and The New York Times found that nationwide, families earning median incomes have to spend 22 percent of their pre-tax income to buy a house at median prices, well below when in the 1980s the figure topped 30 percent. Despite rising real estate costs, the percent of income needed to buy a home dropped or essentially remained the same in some areas because of declining mortgage rates and fees and higher incomes, the report concluded. These factors compensated for rising housing costs nearly everywhere except major metropolitans such as New York, Washington and Miami and along the coast in California. Because of this, economists generally believe that, despite a cooling in recently booming markets, prices will not drop significantly in 2006. Click here to read more.
Bright outlook. Wild ride in 2005 will give way to another strong year in 2006, say Realtors. The real estate market was booming in Northern Solano County for most of 2005 and began to slow toward September, according to brokers, agents, and industry statistics. According to statistics from Bay Area Real Estate Information Services (BAREIS), residential real estate sales at the beginning and middle of the year consistently out-valued those of 2004 - for example, January had in excess of $109.4 million closed sales while January 2004 had $79.2 million - though by October, numbers began to decline. The most recent statistics released by BAREIS show that November sales fell 27 percent from October to November, and were 29 percent less than last year's November sales. Click here to read more.
In New Orleans, Housing Sales Are Bright Spot. A surprisingly healthy real estate market in the New Orleans metropolitan area is proving to be one bright spot in an otherwise stagnant local economy. The market is not sizzling hot, at least by comparison to New York and San Francisco in recent years. Still, it is stronger than anyone might reasonably expect four months after Hurricane Katrina, with prices for houses in many areas at or above prestorm levels. The market is spotty, to be sure. In areas hit hard by flooding, such as the New Orleans East and Lakeview neighborhoods of the city and other communities that ring the southern edge of Lake Pontchartrain, home sales are down dramatically, as only the bravest speculators are buying in these distressed communities. But there are plenty of buyers, with some seeking investments and others just needing a place to live after losing a home. Most people are buying "high and dry," to borrow the term on every broker's lips since Katrina, but even that seems a surprising vote of confidence in the long-term prospects of New Orleans and the surrounding parishes. In the West Bank area, which lies west of the Mississippi River, November sales were up 99 percent, in dollar terms, over November 2004, according to data provided by Latter & Blum. And in the high-priced Garden and Warehouse districts, the firm's November sales more than doubled. Real estate brokers here view the housing market's comeback as a small miracle in a city where 80 percent of homes were flooded. 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 big question for real estate in 2006 has to be whether or not the real estate bubble is a real thing. The answer is not nearly as simple as yes or no but the big properties may stay on the market even longer, after all most of the big properties that we saw in 2005 are still on the market. One thing we may see is that the condo market could take a deep dip. Already there are rumors of trouble in Las Vegas due to overambitious condo plans. And some ambitious big-city-style projects slated for smaller towns might not be as successful as they would be if they were in big cities.This was a huge year for condo projects. We will continue to see plenty of fractional vacation home options including even more co-tels in 2006 and, especially if the real estate market gets deeply stagnant, more home auctions. We are also hoping to see more intriguing housing options moving in two different directions, the stripped down minimalist elegant prefab and the luxed-up, teched-up smart home. 
California real estate construction plummets. Single-family building permits down 18% since November 2004. Housing starts fell significantly in November in most parts of California, but starts for the year are on pace with 2004, the California Building Industry Association reported this week. During November, housing starts as measured by building permits issued for single-family homes totaled 9,405, down 17.2 percent from October and down 18 percent from November 2004, according to figures compiled by the Burbank-based Construction Industry Research Board (CIRB). Multifamily starts were up by 34.1 percent compared to October, to 4,616, but down 36.1 percent from November 2004. In all, builders started construction on 14,021 homes, condominiums, and apartments in November, down 5.3 percent from the previous month and down 23.6 percent from November 2004, according to an association announcement. 
Housing market helps build job growth in state. The still-hot California housing market helped fuel strong job growth throughout the state last month, as homebuilders and mortgage operations continued to hire thousands of new workers, according to a report released yesterday by the California Employment Development Department. But in San Diego County, where the housing market has cooled, construction firms and financial operations shed workers last month, dampening the region's employment growth. "Our economy right now is mostly firing on two engines: construction and financial activity," said Esmael Adibi, director of the Anderson Center for Economic Research at Chapman University in Orange. "Statewide, a large portion of the jobs created over the last five years are related to those two categories. If you take those two categories out of the mix last month, our overall job growth would have been much much lower." 
Rates Heading Toward Big Test. If short-term yields top long-term, history says recession looms. But is this time different? The question of why long-term interest rates are where they are — and not substantially higher — has mystified many investors, economists and Federal Reserve governors for the last 18 months. The housing market, by contrast, has been less befuddled than simply thrilled with relatively cheap long-term money in the face of the sustained credit-tightening campaign by the Fed. But if long-term rates have been surprisingly low so far, the real test of their mettle lies just ahead. Although the Fed signaled at its meeting last Tuesday that it might be nearly done raising short-term rates, the central bank also said in its post-meeting statement that "some further measured policy firming is likely to be needed." Many on Wall Street figure that means the Fed's benchmark rate, now 4.25%, will rise to at least 4.75% by spring. That might be no big deal, except for this: In the Treasury bond market, even the longest of long-term rates — the annualized yield on 25-year T-bonds — currently is below 4.75%. So if the Fed lifts its rate to 4.75%, and bond yields stay subdued, investors face the prospect of earning less on longer-term securities than they would by keeping their money in very short-term, no-risk cash accounts, such as six-month T-bills. 
SoCal Home Sales Flat, Though Prices Rise. Southern California's housing boom continued to run in cruise control in November, with the median home price up 15.4% over the year-ago level and 1.3% over the previous month, according to data released today. Strong buyer demand and the anticipation of higher mortgage rates sparked a rise in the median price to a new record of $479,000 for the six-county region. The percentage gain matched the 15.4% year-over-year rise in October, when the median price stood at $473,000. Sales of new and resale homes totaled 27,637, down 3% from October, but up 0.6% from the year-ago month. A sales decline from October to November is normal for the season. The latest data provides more evidence that the area's 5-year-old housing boom, while no longer white-hot like a year or two ago, has settled into a more moderate pace. While homes are staying on the market longer — with sellers in some cases cutting asking prices — there is enough pent-up demand in the market to keep prices from rolling over, analysts said. 
S.F. Bay Area real estate sales slide for eighth month. Annual price appreciation tops 20% in three counties. San Francisco Bay Area home sales slowed in November while prices are still climbing compared to November 2004, a real estate information service reported today. A total of 9,717 new and resale houses and condos were sold in the region last month. That was down 7.5 percent from 10,508 for October, and down 10.8 percent from 10,897 for November last year, according to DataQuick Information Systems. 
Real estate sales slow in Southern California. Prices continue to march upward. Southern California home sales dropped from November 2004 to November 2005 in several Southern California counties while prices continue to escalate, a real estate information service reported today. About 27,600 new and resale homes were sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties in November, which was down 3 percent from October and up 0.6 percent from November 2004. So far this year 326,746 Southland homes have been sold, virtually unchanged from 326,880 for the first 11 months of last year. Home sales activity dropped 9.5 percent in San Diego County, 3.6 percent in Los Angeles County, 1.8 percent in San Bernardino County and 1.6 percent in Orange County from November 2004 to November 2005, while jumping 18.6 percent in Riverside County and 12.1 percent in Ventura County in that time.
Bullish on O.C. prices. Real estate experts predict values will stay strong and weigh in on foreclosures, risky financing and housing crunch. Orange County's home prices won't drop next year and could rise 3 percent to 15 percent, according to a panel of local experts. A majority of the 10 experts on a Register-sponsored real estate roundtable predicted Tuesday that prices will increase more than 3 percent next year, while four of them said prices will remain flat. The panelists included economists, real estate executives, consultants, a researcher and a broker – all with knowledge of the local real estate market. Their optimism is more or less in line with the UCLA Anderson Forecast's recent prediction of a 6.9 percent rise in home prices in 2006. The gurus at Chapman University are more bearish; they forecast a 4.2 percent dip in prices next year. 
Why Buy a House When You Can Own a Whole Town? Sales of towns on Ebay attract media buzz, but few buyers. These three for-sale towns are forever joined in eBay notoriety with Langtry, Texas — former home of Judge Roy Bean — the dusty outposts of Amboy and Minkler, Calif.; historic Rocky Ford, Ga.; Monse, Wash.; and the ghost town of Palisade, Nev. Besides being offered for sale on eBay, what do these towns have in common? All are located in isolated rural areas; none has a population over a few hundred. "Fixer-upper" would be a generous way to describe the buildings still standing; in Bridgeville, several of the houses and buildings were deemed by the county to be uninhabitable. The towns are generally owned by older individuals or couples who are no longer interested in the expense and upkeep required to keep the towns operating. And none has what could be called a dominant industry or viable economic engine. There are exceptions: "The bad thing about a lot of them is, they don't generate any revenue — this one does," said David Levi, owner of Tortilla Flat. The town, originally a way station for water and horses, still retains some vitality because of its operating restaurant and shops. 