Real Estate News for March 29th, 2006

Spring home buying season -- old rules, new tools. Here's how to put yourself in the best position as you start eyeing homes. It's that time of year again: After the long, cold winter, when shopping for new homes grinds nearly to a halt, the warm weather brings people out and into real estate offices. But this year, shoppers face a changed environment. In January 2005, only 382,000 homes were sold, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). By contrast, the peak sales month, June, saw 753,000 homes change hands, with much of the shopping coming in the two months prior. Now, many markets have cooled, giving more leverage to buyers. Still, it's more important than ever for shoppers to pay attention to fundamentals, and at the same time, there are new tools available to help.
1) Get pre-approved for your loan.
2) Determine how much you can afford.
3) Don't get caught up in a bidding war.
4) Check out the home thoroughly before going to contract.
5) Pick your sales agent carefully.
Click here to read more.

California real estate slowdown will drag economy. UCLA forecast also projects national economic lull. A slowing real estate market in California will hurt the state's economy, according to the University of California, Los Angeles, economic forecast. The UCLA Anderson Forecast, which also reports on national and local expectations, projects that 200,000 jobs will likely be lost in California's construction sector "as residential construction and remodeling slow markedly," according to an announcement today. Click here to read more.

O.C. 3rd in nation for millionaires. Research shows county has 113,000 such households, not including homes. Orange County is home to 113,000 households with a net worth of $1 million, ranking third nationally behind Los Angeles and Cook counties, said a report released Tuesday by TNS Financial Services. The Affluent Market Research Program report by TNS, a British financial-research firm, estimated the total number of millionaires jumped to 8.9 million nationwide in 2005, an 8 percent increase over 2004. The number of millionaires increased for the third consecutive year in the study, which is based on a national survey of 1,800 households with a net worth of $500,000 or more, excluding their homes. TNS reported that the number of Orange County millionaires was 80,200 in 2003 and 107,028 in 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