Real Estate: The Going Gets Tougher. Interest rates are rising and markets across the U.S. that have seen phenomonal growth are slowing or declining. What's an investor to do? Click here to read more.
Investment property deals hard to come by. Being aware of how much an investment in real property will cost is more important than ever. With prices at record highs, investing is more of a risk and less of the sure bet it has been in the last couple of years. It's harder to find an investment property that will allow the buyer to charge enough rent to cover the mortgage or even fix it up to sell it for a profit. People who bought before the run-up on housing prices had more options and room for profit. Click here to read more.
Appraising the market: Real estate cool-down has many shifting gears. Real-estate brokers and agents said that high prices and rising interest rates cooled the hot market and also pushed real-estate investors into putting their properties for sale when they concluded that the equity escalation had topped out. The number of homes for sale jumped by several hundred per month since May 2005, putting downward pressure on home prices as buyers had more to look at and more time to consider making an offer. Click here to read more.
Something in housing market's got to give. We're seeing price reductions all over the place. Only about 10 percent of homes are selling quickly and to get the house sold it has to be really, really special or it has to be one of the best-priced houses in the neighborhood. Click here to read more.
Freddie Mac chief sees softer prices pinch spending. Housing prices, which had started to cool when interest rates began to climb, slowed further during the first three months of 2006, the National Association of Realtors reported last week. As homeowners who had felt rich when housing prices climbed by double-digit rates in the last years watch these trends, they will likely adjust their spending accordingly. Traditionally even small slowdowns in the housing market can have an impact on the overall economy by weighing on construction jobs, banking jobs and real estate jobs, and by affecting large employers like Home Depot and other firms whose fortunes rise and fall with home purchases. During the real estate boom, many people bought second homes as investment properties but now those homeowners may want to look elsewhere to earn better returns. 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, May 22, 2006
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Real Estate News for Sunday, May 21st, 2006
Greenspan: Housing Boom is Over. No less an authority than former Federal Reserve Board chairman Alan Greenspan has declared that the housing boom is over. "Home sales are off, applications are off, everything is going in the same direction," Greenspan said in remarks before the Bond Market Association. Greenspan claimed that while regional housing markets might experience more severe price fluctuations than others, the national housing market itself would remain stable. Greenspan also warned that as interest rates continue to rise, homeowners would be less able to tap the equity in their homes' value for loans in order to spend. Home equity loans and lines of credit had "an important effect" on the continued strength of the economy, he said. Click here to read more.
Baby Boomers Scooping Up Big Bear, California Real Estate. Second home purchases of vacation and investment properties are becoming an ever-increasing part of total home sales. In 2005 Americans bought a record number of second homes, amounting to nearly 40% of total home sales, a real estate trade association reported recently. Click here to read more.
How much home $1 million buys. A cool million sounds like it should afford you an impressive estate or at least a starter mansion. But in some areas of the U.S., you'd be lucky to score a second bedroom. Click here to read more.
Home sellers beware: Buyers are in control as number of houses for sale soars in Las Vegas Valley. Home sellers better prepare for whiplash. Buyers are in the driver's seat these days, steering for bargains that haven't been offered in years. Gone are the waiting lists and overnight campouts as anxious buyers competed among one another for new houses. Gone too are the bidding wars for resale houses and above listing price offers.
With buyers having more homes to choose from - sellers are being challenged to more effectively market their homes. Real estate agents offer these tips to sellers:
1. Offer incentives. Contribute to closing costs, toss in the washer, dryer and refrigerator, provide an allowance for floor and wall coverings.
2. Move out, so buyers know you are serious and your home is immediately available.
3. Can't move out? Remove clutter, repaint those artsy red walls with neutral colors.
4. Price your house according to the market - and don't be the most expensive in the neighborhood.
Click here to read more.
Home sales losing steam in San Luis Obispo. Changes in the local housing market are hitting home for many sellers and agents who are used to dealing with fewer listings and residences that sell in a week. There are also fewer sales, and some houses that have sold had reduced prices. Agents are not the only people noticing the slowdown. Builders are also adapting to a return to a normal market. One builder said that up until six months ago, their homes were sold before they broke ground. Now, they have had standing inventory for the past two to three weeks. In response, some builders are offering incentives. They include knocking off about $100,000 during a weekend, buying down the interest rate for buyers, allowing people to trade up to a newer property and offering upgrades such as nicer cabinets or kitchen counters. Click here to read more.
Old loan, new interest: Driven by capital-gains rules and soaring home appreciation, the appeal is growing for 'owner- carry' mortgages. Seller financing, once used to attract buyers forced out of the market by high interest rates on conventional loans, may be making a comeback thanks to California's handsomely appreciated market and the ceiling on tax-free home-sale profits. "Owner-carry loans" or "take-back loans" — in which the seller holds the mortgage for an agreed-upon interest rate and period of time — gained popularity in the late 1970s and early 1980s when rates were in the double digits. Nowadays, less than 4% of the nation's residential sales rely on the seller to finance the deal, according to the Realtors group. Low interest rates allow most buyers to qualify for institutional loans. But there is renewed appeal, brought on by soaring real estate appreciation and an Internal Revenue Service rule that limits tax-free home-sale profits to $250,000 for an individual or $500,000 per couple filing joint returns. Anything beyond that is subject to up to 15% in federal taxes. Click here to read more.
REAL ESTATE WEEKLY: This week's Real Estate stories By MarketWatch. Learn how to ride out the housing downturn. Find out why U.S. housing starts fall for third straight month. Click here to read more.
Scraping by on mortgages: California has the top 11 least-affordable markets for homebuyers. A new analysis of housing and financial data portrays the state's homeowners as the nation's most financially stressed. 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
Baby Boomers Scooping Up Big Bear, California Real Estate. Second home purchases of vacation and investment properties are becoming an ever-increasing part of total home sales. In 2005 Americans bought a record number of second homes, amounting to nearly 40% of total home sales, a real estate trade association reported recently. Click here to read more.
How much home $1 million buys. A cool million sounds like it should afford you an impressive estate or at least a starter mansion. But in some areas of the U.S., you'd be lucky to score a second bedroom. Click here to read more.
Home sellers beware: Buyers are in control as number of houses for sale soars in Las Vegas Valley. Home sellers better prepare for whiplash. Buyers are in the driver's seat these days, steering for bargains that haven't been offered in years. Gone are the waiting lists and overnight campouts as anxious buyers competed among one another for new houses. Gone too are the bidding wars for resale houses and above listing price offers.
With buyers having more homes to choose from - sellers are being challenged to more effectively market their homes. Real estate agents offer these tips to sellers:
1. Offer incentives. Contribute to closing costs, toss in the washer, dryer and refrigerator, provide an allowance for floor and wall coverings.
2. Move out, so buyers know you are serious and your home is immediately available.
3. Can't move out? Remove clutter, repaint those artsy red walls with neutral colors.
4. Price your house according to the market - and don't be the most expensive in the neighborhood.
Click here to read more.
Home sales losing steam in San Luis Obispo. Changes in the local housing market are hitting home for many sellers and agents who are used to dealing with fewer listings and residences that sell in a week. There are also fewer sales, and some houses that have sold had reduced prices. Agents are not the only people noticing the slowdown. Builders are also adapting to a return to a normal market. One builder said that up until six months ago, their homes were sold before they broke ground. Now, they have had standing inventory for the past two to three weeks. In response, some builders are offering incentives. They include knocking off about $100,000 during a weekend, buying down the interest rate for buyers, allowing people to trade up to a newer property and offering upgrades such as nicer cabinets or kitchen counters. Click here to read more.
Old loan, new interest: Driven by capital-gains rules and soaring home appreciation, the appeal is growing for 'owner- carry' mortgages. Seller financing, once used to attract buyers forced out of the market by high interest rates on conventional loans, may be making a comeback thanks to California's handsomely appreciated market and the ceiling on tax-free home-sale profits. "Owner-carry loans" or "take-back loans" — in which the seller holds the mortgage for an agreed-upon interest rate and period of time — gained popularity in the late 1970s and early 1980s when rates were in the double digits. Nowadays, less than 4% of the nation's residential sales rely on the seller to finance the deal, according to the Realtors group. Low interest rates allow most buyers to qualify for institutional loans. But there is renewed appeal, brought on by soaring real estate appreciation and an Internal Revenue Service rule that limits tax-free home-sale profits to $250,000 for an individual or $500,000 per couple filing joint returns. Anything beyond that is subject to up to 15% in federal taxes. Click here to read more.
REAL ESTATE WEEKLY: This week's Real Estate stories By MarketWatch. Learn how to ride out the housing downturn. Find out why U.S. housing starts fall for third straight month. Click here to read more.
Scraping by on mortgages: California has the top 11 least-affordable markets for homebuyers. A new analysis of housing and financial data portrays the state's homeowners as the nation's most financially stressed. 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, May 16, 2006
Real Estate News for Tuesday, May 16th, 2006
How Debt vs. Income Affects Real Estate Loans. WHAT it costs you to live compared to how much money you make has a direct bearing on how big a mortgage you can afford. It is called the debt-to-income ratio. Does this sound daunting? A ratio is comparative, one thing contrasted with another or, the relationship between two variables. Click here to read more.
Foreclosures Up 33 Percent From Last Year Despite Decreasing for Second Straight Month. Colorado, Utah, Texas Post Highest Foreclosure Rates. RealtyTrac released its April 2006 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, which shows 91,168 properties nationwide entered some stage of foreclosure in April, a 10 percent decrease from the previous month but a 33 percent increase from April 2005. The report shows an April national foreclosure rate of one foreclosure filing for every 1,268 U.S. households. Despite a dip in foreclosure activity, California documented the second most foreclosure filings of any state for the second straight month and accounted for nearly 10 percent of the nationwide total. A total of 8,839 California properties entered some stage of foreclosure in April, a 20 percent decrease from the previous month but a 91 percent increase from April 2005. The state's foreclosure rate of one foreclosure filing for every 1,382 households dropped below the national average. Click here to read more.
No Spring in Real-Estate Step. In 2006, spring has seen record numbers of people lining up to sell their homes, but there's been no subsequent rise in the rate of sales. Indeed, sales activity in April 2006 was down 30.7 percent from April 2005, despite the existence of almost 20,000 homes for buyers to choose from. That's the biggest year-on-year decrease in sales rates since April 1995. Click here to read more.
Real Estate Bubble: Fact or Hype? The word 'bubble' has been used so often it has lost its significance. Many economists scoff at the idea while others have been waiting for this over-priced real estate market to 'crash' for years. Somewhere in the middle lies the truth and the consequences will be felt by hundreds of thousands of unsuspecting real estate owners. By the end of 2007, no one will need to ask if there had been a real estate bubble.
January 1997 May 2006
Median Price $177,600 $540,000
Media Income $44,385 $60,379
Interest Rate 7.5% 6.5%
Affordability 40% 14%
Click here to read more.
Beware of selling home without real estate agent. Full-time professional real estate agents know local market values, whether they are rising or falling. By attempting to sell alone, you could be vastly underpricing your home. Or maybe it is overpriced so prospective buyers will stay away. Most prospective home buyers shy away from ''for sale by owner'' newspaper classified ads. They fear the seller is strange for not listing with a realty agent. Although you paid $795 to put your listing in the local MLS, that doesn't mean it will be actively marketed. The MLS is a very powerful marketing tool, but your home also needs exposure on the Internet, such as wwwRealtor.com, and other websites, which only a pro-active listing agent can provide. Offering a 2 percent sales commission to a buyer's agent is not realistic. In today's competitive home sales market, you should list with a successful, aggressive real estate agent to get your home sold and to comply with today's disclosure requirements to prevent future legal problems. 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
Foreclosures Up 33 Percent From Last Year Despite Decreasing for Second Straight Month. Colorado, Utah, Texas Post Highest Foreclosure Rates. RealtyTrac released its April 2006 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, which shows 91,168 properties nationwide entered some stage of foreclosure in April, a 10 percent decrease from the previous month but a 33 percent increase from April 2005. The report shows an April national foreclosure rate of one foreclosure filing for every 1,268 U.S. households. Despite a dip in foreclosure activity, California documented the second most foreclosure filings of any state for the second straight month and accounted for nearly 10 percent of the nationwide total. A total of 8,839 California properties entered some stage of foreclosure in April, a 20 percent decrease from the previous month but a 91 percent increase from April 2005. The state's foreclosure rate of one foreclosure filing for every 1,382 households dropped below the national average. Click here to read more.
No Spring in Real-Estate Step. In 2006, spring has seen record numbers of people lining up to sell their homes, but there's been no subsequent rise in the rate of sales. Indeed, sales activity in April 2006 was down 30.7 percent from April 2005, despite the existence of almost 20,000 homes for buyers to choose from. That's the biggest year-on-year decrease in sales rates since April 1995. Click here to read more.
Real Estate Bubble: Fact or Hype? The word 'bubble' has been used so often it has lost its significance. Many economists scoff at the idea while others have been waiting for this over-priced real estate market to 'crash' for years. Somewhere in the middle lies the truth and the consequences will be felt by hundreds of thousands of unsuspecting real estate owners. By the end of 2007, no one will need to ask if there had been a real estate bubble.
January 1997 May 2006
Median Price $177,600 $540,000
Media Income $44,385 $60,379
Interest Rate 7.5% 6.5%
Affordability 40% 14%
Click here to read more.
Beware of selling home without real estate agent. Full-time professional real estate agents know local market values, whether they are rising or falling. By attempting to sell alone, you could be vastly underpricing your home. Or maybe it is overpriced so prospective buyers will stay away. Most prospective home buyers shy away from ''for sale by owner'' newspaper classified ads. They fear the seller is strange for not listing with a realty agent. Although you paid $795 to put your listing in the local MLS, that doesn't mean it will be actively marketed. The MLS is a very powerful marketing tool, but your home also needs exposure on the Internet, such as wwwRealtor.com, and other websites, which only a pro-active listing agent can provide. Offering a 2 percent sales commission to a buyer's agent is not realistic. In today's competitive home sales market, you should list with a successful, aggressive real estate agent to get your home sold and to comply with today's disclosure requirements to prevent future legal problems. 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, May 08, 2006
Real Estate News for Monday, May 8th, 2006
Foreclosures on the Rise. The rate at which borrowers are foreclosing on their mortgages has doubled since last year, as high-risk financing has become the norm for home buyers in San Diego County. Local experts wonder whether the recent spike in foreclosures is a harbinger of horrors to come or of the much-hyped "soft landing" for the local real estate market. Click here to read more.
Real Estate Tips: If you're staying put, keep an eye on your mortgage...and keep your cool. Just because you aim to watch the next real estate cycle from the comfort of your living room doesn't mean you don't need a plan. Here are three things to keep in mind as mortgage rates rise and markets soften. Keep an eye on your mortgage, don't bank on your house to fund your retirement, and keep your cool. Click here to read more.
Real Estate Tips: If you're a buyer, take your time...and don't forget to ask for goodies. True, home prices still are exorbitant by most historical standards. But the market is moving in buyers' favor - here's how to capitalize on that shift. Don't let the asking price be your guide. Many sellers are clinging to bloated pricetags that are based on what homes were fetching at the peak rather than what's realistic today. Take your time. In the heat of the boom, home shoppers committed to properties within minutes of touring them. Although sellers still have the upper hand in some markets, in most, time is on your side. Some of the things you can use the extra time to delve into more deeply: the school system; zoning issues that could change the value of homes in the coming years; the job picture; and recent property tax increases, as well as the outlook for more. Once you're ready to make an offer, again, don't be hasty. Hire a professional to conduct a careful inspection, and follow up by getting estimates for dealing with any problems he uncovers - repairing a leaky roof or replacing an old furnace. All this is part of the cost of carrying a house, and you need to factor it into your budget before you know what you can really afford to pay. Ask for goodies. Sellers who won't budge on the asking price may be willing to make other concessions. This is especially true when you're buying from homebuilding companies, which need to keep prices stable to avoid angering recent purchasers. To move product these days, they're throwing in all sorts of upgrades. Click here to read more.
Real Estate Tips: If you're a seller or speculator, price it right, and don't be afraid of agents. Plus: a word of caution for flippers out there. Each day brings fresh evidence of peaking home prices. But, with the right strategies, sellers can still command top dollar. Price it right. The worst mistake a seller can make in a softening market is to overprice a home. Even putting a high price on your home to "test the market" for a few weeks (with the notion that you can always lower it later) is a bad idea. Set the stage. In a faltering market you need to stand out. That's where something called staging comes in - that is, sprucing up your home in a way that encourages prospective buyers to envision themselves living there. The first step is to rent a storage locker and fill it with all that clutter from the attic, basement, and garage. Also remove any furniture that makes your home look overcrowded. And you may want to sweep your house clean of such personal items as wedding photos, framed diplomas, or children's fingerpaintings - it's difficult for prospective buyers to see your home as their castle if your family's signature is all over it. Tone down unique decor. That nude oil painting hanging in the foyer may turn off buyers. Rooms painted in unusual colors should be redone in neutral tones. Hire an agent. You may hate the idea of parting with 6 percent of your home's value, especially when you're facing the prospect of getting less than you dreamed of. And with the Internet making do-it-yourself sales easier than ever, you may be tempted to dispense with an agent. But in a tougher environment, marketing is everything, and an experienced agent--that is, one who didn't recently jump into the real estate gold rush - can be invaluable in helping you price your home correctly and in getting it noticed by prospective buyers. An agent can also steer you through the tortuous sales process and keep a deal on track when the inevitable glitches crop up. If you're a speculator ... get out now. In 2005, investors accounted for 28 percent of the housing market, up from 23 percent in 2004, according to the National Association of Realtors. But the game of buying a home - or two or three or 17 - holding it for a bit, and then flipping it for a handsome profit has pretty much played itself out. "Get out as fast as possible," says Mark Zandi, chief economist with Moody's Economy.com. "The market is moving away from the investor, and even when it stabilizes, I don't think it's going to come back anytime soon." So don't repeat the mistake that tech investors made during the dot-com bubble. As stocks spiraled downward, they held on, thinking that the market would bounce back quickly. Just accept that you're going to lose money on that Miami deal. 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 Tips: If you're staying put, keep an eye on your mortgage...and keep your cool. Just because you aim to watch the next real estate cycle from the comfort of your living room doesn't mean you don't need a plan. Here are three things to keep in mind as mortgage rates rise and markets soften. Keep an eye on your mortgage, don't bank on your house to fund your retirement, and keep your cool. Click here to read more.
Real Estate Tips: If you're a buyer, take your time...and don't forget to ask for goodies. True, home prices still are exorbitant by most historical standards. But the market is moving in buyers' favor - here's how to capitalize on that shift. Don't let the asking price be your guide. Many sellers are clinging to bloated pricetags that are based on what homes were fetching at the peak rather than what's realistic today. Take your time. In the heat of the boom, home shoppers committed to properties within minutes of touring them. Although sellers still have the upper hand in some markets, in most, time is on your side. Some of the things you can use the extra time to delve into more deeply: the school system; zoning issues that could change the value of homes in the coming years; the job picture; and recent property tax increases, as well as the outlook for more. Once you're ready to make an offer, again, don't be hasty. Hire a professional to conduct a careful inspection, and follow up by getting estimates for dealing with any problems he uncovers - repairing a leaky roof or replacing an old furnace. All this is part of the cost of carrying a house, and you need to factor it into your budget before you know what you can really afford to pay. Ask for goodies. Sellers who won't budge on the asking price may be willing to make other concessions. This is especially true when you're buying from homebuilding companies, which need to keep prices stable to avoid angering recent purchasers. To move product these days, they're throwing in all sorts of upgrades. Click here to read more.
Real Estate Tips: If you're a seller or speculator, price it right, and don't be afraid of agents. Plus: a word of caution for flippers out there. Each day brings fresh evidence of peaking home prices. But, with the right strategies, sellers can still command top dollar. Price it right. The worst mistake a seller can make in a softening market is to overprice a home. Even putting a high price on your home to "test the market" for a few weeks (with the notion that you can always lower it later) is a bad idea. Set the stage. In a faltering market you need to stand out. That's where something called staging comes in - that is, sprucing up your home in a way that encourages prospective buyers to envision themselves living there. The first step is to rent a storage locker and fill it with all that clutter from the attic, basement, and garage. Also remove any furniture that makes your home look overcrowded. And you may want to sweep your house clean of such personal items as wedding photos, framed diplomas, or children's fingerpaintings - it's difficult for prospective buyers to see your home as their castle if your family's signature is all over it. Tone down unique decor. That nude oil painting hanging in the foyer may turn off buyers. Rooms painted in unusual colors should be redone in neutral tones. Hire an agent. You may hate the idea of parting with 6 percent of your home's value, especially when you're facing the prospect of getting less than you dreamed of. And with the Internet making do-it-yourself sales easier than ever, you may be tempted to dispense with an agent. But in a tougher environment, marketing is everything, and an experienced agent--that is, one who didn't recently jump into the real estate gold rush - can be invaluable in helping you price your home correctly and in getting it noticed by prospective buyers. An agent can also steer you through the tortuous sales process and keep a deal on track when the inevitable glitches crop up. If you're a speculator ... get out now. In 2005, investors accounted for 28 percent of the housing market, up from 23 percent in 2004, according to the National Association of Realtors. But the game of buying a home - or two or three or 17 - holding it for a bit, and then flipping it for a handsome profit has pretty much played itself out. "Get out as fast as possible," says Mark Zandi, chief economist with Moody's Economy.com. "The market is moving away from the investor, and even when it stabilizes, I don't think it's going to come back anytime soon." So don't repeat the mistake that tech investors made during the dot-com bubble. As stocks spiraled downward, they held on, thinking that the market would bounce back quickly. Just accept that you're going to lose money on that Miami deal. 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, May 05, 2006
Real Estate News for Friday, May 5th, 2006
Cinco de Mayo!
Real-estate snoops use sites to check bosses, ex-wives. The U.S. housing market may be cooling off, but the nation's obsession with real estate shows no signs of abating. Real-estate fanatics are tapping into new Web sites that tell them instantly what friends, neighbors and co-workers paid for their houses. As the sites gain traffic, home-price voyeurism is reaching new heights. In arming nosy searchers with a key financial metric, these sites are pulling back the curtain on one of the last private aspects of American life. Earlier this year, RealEstateABC.com and Zillow.com started providing free access to historical purchase prices, estimates of current values, square-footage and aerial images of houses across the country. (It's even spawned a new verb: to "Zillow" one's neighbors.) The information, available for tens of millions of homes, comes from government records and other suppliers of public data, with estimates of a home's current values coming from the sites' own calculations. To get started, inquiring minds need nothing more than a property's address. Click here to read more.
INTRODUCING THE NEW ARTS & CULTURE GROVE at the Riverside Orange Blossom Festival.
Saturday, May 20, 2005 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Sunday, May 21, 2005 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Along Mission Inn Ave. from Lime Street to Orange Street. 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 snoops use sites to check bosses, ex-wives. The U.S. housing market may be cooling off, but the nation's obsession with real estate shows no signs of abating. Real-estate fanatics are tapping into new Web sites that tell them instantly what friends, neighbors and co-workers paid for their houses. As the sites gain traffic, home-price voyeurism is reaching new heights. In arming nosy searchers with a key financial metric, these sites are pulling back the curtain on one of the last private aspects of American life. Earlier this year, RealEstateABC.com and Zillow.com started providing free access to historical purchase prices, estimates of current values, square-footage and aerial images of houses across the country. (It's even spawned a new verb: to "Zillow" one's neighbors.) The information, available for tens of millions of homes, comes from government records and other suppliers of public data, with estimates of a home's current values coming from the sites' own calculations. To get started, inquiring minds need nothing more than a property's address. Click here to read more.
INTRODUCING THE NEW ARTS & CULTURE GROVE at the Riverside Orange Blossom Festival.
Saturday, May 20, 2005 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Sunday, May 21, 2005 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Along Mission Inn Ave. from Lime Street to Orange Street. 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, May 04, 2006
Real Estate News for Thursday, May 4th, 2006
Housing a Mixed Bag. Boom time fades away as market gets sluggish. Sales of previously owned homes edged up in March, but the backlog of unsold homes still hit a record high, raising concerns that the once-booming housing market could be in for a rougher landing than expected. The California Association of Realtors reported Tuesday that California's inventory of unsold resale homes in March declined from February, as the traditional home-buying season kicked in. However, sales cooled from the hyper pace of a year ago. Statewide, the median home price increased 13 percent from March 2005, while sales dropped 15 percent. The number of unsold homes on the market at the end of March hit a record of 3.19 million units. At the March sales pace, it would take 5.5 months to eliminate the backlog of unsold homes. Some analysts expressed concern that the rising level of unsold homes would soon start putting more downward pressure on home prices. Click here to read more.
Rates on 30-year mortgages climb. Rates on 30-year mortgages climbed this week, hitting their highest point in nearly four years, a development that will be weighed by people thinking about buying a home or refinancing the one they own. This week's rate was the highest since the week ending June 20, 2002, when 30-year mortgage rates stood at 6.63 percent. Click here to read more.
Mortgage Defaults Rise in State. The number of notices sent increased in the first quarter to the highest level in more than two years. The rate of change in the six-county Southern California region was higher. The number of defaults rose 33% year over year to 11,102 from 8,330. San Diego and Riverside counties saw the biggest jumps in defaults, more than 50%. The notices serve as an early indicator of possible foreclosures and signal a shift in housing market trends. With slower appreciation, some distressed homeowners may find it harder to sell their homes for more than they owe their mortgage lenders. Still, the first-quarter increase is far below the record set in 1996, when 59,897 default warnings were delivered, according to DataQuick, which has been keeping track since 1992. Typically, about 5% of homeowners who receive default notices end up losing their homes to foreclosure. Click here to read more.
Welcome to the dead zone. Real estate survival guide: The great housing bubble has finally started to deflate, and the fall will be harder in some markets than others. Five years of superheated price gains rescued America from stock market collapse, put billions in consumers' pockets, and ignited a building boom that bolstered the nation's economy. But it's over. The great housing bubble has finally started to deflate. Contracts are being canceled, deals are drying up, prices are starting to drop. The psychology is shifting even as thousands of new homes and condos join the for-sale listings each day - so the downward pressure will only get worse. "The buyers' sense of urgency is gone," says Bob Toll, CEO of luxury builder Toll Brothers (Research), who has long been a housing bull. "They see the market going soft, so they stall." In California it now takes six months to sell a house, twice as long as a year ago. With houses hovering beyond the reach of most potential purchasers, formerly frantic markets grow eerily calm. People who rush to list their homes, hoping to grab a fat gain just before prices break, take them off the market. Sales shrink as buyers float low-ball offers, and sellers refuse them. Realtors and mortgage brokers find other jobs. The bubble areas turn into Dead Zones. Click here to read more.
The case for rental revival. Rentals are not only showing signs of life for the first time in years, but demographic and economic indicators point to an improved rental market for the next decade. Vacancy rates are slowly declining, which is, of course, good for landlords, but the rents are going up only modestly, which is also good for landlords but at the same time not detrimental to tenants. Demand is increasing at the same time that supply is stabilizing, so it's good for everybody. Despite the exodus to homeownership, fully one-third of American households (34 million) reside in rental housing, according to the JCHS. That figure has remained remarkably consistent during the past decade as the influx of immigrants replaced those who bought their own homes and the conversion of rentals to condos helped offset new construction, primarily in the nation's suburbs. 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
Rates on 30-year mortgages climb. Rates on 30-year mortgages climbed this week, hitting their highest point in nearly four years, a development that will be weighed by people thinking about buying a home or refinancing the one they own. This week's rate was the highest since the week ending June 20, 2002, when 30-year mortgage rates stood at 6.63 percent. Click here to read more.
Mortgage Defaults Rise in State. The number of notices sent increased in the first quarter to the highest level in more than two years. The rate of change in the six-county Southern California region was higher. The number of defaults rose 33% year over year to 11,102 from 8,330. San Diego and Riverside counties saw the biggest jumps in defaults, more than 50%. The notices serve as an early indicator of possible foreclosures and signal a shift in housing market trends. With slower appreciation, some distressed homeowners may find it harder to sell their homes for more than they owe their mortgage lenders. Still, the first-quarter increase is far below the record set in 1996, when 59,897 default warnings were delivered, according to DataQuick, which has been keeping track since 1992. Typically, about 5% of homeowners who receive default notices end up losing their homes to foreclosure. Click here to read more.
Welcome to the dead zone. Real estate survival guide: The great housing bubble has finally started to deflate, and the fall will be harder in some markets than others. Five years of superheated price gains rescued America from stock market collapse, put billions in consumers' pockets, and ignited a building boom that bolstered the nation's economy. But it's over. The great housing bubble has finally started to deflate. Contracts are being canceled, deals are drying up, prices are starting to drop. The psychology is shifting even as thousands of new homes and condos join the for-sale listings each day - so the downward pressure will only get worse. "The buyers' sense of urgency is gone," says Bob Toll, CEO of luxury builder Toll Brothers (Research), who has long been a housing bull. "They see the market going soft, so they stall." In California it now takes six months to sell a house, twice as long as a year ago. With houses hovering beyond the reach of most potential purchasers, formerly frantic markets grow eerily calm. People who rush to list their homes, hoping to grab a fat gain just before prices break, take them off the market. Sales shrink as buyers float low-ball offers, and sellers refuse them. Realtors and mortgage brokers find other jobs. The bubble areas turn into Dead Zones. Click here to read more.
The case for rental revival. Rentals are not only showing signs of life for the first time in years, but demographic and economic indicators point to an improved rental market for the next decade. Vacancy rates are slowly declining, which is, of course, good for landlords, but the rents are going up only modestly, which is also good for landlords but at the same time not detrimental to tenants. Demand is increasing at the same time that supply is stabilizing, so it's good for everybody. Despite the exodus to homeownership, fully one-third of American households (34 million) reside in rental housing, according to the JCHS. That figure has remained remarkably consistent during the past decade as the influx of immigrants replaced those who bought their own homes and the conversion of rentals to condos helped offset new construction, primarily in the nation's suburbs. 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, May 01, 2006
Real Estate News for Monday, May 1st, 2006
Assessing boom-and-bust cycles, the time to buy or sell is ... Nobody knows. Markets fluctuate, but generally the longer you own your home, the better. Some broad conclusions relevant to the questions posed above about timing and cycles and profits and losses:
• Anybody who thinks home real estate values can't go down is wrong. When local economies lose jobs, demand for houses drops and so do property values. Markets where prices have accelerated in part because of speculation by investors are particularly vulnerable when local economies go flat.
• The risk of loss is accentuated for purchasers who do not hold on to their properties for extended periods of time. The longer you own a house, the greater your probability of making net profits on it, even if the local economy hits the skids for a while.
Yes, timing matters. If you buy at the top of an inflation cycle as a speculator and sell into an economic down cycle a couple of years later, you can lose a bunch of money. But if you buy a house and live in it for five, seven, 10 years, the odds are good that you'll come out ahead. Click here to read more.
At 18, Junior can help snag tax boon. Without a spouse, there's no easy way to increase your Internal Revenue Code 121 principal residence sale exemption from $250,000 to $500,000. Minors can hold title; they just cannot convey title. However, for a minor to qualify for an additional $250,000 home sale tax exemption, he must own and occupy the home as his principal residence at least 24 of the 60 months before its sale. If you add him to your title now, be sure you don't plan to sell the house before he becomes 18 when he can convey title. If he is now 16 or 17 years old, and if he will be 18 or older when you plan to sell the home, you could add him to the title so he can qualify in 24 months for the extra $250,000 principal residence sale tax exemption. Click here to read more.
125th ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL HOME SECTION. Check out the Los Angeles Times Home Commemorative Edition. Click here to read more.
One of the least understood areas of real estate would have to be title insurance. Although it can be a big charge on your closing documents, perhaps $1,000 on a $300,000 house, it isn't something that the average homeowner knows much about. It is simply one more requirement in the buying or selling of a home, one that most consumers are all too happy to have a real estate agent or mortgage lender take charge of. While there is an insurance component of title insurance, it really is more of an investigation that you are paying for. A title insurance company searches public records on your property, or the property you are about to buy, to determine if anyone else has any claims on the real estate. Most of those "encumbrances" don't mean much to a homeowner, but they can make a mortgage company pretty skittish. Lenders like to know that no one else can lay claim to a piece of the property which they hold as collateral on a huge mortgages. So they demand title insurance that pays them if something goes wrong. Thus the title companies are really making a bet on their own investigative work: If they're wrong in clearing a title they pay. Home sellers buy a title insurance policy so that they can warrant they are transferring a clear title. Buyers can also buy a policy of their own to protect their interests. Who buys what and who pays for it varies per local custom. But the lender is always protected, one way or the other. Click here to read more.
Long-term mortgages near 4-year high. Rates climb for fifth week; 30-year averages 6.58%. "Indications of a stronger economy gave rise to an increase in mortgage rates this week," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac chief economist. "Consumer confidence and existing-home sales unexpectedly rose. Much of this strength is attributed to a healthy labor market, which translates into greater consumer spending. This should support an active housing market over the next few months." "We expect mortgage rates to gradually rise throughout the year. A stronger labor market, coupled with moderation in house-price growth, means our outlook for overall housing conditions remains upbeat," he said. Click here to read more.
Existing home sales rise 0.3% in March. Inventories rise to 8-year high as price gains slow down. Sales of existing homes rose unexpectedly by 0.3% in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.92 million, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday. "This is a mixed report, but encouraging," said David Lereah, chief economist for the realtors. "This is additional evidence that we're experiencing a soft landing," Lereah said. After five months of declines, existing home sales have risen two months in row. Sales are down 4% year-to-date. "Sluggish prices and a further rise in inventories of unsold homes are a better indicator of underlying conditions," said Robert Kubarych, an economist at HVB Group. The number of homes for sale rose 7% in March to a record 3.194 million, representing a 5.5-month supply at the March sales pace, the largest months' supply since July 1998. Median selling prices are up 7.4% in the past 12 months to $218,000, the smallest price gain since January 2004. "To my mind, that's air coming out of the balloon," Lereah said. "The pull back in housing remains orderly, at least in the existing market," said Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisers. "But the red flags are up. Inventories continue to rise and that is a warning that prices cuts could be coming, and soon." 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
• Anybody who thinks home real estate values can't go down is wrong. When local economies lose jobs, demand for houses drops and so do property values. Markets where prices have accelerated in part because of speculation by investors are particularly vulnerable when local economies go flat.
• The risk of loss is accentuated for purchasers who do not hold on to their properties for extended periods of time. The longer you own a house, the greater your probability of making net profits on it, even if the local economy hits the skids for a while.
Yes, timing matters. If you buy at the top of an inflation cycle as a speculator and sell into an economic down cycle a couple of years later, you can lose a bunch of money. But if you buy a house and live in it for five, seven, 10 years, the odds are good that you'll come out ahead. Click here to read more.
At 18, Junior can help snag tax boon. Without a spouse, there's no easy way to increase your Internal Revenue Code 121 principal residence sale exemption from $250,000 to $500,000. Minors can hold title; they just cannot convey title. However, for a minor to qualify for an additional $250,000 home sale tax exemption, he must own and occupy the home as his principal residence at least 24 of the 60 months before its sale. If you add him to your title now, be sure you don't plan to sell the house before he becomes 18 when he can convey title. If he is now 16 or 17 years old, and if he will be 18 or older when you plan to sell the home, you could add him to the title so he can qualify in 24 months for the extra $250,000 principal residence sale tax exemption. Click here to read more.
125th ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL HOME SECTION. Check out the Los Angeles Times Home Commemorative Edition. Click here to read more.
One of the least understood areas of real estate would have to be title insurance. Although it can be a big charge on your closing documents, perhaps $1,000 on a $300,000 house, it isn't something that the average homeowner knows much about. It is simply one more requirement in the buying or selling of a home, one that most consumers are all too happy to have a real estate agent or mortgage lender take charge of. While there is an insurance component of title insurance, it really is more of an investigation that you are paying for. A title insurance company searches public records on your property, or the property you are about to buy, to determine if anyone else has any claims on the real estate. Most of those "encumbrances" don't mean much to a homeowner, but they can make a mortgage company pretty skittish. Lenders like to know that no one else can lay claim to a piece of the property which they hold as collateral on a huge mortgages. So they demand title insurance that pays them if something goes wrong. Thus the title companies are really making a bet on their own investigative work: If they're wrong in clearing a title they pay. Home sellers buy a title insurance policy so that they can warrant they are transferring a clear title. Buyers can also buy a policy of their own to protect their interests. Who buys what and who pays for it varies per local custom. But the lender is always protected, one way or the other. Click here to read more.
Long-term mortgages near 4-year high. Rates climb for fifth week; 30-year averages 6.58%. "Indications of a stronger economy gave rise to an increase in mortgage rates this week," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac chief economist. "Consumer confidence and existing-home sales unexpectedly rose. Much of this strength is attributed to a healthy labor market, which translates into greater consumer spending. This should support an active housing market over the next few months." "We expect mortgage rates to gradually rise throughout the year. A stronger labor market, coupled with moderation in house-price growth, means our outlook for overall housing conditions remains upbeat," he said. Click here to read more.
Existing home sales rise 0.3% in March. Inventories rise to 8-year high as price gains slow down. Sales of existing homes rose unexpectedly by 0.3% in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.92 million, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday. "This is a mixed report, but encouraging," said David Lereah, chief economist for the realtors. "This is additional evidence that we're experiencing a soft landing," Lereah said. After five months of declines, existing home sales have risen two months in row. Sales are down 4% year-to-date. "Sluggish prices and a further rise in inventories of unsold homes are a better indicator of underlying conditions," said Robert Kubarych, an economist at HVB Group. The number of homes for sale rose 7% in March to a record 3.194 million, representing a 5.5-month supply at the March sales pace, the largest months' supply since July 1998. Median selling prices are up 7.4% in the past 12 months to $218,000, the smallest price gain since January 2004. "To my mind, that's air coming out of the balloon," Lereah said. "The pull back in housing remains orderly, at least in the existing market," said Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisers. "But the red flags are up. Inventories continue to rise and that is a warning that prices cuts could be coming, and soon." 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
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