Archive for the 'San Diego County Fixer of the Week' Category
HUGE drops in foreclosure related activities reported for January
February 9th, 2010 Categories: Real Estate News, San Diego County Community News, San Diego County Fixer of the Week, San Diego county Real Estate News
SAN DIEGO NORTH COUNTY- Foreclosureradar.com reported that notice of default filings were down 44% in San Diego’s north county when comparing January’s 2009-2010 numbers. Additionally homes sold at auction for the region in the same time period were down 76%.
In an article in today’s North County Times they suggested that the “efficiency” of short sales was a contributing factor to this reduction.
"The stress of default is still there," said Mark Goldman, a real estate instructor at San Diego State University. "But we’re starting to hear a lot more buzz about the efficiency of short sales."-nctimes.com
While I do not necessarily see an increase in the number of short sales, I certainly am not experiencing or hearing of an increase in efficiency. Short sales are still very dependent on the short amount, the ability of the seller to show the need for the short sale and to provide the paperwork required by the bank and probably the most weighted aspect, is the number of lenders in the decision making process.
“Approximately one-third of the short-sale listings on the market don’t close, either because the lender won’t approve a realistic price, or because there are multiple liens secured against the property”-Dyan Hymer,2/9/1010,”The truth about short sales”, Inman News
If you think you may be losing your home, I strongly encourage you to try to short sale. Give me a call with any questions. 760.415.3329
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First time home buyer tax credit extension signed by the President
November 6th, 2009 Categories: Real Estate News, San Diego County Fixer of the Week, San Diego county Real Estate News
SAN DIEGO- It was just announced the President Obama has signed the bill that includes the 
extension and changes to the first time home buyer tax credit.
The first time home buyer tax credit extension allows a buyer to enter an agreement with a seller by April 30, 2010 and close on the house by the end of June 30, 2010. First time home buyers are defined as anyone who has not owned a home for the past 3 years. First time home buyers will get an $8,000 tax credit, similar to the tax credit for much of 2009. Other home buyers, who have owned their current home for at least five years, are eligible for a $6,500 tax credit.
Income limitations have been increased to $125,000 for single filers and $225,000 for joint filers. The purchase price of the home must be less than $800,000. The estimated loss in tax revenue to the government comes to $10.8 billion. – creditunionsonline.com
While there was some speculation over whether the first time home buyer’s tax credit would be extended or not, I never waivered in my belief that it was coming. With banks that have used or are still using stimulus money handing out huge bonuses, there was no way the American public was going to lose this. If so, there would have been a march on Congress with pitchforks and torches!!
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Cardiff homes for under $400K?
September 14th, 2009 Categories: Real Estate News, San Diego County Fixer of the Week, San Diego county Real Estate News
CARDIFF- I am blessed to have great clients. Currently, I am working on building a
relationship with a local builder that could be a long term benefit to us both.
There are a couple homes for sale in the Cardiff area of late that are coming in at under $400,000. While researching one of these as an investment possibility, it’s a fixer, I came across this sold listing that clearly states our current market.
FORECLOSURE! 5 BEDROOM HOME, ONE BLOCK EAST OF I-5. BANK WILL FINANCE YOUR HARD TO QUALIFY BUYER W/ONLY 5% DOWN! CALL VICTOR FOR DETAILS, THIS HOUSE HAS FREEWAY NOISE, BUT AT $102/PER SQ FT YOU CAN BUY EAR PLUGS!
This was a home listing in 1994!!! While $102 a square foot is long gone and hard to qualify buyers are just that, it really struck a chord with me. It is a very accurate depiction that the real estate market is a cycle. Today this home is valued at just under $580,000.
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Terramar beach: Why homeowners association can be a blessing
August 30th, 2009 Categories: Real Estate News, San Diego County Bike Rides, San Diego County Community News, San Diego County Fixer of the Week, San Diego county Real Estate News
CARLSBAD- I have had quite a few clients who avoid communities with homeowners association 
like the plague. This has nothing to do with the fee levied by the association, but everything to do with not liking to be told what you can and can not do with your private property.
I have often times suggest that buyer’s view a communities HOA as a form of an insurance policy protecting property values. By maintaining uniformity in construction and colors, maintaining and improving common areas and preventing your neighbor’s teenage son from starting a mechanic’s garage in his driveway, they truly can be a blessing. Yes, I have hear the arguments about property rights and the lack of common sense board member’s often use in decision making, but I do believe they perform a very beneficial function for the community unfortunately at times at the individual’s expense.
Here is a great example of why at least one owner wish they had an association.
The Terramar beach community in Carlsbad was first developed in the late 1940’s. The community boasts the only private beach in the city of Carlsbad and while they have the Terramar association, I am not aware of this association having any powers over individual homeowners. As is the case up and down San Diego’s coast, they ranch style homes that once were a simple of southern California are being replaced by massive homes worth millions.
On a recent bike ride down the coast I almost crashed doing a double take as I rode past the intersection of Tierra Del Oro and the coast highway in the Terramar community. Crossing the intersection to this bluff top community, the first thing you now see is a freshly painted classic ranch home in PINK. And not all of it, just the front!!! It’s hard to imagine that this homeowner is not trying hard to make some type of statement at the detriment to their community at large.
Now, to the north of the ho me is an ocean front lot which recently sold for 2.7 million dollars. To the south, is a newly constructed, 5019 Tierra Del Oro, home currently listed for sale for $9.9-10.8 million dollars.
Imagine the impact on this seller!!
With an HOA the chances of this one homeowner being able to hold their neighborhood hostage would be prevented thus protect the other homeowners from the impact this action can have on a neighborhood. Imagine the hesitancy anyone would have in dropping any amount of money to live next door to this “problem”, which by the way is for rent.
This may be the perfect time for the homeowners of Terramar to come together and institute an association to prevent this type of thing. It’s always someone else’s problem until it is not and then it’s usually too late.
So the lesson here is, when looking for your next home consider EVERYTHING a homeowners association can do to help maintain the value of your home!!!
If you are in the market for a $10. milllion dollar beach home or a $100K condo, call me. I appreciate all my clients large and small!! 760.415.3329
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First time buyer’s tax credit to be extended?
August 23rd, 2009 Categories: Real Estate News, San Diego County Community News, San Diego County Fixer of the Week, San Diego county Real Estate News
SAN DIEGO- The constant chatter about low inventory in the first time buyer market has been 
overshadowed this last week by the realization that the first time homebuyer’s tax credit was approaching its expiration date. Now November 30th is still a ways off by the calendar, but in real estate ‘years’ it is appropriate to be concerned.
“an especially urgent matter if you’re a buyer just starting to shop and you see entry-level prices bottoming out or rebounding in many local markets and you want to take advantage of the credit, which is more generous than last year’s”- 08/22/2009, Washington Post*
Currently short sales are still the dominant transaction in the San Diego County real estate market and with the short sale process averaging 3-4 months, you can see why this topic has moved to the front of the line. Without an extension of the current expiration date, this is crunch time. In order to qualify for the tax credit you must have closed your transaction by 11-30-2009.
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Investing in real estate without buying a house
August 18th, 2009 Categories: Real Estate News, San Diego County Community News, San Diego County Fixer of the Week
SAN DIEGO- If you could buy property at ten cents to the dollar of peak value, would you? Well Brookfield Properties Corp and its sister Brookfield Asset Management are teaming up to do just that and more. In fact they are raising $4.9 billion dollars to buy, buy, buy!!!
There are 3,200 unfinished McMansions sitting in a suburban Los Angeles neighbourhood, where developers spent more than $150-million (U.S.) to build sewers, grade lots and pave roads for an upscale development, only to see the market crash.
“We do know this is currently one of the worst residential markets in the U.S.,” Mr. Flatt(CEO of Brookfield Asset Management) said in explaining the Riverside project during a conference call last Friday. “However, just to put it into perspective, the lots are within an hour of Los Angeles [and] were purchased for less than 10 per cent of the value attributed to land and infrastructure at the peak. … So these are at pretty low values.”
“Over all, we believe the infrastructure asset management industry is in the early stages of a multidecade growth trajectory,” he said.
And Brookfield is thinking about real estate holdings in terms of decades. During last Friday’s conference call, Mr. Flatt said it anticipates making up to a seven-fold return on its recent investment in Riverside, Calif., over the next 10 years(edit). -The Globe and Mail, 08/12/2009
Both companies BPO and BAM are trading near the midrange of their 52 week ranges and may be the perfect venue for those looking to capitalize on low real estate values yet are not able to purchase their own properties.
From Todd Sullivan writing for Seeking Alpha, “The beauty of investing in real estate this way is that you get the benefit of these folks’ expertise which, based on results, is tops in the industry. You also get a global opportunity and the patience they have to execute the right deals at the right time.”
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Outstanding Vista investment opportunity
July 30th, 2009 Categories: Real Estate News, San Diego County Fixer of the Week, San Diego county Real Estate News
VISTA- Here is an opportunity to start building your real estate portfolio with this Vista investment opportunity.
This 3 bedroom 2.5 bath twinhome listed at $207,800 by Keller Williams, is approximately 1426 square feet and was built in 1989. It features a two car garage is in great condition for a bank owned home in the and has a premium location backing to the community park. Additionally it features very low HO fees of only $175 a month and is in the small California Villas community of 60 homes.
In 2006 these homes were selling in the mid $400’s so there is plenty of future upside and as an investment you can expect rent in $1550 to $1650 range. The last two homes sold in this community closed at $215K and $225K and they were both only 1185 square feet. One of these closed in April and the other in May.
If interested in this Vista investment opportunity contact me at 760.415.3329.
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The idiocy of the short sale
July 9th, 2009 Categories: San Diego County Fixer of the Week, San Diego county Real Estate News
SAN DIEGO- Here is just a quick example of why short sales are such a pain in the neck for everyone.
I have a negotiator for WAMU/Chase on a short sale I have listed that is being stubborn and hiding behind the ‘guidelines’ yet will not produce a written copy of the guideline supporting his position. Today we decided to take it to his supervisor which in itself took patience and consistency.
I called the supervisors number and reached her voicemail which stated she was out of the office and instructed me to call a new number of person B. When I called that number I was given two options. Press 1 for mortgages and 2 for equity lines. When I pressed 1 a new announcement came on stating that the number was no longer a valid number and that WAMU was now part of Chase and to call a different number. I thought that was a bit odd, so I called again deciding to hit option 2. I got through to a phone system and punched in the extension of the referred supervisor.
Her voicemail indicated she would be out of the office 6/20 to 6/29, today is July 9th, and to call a third person at the same number but a different extension. I called this third person only to get their voicemail that they were out of the office.
And that’s a day spent on a short sale.
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San Diego real estate news stays positive for the summer home buying season
June 29th, 2009 Categories: Client Testimonials, San Diego County Community News, San Diego County Fixer of the Week, San Diego county Real Estate News
SAN DIEGO-
“With affordability for first-time buyers at a record high, sales of existing, single- family homes continued to remain above the 500,000 level for the ninth consecutive month,” said C.A.R. President James Liptak. “Buyers are beginning to realize that the combination of favorable home prices, historically low mortgage rates, and first-time home buyer tax credits, may not align again for many years.
“The sales gains over last year have diminished in recent months,” he added. “This trend is expected to continue through the end of the year, as limited inventory at the moderate and low end of the market constrains sales activity,” he said.- www.car.org/newsstand *
We ended last week with continuing positive real estate news and market conditions and confirmation of our interpretation of what is happening in the field.
The market variables, as quoted above, continue to present a great opportunity for buyers with the exception of inventory index which statewide has dropped by over half from 8.7 months to 4.2.
C.A.R.’s Unsold Inventory Index fell to 4.2 month
s in May, compared with 8.7 months in May 2008.*
But turning our attention back to the positive, if you have been sitting on the fence and are renting, consider this;
The typical monthly mortgage payment that Southern California buyers committed themselves to paying was $1,052 last month, up from $1,038 the previous month, and down from $1,782 a year ago(my edit). Adjusted for inflation, current payments
are 52.1 percent below typical payments in the spring of 1989, the peak of the prior real estate cycle. They are 60.7 percent below the current cycle’s peak in July 2007.- DQNews.com**
For the home seller in the $500,000+ market, you are seeing some of your first good news as this market has been stagnate for some time due to the cost of the “jumbo” loans. Additionally, this is typically a move up market, where in the buyer in selling or has sold real estate in order to move up. With market conditions so heavily favoring buyers there are not too many people selling in order to buy.
Conversely, sales $500,000 and above rose from 15.2 percent of sales in April to 17 percent in May. The last time the $500,000-plus market made up more than 17 percent of all sales was last October, when they were 19.9 percent of sales.**
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The fast and the furious: Bank owned homes
June 26th, 2009 Categories: Client Testimonials, Real Estate News, San Diego County Fixer of the Week, San Diego county Real Estate News
SAN DIEGO- There are two consistencies in the real estate market right now. First, short sales can be a time consuming pain in the neck for both buyers and sellers. Second is that bank owned 
homes or homes in which the owners have plenty of equity and are realistic in their expectations can expect a quick market time.
I am currently working with several potential buyers in the Oceanside area. This is a great north county coastal city with a solid market for single family detached
homes under $300,000. For the active lifestyle Oceanside has several miles of coastline, a harbor, a seven plus mile bike path along the San Luis Rey River as well as proximity to what is left of San Diego’s back country for some great cycling on open and challenging roads. It is also the host city for the only Ironman branded event in southern California which is the Ironman California 70.3.
With the affordability rate so high for homes, interest rates remaining historically low and the tax credit given by the fed, this is a prime market for first time buyers. If we look at 3 bedroom single family that have sold in the last six months we can see the contrast in the transaction time of short sales versus others.
There were 190 homes sold in the city of Oceanside and of those, 49 needed court or lender approval which is a primary sign of short sales. Of those 49 homes, the average was a 3 bedroom 2 bath approximately 1280 square feet and the average sold price was $229,946. The big factor here is there is an average market time of 129 days. The longest marketing period was over a year at 369 days. These numbers do not include the actual escrow period.
The remaining 141 homes which are primarily bank owned homes tell a bit different story. While physically they were very similar at 3 
bedrooms, 2 baths and 1285 square feet, it may surprise some to know that these homes sold for LESS than the short sale homes at an average of $224,334. Additionally, and this is the HUGE factor, the average market time was only 38 days, with 39 of these homes going into escrow in 7 days or less.
Another significant difference was over half of these homes, 86, sold for over the asking price.
For buyers in this type of market the lessons here is that good homes can go fast and you need to take a realistic look at comparable homes. If when looking at those comparables properties they suggest a market value over the asking price, don’t hesitate to do what is necessary if you do really want the home.
Take advantage of this market and work with a realtor you trust. It’s so heartening to see citizens that thought they would never be able to buy a home in southern California have this amazing opportunity. Get after it.
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