RSS
 

Posts Tagged ‘total listings’

House Hunting – Standard Sales

16 Sep

Step 4

You know the area you want to buy and the price and size of home that is comfortable for you but now the big question.

Do you want to buy a standard sale home, short sale or bank owned home?

The standard sale home seems like the easy route. However, a large majority of the standard sellers in today’s market think they are “losing money” by selling their home. They could have sold for much more years ago but they didn’t and now life changes are prompting them to sell. Be careful because sometimes these sellers over price a home just to see if they will get a bite. Have your agent “run the comps” which is Realtor talk for – what is the home worth according to recent sales? If you find that the house is overpriced but you want to make an offer then write a good clean offer at market value. All houses sell for market value so the Sellers will need to come to grips with that at some point. Be prepared for a counter offer, 99% of all offers will get a counter offer. If the Sellers are reasonable, you will have bought a house. Don’t feel bad if they don’t take your offer. Many Sellers reject the first offer and then their homes sit on the market and at the time I am writing this, it’s almost guaranteed that their house will go down in value by waiting. Move on to another house for sale.
In the Inland Empire there is a “Perfect Storm” at this moment. Interest rates are amazingly low, you can buy a house and make mortgage payments that are close to what you are paying for rent. And there are many homes for sale. Inventory is good in this area and more homes are coming on the market all the time so don’t worry, your dream home could be just around the corner!

 
No Comments

Posted in FHA, Homes For Sale, Real Estate Update

 

House Hunting

09 Sep

Step 3: It’s time for House Hunting!

You have a letter from a lender promising you a loan. You have met with an experienced Buyer’s Agent and committed to working with them. Have your Realtor arrange a tour of homes for you – you are in the market!

Always keep these things in mind:
1. Buy a house in the best school district you can afford – a good school district will help your new home retain its value. This is true even if you don’t have children yet or you are older and your kids are adults.

2. Think about the day in the future that you will be selling – sounds weird but some day you will sell your new home and you want to buy it thinking about the future value.

3. Don’t compromise – if the home has some quirks like being on a busy street or has additions that have not been permitted these are things that will come up over and over again and could turn your dream house into a nightmare.

Next Week: More House Hunting

 
No Comments

Posted in FHA, Homes For Sale, Real Estate Update

 

I Want to buy a House with the Listing Agent.

16 Aug

Really?? Really! Are you sure?

I hear this statement several times a week, as I’m sure most Buyer’s agents do. Do you know what you are giving up?

The Seller has already signed a contract with the Listing Agent to have exclusive representation by the Listing Agent. If a Buyer wants to buy a home with the Listing Agent, then a conflict of interests arises. This is called Dual Agency and it must be disclosed. Dual agency is such a bad idea that it has been outlawed in other states, yet it is still legal in California. Some of the information you may want to know would be illegal or unethical for a dual agent to disclose because of their fiduciary responsibility to the Seller. Just because the seller “has” to use their Cousin George as their agent, doesn’t mean YOU have to.

A fiduciary responsibility requires that every action the agent performs must be in the best interest of their client. This is above and beyond “Honest and Fair”. This responsibility goes so far as to require that even if a particular course of action is NOT the most advantageous action for the agent, but IS in the best interests of the client, the agent must act for the benefit of the client.

In every real estate transaction I have been involved in, I have found at least a dozen things the other agent wanted to do, but were not the best path for my client. Dual Agency is just as crazy as having the same lawyer represent both sides in the same lawsuit.

Wow, buying a home is a “Big Deal”. Why would you want a conflict of interest?

Call me if you want to work with a Buyer’s Agent!

 
No Comments

Posted in FHA, Homes For Sale, Real Estate Update

 

Half Yearly Report

03 Jul

Half way into 2010!  Short sales are still the name of the game.  Numbers have changed quite a bit in the last 3 months.

Upland has 185 listings,  47 are short sales and 14 are Bank owned.

Rancho Cucamonga has 424 listings – up 61.  176 are short sales and 53 are bank owned.

Claremont has 114 listings compared to 96 -3 months ago.  10 are short sales and 11 are bank owned.

Ontario has 358 listings up 46.  172 are short sales and 67 are bank owned.

Good old Fontana has 658 listings – 3 months ago they had 498 – that’s 160 more listings!  289 are short sales – 71 more than the last report and 84 Bank owned down 44.

So there you have the half yearly report – good news!  More homes for sale, and super low interest rates -  it’s still a Seller’s market here in the Inland Empire.  Buyers are still hungry for more – so let’s watch how the summer of 2010 heats up!

 
No Comments

Posted in Real Estate Update, Uncategorized

 

March Stats

04 Mar

February was a good but hectic month for me – filled with nothing but Short Sales!

Are short sales the “new” norm for real estate?  Hate to say it but in this area, YES!  I am immersing myself in the world of short sales, it’s sink or swim, no getting away from them!

So knowing that, let’s look at the stats for the local cities I’ve been watching.

Upland – 159 listings, 14 of those are REO and 49 are short sales.

Rancho Cucamonga – 343 listings, 53 REO and 156 short sales.

Claremont – 84 listings, 5 REO and 11 short sales -whoa!

Ontario – 243 listings, 50 REO and 164 short sales.

Fontana – 494 listings, 81 REO and 287 short sales.

My take on these numbers for March?

Well, dear old Claremont is picking up speed – 16 more listings, 4 more REO’s and only 1 more short sale.

Overall, the other cities saw increases in listings except Rancho, down 11.   Lone wolf Fontana was the only city with more REO’s, the other cities were down for the count.

But SHORT SALES were UP in every city I’m currently watching!

The heat is on!  I just want to throw this out there.   Did you know that in the 91701 zip code, one of the most affluent in the Inland Empire,  there are 175 Notices of Default on homes?  These homeowners are 3 months delinquent.  And these homes are NOT on the market.  What happens when the loan modifications don’t work and they hit the market as SHORT SALES?   The writing is on the wall…….

 
No Comments

Posted in Real Estate Update, Uncategorized

 

February Stats

08 Feb

Last month I started reporting the number of homes for sale in Upland, Rancho Cucamonga, Claremont, Ontario and Fontana. I also reported the number of short sales and Bank owned (REO) listings. Those numbers gave us a benchmark to track the sales and listing activity for 2010.

Let’s take a look at where we are in the Real Estate market today.

Upland is coming in with 152 total listings. 40 are short sales and 17 are REO.
Rancho Cucamonga is at 332 listings. 152 are short sales and 51 are REO.
Ontario has 284 listings. 157 are short sales and 47 are REO.
Claremont is at 68 listings. 10 are short sales and only 1 REO.
Fontana is at 487 total listings. 272 are short sales and 89 are REO.

So what does this tell us from my January 5th post?

Upland, Rancho and Fontana had a spike in new listings in the last month. While Ontario and Claremont declined slightly in total listings.
Short sales are on the rise in all cities except Claremont.
And the number you have all been waiting for: REO’s, the dreaded bank inventory is DOWN in all 5 cities!

Draw your own conclusions, my take from this is that we are just starting to see the tip of the iceberg in regards to short sales hitting the market.
Buckle up, this is going to be a bumpy ride!

 
No Comments

Posted in Real Estate Update

 
Newer Entries »