It is certainly a great time to purchase a property only if there is something to buy. There are plenty of buyers looking to make the purchase but instead, they are experiencing disappointment after disappointment in trying to make offers for a home. Some buyers have made offers over the asking price only to find out that there were 20 other offers for the same house. Some all cash purchases, some with large down payments, and most of them are over the asking price as well. This is due to the lack of properties available for sale. The housing inventory is so low that it is creating a sellers market. Where is all of the shadow inventory? Until more properties come on the market, buyers need to be patient and hope that more properties come on the market.
It seems like the market is improving. Sales have been increasing and here are 8 areas that are showing signs of a recovery.
I have been experiencing a market that resembles the last seller’s market not a buyer’s market. There is not a lot of inventory available for all of the buyers here in the Bay Area. I have a property for sale in Pacifica, Ca, listed at $338k and received 6 offers and all above the list price. I have been also representing buyers and making offers to purchase, but have been in bidding wars. In San Mateo county, it would take approx. 4.1 months to sell all of the homes that are on the market compared to 4.5 months same time last year. Where are all of the bank owned properties?
There has been more then 610,000 foreclosures last month and represents a 1% increase then the previous quarter. On average it took 336 days to complete the foreclosure process nation wide. New York took 986 days to complete the process while Texas only took 86 days. Wow, Texas seems to be doing something different.
President Obama is expected to help struggling homeowners with their mortgage payments. The Wall Street Journal reports, ”The administration’s plan is expected to eliminate “appraisals and extensive underwriting requirements for most borrowers” who are up-to-date on their mortgage and want to refinance at a lower rate”. This should help those who have been keeping up with their payments and were looking for assistance in avoiding foreclosure.
While most the country is having foreclosure problems, there are areas that are still doing well. These areas are the most expensive areas in the United States. The economy today doesn’t seem to hurt these types of properties. In fact, it seems to have increased the sales activity in this price range.
California home sales are looking at a 1% increase in 2012 and the sales price may also increase 1.7%. Employment , low interest rates and an increase of affordable homes are going to fuel the sales activity and help get the recovery going. “It will take as long as five years for the state’s inventory of foreclosed properties to be absorbed” according to Leslie Appleton-Young, chief economist for the California Association of Realtors.
As we are getting into the last quarter of the year, San Francisco and the Bay Area have gone through a lot of changes. They could be good or bad depending on how you look at it. As I have mentioned on another post, what will the city be like in the next 5 years? I believe it should be at a point of recovery. We’ll see.
Home sales rose slightly last month. This is the sixth month in a row that home sales have increased. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, says “We’re clearly on a recovery path”. This is a good sign and sales should continue to increase.
There are all types of buyers out taking advantage of the market. First time buyers purchased 33% of homes sold in March and all cash buyers purchased 35% of the homes sold, for example. With the market current market conditions, it makes more sense to purchase a property then renting.
If you plan to purchase a home in the near future, you might want to speed up the process in order to have 3.5% of your closing cost paid by Fannie Mae. That’s right, Fannie Mae is trying to decrease their inventory of REOs. If you close on a HomePath property by June 30, 2011, you’ll be able to save 3.5% of the purchase price in closing cost. So act now!!!!
Home sales have fallen in February and is normal for a uneven recovery. According to Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, even though properties are more affordable and the economy is improving, we will continue to see a rocky recovery as long as we have problems with tight credit and lower prices.
Home prices declined 3.8% in February compared to last year, however they are up 4.2% from two years ago. Could this be a sign of our recovery or maybe the double dip is about to happen? It’s hard to say but it is a great time to purchase a property. Interest rates are still at all time lows, prices have gone down, there are a lot of properties to choose from, and you still have some tax benefits. When you’re ready, there are a lot of things to consider.
With January increase of home sales, it could be a sign that things maybe turning around. Property sales increased 2.7%, nationally, and represents the first time in 7 months that sales were higher then a year ago. 23% of the sales were by investors and there was an increase of all cash purchases representing the highest level ever.
Even though we are having economic problems, it is still a great time to purchase a property. Interest rates are still pretty low and there are plenty of inventory. This will change, but when? Why not get something now and grow with your investment. If you are ready, here are 5 affordable areas and 5 very expensive areas. No matter where you go, the prices are definitely less then the were in 2007.
Sales in San Francisco has been steady and returning to a healthy pace. Sales rose by 20.7% from a year ago, January 2010.
Don’t miss this great opportunity to realize your dream of owning your own home. You might be surprised to know that it could be cheaper or as much as your rent.
