Mass media reporting is real estate's worst enemy - 07/29/10 11:49 AM
The Public Has QuestionsI had an interesting conversation with a stranger yesterday who I met while running errands.  I was wearing my Coldwell Banker polo shirt so the person wanted to ask questions.  All the questions were aimed at getting a reality check about reports in the media about short sales, foreclosures, interest rates, etc.News Stories Are DeceptiveThe person had the impression, based on media reports, that short sales and foreclosures were a major issue in Silicon Valley.  That's flat out wrong.  Both short sales and foreclosures have been dropping, "shadow inventory" is not increasing, and sales remain strong throughout the … (6 comments)

Homeowner limbo is the new pergatory for our markets - 07/27/10 06:19 PM

According to Corelogic, a company that tracks mortgage performance, there are nearly 12,000 homeowners in default in the San Jose metro area.  A number of them are in a new form of limbo where the bank tells them they're in default but hasn't moved forward with foreclosure or authorized a short sale.  This creates a very dark cloud for our local market because we don't know if that inventory will become available or not.The homeowners themselves are stuck in limbo because the stay in the homes without paying their mortgages.  Others are still negotiating with their banks but not making … (1 comments)

Silicon Valley million-dollar homes sales keep getting better - 07/20/10 11:16 PM
SALES ARE UPA total of 266 homes priced at $1 million or more were sold in Silicon Valley in June, up 24% from the same time last year.  The top 3 cities were San Jose (54), Los Altos (44), and Palo Alto (38).  Relative to available inventory, Los Altos is the best market for sales at $1 million or more.  It is rare to find a home in Los Altos priced under $1 million and if you do, it's a shack (literally) on a tiny lot....AND INVENTORY DOWNAvailable homes have been dropping steadily for the past two months as we go … (5 comments)

High-end hit in foreclosure crisis...NOT! - 07/15/10 05:32 PM
Mass Media Fearmongering!
It amazes me to no end that our mass media are allowed to write stories anymore.  The SJ Mercury News (news?, really?) had the gall to publish a story entitled "Santa Clara County's high-end houses hit in foreclosure crisis".  What's stunning is that near the end of the article the author says "Lee said that at this point, the default notices hitting expensive homes have not translated into actual sales of those homes."  So this news isn't really news then?Here's a little education for the media...DEFAULT NOTICE DOES NOT EQUAL FORECLOSURE!It never has and it never will.  It … (6 comments)

Are the rich really the biggest mortgage defaulters? - 07/09/10 03:27 PM

Rich Defaulters?  Hot off the New York Times presses this morning is a report that there are five homes in Los Altos - my primary market - coming up for foreclosure.  Furthermore, this town, one of the most expensive in the country, is an indicator that the wealthy are walking away from their loans.Very Few Actually Do: The article states that Los Altos had 16 defaults for the first five months in 2010 versus the same period in 2009.  However, those are NOT translating into foreclosures.  Of the 141 homes sold in 2010 so far, the MLS data only shows … (1 comments)

Kuish v. Smith - goodbye non-refundable deposits... - 07/07/10 07:17 PM
Kuish v. Smith: This was a recent case in California in which the buyer submitted an offer with a $620,000 non-refundable deposit.  The buyer cancelled the agreement and the seller eventually sold the property for more than the original offer.  The seller refused to return the deposit because the contract had said it was "non-refundable".Ultimately, the buyer did get his deposit back after the appeals court ruled.  The case reflects the idea that actual damages have to occur in order to keep such a deposit.  The key was that the liquidated damages provision in the contract wasn't initialed.Advise your clients are … (1 comments)

 
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Bryan Robertson

Los Altos, CA

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